Romance and Mystery Novels

by Alina Adams

Skate Crime: Multimedia Edition

Dear Friends —

Did you ever, while reading one of my skating books, think to yourself, "I wish I could actually see the routines she was describing?"

Well, now you can!

Thanks to the latest in e-publishing technology, I have been able to create an enhanced, multimedia excerpt of my fifth Figure Skating Mystery, "Skate Crime," which will have videos by the Ice Theatre of New York right there as part of the story!

Can you believe it? Instead of just reading about "Skate Crime's" Toni Wright & Lucian Pryce being a championship Pairs team, you can actually watch them skate a routine!

The result in not exactly a book and not exactly a movie. I like to think of it as a hybrid storytelling for the 21st Century. It might even turn out to be the future of pubishing. Who knows?

In any case, I am very excited for you to check out my newest endeavor.

"Skate Crime: Multimedia Edition" by Alina Adams retails for only $.99 cents at Amazon: (click on the link to buy) and it can be enjoyed via the Kindle app on your iPhone, iPad or desktop.

Make sure to let me know what you think.

Would you like to see the rest of my skating titles get the same, enhanced treatment?

All the best —

Alina Adams

Updated 1/17/11

For more info on my individual books, please visit http://www.AlinaAdams.com!






Home


Google
WWW www.figureskatingmystery.com

 

Thursday, February 11, 2010

WELCOME, SKATING FANS!

Welcome to all my new visitors!

If you're looking for info on 2010 Olympic figure skaters like Rachael Flatt, Mirai Nagasu, Jeremy Abbott, Evan Lysacek, Johnny Weir, Belbin & Agosto, Denney & Barrett and the rest... you won't find it here.

However, if the 2010 Olympics have made you wonder "Where Are... Oksana Baiul? Brian Boitano? Kurt Browning? Tai Babilonia? Katarina Witt? Robin Cousins? Viktor Petrenko? And many, many more... Now?" then boy, have you come to the right place!

Just type the name of your favorite skater of years gone by into the search box above and see what comes up!

I'm Alina Adams, author of The Figure Skating Mystery series of books from Berkley Prime Crime, as well as "Inside Figure Skating" and "Skating to the Stars." If you want facts and figures (plus beautiful photos) about skating, check out my non-fiction titles. But if you want the real dirt, the mysteries are definitely the way to go. All are available by clicking on the above links.

In addition, check out my latest article, "A New Spin on Figure Skating," at "The Jewish Week."

Let the Games begin!
Saturday, May 02, 2009

WHY I'VE BEEN M.I.A. LATELY

From SoapOperaNetwork.com:

A decade after its demise, "Another World" breathes new life on the web.

TeleNext Media, the company that produces "As the World Turns" and the recently canceled "Guiding Light" for Procter & Gamble and CBS, has announced that they will be launching a new website dedicated to the defunct sudser "Another World," which was canceled in 1999. The site, anotherworldtoday.com, will provide fans with insight into what their favorite characters have been up to in the past decade.

The move comes on the heels of better than expected viewership of classic "AW" episodes on Hulu.com. According to Alina Adams, creative content producer for TeleNext Media, “People still have warm, nostalgic feelings for the show. 'AW' ushered a lot of fans into the world of daytime drama. It was their gateway drug. They miss it and they want more.”

Chapter one of the blog is set to debut on May 4th, the 45th anniversary of "AW's" premiere, with the presumed dead Grant Harrison returning to town to visit his son. Also, Felicia Grant and her friends Dean and Jenna all mysteriously disappear while visiting New York City. Further chapters are expected to follow on a regular basis.

In addition to reading the latest chapter of "Another World Today," fans can also read updates on popular "AW" characters, view classic clips from the soap, and vote following the conclusion of each week's webisode, where they think the storyline should go next. The site also promises that, in the near future, fans will "be able to contribute original story ideas, write dialogue, create (or bring back) characters and win prizes for doing so!"

More info at TVGuide.com and FanCast.

The actual site can be found here: http://www.AnotherWorldToday.com
Wednesday, April 01, 2009

SASHA COHEN

Sasha Cohen is considering a return to amateur sports

Translation of an article printed in the Russian Language publication Newsmail.ru on March 24, 2009.


The silver medalist of the 2006 Olympics, American skater Sasha cohen considers a return to amateur sports.

In three years since the games in Turin, the skater did not participate in the official competitions, but participated in a variety of ice shows. She is going to make a final decision in June of this year at the end of an exhibition tour. She said that she remembered the smell of the rink, the adrenalin rush that she experiences in the competitions. She never experienced anything like those feeling off ice.

Sasha also commented that she realizes how much hard work will be waiting for her if she decides to come back ,and if she comes back she stated that she must be better than she was ever before.

She did not mention where and with whom she would be training in case she returns. She wanted to be sure that she would not feel sorry for herself if she would not make an attempt to return. She stated that the worst thing in life is to feel nothing – just to walk through life as a robot. That is what scares her most.

At the Turin Olympics, Sasha was leading after the short program and when she fell down during the free program, she was bypassed by Shizuka Arakava. Both skaters were prepared for the Olympics by the Russian coach Tatiana Tarasova.

It is also known that Evgeny Pluschenko – another winner of the Turin Olympics, who also did not participate in any competitions in the last three years, is getting ready to return to sports and to participate at the Vancouver Olympics in 2010.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009

WELCOME!

Welcome viewers of the 2009 World Figure Skating Championship.

If you've come to this site looking for news of Evan Lysacek, Yu Na Kim, Inoue & Baldwin, Jeremy Abbott, Alissa Czisney, Johnny Weir, Pang & Tong, Belbin & Agosto, Mao Asada or any of the current competitors, this isn't the best place to get it.

However, if you've come to find out "Where Are They Now" about skaters ranging from Oksana Baiul to Babilonia & Gardner to Petr Barna to Irina Rodnina to, well, pretty much any former skater you've ever wondered about, then have we got an archive for you!

Just type your favorite skater's name into the search engine above and enjoy!
Wednesday, March 11, 2009

NAVKA NUPTIALS?

Tatiana Navka is getting married to Marat Basharov.

Translation of an article by Achmed Boziev and Tatiana Pustinnikova, printed in the Russian language publication “Zhisn” on February 3, 2009.

Tatiana Navka and Marat Basharov announced that they were getting married during the tour of the show “The Ice Period.”

Strong feelings took over Marat two years ago and till now he is still head over heels in love with Navka.

The decision to get married did not come to Marat easily. He had to weight a lot of pros and cons. One of the conditions was introduced by his mother, that his next wife should be a Muslim. For the Christian Navka it will be a hard choice to make – love or religion.

Romance with Basharov became an integral part of her life. She got used that he was always near her – at shows, during their trips to the suburbs and in their rented apartment.

During their last tour the couple decided to formalize their relations.

Marat and Tatiana announced their intention to get married in the hotel after the show. They are not hiding their relations any more and want to become a family.

Asking Tatiana to marry him, Marat made a big decision in his life. He stepped on his love of freedom and hopes that he will be able to tame his 35 years old blonde bride, who is known for her unpredictability and love for variety in everything. At the time of this printing, she was considering his proposal. Maybe that is why men love her so much – she was always having the last word and made the men wait for her decision.

Navka was always popular with men. When she was 18, she was not only able to charm her coach Alexander Zhulin, but was able to break him away from two women – his wife and his mistress. The 30 years old skater lost himself in her bottomless eyes and for her he did the unthinkable – he divorced his wife, Maya Usova. The passionate love of Navka and Zhulin was a hot subject in the skating world. For Usova the situation was not new. She knew that Zhulin was in a relationship with 20 years old skater Oxana Grischuk. He did not divorce Usova, but lived with Grischuk without advertising this situation. Oxana trusted him until the last moment of their relationship. One day Maya, Usova called her at 3 am and told her that Zhulin was cheating on both of them with Navka. Usova described to Oxana all of the details of the relationship of Zhulin and Navka.

Grishcuk left Zhulin, who was now free to continue with Navka, who was assuring everyone that she did not want to break up Zhulin’s family and did not want to build her happiness on the misery of others. Nevertheless, Navka married Zhulin and they had a daughter, Sasha. It seemed that the couple was happy.

In August of 2006, the family came back to Moscow and the fatal meeting that broke two families took place.

Navka and Marat felt sympathetic toward each other from the very beginning. Soon Navka befriended Marat’s wife, Lisa. Madly in love with her actor husband, Lisa converted to the Muslim faith for him. She was sure that their marriage was solid. Zhulin was similarly sure of his family.

Unfortunately they both were wrong. Soon Tatiana and Marat stopped hiding their relationship from others.

It seems that for the second time in her life, Tatiana is going to build her happiness on the ruins of other families.
Monday, March 09, 2009

MARIA BUTIRSKAYA

The most beautiful figure skater: Life on Ice.

Translation of an interview by Diana Khachaturjan (DK) with Marina Butirskaya printed in the Russian Language publication “Novie Izvestia” on February 3, 2009.

Maria Butirskaya (MB) is one of the most beautiful and talented bright stars of figure skating. Recently she started a new career, as a coach of future Olympic champions. In her family, she plays the role of wife to hockey player Vadim Khomitsky and mother to an 18 months old son, Vladislav.

DK – Maria, you just came back from practice. Do you have any time for your home chores?

MB – Practices take place every day from the very morning. At night I come home and start doing my housework. Even if I have a helper, I am still getting very tired, and not just physically, but psychologically as well. I give my all to my pupils at practice – I want them to get results. But I also want to be a good wife and mother.

DK – Did you ever think of dropping all of that and doing something different, not related to figure skating?

MB – I like to be a coach and I love what I do. I know figure skating very well and that was the reason why I opened my own school of figure skating. I do not think that I would be that professional in another line of work. I put my knowledge and experience into my students. Sometimes I raise my voice, but it is for their own good. The girls are becoming more responsive to my requests. In general, I am happy with the results of my work.

DK – Is it possible to learn in advance if the child will be successful at figure skating? When a child is brought to you what do you look for?

MB – Character. Even at 5 years of age, it is possible to figure out if the child will be successful at figure skating or not. After working with a child for some time it becomes clear if the child is trainable, how he reacts to explanations or if she is ready to fight for her success. I went through a lot of that myself in figure skating and know how important it is.

DK – What about the physical conditions?

MB- Of course I am considering flexibility, stretch and jumping abilities. But it is very important that physical conditions would go together with a fighting spirit. I am working as a couch now for 3 years. During this time I saw a lot of children. Sometimes I see a child who is physically very adept, talented and trying very hard, but does not have the right character. Those are dropping out very soon.

DK – What qualities you are trying to cultivate in your girls?

MB – The ability to focus, to concentrate, to get ready for a performance. Young athletes sometimes are lose their nerve at the most important moment and then they forget everything that they learned in the months of practices. I had an episode like that at the beginning of my career. Sportspeople should learn to control their nerves since competition involves not only a physical, but also a nervous struggle.

DK – Sometimes the other competitors may try to get you out of your equilibrium. Did you have situations like that?

MB – Yes I did. Once, a day before competition, I came to the practice, opened my locker and found out that my skates were missing – someone hid them. It was terrible to lose the skates before the start. In sports, one has to be ready for all eventualities.

DK – Is your son interested in figure skating?

MB – Not really. Sometimes he comes with me to the rink, but he does not pay attention to the ice. I would not want him to be a figure skater. If he would go on the ice, he would follow in the footsteps of my husband – he will play hockey. We are not going to force him, but he already has a uniform and a stick, so we will see.
Tuesday, March 03, 2009

PISEEV PROMOTES PLUSHENKO

Piseev – Pluschenko has good chances to participate in Olympiad – 2010

Translation of an article printed in the Russian Language publication “Novosti” on February 24, 2009.

Mr. Valentin Piseev, the President of the Russian Figure Skating Federation, stated that Evgeny Pluschenko, who decided to return to big sports, has A perfect chance to become a member of the Russian National Team and to participate in the Olympic Games in Vancouver.

Says Mr. Piseev: “It IS very well that Mr. Pluschenko announced his decision to come back to big sports. I welcome and support his desire to return. I think that if he would start full time practicing, there will be no trouble for him to make the team. I was at his practice a couple of weeks ago and I saw that he was jumping triple jumps and was trying to jump quads. To get on to the National Team he has to train not from time to time, but all the time.”

In the opinion of the head of the Russian Figure Skating Federation, participation in ice shows by Mr. Pluschenko can not replace full time practice.

Says Piseev: “Exhibition shows are nice, but one has to be smart in how he would use them. They are fine up to a point. It would be better if instead of skating in shows he would practice twice a day. If he would be as enthusiastic in his practices as he is in the shows, he could come back to the highest level. At present, Evgeny is at least 10 pounds overweight. He knows about that problem and is planning to do something about it. The number of participants in the National Team will depend on our performance at the World Championship.”
Previous Skaters


















Archives