Jump Cut
Author: Libby Fischer Hellmann
Genre: Mystery
Book Description:
Chicago video producer, Ellie Foreman, has been absent from thriller author Libby Fischer Hellmann’s repertoire for almost a decade. Now she’s back...and soon entangled in a web of espionage, murder and suspicion that threatens to destroy what she holds most dear. Hired to produce a candyfloss profile of Chicago-based aviation giant, Delcroft, Ellie is dismayed when company VP Charlotte Hollander, the architect of a new anti-drone system for Delcroft, trashes the production and cancels the project. Ellie believes Hollander was spooked by shots of a specific man in the video footage. But when Ellie arranges to meet the man to find out why, he’s killed by a subway train before they can talk. In the confusion, she finds a seemingly abandoned pack of cigarettes with a flash drive inside that belonged to the now dead man.
Ellie has the drive’s contents decrypted, but before long she discovers she’s under surveillance. Suspecting Delcroft and the ambitious Hollander are behind it, she’s unconvinced when Hollander tells her the dead man was a Chinese spy. Ellie and her boyfriend Luke try to find answers, but they don’t realize how far into the dangerous echelons of hidden power they have ventured. When Ellie’s daughter is kidnapped and Charlotte Hollander disappears, it becomes terrifyingly clear that Ellie is in way over her head, and more lives are on the line, including her own.
Author: Libby Fischer Hellmann
Genre: Mystery
Book Description:
Chicago video producer, Ellie Foreman, has been absent from thriller author Libby Fischer Hellmann’s repertoire for almost a decade. Now she’s back...and soon entangled in a web of espionage, murder and suspicion that threatens to destroy what she holds most dear. Hired to produce a candyfloss profile of Chicago-based aviation giant, Delcroft, Ellie is dismayed when company VP Charlotte Hollander, the architect of a new anti-drone system for Delcroft, trashes the production and cancels the project. Ellie believes Hollander was spooked by shots of a specific man in the video footage. But when Ellie arranges to meet the man to find out why, he’s killed by a subway train before they can talk. In the confusion, she finds a seemingly abandoned pack of cigarettes with a flash drive inside that belonged to the now dead man.
Ellie has the drive’s contents decrypted, but before long she discovers she’s under surveillance. Suspecting Delcroft and the ambitious Hollander are behind it, she’s unconvinced when Hollander tells her the dead man was a Chinese spy. Ellie and her boyfriend Luke try to find answers, but they don’t realize how far into the dangerous echelons of hidden power they have ventured. When Ellie’s daughter is kidnapped and Charlotte Hollander disappears, it becomes terrifyingly clear that Ellie is in way over her head, and more lives are on the line, including her own.
Buy Links:
Author Interview
1.What inspired you to want to become a writer?
Interesting question. For years I didn’t know. I could always tell you how and when I started: it was February, 1996, just after my father passed away. We went to DC (that’s where I grew up) for the funeral, and after we came back, I went down into my basement. I emerged four months later with the worst mystery that’s ever been written. No really…. it was baaaad. But I had caught the writing virus. Three novels later my writing improved to the point where I was published for the first time.
Then, about eight years ago, I was watching the news. A story came on, and I experienced one of those smack-yourself-on-the-forehead, how-could-I-have-been-so-stupid moments. You probably remember the story—about O.J. Simpson and how he’d been arrested in Vegas for trying to steal his own memorabilia.
Back then I was free-lancing, and I had a flexible schedule. So I was able to watch a lot of the trial. I remember being glued to the TV, and what I remember most was the theater: a hideous crime, a compelling story, eccentric characters, drama, conflict—in other words, everything you could want in a crime novel.
Then there were the forensics. I knew nothing about police procedure -- and less about forensics. DNA tests, blood spatter, the bloody glove, the footprints. I was fascinated that crimes could actually be investigated in a systematic way. And when the defense suggested that some of the evidence had been mishandled—maybe even manipulated—it played to all of my conspiracy theories.
Finally, of course, there was the denouement in October 1995. How absolutely noir an ending! The victims are denied justice. The bad guy goes free. Raymond Chandler or Ross McDonald couldn't have done it better. OJ was acquitted in October, 1995.
It doesn’t take much to connect the dots, does it? But it wasn’t until twelve years after that, in 2007, when O.J. was arrested in Vegas, that the light bulb flashed. THAT’s why I’m writing crime fiction. But who wants to give the devil his due? Still, if I’m honest, thirteen novels later, I have to admit that this devil changed my life.
2. Tell us your most rewarding experience since being published.
I’m in a writers’ group – have been for twenty years (They’ll take me out of there feet first). When I first started, I didn’t know what I didn’t know. In fact, I knew very little. For example, before I was published, I wrote three novels. None have seen the light of day, and they never will, because they weren’t ready. I had to learn the craft of fiction. To wit, in one of those novels, two male police officers were the protagonists. One of them walked into a house to question a witness, and the first thing he noticed were the curtains in the window. “Um... no,” said my writing group. A solid, beefy cop would NOT notice curtains when he walked into a house. "You need to learn the difference between a man and a woman's point of view”, they said. Looking back, it seems obvious now. But at the time it felt like a revelation.
As for the best compliment – that also happened in my writers’ group. Two years after that, I finally discovered Ellie Foreman and brought in the first chapter of what would become AN EYE FOR MURDER. I read it out loud. Afterwards there was absolute silence. I was sure I'd done something wrong. This was it, I was thinking. They're going to kick me out. Instead, as I looked around, the woman who'd been hardest on me, said, "That was amazing. You found your voice." Her comment is still the most flattering thing anyone has ever said to me about my writing.
3. If you could have a signed copy of any novel what would it be and why?
Probably To Kill A Mockingbird. I think it’s one of the best American novels ever written. A close second would be Gone With The Wind. I’d love to have Margaret Mitchell’s autograph. Interesting… I just realized both those books were written by women. Hmmm…
4. If you could have any superpower what would you choose?
I’d like an invisibility cloak so I can sneak into meetings and conversations and find out what people REALLY say, think, and feel. Can you imagine what that would do for my crime stories? I’d have the absolute truth about motivations and perhaps even methodologies.
5. Please tell us in one sentence only, why we should read your book.
You should read JUMP CUT because it’s a story that might actually be happening in reality, and it will keep you up way too late.
6. Any other books in the works? Goals for future projects?
Right now, I’m in the middle of my second novella that takes place during WW2. This one is about German POWs who were in camps here. The first was THE INCIDENTAL SPY, which was about a woman who is forced to spy on the early years of the Manhattan project. When the POW novella is finished, I’ll combine both into something that likely will have the word “Homefront” in the title. After thatm the plan is to write a crime caper novel. I introduced the characters in a short story called Capital Partners (which is widely available online) and I plan to continue their journey. Then I’ll probably write either another Georgia or Ellie book. At least that’s the plan.
7. Do you write as you go or do you have the book planned before you start the first draft?
I write as I go. I used to outline, before I was published. But the novels I outlined never were sold. I found out, from a wonderful editor, that was because I was writing the outline rather than the story, and was getting in the way of my characters. They were behaving the way I wanted them to, rather than the way they might authentically behave if I left them to their own devices. This editor suggested I try writing “without a net” as we sometimes say. I was reluctant to do that – being a Type A, I told her of course I was in control of my characters and story.
“No,” she said. “you’re really not.”
“What,” I said, “Am I somehow channeling them mystically like Shirley Maclaine?”
“Well,” the editor said, “Yes. Kind of.”
So I figured I’d give it a try. I had nothing to lose. Guess what? She was right. I learned quickly that all I had to do was create complex personalities and then let them loose on the world and each other. I now write backstories for my main characters, and that’s the extent of preparation I do prior to writing. The very next novel I wrote was the 1st novel that was published. Thirteen novels later, I may have it down.
8. What movie and/or book are you looking forward to this year?
Movies: I tend to go to movies where I know and respect the director and/or producers. So the Coen Brothers, Hail Caesar, is on my list. Anything by Martin Scorcese, Francis Ford Coppola, Steven Spielberg, Kathyrn Bigelow, Wes Anderson. There’s also an Australian TV show I adore and am waiting impatiently for Season 4. It’s called A Place To Come Home To.
Books are the same way. I go by authors. So I cant wait for the next Daniel Silva novel; the next Michael Connelly, Karin Slaughter, Tess Gerritsen, and Sara Paretsky novels.
9. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be?
That’s a tough question. I don’t think I could narrow it down to one place. I’d need several homes. One on the beach – probably California, but the Amalfi Coast in Italy might do too. Or the south of Spain. I’d also need my forest retreat. Without black flies, so upper Wisconsin would be okay, after the flies disappear. Near a lake, of course. I’d need a pied a terre in Paris, of course, as well as a home in Chicago. Should I go on?
10. Can you see yourself in any of your characters?
I see parts of myself in every character. Whether it’s part of my personality or just the product of my imagination, I’m not sure. But that’s the fun part of writing. I can create whatever character I want. Where it stops being me is after they come onto the page. Then they seem to acquire their own behavior and xxx
Interesting question. For years I didn’t know. I could always tell you how and when I started: it was February, 1996, just after my father passed away. We went to DC (that’s where I grew up) for the funeral, and after we came back, I went down into my basement. I emerged four months later with the worst mystery that’s ever been written. No really…. it was baaaad. But I had caught the writing virus. Three novels later my writing improved to the point where I was published for the first time.
Then, about eight years ago, I was watching the news. A story came on, and I experienced one of those smack-yourself-on-the-forehead, how-could-I-have-been-so-stupid moments. You probably remember the story—about O.J. Simpson and how he’d been arrested in Vegas for trying to steal his own memorabilia.
Back then I was free-lancing, and I had a flexible schedule. So I was able to watch a lot of the trial. I remember being glued to the TV, and what I remember most was the theater: a hideous crime, a compelling story, eccentric characters, drama, conflict—in other words, everything you could want in a crime novel.
Then there were the forensics. I knew nothing about police procedure -- and less about forensics. DNA tests, blood spatter, the bloody glove, the footprints. I was fascinated that crimes could actually be investigated in a systematic way. And when the defense suggested that some of the evidence had been mishandled—maybe even manipulated—it played to all of my conspiracy theories.
Finally, of course, there was the denouement in October 1995. How absolutely noir an ending! The victims are denied justice. The bad guy goes free. Raymond Chandler or Ross McDonald couldn't have done it better. OJ was acquitted in October, 1995.
It doesn’t take much to connect the dots, does it? But it wasn’t until twelve years after that, in 2007, when O.J. was arrested in Vegas, that the light bulb flashed. THAT’s why I’m writing crime fiction. But who wants to give the devil his due? Still, if I’m honest, thirteen novels later, I have to admit that this devil changed my life.
2. Tell us your most rewarding experience since being published.
I’m in a writers’ group – have been for twenty years (They’ll take me out of there feet first). When I first started, I didn’t know what I didn’t know. In fact, I knew very little. For example, before I was published, I wrote three novels. None have seen the light of day, and they never will, because they weren’t ready. I had to learn the craft of fiction. To wit, in one of those novels, two male police officers were the protagonists. One of them walked into a house to question a witness, and the first thing he noticed were the curtains in the window. “Um... no,” said my writing group. A solid, beefy cop would NOT notice curtains when he walked into a house. "You need to learn the difference between a man and a woman's point of view”, they said. Looking back, it seems obvious now. But at the time it felt like a revelation.
As for the best compliment – that also happened in my writers’ group. Two years after that, I finally discovered Ellie Foreman and brought in the first chapter of what would become AN EYE FOR MURDER. I read it out loud. Afterwards there was absolute silence. I was sure I'd done something wrong. This was it, I was thinking. They're going to kick me out. Instead, as I looked around, the woman who'd been hardest on me, said, "That was amazing. You found your voice." Her comment is still the most flattering thing anyone has ever said to me about my writing.
3. If you could have a signed copy of any novel what would it be and why?
Probably To Kill A Mockingbird. I think it’s one of the best American novels ever written. A close second would be Gone With The Wind. I’d love to have Margaret Mitchell’s autograph. Interesting… I just realized both those books were written by women. Hmmm…
4. If you could have any superpower what would you choose?
I’d like an invisibility cloak so I can sneak into meetings and conversations and find out what people REALLY say, think, and feel. Can you imagine what that would do for my crime stories? I’d have the absolute truth about motivations and perhaps even methodologies.
5. Please tell us in one sentence only, why we should read your book.
You should read JUMP CUT because it’s a story that might actually be happening in reality, and it will keep you up way too late.
6. Any other books in the works? Goals for future projects?
Right now, I’m in the middle of my second novella that takes place during WW2. This one is about German POWs who were in camps here. The first was THE INCIDENTAL SPY, which was about a woman who is forced to spy on the early years of the Manhattan project. When the POW novella is finished, I’ll combine both into something that likely will have the word “Homefront” in the title. After thatm the plan is to write a crime caper novel. I introduced the characters in a short story called Capital Partners (which is widely available online) and I plan to continue their journey. Then I’ll probably write either another Georgia or Ellie book. At least that’s the plan.
7. Do you write as you go or do you have the book planned before you start the first draft?
I write as I go. I used to outline, before I was published. But the novels I outlined never were sold. I found out, from a wonderful editor, that was because I was writing the outline rather than the story, and was getting in the way of my characters. They were behaving the way I wanted them to, rather than the way they might authentically behave if I left them to their own devices. This editor suggested I try writing “without a net” as we sometimes say. I was reluctant to do that – being a Type A, I told her of course I was in control of my characters and story.
“No,” she said. “you’re really not.”
“What,” I said, “Am I somehow channeling them mystically like Shirley Maclaine?”
“Well,” the editor said, “Yes. Kind of.”
So I figured I’d give it a try. I had nothing to lose. Guess what? She was right. I learned quickly that all I had to do was create complex personalities and then let them loose on the world and each other. I now write backstories for my main characters, and that’s the extent of preparation I do prior to writing. The very next novel I wrote was the 1st novel that was published. Thirteen novels later, I may have it down.
8. What movie and/or book are you looking forward to this year?
Movies: I tend to go to movies where I know and respect the director and/or producers. So the Coen Brothers, Hail Caesar, is on my list. Anything by Martin Scorcese, Francis Ford Coppola, Steven Spielberg, Kathyrn Bigelow, Wes Anderson. There’s also an Australian TV show I adore and am waiting impatiently for Season 4. It’s called A Place To Come Home To.
Books are the same way. I go by authors. So I cant wait for the next Daniel Silva novel; the next Michael Connelly, Karin Slaughter, Tess Gerritsen, and Sara Paretsky novels.
9. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be?
That’s a tough question. I don’t think I could narrow it down to one place. I’d need several homes. One on the beach – probably California, but the Amalfi Coast in Italy might do too. Or the south of Spain. I’d also need my forest retreat. Without black flies, so upper Wisconsin would be okay, after the flies disappear. Near a lake, of course. I’d need a pied a terre in Paris, of course, as well as a home in Chicago. Should I go on?
10. Can you see yourself in any of your characters?
I see parts of myself in every character. Whether it’s part of my personality or just the product of my imagination, I’m not sure. But that’s the fun part of writing. I can create whatever character I want. Where it stops being me is after they come onto the page. Then they seem to acquire their own behavior and xxx
Libby Fischer Hellmann left a career in broadcast news in Washington, DC and moved to Chicago 35 years ago, where she, naturally, began to write gritty crime fiction. Twelve novels and twenty short stories later, she claims they’ll take her out of the Windy City feet first. She has been nominated for many awards in the mystery and crime writing community and has even won a few. *
With the addition of Jump Cut in 2016, her novels include the now five-volume Ellie Foreman series, which she describes as a cross between “Desperate Housewives” and “24;” the hard-boiled 4-volume Georgia Davis PI series, and three stand-alone historical thrillers that Libby calls her “Revolution Trilogy.” Her latest release, The Incidental Spy, is a historical novella set during the early years of the Manhattan Project at the U of Chicago. Her short stories have been published in a dozen anthologies, the Saturday Evening Post, and Ed Gorman’s “25 Criminally Good Short Stories” collection.
* She has been a finalist twice for the Anthony, twice for Foreword Magazines Book of the Year, the Agatha, the Shamus, the Daphne and has won the Lovey multiple times.
With the addition of Jump Cut in 2016, her novels include the now five-volume Ellie Foreman series, which she describes as a cross between “Desperate Housewives” and “24;” the hard-boiled 4-volume Georgia Davis PI series, and three stand-alone historical thrillers that Libby calls her “Revolution Trilogy.” Her latest release, The Incidental Spy, is a historical novella set during the early years of the Manhattan Project at the U of Chicago. Her short stories have been published in a dozen anthologies, the Saturday Evening Post, and Ed Gorman’s “25 Criminally Good Short Stories” collection.
* She has been a finalist twice for the Anthony, twice for Foreword Magazines Book of the Year, the Agatha, the Shamus, the Daphne and has won the Lovey multiple times.
Author Links:
***GIVEAWAY***
Blog Tour Organised by:
Enjoyed reading your interview, thank you!
ReplyDeleteThank you for hosting
ReplyDeleteWhat are you reading right now?
ReplyDeleteThanks for hosting me, CBY. I'm delighted to be here, Hi, Mai T. I just finished an advance readers copy of JT Ellison's NO ONE KNOWS and went back into the 'archives" to read Thomas Perry's DANCE FOR THE DEAD. I'm about to start a non-fiction book about the code breakers at Bletchley Park during WW2. What about you?
ReplyDeleteSorry for the "xxx" -- I meant to delete it before it was published. My bad.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the interview.
ReplyDeleteReally great interview, I just bought my copy!! Thanks for sharing :)
ReplyDeleteInformative interview!
ReplyDelete--Trix
Sounds like an intreaging story.
ReplyDeleteHello Libby, Jump Cut sounds great ♡ thank you
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed the interview. Sounds like a story I'd enjoy reading.
ReplyDeleteLove the excerpt and interview,will definitely put this on my tbr list.....
ReplyDeleteThanks, everyone. Most of the Ellie Foreman mysteries are based on situations that could happen to anyone. I just take the "what-if" to a unimaginable conclusion. Which is fun. And dangerous.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your interview, sounds like a great read!
ReplyDeleteGreat interview!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the chance to win!
Thanks for hosting
ReplyDeleteI like how the author says this could be reality! That interests me to read this book!
ReplyDeleteWhat do you do in your free time
ReplyDeleteI enjoy reading about a writer's inspiration. Enjoyed the interview.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your interview, Libby! Jump Cut sounds great!
ReplyDeleteFree time, Chris? What free time... between writing and promoting and worrying and biting my nails... there isnt much. But, let's see. I love to read, obviously. I love to watch films, listen to Blues, dance, go out to eat, and travel, particularly when I can do some research along the way. My kids are grown now and out of the house, so I have a little more time these days. Thanks for all the kind words, folks. It's been a pleasure to visit with you today.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good book. Great interview.
ReplyDeleteWhen you are writing do you prefer old school pen and paper or to type?
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like an incredible read! I am dying to know more about what Ellie has gotten herself into. The amount of detail provided in the excerpt is astounding...this really does sound like something that could happen in real life. I hope to read this soon!
ReplyDeleteLoved this book!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed the synopsis. Thank you
ReplyDeleteI love your choice of autographed book. To kill a mockingbird. Mine would be Are you there God ? Its me Margaret for personal reasons.
ReplyDeletelove to read
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading the interview. Thank you for sharing the post and the giveaway!
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed the interview. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteI love your choice of places where you'd like to live - personally I'd add the Scottish highlands to the sea and forest too.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a great read, thank you for the interesting interview!
ReplyDeleteAn interesting interview.
ReplyDeleteReally enjoyed reading the blurb, thank you!
ReplyDeletethanks for the interview . always a pleasure to meet a new author to me.
ReplyDeleteGreat interview. I'd also love to live on a beach in California or Italy!
ReplyDeleteJennifer Rote
read the Interview thanks for giveaway of GC
ReplyDeletetiramisu392 (at) yahoo.com
The author has more than just an impressive resume. I look forward to reading her crime books, my fave genre
ReplyDeleteGreat interview, sounds like an awesome book, thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThis book is very intriguing. It sounds like the plot has many twists and turn which makes for an exciting read.
ReplyDeleteNice interview. Have a great day.
ReplyDeleteGreat book. Thank you for the giveaway.
ReplyDeleteGreat interview! Thank you for sharing :)
ReplyDeleteAwesome giveaway!! Good luck to all :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing the interview! It was fun to read.
ReplyDeleteLove the sound of this. Enjoyed the interview too.
ReplyDeleteYou are a new author for me. I enjoyed the interview and the book looks really interesting.
ReplyDeleteLately I've been reading a lot of romance books, so it would be great to read something different, and as a big fan of mystery and crime, I would love to read this book.
ReplyDeleteI just love the book cover, it’s amazing!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the new book and good luck on the book tour!
ReplyDeleteExcellent review! Can't wait to read this book!
ReplyDeleteGreat interview, thank you.
ReplyDeleteI have added this book to my TBR list and look forward to reading this book!
ReplyDeleteNice interview! I love the cover too, it's quite visually compelling.
ReplyDelete