Fake Death - A Guest Post, Review, & Giveaway

I'm pleased to welcome Victoria Tait to Cozy Up With Kathy today. Victoria writes the Dotty Sayers Antique Mystery series. FAKE DEATH is the first book in the series and was released last week.

Can the Main Character work alone in a Cozy Mystery? 

By Victoria Tait

Ask a reader who their favourite amateur sleuth is, and you’ll receive answers such as Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple and Poirot, Elizabeth Peters’ Amelia Peabody or Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum.

But even the famous Sherlock Holmes did not work alone. Watson, who narrates the stories, may be modest about his role, but he is a sounding board and a way for dialogue and Holmes’ emotions and idiosyncrasies to be portrayed. Even the minor role of the Baker Street Irregulars, a group of street urchins who run errands, now have their own series on Netflix.

While planning my new Dotty Sayers Antique Mystery series, I read, or rather listened to, the BBC dramatisation of Dorothy L. Sayers’ books featuring Lord Peter Wimsey. The British actor, Ian Carmichael, was fantastic as Lord Peter, but it is the other characters which really bring the stories to life.

My favourite is Lord Peter’s mother, the Dowager Duchess of Denver – Patricia Routledge, who played another amateur detective, Hetty Wainthropp, performed the role to perfection – is dismissed by most yet she comes across as intelligent and quickwitted.

If the lead detective or amateur sleuth diligently moves from one clue to the next on their own, the story would be dull. Anthony Horowitz is clever in his books featuring ex-Detective Daniel Hawthorne as he casts himself as the detective’s sidekick and there is oodles of tension between them, as Horowitz does not like Hawthorne but can’t help admire him.

Most cozy mysteries are set in small towns or villages and centre around a business, such as a bakery, a bookshop or in my case, an auction house and antiques centre. This enables an author to write a cast of diverse characters who add humour, tension and often, a love interest.

I have to be careful when I introduce new characters, and think carefully about their names, mannerisms and appearance. I’ve discovered that those I only intend to have minor roles elbow their way into more prominent parts as a series progresses.

I would go as far as saying that the readers now expect a team element to stories. They see it in the movies and TV shows, like the extremely popular NCIS, where the main character is Gibbs, but we only experience his personality by the way he interacts with members of his team. We even become invested in the team’s side stories.

In cozy mysteries, animals, whether talking or not, are often companions to the central character and my heroine, Dotty, adopts a British blue cat. I can use their relationship to add side stories and depth.

I love writing cozy mysteries and while I concentrate on developing the heroine, I have so much fun writing all the other characters. I hope you can see this in Fake Death and other stories in the Dotty Sayers Antique Mystery series.

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Review

FAKE DEATH by Victoria Tait

The First Dotty Sayers Antiques Mystery

Recovering from a head injury, Dottie Sayers is happy to be working at Akemans Auction House. Reluctantly, she agrees to take part of a Remembrance Parade honoring her late husband and all soldiers who died in the line of duty. Shocked when the body of a soldier is found after the parade, Dottie soon realizes she recognizes the man. As she assists the auction house in appraising items, she winds up discovering that the man was not who he appeared to be. Will Dottie be able to put the pieces together and solve the mystery?

 

FAKE DEATH is a perplexing mystery. As I started to read I soon became confused. Dottie's head injury was continually mentioned, as was the attack that caused it. But what attack? By whom? I thought I had made an error and started this series a book or so in, but no, this was the first in the series. Indeed for most of the book I felt as if I was missing something important.

 

Dotty acts more like a victim than a protagonist. She appears meek and subservient to pretty much everyone. I really liked Sarah and hoped she'd help Dottie come into her own.  The story itself was interesting. I quite liked how the identities of the victim were revealed and Dottie's growing realizations as to what was going on. I loved Norman and Earl Grey and was captivated by the Duke's story.

FAKE DEATH highlights appearances and honor in a Cotswold mystery.

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Fake Death (A Dotty Sayers Antique Mystery) by Victoria Tait

About Fake Death

Fake Death (A Dotty Sayers Antique Mystery)
Cozy Mystery 1st in Series
Kanga Press (April 8, 2022)
Number of Pages c. 240

A dead body. Multiple disguises. Can an amateur sleuth see through the charade – or become a tragic victim?

Young military widow, Dotty Sayers, is delighted with her new job at an auction house in Britain’s picturesque Cotswolds. She agrees to take part in a Remembrance parade to commemorate her husband and his fallen comrades. But drama ensues when an unknown soldier is found dead.

Dotty assists the police and appraises objects found at the victim’s house, but rather than identifying the deceased, she discovers numerous personas. When a suspect is arrested, and Dotty is asked to look after Earl Grey, a British Blue cat, she realizes appearances can be deceiving. Can she track down the real culprit and prevent an innocent man from being imprisoned?

Can Dotty unmask the killer without putting her own life at risk?  

Fake Death is the first book in the captivating Dotty Sayers Antique Mystery series. If you like intriguing mysteries, entertaining characters and the glorious British countryside, then you’ll adore Victoria Tait’s enthralling tale.

Buy Fake Death and unmask a killer today!

About Victoria Tait

 

I was born and raised in Yorkshire, UK, and never expected to travel the world. But I fell for an Army Officer, and I’ve followed him from Northern Ireland, up to the Scottish Highlands, across to Africa and the Kenyan Savannah, back to the British Cotswolds, and we are now living in Sarajevo, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in Southern Europe. I never expected to be an author, but all this moving is not ideal for holding down a job. Instead, I’ve taken the experiences of the places I’ve lived to write vivid and evocative cozy mystery books with determined female sleuths. I have two fast-growing teenage boys, and together we’ve learnt to ski on the Bosnian mountains. I also enjoy horse riding, mountain biking and I’ve started running as a way to improve my physical fitness, mental wellbeing and shed some excess pounds. 

Author Links:  

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/victoria-tait  

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

For access to exclusive content, giveaways and freebies, sign up for my newsletter at my website: VictoriaTait.com  

Website: https://victoriatait.com/  

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/VictoriaTaitAuthor/_saved/  

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20373879.Victoria_Tait  

Purchase Links - Amazon 

 

The Yarn that Binds - A Review & Giveaway

 Review

THE YARN THAT BINDS by Rebecca McKinnon
The First Clear Creek Mystery 

 

After a call from her grandmother that something strange is going on travel vlogger Jemma Whitlock returns to the town where she spent most of the summers of her youth. Instead of a happy reunion Jemma returns to a crime scene. Her grandmother has been murdered in her own yarn shop. Could the too slick man from the shuttle have something to do with it? Or Mary's neighbor who's making snide comments from behind a too tall fence? Why kill Mary? Is Jemma's life in danger as well?

Jemma faces a lot of difficult choices in this, the first Clear Creek Mystery. With her grandmother's death she must decide if she wants to stay in Clear Creek or return to her vagabond life. Can she make a go of her grandmother's yearn shop and finally put down roots? Is she ready to develop friendships and perhaps turn one into something more?

The characters are what really make the book stand out. Jemma is headstrong, yet sometimes vulnerable, able to stand up for herself, yet knowing when to ask for and accept help. Brandon running away from Charlotte always made me chuckle, while the change Jemma found in Kitty made me concerned. Granny is a hoot and a half and I love Emmilene's expressions and good heart.

I liked how the mystery progressed. Though Jemma left most of the detecting to the police, she didn't mind nosing around a bit herself, aided by a few friends. Multiple suspects and an uncertain motive made for an entertaining puzzle. Although I had my suspicions, I wasn't certain who the murderer was until the very end.

A touch of humor, a dash of romance, and an intriguing mystery make THE YARN THAT BINDS a solid start to a charming new series.

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 The Yarn That Binds (Clear Creek Mysteries) by Rebecca McKinnon

About The Yarn That Binds 

The Yarn That Binds (Clear Creek Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery 1st in Series
Setting - A small town in the Rocky Mountains
Independently Published (April 14, 2022)
Number of Pages: 258 Digital

A Rocky Mountain Yarn with Small Town Charm

Jemma hasn’t been to the tiny Rocky Mountain town of Clear Creek in years, but when her grandmother tells her something strange is going on, Jemma drops everything to return and help untangle the clues.

She arrives to flashing lights, a house full of police, and the news that her grandmother has been killed with her own yarn. After learning she inherits everything, Jemma is faced with the choice of casting on a new life by reopening her grandmother’s yarn shop, or returning to her live-out-of-a-suitcase life as a travel vlogger.

One thing’s for sure — she’s not leaving town until the mystery of her grandmother’s death has unraveled. But when the deputy in charge of the investigation ignores clues Jemma stumbles upon, she decides to do her own poking around. Because her grandmother was right — there is something strange happening in Clear Creek.

About Rebecca McKinnon

Rebecca McKinnon enjoys playing with her imaginary friends and introducing them to others through her writing. She dreams of living in the middle of nowhere but has been unable to find an acceptable location that wouldn’t require crossing an ocean.

Author Links: 

Website: www.rebeccamckinnon.com 

Instagram: www.instagram.com/rebeccamckinnon_author/  

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RebeccaMcKinnonAuthor/?ref=hl  

GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4993788.Rebecca_McKinnon  

Purchase Link: Amazon 

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Murder is No Picnic - A Cover Reveal!

Murder Is No Picnic (A Cape Cod Foodie Mystery) by Amy Pershing

COMING JUNE 7, 2022

 

When a celebrity chef is found dead,

             

Samantha Barnes, the "Cape Cod Foodie",

         

finds her search for the world's best blueberry buckle

               

turning into a search for a killer . . .

                 

READY!

                   

SET!!

                     

REVEAL!!!

Murder Is No Picnic (A Cape Cod Foodie Mystery)
Cozy Mystery 3rd in Series
Setting – Cape Cod, Massachusetts
Publisher: ‎ Berkley (June 7, 2022)
Mass Market Paperback: ‎ 336 pages

The Fourth of July is coming, and for professional food lover Samantha Barnes, it’s all about the picnic. Okay, and the fireworks. And the parade. But mostly the picnic. What could be better than a DIY clambake followed by the best blueberry buckle in the world? Sam has finally found the perfect recipe in the kitchen of Clara Foster, famed cookbook author and retired restaurateur, and she’s thrilled when Clara agrees to a buckle baking lesson.

But when Clara dies in a house fire blamed on carelessness in the kitchen, Sam doesn’t believe it. Unfortunately, her doubts set in motion an investigation pointing to the new owner of Clara’s legendary restaurant—and a cousin of Sam’s harbormaster boyfriend. So, in between researching the Cape’s best lobster rolls and planning her clambake, Sam needs to find Clara's killer before the fireworks really start....

You can Pre-Order Your Copy Today!

Amazon B&N Kobo Google Books IndieBound Bookshop.org

 

About the Author:

Amy Pershing, who spent every summer of her childhood on Cape Cod, was an editor, a restaurant reviewer and a journalist before leading employee communications at a global bank. A few years ago she waved goodbye to Wall Street to write full time. Murder Is No Picnic is the third of the Cape Cod Foodie mysteries featuring Samantha Barnes, a disgraced but resilient ex-chef who retreats home to Cape Cod where she finds herself juggling a new job as the local paper’s “Cape Cod Foodie,” a complicated love life, a posse of just-slightly-odd friends, a falling-down house, a ginormous dog and a propensity for falling over dead bodies. Elizabeth Gilbert called the first book in the series, A Side of Murder, “the freshest, funniest mystery I have ever read,” and Kirkus Reviews gave the second book, An Eggnog to Die For, a starred review, saying, “A delightful sleuth, a complex mystery, and lovingly described cuisine: a winner for both foodies and mystery mavens.”

Website: AmyPershingAuthor.com  

Follow amypershingauthor on Facebook  

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Sign up for News from the Cape Cod Foodie! 

Currently Reading...

I'm currently reading Cry of the Innocent by Julie Bates. This book is the first in the Faith Clarke Mystery series and was released last year.

In 1774 Virginia Widow Faith Clarke is doing her best to run her tavern, saddled as she is with her late husband’s debts. When the greedy Phineas Bullard demands use of her private room, Faith has no choice as most of her debts belong to him. Early the next morning her slave, Titus, finds the man butchered in the private room. Although a British captain is investigating, Faith believes it prudent to do what she can to find the killer, before her tavern’s reputation is maligned, or worse, she and her slaves are accused of murder.

 

Ghosts, Lore & a House by the Shore - A Guest Post, Review, & Giveaway

I'm pleased to welcome Cassie McGuire to Cozy Up With Kathy today. You can find Cassie on the pages of the Lily & Cassie By the Sea Mystery series by Nellie H. Steele. GHOSTS, LORE & A HOUSE BY THE SHORE is the first book in the series and today is its release day!

Moving to Whispering Manor
By Cassie McGuire

When I first saw Whispering Manor, I was a little overwhelmed. I’ll admit, I wondered if it was a bit too much house for just my mom and me. I can remember staring up at the oversized home as it rose tall in the air in front of us while we waited for the realtor.

Little did we know the history the house had. I’m not sure if I had known it would have changed my mind at all. I fell in love with it from the moment I saw it. And then when Lucy let us in, I thought it looked like something out of a movie.

The wide wraparound porch alone was inviting enough to make me want to buy the house. But then Lucy opened the door and let us inside. The generous foyer blew me away! With its rich woods and intricate carvings, it’s definitely something from a bygone era. You don’t see work like that anymore! On either side of the wide stairs leading up to the second floor were wooden carvings of two angels holding lanterns. Amazing! Wide doorways led off both sides into a living room and a library.

The library is one of my favorite spots. It was filled with books when we got there (some gothic novels, which makes for great reading on a rainy day). There’s a lovely little window seat overlooking the front drive and the porch that’s great to curl up on with a good book.

Our eat-in kitchen overlooks the back of the property which is right up against our private beach! I love eating breakfast (or dinner!) and watching the sunrise over the ocean. I’ll often crack one of the bay windows so I can listen to the ocean.

Upstairs, we’ve got a number of bedrooms. Way more than Mom and I need. My mom has one overlooking the ocean. I took one that has a view of both the ocean and the front of the house. It’s got an en-suite and another lovely window seat that looks out on the water. The house has all kinds of neat features like a Widow’s Walk and beautiful trim outside. I’m really in love with it.

One of the things I didn’t expect when we moved to Whispering Manor, though, was the amount of trouble we’d have! Whew! What a tale! I hope you’ll read all about it in GHOSTS, LORE & A HOUSE BY THE SHORE!

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Review

GHOSTS, LORE & A HOUSE BY THE SHORE by Nellie H. Steele

The First Lily & Callie By the Sea Mystery

A tragic accident left both Lily Bennett and Cassandra Bennett-McGuire widows. Mother and daughter, unable to face homes filled with memories, decide to make a fresh start. Choosing the small town of Hideaway Bay, the pair buy an estate on the edge of town, and rent a storefront in town for their dream gift shop-Buy the Sea. They soon discover that their home has a tragic history and is supposedly haunted by more than one ghost. A ship captain lost at sea, his grieving widow jumped to her death from the widow's walk and centuries later a young girl disappears and her parents die in an apparent murder/suicide. No wonder townsfolk shudder at the mention of the house. Lily and Cassie are captivated when they find the widow's journal and discover the missing girl was researching the captain's alleged treasure. Soon odd sounds and vandalism start plaguing the pair. Someone isn't happy that they're looking into the past. But is it a ghost? Or a more worldly tormentor?

GHOSTS, LORE & A HOUSE BY THE SHORE is a unique mystery in that it has two protagonists, a mother and daughter. Written in the third person the book switches points of view, which the author handles deftly. Instead of being confusing, wondering who was thinking what, it was always clear if it is the slightly more cynical Lily versus her daughter Cassie. Both are competent women who I would like to call friends. I absolutely adore Whispering Manor and detailed descriptions make me want to live there. The multiple mysteries were ingenious, although I did figure out the modern day villain before our intrepid mother/daughter team. I figured out a few key things before they did, but, though I yelled at them, it didn't stop my enjoyment of the story. I was enthralled by Henrietta's tale and can't believe Lily stopped reading the journal at those climactic bits.

A glorious manor with mysteries spread across the ages GHOSTS, LORE & A HOUSE BY THE SHORE is a wonderful start to a new series.

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 Ghosts, Lore & a House by the Shore: A Mother/Daughter Cozy Mystery (Lily & Cassie By the Sea Mysteries) by Nellie H. Steele

About Ghosts, Lore & a House by the Shore

Ghosts, Lore & a House by the Shore: A Mother/Daughter Cozy Mystery (Lily & Cassie By the Sea Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series Number of Pages: 306 pages

A new town. A haunting legend. New beginnings or the beginning of the end?

After Cassie MacGuire’s husband dies in a plane crash along with her father, both her and her mother, Lily Bennett, are left as widows. Looking to make a new start, they move together to the quiet seaside town of Hideaway Bay. But their new home, Whispering Manor, has a reputation stretching back centuries. Legends of ghosts, paranormal disturbances and pirate treasure are all associated with the former sea captain’s mansion, starting with the death of its first mistress, Henrietta Blanchard.

When Cassie stumbles upon Henrietta’s journal and Lily uncovers a more recent tragedy in the home, they begin to wonder if the stories may be fact instead of fiction. When the strange occurrences turn dangerous, Lily and Cassie will have to investigate to save their home and possibly even their very lives!

Ghosts, Lore & a House by the Shore is the charming first installment in this small, seaside town mother-daughter cozy mystery series by Nellie H. Steele.

About Nellie H. Steele

An Indies Today finalist for Best Book of the Year 2020 with Cleopatra’s Tomb, Nellie H. Steele made the leap from science to art with her first book, The Secret of Dunhaven Castle.

An animal enthusiast, Nellie often features a version of one of her fourteen rescue animals in her stories, though the fictional pets are usually better behaved than her own fur-babies! A literary split personality, Nellie’s work ranges from cozy mystery to supernatural suspense to riveting adventure.

She lives in the South Hills of Pittsburgh. When she isn’t writing or engaging in animal care, she enjoys teaching Statistics and Data Science at a local university.

Check out all Nellie offers at www.anovelideapublishing.com/novels or at her blog, Nellie’s Book Nook, available at www.nelliesbooknook.com!

Author Links: 

Publisher Website: anovelideapublishing.com  

Blog: www.nelliesbooknook.com 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/nelliehsteele  

Instagram: www.instagram.com/nelliehsteele  

Twitter: https://twitter.com/nelliehsteele1  

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nelliehsteeleauthor  

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19769743.Nellie_H_Steele  

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/nellie-h-steele  

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Nellie-H.-Steele/e/B07Z9PD3YN  

Purchase Link: Amazon: (eBook preorder is currently live. Book will be offered in eBook, paperback, hardcover, and audio).

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Ticket To Ride - An Interview

I'm happy to welcome Winona Kent back to Cozy Up With Kathy. Winona writes the Jason Davey Mystery series. Ticket to Ride is the fourth book in the series and was released last month.

Kathy: In Ticket to Ride a fortune-teller in Sheffield warns the band of impending danger. Have you ever had your fortune told? What method did they use?

WR: I've never actually been to a fortune-teller, but when I was working on my MFA at UBC, one of my fellow students did a Tarot card reading for me. I was astounded by just how accurate that reading was. She was absolutely bang on with nearly everything she told me--about my background, influences in my life, my writing, everything. And she really didn't know me that well at all--everything she was telling me had apparently come from the cards I'd chosen. Many years later, I decided to learn how to do readings for myself, and I invested in a pack of traditional Rider-Waite cards. I've never really done a reading for anyone else, but I did a lot of self-readings during a particularly troubled time in my life...and I have to say, what I learned about myself was extremely helpful--and very healing.


Kathy: The book also includes a wartime ghost. Do you believe in ghosts? Have you ever had a paranormal encounter?

WR: Absolutely. I do believe in ghosts, and I have had several paranormal experiences. One of them happened just after my father died. We'd gathered in the house and my sister and I were having some kind of argument about World War Two (my dad was a paratrooper in the British Army in 1944-45). I turned to walk out of the living room, and all of a sudden a book flew out of the bookcase behind me. It landed in the middle of the room, too far away from the shelves to have simply fallen out. My sister witnessed this too. We looked at the book--and it was a history of World War Two.

I had a second paranormal encounter in a hotel room in Toronto when I was a travel agent. I was woken up in the middle of the night by a dark figure wearing an overcoat and a hat. He was smoking a cigarette. He stood at the foot of my bed, and then, without a word, disappeared. But I could smell the smoke from his cigarette. I have no idea who he was, or why he was there, or if there was any history of anyone like that connected to that hotel or the room I was in. But I used a variation of that encounter in Ticket to Ride.

I also used a third paranormal experience in Ticket to Ride. At a certain point in the novel, my main character Jason describes a visit to the chapel at Biggin Hill, best known for its role during the Battle of Britain in the Second World War, when it served as one of the principal fighter bases protecting London and South East England. During that visit, he distinctly recalls a ghostly encounter where he hears the sound of a coin dropping and rolling across the chapel floor. An investigation results in nothing—there is no coin, and nobody else was in the chapel except Jason, his mother and grandmother. That is exactly what happened to me, my mum, my sister and a friend when we visited the Biggin Hill chapel in 1971. I’ve described it exactly as I remember it. It still gives me shivers, though I was never frightened, and only ever experienced a sense of calm and gratitude.

Kathy: Was there a specific inspiration for this story?

WR: The idea actually came from Lost Time, the novel I wrote just before Ticket to Ride. Normally, my main character, Jason Davey, can be found at the Blue Devil Club in London’s Soho, where he has a permanent gig with his jazz combo. But in Lost Time, Jason has taken a leave of absence from his Blue Devil residency, and is rehearsing for a tour of England with his mum’s old folky-pop band, Figgis Green, while he solves the mystery of a young woman who went missing in the 1970s.

I had so many notes, and so much wonderful research left over from Lost Time, that I thought it would be a great idea to write a book about the actual tour. So in Ticket to Ride, Jason and the Figs are on the road. While they travel around England, Jason tries to get to the bottom of who his maternal grandfather really is—and at the same time deals with a series of seemingly-unrelated mishaps that eventually lead to a deadly encounter at a concert in Tunbridge Wells.


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

WR: Yes, I'm just starting to outline the next novel in the series. This will be Book #5 in my Jason Davey Mysteries. It'll be called Bad Boy (after a very old and somewhat obscure Beatles song) and it'll start at The Shard in London. I just came back from England, as a matter of fact, where I was doing some research. I actually went over to scatter my mother's ashes (she died last May) but while I was there, I reacquainted myself with London and visited a few places I'd never been before (including The Shard). I also visited some relatives who live in Derbyshire, and I'm confident that entire experience is going to turn up Bad Boy. The book will also mark the return of one of my favourite baddies, Arthur Braskey from Notes on a Missing G-String (Book #2 in the series).


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?

WR: I am totally a plotter. For most of my adult life, I've had to write in my spare time--weekends, evenings, holidays--because I've always had a full-time job in order to earn a living. When I went to Vancouver Film School to learn how to write screenplays, I was taught how to start with really a effective outline. I found that an incredibly useful skill, since the better part of my day was always spent working for someone else. Working with an outline helped me to keep my plots and complicatons straight in my mind, so that I was never lost trying to remember where I last was with the story, or where I was trying to go.Now that I've retired from working, and I'm a full-time writer (at last!), starting with an outline is a habit that's stayed with me. There's no rule that says the outline you start with has to be the same one you end with. In fact, I constantly tinker with the details and the plotting and quite often, the ending is as much a surprise to me as it is to my readers. I've tried a couple of different plotting software programs, by the way--and my current favourite is Plottr. It's perfect for me because my creative brain is very visually-oriented--and I can see the entire plot and all its threads in so many different ways.


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?

WR: I actually really enjoy filling out questionnaires like this. Like many writers, I'm not a natural marketer, nor am I very outgoing. I'm really very timid and quiet and introverted, and having a chance to answer questions in this format is actually very exciting for me. I love talking about my books and sharing little tidbits of inside information, and hopefully I'm entertaining your readers at the same time.

What I really dislike is trying to source out all of the other places and people I think should be approaching. It's a lot of work and it takes so much time--time that I'd rather be spending researching and writing. For this novel and the last one (Lost Time), I signed up for a blog tour, and I find that to be an incredibly good way to get the word out and to expose my books to more readers. Blog tours also very good value for the money! They're like an old-fashioned book tour, but they're virtual.


Kathy: Will you share any other upcoming books?

WR: See above for my next Jason Davey Mystery. Also, I have a short story coming up in Sisters in Crime - Canada West's new anthology, Women of a Certain Age, which will be out this October. The story's called "Terminal Lucidity" and I actually started writing it as I was sitting by my mother's bedside at a hospice in North Vancouver. She passed away, aged 95, last May, as I was in the middle of working on Ticket to Ride. 

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In Lost Time, professional musician / amateur sleuth Jason Davey was rehearsing for Figgis Green's 50th Anniversary Tour of England. Now they're on the road.

But when a fortune-teller in Sheffield warns them of impending danger, the band is suddenly plagued by a series of seemingly-unrelated mishaps.

After Jason is attacked and nearly killed in Cambridge, and a fire alarm results in a very personal theft from Mandy's hotel room, it becomes clear they're being targeted by someone with a serious grudge.

And when Figgis Green plays a gig at a private estate in Tunbridge Wells, that person finally makes their deadly intentions known.

Jason must rely on his instincts, his Instagram "guardian angel," and a wartime ghost who might possibly share his DNA, in order to survive.

***************************************************************
Links:
My website is http://www.winonakent.com
And you can read the first 2 chapters of Ticket to Ride on my website here:
https://www.winonakent.com/tickettoride.html
Links to Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books and Kobo are on that page.

My publisher Brian Richmond (Blue Devil Books) and I have also created a rather good “tour website” for Jason's band, Figgis Green, where you can discover all kinds of things like their set lists, who else is in the band, the tour itinerary…and Jason’s Instagram feed, which is filled with his tour-related posts.
http://www.figgisgreen.co.uk
Links to Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books and Kobo are also on that page.

The buy links are here also (if you have room to include them):
Amazon Canada
Paperback
https://www.amazon.ca/Ticket-Ride-Winona-Kent/dp/1777329434
Ebook
https://www.amazon.ca/Ticket-Ride-Winona-Kent-ebook/dp/B09SZ2LRV6

Amazon US
Paperback
https://www.amazon.com/Ticket-Ride-Winona-Kent/dp/1777329434
Ebook
https://www.amazon.com/Ticket-Ride-Winona-Kent-ebook/dp/B09SZ2LRV6

Amazon UK
Paperback
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ticket-Ride-Winona-Kent/dp/1777329434
Ebook
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ticket-Ride-Winona-Kent-ebook/dp/B09SZ2LRV6

Barnes & Noble
Paperback
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/ticket-to-ride-winona-kent/1141097853?ean=9781777329433
Ebook
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/ticket-to-ride-winona-kent/1141097853?ean=9781777329426

Apple Books
https://books.apple.com/ca/book/ticket-to-ride/id1612423905

Kobo
https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/ticket-to-ride-17

Under Lock & Skeleton Key - A Review

 Review

UNDER LOCK & SKELETON KEY by Gigi Pandian
The First Secret Staircase Mystery

Tempest Raj was a top rate magician, a successful woman in a male dominated profession. Unfortunately, "was" being the key word. A disastrous fall from grace led Tempest out of Las Vegas and back to her family home in California. Visiting her father's construction crew on a job, they discover something hidden in the old wall. It's not newspaper or the usual debris, but a body. Although it appears the walls haven't been touched in over a hundred years, the body is someone Tempest just saw, her body double, the woman who sabotaged her. But was Cassidy truly the intended victim or was Tempest meant to die? Tempest starts to see and hear things that aren't there. It must be an illusion. Or could it be the Raj curse? "The eldest child dies by magic." Tempest is determined to uncover the truth.

I'm absolutely enchanted with Tempest's family home. What an incredible place I'd love to visit and explore. The idea behind it was also great and I would love to hire her father's construction crew to create some magic in my own home. I want a secret room! I also love the family bonds that are shown here, and truly the love, especially between Tempest and her grandfather, makes the book extra special. I certainly wouldn't say no to some meals cooked by Ash! I love Abracadabra and, of course, as a huge fan of the Jaya Jones mystery series I was thrilled to see Sanjay, the Hindi Houdini.

UNDER LOCK & SKELETON KEY has all the elements of a fantastic read. I should have loved it, instead I only liked it. I'm still not completely sure why, but I think it boils down to the following. The story line is not always linear as important backstory is slowly revealed. That aspect, as well as a large cast of characters and an incredibly complex mystery made it difficult to get truly absorbed into the story. There was just too much going on. That being said, I really did like it. Now that the groundwork is laid, future books are sure to be less cumbersome.

A wildly successful magician, who suddenly isn't, a construction company that specializes in hidden rooms, and luscious descriptions of mouthwatering food serve to make UNDER LOCK & SKELETON KEY a truly unique mystery.