Murder In Maspalomas 2 - the wait is coming to an end!

Murder in Maspalomas is a crime fiction story about an Irish couple that get involved with a drugs gang who are chasing them for the debt, owed by one of their friends. They flee Dublin and end up in Maspalomas in the Canary Islands.

I'm sure you had the same thing happen to you in the past. Well, I wrote this book back in 2017 and I've been put under serious pressure by some of my readers to write a follow-up book and see what happened to the characters after this first book ended. There were a few loose ends that needed tieing up if you follow my drift.

So I am pleased to say that very soon I will start writing the follow-up.

If you fancy a page-turning, amusing, exciting summer read then look no further this book will deliver. There is never a dull page, never pages lost on descriptive prose, never wasteful dialogue or pointless action. This book tells the story at pace and delivers characters you'll love and hate in equal measure.

Look inside if you don't believe me!

Pick up a copy before it reverts to full price !!

Murder In Maspalomas - online purchases
Click here for the UK Kindle version
Click here for the US Kindle version
Click here for the UK Paperback version
Click here for the US Paperback version

Murder In Maspalomas now in the Wexford Town shops

I'm just back from a Wexford Local Author's night of readings in the Red Book Shop in
Selskin House, St Peter's Square, Slippery Green, Wexford, Y35 ER2F  in Wexford town. It was an epic night with no less than fourteen authors attending! They covered so many different genres of writing that there was something for everyone.

Wexford Local Authors at the Red Book Shop 

From poetry to biographies, crime, musical history, local history, exercise books for MS sufferers, collections of short stories, readings from scripts. The shop was bulging with readers and they sat for almost two hours as they were bombarded with words.

My extract that was the second last reading of the night was extremely well received and I loved to hear the laughter, at the right moments! Murder In Maspalomas is the opposite of a dark, menacing read. I wrote it so that the humour and the drama of the story went hand in hand.

Mark Rice reading from Murder In Maspalomas

What starts as a story of how someone tries to make a legitimate buck by importing from China the kid's number 1 Christmas toy for that year, becomes a terrifying game of hide and seek as an unwitting couple ae pursued by a bunch of violent drug gangsters seeking to collect on a debt.

Murder In Maspalomas 

Murder In Maspalomas 
There are copies to buy in the Red Book Shop and the Book Centre in
Wexford Town

Murder In Maspalomas - online purchases
Click here for the UK Kindle version
Click here for the US Kindle version
Click here for the UK Paperback version
Click here for the US Paperback version

Murder On Board

Luke's previous cruise experiences have left him battered and bruised. This time it's going to be different. No more rolling over and just taking the crap. No more instances where he becomes a human doormat. No more bottling it up. No more saying and doing nothing. Luke is a different man, only nobody knows it..................yet.

Murder On Board
There are copies to buy in the Red Book Shop and the Book Centre in
Wexford Town

Murder On Board - online purchases
Click here for the US Kindle version 

Click here for the UK Kindle version

Click here for the US Paperback version

Click here for the UK Paperback version

Murder in the Canary Islands

Murder is a rare event, especially in a place of stunning beauty and laid back lifestyle. Maspalomas in Gran Canaria is such a place and into the town on a chilly January month come a bunch of people intent on turning this holiday island into a mortuary, if that's what it takes to collect on a debt.

Beach and lighthouse in Maspalomas

A 5 Star adventure story that takes you from a wet cold Dublin city to the sunshine and warmth of the Canary Islands. Enjoy a bit of escapism and spend a few hours with this page-turning novel.

To buy Murder in Maspalomas follow the links below: 
Click here for the UK Kindle version
Click here for the US Kindle version
Click here for the UK Paperback version
Click here for the US Paperback version

Give an Irish Crime fiction 5 star "Murder in Maspalomas" novel for Christmas

Murder In Maspalomas 

Give a Kindle book for Christmas. For your avid crime reader get this 5-star novel. They can read it on Christmas Day. This guaranteed page-turner starts in December in a freezing Dublin but quickly moves to the Canary Islands when an ordinary God-fearing couple have to flee a Dublin inner city drugs gang who are chasing down a debt. 

99 pence 5 star thriller to use as a stocking filler

Give the perfect Christmas gift of a thrilling read for just 99 cents! Yes "Murder in Maspalomas" is for sale this Christmas week at just 99 cents. Give the reader in your life a Christmas thrill with a story that starts in freezing Ireland but ends up in the balmy Canary Islands. A book that drives onwards and dispenses with the fluffy bits to keep the pages turning your gift will transfix your recipient. Make a reader happy this Christmas and buy a copy of "Murder in Maspalomas" an Amazon and Kindle bestseller.

Winter Chill and how to escape it

Today as we experience freezing conditions in Dublin, Ireland my mind escapes to the Canary Islands and the wonderful holiday we took there in Ireland's last cold snap. Within 6 hours we were transported from deep winter to balmy summer climate of the Gran Canaria. For the next fortnight, it was where's the suncream, pass me my book and can you get me another ice-cream?

Well if you have the time and a few hundred euro you can visit your travel agent or book online to stay in a hotel or go self -catering in apartments all over the island. However, if time and money don't allow you to escape right now then settle in for a few hours of relaxing reading with my crime novel Murder in Maspalomas available on Kindle, Amazon and Smashwords right now!

To get a flavour of the book please click on the tab "Look Inside Book" and discover one of its characters, Maureen, hard at work tracking down our hunted couple hiding out in Maspalomas.

For a Christmas read or a present for a crime reader you know this novel is the perfect stocking filler.

Of course you can buy it online at any of the sites and links below:

Kindle have it

Amazon.com have it in paperback

Amazon.co.uk have it too! in paperback

Smashwords have it and the formats available are epub, mobi (Kindle),  pdf,  lrf,  pdb, txt , Online Reader, original document.

• OverDrive
• Kobo 
• Barnes & Noble

V by Very Blog Awards Ireland 2017 - Murder in Maspalomas now makes the shortlist!!

Delighted and stunned to find this Murder on Maspalomas website has made the shortlist of Irish blogs for 2017 in the  Corporate Blog > Books & Literature section. There is one further round to reach, the Finalist round so fingers crossed we can make it through. 

The books a cracking tale of an ordinary couple being hunted down by a deadly Dublin drugs gang. Who says crime doesn't pay!

To purchase a copy:
For UK readers £2.32 Buy your copy now by clicking here.
For US readers $2.99  Buy your copy by clicking here

V by Very Blog Awards Ireland 2017 - Murder in Maspalomas makes the longlist!!

Delighted to announce that this website has been included in the longlist for the  V by Very Blog Awards Ireland 2017 . There are another two rounds of judging before the Finalists are announced. 

Murder in Maspalomas gets a special cover for Smashwords release

New cover just for Smashwords and its related sites and a new price of $1.99 

What do you think ? Better or worse than the original?


Murder in Maspalomas is a novel which starts in Dublin where Matt, an ordinary contract accountant finds himself contacted by the Sullivans, a notorious drug gang who are chasing a debt.

The gang are led by Anto, a thirty something who came from a broken family, he broke it. His enforcer, Ciaran is his second in command and a right nasty piece of work who carries a piece wherever he goes. Rocky, in his early twenties wants to be Ciaran and wants to get tooled up. He carries some menace, is unpredictable and is watching and waiting his moment to slip into Ciaran's shoes. Frisby is the teenage runner for the gang. He carries drugs, messages and weapons without question. He's street wise but has a lot to learn about life. This trip will test his mettle and prove his worth to the gang.

Matt is married to Louise and together they ordinarily live in West Dublin in an apartment block on the fourth floor and life is the normal type of living, days at work and bills to pay. Once the drugs gang trace his whereabouts and seek a sum of money Matt hasn't got things get hot in Dublin and force Matt into skipping the country. Trouble is, Louise is totally unaware of the gang and the debt. Matt will get round to telling her but just not now. She believes she's just going on a holiday brought about by her incessant moaning about Irish winters. How wrong could she be? 

Other characters enter the fray throughout the book and Fran, Anto's girl and Rodriquez's an old pal of Matt's play pivotal roles in the story as it develops. You'll just have to read the book to find out who does what to whom and who lives and who dies.

Murder in Maspalomas – Kindle Sale $1.99

It’s happening now and for a short time only, my   5 Star novel “Murder in Maspalomas” is available at the lowest price ever of $1.99 or its equivalent in other currencies eg £1.43! It’s a quick sale prompted by ReadFree.ly who are featuring the book in their mail out on the 14th and 15th of August.

So buy a copy and pass a few hours away discovering the trials and tribulations  of a man and his wife pursued 3,000 miles by a deadly drugs gang to a holiday paradise where a deadly game of hide and seek ensues. There are murderous encounters and a hint of romance in a page turning story taking you across the island of Gran Canaria.

The ReadFree.ly  website  has a web ranking making it, at 299,139 in the top most popular websites in the USA and their aim is to deliver the best books at the cheapest prices for their subscribers. So they said to me, we really like the book but you’ve got to make it cheaper. Well, as you know I’m an accountant so I crunched the numbers, took off all my royalties, switched to a cheaper milk for my cereal, cut out meat for a week, switched the electricity off overnight and cancelled my holiday in the sun. “OK” I said- “lets do it!”

Wexford County library stock "Murder in Maspalomas"

Please allow a few days for the book to be distributed into the local libraries but yes, the Wexford County Library service have reviewed the book and ordered copies. That follows Byrnes Book Shops who have branches in Wexford town, Gorey and Enniscorthy also stocking the book this week.

Byrne’s Books now stock Murder in Maspalomas

Byrne’s Books & Toys are one of Ireland’s leading retailers of books, toys, gifts, arts & crafts and stationery and have shops in Gorey, Enniscorthy and Wexford town. As of this week it now has copies of "Murder in Maspalomas" by Mark Rice. 

Visit their website to find their contact details and store addresses

For Kindle and other soft copies please click here

New Crime Fiction novel rides into Gorey Town

Zozimus-Bookshop in Gorey Co. Wexford

"Murder in Maspalomas" my crime fiction novel is now available in Gorey and in John Wyse Jacksons bookshop, Zozimus, at the back of the Book Cafe at 86 Main Street Gorey. He's placed it on the table covered by new and second hand books. Pop in, grab a coffee and a summer read."Thanks John"

There are over 40,000 books in the shop. Most are uncatalogued and usually sell for under €10. Fiction paperbacks tend to cost under €5.

He also stocks rare first editions, illustrated albums, collectible editions of classic children’s books and other curiosa to be found here. Little of particular Irish interest has yet been added to this list, though it is probably our strongest suit.

The shop website   http://www.zozimusbookshop.com/

Shops Facebook page

Murder in Maspalomas - meet the characters

Murder in Maspalomas is a crime fiction novel which starts in Dublin where Matt, an ordinary contract accountant finds himself contacted by the Sullivans, a notorious drug gang who are chasing a debt.

The gang are led by Anto, a thirty something who came from a broken family, he broke it. His enforcer, Ciaran is his second in command and a right nasty piece of work who carries a piece wherever he goes. Rocky, in his early twenties wants to be Ciaran and wants to get tooled up. He carries some menace, is unpredictable and is watching and waiting his moment to slip into Ciaran's shoes. Frisby is the teenage runner for the gang. He carries drugs, messages and weapons without question. He's street wise but has a lot to learn about life. This trip will test his mettle and prove his worth to the gang.

Matt is married to Louise and together they ordinarily live in West Dublin in an apartment block on the fourth floor and life is the normal type of living, days at work and bills to pay. Once the drugs gang trace his whereabouts and seek a sum of money Matt hasn't got things get hot in Dublin and force Matt into skipping the country. Trouble is, Louise is totally unaware of the gang and the debt. Matt will get round to telling her but just not now. She believes she's just going on a holiday brought about by her incessant moaning about Irish winters. How wrong could she be?

Other characters enter the fray throughout the book and Fran, Anto's girl and Rodriquez's an old pal of Matt's play pivotal roles in the story as it develops. You'll just have to read the book to find out who does what to whom and who lives and who dies.

Maspalomas Hotel sun loungers in February

Murder in Maspalomas- July Sale

It’s summer in the Northern Hemisphere and winter in the Southern Hemisphere. This can mean only one thing: It’s time for the 9th annual Smashwords Summer/Winter Sale!

The sale kicked off last Saturday July 1 and runs through to an end of day July 31. I’ve agreed to include “Murder in Maspalomas“ in the sale so for one month only it’s available at $2.99 at Smashwords website and can be purchased in numerous formats ( epub, mobi(Kindle), Irf, Online Reader and pdb.

You can “Look Inside” the book and read up to 15% of the content.

Good reviews received. Its a perfect light Summer holiday read!

Murder in Maspalomas feedback

You'll see from my early reader reviews (they have their own page on this site) that the book is getting a positive reception. I've also had feedback from readers who haven't completed a formal review posting but felt strongly enough to email me with their kind words. 

Make up your own mind up by visiting any of the Amazon, Kindle and Smaswords websites and having a "look inside".
read Chapter 8 which is provided here on this site to give you a flavour of the writing. It's where Anto, the drugs gang leader, gets a lucky break whilst in a lift and in conversation with an old lady. 

Do take advantage of the coupon offer for July and get reading this murder story for a mere $2.99 using the coupon. To avail of this special offer please enter the coupon code RE39R prior to completing the checkout. Click here to purchase

Murder in Maspalomas 25% off coupon valid now

A crime novel that starts in Dublin, Ireland but with tension building shifts to the Canary Islands, off the African coast . Matt had a deal go bad and had to get out of the country fast so he took a holiday in the far away Canary Islands gambling that the criminal gang wouldn’t follow for such a small debt. How wrong could he be? 

For just one month from today until 28th July 2017 this 54,300 word crime novel is available at 25% off the list price in Smashwords of $3.99 so you can buy it today for $2.99.

To avail of this special offer please enter the coupon code RE39R prior to completing the checkout. Click here to purchase

Smashwords publish this book in the following formats: epub  mobi (Kindle)  pdf  lrf  pdb txt  Online Reader

Murder in Maspalomas crime novel - how it came to be written

The book  virtually wrote itself. The holiday in Maspalomas last year was memorable in that the sunshine was high in the sky in January on the Canary Island of Gran Canaria while back in Europe rain, snow and storms were the order of the day.  The island and in particular Maspalomas gets 300 days of sunshine annually and it was sun every day of our stay.

I felt uplifted just being on the island in our winter season and set about keeping a daily diary recording what we saw and did. I then created a fantasy world of crime and mayhem that layered on top of my real island experiences. My imagination ran riot as I superimposed on the island the arrival of a drugs gang from inner city Dublin and their relentless search for their prey.  I can assure you that I saw not a single act of criminality during our stay. Not so much a piece of paper being dropped on the street.

The islands occupants keep the place spotless, sandy beaches, cafes and towns and the tropical flowers and plants are colourful and planted throughout the towns and villages. The hotels and self catering apartments and bungalow complexes where some of my books main events occur, are in reality, very clean and well managed. The value for money shines through too.

The prices are very reasonable, of course, depending on where you go. Bring a spare suitcase. The alcohol is served in Spanish measures and is tax free so extremely cheap for Irish and other Europeans. On top of all that they have Lidl and Aldi supermarket branches so what is cheap anyway is cheaper still in those shops. I'm not saying you  buy on price alone but a litre of wine was less than .90 cents in the Lidl! I'll definitely be returning to Gran Canaria in the Canary Islands next winter.

Amazon have now created a link to my book so click here to preview the finished article which is officially launched next Friday 30th June 2017.

Pool in Maspalomas bungalow complex

Mark Rice interviewed

What books are on your summer reading list this year?
 Mark Rice John Connolly's "A song of Shadows" is one that I'm currently reading. A bit dark but I'll stick with it.
How do you deal with writer’s block?

Mark Rice Writer's block is an issue for all writers and in my case I only write when I have something to write about. I'd rather not put pen to paper if I have no decent story to tell. If I encounter writers block during a story I'll go for a run and I can guarantee you I'll return with ideas. I then grab a piece of paper and scribble them down before I forget them!

What’s the best thing about being a writer?
 Mark Rice It's early days to my writing career but so far the best thing about writing is the ability to capture life's incidences, big or small, that I see as interesting and to record it for ever in a short story or novel. Then to have readers respond with praise is a bonus I always enjoy and am grateful for.

What’s your advice for aspiring writers?
 Mark Rice Becoming a writer is a precarious career choice so start with writing as a hobby and only take the leap full time when you have another source of income or savings. To start with I'd recommend you set up a free Blog site and post regularly. Then when you want to self publish use Create Space.com which will take you, for free, from a word doc manuscript to a published book, bar coded, ISBN no. and distributed in all formats on Amazon and Kindle. Don't forget that Amazon is only 50% of the world's book sales so publish on Smashwords too as it distributes to the rest of the world. Of course promote your book on Goodreads.com!

What are you currently working on?
 Mark Rice My first novel "Murder on Maspalomas" is out on 30th June 2017 so I am finalising the marketing of this book. I have another murder story to tell and I will get my teeth back into that one in the coming days. I'll let you guys know when it's due for release.

How do you get inspired to write?
Mark Rice Life inspires me, unknowingly. I watch the world go by and just notice things that others see but dismiss. I write it so I don't lose it forever.

Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?
Mark Rice I was sitting at the airport and waiting for my wife to return with a coffee and I began to write what was going on around me. The diary I kept of our holiday in Maspalomas in the Canary Islands formed the basis of my book "Murder in Maspalomas" with my vivid imagination adding the murderous happenings and creating the characters involved.

Thanks for reading this piece and I hope you will feel inspired to write a blog, a story,  a book or a poem as I truly believe we each are unique and have many stories to tell. Tell yours today.  I look forward to hearing from you.