PHILADELPHIA—Novelist Gail Ramsey launched "Tick Tock", a mystery to legal thriller to a suspensful romantic début, at a reception atop Loews-Philadelphia Hotel to some 300 friends, family and supporters.

"Tick Tock" transports the reader from the streets of Brotherly Love to the exotic sandy shores of Horseshoe Bay in Bermuda in this sizzling hot legal tale. With every turn of the page, Ramsey guides the reader through a web of romance and courtroom drama with stops at various Philadelphia sites including Zanzibar Blue, the Free Library of Philadelphia on Logan Circle, Borders Bookstore, and West River Drive where the main character, Spiegel Cullen, "Races for the Cure" and then races to help her client defeat first-degree murder charges before time runs out.

Ramsey relies on her own legal background to tell the story of risk-taking attorney Spiegel Cullen, an aspiring Philadelphia defense attorney placed in the delicate position of representing Breanna Jordan, a client who just happens to be the sister of James Jordan, Cullen’s ex-lover of ten years.  The unfinished business between James and Spiegel plays out in this witty courtroom drama as Spiegel searches for answers to get Breanna off-the-hook before she is found guilty of murdering her lover. 

Ramsey is well versed in courtroom drama. She studied Administration of Justice at Temple University and litigation public relations at American University in Washington D.C., and is the author of “Courtroom Drama or Headline News?” written for Communication and the Law Journal. She is the winner of Art Sanctuary’s 18^th Annual Celebration of Black Writing Competition for her essay on the high-profile Pier 34 case involving the death of her younger sister, DeAnn White, who served as an inspiration for Ramsey.

 “Getting the novel finished was something my little sister would encourage me to do before her death, so I feel closer to her in spirit having known I’ve done something that probably makes her smile,” said Ramsey. 

“Tick Tock” is dedicated to DeAnn White and Ramsey’s upcoming novel is based on the real-life tragedy surrounding the loss of her sister in the horrific collapse of Pier 34 and the media storm Ramsey was thrust into.  Tick Tock delves into a very vulnerable side of professionalism much like peeking at the private thoughts and actions of characters with very real and emotional woes.  Unique themes in the novel can be compared to topics of national interest, such as:

Apparently Ramsey covers them well.  In a review for Amazon.com, Sharron S. Saunders declares, “For those who enjoy following the legal process of the courtroom, enhanced with murder, intrigue and romance woven throughout, this book offers you more than you expect.  First time novelist, Gail Ramsey makes it difficult to put this book down.”  In the midst of all the drama from Philly to Bermuda, the characters spontaneously take us to Baltimore, Maryland to visit the Great Blacks in Wax Museum which pays tribute to the African-American experience.

Saunders continues, “Cullen represents the successful fast-track career woman who finds herself in a race against time to prove her client’s innocence while trying to prevent her window of opportunity for love and a family from closing.  Can she be successful at both? 

Well-written and entertaining!”

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About the Novel

“Tick Tock” is published by Sug Books (pronounced Shug), a nickname from Ramsey’s late grandfather and is available in paperback for $12 via Amazon.com, Baker & Taylor, Ingram Books, Barnes and Noble, Cushcity.com, Culture Plus, Lushena Books, Quick Pick. For a preview of chapter one and a detailed description of the novel, log onto www.gailramsey.com