Murder Plays Second Fiddle - A Guest Post, Review, & Giveaway

I'm pleased to welcome Cassidy Jamison to Cozy Up With Kathy today. You can find Cassidy on the pages of the Pearly Girls Mystery series by Heather Weidner. MURDER PLAYS SECOND FIDDLE is the second book in the series and was released earlier this year.

A Day in the Life of Cassidy Jamison by Heather Weidner
A Veronica Mars Meets the Golden Girls in a Multi-generational Cozy Mystery

I am Cassidy Jamison, and I am so excited. I signed a contract for a new project for Celebrations at Ivy Springs, my event planning service and location destination in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains. I normally host parties, weddings, and business retreats, but I jumped at the chance when the alumni planning team at the high school approached me about having their big reunion at my place.

I moved back to Ivy Springs a couple of years ago when my grandmother passed away. I have a marketing background, so taking over her business seemed like a good fit for me. I may have bitten off more than I expected. I am so grateful that my grandmother’s friends, the Pearly Girls, stayed on to help me keep things running. The Pearly Girls are an amazing group of retired women: Ruthanne Carmichael, a former CPA and my accountant; Kate Carlson, a former nurse; Aileen Roberts, former elementary school teacher, and Roxie Mathews, former interior designer and the group’s cougar. They have been so helpful with keeping our events calendar organized and helping with decorations. They are so talented, even if they are always prying into my dating life and trying to fix me up with any eligible bachelor. 

I have been so busy with the business that I haven’t done a lot of reconnecting with folks in town, and I was hoping that the reunion would help me get a jump start on that. We have meet and greets, a redux of the Homecoming dance, goat yoga and meditation in my Zen garden, a sock hop, a concert, and a golf tournament planned for the two-weekend event. 

Little did I know that the whole thing was going to make me flashback to high school. Some things never change, and the mean girls just got meaner. I spent most of my time with the planning team trying to calm tensions and solve over-dramatized problems. And then if things weren’t tense enough, two of the alumni ended up murdered on my property. The Pearly Girls and I had to jump in and help the sheriff’s office with the investigation in order to clear the name of an innocent suspect. 

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

Review

 

 MURDER PLAYS SECOND FIDDLE by Heather Weidner

The Second Pearly Girl Mystery

 

Always looking to book new events at Celebrations at Ivy Springs Cassidy Jamison is happy to host the Class of 2009's high school reunion. The party will include several events held on two consecutive weekends which is definitely good for Celebrations' bottom line. However, Cassidy needs to grit her teeth and bear it as the reunion committee led by Brittany Mahoney is exacting with list after list of demands. Despite some drama the first event seems to be going well - until Britt's dead body is found. Britt's second in command takes over and insists the reunion events proceed. But the list of people interested diminishes as the list of suspects remain high. Amid thoughts of expanding her venue and romantic starts and stutters Cassidy and the Pearly Girls find themselves eager to solve another mystery and put this murderous reunion behind them. 

 

MURDER PLAYS SECOND FIDDLE makes me glad I never bothered going to my high school reunion...any of them. In the second Pearly Girl Mystery mean girls remained mean and there's even nastiness within the clique.

 

The mystery was well done. Though many people could have wanted Brittany dead, the way in which the murder was staged and the way clues showed up after police and Cassidy and her crew searched definitely pointed at an inside job. And when the second body was found...

 

Austin was a nice addition to the cast of characters, both to ogle over and make Detective Zac jealous without Cassidy even trying. The Pearly Girls remain a hoot, fun loving, yet also hardworking, and never too old to do a bit of ogling themselves. I love how people of all ages work and play together. Age is just a number and you might think Cassidy was the biological age of the Pearly Girls while the Girls act more like Cassidy's 20 something!

 

Friends that are as good as family, lots of laughs, and carefully constructed murder make MURDER PLAYS SECOND FIDDLE a delightful mystery.

 

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

 Murder Plays Second Fiddle (The Pearly Girls Mysteries) by Heather Weidner

About Murder Plays Second Fiddle

Murder Plays Second Fiddle (The Pearly Girls Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery 2nd in Series
Setting - Ivy Springs, Virginia in the Blue Ridge Mountains
Publisher: ‎ Keylight Books
Publication Date: ‎ January 13, 2026
Print Length: ‎ 256 pages

The Pearly Girls return to solve a high school reunion murder in this sequel to Murder Strikes a Chord.

Event planner Cassidy Jamison and her not-so-helpful sexagenarian staff of Roxie, Kate, Aileen, and Ruthanne are up to their elbows with a high school reunion committee’s constantly changing requirements for an event that must be the most elaborate and memorable at all costs.

When well-known reporter, Darcy Branch, and former cheerleader, Brittany Mahoney, are found dead on her property, Cassidy and the gang have to find the killer before the party’s over. And the more Cassidy and her Chihuahua mix, Elvis, dig for clues, the more deadly secrets they uncover—including one that changes everything she knows about her family’s history.

The Pearly Girls need to solve the case before the Class of 2009 goes down in Ivy Springs history as the deadliest reunion.

About Heather Weidner

Through the years, Heather Weidner has been a cop’s kid, technical writer, editor, college professor, software tester, and IT manager. She writes the Pearly Girls Mysteries, the Delanie Fitzgerald Mysteries, The Jules Keene Glamping Mysteries, and The Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mysteries.

Her short stories appear in the Virginia is for Mysteries series, 50 Shades of Cabernet, Deadly Southern Charm, Murder by the Glass, First Comes Love, Then Comes Murder, and Crime in the Old Dominion, and she has non-fiction pieces in Promophobia and The Secret Ingredient: A Mystery Writers’ Cookbook.

She is a member of Sisters in Crime: National, Central Virginia, Chessie, Guppies, and Grand Canyon Writers, International Thriller Writers, and James River Writers, and she blogs regularly with the Writers Who Kill.

Originally from Virginia Beach, Heather has been a mystery fan since Scooby-Doo and Nancy Drew. She lives in Central Virginia with her husband and a crazy Mini Aussie Shepherd named Cooper.

Author Links

• Website and Blog: http://www.heatherweidner.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HeatherWeidnerAuthor
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heather_mystery_writer/
• Threads: https://www.threads.net/@heather_mystery_writer
• BlueSky: Heather Weidner (@heatherweidner.bsky.social) — Bluesky
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@heather_weidner_author
• Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8121854.Heather_Weidner
• Amazon Authors: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00HOYR0MQ
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/HeatherBWeidner/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-weidner-0064b233?trk=hp-identity-name
• BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/heather-weidner-d6430278-c5c9-4b10-b911-340828fc7003
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyBjyB0zz-M1DaM-rU1bXGA?view_as=subscriber
• Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/HeatherWeidner1
• Purchase Links - Amazon B&N BooksAMillion Bookshop.org

Teddy Bears and Ghostly Lairs - An Interview & Giveaway

I'm pleased to welcome Heather Weidner back to Cozy Up With Kathy today. Heather writes the Jules Keene Glamping Mystery series. Teddy Bears and Ghostly Lairs is the fifth book in the series.

 
Kathy: In Teddy Bears and Ghostly Lairs Fern Valley is having its first teddy bear and toy festival. I love teddy bears, stuffed animals and toys, I don't care that I'm an adult of mature years. What about you? Is this an event you'd like to attend? 

HW: I would definitely attend. I have collected teddy bears for years. I have bears in all the main rooms of my house. 

Kathy: Do you still have stuffed animals and toys? Do you buy new ones for yourself? 

HW: I do have a lot of stuffed animals and toys. I kept some of my favorites from my childhood, and I’m glad I saved them. My nieces had a blast playing with the “classic” toys. I still collect teddy bears, and I add to the collection every so often (usually when I find something cute or a souvenir from one of our trips).

Kathy: Paranormal investigators are also on hand to investigate local haunts. Do you believe in ghosts? 

HW: I don’t think I’ve ever encountered one, but there are a lot of people who have. I live in Central Virginia, and there are lots of battlefields and cemeteries around, and all have lots of good ghost stories to go with them. (I once worked at a company in downtown Richmond that was built near the old state penitentiary. When they were building the office next door, they had to stop construction because they found paupers’ graves from the old state prison. It was also very close to the location of a civil war prisoner of war camp and a civil war munitions factory.) I have coworkers who swear that they’ve seen evidence of ghosts nearby, such as lights and faucets going on and off when no one was around. 

Kathy: Have you ever had a paranormal experience? 

HW: Not that I know of. I’ve had a couple of times when I had a really funny feeling about a relative or friend being in trouble, and when I called them, they were experiencing an emergency situation. I’m not sure if that counts as paranormal or not.

Kathy: Was there a specific inspiration for this story? 

HW: I’m in a mystery writers’ group that brings in experts in a variety of areas. One had a presentation on paranormal explorers. They explained what they did (and didn’t do) and showed us some of the tools they used. It was really interesting. 


Kathy: Are you able to share any future plans for Jules? 

HW: As of today, there will be nine books in the series. I’m currently working on book 8. (Here’s a secret about book 6. The Idiot, Jules’s ex-husband, shows up, and he gets himself mixed up in a murder investigation.) 


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? 

HW: I am a plotter. I work in IT, and I love my project plans and spreadsheets. I still have a day gig, so my writing time is limited. It helps me to do a detailed outline before I start writing. I am able to finish a manuscript faster if I have plotted out all of the details, plots, and subplots.


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? 

HW: This is so true. I really like social media. I love connecting with readers and other writers. I have to manage my time though to make sure that I’m not spending all my writing time marketing. Being a writer is a lot of work (not all writing-related). It is worth it, but it does take time to make sure all bases are covered.


Kathy: Will you share any other upcoming books? 

HW: This year, book two in the Pearly Girls came out. Book four in the Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mysteries launches next month, and book six in the Jules Keene Glamping Mysteries comes out this fall. All three are cozy mystery series with very different sleuths.

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

 Teddy Bears and Ghostly Lairs: A Jules Keene Glamping Mystery

About Teddy Bears and Ghostly Lairs

Teddy Bears and Ghostly Lairs: A Jules Keene Glamping Mystery
Cozy Mystery 5th in Series
Setting - Virginia
Publisher: ‎ Level Best Books
Publication Date: ‎ December 9, 2025
Print Length: ‎ 244 pages

The town of Fern Valley, in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains, has overdosed on cuteness for its first teddy bear and toy festival. Adorable bears have taken over every inch of the town, and Jules Keene can barely keep up with all the guest check-ins at her glamping resort. To add to the fun, a team of paranormal investigators set their sights on her vintage trailers and the new treehouse as they investigate the local haunts. It quickly becomes evident that things aren’t all sweet and cuddly when someone absconds with collectible toys. Then, to make matters worse, Jules and her friends trip over something not so other-worldly at an abandoned motel during a paranormal investigation. The very real corpse is the prickly vendor who raised a ruckus about his stolen merchandise and the weird things that were afoot in the cozy, one-stop light town. Jules has to calm frayed nerves and solve the mystery before there are any other thefts or grisly murders.

About Heather Weidner

 

Through the years, Heather Weidner has been a cop’s kid, technical writer, editor, college professor, software tester, and IT manager. She writes the Pearly Girls Mysteries, the Delanie Fitzgerald Mysteries, The Jules Keene Glamping Mysteries, and The Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mysteries. Her short stories appear in the Virginia is for Mysteries series, 50 Shades of Cabernet, Deadly Southern Charm, Murder by the Glass, First Comes Love, Then Comes Murder, and Crime in the Old Dominion, and she has non-fiction pieces in Promophobia and The Secret Ingredient: A Mystery Writers’ Cookbook. She is a member of Sisters in Crime: National, Central Virginia, Chessie, Guppies, and Grand Canyon Writers, International Thriller Writers, and James River Writers, and she blogs regularly with the Writers Who Kill. Originally from Virginia Beach, Heather has been a mystery fan since Scooby-Doo and Nancy Drew. She lives in Central Virginia with her husband and a crazy Mini Aussie Shepherd named Cooper.  

Author Links:

• Website and Blog: http://www.heatherweidner.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HeatherWeidnerAuthor
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heather_mystery_writer/
• Threads: https://www.threads.net/@heather_mystery_writer
• BlueSky: Heather Weidner (@heatherweidner.bsky.social) — Bluesky
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@heather_weidner_author
• Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8121854.Heather_Weidner
• Amazon Authors: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00HOYR0MQ
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/HeatherBWeidner/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heather-weidner-0064b233?trk=hp-identity-name
• BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/heather-weidner-d6430278-c5c9-4b10-b911-340828fc7003
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyBjyB0zz-M1DaM-rU1bXGA?view_as=subscriber
• Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/HeatherWeidner1
• Purchase Links - Amazon - B&N - Bookshop.org

Murder Strikes a Chord - A Guest Post, Review, & Giveaway

I'm pleased to welcome Cassidy Jamison to Cozy Up With Kathy today. You can find Cassidy on the pages of the Pearly Girl Mystery series by Heather Weidner. MURDER STRIKES A CHORD is the first book in the series and was released

A Day in the Life of Cassidy Jamison, Owner of Celebrations at Ivy Springs
MURDER STRIKES A CHORD: A Pearly Girls Mystery
Keylight Books from Turner Publishing
By Heather Weidner

Hi, y’all. I’m Cassidy Jamison, and I own Celebrations at Ivy Springs. I’m an event planner, and my property is nestled in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains near Staunton, Virginia. Guests can celebrate their special events or hold meetings, parties, or concerts in my amphitheater, serenity garden, or glamped up converted daily barn. I inherited the property from my grandparents. The property comes with some unusual history, too. It was home to my grandfather’s infamous honky-tonk that burned to the ground in the 1980s, and there’s a cave on the back of the property that is rumored to be part of an old family bootlegging tradition.

I am so fortunate to have a great team that handles everything all the reservations and decorating. My late grandmother’s Boomer friends, the Pearly Girls, grew up in the era of Jackie O and Camelot, and they got their nickname because they are never caught without their signature pearls. Ruthanne Carmichael, Aileen Roberts, Kate Carlson, and Roxie Matthews help me with all the planning and consulting, even if sometimes they offer too much advice (like trying to fix me up with any eligible bachelor in the tri-county area). But they mean well.

For a small town, we have had more than our share of excitement, and it wasn’t quite what any of us bargained for. But I guess I should start at the beginning. I was overjoyed to land a three-weekend event, the Groovin’ through the Decades concert series, featuring the Weathermen. The gals were over the moon to finally meet their favorite rockers, and the concerts with music from a variety of eras would give our bottom line a boost that would put my business in a good place for the upcoming year. Everything was planned and publicized, and then the Weathermen arrived in their giant buses with their roadies and drivers. I was happy to let them set up camp near the barn since the only motels nearby were Sid “Pro Quo” Proctor’s no-tell motels on the outskirts of town, and the gals were horrified to even mention them as a serious consideration for lodging.

On the day the buses arrived, the Pearly Girls finally recovered from acting all swoony and giggly, and we went over to meet the band and their manager. After that, the gals took advantage of every opportunity to “unexpectantly” bump into the band. The funny thing was that when I got an up-close look at the musicians, they weren’t as dreamy or polite as the gals had described.

One morning, Elvis and I went for one of our walks, and we found something strange in the serenity garden. The Weathermen’s lead singer, Johnny Storm, was floating face down in my koi pond. Definitely not a Zen moment. When word got out, there was a media frenzy, and not the kind of publicity that I ever wanted. Then the police set their sights on Roxie because she was the last person to be seen with Johnny Storm on the night of his murder.

The gals were beside themselves. I had to help Roxie clear her name. I spent the next few days poking around for clues and talking to anyone who was around on the night of the murder. The clock was ticking. I needed to solve the murder before Roxie was arrested and the curtains closed on the concert series and maybe my business.

 

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

Review

 

 MURDER STRIKES A CHORD by Heather Weidner

The First Pearly Girls Mystery

 

After her grandmother died Cassidy Jamison took over her family's property making Celebrations at Ivy Springs a destination event spot in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains. With the help of the Pearly girls, her grandmother's good friends, Celebrations hosts weddings, parties, concerts and more. Cassidy is excited to be hosting the Groovin' through the Decades music festival headlined by the Weathermen. The Pearly girls are even more excited being huge fans from back in the day. The rockers have not mellowed with age, however, not only partying far harder than Cassidy and seeming to snipe and fight each other. Still their first show was a hit and Cassidy hopes the festival will bring recognition to Celebration at Ivy Springs and tourist dollars for the town. But when she and her dog, Elvis, find the body of the lead singer dead in her koi pond, the recognition she gets may not be that welcome. And when the sheriff starts considering one of the Pearly girls guilty of murder she knows she needs to figure out who killed the frontman. 

MURDER STRIKES A CHORD proves that age is just a number and older folk can be vibrant, fun loving, and can party even harder than some decades younger! I love the Pearly girls and their zest for life. While I'm much closer in age to them than Cassidy, I relate to Cassidy's desire for early nights more than the late night partying by the others. Cassidy makes a fine protagonist. She's a competent businesswoman who knows how to delegate. She cares for her town as well as her property, preserving its history while still looking to the future. She also is a smart sleuther-limiting risks and calling in her own security detail as well as the sheriff's department when things get dicey.

 

Seventy year old rockers can still be a handful as Cassidy soon discovers. Their antics and their history provide lots of red herrings as the mystery progresses. Clues come from a variety of sources, including Cassidy's internet searches and I appreciate how she doesn't deliberately put herself in danger.

Music and memories combine in the fun debut mystery, MURDER STRIKES A CHORD. Be prepared to bop to your favorite musical hits and enjoy a laugh or two as you enjoy this trip to the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.

 

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

 Murder Strikes a Chord: A Pearly Girls Mystery by Heather Weidner

About Murder Strikes A Chord

Murder Strikes a Chord: A Pearly Girls Mystery
Cozy Mystery 1st in Series
Setting - Virginia
Publisher: ‎ Keylight Books;
1st edition (March 18, 2025)
Hardcover: ‎ 256 pages

Veronica Mars meets The Golden Girls as event planner Cassidy Jamison and her four sixty-year-old employees race to solve a rocker’s murder before the curtains close on their show and their business.

When Cassidy Jamison inherited her late grandmother’s event planning business, she also inherited her grandmother’s friends—four sixty-year-old women known around town as the Pearly Girls—as part-time employees. Now Cassidy barely has time to breathe between spending every waking hour trying to keep her business afloat and the Pearly Girls out of trouble and focused on event planning.

So when she lands a three-weekend event complete with a chart-topping band, she’s thrilled. Until she and her chihuahua mix Elvis find the body of the Weathermen’s lead singer in her venue’s koi pond. With the help of the not-so-helpful Pearly Girls, Cassidy must stave off the bad publicity, navigate the prying questions of the local police department, and solve the murder before the media frenzy shutters her business for good, and takes one of the Pearly Girls with it.

About Heather Weidner

Through the years, Heather Weidner has been a cop’s kid, technical writer, editor, college professor, software tester, and IT manager. She writes the Pearly Girls Mysteries, the Delanie Fitzgerald Mysteries, The Jules Keene Glamping Mysteries, and The Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mysteries.

Her short stories appear in the Virginia is for Mysteries series, 50 Shades of Cabernet, Deadly Southern Charm, and Murder by the Glass, and she has non-fiction pieces in Promophobia and The Secret Ingredient: A Mystery Writers’ Cookbook.

She is a member of Sisters in Crime: National, Central Virginia, Chessie, Guppies, and Grand Canyon Writers, International Thriller Writers, and James River Writers, and she blogs regularly with the Writers Who Kill.

Originally from Virginia Beach, Heather has been a mystery fan since Scooby-Doo and Nancy Drew. She lives in Central Virginia with her husband and a pair of Jack Russell terriers.

Social Media Links: 

Website and Blog: http://www.heatherweidner.com  

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HeatherWeidnerAuthor  

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@heather_mystery_writer 

 BlueSky: Heather Weidner (@heatherweidner.bsky.social) — Bluesky  

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@heather_weidner_author  

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heather_mystery_writer/  

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8121854.Heather_Weidner  

Amazon Authors: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00HOYR0MQ  

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/HeatherBWeidner/  

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/heather-weidner-d6430278-c5c9-4b10-b911-340828fc7003  

Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/HeatherWeidner1  

Purchase Links - Amazon - B&N - Bookshop.org 

  a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Tisket A Tasket Not Another Casket - A Review & Giveaway

 Review

A TISKET A TASKET NOT ANOTHER CASKET by Heather Weidner
The Third Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mystery 

 

Things are booming in Mermaid Bay as three fireworks companies have arrived to compete for the lucrative contract to provide displays for the entire summer season. There's more than incendiary blasts in the air, there's a feud between the two family operations. Accusations of spying, sabotage, and actual fights flood the town. More excitement arrives in the form of a new blog. Mermaid Whispers is disseminating lots of gossip causing everyone to wonder the blogger's identity. That excitement pales when Jade Hicks finds what she thinks is trash in the lot next to her shop. The pile of clothes turns out to be one of the competitors. While her Sheriff boyfriend is officially investigating the murder Jade is preparing a new murder board in her home. After all, she's helped solve two other murders, what's one more?

 

Mermaid Bay is a quaint town to visit, no matter the season and I enjoyed visiting during the winter as the town begins to gear up for Christmas. Of course, it's always Christmas as 'Tis the Season, Jade's Christmas store. It's fun seeing the variety of ornaments, not just Christmas themed ones. After all, why not have a tree up all year, changing the ornaments to match the season! I appreciate the small town atmosphere and the good friendships that have blossomed. I loved seeing Neville and Chloe again, though of the two I am definitely Team Neville!

 

What a group of characters comprising the firework's competitors! It was amazing to see what the feuding families would do next. Talk about childish and unprofessional behavior! A TISKET A TASKET NOT ANOTHER CASKET provides a solid mystery, although thanks to some obvious clues I knew why the victim was killed well before Jade. Jade's sleuthing was fairly circumspect, although she and her shop were always in the midst of things.

 

Fireworks abound in A TISKET A TASKET NOT ANOTHER CASKET, both literally and figuratively, making this third Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mystery a fun and exciting read.

 

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

 A Tisket A Tasket Not Another Casket: A Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mystery by Heather Weidner

About A Tisket A Tasket Not Another Casket

A Tisket A Tasket Not Another Casket: A Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mystery
Cozy Mystery 3rd in Series
Setting - Virginia
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Level Best Books (January 14, 2025)
Print length: ‎ 277 pages

Excitement is in the air as everyone in Mermaid Bay is preparing for the Christmas season. This year promises to be more dazzling than ever when the business council sponsors a competition for the town’s lucrative summer fireworks contract. The quaint little beach town is ready to be wowed with choreographed shows and drone action that light up the night sky.

Instead of goodwill and sparkles, two of the teams take the competition to new lows with corporate espionage, feuds, and sabotage, and Jade and her team at ‘Tis the Season are ground zero for all the explosive action. When one of the competitors turns up murdered near Jade’s shop, she has to solve the mystery before the holidays are ruined.

About Heather Weidner

Through the years, Heather Weidner has been a cop’s kid, technical writer, editor, college professor, software tester, and IT manager. She writes the Jules Keene Glamping Mysteries, the Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mysteries, the Delanie Fitzgerald Mysteries, and the Pearly Girls Mysteries.

Her short stories appear in the Virginia is for Mysteries series, 50 Shades of Cabernet, Deadly Southern Charm, and Murder by the Glass, and she has non-fiction pieces in Promophobia and The Secret Ingredient: A Mystery Writers’ Cookbook.

She is a member of Sisters in Crime: National, Central Virginia, Chessie, Guppies, and Grand Canyon Writers, International Thriller Writers, and James River Writers, and she blogs regularly with the Writers Who Kill.

Originally from Virginia Beach, Heather has been a mystery fan since Scooby-Doo and Nancy Drew. She lives in Central Virginia with her husband and a pair of Jack Russell terriers.

Author Links:  

Website and Blog: http://www.heatherweidner.com  

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HeatherWeidnerAuthor  

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@heather_mystery_writer  

BlueSky: Heather Weidner (@heatherweidner.bsky.social) — Bluesky  

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@heather_weidner_author  

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heather_mystery_writer/  

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8121854.Heather_Weidner  

Amazon Authors: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00HOYR0MQ  

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/heather-weidner-d6430278-c5c9-4b10-b911-340828fc7003  

Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/HeatherWeidner1 

 Purchase Link - Amazon 

  a Rafflecopter giveaway

Currently Reading...

I just finished reading A Tisket A Tasket Not Another Casket by Heather Weidner. This book is the third in the Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mystery series and was released last month.

Things are booming in Mermaid Bay as three fireworks companies have arrived to compete for the lucrative contract to provide displays for the entire summer season. There's more than incendiary blasts in the air, there's a feud between the two family operations. Accusations of spying, sabotage, and actual fights flood the town. More excitement arrives in the form of a new blog. Mermaid Whispers is disseminating lots of gossip causing everyone to wonder the blogger's identity. That excitement pales when Jade Hicks finds what she thinks is trash in the lot next to her shop. The pile of clothes turns out to be one of the competitors. While her Sheriff boyfriend is officially investigating the murder Jade is preparing a new murder board in her home. After all, she's helped solve two other murders, what's one more?

Twinkle Twinkle Au Revoir - A Guest Post, Review, & Giveaway

I'm pleased to welcome Jade Hicks to Cozy Up With Kathy today. You can find Jade on the pages of the Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mystery series by Heather Weidner. TWINKLE TWINKLE AU REVOIR is the second book in the series and was released January 16, 2024.

Hi, y’all. I’m Jade Hicks, and I own ‘Tis the Season, a Christmas store in the beach town of Mermaid Bay, Virginia.  My grandmother opened the store about thirty years ago in a converted beach cottage. Each themed room has decorations, and at last count, there are over 300 trees in the store. My spunky French bulldog Chloe comes to work with me every day. She thinks she’s head of security, but Neville the Devil Cat, the store’s chief mouser, has other ideas.

Life is great. My business is booming, and I now have a permanent Plus 1, Sheriff Nick Driscoll. We’ve been friends since middle school, but we lost touch during the college years. I’m glad we both found our way back to Mermaid Bay and to each other.

And if that’s not enough going on, guess what happened to our quiet little beach! Love is in the air when Hollywood arrives in Mermaid Bay, and the town may never be the same. Fans will do almost anything to get a glimpse of the actors or a chance to be an extra in the Love Channel’s “My Coastal Valentine.” Crowds flock to our cozy beach town from all over and business is booming. All is going well until the body of a testy reporter is found in one of the actor’s rooms. And if murder isn’t bad enough, someone tries to kill the show’s star, hunky Raphael Allard.

Mermaid Bay feels cursed, as the Love Channel threatens to pull out of the project. Along with my team, Lorelei, Peppermint Patti, Bernie, Chloe, and Neville the Devil Cat, I have to solve the crimes before it ruins the town’s reputation and breaks the hearts of fans across the country.

Neville

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

Twinkle Twinkle Au Revoir is the second book in the Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mysteries cozy series. Jade and the gang will also appear in A Tisket A Tasket, Not Another Casket (2025). And I’m so excited to announce that my awesome publisher, Level Best Books, has extended the series for three more mysteries.

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

Review

TWINKLE TWINKLE AU REVOIR by Heather Weidner

The Second Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mystery

Love is in the air. The Love Channel has arrived in Mermaid Bay to film their latest romance. However, there's more drama than hearts and flowers. The lead actors are sniping at each other, the production team is demanding, and they all are driving Ruby batty at her inn. Jade Hicks has a front row seat at her 'Tis the Season Christmas Shoppe, especially as the crew has set up shop in her lot next door. Things go from bad to worse when a reporter is murdered, someone is poisoned, and someone else disappears. Between filling orders from her shop and calming Ruby, Jade tries to figure out just what is going on with My Coastal Valentine. 

 

The Love Channel isn't so loving and being a movie star isn't all it's cracked up to be, as Jade soon discovers in the second Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mystery. It may be hearts and flowers on the outside, but the inside is demanding, demoralizing, and vindictive! I found the mystery intriguing as the various crimes were so different. They had be be connected, but how? And why?

 

While I found some of the characters grating, Ruby was particularly annoying constantly calling Jade, I  like the relationship between Jade and Nick. Despite his foibles I really liked leading man Raphael Allard and found the hair and makeup people fun. Of course, when it comes to the townies, Amy remains my favorite along with Todd whose new marketing vehicle still makes me smile.

 

TWINKLE TWINKLE AU REVOIR is a lighthearted breezy mystery that combines Christmas decor and Valentine's Day dreams showing that there's no business quite like show business. 

 

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

 Twinkle Twinkle Au Revoir: A Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mystery by Heather Weidner

About Twinkle Twinkle Au Revoir

Twinkle Twinkle Au Revoir: A Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mystery
Cozy Mystery 2nd in Series
Setting - Virginia
Level Best Books (January 16, 2024)
Paperback: ‎ 252 pages

Love is in the air when Hollywood arrives in Mermaid Bay, and the town may never be the same. Fans will do almost anything to get a glimpse of the actors or a chance to be an extra in the Love Channel’s “My Coastal Valentine.” Crowds flock to the cozy beach town from all over and business is booming for Christmas shop owner, Jade Hicks until the body of a testy reporter is found in one of the actors rooms. And if murder isn’t bad enough, someone tries to kill the show’s star, hunky Raphael Allard. The cozy little beach town feels cursed, as the Love Channel threatens to pull out of the project. Jade and the gang, Lorelei, Peppermint Patti, Bernie, Chloe, and Neville the Devil Cat, have to solve the crimes before it ruins the town’s reputation and breaks the hearts of fans across the country.

About Heather Weidner

Through the years, Heather Weidner has been a cop’s kid, technical writer, editor, college professor, software tester, and IT manager. She writes the Delanie Fitzgerald Mysteries, The Jules Keene Glamping Mysteries, and The Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mysteries.

Her short stories appear in the Virginia is for Mysteries series, 50 Shades of Cabernet, Deadly Southern Charm, and Murder by the Glass, and she has non-fiction pieces in Promophobia and The Secret Ingredient.

She is a member of Sisters in Crime (Central Virginia, Chessie, Grand Canyon Writers, and Guppies), International Thriller Writers, and James River Writers.

Originally from Virginia Beach, Heather has been a mystery fan since Scooby-Doo and Nancy Drew. She lives in Central Virginia with her husband and a pair of Jack Russell terriers.

Author Links: 

Website and Blog: http://www.heatherweidner.com  

Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/HeatherWeidner1  

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HeatherWeidnerAuthor  

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heather_mystery_writer/  

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8121854.Heather_Weidner  

Amazon Authors: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00HOYR0MQ  

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/HeatherBWeidner/ 

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/heather-weidner-d6430278-c5c9-4b10-b911-340828fc7003  

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@heather_weidner_author  

LinkTree: https://linktr.ee/heatherweidner  

Purchase Link - Amazon 

  a Rafflecopter giveaway