I'm pleased to welcome Marla A. White to Cozy Up With Kathy today. Marla writes the Pine Cove Mystery series. FRAMED FOR MURDER is the first book in the series and was released last week.
Kathy: In FRAMED FOR MURDER we meet Mel O’Rourke who runs a B & B. Have you ever wanted to run a B & B?
MAW: Of the many things I’ve wanted to do in life, running a hotel has never really been one of them. Which, come to think of it, is kind of odd considering two of my book series are set in hotels and have main characters who run them. Now a quilting store or a vineyard, that I might do!
Kathy: Mel suffered a life changing injury. Have you ever had an injury of health issues that changed your life?
MAW: Changed my life would be an overstatement, I think. I was going up a small up bank (a jump) on my horse. He was overly exuberant about it, and I tumbled off his butt, landing on my tailbone and my head. Thankfully, my head is harder than my tailbone. I still have more “junk in my trunk” than was factory installed as a result of it, if you know what I mean. It swelled so much I couldn’t wear regular pants! It still feels like I’m lying on a potato when I do yoga.
A shout out as well for an issue that doesn’t get much attention for women; I have Dupuytren's contracture, also known by the much cooler name of Viking Disease. John Elway gets all the notoriety, but women can get it to. For me, I’ve got a pinky that’s shaped like a 7 so it’s a pain in the neck to put gloves on, but like I said, life changing might be over stating it.
Kathy: Poppy Phillips is a frenemy to Mel. Have you ever had a frenemy?
MAW: That is an excellent question. I had to think about it long and hard, but I can’t really think of any. I tend to lean into either you’re a friend, or I just don’t have the band width to think that much about you. The enemy thing takes more energy than I have, LOL.
Kathy: What first drew you to cozy mysteries?
MAW: I didn’t want to have to learn cop procedures? Just kidding. I think one of the first books I read was a Nancy Drew mystery, so detectives out of uniform who can make up the rules as they go along have always been appealing. Rex Stout’s Nero Wolf, Robert Parker’s Spenser, and of course the great Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum all got to solve crimes but bend a few laws along the way. Dick Francis mysteries were a huge influence as well. My first full-length novel from The Wild Rose Press, “Cause for Elimination,” has a cop as one of the main characters, but there’s also Emily Conners, professional horse trainer and part-time snoop.
But what, in my mind, sets a true cozy apart is the small town setting where, like “Cheers,” everybody knows your name. Pine Cove is very heavily influenced by the real town of Idyllwild, California that has a dog for a mayor and two major streets. There’s something very comforting reading them. Nothing truly bad will happen (unless you count the dead person who usually opens the story) and often times there’s a little romance along the way. It’s a nice break from real life.
Kathy: Do you write in any other genres?
MAW: Nobody told me you weren’t supposed to until it was too late! After I wrote “Cause” and put it in a drawer for ten years so no one could reject it, I visited a historic hotel in Southern California and was inspired to write a contemporary fantasy. The angel Gabriel wakes up in Jurupa just outside of Riverside naked, wingless, and no memory of why he’s there. It was so much fun writing those books because even the laws of physics don’t apply to angels, demons, and dragons.
I’m also working with a friend on a hockey romance series. I’m new to hockey and romance books so it’s been a wild ride learning about both.
Kathy: Tell us about your series.
MAW: I love writing series because I get too attached to the characters to ever say goodbye!
The Pine Cove mysteries, of which Framed is the first, started with the novella “The Starlight Mint Surprise Murder” and is centered on the quirky little town of Pine Cove. Mel has to deal with starting over in a new life, a newly acquired fear of heights, a possible love triangle, and the occasional dead body.
“The Keeper Chronicles” features Gabriel, his lover and ex-demon(ish) Evie, and their human friends Abby and Ryan. After unseen forces make Abby the Keeper of a Book of Power, the foursome is tasked with saving the world from increasingly larger disasters, including a visit from Gabriel’s vexing siblings, the other archangels.
Kathy: Do you have a favorite character? If so, who and why?
MAW: I don’t think I do. I like to believe they’re all very different and self-evolved. For instance, Dearg in “Cause” was meant to only be in one or two scenes but he kind of demanded his own storyline. And book, but that’s a work in progress.
At this moment, if I had to pick it would be Lucifer. Yes, that Lucifer. Because in his mind it’s okay if he kills his brother, but Father forbid someone else tries. Stung by his family’s rejection, he does whatever he wants and couldn’t care less what anyone thinks. Until he does.
Kathy: Did you have a specific inspiration for your series?
MAW: Visits to Idyllwild and staying in the fictional version of The Babbling Brook kind of demanded a story be set there. The Wild Rose Press put out a call for their “cookie books” – a book of any genre with a cookie at the heart of the story. I couldn’t get my mom’s Starlight Mint Surprise cookie recipe right to save my life so that triggered the story, I’d just come home from a trip to Idyllwild, which gave me the perfect setting, and I love mysteries so it all kind of came together from there.
Kathy: What made you decide to publish your work?
MAW: One hundred percent it was my friend, who told me about the cookie books, having such a great experience with The Wild Rose Press. Like I said, "Cause” was filed away for years because I didn’t have the balls of Stephen King or F. Scott Fitzgerald who allegedly papered his walls with his rejection slips. (That notion is attributed to many writers, by the way, so maybe more than one actually did it?)
When my editor for “Starlight” asked if I had anything else, my first thought was “no” and then my friend had to remind me I had a whole dang book waiting to be found!
Kathy: If you could have a dinner party and invite 4 authors, living or dead, in any genre, who would you invite?
MAW: Neil Gaiman seems like a hoot, I’ve actually met Janet Evanovich once and I know she’s lovely, Leslie Charteris who wrote “The Saint” books because I enjoy the way his mind works, and Jim Butcher because his Dresden books were mind-shifting about what fantasy could be.
Kathy: Will you share any of your hobbies or interests with us?
MAW: I love gardening, quilting, and putting together jigsaw puzzles to the point of putting my back out because I’ll hunch over the pieces for hours. Newly a fan of hockey, which is hard to be this season because the LA Kings just broke my heart. And of course, reading!
Kathy: Name 4 items you always have in your fridge or pantry.
MAW: Hmmm, another good question. I’ll go with the essentials of eggs, bacon, bread, and whiskey. The last one has its own cabinet, of course. The fridge would be a silly place to keep that!
Kathy: Do you have plans for future books either in your current series or a new series?
MAW: The rough draft of the next Pine Cove book is finished but I want to give it some breathing room before I come back to it. “Cause” was always meant to be a series and Lucifer wants his book to be written as well. There are only so many hours in a day, even when you get up at 5:30am to write. There’s this pesky job thing that keeps demanding at least eight hours a day. Ugh.
Kathy: What’s your favorite thing about being an author?
MAW: The easy flow of money and fame? (Not!) I love creating things that didn’t exist before I came along. Very rarely does the blank page freak me out. If I had to write on a typewriter I’d probably feel very differently, but the way computers make it so easy to change your mind about a word, sentence, or storyline I find to be very freeing.
Also, research. It’s crazy, but again the internet makes it so easy to find out things like how long a person can be frozen and still be revived or what does Slovenia celebrate instead of Thanksgiving. I love finding out weird factoids, swear words in other languages.
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Review
FRAMED FOR MURDER by Marla A. White
The First Pine Cove Mystery
Injured in the line of duty, Emmaline O'Rourke was forced to leave her
career in
law enforcement behind and, with the help of her family, open a B&B
in the quaint and quirky town of Pine Cove. After seeing an unknown car
outside she’s stunned to find a woman in her kitchen, Poppy the cat
burglar. The very thief she was chasing when she was hurt and also the
same
thief who saved her life. It turns out that Poppy may have been set up
when a standard heist turned into anything but when Poppy stumbled over a
dead body. Now police are searching for “The Ghost” while she’s trying
to lay low. Believing her to be a thief, but
not a killer, Mel agrees to let Poppy stay. After all the woman can cook
much better than Mel and is willing to work at the B&B. All Mel
has to do is keep the Sheriff from discovering
her true identity while investigating the murder herself.
Although this is the first book in the Pine Cove Mystery series there were lots of references to a murder and things that happened establishing several relationships prior to the start of this book. I was a bit confused as it was reading more like the second in the series than the first. I've since learned that there is a short story prequel wherein all this action happened. I would have liked to read that first as I felt I was missing something all through FRAMED FOR MURDER. Still this book is a complete mystery unto itself and I wasn't missing anything vital. I will have to find and read the short story!
I really like Mel. With all her foibles she's still a likeable, relatable protagonist, even though I did want to smack her a few times. Talk to the man-don't act like a teenager. Poppy is by far my favorite character though. Stylish, smart, a woman who truly created herself. Grandma O is a hoot and I truly like the rest of the supporting cast, except for the horrible mayor's wife. While I like the two men in Mel's romantic scope, I'm not particularly fond of love triangles, so we'll have to see how this plays out.
As a former cop myself, I see how Mel wants to get involved in the investigation as well as her frustration in the way that the sheriff treats her. I enjoyed the mystery and how Mel and Poppy went about solving this complex mystery...as well as figuring out how to run the B&B.
With a lot of wit, engaging characters, and entangled relationships FRAMED FOR MURDER is a delightful start to a new series.
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Framed For Murder (A Pine Cove Mystery)
by Marla A. White
About Framed for Murder
After a life-changing injury, Mel O’Rourke trades in her badge for bed sheets, running a B & B in the quirky mountain town of Pine Cove. Her peaceful life is interrupted when an old frenemy, the notorious and charismatic cat burglar, Poppy Phillips, shows up on her doorstep, claiming she’s been framed for murder. While she’s broken plenty of laws, Mel knows she’d never kill anyone. Good thing she’s a better detective than she is a cook as she sets out to prove Poppy's innocence.
The situation gets complicated, however, when the ruggedly handsome Deputy Sheriff Gregg Marks flirts with Mel, bringing him dangerously close to the criminal she’s hiding. And just when her friendship with café owner Jackson Thibodeaux blossoms into something more, he’s offered the opportunity of a lifetime in New Orleans. Should she encourage him to go, or ask him to stay? Who knew romance could be just as hard to solve as murder?
About Marla A. White
Marla White is an award-winning novelist who prefers killing people who annoy her on paper rather than in real life. Her first full-length mystery novel, “Cause for Elimination,” placed in several contests including Killer Nashville, The RONE Awards, The Reader’s Favorite, and finishing second in the Orange County Romance Writers for Romantic Suspense. Originally from Oklahoma, she lived in a lot of other states before settling down in Los Angeles to work in the television industry. She currently teaches at UCLA Extension and gives seminars about the art of script coverage. When she’s not working on the next book, she’s out in the garden, hiking, cheering on the LA Kings, or discovering new craft cocktails.
Fun facts
Something readers might find interesting about this book:
The quirky Babbling Brook Bed-and-Breakfast is loosely inspired by the Silver Pines Lodge in Idyllwild. Highly recommend staying there if you’re even in that neck of the woods.
A fact about me that readers might find interesting:
I share Mel’s nearly debilitating fear of heights. Well, not to the same extent, I can climb a set of stairs, but looking down more than a few flights? No way 😀
There’s a scene where Mel does a singing bowl session. I’ve done that and honestly, it’s pretty cool!
I accomplished the dream of becoming a published writer in my late fifties after helping other writers craft their stories for thirty years.
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