Posts

Posted on

Reading Around

Mysteries + Romance + Audiobooks for the week of Sept 10, 2019

If you’re like me, you’re reading an ebook, a print book and an audiobook (or two). And let’s not get into podcasts because I’ve happily fallen into that rabbit hole, too.

Or, you don’t and you’re wondering how my head hasn’t exploded.

Below are my current reads with links if you’re interested in adding them to your TBR (To Be Read) list/pile/queue.

Cozy Mystery – Kindle

Death Overdue: A Haunted Library Mystery by Allison Brook

All the feel good coziness you want in a fall themed cozy mystery, plus a one-ghost rating for spookiness.

Historical Mystery – Kindle Unlimited Audible

Relative Fortunes: A Julia Kydd Novel, Book 1 by Marlowe Benn; Narrated by Sarah Zimmerman

At first I had a tough time getting behind this 1920s-era amateur sleuth. She’s motivated by financial gain to solve the suicide or murder of a suffragette. The more she understands the plight of the woman on the front lines to secure the 19th Amendment, the more she realizes that without her privilege, she is just as vulnerable as the next woman.

Red Herring: True Crime Audible

Lost Girls: An Unsolved American Mystery by Robert Kolker; Narrated by Sean Pratt

I’m listening to this in bits and bites. It’s hard to listen to one downfall story after the next. But strangely compelling. I’ll keep you posted.

I use affiliate links to Amazon.

Posted on

The dead are waiting

What readers are saying about the Dori O. Paranormal Mystery Series:

Book One: Lost in the Light

★★★★ “Full of mystery, emotion, and a plot that keeps the readers on their toes, I couldn’t peel my eyes away.”
★★★★ “This book captivated me. One of my favorite mystery reads of the year, and one to get your to-read list!”

Amazon & Audible
iTunes
Barnes & Noble
More

Book Two: Girl in the Mist (novella)

★★★★ “I loved the ghost aspect of the story…well thought out and shocking!”
★★★★ “…the emotional power kicks in, along with a mystery that held me spellbound.”

Amazon & Audible
iTunes
Barnes & Noble
More

Book Three: Lost in Whispers

★★★★“The best book in the series so far!”
★★★★“An eerie, absorbing journey.”
★★★★“I could hardly put it down after starting it. Love the strong badass women characters. This book had it all; romance, action, & paranormal activity. Can’t wait to see what Dori does next!”

This title is currently under review and will be republished in Fall 2020.

Posted on

Getting organized

I’m putting together a Dori O. Read Along and a Beta Reader & Listener Tribe.

If you’re like to do a read along of the Dori O. series, please sign up here and we’ll coordinate dates and times and places and all that stuff to make it fun!

If you love getting first, never-before-seen copies of my new books and/or audiobooks, please sign up for my Beta Tribe. (We need to come up with a better name but we’ll get to that later!) As a beta reader/listener, you’ll help me out by leaving reviews, taking some cool Facebook and/or Bookstagram pics and sharing with the world why you love the books.

Thanks for making it all happen! Without readers, these books would just linger in the ether. And that’s not very fun!

Posted on

Mary at Wondercon 2019

This is my very first Wonder Con signing and if you’re planning to be there, come say hi!

I’ll be in the Broad Universe Booth #902 signing at 10 a.m. on Saturday March 30th. If you’re not an early riser, I’ll be there all day Saturday and Sunday managing the booth. I can’t wait to chat with you and sign special edition print copies of Lost in Whispers + Girl in the Mist and Lost in Whispers.

Here’s our booth line-up so you can stock up your TBR pile!

  • D.D. Croix writes YA fantasy set in Queen Victoria’s court about a misfit maid with a magical pet dragonfly. Sort of HARRY POTTER x DOWNTON ABBEY
  • Angela Shelley writes middle-grade fantasy featuring a necromancer girl sent on a quest by an artifact-hunting wizard where she must learn magic to battle an undead sorcerer, monsters, pirates, massive storms, and zombie chickens.
  • Jennifer Lynn Wines wrote a young adult paranormal mystery feature a teenage girl who must solve a century old murder.
  • Paranormal romance author and self-proclaimed “Smut Mongering Minx” Cynthia Diamond offers stories full of humor and adventure featuring strong women, passionate men, and worlds where consent is always sexy.
  • Join paranormal and sci-fi romance author Tessa McFionn and discover worlds where heroes do exist, heroines are quite capable of rescuing themselves, and where love truly conquers all. Time to believe in magic.
  • Eddie Louise writes Steampunk mad science. Think Frankenstein meets Quantum Leap.
  • Zenobia Neil writes about the mythic past and Greek and Roman gods having too much fun.

Schedule

Posted on

From the research notes

Finding the stories of the women and nurses who were at Pearl Harbor in 1941 happened when I least expected to find them. Here’s one that I found thanks to a late night Google search and the San Diego Union-Tribune!

Army nurse recalls attack on Pearl Harbor

ERICA WARREN – Staff Writer
December 6, 2003

FALLBROOK — A little more than six decades ago, U.S. Army Nurse Corps 2nd Lt. Harriet Moore and two friends weighed the option of being stationed for two years in the Philippines or two years at Pearl Harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii.

The decision was easy, and on Nov. 9, 1941, the 22-year-old Moore arrived for duty as a registered nurse assigned to the maternity ward at Tripler General Hospital near Hickam Field in Hawaii.

“We thought we were having a two-year (holiday-style) tour of duty at taxpayer expense,” Harriet Moore Holmes, now 84, said Tuesday in an interview at her Fallbrook home. “We were looking forward to it immensely.”

Less than a month later, on Dec. 7, notions of a leisurely tour of duty were gone and Holmes and her friends’ lives were forever changed.

Read more

Posted on

Lost in the Light audiobook finals in ABR Audiobook Listeners Choice Awards

NEWS

Lost in the Light is a finalist in the Mystery category for the 2018 ABR Audiobook Listeners Choice Awards!

This is such an incredible moment. I started from scratch not knowing if I had the chops to narrate an entire audiobook or figure out how to produce it. But thanks to all of the tools provided by ACX, my podcast listeners as well as my background in high school theatre, I pulled it off!

Seriously, to be included in the finalist category is an honor.

Thank you and congratulations to my fellow nominees.

Posted on

Let’s listen to Lost in the Light audiobook together!

AudiobookTourJoin the Lost in the Light audiobook interview tour hosted by Audiobookworm!

If you love audiobooks, blog about books and/or looking for a chilling paranormal mystery, this is a great opportunity for us to get to know each other and talk about books.

Sign up for the tour

Praise from Audible Listeners

“A fun, escapist read!” – An Amazon customer

“Wow, that’s all I can say, what a book! Dori is a police detective recovering from an injury that puts the badge she wears in jeopardy. Needing an outlet Dori buys an old house in her hometown, determined to slowly bring it back to life. ” – Audio Audits

“Lost in this Good Book!”

I thoroughly enjoyed Lost in the Light. It’s a wonderful combination of ghost story and historical fiction with a modern-day heroine to root for. The author does a great job toggling between the main character, Dori Orihuela in the present day and the life story of her ghost, Vincente. The intertwining stories drew me and kept me riveted until the end.  – Deb

“A sweet story”

Would you listen to Lost in the Light again? Why?

I loved the quirky and sympathetic characters in this book, they were so easy to listen to I would definitely listen again. – Nia Wright

“Entertaining new series – I’m looking forward to t”

I really liked this book. I love paranormal mysteries, historic fiction, and stories about haunted houses. This book hit all those points. The book has lots of interesting characters (I especially love Grammy Cena and Meg), and is a fun look back at the times of prohibition in California. – Leslie F.

“Terrific First Book in the Series!”

Where does Lost in the Light rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It was wonderful, and I know I will listen to it again. Mary Castillo did a terrific job narrating it, bringing all the characters to life. She is a top-notch writer, and she covers an intertwined plot that spans two time periods perfectly. A great story! – Fascinating Books

Posted on

Mary’s Ladies Who Lead – Grammy Cena

Meet Grammy Cena from the comedic women’s fiction collection of stories in Names I Call My Sister

Readers Weigh In

“Till Death Do Us Part” by Mary Castillo was my favorite novella in the collection. Castillo’s treatment of the sister Dori and Sela made me laugh till I cried.”
— Victoria

“Names I Call My Sister is a beautifully written and bold collection of novellas. The sisters in each story are struggling to find themselves within each other’s strengths and weaknesses. An excellent choice for a book club.”
— Emily (Jefferson, GA)

“It’s an anthology worth reading, but be warned: It just may prompt a middle of the night phone call to one’s own sister. In ‘Till Death Do Us Part’, two sisters attend their perfect brother’s wedding. Castillo’s characters are hilarious, touching and real all at the same time.”
— Romantic Times BOOKclub

Get it

Posted on

Now Available: Girl in the Mist – Paranormal Romance Audiobook

2.0 Paranormal Romance Audiobook Novella in the Dori O. Paranormal Mystery Series

Audible
New to Audible? Listen for free
iTunes

Listen to an excerpt of chapter 1

A paranormal romance audiobook about an unsolved mystery and tragic love read by Mary Castillo

When we last saw Dori Orihuela in her first thrilling paranormal mystery, Lost in the Light, she received a shocking message slipped to by her high school flame, Gavin Salazar.

In this short paranormal romance audiobook, Girl in the Mist, we pick up where we left these two lovers as Gavin sweeps Dori off to a romantic weekend in Carmel, California. Their charming cottage, hidden in the cypress trees, holds a dark secret. A young woman appears in the mist, not knowing her name or how long she’s been dead. When Dori tries to find out what happened to this broken young spirit, everyone she encounters refuses to speak of what happened.

Dori also has a few secrets of her own that she’s hoping never to tell Gavin … even if holding onto them could destroy the best thing that’s ever happened to her.

Girl in the Mist can be enjoyed as a stand-alone paranormal romance audiobook, but it is part of the Dori O. Paranormal Mystery Series.

 

Length: Novella

Heat Rating: Two flames

WARNING: May make you blush and possibly think twice about getting up in the middle of the night!

What readers are saying about the Dori Orihuela Paranormal Mystery series:

“This book captivated me. The ending might have been my favorite. One of my favorite mystery reads of the year, and one to get your to-read list!”
– Samantha March, Chick Lit Plus on Lost in the Light

4.5 Lightning Bolts
“Lost In The Light is an enchanting story that takes the reader from present to the past. Full of mystery, emotion, and a plot that keeps the readers on their toes, I couldn’t peel my eyes away. Ms. Castillo, you’ve got a new fan. I can’t wait for more!”
– Storm Goddess Book Reviews