Author: barbaravenkataraman

A collection of humorous insights into important topics ranging from being targeted by annoying ads (“Nowhere to Hide”), to resorting to symbols when you’ve forgotten your words (“At a Loss for Words”), to figuring out what door that extra key opens (“My Extra Key”). Other essays examine how sitting is the new smoking (whatever that means), and why it is just so hard to focus when you have the … attention span of a gnat.more

Old people were dying at an alarming rate at La Vida Boca, a posh assisted living facility in Boca Raton, Florida. With its sterling reputation, dedicated staff, and top-notch medical care, none of the deaths are considered suspicious, but when members of the poker club start to die under strange circumstances, attorney Jamie Quinn finds herself once again embroiled in a mystery. With help from … from her new friend, Jessie Sandler, and her favorite P.I., Duke Broussard, Jamie uncovers a crime that took place forty years earlier. Can she stop the killer in time? Or is she in danger…

Finally, life is good for reluctant family law attorney, Jamie Quinn–her father may get his visa soon, her boyfriend is the bomb, and her law practice is growing like crazy–but when she agrees to take on a high-profile divorce case, everything falls apart. What looked like an opportunity to work with her friend Grace and make some serious bucks has turned into a deadly game, one that could … destroy their friendship and tear their town apart. Why couldn’t Jamie just leave well enough alone?more

While experimenting with a magic wand, two young brothers are pulled into a computer game called: The Fight for Magicallus. In the land of Magicallus, they encounter goblins and knights who are on the brink of war because their ruler has mysteriously disappeared, and the knights blame the goblins! The boys learn of a frightening prophecy that foretells the end of Magicallus. They must find an … ancient book hidden in a dragon’s lair before the prophecy comes to pass and they are all destroyed… Can the boys find their way home? Will the knights and goblins go to war?…

“Nagging just sounds so negative, and I am not a negative person. Truth is, I’m the kind of person you’d ask for directions if you were lost, or tell your life story to while waiting in line at the grocery store, which has happened on more than one occasion, believe me.” Sure, Ella Boudreaux is great at nagging–in fact, she’s the best—but where has it gotten her? Nowhere, that’s where. … Nowhere, that’s where. She can’t hold onto a job and she can’t find her true calling, but she knows it’s out there. Could a handsome stranger help her find…

For the first time, all in one place, the award-winning books, “A Trip to the Hardware Store & Other Calamities,” and “I’m Not Talking About You, Of Course,” PLUS seven bonus essays. What a collection! If this doesn’t make you smile, then you’re not even trying. “A Trip to the Hardware Store” These humorous essays explore such quirky topics as: disastrous home repairs, (“A Trip to the … Trip to the Hardware Store”), an unfortunate dinner party (“Dinner is Served”), the truth about lazy people (“Lazy Bones”), the weird life of a debt collector (“Your Account is Past Due”) and…

At 8,000 words, this collection of humorous essays explores such quirky topics as: disastrous home repairs, (“A Trip to the Hardware Store”), an unfortunate dinner party (“Dinner is Served”), the truth about lazy people (“Lazy Bones”), the weird life of a debt collector (“Your Account is Past Due”) and obsessions with gadgets (“Gadget Girl”). Other essays examine how surreal the aging process is … is (“Where Did the Time Go?”), why you shouldn’t judge a person by their job (“Beyond Belief”), and how to complicate simple transactions (“High Finance”). Like the author’s first work, “I’m Not Talking About You, Of…

Reluctant lawyer, Jamie Quinn, has returned to her family law practice after a hiatus due to the death of her mother. It’s business as usual until a bitter divorce case turns into a murder investigation, and Jamie’s client becomes the prime suspect. When she can’t untangle truth from lies, Jamie enlists the help of Duke Broussard, her favorite private investigator, to try to clear her client’s … name. And she’s hoping that, in his spare time, he can help her find her long-lost father. A preview of the next Jamie Quinn mystery, “Peril in the Park,” can be found at…

There’s big trouble in the park system. Someone is making life difficult for Jamie Quinn’s boyfriend, Kip Simons, the new director of Broward County parks. Was it the angry supervisor passed over for promotion? The disgruntled employee Kip recently fired? Or someone with a bigger ax to grind? If Jamie can’t figure it out soon, she may be looking for a new boyfriend because there’s a dead guy in … in the park and Kip has gone missing! With the help of her favorite P.I., Duke Broussard, Jamie must race the clock to find Kip before it’s too late. A…

Reluctant lawyer, Jamie Quinn, still reeling from the death of her mother, is pulled into a game of deception, jealousy, and vengeance when her cousin, Adam, is wrongfully accused of murder. It’s up to Jamie to find the real murderer before it’s too late. It doesn’t help that the victim is a former rock star with more enemies than friends, or that Adam confessed to a murder he didn’t commit. A … commit. A preview of Jamie Quinn’s next adventure, “The Case of the Killer Divorce,” can be found at the end of the book. more