DEADLY BUSINESS
by
Anita Dickason
Pages: 324 pages
Publication Date: July 4, 2021
Genre: Suspense / Thriller / Crime Thriller
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A Texas Multi-Billion Dollar Lure!
Following a tactical raid at an Oklahoma farm, a phone call sends U.S. Deputy Marshal Piper McKay rushing back to the East Texas cattle ranch where she grew up. Her grandmother, Jennie Layton, is near death from a crushed skull. When local authorities claim the cause of the injury was an accident, Piper isn’t convinced.
Who wants Jennie dead and why? Is the reason connected to a dubious contract Piper finds in Jennie’s desk?
Piper realizes her grandmother isn’t the only one in danger when she barely escapes a deadly attack. Thrust into the middle of a high-stakes, high-risk shell game, Piper’s become the target. The case takes a bizarre turn when Piper unknowingly crosses paths with a Special Ranger. If he can’t derail her investigation, it could cost him his life.
With millions of dollars on the line, nothing will stop a ring of cold-blooded killers, including the murders of a U.S. Marshal and a Special Ranger.
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How has being a Texan (or Texas) influenced your writing?
There is a saying, Location, Location, Location. It’s not only true for real estate but also for books. As an author, I’ve discovered one of the challenges in developing a plot is the location of the story. And it’s not just one. Every book has multiple locations. They all have to link, to make sense. It’s not always easy. My books are either based in Texas or have a link to Texas. And it’s not because I’ve lived here for most of my adult life. The reason is Texas is huge. The state has such a diverse range of lifestyles and landscapes. Whether I need a big city setting or a small rural town, I’ll find it. There is another tidbit I always add to my stories. I’m a hardcore AGGIE fan. I love the band. In every story, there is a connection to Texas A&M University. Sometimes, you might have to hunt for it, but it’s there. Gig ‘Em!
Why did you choose to write in your particular sub-genre?
My books fall into the Thriller, Suspense genres. It wasn’t so much my choosing the genre as the genre choosing me. I write about cops and crime. It’s what I know. My twenty-two years with the Dallas Police Department have provided an unending source of plots and characters. Every book, and I’ve written six, includes my law enforcement experiences. In my latest release, Deadly Business, my SWAT background provided the details for several of the action scenes.
Where did your love of books come from?
Books have always been my haven in good times and bad. They are the doorway to ideas, dreams, and fantasy. As a child, I was an avid reader, Nancy Drew, Cherry Ames, Vicki Barr, The Hardy Boys, Agatha Christie, Sherlock Holmes, and even Perry Mason. The one common element was a mystery, the investigation. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that I became a cop.
What do you think most characterizes your writing?
Strong characters. While I enjoy developing a plot that weaves and mystifies the reader, it’s the characters that capture my interest. Some are based on individuals I have encountered throughout my law enforcement career, while others are sheer imagination. I go where my characters lead me. What is fascinating is when a minor character turns into a driving force in my plots. In Deadly Business, the ranch foreman, who I intended to be a minor character, didn’t want to stay in the background.
What cultural value do you see in storytelling?
Even though my plots and characters are fiction, my writing involves extensive research into the factual elements of the story. I like to share those tidbits of information with the reader. At the end of my novels, I add a segment titled: The Story Behind the Fiction. In Sentinels of the Night, it was about an amazing woman who translated the chants in the Pawnee Hako Ceremony and published a book in 1904. In A u 7 9, it was a bill signed into law by the Texas Governor in 2015. For Not Dead, it was the story behind one of the main characters, a doll. Operation Navajo dealt with the Federal Reserve and the action scenes in Wyoming. For my latest novel, Deadly Business, the Story Behind the Fiction is about a unique group of law enforcement officers, Special Rangers. I also included a segment on the U.S. Marshal Service and DNA. The DNA played a major role in the plot.
What is one of your favorite quotes from your books?
“Her mind could take flight and reach anywhere in the world.” This is from Operation Navajo. FBI Tracker Nicki Allison is the computer genius for the team and has just made a surprising discovery. When I began writing, I opened a new world of people, events, and places. I discovered that the touch on a keyboard let my mind take flight. And what an inspiring ride it has been. One I might have missed if I hadn’t decided to take the plunge and write my first story.
Award-winning Author Anita Dickason is a twenty-two veteran of the Dallas Police Department. She served as a patrol officer, undercover narcotics detective, advanced accident investigator, tactical officer, and first female sniper on the Dallas SWAT team.
Anita writes about what she knows, cops and crime. Her police background provides an unending source of inspiration for her plots and characters. Many incidents and characters portrayed in her books are based on personal experience. For her, the characters are the fun part of writing as she never knows where they will take her. There is always something out of the ordinary in her stories
In Anita’s debut novel, Sentinels of the Night, she created an elite FBI Unit, the Trackers. Since then, she has added three more Tracker crime thrillers, Going Gone!, A u 7 9, and Operation Navajo. The novels are not a series and can be read in any order.
As a Texas author, many of Anita’s books are based in Texas, or there is a link to Texas. When she stepped outside of the Tracker novels and wrote, Not Dead, she selected Meridian, a small community in central Texas for the location.
Click to visit the LONE STAR LITERARY LIFE TOUR PAGE
for direct links to each tour stop, updated daily. Or visit the blogs directly:
| 7/20/21 | Review | Bibliotica |
| 7/20/21 | BONUS Promo | LSBBT Blog |
| 7/21/21 | Notable Quotable | Missus Gonzo |
| 7/21/21 | BONUS Promo | Hall Ways Blog |
| 7/22/21 | Review | It’s Not All Gravy |
| 7/23/21 | Author Interview | That’s What She’s Reading |
| 7/24/21 | Video Excerpt | StoreyBook Reviews |
| 7/25/21 | Video Excerpt | All the Ups and Downs |
| 7/26/21 | Review | Reading by Moonlight |
| 7/27/21 | Guest Post | The Plain-Spoken Pen |
| 7/28/21 | Review | Chapter Break Book Blog |
| 7/29/21 | Review | Forgotten Winds |
| 7/29/21 | BONUS Review | Jennie Reads |
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That's What She's Reading 
Thank you so very much for hosting Deadly Business. Interviews are always tough for me, so it’s why I don’t do many. But this time, I’m glad I did. I so enjoy your website. Anita
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