I'm pleased to welcome Marion Crook to Cozy Up With Kathy today. Marion starts a new series with MURDER IN VANCOUVER 1886.
Kathy: It's no surprise that MURDER IN VANCOUVER 1886 is set in Vancouver in 1886. What made you choose this time and place for your series?
MC: I chose 1886 as that was the year of the great fire in Vancouver and I wanted to use that as the climax of the story. That meant I had to change the Chinese riot from 1885 to 1886 but apologized for that in the Author’s Notes.
Kathy: Amy MacDonald is a schoolteacher in 1886 Vancouver, Canada. If you were a teacher, would you rather be one in 1886 or 2024?
MC: That’s a hard one to answer. Amy had 70 students. I wouldn’t wish that on any teacher. On the other hand, she had great community support.
Kathy: As a teacher in this time, Amy has to be careful of propriety in order to keep her job while morally doing the right thing. Have you ever had to walk a narrow line such as this?
MC: I’m not good at walking the line and I usually found a way to do what I wanted (when I taught nursing) without the authorities finding out.
Kathy: Historical mysteries require an extra special brand of research. What's your favorite method to research this time period?
MC: For this book, I actually went to the archives in the museum to find the newspapers and articles I wanted. It’s more efficient to read articles on line, which I do and to contact archivists and make arrangements to have them pull articles and information for me before I go to the museum. I also managed to find a real Winchester ’86 rifle so I knew exactly what they looked like.
Kathy: What first drew you to historical mysteries?
MC: A good story will pull me in to most settings, but I like discovering what is the same and what has changed since those historical days.
Kathy: Do you write in any other genres?
MC: Yes, I write non-fiction and recently wrote two books of my memoirs ALWAYS PACK A CANDLE:A NURSE IN THE CARIBOO-CHILCOTIN (2021) and ALWAYS ON CALL:ADVENTURES IN NURSING, RANCHING AND RURAL LIVING (2024). I also write in the traditional mystery genre. I wrote a series of contemporary mysteries called The British Book Tour Mysteries. Book 6 STORMS IN THE COTSWOLDS is due out September 2024.
Kathy: Tell us about your series.
MC: MURDER IN VANCOUVER 1886 is the first of this series, so I don’t have much to say about the next ones as they aren’t fully formed in my head. They will be set in different towns such as Victoria.
The British Book Tour Mysteries runs to six books and takes the protagonist, Claire Barclay, a travel guide, and her tourists to sites of mystery novels all over Britain. That requires research in those places, so I have enjoyed researching in Hampshire, Cornwall, Yorkshire, Scotland, Sussex and the Cotswolds. The next in the series is set in Hampshire, and I plan to be there this fall. I like the character development of Claire and her lover Mark and the various characters who appear in every book as well as the stimulation of the new characters, the tourists who are different in each book. They are my imaginary social world.
Kathy: Do you have a favorite character? If so, who and why?
MC: In MURDER IN VANCOUVER 1886 my favorite character, other than Amy, is Lydia, Amy’s aunt. She is opinionated, practical, critical and loving. I love her contradictions.
Kathy: Did you have a specific inspiration for your series?
MC: The disasters that occurred in historic towns and cities provide a good basis for drama, and since they really occurred, the story becomes more believable.
Kathy: What made you decide to publish your work?
MC: I published my first book in 1984, and I believe I wanted to connect with readers. I still want to connect with readers.
Kathy: If you could have a dinner party and invite 4 authors, living or dead, in any genre, who would you invite?
MC: Kerry Greenwood especially for her Corinna Chapman series. Dick Francis and his wife whom I suspect had a lot to do with his success. Catriona MacPherson for her hilarious sense of humor, Ann Cleeves for her brilliant plots and subtle dialogue as well as her philanthropic causes
Kathy: What are you currently reading?
MC: · Winona Kent (Jason Davey series), Faith Martin (Ryder & Loveday series) and research for a new historical biography
Kathy: Will you share any of your hobbies or interests with us?
MC: Sure will. I paddle outrigger canoe with a regular crew here on the coast of British Columbia. I play violin (not well) in a chamber orchestra and fiddle with my adult fiddle group. I have a wonderful dog and a cat that has finally mellowed to reasonable behavior.
Kathy: Name 4 items you always have in your fridge or pantry.
MC: · Chocolate, blueberries, harissa, home-made jam
Kathy: Do you have plans for future books either in your current series or a new series?
MC: I always have plans. I have a seventh book planned for The British Book Tour Mysteries. A second to follow MURDER IN VANCOUVER 1886 tentatively called MURDER IN VICTORIA 1894, a biography of an historic woman called (at the moment) BLOOMSBURY TO BARKERVILLE, which ought to keep me working for about three years.
Kathy: What's your favorite thing about being an author?
MC: I am delighted that finally I have developed the skills I need to tell the stories that inhabit my mind.
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Review
As a schoolteacher in 1886 Vancouver Amy MacDonald must be circumspect in her behavior. That doesn't completely stop her from enjoying herself though. A clandestine swim leads to the discovery of a body of a man, dead in the bay. The murdered man raises many questions, which their provincial policeman is unlikely to answer. The town's journalist begins his own investigation with Amy adding her own thoughts and ideas. Could the death be related to the railroad or conflicts with the northern territories? While Amy enjoys the company of Frank, a successful businessman, could he somehow be involved? Or has it something to do with the Chinese workers?
It took a while for me to get into MURDER IN VANCOUVER 1886. There were a lot of historical details, which I appreciate, but there was a lot going on. There was the resentment of Chinese workers, issues with the location of the new railroad, rivalries with the city of Victoria, rebels in the northern territories and measles! These and other political issues dominated the story. Perhaps if I had better knowledge of Canadian history, Western Canada in particular, the story may have flowed more smoothly. By the end, however, I was completely absorbed and the thrilling conclusion had me on the edge of my seat!
Amy makes a wonderful protagonist. She's smart and has her own opinions, though she may be a bit too trusting. She needs to listen to her gut more. I like how she's not afraid to participate in activities she enjoys, even if she has to do them in secret in order to keep her job. I love her interactions with others, especially relationship with her brother. Lots of characters with lots of motives, including marriage and even simple survival, added interest and a glimpse into life in that 1886 town.
Political intrigue, greed, and a determined schoolteacher combine to make MURDER IN VANCOUVER 1886 a fascinating historical drama.
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Murder in Vancouver 1886 by Marion Crook
About Murder in Vancouver 1886
Historical Cozy Mystery 1st in Series
Setting - Vancouver, BC, Canada
Publisher: Epicenter Press (WA) (May 14, 2024)
Paperback: 234 pages
Vancouver, 1886, a bustling city with a growing population and tantalizing opportunities. Some of those opportunities are illegal. When Amy MacDonald, the school teacher at Hastings Mill, discovers new Winchester '86 rifles are being smuggled through the city, she tries to enlist the aid of the earnest but slow-witted provincial policeman. She involves a curious local newspaperman, a businessman, a knowledgeable woman of the street, and her irrepressible younger brother in her efforts to prevent the contraband from flowing to the Métis rebels in the North West.
Vancouver life is complicated by the murder of a Métis man, the persecution of the Chinese people living in the city and the intent of the mob to oust the Chinese onto boats and out of the new city. Amy manages to move between different the levels of society but not without risk of being dismissed from her teaching position. She tries to do what she believe is morally right without being discovered. All her plans and careful stratagems are disrupted suddenly and dramatically by the devastating, overwhelming fire.
About Marion Crook
Marion Crook wrote mysteries: The Susan George Mysteries for young adult readers and The Megan Mysteries for middle-grade readers. Recently she produced The British Book Tour Mysteries (Camel Press) writing under the name Emma Dakin. Shadows in Sussex (Book 5) was released in 2023. Storms in the Cotswolds (Book 6) is scheduled for September 2024. As Marion McKinnon Crook, she wrote non-fiction history Always Pack a Candle: A Nurse in the Cariboo-Chilcotin. 2022 (Heritage House Publishing) which won The Lieutenant Governor’s Community History Award. A sequel Always on Call: Adventures in Nursing, Ranching and Rural Living hit the BC Bestsellers list in its first week of release. Her interest in the Victorian era took her to research 1886 in Vancouver, Canada. Hours of reading old newspapers accounts of life in that new city, and checking archives combined with her fascination with the mystery genre produce Murder in Vancouver 1886. Marion Crook lives near the Pacific Ocean in Gibsons, BC.
Website: http://crookpublishing.com/
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