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A Scone of Contention

Posted on August 17, 2021 by Dianne Ascroft

Today Lucy Burdette is visiting Ascroft, eh? to tell us about A Scone of Contention, her latest novel in the Key West Food Critic mystery series.

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

Tell us about your novel. Is it part of a series? If so, please tell us about the series too.

A SCONE OF CONTENTION is the 11^th book in the Key West food critic mystery series. Though the characters will be familiar, much of the action in A Scone of Contention takes place in Scotland rather than Key West. My husband and I and several dear friends and my sister took a trip to Scotland in 2019—many scenes happen in places we visited. Believe me it was a pleasure and a relief to be immersing myself in that magical place over the past nine months of the pandemic!

The series features food critic Hayley Snow, who lives on a houseboat in Key West. There are important recurring characters who’ve developed over the course of eleven books, including her next-door neighbor, octogenarian Miss Gloria, her tarot-card-reading pal Lorenzo, her detective husband Nathan Bransford. The setting is the real Key West with lots of local highlights and food featured. However, no one is ever poisoned in a real restaurant!

Where did the idea for the mystery that is central to the story come from?

I was trying to think of ways to keep the series fresh after ten books. And I had set up #10, THE KEY LIME CRIME, so that some of the characters could travel to Scotland, at least for part of the book. This will be Hayley and Nathan’s delayed honeymoon to visit Nathan’s sister. A few other favorite characters horned into the trip, which is based on a trip I took to Scotland with my husband in 2019.

Is there a theme or subject that underlies the story? If so, what prompted you to write about it?

One subject that connects Key West to Scotland is the idea of “thin places.”

It’s always about family, and complicated family dynamics.

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

Food is, of course, central to this series. I try to make sure that food in my mysteries reveals something deeper about the characters who are eating or discussing it. (At the end I include recipes because it seems only fair to provide them after readers have salivated for pages and pages!) But I’ve noticed while reading books by amazing crime fiction writer Ann Cleeves that she uses food and eating to do exactly that—show character and deepen suspense. She is by no means a culinary mystery writer, but I so admire a line like this from Raven Black: “She tried to imagine Mr. Ross, sitting at their kitchen table while her mother hacked at the overcooked meat and picked away at him with her questions.” Doesn’t that make you think of murder?

Thanks for answering my questions, Lucy, and good luck with A Scone of Contention, the latest book in theKey West Food Critic Mystery series.

Readers can learn more about Lucy and her writing by visiting her website and her Facebook, Instagram, Bookbub and Pinterest pages. Readers can also follow her on Twitter.

The novel is available at the following online retailers:

Amazon – B&N – Kobo – IndieBound – PenguinRandomHouse

About Lucy Burdette (aka Roberta Isleib): Lucy is the author of 19 mysteries, including A Scone of Contention, the eleventh book in the Key West series featuring food critic Hayley Snow. THE KEY LIME CRIME won the bronze medal for popular fiction in the Florida Book Awards. Lucy’s books and stories have also been short-listed for Agatha, Anthony, and Macavity awards. She’s a past president of Sisters in Crime, and currently serving as president of the Friends of the Key West Library.

Posted in Archives, August 2021 | Tagged A Scone of Contention, coxy mystery, culinary cozy mystery, Lucy Burdette, mystery | 2 Comments

On Skein of Death

Posted on August 10, 2021 by Dianne Ascroft

Today Libby Beckett is visiting Ascroft, eh? to tell us about On Skein of Death, the latest novel in the Riverbank Knitting mystery series.

Welcome, Libby. 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.

ON SKEIN OF DEATH is the first in the Riverbank Knitting Mysteries series. Each book takes place in the riverside community of Collinstown, MD where I’ve just come back home. Fresh from a nasty divorce, I’ve decided to fulfill my dream of opening a yarn shop. Just as I’m launching my first big event at Y.A.R.N., my VIP guest is found dead, strangled with a hank of yarn. I and my friends—and even my dog—work to solve the mystery of who killed knitting designer Perle Lonager and why. All of the series will center around knitting, yarn, a fair amount of baked goods, the shop, and my beloved hometown community.

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

Well, of course Allie thinks she’s in charge—authors tend to do that. But I’m not shy about speaking my mind, so I definitely get a say. There were several times I insisted on a plot twist Allie didn’t see coming. What’s the fun of a good mystery without a handful of juicy plot twists?

How did you evolve as the main character?

Allie will tell you I popped into her head all ready to go—complete with my shop name: Y.A.R.N.—which stands for “Your Absolutely Ready Now” and whatever else my customers can dream up. My English bulldog Hank also showed up right alongside me. Allie says it doesn’t always happen that way, but I’m a go-getter kind of woman so she shouldn’t have been surprised I had all my details in place the minute I arrived on the scene. Did I demand my own series? I like to think I asked with a hefty dose of clever persuasion. There may have been mentions of getting to buy yarn and eat pie in the name of literary research…

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

I’m endlessly partial to Hank. He’s such a loyal dog and no slouch at sniffing out mystery clues. My best friend Margo owns the Perfect Slice Pie Shop right across the street. Who doesn’t love a funny, smart friend who is also an endless source of baked goods? And then there’s Gavin. He’s the mayor of Collinstown, but he also was my high school sweetheart, so that gets a bit complicated. I love my mom, Rhonda, but she takes meddling in my life to the level of an art form. I’m not at all partial to George, the President of the Chamber of Commerce who seems to think he’s King of Collinstown.

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

Collinstown is a charming—okay, maybe a bit nosy and quirky—little Maryland town. I grew up here, my mom and all her friends still live here. It’s a gorgeous place to be in the fall—the colors, the crisp air, the sound of yellow police tape being stretched across a crime scene…

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

ON SKEIN OF DEATH will appeal to knitters and non-knitters alike. But if you’re a knitter, you’ll love to know that there’s a full Norwegian-style dog sweater pattern in the back of the book! It comes in digital and audiobook versions, too. And I’ll have more adventures in KNIT OR DYE TRYING in February 2022.

Thank you for answering my questions, Libby, and good luck to you and your author, Allie Pleiter, with On Skein of Death, the latest book in the Riverbank Knitting mystery series.

Readers can learn more about Libby and her author, Allie Pleiter by visiting the author’s website and her Facebook, Goodreads, Bookbub, Instagram and Pinterest pages. You can also follow her on Twitter.

The novel is available at the following online retailers:

Amazon – B&N – Kobo – Google Play – IndieBound

About Allie Pleiter: An avid knitter, coffee junkie and firm believer that “pie makes everything better,” Allie Pleiter writes both fiction and non-fiction working on as many as four novels at a time. The bestselling author of over fifty books, Allie has enjoyed a twenty-year career with over 1.5 million books sold. In addition to writing, Allie maintains an active writing productivity coaching practice and speaks regularly on the creative process, publishing, and her very favorite topic—The Chunky Method of time management for writers.

Posted in Archives, August 2021 | Tagged Allie Pleiter, cozy mystery, hobby mystery, knitting, On Skein of Death | 1 Comment

Oh! Olivia

Posted on August 6, 2021 by Dianne Ascroft

Today Patricia Fry author of Oh! Olivia, is visiting Ascroft, eh? to tell us about how she found success in writing a cozy mystery.

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

Writing about animals is nothing new to me. Throughout my forty-year career as a freelance article writer, I often wrote about two of my favorite animals: cats and horses. My first book was Hints for the Backyard Rider, and I’ve written numerous articles on the behavior, care, and wonderment of the cat. Back then I had no inkling that my writing path would lead me to the world of cats in fiction.

Many of you know me as the author of the 52-book strong Klepto Cat Mysteries—cozy mysteries featuring Rags, a larger than life cat who takes things. The stories become interesting when the things Rags gets his paws on turn out to be clues in the current mystery.

When I sat down to write the first book in this series nearly ten years ago, as I entered my senior years, I had no idea that this would be the most successful writing venture of my long career. I don’t know the size of my fan base, but by the amount of royalties, I can guestimate that sales are in the 3,000-book range per month. And people are often surprised to learn that the e-books (Kindle) far outsell the print books.

Rags definitely has fans. People love him as they would a real cat. They beg me not to let him ever die. They often write to ask if there will be more stories—“When will the next book be out?” The truth is, Rags is a real cat—well, sort of. I patterned him after my mother’s confident, cool cat. My own tabby, Lily, was also an inspiration for this cat character as she was the klepto cat. She constantly carried her stuffed toys around in her mouth, often dropping them at my feet.

To answer fans’ question: Yes, there will be more Klepto Cat Mysteries, but there’s also something new brewing in the Klepto Cat Mystery factory. There’s a new cat on the block who has inspired a new mystery series: The Calico Cat Mysteries.

We were in the midst of the pandemic year—2020—when we lost our precious Lily to kidney disease. Three months later we saw a picture of a tiny calico who had been found living under a house in the Los Angeles area and who needed a home. We embraced her immediately. She came with a name and some baggage, as many feral cats do, but it didn’t take long for Olivia to become an integral part of our family.

Olivia proved to be such an interesting and rather unique cat that I began sharing pictures of her and true stories about her on my blog and at my facebook page. People adored her. The more I got to know her and the more her growing number of fans encouraged me, I began to think seriously about featuring her in a Klepto Cat Mystery story. And it happened. Olivia debuted in Book 51—Calico Calamities.

Fans loved the Olivia character and they wanted more, so I sat down and sketched out a couple of story ideas, fleshed out Olivia’s purr-sonality, and before I knew it, I had a new book with fresh and interesting characters both human and feline. The first in the Calico Cat Mysteries, Oh! Olivia, debuted in May of this year.

And it appears that the work I’ve done over time to promote the Klepto Cat Mysteries has paid off in creating interest in my spin-off series. When you launch a book there are generally things you do right and things you wish you’d done better. Here’s what I’ve learned so far:

1: If you want to launch a new series and if your current series is successful, target the same audience. Take advantage of the reputation you’ve established. Marketing will be easier the second time around. If it is a new series, do as I did nearly ten years ago before I wrote the first word of my first Klepto Cat Mystery. Research the field—topic, genre, etc., to make sure your book is a good idea—that there is an audience for your book. If not, throw that idea out and go with a topic or a genre that IS selling.

2: Continue promoting. Sure you can take advantage of your laurels, but this is not the time to rest on them. You must get word out about the new series. As I mentioned, I’ve attracted potential readers of the new series to my blog and facebook pages. Already Olivia has a fan base. Along with this preliminary promotion, I had a new website created—CalicoCatMysteries.com. I’ve established a new facebook page dedicated to the Calico Cat Mysteries and I continue to promote Olivia and her first book at all three of my facebook pages and through my blog.

3: I belong to pertinent organizations. I’m past director of SPAWN, now WPN, so I continue to learn marketing tips and resources through WPNews and the Market Update. (There’s always something new on the horizon in the book publishing and marketing industry). I’m also a ten-year member of the Cat Writers Association. I participate in the organization, attend and speak at their conferences, and take advantage of the promotional opportunities at the organization website. Network, network, network.

4: I keep up with other bloggers and organizations related to mystery writing and cats, as well as book reviewers and I often reach out to them when I have a new book to promote.

5: I’ve done blog tours, I write articles related to publishing, mystery writing, etc., I have done podcasts and webinars and panel discussions live and online related to mystery writing and/or cats. With a brand new series now to promote, I’ll be doing more of this.

6: I’ve had bookmarks and notecards created from my beautiful book covers which are hand painted by Bernadette Kazmarski. How do I use these? I hand out bookmarks nearly everywhere I go, and I’ll send packets of the notecards along with a first book order or as a thank you or an apology to fans.

7: An Olivia fan offered to create a stamp of Olivia’s paw print so she can pawtograph her books. Since I have a purchase option for all of my books at my websites, readers can order an autographed and pawtographed copy directly from me. Nice touch, don’t you think? And it seems to be paying off. The only caveat is having to go to the post office so often to ship books when I’d rather be writing!

8: I offer all of the mysteries in both print and ebook formats. And since there are some people who still do not use a computer, my book purchasing option at my websites serves a purpose for those customers.

9: I hire out most of the book production tasks. I do the writing and the promotion, but I hire a web designer, editor, cover designer, and book formatters who also submit the books to Amazon. This is probably the reason why I can produce an average of 6 books per year (Nine books in the year of isolation: 2020.) Amazon is my book producer, and I am in the KDP exclusive program. I can sell my print books through bookstores, etc., but the Kindle books are sold exclusive through Amazon and I have no regrets about that decision. The royalties I receive at the end of each month confirm that this is the right decision for me.

10: I do my best to keep my stories fresh—one way I do that is by continuing to pay attention to Olivia and our other cat, Sophie, as well as the cats I meet in purrson and online. I write from the heart more often than I attempt to create from that place of reasoning and logic, which gives some of my stories an almost fanciful flavor. My stories are a mix of what I know, what I’ve experienced, what I’ve observed, and what I can imagine. I enjoy using my mysteries as a means to teach and to spread an aura of kindness. At my website, KleptoCatMysteries.com, I offer a list of 100 things you can learn from reading the Klepto Cat Mysteries. Ah yes, my writing life is good. And, by the way, my cats are my muse.

Whatever your passion or your muse—no matter how rigid, fun, or frivolous your topic or theme, if you want to sell books, promotion MUST be part of your plan. Make it fun or trudge along reluctantly, but do it. You have no one to praise for your success or to blame if things go awry but yourself.

Thank you for giving readers an insight into your writing career, Patricia, and good luck with Oh! Olivia, the first book in the Calico Cat mystery series.

Readers can learn more about Patricia Fry by visiting the author’s website.

The novel is available online at Amazon

About Patricia Fry: Patricia has been writing for publication for over 45 years. The first Calico Cat Mystery will be her 94^th published book. But she didn’t start out writing fiction. She had a passion for writing nonfiction articles, and she wrote hundreds—maybe thousands—of articles over her career for around 300 different publications including, Woman’s World, Entrepreneur, The Toastmaster, The World and I, Western Horse, Cat Fancy, Cats Magazine, Los Angeles Times Magazine, Your Health, Writer’s Digest, and many, many others.

Throughout the 1990s and early 2000s she wrote columns, articles, and books for authors teaching about the business of writing. She presented workshops for authors and gave presentations in dozens of cities throughout the US.

In 2010, she wrote her first cat book—Catscapades, True Cat Tales. The following year she shifted from writing nonfiction and teaching, counseling, and mentoring other authors and she wrote the first in the award-winning Klepto Cat Mystery series, CATNAPPED. This series is 51-books strong as of April 2021 and counting.

Patricia is past president and director of SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists, and Writers Network—now WPN, The Writers and Publishers Network). She is a professional member of the Cat Writers Association since 2009, and she has been writing a daily blog—Catscapades since 2009.

Patricia has almost always had a cat at her hearth and in her heart, loving many mixed breed cats as well as a Himalayan, a Persian and a Siamese. She prefers the long-to medium haired cats, but she has also shared her home with short-haired cats over the years. All but two of the cats she’s had over the years were adopted. Several of them were rescues and some of those came from feral beginnings. Every one of her cats had a story and those stories sometimes appear in the mysteries she writes.

Currently, Patricia shares her home with Sophie, a seventeen-year-old classic formerly feral tortie, and Olivia, the gorgeous diva calico featured in the Calico Cat Mystery series.

Posted in Archives, August 2021 | Tagged animal mystery, Calico Cat mystery, cat mystery, cozy mystery, mystery, Oh! Olivia, Patricia Fry | 2 Comments

The F.I.G. Mysteries

Posted on August 3, 2021 by Dianne Ascroft

Today Barbara Casey, author of The F.I.G. Mysteries, is visiting Ascroft, eh? to introduce herself and her writing.

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

If you could have one paranormal ability, what would it be?

I would love to be able to time travel, whether it would be to the past or the future.

What is one thing your readers would be most surprised to learn about you?

I am pretty much a “what you see is what you get” kind of person. I run two companies – my literary agency and a small publishing house that focuses on true crime/nonfiction. And I write. In addition, I take care of my 98-year-old mother and the three beautiful cats that adopted me. So these things fill my life.

When writing descriptions of your hero/ine, what feature do you start with?

I reveal a lot about my characters through dialogue and body language. I really enjoy figuring out the physiognomy – discovering character through outward appearance – of the people in my books.

Are you a plotter or a pantser?

I guess I am more of a plotter. I have certain things in place before I start writing. However, there is a point in the creative process where the characters and the storyline take on a life of their own. At that point I am merely the instrument writing it all down.

Did you learn anything from writing this book? If so, what?

Each of the four books in The F.I.G. Mysteries required a great deal of research.

The Cadence of Gypsies (Book 1) focused on the Voynich Manuscript and Gypsy culture.

The Wish Rider (Book 2) focused on the Grand Central Terminal. Who knew there were concealed passages inhabited by a secret subculture under the train tracks, and that there is an abandoned train car hidden there?

The Clock Flower (Book 3) involves actual research findings involving immortality and the dandelion flower.

The Nightjar’s Promise (Book 4) delves into the art thefts that took place under the reign of Adolph Hitler during World War II. The search for the missing art continues today.

Thanks for answering my questions, Barbara, and good luck with The F.I. G. Mysteries.

Readers can learn more about Barbara Casey by visiting her website.

Barbara Casey will be awarding a $50 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. To enter the contest: Click here

For more chances to win, visit the rest of the stops on Charlotte’s tour: Click here.

The books are available online at Amazon.

About Barbara Casey: Originally from Carrollton, Illinois, author/agent/publisher Barbara Casey attended the University of North Carolina, N.C. State University, and N.C. Wesleyan College where she received a BA degree, summa cum laude, with a double major in English and history. In 1978 she left her position as Director of Public Relations and Vice President of Development at North Carolina Wesleyan College to write full time and develop her own manuscript evaluation and editorial service. In 1995 she established the Barbara Casey Agency and since that time has represented authors from the United States, Great Britain, Canada, and Japan. In 2014, she became a partner with Strategic Media Books, an independent nonfiction publisher of true crime, where she oversees acquisitions, day-to-day operations, and book production.

Her award-winning articles, short stories, and poetry for adults have appeared in both national and international publications including the North Carolina Christian Advocate Magazine, The New East Magazine, the Raleigh (N.C.) News and Observer, the Rocky Mount (N.C.) Sunday Telegram, Dog Fancy, ByLine, The Christian Record, Skirt! Magazine, and True Story. A thirty-minute television special which Ms. Casey wrote and coordinated was broadcast on WRAL, Channel 5, in Raleigh, North Carolina. She also received special recognition for her editorial work on the English translations of Albanian children’s stories. Her award-winning science fiction short stories for adults are featured in The Cosmic Unicorn and CrossTime science fiction anthologies. Ms. Casey’s essays and other works appear in The Chrysalis Reader, the international literary journal of the Swedenborg Foundation, 221 One-Minute Monologues from Literature (Smith and Kraus Publishers), and A Cup of Comfort (Adams Media Corporation).

Ms. Casey has written over a dozen award-winning books of fiction and nonfiction for both young adults and adults. The awards include the National Association of University Women Literary Award, the Sir Walter Raleigh Literary Award, the Independent Publisher Book Award, the Dana Award for Outstanding Novel, the IP Best Book for Regional Fiction, among others. Two of her nonfiction books have been optioned for major films, one of which is under contract.

Ms. Casey is a former director of BookFest of the Palm Beaches, Florida, where she served as guest author and panelist. She has served as judge for the Pathfinder Literary Awards in Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Florida, and was the Florida Regional Advisor for the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators from 1991 through 2003. In 2018 Ms. Casey received the prestigious Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award and Top Professional Award for her extensive experience and notable accomplishments in the field of publishing and other areas. She makes her home on the top of a mountain in northwest Georgia with three cats who adopted her, Homer, Reese and Earl Gray – Reese’s best friend.

Posted in Archives, August 2021 | Tagged Barbara Casey, mystery, paranormal mystery, The Cadence of Gypsies, The Clock Flower, The Nightjars Promise, The Wish Rider | 4 Comments

Murder at Sea Captain’s Inn

Posted on August 1, 2021 by Dianne Ascroft

Today Jamie McAdams from Murder at Sea Captain’s Inn, is visiting Ascroft, eh? to tell us about The Open Door Bookshop and the island of Devil’s Cove.

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

Hey y’all. My name is Jamie McAdams. I’m the co-owner (with my Grandad, Cyrus McAdams) of The Open Door Bookshop in Devil’s Cove, North Carolina.

I have two daughters. They are my life. They’re named after literary characters (Heidi and Mathilda). I’m divorced—probably the best thing that could have happened, even if it means my girls come from a broken household.

I didn’t intend to be, but I have become one of the most important men in Pippin Lane Hawthorne’s life. Another is her twin brother, Grey. I don’t know her well, but she loves my daughters, and they love her. I’ve also been helping her with a few historical mysteries that have arisen in her complicated life..

History is my thing. I’ve got a doctorate in Medieval Irish Literature, plus a few other degrees. I guess you could say that education is also my thing.

When I first met Pippin, I was instantly intrigued. She didn’t read, yet came into The Open Door and picked up The Odyssey. Since then, Heidi has made it her mission to get Pippin reading. They are in a little book club of two. I didn’t know about Pippin’s bibliomancy then. Now I do, and her connection to books makes more sense. I admit, I’m fascinated by the divinity.

Come visit The Open Door on the island of Devil’s Cove. I’ll introduce you to a few good books.

Thank you for giving readers an insight into The Open Door Bookshop and the island of Devil’s Cove, Jamie, and good luck to you and your author, Melissa Bourbon, with Murder at Sea Captain’s Inn, the latest book in the Book Magic mystery series.

Readers can learn more about Melissa Bourbon by visiting the author’s website and her Goodreads and Instagram pages. You can also join her Book Warriors Online Book Club.

The novel is available online at Amazon

About Melissa Bourbon: Melissa is the national bestselling author of more than twenty-five mystery books, including the Book Magic mysteries, the Lola Cruz Mysteries, A Magical Dressmaking Mystery series, and the Bread Shop Mysteries, written as Winnie Archer. She is a former middle school English teacher who gave up the classroom in order to live in her imagination full time. Melissa lives in North Carolina with her educator husband, Carlos. She is beyond fortunate to be living the life of her dreams.

Posted in August 2021 | Tagged bookshop mystery, cozy mystery, island mystery, Melissa Bourbon, Murder at Sea Captains Inn | 1 Comment

Dead as a Duck

Posted on July 27, 2021 by Dianne Ascroft

Today Colleen J. Shogan is visiting Ascroft, eh? to tell us about Dead as a Duck, her latest novel in the Washington Whodunit Mystery series.

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

Tell us about your novel. Is it part of a series? If so, please tell us about the series too.

DEAD AS A DUCK is the seventh mystery in the Washington Whodunit series, featuring congressional staffer turned amateur sleuth Kit Marshall. Kit solves crimes in our nation’s capital along with her merry band of friends and colleagues.

In this book, the scenery changes.

Kit has left Washington, D.C. and hit the road with her boss, Congresswoman Maeve Dixon, who is considering running for the United States Senate in North Carolina. After endless town halls and meet-and-greets, Kit is happy to end the tour in Duck, an upscale beach town in the Outer Banks.

Before Kit can relax on her much-deserved vacation with her husband Doug, brother Sebastian, best friend Meg, and beagle mutt Clarence, the body of Duck’s mayor is found floating in the shallow waters of the Currituck Sound.

Kit’s brother Sebastian, who got in a public kerfuffle with the victim the day before, becomes the prime suspect. Solving the mystery takes her to popular hotspots in the Outer Banks, including a private tour featuring the wild horses of Corolla.

Kit must sacrifice sun-filled days of relaxation to clear her brother. In the end, Kit and Sebastian put their own lives on the line to secure a confession from the killer and make sure justice is served.

Where did the idea for the mystery that is central to the story come from?

My husband and I own a small home in the Outer Banks. It is a popular vacation and relaxation spot for us. During the pandemic, we spent a great deal of time in the Outer Banks, which really only intensified our great affection for it. In the previous six books in the series, Kit Marshall has visited many of the highlights of Washington, D.C. I decided it was time to let her explore another location – and, of course, solve a mystery!

Is there a theme or subject that underlies the story? If so, what prompted you to write about it?

My books are place-based. This book is a beach mystery. The Outer Banks, including its history, are part of this novel. Furthermore, in this story, Kit’s brother Sebastian is accused of murder. Kit feels a great deal of pressure to solve the crime so that he will be cleared. We learn more about what makes Kit operate emotionally as a character because of the threat she faces.

How do you create your characters? Do you have favourite ones? If so, why are you partial to them?

I started the Washington Whodunt series with a small band of “permanent” characters. However, Kit’s eccentric friend Trevor became popular, so I decided to keep him on in future books. He has really evolved over the course of the series, and I am happy about his development. Trevor isn’t a static character. In each book, he changes—often in interesting ways! Also, in the fifth book in the series, Gore in the Garden, I added a new character, Kit’s brother. Sebastian came to me out of nowhere. Kit had a bit of a hard edge to her, and I wanted to figure out a way to soften her. Adding her long-lost brother to the mix seemed like a fun solution. Now, Sebastian and his offbeat ways are one of the most intriguing parts of the series.

How do you bring to life the place you are writing about?

I spend a lot of time in the places I write about. The Outer Banks is a second home to me. I know the best places to eat, drink, and have fun. I worked on Capitol Hill for over fifteen years, so that neighborhood is almost like my own. When I write about famous buildings (the Smithsonian museums, the Library of Congress, the Capitol, or the Archives), I am confident about my descriptions because I have such a firm knowledge of these amazing places.

What research do you do to provide background information to help you write the novel?

I engage in a fair amount of research as I am writing my novels. In Dead as a Duck, I learned more about the history of the Outer Banks and the origins of the infamous “Lost Colony.” I also read extensively about the famous wild horses of Corolla so I could understand their origins. It’s important for an author to engage in a “deep dive” while writing a book. Readers depend upon accuracy. It’s something I take seriously.

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

If you’re looking for a perfect summer beach read, Dead as a Duck is the book for you. Even if you aren’t able to hit the ocean this summer, Dead as a Duck will transport you, coupled with an entertaining amateur sleuth whodunit. Although Dead as a Duck is the seventh book in my series, it can easily be read as a standalone. I hope you enjoy it!

Thanks for answering my questions, Colleen, and good luck with Dead as a Duck, the latest book in A the Washington Whodunit Mystery series.

Readers can learn more about Colleen and her writing by visiting her website and her Facebook and Goodreads pages. You can also follow her on Twitter.

The novel is available at the following online retailers:

Amazon – B&N – Kobo

About Colleen J. Shogan: Colleen has been reading mysteries since the age of six. A political scientist by training, Colleen has taught American politics at numerous universities. She previously worked on Capitol Hill as a legislative staffer in the United States Senate and as a senior executive at the Library of Congress. Currently, she’s a Senior Vice President at the White House Historical Association. A member of Sisters in Crime, Colleen splits her time between Arlington, VA and Duck, NC.

Posted in Archives, July 2021 | Tagged Colleen J Shogan, cozy mystery, Dead as a Duck, Washington Whodunit | 1 Comment

Sand Trapped

Posted on July 26, 2021 by Dianne Ascroft

Today Cara Mia Delgatto is visiting Ascroft, eh? to tell us about Sand Trapped, the latest novel in the Cara Mia Delgatto mystery series.

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

Tell us about the novel that you live inside. Is it part of a series?

–This particular novel is Sand Trapped: Book #6 in the Cara Mia Delgatto Mystery Series. While doing a favor for a neighbor, I agreed to participate in a guest-member golf tournament. My friend and I were ahead until we found a dead body in the sand trap at Hole #6. That brought the contest to a close with a bang, the slamming of a casket lid.

If so, please tell us about the series too.

—Sand Trapped is part of a series named after me: The Cara Mia Delgatto Mystery Series. I’m a huge believer in second chances for people and for things. That’s one reason that I bought The Treasure Chest, a building in Stuart, Florida, slated to be torn down (Tear Down & Die: Book #1). I worked my butt off to turn it into a retail shop featuring upcycled, recycled, and repurposed goods with a beachy theme. Unfortunately, one of my biggest public relations triumphs was spoiled when a pushy reporter disappeared, only to be found dead in a car behind my store (Kicked to the Curb: Book #2). But I got over that, and my clientele continues to grow. Although the store takes up most of my time, I love walking on the beach. One morning I found a nearly drowned undocumented immigrant (All Washed Up: Book #3). Unfortunately a lot of desperate people hop on boats and cross the ocean to get to the Treasure Coast of Florida. They don’t realize that the coral reef right off the shore has caused many shipwrecks, scattering gold and gems up and down the coastline (Cast Away: Book #4). Although the beautiful ocean view is a major reason for living here in Florida, many retirees come here for the lovely weather (Ruff Justice: Book #5). And of course, our state is known as the Golf Capital of the World (Sand Trapped: Book #6).

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

–I definitely speak up now and again. Joanna can’t do it all. Besides, I have a fiery temper, and she doesn’t. It would never occur to her to get angry with people like I do on occasion. She’s much too nice.

How did you evolve as the main character?

–I was a secondary character in another series, the Kiki Lowenstein Mystery Series. Back then, I worked in my family’s restaurant. But after my parents died within six months of each other and my son went off to college, I struck out on my own. I was taking a road trip to University of Miami, planning to show up for Parents’ Weekend, when my car started making strange noises. I stopped at my grandfather’s gas station to have him look at the Toyota. Then, on impulse, I bought a building scheduled to be torn down. The rest is my history!

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

–I get by with a lot of help from my friends. First I added Skye Blue, a creative genius, as an employee. She has a checkered past after being married to an abusive man. Skye also has a heart of gold. She offered me a place to stay when I first moved to Florida. Then I hired MJ Austin, an expert in all things Old Florida. MJ’s been married five times. Six if you count twice to the same man. Last to come onboard was Honora McAfee, a miniaturist my grandfather’s age. Honora knows everyone and everything about our area.

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

–I’m falling in love with a man who disappears now and again, and won’t talk about why. My head says, “This is not a good thing, and you’re going to get hurt.” My heart says, “I’ve waited for a long time to find someone like this guy. I’m not going to give him up easily.”

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

My readers say—

“(Sand Trapped is…) A fine page-turner of a Florida cozy story, with plenty of local color and lovely descriptions of some of the state’s flora and fauna.”

“If you haven’t met the employees of Cara Mia’s upcycle store, Treasure Chest, you have a wonderful experience ahead of you.”

“I love the way Ms. Slan winds together several stories into one book.”

“What a fun book!”

“Cara’s thought process is refreshing, and the plots are captivating.”

“Cara is so alive I can see her.”

“The mystery was intriguing, and my love of creativity, beach combing, and cooking was stimulated.”

Thank you for answering my questions, Cara, and good luck to you and your author, Joanna Campbell Slan, with Sand Trapped, the latest book in the Cara Mia Delgatto mystery series.

Readers can learn more about Cara and her author, Joanna Campbell Slan, by visiting the author’s website and her Facebook, Bookbub and Pinterest pages. You can also follow her on Twitter.

The novel is available online at Amazon

About Joanna Campbell Slan: Joanna is a New York Times Bestselling, USA Today Bestselling, and Amazon Bestselling author as well as a woman prone to frequent bursts of crafting frenzy, leaving her with burns from her hot glue gun and paint on her clothes. And the mess? Let’s not even go there.

Otherwise, Joanna’s a productive author with more than 80 written projects to her credit. Her non-fiction work includes how to books, a college textbook for public speakers, and books of personal essays (think Chicken Soup for the Soul).

Currently, she writes five fiction series: The Kiki Lowenstein Mystery Series (Agatha Award Finalist, contemporary, St. Louis setting, crafting), the Cara Mia Delgatto Mystery Series (contemporary, Florida setting, DIY, and recycling), the Jane Eyre Chronicles (Daphne du Maurier Award Winner, 1830s England, based on Charlotte Brontë’s classic), the Sherlock Holmes Fantasy Thrillers (late 1800s, based on Arthur Conan Doyle’s books), and the Zen Cozy Mystery Series (launch 2021).

A former TV talk show host, college teacher, and public relations specialist, Joanna was one of the early Chicken Soup for the Soul contributors. She won a Silver Anvil for her work on the original FarmAid concert to benefit farmers.

In her ongoing quest never to see snow again, Joanna lives with her husband and their Havanese puppy, Jax, on an island off the coast of Florida.

Posted in Archives, July 2021 | Tagged cozy mystery | 2 Comments

Midnight Spells Murder

Posted on July 22, 2021 by Dianne Ascroft

Today Zo Jones is visiting Ascroft, eh? to tell us about Midnight Spells Murder, the latest novel in the Happy Camper cozy mystery series.

Welcome, Zo. 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.

My name is Zo Jones (I’ll find out the reason behind the unique spelling in this book), and I live inside Midnight Spells Murder. It’s the second book in the Happy Camper cozy mystery series, which is about my giftshop, Happy Camper. It’s located in the Black Hills National Park in South Dakota.

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

It’s a bit of a compromise. My writer thinks she controls the story, and then I do something that totally surprises her. But that’s okay. She likes surprises.

How did you evolve as the main character?

A fun and snarky shop girl who rides a motorcycle—that was the start of my journey to the page. My journey is full of detours, though. I long to know who my birth parents are and find clues throughout the course of the series.

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

I adore my neighbor Russell Cunningham, a garrulous English professor, and I love spending time with my friends Jules, Hattie, and Beth. My Maine Coon cat, George, hogs a lot of pages because cats are conceited like that. And I can’t forget Max Harrington, a forest ranger who is growing on me more than I’d like to admit.

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

It’s Halloween, and my small town, Spirit Canyon, is getting ready for Spirit Spooktacular. It’s a fun weekend filled with a pumpkin carving contest and parade. Happy Camper is having a book signing for a real witch. I can’t wait to meet her!

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

I hope you enjoy your time in Spirit Canyon. You’re in for a spooktacular time!

Thank you for answering my questions, Zo, and good luck to you and your author, Mary Angela, with Midnight Spells Murder, the latest book in the Happy Camper cozy mystery series.

Readers can learn more about Zo and her author, Mary Angela by visiting the author’s website and her Facebook , Goodreads, and Instagram pages. Readers can also follow her on Twitter.

The novel is available at the following online retailers:

Amazon – iTunes – Google – Kobo – B&N

About Mary Angela: Mary is the author of the Happy Camper cozy mystery series, the Professor Prather academic mystery series, and several short stories. When Mary isn’t penning heartwarming whodunits, she’s teaching, reading, traveling, or spending time with her family. She lives in South Dakota with her husband, daughters, and spoiled pets.

Posted in Archives, July 2021 | Tagged cozy mystery, Mary Angela, Midnight Spells Murder | Leave a comment

Murder at the Lakeside Library

Posted on July 20, 2021 by Dianne Ascroft

Today Holly Danvers, author of Murder at the Lakeside Library is visiting Ascroft, eh? to share an excerpt from her novel.

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

I wanted to share with you an excerpt from this new series. I think if it hooks you on the first page, you’ll want to keep reading. So here are the first few paragraphs of Murder at the Lakeside Library:

Chapter 1

The road ahead spanned like an endless ribbon leading to nowhere. Despite the bone-chilling blast from the air conditioner, Rain Wilmot’s hands, clammy with perspiration, slid down the steering wheel. She glanced in the rearview mirror to reassess the backseat of her Ford Explorer, stuffed to the brim with all her worldly possessions. At thirty-two years old, her belongings didn’t amount to much. It was as if the ten years of full-time work trapped inside a cubical amounted to absolutely nothing.

It doesn’t matter. Things don’t matter, Rain reminded herself.

The high-rise condo in Milwaukee that she’d shared with her late husband Max was now an additional scar on her wounded heart. The rolling wheels of the tires propelled her forward as if she didn’t have a choice. She didn’t really. The finality of death certainly thrust decisions on a person. She hadn’t expected the condo to sell so quickly, but a high-powered insurance broker insisted he couldn’t pass up the floor to ceiling windows overlooking the Milwaukee River. She wondered if the new owner would change the pale paint colors in the half-painted nursery.

The warning from her previous boss, Philip, sounded in her head like an alarm bell. “You really ought to wait, Rain. Don’t you think you’re making a hasty decision? Experts say you should wait at least a year before making any life-altering changes.”

Easy for him to say.

Just pulling into the parking lot at Harley Davidson sent her reeling. She didn’t need daily reminders at her place of employment of what she’d lost due to twisted chrome and steel.

Rain rolled down the window, needing real air in her lungs, and quickly realized she’d made a terrible error as the humidity filled the car. The smell of musty bonfire embers blew in from a nearby campground. That was a sign that she was getting close. She was almost back to her family’s summer cabin—a cabin that stood on one hundred and fifty feet of prime frontage on one of the purest lakes in the Midwest—Pine Lake. She’d spent every childhood summer swimming and boating on this lake. But she’d neglected to visit for many years now, for any number of paltry excuses. The general busyness of life, work, and love had all gotten in the way. Besides, Max had never liked coming up north. He was more of an ‘ocean person’ he’d said on more than one occasion. Well, that certainly wasn’t an issue now.

The faded blue sign on the side of the road caught Rain’s eye and caused her to loosen her grip on the steering wheel. The familiar gold letters that read: Welcome to Lofty Pines sent a fresh surge of comfort through her. Only a mile left to go before Rain would round the corner onto Birch Lane and exhale a sigh of relief. She removed her sunglasses and tossed them onto the passenger seat as the dense pines canopied the winding road, shading her view.

Rain’s shoulders relaxed and her breath slowed when she spotted the familiar hand-hewn logs with thick white chinking that had stood the test of time. She often thought the rear side of the original cabin resembled a tree house perched high above the lake. The logs had been cut from the very forest that had once covered the clearing. After removing the bark from the towering white pines, her great-grandfather Lorenzo had leveled the timber with his own hands using an ancient tool from the stone age called an adze. The minor imperfections in the logs were now a glaringly beautiful reminder of his legacy to the house. Of course, upgrades and additions had come with future generations, and now Rain wondered if her great-grandfather would be proud of how much that had changed over the years. The first sight of the family cabin caused her lips to curl into a genuine smile for the first time in a long, long while. She’d made it.

Home.

Thank you for sharing that excerpt with us, Holly, and good luck with Murder at the Lakeside Library, the first book in the Lakeside Library mystery series.

Readers can learn more about Holly Danvers by visiting the author’s website and her Facebook and Goodreads pages.

The novel is available at the following online retailers:

Amazon – B&N – Kobo – IndieBound

About Holly Danvers: Holly grew up devouring every mystery novel on the shelf of her local library. She lives in the Midwest with her husband and 3 chickens, where she’s already plotting her next novel.