Moose Fever by A.J. Marcus Guest Post & Excerpt!

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Hi peeps, we have A.J. Marcus popping in with his upcoming release Moose Fever, the third book in his Mountain Spirit Mysteries. A.J. chats about Moose Fever and he lets us have a sneak peek at an excerpt, so enjoy the post! <3 ~Pixie~

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Moose Fever

(Mountain Spirit Mysteries 03)
by

A.J. Marcus

Colorado Parks and Wildlife Officer Brock Summers and his fiancé, wildlife rehabber Landon Weir, are preparing for their wedding when someone starts killing moose along a creek in the northern part of Teller County. As the moose casualties rise, human bodies turn up, and the case is taken over by the sheriff’s office. When a Forestry Service Ranger is killed, the service joins the hunt. 

All signs point to one of the many photographers who have been taking pictures of the moose. Then Landon discovers a small piece of gold in the creek and they believe they have a motive, but they’re still lacking solid suspects. Bullets fly as they seek to track down the perpetrator while trying to get everything wrapped up in time for their marriage.

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A.J. Marcus & Excerpt

Hey all, this is A.J. Marcus stopping by from the wonderfully chilly Colorado Mountains. I’ll start this guest blog with a shout out to the wonderful folks here at MM Good Book Reviews for giving me the opportunity to say a bit about my upcoming release “Moose Fever”, book 3 in the Mountain Spirit Mysteries series published by DSP Publications. I really appreciate the opportunity to be here.

Well as I say in my opening, “Moose Fever” is book 3 in the Mountain Spirit Mysteries. It will officially release on April 12 2016. Of all my books, I get the most compliments from this series and ironically the most readers telling me who they were hesitant to read the books, and then when they got into them, couldn’t put them down. I’ve never been sure if the thing that grabs people is our main characters, Brock and Landon, or the various animals they encounter along their journey. I personally like to think it’s a bit of both. Brock and Landon have a lot a really hot chemistry. They basically showed up fully formed in my mind and told me what they wanted to do in their stories. I’ve never questioned them and they help keep readers enthralled as they go about their lives solving wildlife crimes in the scenic mountains they, and I, call home.

Most of the locations in the books are real, I visit them on a regular basis, although some of the names have been changed…to protect the guilty…VBG. Like the first two books, and book 4 (yes there will be more adventures), a lot of the action is drawn from either things I’ve been through myself, or things I’ve seen on the news and in online discussions friends have had. I think this helps bring a feeling of reality into my fiction writing, although I really do wish our local Parks and Wildlife manager was as hunky as Brock.

Here’s a little taste of the excitement in “Moose Fever”

~~~

Seconds later, Brock came into view. He wasn’t wearing a hat and the sweat had his short blond hair plastered to his head. His broad shoulders slumped, a sign Landon recognized as exhaustion. Brock hadn’t been tired when he left the house that morning. Landon wondered what all had happened since then.

Right after Landon spotted Brock, the leggy bulk of a large bull moose came into view. It was leaving the aspen grove and ambling north.

“What are you doing out here?” Brock asked, slowing only slightly as he continued after the moose.

“Got a call about a moose in a garden.” Landon touched Brock’s shoulder. It was as affectionate as he could get when Brock was on the job. They kept a low profile as to not cause any potential problems with the public’s opinion of Brock.

“Same here.” Brock smiled at Landon. “The folks across the street from the garden called. Said it was the third time this week they’d seen the moose there and were worried it was going to attack their toy poodle.”

Landon rolled his eyes. “Yeah, like a moose would eat a poodle. Maybe step on it, but not aggressively attack it under normal circumstances.”

“Exactly.” Brock held up the air horn. “Cover your ears.” He put his left hand over his left ear before pressing the button.

Being closer, the blast was much louder. Landon was thankful he’d gotten his hands up in time. “How long have you been chasing him?”

“About half an hour.” Brock shook his head. “It’s getting to be a weekly game with this boy. I’m about to ask Foster if I can get permission to relocate him. But that might be a touchy subject since moose are just starting to get established in the area. These guys traveled all the way down from North Park to get here. A lot of folks love them being around.” The moose in front of them paused to graze, and Brock gestured for Landon to cover his ears again. “But they’re a lot bigger than mule deer or even elk. Some people are scared of them.”

The moose looked over his shoulder at them and continued on down the slope toward the narrow stream that cut through the valley floor.

“And what folks are scared of, they lash out at,” Landon added. As a wildlife rehabilitator, he knew all too well what happened when scared people impacted the animals they came in contact with.

Brock’s phone rang. He glanced at it before answering. “Officer Summers.” He paused and his shoulders slumped more. “I’m in Woodland Park pushing a moose into the forest.” Another pause. “Okay. See if you can get the sheriff’s department to send someone out too. Tell them I’ll be coming in from the northeast. It’ll be faster than going all the way to Florissant and up. Thanks.”

He tapped off the phone and slid it into his pocket. “Landon, do you mind keeping this fella moving another three-quarters to a mile or so? Lately I’ve just been getting him down to the stream and leaving him in there.” He offered the air horn to Landon.

Landon took the cold canister. “Sure. What’s up?”

“Would you believe more moose problems?”

“Really? Up north of Florissant? I bet along Trail Creek. I’ve heard of moose in that area.”

“It sounds like there’s a bunch of photographers up there blocking County Road 3 and making it hard for other drivers to get by. The office wants me to get up there and try to drive the moose off.”

“Won’t you need this?” Landon gestured with the air horn.

Brock shook his head. “Nope. I’ve got several more in the truck. I’ve been going through a couple of those a week lately so I had Foster order extras.” He glanced around, then leaned in for a quick kiss.

Landon’s heart beat a little faster. “You be careful.”

“You too. This guy’s a crafty one. He’ll try and double back using the stream to fool you into thinking he’s leaving the area. Get him at least over that next hill. There’s a pond over there that’s got some good willows growing along its banks. That should help keep him busy, I hope for a couple of days.” He dropped his voice. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” Landon grinned. There wasn’t anyone near them, but they still acted like they were out in public and not in the forest away from everyone except for the ornery moose. “See you at home later.”

“I hope so. It’s been a long day.” Brock hiked back up the hill.

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About A.J.

A.J. has been writing to pass the time since high school. The stories he wrote helped him deal with life. A few years ago, he started sharing those stories with friends who enjoyed them and he has started sending his works out into the world to share with other people. He lives in the mountains with his extremely supportive husband. They have a lot of critters, including dogs, cats, birds, horses, and rabbits. When not writing, A.J. spends a lot of time hiking, trail riding, or just driving in the mountains. Nature provides a lot of inspiration for his work and keeps him writing. He is also an avid photographer and falconer. Don’t get him started talking about his birds, because he won’t stop for a while.

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