#MidweekMystery Mumbo Gumbo Murder by Laura Childs with Terrie Farley Moran and When It’s Time for Leaving by Ang Pompano

DaPuglet

Mumbo Gumbo Murder

A shocking murder strikes a sour note during Jazz Fest in the latest New Orleans Scrapbooking Mystery from New York Times bestselling author Laura Childs.

It’s Jazz Fest in New Orleans, and the giant puppets from the Beastmaster Puppet Theatre are parading through the French Quarter. Some are very spooky and veiled, others are tall and gangly, like strange aliens.

As the parade proceeds, Carmela Bertrand and her best friend, Ava, follow behind, down Royal Street and past the food booths. Suddenly, they hear a terrible crash from Devon Dowling’s antiques shop. They rush inside to find Devon collapsed with blood streaming down the side of his face. Has he been shot? Stabbed? 911 is hastily called, and the police and EMTs show up. After the police examine Devon’s body, they tell Carmela and Ava that their friend was murdered with an icepick. They’re shocked beyond belief—and now Mimi, Devon’s little pug, is left homeless.

Carmela and Ava are determined to catch the murderer, but the list of suspects is long. How long do they have before they find themselves on the killer’s list?

Scrapbooking tips and recipes included! 


About the Authors

Gerry Schmitt, who writes under the pen name Laura Childs is now adding two more series that are harder-edged Wednesday February 26, 2014 in Plymouth. (Pioneer Press: Jean Pieri)

Laura Childs is the New York Times bestselling author of the Tea Shop MysteriesScrapbook Mysteries, and Cackleberry Club Mysteries. In her previous life she was CEO/Creative Director of her own marketing firm and authored several screenplays. She is married to a professor of Chinese art history, loves to travel, rides horses, enjoys fundraising for various non-profits, and has two Chinese Shar-Pei dogs.

Laura specializes in cozy mysteries that have the pace of a thriller (a thrillzy!)

The Tea Shop Mysteries – set in the historic district of Charleston and featuring Theodosia Browning, owner of the Indigo Tea Shop. Theodosia is a savvy entrepreneur, and pet mom to service dog Earl Grey. She’s also an intelligent, focused amateur sleuth who doesn’t rely on coincidences or inept police work to solve crimes. This charming series is highly atmospheric and rife with the history and mystery that is Charleston.

The Scrapbooking Mysteries – a slightly edgier series that take place in New Orleans. The main character, Carmela, owns Memory Mine scrapbooking shop in the French Quarter and is forever getting into trouble with her friend, Ava, who owns the Juju Voodoo shop. New Orleans’ spooky above-ground cemeteries, jazz clubs, bayous, and Mardi Gras madness make their presence known here!

The Cackleberry Club Mysteries – set in Kindred, a fictional town in the Midwest. In a rehabbed Spur station, Suzanne, Toni, and Petra, three semi-desperate, forty-plus women have launched the Cackleberry Club. Eggs are the morning specialty here and this cozy cafe even offers a book nook and yarn shop. Business is good but murder could lead to the cafe’s undoing! This series offers recipes, knitting, cake decorating, and a dash of spirituality.

Webpage – http://www.laurachilds.com/
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/laura.childs.31


terrie-farley-moran


Short-listed twice for The Best American Mystery Stories, Terrie Farley Moran is delighted to introduce mystery fans to the Read ’Em and Eat café and bookstore, which debuted with Well Read, Then Dead. followed by Caught Read-Handed and Read to Death released in July of this year.  The only thing Terrie enjoys more than wrangling mystery plots into submission is playing games and reading stories with any or all of her grandchildren.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/terrie.moran.9
Blog:  www.womenofmystery.net
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/23186092-terrie-moran

      Amazon    B&N    Google Books    IndieBound


When It’s Time for Leaving

When his girlfriend dumps him and a dealer nearly rams him off a bridge, Al DeSantis quits the New Haven Police Department. Just as he plans to head for LA, he finds out the father who left when he was a kid has deeded him the Blue Palmetto Detective Agency in Georgia.

Al goes down to Savannah intending to sell fast and go west, but before he can, he discovers a strong, attractive detective named Maxine, a dead body on the dock—and his father, alive, suffering from dementia, and determined to help his “new partner Al” solve the crime. Al has a lot of adjusting to do when his traditional ideas are challenged as he has to act as his father’s caretaker, and finds that Maxine is his superior in the agency that he “owns.” When his father goes missing, Al and Max must team up to save his father–and capture the murderer.


About the Author

Ang Pompano has been writing mystery for more than twenty years. His mystery novel, WHEN IT’S TIME FOR LEAVING will be published in October 2019 by Encircle Publications. His short stories have been published in many award-winning anthologies. His most recent, “Diet of Death” appears in the 2019 Malice Domestic Anthology, Parnell Hall Presents Malice Domestic: Murder Most Edible. In addition, he has written many academic pieces including one on teaching detective fiction. A member of Mystery Writers of America, he is a past recipient of the Helen McCloy/Mystery Writers of America Scholarship for a novel in progress. He has been on the New England Crime Bake Planning Committee for fourteen years and is a long-time board member of Sisters in Crime New England. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, Annette, an artist, and his two rescue dogs, Quincy and Dexter.

Website http://angpompano.com
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/A.J.Pompano/
Twitter – https://twitter.com/AngPompano
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/angpompano/

Amazon Print |  Amazon Kindle | Barnes and Noble | Encircle Publications

Featured Image courtesy of DaPuglet

Glitter Bomb (A Scrapbooking Mystery) by Laura Childs with Terrie Farley Moran

An exploding Mardi Gras float has got to be the strangest murder weapon scrappy sleuth Carmela Bertrand has ever encountered in this latest Scrapbooking Mystery from the New York Times bestselling author.

It’s Mardi Gras in New Orleans and scrapbook shop owner Carmela Bertrand is excited to be attending the Pluvius Parade along with her best friend Ava. Carmela’s ex-husband Shamus rides by the duo on his float at the head of the parade, when suddenly the revelry turns to disaster. Shamus’ float crashes and explodes, and although Shamus escapes unhurt, a member of his krewe is killed.

Carmela and Ava plunge into an investigation of the krewe-member’s death, but as they dig deeper it starts to look less like an accident and more like a murder….and Shamus seems less like a victim, and more like a suspect.
Scrapbooking tips and recipes included! 


Interview with Laura Childs, New York Times bestselling author

Laura, welcome back to Island Confidential! Can you tell us a little about the protagonist of Glitter Bomb? 
Carmela Bertrand is smart, entrepreneurial, and owns a small scrapbook shop in the French Quarter. She’s loyal to a fault and quick to help a friend in trouble. Of course, this puts Carmela in incredibly dangerous situations. For example, in Glitter Bomb Carmela’s ex-husband begs her to help clear him as a suspect when a Mardi Gras float explodes and kills a hedge fund bigwig. With multiple (and dangerous) suspects, Carmela has to muster up her amateur sleuthing skills and run her own shadow investigation.
How would you feel about Carmela if you met her in real life?
I’d love to hang out with Carmela – especially at Mardi Gras. I mean, what’s better than a week of parades, parties, beignets, and beads! And the food in New Orleans is to die for. We’re talking beignets, po-boys, crawfish etouffee, gumbo, pralines, and crazy drinks like hurricanes and frozen daiquiris. Let the good times roll and thank you, Carmela, for all those recipes you included in the book!
Do your characters change and evolve throughout consecutive books in the series?
Let’s just say they progress. They get a little bit funnier, smarter, saltier, and outrageous as the books go on. Glitter Bomb is the 15th book in my New Orleans Scrapbook Mystery series, so the main characters, Carmela and Ava, are pretty much over the top by now. And, yes, it’s called a Scrapbook Mystery, but the scrapbook shop just serves as home base for a rip-roaring mystery that includes haunted cemeteries, a fashion show, sports car rally, party at the zoo, and hungry alligators.
Have you ever thought of killing someone that you know in real life – on the pages of a murder mystery, I mean?
Not exactly, but people who have been unkind to me in the past often find their names used for disreputable and annoying characters in my books.
Excellent idea! So how realistic is your setting? Do you take liberties, or are you true to life?
My New Orleans setting is extremely realistic. I try very hard to capture the raucousness of the French Quarter, spookiness of the above ground cemeteries, and primordial beauty of the bayous. Also, through friends who live in New Orleans, I’ve had the great fortune to visit the dens where the Mardi Gras floats are constructed, attend the Rex ball, and even march in a Mardi Gras parade.
As someone whose day job is teaching, I’m well aware of the pitfalls and horrors of group assignments. Yet you and your coauthor, Terrie Farley Moran, seem to have a very productive partnership. Can you tell us a little about her?
Terrie is a consummate pro. She’s smart, witty, and immensely talented. Sometimes we work on a chapter together, sometimes we work independently and alternate chapters. Whatever the method, our words and ideas always mesh!
What’s the worst and best advice you’ve heard or received as an author?
Worst advice would be to “write what you know.” If authors seriously did that there’d be no Harry Potter, Middle Earth, Star Trek, or Hunger Games. The best advice I’ve heard is to write every day – and work straight through. Don’t go back and revise a single chapter until your manuscript is completely finished. Chances are, when it’s done, you’ll be pleasantly surprised. Okay, THEN you go back and punch up your work like crazy – really ratchet up the action and human drama, make your characters even more lovable or despicable.


About the Authors

Gerry Schmitt, who writes under the pen name Laura Childs is now adding two more series that are harder-edged Wednesday February 26, 2014 in Plymouth. (Pioneer Press: Jean Pieri)
Laura Childs is the New York Times bestselling author of the Tea Shop Mysteries, Scrapbook Mysteries, and Cackleberry Club Mysteries. In her previous life she was CEO/Creative Director of her own marketing firm and authored several screenplays. She is married to a professor of Chinese art history, loves to travel, rides horses, enjoys fund raising for various non-profits, and has two Chinese Shar-Pei dogs.
Laura specializes in cozy mysteries that have the pace of a thriller (a thrillzy!) Her three series are:
The Tea Shop Mysteries – set in the historic district of Charleston and featuring Theodosia Browning, owner of the Indigo Tea Shop. Theodosia is a savvy entrepreneur, and pet mom to service dog Earl Grey. She’s also an intelligent, focused amateur sleuth who doesn’t rely on coincidences or inept police work to solve crimes. This charming series is highly atmospheric and rife with the history and mystery that is Charleston.
The Scrapbooking Mysteries – a slightly edgier series that take place in New Orleans. The main character, Carmela, owns Memory Mine scrapbooking shop in the French Quarter and is forever getting into trouble with her friend, Ava, who owns the Juju Voodoo shop. New Orleans’ spooky above-ground cemeteries, jazz clubs, bayous, and Mardi Gras madness make their presence known here!
The Cackleberry Club Mysteries – set in Kindred, a fictional town in the Midwest. In a rehabbed Spur station, Suzanne, Toni, and Petra, three semi-desperate, forty-plus women have launched the Cackleberry Club. Eggs are the morning specialty here and this cozy cafe even offers a book nook and yarn shop. Business is good but murder could lead to the cafe’s undoing! This series offers recipes, knitting, cake decorating, and a dash of spirituality.

Laura’s Links:

Webpage – http://www.laurachilds.com/
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/laura.childs.31



terrie-farley-moran
Short-listed twice for The Best American Mystery Stories, Terrie Farley Moran is delighted to introduce mystery fans to the Read ’Em and Eat café and bookstore, which debuted with Well Read, Then Dead. followed by Caught Read-Handed and Read to Death released in July of this year.  The only thing Terrie enjoys more than wrangling mystery plots into submission is playing games and reading stories with any or all of her grandchildren.

Terrie’s Links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/terrie.moran.9
Blog:  www.womenofmystery.net
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/23186092-terrie-moran

Purchase Links:

      Amazon    B&N    Goggle Books    IndieBound

#Giveaway: Crepe Factor by Laura Childs with Terrie Farley Moran

Author Laura Childs is a superb writer and is now joined in writing this series with another of my favorite authors, Terrie Farley Moran! They make a perfect fit for sure. Reading the books, you’d never know two writers were contributing. The quality storytelling in CREPE FACTOR is of a standard that many authors can only hope to achieve.
~Lisa Ks Book Reviews
CREPE FACTOR is not only a fun, madcap romp through New Orleans and the bayou with memorable characters, the book provides inspiration and tips for scrapbooking along with several delicious recipes.
~Cinnamon, Sugar and a Little Bit of MurderThis is a lively read. Carmela and Ava are fun characters, and I loved their scenes together. The dialogue is sharp and quick, and really moves the story along.
~View from the BirdhouseLaura was my first cozy mystery author I read and it was this series I started with. She is who got me hooked on cozy mysteries and why I keep coming back to them.
~A. Holland ReadsCrepe Factor is quirky, fun, and entertaining. It is well written by seasoned authors, and their dual contribution flows seamlessly.
~The Power of Words
The descriptions of this New Orleans community makes the reader feel like they are right there…I did enjoy the book, well written with a touch of humor.
~CelticLady Reviews
I found this book a delight!…The mystery was lots of fun.
~I Wish I Lived In a Library
I have followed this series from the start and when you put both of these authors together , their writing styles go so well together that you get an outstanding read.
~Shelley’s Book Case
This book really pulled you in wanting you to figure out who killed him and why. I loved going on the adventure with them.
~Community Bookstop
This was an entertaining and fun read. It had the right amount of humor in it that made me chuckle at times.
~Melina’s Book Blog
I love the setting of New Orleans. One of America’s most fascinating places. I love the friendship between Ava and Carmela. And I love the scrapbooking store setting.
~MysteriesEtc
I enjoyed main characters, Carmella and Ava. They were fun, quirky, and full of adventure. I appreciated that I could come into book fourteen as a new reader and not feel left behind in the series.
~Grace, Gratitude, Life

The Winter Market in the French Quarter is in full swing, but murder isn’t taking a holiday in the latest from the New York Times bestselling author of Parchment and Old Lace…
 
The holidays are a busy time for scrapbook shop owner Carmela Bertrand—but not so hectic that she doesn’t have time to enjoy browsing the booths at the Winter Market with her best friend Ava. The last thing the ladies expect to see is a lurching man stabbed by a serving fork, dying in front of them.
The victim is loathed restaurant critic Martin Lash, who posted his scathing reviews on the Glutton for Punishment website. And the prime suspect is New Orleans restauranteur Quigg Brevard—who was seen giving the critic a tongue-lashing minutes before someone stuck a fork in him. An old flame of Carmela, Quigg asks for her help, which does not please her current beau, Detective Edgar Babcock, to say the least.
Before her relationship is the next victim, Carmela needs to find a murderer who had no reservations about punishing the culinary curmudgeon…
Scrapbooking tips and recipes included! 


Gerry Schmitt, who writes under the pen name Laura Childs is now adding two more series that are harder-edged Wednesday February 26, 2014 in Plymouth. (Pioneer Press: Jean Pieri)
 
Laura Childs is the New York Times bestselling author of the Tea Shop Mysteries, Scrapbook Mysteries, and Cackleberry Club Mysteries. In her previous life she was CEO/Creative Director of her own marketing firm and authored several screenplays. She is married to a professor of Chinese art history, loves to travel, rides horses, enjoys fund raising for various non-profits, and has two Chinese Shar-Pei dogs.
Laura specializes in cozy mysteries that have the pace of a thriller (a thrillzy!) Her three series are:
The Tea Shop Mysteries – set in the historic district of Charleston and featuring Theodosia Browning, owner of the Indigo Tea Shop. Theodosia is a savvy entrepreneur, and pet mom to service dog Earl Grey. She’s also an intelligent, focused amateur sleuth who doesn’t rely on coincidences or inept police work to solve crimes. This charming series is highly atmospheric and rife with the history and mystery that is Charleston.
The Scrapbooking Mysteries – a slightly edgier series that take place in New Orleans. The main character, Carmela, owns Memory Mine scrapbooking shop in the French Quarter and is forever getting into trouble with her friend, Ava, who owns the Juju Voodoo shop. New Orleans’ spooky above-ground cemeteries, jazz clubs, bayous, and Mardi Gras madness make their presence known here!
The Cackleberry Club Mysteries – set in Kindred, a fictional town in the Midwest. In a rehabbed Spur station, Suzanne, Toni, and Petra, three semi-desperate, forty-plus women have launched the Cackleberry Club. Eggs are the morning specialty here and this cozy cafe even offers a book nook and yarn shop. Business is good but murder could lead to the cafe’s undoing! This series offers recipes, knitting, cake decorating, and a dash of spirituality.

Laura’s Links:

Webpage – http://www.laurachilds.com/
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/laura.childs.31


terrie-farley-moran
Short-listed twice for The Best American Mystery Stories, Terrie Farley Moran is delighted to introduce mystery fans to the Read ’Em and Eat café and bookstore, which debuted with Well Read, Then Dead. followed by Caught Read-Handed and Read to Death released in July of this year.  The only thing Terrie enjoys more than wrangling mystery plots into submission is playing games and reading stories with any or all of her grandchildren.

Terrie’s Links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/terrie.moran.9
Blog:  www.womenofmystery.net
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/23186092-terrie-moran

Purchase Links:

      Amazon    B&N    Goggle Books    IndieBound


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#Giveaway and Interview: Christina Freeburn, Framed to Death

>>>ENTER TO WIN a copy of Framed to Death. Two print books and two e-books up for grabs!<<<
Eden has turned into a hotspot of crime, and Faith finds herself smack dab in the middle of the flare-up. When a favor for a friend links Faith to the synthetic marijuana problem invading her town, no good deed goes unpunished becomes the theme of her life. The town accuses the police of favoritism toward her, putting a strain between Faith and Ted, and a new officer is determined to prove Faith’s guilt.
 

Framed to Death
by Christina Freeburn

Framed to Death Cover - Copy
When the criminal is outed, Faith’s relief is short-lived. A fire takes out the store—along with the suspected dealer—and she’s now number one on an officer’s suspect list. Faith sets out to prove her own innocence, and her digging sparks the truth to life. Instead of the truth setting the town free, Faith finds out it might destroy Eden and the friends she holds dear.


 
Q: Christina, thanks for joining us today at Island Confidential. Tell our readers a little bit about your protagonist, Faith Hunter.
A:  Faith Hunter moved back to her home town of Eden, West Virginia to work in her grandmothers’ scrapbooking store when her life of adventure abroad left her bruised, broken, and almost spending the rest of her life in prison. One person stood by Faith and made she wasn’t wrongly convicted of a crime, and Faith finds herself wanting to show her gratitude by helping those who find themselves in a similar circumstance.
Q: How much of you is in the Faith?  How would you feel about her if you met her in real life?
A:  I think there is a little bit of me in Faith, though I know a friend of mine would say there’s much more of me in her than I realized. Faith’s guilty conscience is definitely a characteristic she shares with me. I’m sure Faith and I would get along pretty well and we’d have an awesome time scrapbooking together.
Q: Do your characters change and evolve throughout consecutive books in the series?
A:  Yes. At the start of the Scrap This Mystery Series, Faith is so terrified of people learning her secret that she keeps everyone at arm’s length. Her fear controls her life and decisions. Faith has grown over the last three books and in Framed to Death, I see her becoming more of her own person and living her life based on what she truly wants. In a way, she’s now defining herself on what she’s done rather than on what was done to her.
Q: Have you ever thought of killing someone that you know in real life–on the pages of a murder mystery, I mean? 
A:  No, that’s my story and I must stick with it.
Q: How realistic is your setting? Do you take liberties, or are you true to life?
A:  I base parts of the fictional Eden, West Virginia using some of the details about the town that I live in, borrowing some of the unique and quirky buildings and situations…like one of the fire station buildings being built near the bowling area.
Q: Do you see your books as a movie, a TV series, a video game, or..?
A:  I can see the Scrap This Series as a TV series rather than a movie. I’m having some trouble narrowing down choices on who’d play the major parts.
Q: What’s the worst and best advice you’ve heard or received as an author?
A:  The worst piece of advice was the often heard and quoted, “Write what you know.” When I decided to work toward having a book published, I was a mother of two young children and at home. At the time, I truly felt like I didn’t “know” anything of interest to other people. How would a book based on what I knew be interesting? And some of the issues I conquered in my life weren’t topics I wanted to write about…or at least not as my full story. I wasn’t quite ready to open myself up that much.
The best piece of advice I received from an author was when I was starting to query agents about my book. He said I needed to stop thinking the agents were turning down my book. They hadn’t read my book, they were saying no to the query so stop going back to edit the story and instead fix the query. Once I acted on his advice and rewrote my query, I started getting positive responses from agents.
 


christina - Copy (1)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Christina has loved books since she can remember. There was nothing better than picking up a story and finding herself in another place and meeting new people. The love of reading evolved into the love of writing and she’s been writing since her teenage years. Her first novel, Parental Source, was a 2003 Library of Virginia Literary award nominee. Whether it’s a detective story or an inspirational romantic suspense, her stories usually involve some sort of crime where the characters are determined to see those wrongs righted.

 
Author Links
Webpage: www.christinafreeburn.com
Blog: www.theselfrescueprincess.wordpress.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Christina-Freeburn-Author/245592138834150
Twitterhttps://twitter.com/ChristinaFreeb1
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/ChristinaFreeburn
 
Purchase Links
Amazon     B&N 


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