Seth Lloyd, from A Murder Most Fowl, a Food Truck mystery, is visiting Ascroft, eh? today to tell us a bit about surviving his sister and a reality show.

Welcome, Seth. I’ll turn the floor over to you –

People often ask me how I ended up on a reality cooking show while working at one of Clementine’s only law offices and preparing for the bar exam. The answer? I didn’t. Not exactly.

My sister, Beth, tricked me. She got me to sign a consent form while I was absorbed in a basketball game. I trusted her—after all, she’s my twin—but I didn’t notice the fine print until it was too late. And now? I’m reluctantly joining her on The Food Truck Showdown.

I’m Seth. Pragmatic. Tall, organized (mostly) twin. A law student who prefers spreadsheets to frying oil, hiking trails to dodging fried chicken grease. Beth, on the other hand, is a foot shorter, strawberry-blond, freckled whirlwind of chaos. She loves to remind me that she’s the older twin, but thanks to her leap year birthday, she’s legally seven years younger. That’s my trump card, which I play liberally when she tries to pull the “older sister” line.

Working on the truck with Beth is… an exercise in patience, improvisation, and occasionally wondering how we’re still allowed to operate in Clementine. She’s all energy and ideas, throwing together sauces nobody asked for, inventing marketing stunts on the fly, and somehow managing to make a disaster look like a culinary masterpiece. I, on the other hand, am the spreadsheet twin: planning prep schedules, inventory, and backup fryer oil like a defensive lineman guarding a touchdown.

Some days feel like I’m babysitting a hurricane in an apron. Yesterday, Beth decided our wings needed a “special dance move” before going in the fryer—don’t ask—and I spent twenty minutes convincing a producer that tossing poultry in rhythm isn’t actually required. But then, she nailed it. The wings were crispy, the sauce was perfect, and a customer gave her a high-five so enthusiastic it made the chaos worth it.

We’re total opposites, but somehow it works. Mostly because I keep us from getting shut down by the health inspector, and manage to smile through her half-baked ideas. Our differences go beyond looks or truck operations. Her idea of cardio is walking from the kitchen to the couch while doing arm curls with pints of mint chip ice cream. Mine is an actual hike through the hills outside Clementine… preferably with no grease stains on my backpack. I like to relax with a comedy or by reviewing case studies. She falls asleep to true-crime documentaries and quotes her favorite true-crime podcast like it’s scripture.

Even with our differences, there’s a rhythm to it: Beth runs the show, I manage the logistics, and together we’re surviving the chaos of long filming days, surprise murder questions, and reality TV producers who think “timing” is just a suggestion. And while I complain (a lot), I know I wouldn’t trade it for all the perfectly organized case files in the world.

Supporting Beth has always been my job. And I love it. I just wish “support” didn’t include bailing her out of jail while dressed as a giant chicken or keeping her from being charged with a murder she didn’t commit. I’ve helped her more times than I can count, and now I can only hope she’ll remember that when she eventually learns the biggest secret I’m keeping from her.

Beth and I have a no-lying-to-each-other rule. Normally, that would make things straightforward. But this? This is outside my control. If she finds out what I’ve been doing behind her back… well, let’s just say she’s capable of actual murder. For now, my cards stay close to my chest. I pray that when she learns the truth, she forgives me. Or at least doesn’t assault me with a spatula. In the meantime, my focus is getting us through the next food truck challenge and keeping Beth out of county lockup… again.

Thank you for sharing this with us, Seth, and good luck to you and your author Camela Dutra with A Murder Most Fowl, the first book in the Food Truck mystery series.

Readers can learn more about Seth Lloyd and his author, Camela Dutra by visiting the author’s Facebook and Instagram pages. Readers can also follow her on Threads and Twitter/X.

The book is available online at the following retailers: 

Amazon    Barnes & Noble      Bookshop.org    Penguin Random House

About Camela Dutra: Hailing from the Bay Area of California, Carmela Dutra cherishes her family, rainy days, and making others laugh. After years of working on her award-winning indie children’s picture books, she transitioned into crafting cozy mysteries filled with emotion, humor and heart.

When she’s not penning her latest tale, Carmela enjoys sketching, sipping copious amounts of coffee, and over-cuddling her allergy-inducing cats and dog. She shares her life with her best friend and husband, raising two dinosaur-obsessed sons. A lover of alternative rock, Carmela often writes to its rhythm and finds comfort in rewatching The Big Bang Theory and M*A*S*H.