Sunday, January 28, 2018

Scone Cold Killer - An Interview, Review, & Giveaway


I'm pleased to welcome Lena Gregory back to Cozy Up With Kathy today. Lena writes, the All-Day Breakfast Café Mystery series. Scone Cold Killer is the first book in the series and was released this past Friday.

Kathy: You start a new series with Scone Cold Killer. Did you have a specific inspiration for it?

LG: When I was a kid, I worked at my grandfather’s deli in a small town on the east end of Long Island. I loved working there, getting to know everyone in the neighborhood, hearing all the good gossip as soon as it came out. That was the inspiration for the All-Day Breakfast Café Mysteries series. I wanted to recapture that hometown feel.


Kathy: Gia Morelli opens up an all day breakfast cafe. Why did you choose only breakfasts?

LG: I worked in a deli, and I worked grill at Friendly’s. And I always worked the breakfast shift, so it was the most comfortable for me. Plus, I love having breakfast for lunch and even dinner sometimes.


Kathy: I'm a fan of breakfast foods myself, from pancakes and bacon to biscuits and gravy. What's your favorite breakfast food.

LG: Yikes! It’s so hard to choose. I think my favorite is a western omelet on a roll with American cheese, bacon, and pepper.


Kathy: You change the setting in your new series. I know why Gia did it, but why did you move from New York to Florida.

LG: I lived in Florida for a couple of years when I was younger and my husband got a job offer down there, and I loved it. But it was very different from New York, and it definitely took some getting used to. I thought it would be fun to revisit the time I spent there and have Gia struggle with some of the same things.


Kathy: When it comes to writing I understand there are 2 general camps-plotters, who diligently plot their stories, and pansters, who fly by the seat of their pants. Are you a plotter, a panster, or do you fall somewhere in between?

LG: When I started writing, I was without a doubt a panster. After writing my characters into a corner a few times, I started plotting a little more. I guess now I fall somewhere in the middle but more toward a plotter.


Kathy: Authors are required to do a lot of their own marketing, especially for a new release. What's your favorite part of marketing your work? What do you dislike about marketing?

LG: I absolutely love having facebook parties for my new releases! I enjoy getting to know my readers and other authors, and I really have a lot of fun. I think the thing I dislike most is selling myself. I don’t like pushing my books on people, and I’m not very good at it.


Kathy: Will you share any other upcoming books?

LG: Book three in my Bay Island Psychic Mysteries series, Clairvoyant and Present Danger, will be releasing on February 6, 2018. Murder Made to Order & Cold Brew Killing, All-Day Breakfast Café Mysteries #2 and #3 are also scheduled for release in June and September.


*********************************************************************

Review


SCONE COLD KILLER by Lena Gregory
The First All-Day Breakfast Café Mystery


Gia Morelli wanted nothing more than to leave New York City and start a new life in Florida without the taint of scandal surrounding her. With the help of her good friend, Savannah, she opens her All-Day Breakfast Café with relative success, despite not having grits to serve and dealing with a lazy cook she needs to fire. Gia soon discovers that her past has followed her when she takes out the trash only to find the dead body of her ex-husband in her dumpster. Does someone want her to pay for her ex-husbands sins?

Friendship is one of the key themes in SCONE COLD KILLER. What does it mean to be a friend? What lengths will you go to to help a friend? Do I want to be friends with the people inhabiting this book? I have some issues with Gia Morelli. While she certainly is a well developed character, I found her fearfulness, admittedly warranted to some degree, and carelessness off putting. The secondary characters, however, are interesting, likable people with whom I want to hang around, especially Earl, Harley, and Savannah. There is backstory just oozing out of these characters and I can't wait to read more about them.

The first All-Day Breakfast Café Mystery is a promising start to a new series. There is an interesting mystery with lots of undercurrents, good food, a cute puppy, and a warm feeling of friendship.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

5 comments:

  1. Thank you for the interview with Lena Gregory and the review on "SCONE COLD KILLER" as well as being part of the book tour!
    2clowns at arkansas dot net

    ReplyDelete
  2. Love love love the cover! Can't wait to read it!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you so much for sharing the release of Scone Cold Killer!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Sounds good. Love the cover. im2early4u(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete