Tag: Mystery Novels

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"Okay, who needs to die?"

What genre do you write? 
I write mysteries that don’t have explicit sex or violence, so technically they’re in the “cozy mystery” category, although that might be a little misleading. I think that because of the success of series like “The Cat Who…” and the Hannah Swensen mysteries, sometimes people expect cozies to have cats and recipes. My main characters tend to be indifferent housekeepers and terrible cooks who can barely care for a pet. In Sinful Science, the main character, Fortune Redding, sort of inherits a cat, so I suppose that fulfills the cat requirement.
How did you come to write cozies?
As Toni Morrison advised, I write what I’d like to read—PG-rated mysteries with humor, especially in an academic setting. I enjoy Dorothy Sayers, Amanda Cross, Sarah Caudwell, and Joanne Dobson, for example. And speaking of writing what you like to read, I was already a fan of Jana DeLeon’s Miss Fortune series when I discovered that Amazon’s Kindle Worlds was offering the opportunity to write in the Miss Fortune universe. I jumped right in and wrote Sinful Science, and had a lot of fun with it! [2018 update: Kindle Worlds is no more, but the Miss Fortune novellas live on under Jana DeLeon’s own publishing imprint!]
Who is your favorite character to write about?
In the Miss Fortune universe, I love Gertie and Ida Belle, two retired ladies who are not quite what they seem. Their bickering is a lot of fun.
Who inspires your books? 
For my murder mysteries, what usually happens is that I get home, sit down at my computer, open up my word processor, and ask myself, “Okay, who needs to die?” 
What do you do when you’re not writing?
I teach at a public university, read murder mysteries, and hang out with my family.
 
If you were stuck on a deserted island what three things would you take?
Assuming there was an electrical outlet, I’d say 1) My Keurig machine, 2) A supply of coffee, and 3) cream for the coffee.
Originally published at Community Bookstop
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Interview: Five Questions (that Turned into Ten)

Interview by liannathaniel first published on I Read What You Write
1. What does it mean to you to be called an author?

Frankie- People have different ideas about what it means to be a writer versus an author, and which is better. K.M. Weiland’s site is called “Helping Writers Become Authors,” which implies that author is the preferred state of being. Dean Wesley Smith, on the other hand, defines a “writer” as being active and forward-looking, already working on the next book while the “author” rests on his or her laurels. Rather than step into the middle of that debate, I’m just happy that I have the opportunity to write entertaining stories, and share them with other people.
Lian- That is why I love this question. It means something different to everyone.
2. What is the first book that you remember reading?
Richard Scarry’s Best Word Book Ever. I don’t think it had much to do with inspiring my literary career, but I liked the pictures.
I loved Richard Scarry when I was little!
3. If you could have lunch with 3 authors (past and present) who would they be and what do you think you would all talk about during lunch?
C.S. Lewis, E.F .Benson, and Sarah Caudwell. I wouldn’t say a word; I would just listen to the conversation. Oh, and it would have to be at a nonsmoking restaurant. Otherwise Sarah Caudwell might just puff away on her pipe and not say anything.
That is a super fun image.
4. If you could be friends with a character in one of your stories who would it be and what kinds of things would you do together?
Pat Flanagan, the pessimistic newsblogger/English Instructor in the Molly Barda mysteries, is modeled after a very good friend of mine who passed away two years ago. We used to search out little hole-in-the-wall diners. Years ago we found the most amazing apple pie at a place called Champion’s in Escondido. They’re still there, and they still don’t take credit cards.
I sorry to hear about your friend. it is terrific that he can live for you as one of your characters. 
5. Who do your stories appeal to?
People who enjoy the Molly Barda Mysteries are diverse age- and gender-wise, but what they all seem to have in common is experience working in extremely bureaucratic organizations. They also have excellent taste.
–Well, we can’t fault them on their taste. 😉
6. What is your all time favorite book or author?
There isn’t just one, of course, but I’ll say Sarah Caudwell, because she’s much less famous than she deserves to be, and every time I read something by her I fairly collapse with envy. Her writing is hilarious and perfect.
7. Which of your current works in progress are you most passionate about?

I’m excited about writing in the Miss Fortune world. Working within the constraints of another author’s characters and setting is a real challenge, but as they say, creativity thrives under constraints.
-That sounds like it would be challenging.
8. What or who inspired you to begin writing?
I write what I like to read, so I guess you could say I’m my own inspiration.
-I have heard that all good writers start out as happy readers.
9. How do you avoid or defeat writers block?
There are definitely days when I don’t want to face my work in progress. What works for me is to have a system and just keep at it, step by step. First, outline the plot. Then, turn the outline into a series of beats. After that, expand the third-person present tense summary into the first-person past tense story, and don’t worry about getting everything perfect. Once I get to that point I have a completed first draft, and it’s a lot easier to go back and edit.
-Having a system is a great way to keep on going.
10. How do you define success as an author?
If my writing can make someone burst out laughing as they read, that for me is success.
-Success! My mom laughed her head off while reading Sinful Science!!
 

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Where everyone has a green thumb

I really did have a lot to learn about gardening. I was not one of those persons gifted with a green thumb. In fact, I seemed to have the opposite of a green thumb, whatever that would be. A red thumb? That didn’t sound right, although green and red opposed each other on the color wheel. A brown thumb? A black thumb? Was that racist? Maybe a skeleton thumb, like the Grim Reaper.
—The Black Thumb, a Professor Molly Mystery
I have the proverbial black thumb. I am the worst gardener in the world. I’m not simply incapable of coaxing a living thing out of the ground; I’ve had actual cactus perish in my care.
I am death, destroyer of flora.
Or so I thought, before I moved from Southern California to the rainy side of one of the Hawaiian Islands.
It turns out that I am not the plant kingdom’s answer to the Grim Reaper. In fact, now that I’m here, I’m surrounded by thriving, vigorous verdure. How do I do it?
Simple: sun plus rain. Hawaii generally has the highest ultraviolet index in the United States (13.2 today, on a scale I’d always assumed only went up to 10). And the eastern, or windward, sides of the Hawaiian islands get soaked, with up to 10,271 mm or over 400 inches of rainfall per year. Notoriously damp Seattle, by comparison, gets barely 50 inches.
 

Mean Annual Rainfall Hawaii
Source: University of Hawaii

I live in one of the soggy blue spots on the map. Here the default landscape is jungle. Gardening mostly involves beating back nature with gallons of herbicide and powerful weed torches (basically flamethrowers for your garden).
A brief visual comparison:

This is a vacant lot in California.
This is a vacant lot in California.

This is a vacant lot in Hawaii.
This is a vacant lot in Hawaii.

So now you know my gardening secret: Year round sunshine + buckets of rain + neglect gets you a lush, green landscape every time.
Just don’t forget the mosquito repellent.
First published for The Black Thumb release at Brooke Blogs 

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Guest Post and Giveaway: Connie di Marco, author of Tail of the Dragon, a Zodiac Mystery

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San Francisco astrologer Julia Bonatti never thought murder would be part of her practice, but when her former boss and current client asks for help she agrees to go undercover at his law firm.
Three people have received death threats and the only common denominator between them is a case long settled–the infamous Bank of San Francisco fire. Julia’s astrological expertise provides clues but no one wants to listen. Before she can solve the mystery, two people are dead and her own life is in danger. Julia must unmask the killer before he, or she, takes another life.

Guest Post by Connie di Marco

The real Mystic Eye

If you’re a fan of the Zodiac Mysteries, then you’ve definitely visited the Mystic Eye. You know a lot about it and have met many of the eccentric characters who hang out there. The occult shop is owned by my protagonist, Julia Bonatti’s, good friend Gale. And even though I didn’t plan to set so many scenes there when the series began, it just sort of happened. It was a great place for the characters to come together, especially at the psychic fairs.
There’s Nikolai, the Russian past life regression hypnotist, a larger than life man with a mysterious background. There’s Zora, the medium and psychic who scares Julia half to death sometimes, lots of other psychics, Wiccans, Tarot readers and all sorts of characters.
So where did my Mystic Eye come from? A long time ago, there was a real Mystic Eye, also on Broadway in San Francisco, but a little farther east, past the strip clubs and bars and comedy clubs of North Beach.
I remember it well. It was a strange, dark little place, draped in black hangings. It sold books and ointments and image candles for candle burning rituals, books on cultural and religious practices, some of it rather dark.

Not particularly my cup of tea, but I was curious since there was no shop like it in the city at the time. It’s long gone now, so I felt safe using that name for the Zodiac Mysteries.

Julia’s Mystic Eye of the Zodiac books also has an exotic and mysterious atmosphere – plaster gargoyles, Tarot cards, crystals, books on psychic power and healing and religions of all sorts, candle burning supplies, dreamcatchers, magical herbs and ointments, greeting cards and lots of things that make great gifts. Here are some photos that in spired me when I was writing the Zodiac Mysteries. See whether these photos look like your mental image of the Eye. I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Is there anything happening at The Mystic Eye that you’d like to know more about? Is there any field of study in the occult world that I haven’t touched upon? Pyschometry? Remote viewing? Candle burning? How about crime or murder? Leave a comment and let me know.
I hope you’ll stop in at the Eye soon and read about Julia’s adventures in the third book in the Zodiac Mysteries — Tail of the Dragon. See you at the Eye!

About The Author

Connie di Marco is the author of the Zodiac Mysteries from Midnight Ink, featuring San Francisco astrologer, Julia Bonatti.  The first in the series, The Madness of Mercury, was released in June 2016 and the second, All Signs Point to Murder was released on August 8, 2017. Tail of the Dragon is the latest in the series.
Writing as Connie Archer, she is also the national bestselling author of the Soup Lover’s Mystery series from Berkley Prime Crime.  Some of her favorite recipes can be found in The Cozy Cookbook  and The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook.  Connie is a member of International Thriller Writers, Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime.

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New thriller and Giveaway from Kathleen Valenti: 39 Winks

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Former pharmaceutical researcher Maggie O’Malley is losing sleep. Her boyfriend Constantine’s aunt is a multitasking sleepwalker who, in addition to wandering her stately home, prepares meals, folds laundry and, one winter night, stumbles across her husband with his throat slit.

It’s a rude and gruesome awakening that’s upsetting to Aunt Polly. And interesting to the police.
Maggie and Constantine work to uncover who killed the cosmetic surgery mogul and why. As they dig into the lives of those who knew him best, they discover that the truth is only skin deep and doctoring perception is a treatment with deadly side effects.
A gripping page-turner with more twists than a surgeon’s suture, 39 Winks is a tale of lies, betrayals and greed that will keep you up at night. And looking over your shoulder.

About the Author

When Kathleen Valenti isn’t writing page-turning mysteries that combine humor and suspense, she works as a nationally award-winning advertising copywriter. Protocol is her debut novel and the first of the Maggie O’Malley mystery series. Kathleen lives in Oregon with her family where she pretends to enjoy running.
Author Links
Webpage – www.kathleenvalenti.com
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/authorkathleenvalenti/
Twitter – https://twitter.com/KathyValenti1
GoodReads – https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16773270.Kathleen_Valenti
 

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The Marmalade Murders: A Penny Brannigan Mystery by Elizabeth J. Duncan

The latest book in an award-winning mystery series, celebrated for its small-town charm and picturesque Welsh setting and starring amateur sleuth Penny Brannigan.
The competition is friendly and just a little fierce at the annual Llanelen agricultural show as town and country folk gather for the outdoor judging of farm animals and indoor judging of cakes, pies, pastries, chutneys, jams and jellies, along with vegetables, fruit and flowers. But this year, there’s a new show category: murder.

Local artist, Spa owner, and amateur sleuth Penny Brannigan agrees to help with the intake of the domestic arts entries and to judge the children’s pet competition on show day. When the president of the Welsh Women’s Guild isn’t on hand to see her granddaughter and pet pug win a prize, the family becomes concerned. When a carrot cake entered in the competition goes missing, something is clearly amiss.
A black Labrador Retriever belonging to the agricultural show’s president discovers the body of the missing woman under the baked goods table. A newcomer to town, a transgender woman, is suspected, but amateur sleuth Penny Brannigan believes her to be innocent. She sets out to find the real killer, but when a second body is discovered days later, the case is thrown into confusion, and Penny knows it’s up to her to figure out what happened—and why.

Character Guest Post: Why Wales?

by amateur sleuth, artist, business woman and main character, Penny Brannigan
Elizabeth J. Duncan found me here in North Wales by accident. She was her way to lunch with friends when the driver took a wrong turn and they all ended up in the market town of Llanrwst, where I’d been living for about 25 years. I didn’t meet Elizabeth that day, but I was here.
I found my way to this town by accident, too. As a young Canadian backpacker, I was making my way around Europe, the way you do when you’ve just finished uni and have no job lined up and no prospects of one. But more than that, my degree is in art history and I longed to see the great European masterpieces. So I was on my way through Wales to Holyhead to catch the ferry to Dublin, when I heard about the picturesque stone three-arched bridge in Llanrwst, and as an amateur watercolour artist, I wanted to paint it. As I was sketching, a lovely woman stopped to talk to me and before I knew it, we were chatting away in the tea room beside the bridge over cups of Earl Grey and warm scones with jam and clotted cream.
 

The woman offered to put me up for the night and on my tight budget, I leapt at the chance! Her name was Emma Teasdale, she was a retired school teacher, and probably the kindest person I’ve ever met. Well, that day turned into a week, and a week turned into a month, and I never left Llanrwst. To earn a bit of money I started doing manicures for the ladies in the nursing home, and pretty soon I was running my own little nail bar. Oh, don’t worry. I was legally entitled to work because I was in the UK on a patrial rights visa that some citizens of Commonwealth countries are entitled to, or at least they were back then.
I’m estranged from my family back in Canada. I had a rough childhood, and I was never close to them, so staying on to build a life for myself in the UK made sense at the time, although I never thought too much about it. I just drifted into it, really, and one day I realized I’d never return to Canada. Wales had become my home.
So when Elizabeth eventually found me, I was well established, with a close circle of friends, and although some might think of me as an underachiever, I think of myself as content. The way of life here suits me. The pace may be slower, but I’ve built deep connections with people, who really care about me, as I do them. They’re my family now.
A year or so after discovering the town, Elizabeth started writing the first book in the Penny Brannigan series set in North Wales, and a few months after that, she returned to Llanrwst. The other characters and I watched her walking through the town, as if she were looking for something. She didn’t see us, but we saw her. And now I know what she was looking for. She was looking for us. She might not have seen us, but we were here. In the shops, in the pub, in the tea room, in our homes.
Elizabeth spends the winter in North Wales with us now, and returns to Canada in the spring. But she knows I’ll always be here, right where she found me, waiting to welcome her back in November.


About The Author

Elizabeth J Duncan is the author of two mystery series – Shakespeare in the Catskills and the Penny Brannigan mystery series set in North Wales. She is a two-time winner of the Bloody Words Award for Canada’s best light mystery and lives in Toronto.

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New #Cozy with Character Interview and #Giveaway: Chicken Culprit by Vikki Walton

Win the book, a $25 gift card, and the chance to name a character!
Win the book, a $25 gift card, and the chance to name a character!

Finally healing after her heart-breaking divorce, Anne Freemont is ready to put the painful past behind her.Discovering an old Victorian for sale in the small mountain town of Carolan Springs may be just what she needs. The beauty of Colorado beckons, so Anne heads west to start her new life.
Yet, before Anne’s completely settled in, her neighbor is found dead in his compost pile. What’s worse is that Anne’s quirky young neighbor, Kandi Jenkins, could be the killer. When Kandi begs for her help, Anne feels she has no choice but to help the young woman.
However, she finds herself quickly at odds with the local sheriff. And while she uncovers more of the community’s secrets, she’s also exploring her awakening feelings for Sam Powers, the town’s deputy coroner.
Once Anne starts looking at who could be the real killer, the suspect list keeps getting longer and longer. It seems that Carolan Springs is a place of many secrets. But who would want to murder Ralph and who’s willing to kill again to keep their secret?

Interview with Anne’s next-door neighbor, Kandi

Kandi, can you share with our readers a bit about yourself?
Sure! Let’s see, I’ve lived in Carolan Springs pretty much all my life. I’m the oldest of all us kids. So, there’s me and then my twin younger brothers. They’re off backpacking the globe right now. After my dad passed, my mom moved us here to live with my grandpa. We called him Pops. Sadly, he died, like, a few years ago after falling off a ladder. I really miss him. I’m married to Jeff. Umm, no other family. My mom died from cancer. She left me and my brothers a bit of money, but, I don’t really want to talk about her or that part of my life, if it’s okay with you. What else? Oh, I have a new neighbor!
What do you think of your new neighbor, Anne Fremont?
She’s, like, really funny. Opps. She doesn’t like me saying like all the time. But I can’t, like, help it! But I’m getting better. She acts all tough sometimes but I think she’s really not like that at all. Sometimes I think she’s really sad about something. And she can get moody. Oh man, like, really moody. Faith says some of it is due to being a woman and getting older. Not sure I’m looking forward to that. But oh well, whatcha’ gonna do? Right? I do know that Anne has told me that I’m sweet, and smart and a good cook. I don’t think anyone has been as nice to me as Anne has. Even though she’s like, old enough to be my mom, I really like her.
You’re suspected of killing your neighbor, Ralph Rogers. What do you say to those accusations?
Well, it’s the silliest thing ever. I’d never do anything to Mr. Rogers or anyone else. It’s just silly. But I didn’t want him hurting Rusty.
Rusty?
Yes, that’s my Rhode Island Red. She’s the sweetest hen and is a great egg layer. They’re great chickens and I love, like, all my girls. I will stop anyone from hurting them.  Anyway, look at me. Do I look like a killer? On the other hand, they always say it’s, like, who you least expect. (giggle). So maybe I am.
Tell us a bit about where you live.
I live in the most beautiful town (Carolan Springs) in the most beautiful state (Colorado). Winter is so pretty with all the big fat snowflakes. There’s nothing better than, like, grabbing a hot cup of tea and sitting in front of the fire. I have a window right by a nice comfy chair and I love hanging out there. Spring is so nice because the days are warming up and you can go hiking and see all the pretty wildflowers. Summer we have a homesteading fair and it brings in tourists which is nice for our little town. We’ve a town of old-timers with big old houses and lots of entrepreneurs who work online so it helps the town’s economy. Faith–she’s the local herbalist—and I are thinking of making Ralph’s place into a bed and breakfast and teaching classes. So, stay tuned on that. Finally, fall is so nice with the dancing aspens and the colors changing. Crisp mornings are so nice for hikes. Fall is often filled with warm sunny days and cooler evenings so it’s a wonderful time of year. That’s Vikki’s, you know, the author’s favorite time of year. But don’t say I told ya.
You mentioned the author, what can you tell us about her?
Well, she lived a long time in Texas—around the San Antonio area. But just like me, she loves Colorado’s mountains. She also enjoys traveling so I wouldn’t be, like, surprised if she didn’t write something at some point about her travels to England, Europe or Mexico. She’s a house and pet sitter, so who knows, maybe it will be a mystery series around that. She’s also written some nonfiction books. One’s called Work Quilting and it’s a vocational guidance and lifestyle book. The other one is about women’s travel. Of course, she loves everything about being a suburban homesteader or what some call backyard farming. She’s a certified permaculture designer, has chickens and beehives and gardens.
Kandi, can you tell us what’s next for the series?
Well, in Chicken Culprit, it’s about chickens. The next book in the series is about tinctures and herbs. It also has the killer using a particular way to kill someone that I don’t know has been used before in a mystery. If all goes well, the author expects the next book to come out in the fall so get on her mailing list, so you can be the first to learn the title, get a sample chapter and see the cover reveal!

About The Author

Vikki Walton is a suburban homesteader aka the Havensteader. She has chickens, gardens, and bees and is a certified permaculture designer. She’s also the author of nonfiction books. She loves to travel, is a global house and pet sitter and when not out in the garden or hiking in beautiful Colorado, is plotting her next mystery.

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The Silver Gun (An Art Deco Mystery) by L.A. Chandlar

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New York City, 1936. In the midst of the Great Depression, the Big Apple is defiantly striving toward an era infused with art, architecture, and economic progress under the dynamic Mayor La Guardia. But those in City Hall know that tumultuous times can inspire both optimism and deadly danger . . .

It’s been six months since Lane Sanders was appointed Mayor Fiorello “Fio” La Guardia’s new personal aide, and the twenty-three-year-old is sprinting in her Mary Janes to match her boss’s pace. Despite dealing with vitriol from the Tammany Hall political machine and managing endless revitalization efforts, Fio hasn’t slowed down a bit during his years in office. And luckily for Lane, his unpredictable antics are a welcome distraction from the childhood memories that haunt her dreams—and the silver gun she’ll never forget.
When Lane gets attacked and threatened by an assailant tied to one of most notorious gangsters in the city, even the mayor can’t promise her safety. The corrupt city officials seem to be using Lane as a pawn against Fio for disgracing their party in the prior election. But why was the assailant wielding the exact same gun from her nightmares?
Balancing a clandestine love affair and a mounting list of suspects, Lane must figure out how the secrets of her past are connected to the city’s underground crime network—before someone pulls the trigger on the most explosive revenge plot in New York history . . .

Character Interview

Evelyn Thorne, welcome to Island Confidential. Aside from the fact that you’re Lane Sanders’ aunt, what else should our readers know about you? 
I am an artist at heart, and at a later age than I thought, I acquired a daughter in Lane when her parents were suddenly killed. I was a suffragist and I have friends all over the place. Readers should definitely keep a keen eye on my friends, they might have a pleasant surprise coming at some of my more colorful acquaintances. Something that no one knows, not even Lane nor any readers yet, is that I was married once. I think the dear author will bring that up at some point. She should – it’s an excellent story and accounts for my eccentric personality.
Which character in The Silver Gun do you get along with the best?
My closest friend is Mr. Kirkland. We’ve had a colorful past and he knows me best. I can’t help admire that he came in and adopted Lane just as much as I did. He’s gruff, but his heart is gold. And he bakes a mean scone. I am utterly useless at cooking.
Is there anyone of whom you’re not quite so fond?
I always have concerns where Lane’s friends –and enemies—are concerned. I have my eye on Uncle Louie, the most notorious gang boss in New York City, who has a curious penchant for actually helping Lane. But I also have concerns with Roxy and Lizzie, not to mention Lane’s boyfriends. I want to like Finn, but I’m not sure, he seems to have a lot behind those delightful eyes of his. And then Tucker… I just don’t know.
Just between you and me: What do you really think of your author?
I like her, especially for giving me the scene where Lane and I paint to music. It was quite enjoyable. My favorite thing about Laurie is that she snuck in little features about myself and a “good friend” that is really Amelia Peabody from Elizabeth Peters. I’m obviously more bohemian than dear Amelia, but we are very dear friends. I also like that Laurie has promised not to kill off any of us main characters. Or the dog. At least not for quite a long while. I worry about that sometimes, of course.
What’s next for you?
Well, in book two, The Gold Pawn (release date September 25th), we have quite an exciting journey back to Michigan where Lane has to face the ghosts of her past in the hopes that she’ll discover some clues about her mysterious parents and perhaps shed some light on a new mystery here in New York. Thanksgiving is coming up and oh I have some lovely friends coming over. You might recognize some of them! I am very worried, though, because Lane is really struggling and she isn’t letting me in as much as I’d like. But I know her. She will overcome and be better for it.

About The Author

 
L.A. Chandlar is the author of the Art Deco Mystery Series with Kensington Publishing featuring Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia and a fresh take on the innovation and liveliness of 1930s New York City. Her debut novel, The Silver Gun released August 29, 2017, and the sequel, The Gold Pawn, will release September 25th, 2018. Laurie has been living and writing in New York City for 16 years and has been speaking for a wide variety of audiences for over 20 years including a women’s group with the United Nations. Her talks range from NYC history, the psychology of creativity, and the history of holiday traditions. Laurie has also worked in PR for General Motors, writes and fund-raises for a global nonprofit is the mother of two boys, and has toured the nation managing a rock band.

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Three Strikes, You're Dead: A new Eddie Shoes Mystery (with character interview!)

Private investigator Eddie Shoes heads to a resort outside Leavenworth, Washington, for a mother-daughter getaway weekend. Eddie’s mother Chava wants to celebrate her new job at a casino by footing the bill for the two of them, and who is Eddie to say no?

On the first morning, Eddie goes on an easy solo hike, and a few hours later, stumbles upon a makeshift campsite and a gravely injured man. A forest fire breaks out and she struggles to save him before the flames overcome them both. Before succumbing to his injuries, the man hands her a valuable rosary. He tells her his daughter is missing and begs for her help. Is Eddie now working for a dead man?
Barely escaping the fire, Eddie wakes in the hospital to find both her parents have arrived on the scene. Will Eddie’s card-counting mother and mob-connected father help or hinder the investigation? The police search in vain for a body. How will Eddie find the missing girl with only Eddie’s memory of the man’s face and a photo of his daughter to go on?

Eddie, welcome back to Island Confidential! Last time we talked, you had a brand-new roommate–your mom. How’s that working out?
Well … here’s something I don’t usually admit to people, but since it’s just the two of us … My mother, Chava, is a big fan of American Idol and The Voice. I would never admit this to her, but I love watching them too. I let her think I only watch them to keep her company. But I love them. I love the challenges and hearing the contestants sing outside their comfort zones. I love the duets and the costumes and the judges’ comments.
Do you think you’ll ever be a contestant?
If I could choose one talent, one gift I wish I had, it would be to sing. I can’t carry the tune to Happy Birthday, so I have to live vicariously through the contestants on those shows. I like to pretend that’s me up there getting one of the judges to turn around.
So no problem, then, living with your mom? 
My mother and I have struggled for years, not that we didn’t love each other, but because we often rubbed each other the wrong way. But now that I’m an adult, she’s only sixteen years older than me, and she’s living with me, we’re doing a whole lot better.
Can you update us on your friend Iz? Last time we spoke, she was working in the Bellingham Police Department with your ex. How’s that working out?
Izabelle is an amazingly patient person. She puts up with my foibles. (Chava has been encouraging me to expand my vocabulary). She understands I’m not always good at talking about my feelings or letting people see me vulnerable. But she’s always there when I need to talk or just hang out. She’s been so good about listening to me complain about Chance. I’m so confused about our relationship, or if we even have a relationship, and she’s wonderful about letting me talk about it without trying to tell me what to do.
Where would you like things to go with you and Chance?
I want to be in a romantic relationship with him.
Fair enough. How does he feel about it?
He’s conflicted! Hopefully that will change soon … for the better.
How are you and your author, Elena, getting along these days?
She’s a bit of a worrier. You should see all the rewriting she does. Rewrite after rewrite after rewrite. It gets a little tedious to have to go through the same scene over and over and over again. And she’s never quite sure what she’s doing at the beginning of a new book, so I might get to the end and find out, we have to do the whole thing over again because she got something really important wrong … like who committed the murder! But I will say, I like her sense of humor a lot. And I know she loves me. So that’s a pretty great combination.
What’s next for you? 
I am currently involved in a brand new homicide investigation. I have no idea how it’s going to come out, that writer of mine is just winging it right now. I’ll let you know as soon as I can!

CREDIT MARK PERLSTEIN

About The Author

After twenty years in the theater, Elena Hartwell turned her dramatic skills to fiction. Her first novel, One Dead, Two to Go introduces Eddie Shoes, private eye. Called “the most fun detective since Richard Castle stumbled into the 12th precinct,” by author Peter Clines, I’DTale Magazine stated, “this quirky combination of a mother-daughter reunion turned crime-fighting duo will captivate readers.”
In addition to her work as a novelist, Elena teaches playwriting at Bellevue College and tours the country to lead writing workshops.
When she’s not writing or teaching, her favorite place to be is at the farm with her horses, Jasper and Radar, or at her home, on the middle fork of the Snoqualmie River in North Bend, Washington, with her husband, their dog, Polar, and their trio of cats, Jackson, Coal Train, and Luna, aka, “the other cat upstairs.” Elena holds a B.A. from the University of San Diego, a M.Ed. from the University of Washington, Tacoma, and a Ph.D. from the University of Georgia.

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