Bell, Book, and Corpses - A Guest Post, Excerpt, & Giveaway

I'm pleased to welcome T. C. Lotempio back to Cozy Up With Kathy today. T. C. writes the Nick & Nora Mystery series. BELL, BOOK AND CORPSES is the seventh book in the series and was released last month.

Fangs and Fields....Why I love Television Vampires
T. C. Lotempio

After Christmas, Halloween is my next favorite holiday! I loved dressing up as a kid and going trick or treating, heck I still love to dress up! I’ve always loved spooky things, and horror movies – Halloween is still my #1 favorite—but another thing I’m fond of is vampires, and while I do watch the Dracula movies every October on the movie channel, the vampires I’m most fond of are...the ones on television.

At the risk of dating myself, I’m going to admit that my love of all things gothic...and vampires particularly...was fueled by a little daytime show I used to run (literally-run) home from High School to watch every Monday through Friday at four o’clock. Yes, I’m talking about DARK SHADOWS. Dark Shadows was a standout when it debuted in the 60’s, a soap opera with a gothic twist: governess who doesn’t know her past goes to crumbling old mansion where she encounters strange...and sometimes spooky...goings on. The show wasn’t doing well, though, and was doomed for cancellation...until they introduced a new character, a cousin from England. Barnabas Collins, who ended up being the show’s breakout star, and the very first television vampire!

Barnabas was quickly followed by others: In the popular series, BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER, inspired by the movie of the same name, we were introduced to two: Angel, Buffy’s vampire boyfriend, who later on got a spin off series of his own, and Spike. While Angel would be what was considered a “good” vampire, Spike was definitely a “bad boy”. Spike was rough around the edges, to say the least, but it only served to make him look more admirable when he tried to prove himself to Buffy. Angel, on the other hand, was the epitome of self-sacrifice-and didn’t we love it and him!

TRUE BLOOD, based on Charlaine Harris’ series of books, gave us a Viking Vampire, Eric. I mean, who wouldn’t love a vampire who runs a nightclub called Fangtasia? And let’s not forget THE VAMPIRE DIARIES, who gave us a whole slew of ‘em: Julien, Lucien, Marcel....I could go on!

Of course there are the classic movie vampires: Bela Lugosi, the original Dracula, and Christopher Lee, who played the Count in more incarnations than I can count, pop up on some channel every October. Even Nicolas Cage (RENFIELD) has taken a turn at playing the Count and I have to admit he wasn’t half bad.

Vampires can be a complex lot. Some vampires are reluctant—they’ve been cursed but they hate what they’ve become. (Barnabas, Angel) Other vampires embrace the evil. (OMG take your pick from the Vampire Diaries) Which do I prefer? Well, sometimes it depends on the actor playing the role LOL.

I admit that my fascination has also spilled into my writing. In the latest Nick and Nora mystery, Nick and Nora get into the vampire phase when they discover a body in a coffin in an old mansion-drained of blood! Is there a real vampire lurking around Cruz? Can Nick and Nora solve the mystery in time to save the Halloween gala? I guess you’ll have to read the book to find out. J

So, get out the silver crosses and garlic on Halloween and prepare for a fang-tastic October! I know I will!

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Excerpt:

Little things like a locked car never stop Nick from getting where he wants to go,” I said. The cat in question tipped up his lips and blinked at me, and I bent over and scooped him up. No easy feat, since my tubby tuxedo weighs well over twenty-two pounds. I looked him straight in the eye. “You rascal. I thought you were sleeping, but you weren’t. Playing possum, huh?”

Nick ducked his head and started to purr.

I carried him up the steps but set him down immediately once we were on the porch. We all went over to peer in the giant picture window. The room beyond appeared to be anything but empty. Tables, chairs, even pictures seemed to peer out from behind white coverings. “Looks like a lot of stuff is in there,” I observed. “Most of it will have to be cleared out.”

“The interior doesn’t appear to be too bad, though,” said Chantal, pressing her nose to the glass. “It just looks like all it might need is a good dusting.”

Joannie let out a loud grunt. “Dammit,” she grumbled. “I can’t find the key, and I was certain I put it in here.”

“Maybe you don’t need it.” I inclined my head toward the front door, which appeared to be slightly ajar. I walked over and was about to press my fingertips against the wood when suddenly the door burst open and a young boy stood on the threshold. I judged him to be in his early teens – thirteen, no more than fifteen. His hair was mussed, his pumpkin-colored jacket dirty and torn, and his eyes held a wild gleam. He started to barrel past me but I caught his arm and swung him around.

“Hey, who are you? What were you doing in there?”

He looked at me, eyes wide and tried to jerk away but I held on fast. “What’s wrong with you? What were you doing in that house?” I asked again.

“Yeah,” chimed in Joanne. “It’s private property. We have permission to be here.”

His eyes darted nervously around and he mumbled something under his breath. I wasn’t quite sure what I’d heard, but before I could ask him to repeat it, he reached out, gave me a push, and went flying down the steps and across the lawn.

“Mon dieu,” cried Chantal, as she helped me to my feet. “Are you all right?”

I nodded. “I’m fine. Did you see where that boy went? Something spooked him.”

“I think he cut through the woods,” Chantal answered. “Should we go after him? He’s got a pretty good head start.”

I was about to answer in the affirmative when I caught a flash of black slip through the doorway and into the house. “Oh, swell. I think Nick just went inside.”

I turned toward the door but Joannie grabbed my arm. “You’re not going in there,” she whispered.

“Joannie has a point,” Chantal piped up. “That boy was pretty scared. Who knows what he found.”

I set my jaw. “Don’t worry, I’ll be careful. I just want don’t want Nick to get lost.” I slipped inside before either of them could protest and stood for a minute in the entryway, letting my eyes adjust to the darkness. “Nick,” I called. “Hey, Nick. Where are you, buddy?”

A soft meow came from the darkness beyond.

I moved carefully down the dark corridor in that direction, wishing I had a flashlight. I turned a corner and jumped as I came face to face with a white-faced object, then let out a sigh of relief as I saw it was a statue underneath a white cover to keep off the dust. Nick was nowhere to be seen. I called his name out several times, but no answering meow came forth.

“This is no time to play hide and seek, Nick,” I muttered. By now I’d come to the end of the corridor, which now branched out in three directions. I did a quick eeny, meeny miney moe and started down the corridor to my right. I’d only taken a few steps when the corridor emptied into a large dark room. As my eyes grew accustomed to the dark interior, I could make out a large lump on the floor in front of us. A long, angular lump with a rounded top and big brass handles.

A coffin.

“Good Lord,” I murmured. “Who puts a coffin in a living room?”

I frowned. Obviously this was someone’s idea of a joke, and no doubt what had scared that boy. Kids and their practical jokes. I walked over and grasped the coffin lid. As my fingers curled around the brass handle, Nick suddenly leapt out of the shadows and hurled himself on top of the coffin. He stood there, a true caricature of a Halloween cat, his back arched, tail fanned and spread out, every hair visible. His golden eyes gleamed and his lips drew back in a snarl. He let out a loud hiss.

“Nick!” I reached out, grabbed Nick and lifted him off the coffin. His tail returned to normal size, but his eyes remained slitted and there was no mistaking the growl that rose, deep in his throat. I spoke in a soothing tone. “Nick, calm down. There’s nothing in here, see…oh!”

I’d raised the lid as I was speaking, and now I let it fall back with a loud crash. Dead silence prevailed as I stared at the coffin’s contents: a man, curled on his side, face a sickly white, his lips bloodless. But that wasn’t what captured my attention.

It was the two red tinged holes on his neck.

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 Bell, Book and Corpses (A Nick and Nora Mystery) by T. C. LoTempio

About Bell, Book and Corpses

Bell, Book and Corpses (A Nick and Nora Mystery)
Cozy Mystery 7th in the Series
Setting - California
Beyond the Page (September 24, 2024)
Paperback: ‎ 206 pages

It’s Halloween trick-or-treachery when murder pays a visit to a cursed mansion in the new Nick and Nora mystery . . .

Waincroft Manor has long been tied to rumors of witchcraft and fatal curses, and to Nora Charles, that makes it the perfect place for a Halloween fundraiser. But her first trip to the deserted old mansion turns out to be truly ghoulish when she discovers a dead body. What’s more, the corpse is laid out in a coffin—with two bite marks on its neck. Then the autopsy comes back showing that the body was drained of blood, and there’s no stopping the local gossips from whispering the word vampire to anyone who will listen.

Determined to dispel the rumors and save the fundraiser, Nora sets out to prove the murderer was quite human after all. Sifting through the clues, she learns of a bitter family rivalry that spans generations, and a more recent conflict that may point to the motive for the murder. And when Nick spells out a clue that proves to be the missing piece of the puzzle, Nora knows she’ll have to watch her back—because there’s a killer out there who wants to keep some secrets buried, and they’ll happily bury Nora right along with them . . .

Includes mouthwatering recipes!

About T.C. LoTempio

While Toni Lotempio does not commit – or solve – murders in real life, she has no trouble doing it on paper. Her lifelong love of mysteries began early on when she was introduced to her first Nancy Drew mystery at age 10 – The Secret in the Old Attic. She and her cat pen the Nick and Nora mystery series originally from Berkley Prime Crime and now with Beyond the Page Publishing. They also write the Cat Rescue series from Crooked Lane and the Pet Shop series, originally published by Midnight Ink and rebranded last year as “Urban Tails Pet Shop Mysteries.” Book six in the Nick and Nora mysteries, A PURR BEFORE DYING, is released this February from Beyond the Page. There is also a new series, Tiffany Austin Food Blogger, coming out in April. You can cat-ch up with them at ROCCO’s blog, www.catsbooksmorecats.blogspot.com or her website, www.tclotempio.net

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