On Being a Main Lady in a Cozy Mystery - A Guest Post & Giveaway

I'm happy to welcome Lacy Purdy to Cozy Up With Kathy today. You can find Lacy on the pages of the Running Store Mystery series by T. C. Wescott. Running from Arrows is the second book in the series and was released last month.

ON BEING A MAIN LADY IN A COZY MYSTERY
by T. C. Wescott

My name is Lacy Purdy. I don’t like to give my age, but I’m fond of saying that I’m still in the Nielsen Ratings’ preferred 18-49 demographic, albeit not for much longer. I moved to Cedar Mills, OK from Kansas City, MO almost two years ago and following a rather disheartening divorce from my husband of too many years. I don’t have kids, but I do have Meatball—my chubby Russian Blue kitty. We live alone in a small two-bedroom in a quiet, old neighborhood, not far from Main Street.

You could say Main Street is the nerve center of my life. The small insurance office I work at is off a shady turning, but my favorite place is dead center of the street—Run For It, a local running store owned and operated by Marti and Chase Reynolds, two great people. I don’t shop there all the time (a woman can buy only so many sports bras and shoe inserts) but I love the people, and twice a week I’m in charge of one of the running groups that take out from the store. The running groups help prepare runners for upcoming 5k, 10k and marathon runs in the area. I learned so much going through the training that I’m thrilled to be able to pass the knowledge on to newbies.

It was here at Run For It that I made my two best friends. Stax came along just when I needed her. I was new in town and even newer in the running group when she extended the hand of friendship. Well, what she actually did was follow me on runs telling me everything I was doing wrong. It was annoying and mildly offensive so to keep her off my back I took her suggestions and next thing you know I was running faster, longer, and maximizing my lung capacity. So, I let my guard down and let her into my life. We’ve been pretty inseparable since. She owns an indie bookstore on Main Street that is another of my regular hangouts.

It was also at the bookstore that I met a woman I am pretty sure will change my life if she hasn’t already. Her name is Ruby Maplethorpe, but you might know her better as Pearl Oakley, the author of over 20 mystery novels in the 50s and 60s. Since widowed and retired, Ruby decided to take up long distance walking to remain in shape. What she didn’t count on was murder.

Around the time I met Ruby a fellow runner from our group went missing under the most mysterious circumstances imaginable. If that wasn’t enough, someone was leaving pairs of scissors in very conspicuous places. When the runner turned up dead, I found myself cast as a prime suspect. If not for the brilliance of Ruby and the tenacity of Stax and a very capable (and handsome) detective, I might have been strung up for a crime I never committed. But being the great friends they are, they came through. I relay the harrowing events of this murderous adventure in Running from Scissors.

This Valentine’s Day has been even more trying. Not one, not two, but three people have been murdered. And, lo and behold, I’ve got a secret admirer. There’s a maniac called the Cupid Killer at large and for all I know he and my admirer are one and the same.

But I trust myself and my friends to get to the bottom of this mystery, as perplexing as it is. There’s something about Cedar Mills that makes it hard for bad people to flourish. And if I know Ruby, she’ll figure out who our invisible killer is and save the day once again.

I just hope she does so before I become the Cupid Killer’s latest victim!

To find out what happens, be sure to check out Running from Arrows in Kindle, paperback, or Audible format now!

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Running from Arrows (A Running Store Mystery) by T.C. Wescott

About the Book

 

Running from Arrows (A Running Store Mystery)  

Cozy Mystery/Romance/Humor 2nd in Series  

Better Mousetrap Books (January 7, 2019)  

Print Length: 192 pages 

One of Lacy's beaus has a bow. Unlike Cupid, his arrows kill. There's more than romance in the air this Valentine's Day!

Running from Arrows is the fun, twist-filled, romantic cozy mystery romp you've been waiting for!

Valentine's Day is coming up and Lacy is single. If that's not bad enough, she has a secret admirer. Is it the compassionate, haunted detective, the ruggedly handsome businessman, the suave maître de, the guy in her running group who likes to stare, or maybe someone who's not on her radar? She'll find out soon enough because he's invited her to dinner. Now the question isn't how long Lacy will remain single but how long she'll remain alive.

During the Sweetheart Run through the town of Cedar Mill a fellow runner is murdered and a notorious burglar called the Black Cat is found dead with an arrow sticking out of him. Somehow these strange murders are connected to the ladies of Run For It - Lacy the divorcee, Stax the quirky bookseller, and Ruby the old-time mystery novelist. They're back in a race against time to catch an invisible killer and exonerate an innocent man!

If you love a delicious mystery dripping with romance, humor, and chills - and a Valentine's Day dinner no reader will ever forget - then buy Running from Arrows now and run it right to the top of your TBR pile!

You'll want to tell all your friends about Running from Arrows, but whatever you do, DON'T TELL THE SECRET OF THE SECRET ADMIRER.

Running from Arrows is part two in a series but can be read as a stand-alone.

About the Author

T.C. Wescott was born in Missouri but has lived in Oklahoma most of his life. Like pretty much every author who has ever breathed, he is an avid reader. His favorites are classic mysteries from the Golden Age, as well as just before or just after that period (which is widely considered the period between the two World Wars). His first mystery novel, Running from Scissors, was published in July 2018 and will be the first of at least three books in the Running Store Mystery series.

The Christmas Village Mystery series was launched in November with the debut title Slay Bells. The formula for his books is simple – mixing the classic, traditional detective fiction standards with all the trappings of the modern cozy mystery.

Wescott is also (under another name) the author of two award-winning non-fiction books as well as a slew of essays and articles.

• BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/t-c-wescott
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BetterMousetrapBooks/
• Website: tcwescott.com
• Twitter: @MousetrapBooks
• GoodReads – https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18176277.T_C_Wescott

Purchase Link – Amazon

 a Rafflecopter giveaway

Slay Bells - A Review

Review

SLAY BELLS by T. C. Wescott

The First Christmas Village Mystery

Rose Willoughby is pleased to host the performers of Harper's Harpoons during the town's Christmas Festival. When Rose gets sidelined by a sprained ankle, Mrs. Maribel Claus comes to help with her lodgers, after all, the mister is quite busy at this time of year. After a night of legends and ghost stories the troupe's disagreeable manager is found dead on the snowy hill behind Plum Cottage, but with no tracks leading to or from the body the murder seems impossible. Could it be the Glockenvogel? Or, more likely, one of the performers? Mrs. Claus is known to be a good friend as well as a confirmed snoop, so she'll help the sheriff investigate and hopefully find the murderer before Christmas!

SLAY BELLS is a cerebral mystery. There is a charming setting filled with unique characters, but the main draw is the mystery...and an impossible mystery at that. While I found the various characters interesting and enjoyed reading about them, I wasn't particularly drawn to them. I was compelled to solve the murder, but not for the sake of any character, but rather for my own curiosity. Reading was more like watching a film from the outside rather than being a part of the world itself. That being said, it was a very good film, indeed.

Inspiration from the Golden Age of detective fiction is evident from the maps included to the very rhythm of the book itself. The reader is given the tools needed to solve the crime, if only she can distinguish the wheat from the chaff, the real clues from the red herrings.

The first Christmas Village Mystery is a fun Christmas themed brain teaser. Cleverly plotted, this traditional mystery makes the holiday season a little brighter.

A Slay Bells Interview & Giveaway

I'm happy to welcome T.C. Wescott to Cozy Up With Kathy today. T.C. writes the Christmas Village Mystery series. Slay Bells, the first book in the series, was released last week.

Kathy: Slay Bells is the first Christmas Village Mystery. Are you a fan of Christmas and the whole winter holiday season?

T.C.W.: I am a great lover of the Christmas season and all it entails. That's what's most appealing to me in writing these stories. It's an opportunity for me to disappear into this magical world where the Christmas spirit lives year round.


Kathy: What's your favorite aspect to the holiday season?

T.C.W.: The way the air feels crisper as it gets close to Christmas, the stars are brighter, and everyone's mood and spirit improves by a notch or two.


Kathy: If you had the opportunity, would you spend a vacation in a Christmas village?

T.C.W.: Yes, absolutely.


Kathy: What's your favorite holiday film, special, or book?

T.C.W.: Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol is still my favorite. Many people do not realize that Christmas was not the popular holiday it is now before Dickens's story.


Kathy: How has the Golden Age of Detective Fiction influenced this mystery?

T.C.W.: Hugely. If not for the mention of cell phones I suspect some people might mistake it for a book written in that era. The classics (and not so classic, but old) mysteries are far and away my favorite to read.


Kathy: What first drew you to cozy mysteries?

T.C.W.: I love the idea of a small group of people, or a small community, where everything is as it should be until suddenly it's not. Then the forces of good overtake the forces of evil and all is restored to how it should be. I think as readers such mysteries are appealing because they represent peaceful communities where any wrongs are sure to be swiftly set right.


Kathy: Do you write in any other genres?

T.C.W.: Yes, I've published two well-known non-fiction books of research into the Jack the Ripper murders of 1888. That's very much apart from the cozy mysteries I write!


Kathy: Tell us about your series.

T.C.W.: The Christmas Village Mystery series will take place in the magical fictional world of Christmas Village, with Mrs. Maribel Claus as our puzzle-solving sleuth. Many of the crimes she solves will be howdunits as well as whodunits. That is to say locked room murders and impossible crimes will abound! The other series I'm currently writing is the Running Store Mystery series. These books take place in a small town in Oklahoma and center around a store devoted to running apparel. The crimes are solved by a trio of ladies: Lacy, a middle-aged divorcee new to the town; Stax, how goofy, mouthy bookseller friend; and Ruby Maplethorpe, a retired mystery novelist from the Silver Age of detection writing. The first book, Running from Scissors, was published in July and the second book, Running from Arrows, is available for preorder and comes out in January.


Kathy: Did you have a specific inspiration for your series?

T.C.W.: Yes, I believe I do. I'm inspired by what I like and the way I write reflects that. I love the way mystery stories were constructed in the Golden Age (between the two world wars) and I love the colorful, fun, cozy settings of modern mysteries. What I try to do is combine the two in the stories I write. My hope is to up the mystery ante while still maintaining the cozy atmosphere that modern readers enjoy.


Kathy: What made you decide to publish your work?

T.C.W.: I'd had success with my non-fiction books and learned a thing or two about publishing. I'd always wanted to get more involved with fiction, so then it was just a matter of choosing a subject matter. The Christmas Village and running store motifs presented themselves and proved irresistible, so I committed myself to writing at least 3 in each series.


Kathy: What are you currently reading?

T.C.W.: The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries, edited by Otto Penzler. A great collection. I've also just started The Good Girl by Mary Kubica.


Kathy: Will you share any of your hobbies or interests with us?

T.C.W.: Other than writing and reading I love playing guitar and watching unscripted TV shows, such as Survivor and Big Brother. I have two dogs, two cats, and a ferret.


Kathy: Name 4 items you always have in your fridge or pantry.

T.C.W.: Cheetos, gluten-free pasta, spaghetti sauce, and smoked sausage.


Kathy: Do you have plans for future books either in your current series or a new series?

T.C.W.: Yes, based on the initial interest I'm receiving from Slay Bells I expect the Christmas Village Mysteries will go on for some time. I'm going to at least do a third book on the Running Store Mystery series and then we'll see if that continues.


Kathy: What's your favorite thing about being an author?

T.C.W.: The writing. I love writing and the feeling of satisfaction and achievement I get when I've had a particularly good day of it. My least favorite part by a mile is the editing!

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Slay Bells (A Christmas Village Mystery) by T.C. Wescott

About the Book

 

Slay Bells (A Christmas Village Mystery) 

Cozy Mystery Brand New Series  

Better Mousetrap Books (November 23, 2018) 

 Print Length: 273 pages 

‘Twas the week before Christmas and all through the village, the night settled in over swirling-smoke chimneys; the air was alive with pine and holly, with sugar and cinnamon and cider, by golly!

Along snowy lanes and through shadows it crept, past windows behind which each villager slept, where sleeping dogs lie and cats rest a’purring—

Tonight, in Christmas Village, a killer is stirring.

Welcome to Christmas Village, a magical hamlet where even in December the roses hold their luster and bees buzz among the bluebells. You’re just in time for the week-long Christmas Festival, and nowhere is Christmas celebrated with such unrestrained merriment as the village which bears its name. Mayor Cobblestone and Sheriff Fell will be somewhere nearby, doing all they can to make sure you’re safe during your stay.

Provided you haven’t booked a room at Plum Cottage.

Nestled betwixt an opulent garden with meandering footpaths and an ancient grove of plum trees, Rose Willoughby’s boarding house is plum-full with lodgers. There are no vacancies, but just wait. Soon there will be one…and another…and another.

Presently lodging at the cottage are: the juggler, the acrobat, the magician, the psychic, the strongman, the manager, and the pretty assistant. In town as festival entertainment they’ve each brought their own bag of tricks. And a closetful of skeletons.

When the entertainers begin dying in inexplicable ways, some villagers believe a beast from old village lore is the culprit. The sheriff knows better, but he’s just as helpless to catch the invisible killer as are the town folk with their eyes to the sky in search of a flying creature. But our mysterious murderer hasn’t counted on yet another lodger coming to the cottage: Maribel Claus.

Short as a stump, round as a wheel, sweet as a candy cane, and a sharp as a whip, Maribel loves a good puzzle. But has she finally met her match at Plum Cottage?

Can you figure out whodunit before Maribel does? If you’re up to the challenge, here’s your first clue—the key to unlocking the secret of the murderer’s identity lies in figuring out how the murders were committed. Good luck!

About the Author

T.C. Wescott was born in Missouri but has lived in Oklahoma most of his life. Like pretty much every author who has ever breathed, he is an avid reader. His favorites are classic mysteries from the Golden Age, as well as just before or just after that period (which is widely considered the period between the two World Wars). His first mystery novel, Running from Scissors, was published in July 2018 and will be the first of at least three books in the Running Store Mystery series.

 

The Christmas Village Mystery series will launch in November of the same year with the debut title Slay Bells. The formula for his books is simple - mixing the classic, traditional detective fiction standards with all the trappings of the modern cozy mystery.

Wescott is also (under another name) the author of two award-winning non-fiction books as well as a slew of essays and articles.

Follow on GoodReads - https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18176277.T_C_Wescott

Purchase Link - Amazon

a Rafflecopter giveaway