Faye Masters is visiting Ascroft, eh? to tell us about Murder in Trastevere, the latest novel in the Roman Holiday mystery series.

Welcome, Faye. Let’s get started, shall we?

Tell us about the novel that you live inside. Is it part of a series? If so, please tell us about the series too.

I’m the star of Murder in Trastevere, book two in the Roman Holiday Mystery series. I’m an American who has called Rome home for the last ten years. I’m the Queen Bee of the expat set here, and I love getting to know new people, welcoming them and helping them get settled.

This book is my first starring role. In Murder in the Piazza, book one in the Roman Holiday Mystery series, I was present but on the sidelines. My friend Maggie White was the detective in that story. She found the body, so it only made sense. But when the writer, Jen Collins Moore, announced her plan for me to find the body in this book, I knew it was my chance to shine.

Does the writer control what happens in the story or do you get a say too?

Jen thinks she controls the story, but it’s simply not true. In this book, for example, she did not intend for me to solve the case. She wanted my friend Maggie to be the detective again, with me just helping because the body was, after all, in my house.

I said, “No, thank you.”

She kept writing, and I kept nudging my way into scenes and interviews. Finally, she had to give in and rewrite the whole thing from my point of view. And guess what? It worked great.

Maggie’s wonderful, of course, but there’s no question I’m the more capable one. I’m good with people, fast on my toes, and I had more skin in the game in this book than Maggie did. That’s because when Rowena Burke collapsed, it was on my living room floor. Everyone blamed me! Some thought I poisoned her; others thought the poison was intended for me. Either way, I was the one who needed the case solved and my name cleared.

How did you evolve as the main character?

I’m not sure I’d say any evolving was necessary, but I will say this: I got to tell my side of the story. I know people look at me and think I have my life together. I’m fun and charismatic, I have plenty of money and the time to eat well and exercise. I have lots of friends and at the center of anything that’s happening.

In the first book, Murder in the Piazza, Maggie White didn’t trust me. She thought I came on too strong and was maybe a little bit judgmental.

Anyone who knows me would say that’s nonsense, but Maggie was new in town, and readers may have been left with the impression that I wasn’t an especially nice person. In Murder in Trastevere I finally get to show people the real me. I’m a nice person. I’m popular.  I only want the best for people.

My only question is, if that’s true, why do so many people think the poison that killed Rowena Burke was actually intended for me?

Do you have any other characters you like sharing the story with? If so, why are you partial to them?

It was an honor to share the stage with Esta DiLorenzo, another character in Murder in Trastevere. This septuagenarian is a minor celebrity in Rome. Her family’s company is a household name in Italy, and the donna is a regular at theater openings and fashion shows, as well as the top dog in her family’s hotel division.

Older women don’t always get the best parts in stories, and I was happy that in this one, Esta is a force to be reckoned with from the first page to the last.

What’s the place like where you find yourself in this story?

Rome! Can you imagine a better setting than Italy for a story? It’s a magical place. There’s food. There’s history. There’s art. Did I mention the art? I spend a lot of time tracking down Caravaggio’s paintings in this story, which means visiting a lot of museums and churches.  Some of the pictures are worth it. Others… Well, let’s just say they aren’t pictures I’d want hanging in my apartment.

Murder in Trastevere is particularly special to me because it’s centered on my favorite neighborhood in Rome. Trastevere is the place I call home, just across the river from all the major sights, and filled with old world charm. There are still more locals than tourists here, something that’s hard to find in this popular city.

Is there anything else you’d like to tell readers about you and the book?

I credit Caravaggio with my ultimate solution to the case. Do you know much about him? I had the bright idea to get a group of expats together to see all of his paintings in Rome.

He’s the bad boy of the Renaissance, so I thought it would be fun. I trooped through museums and churches and museums and even a private home to check his paintings off my list. But I also studied up on the artist. Turns out Caravaggio’s a lot more than a groundbreaking artist. In 1606, he became a murderer, and his life helped me piece together the puzzle.

Thank you for answering my questions, Faye, and good luck to you and your author, Jen Collins Moore, with Murder in Trastevere, the latest book in the Roman Holiday mystery series.

Readers can learn more about Faye and her author, Jen Collins Moore by visiting the author’s website and her Facebook and Instagram pages.

The novel is available at the following online retailers:

 Amazon – B&N

About Jen Collins Moore: Jen transports readers to Rome in the Roman Holiday Mysteries. Her short fiction has appeared in Mystery Weekly and Masthead: The Best New England Crime Stories. She is president of Sisters in Crime Chicagoland and a founding member of Sleuths and Sidekicks. A transplanted New Englander, she lives in Chicago with her husband and two boys.