Fire and Ice by B.T. Polcari
About Author B.T. Polcari…
B.T. Polcari is a multiple-award-winning author whose debut novel, Against My Better Judgment, won Honorable Mention in the Mystery/Crime Category of the Eric Hoffer Awards and the Silver Medal for YA Mystery in the Readers’ Favorite Awards. The book was also one of only 134 Eric Hoffer Grand Prize Finalists out of 2500 entries, a First Horizon Award Finalist for debut authors, a Finalist in Cozy Mysteries of the American Fiction Awards, and a Finalist in Humor/Satire/Comedy of the Best Book Awards.
Polcari’s second book, Fire and Ice, was a category finalist in The Eric Hoffer Awards and a finalist in both the Cozy Mysteries and Humor/Comedy/Satire categories of the American Fiction Awards.
His third book, Lucky Secrets, has received critical acclaim from Kirkus and The US Review of Books, among others (for a small sample, see Editors’ Review on the Lucky Secrets Amazon page).
Polcari is a graduate of Rutgers University and a proud father of two wonderful children. He’s a champion of rescue pups (Mauzzy is but one example), craves watching football and basketball, and, of course, loves reading mysteries. Among his favorite authors are Richard Osman, D.P. Lyle, Frederick Forsyth, Robert B. Parker, and Michael Connelly. He is also an unapologetic fantasy football addict. He lives with his wife in scenic Chattanooga, Tennessee.
This is a spotlight on “Fire and Ice” by B.T. Polcari
Fire and Ice Blurb
After encountering a brief power outage at work, college student Sara Donovan might be allowing her imagination to run wild. The main vault in the Carlton Museum holds the Fire and Ice Exhibit, a collection of rare gems, including the Star of Midnight, a 175-carat diamond. Although all the stones are accounted for, Sara suspects the Star of Midnight was stolen and replaced with a fake.
While conducting her own investigation, what Sara uncovers is beyond even her wildest imagination: a coded message, papers with strange characters, and a mysterious set of numbers carved into an office wall. Despite dismissive historians and other experts, she is certain these clues point to a mysterious centuries-old legend.
Unfortunately, her colorful history of usually being right, but always being wrong, means she must solve the mystery to prove her theory.
What Readers can expect from Fire and Ice
The genre is YA Mystery although the book has crossover appeal to all generations as a Cozy Mystery. My hope is that readers will laugh as they work on solving the mysteries, which in Fire and Ice includes codes, ciphers, and puzzles. When I set out to write the Mauzzy & Me Mystery Series, of which Fire and Ice is the second book, I wanted to write fun quirky books with a young protagonist who people looked on as different but possessed an inner strength even she didn’t know was rattling around in there somewhere. In Fire and Ice, and later in Lucky Secrets, I also focused on Sara Donovan, the protagonist, learning from past mistakes and gaining in confidence and growing her self-image. At the end of the day, I want readers to finish the book with a smile on their faces, laughter in their hearts, and the knowledge that being true to yourself and believing in your convictions will carry you a long way. Ultimately the story is about perseverance and self-belief.
Fire and IcePurchase Links
Fire and IcePurchase Links for Paperback
Signed copies can be purchased at B.T Polcari’s website.
An excerpt from Fire and Ice…
Not long after ending the call, traffic eased and twenty minutes later I swiped into the main vault, keeping an eye out for a furious Boss Lady. I stowed my purse in my desk, made a cup of coffee, and slipped over to Danielle’s cubicle.
She glanced up, relief washing over her face when she saw me. In a low voice, she said, “Where have you been?”
“Traffic. Was Evy looking for me?”
“Not that I know of.”
“Guess I’ll find out soon enough.”
She wrinkled her nose and took two quick sniffs. “What’s that smell?”
I raised a hand. “I was tired this morning.”
“What’d you do? Smells like you just came out of the woods.”
“Accidently sprayed on cologne, then tried to cover it up with perfume.”
“That fits.”
My head dropped. “In so many ways.”
“It’s a Monday.”
“Why are Mondays so hard?” I moaned. “Like, today Friday is so far away. But on Friday, Monday is lurking so fricking close.”
“Right?”
Just then my stomach growled, reminding me breakfast only consisted of coffee. The guy two cubicles over always had pistachios or cashews that he let me poach. “Nathan,” I yelled. “You have any nuts?”
Nathan stood outside his cubicle talking with a guy I didn’t recognize. For a brief moment he paused, then slowly turned his head toward me.
Oh, God. Don’t say it, Nathan. Please don’t say anything. Forget I asked.
“I think that’s a personal question,” Nathan said softly, before turning back to the other guy.
Fricking Monday just kept on giving.
