Elena Hartwell's Blog, page 60

Allison Brook Launches Checked Out for Murder

Allison Brook launches her latest Haunted Library Mystery. Click the link here to check out all the stops on her Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour.

I love libraries, and I can’t imagine anything more wonderful that setting a mystery in one. Especially one with its very own ghost and a cat named Smokey Joe!

Click here to enter the Rafflecopter Giveaway!

Checked Out for Murder: A Haunted Library Mystery [image error]

Cozy Mystery

4th in Series

Publisher: Crooked Lane Books (September 8, 2020)

Hardcover: 320 pages

ISBN-10: 164385447X

ISBN-13: 978-1643854472

Digital ASIN: B082738ZNV

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Carrie Singleton and Evelyn the ghost sleuth the slayings of a starlet and a star-crossed psychic in Agatha Award nominee Allison Brook’s fourth Haunted Library mystery.

Daphne Marriott strolls into Clover Ridge and informs librarian Carrie Singleton that she’s a psychic. But had she foreseen what fate awaited her, Daphne would have steered clear of the quaint Connecticut town. Evelyn, the library ghost, tells Carrie that there’s more to Daphne than she lets on.

Love your mysteries cozy? Don’t miss my interview with Cathy Ace, click the link here.

The mysterious woman grew up in Clover Ridge with her no-good dad, who apparently met his end at the hands of Daphne’s brother, Billy. Still, Daphne proves a welcome distraction when Carrie’s overbearing mother hits town. Mom’s much younger husband, Tom, is in a movie that’s lensing locally, and she’s there to keep an eye on him: Tom’s costar, sultry Ilana Reingold, is also his ex-fiancée, and there’s no denying the chemistry is still there. Soon after mingling with the moviemakers at a meet-and-greet, Daphne is found dead.

Carrie and Evelyn investigate, assisted by bushy-tailed library cat Smoky Joe. But the suspect list could overflow the library shelves. Has Billy killed another relative? Is their long-missing mother involved? Or Daphne’s mean ex-husband? Carrie’s sure she knows who committed the crime, but can she bind together the clues before the culprit Dewey-decimates the town?

To buy the book, click on any of the following links:   Amazon – B&N – Kobo – IndieBound

Allison Brook aka Marilyn Levinson

A former Spanish teacher, Allison Brook writes mysteries, romantic suspense, and novels for kids. Her books have received many accolades.

As Allison Brook she writes the Haunted Library series.

Death Overdue, the first in the series, was an Agatha nominee for Best Contemporary Novel in 2018.

Other mysteries include the Golden Age of Mystery Book Club series and the Twin Lakes series.

To learn more about Marilyn, click on her name, photo or any of the following links: Amazon, Facebook, Goodreads, Twitter, Pinterest, BookBub (Allison Brook), BookBub (Marilyn Levinson), and Instagram

Elena Taylor is the author of All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio book format at all your favorite on-line retailers. And don’t forget many independent bookstores can order books for you and have them shipped to your home or for curbside pickup.

For more information on All We Buried, click on the link here to visit the home page.

The post Allison Brook Launches Checked Out for Murder appeared first on Elena Taylor.

August Norman Returns with a New Thriller

August Norman launches his second Caitlin Bergman novel, Sins of the Mother. Out on September 8 and available in e-book, audiobook, and hardback from all your favorite online and real world outlets.

Sins of the Mother by August Norman: The Book

Click the cover to read about it on Goodreads

August Norman returns with the second thrilling Caitlin Bergman novel, perfect for fans of Julia Keller, Tess Gerritsen, and Michael Koryta.

Caitlin went in search of her mother…but what she found may set the world on fire.

Caitlin Bergman’s mother is dead. That’s what the award-winning journalist has told everyone for the past forty years. Easier to lie than explain how Maya abandoned her only daughter before dropping off the map forever.

But when a rural sheriff invites Caitlin to the woods of coastal Oregon to identify her mother’s remains, Caitlin drops everything to face the woman she’s spent a lifetime hating. Unfortunately, the body–abandoned on the land of a reclusive cult, the Daughters of God–was left faceless. Instead, Caitlin finds the diary of a woman obsessed with the end of the world, one that hints the cult’s spiritual leader knows the identity of Caitlin’s real father. She’s not the only one looking for clues in her mother’s writing. Johnny Larsen, a violent white supremacist whose family runs the county, thinks the Daughters of God kidnapped his teen-aged daughter–and will do anything to get her back.

At the top of a hill, an army of women wait for the end of days. In the town below, the Larsens plot to purify their county. Caught in the middle, Caitlin must decide which is more important–learning the truth about her past, or saving Mama Maya’s chosen daughters from the end of the world.

To buy the book click on any of the following links: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Indigo, and IndieBound

August Norman: The Interview

Book One

Readers first met Caitlin Bergman in Come and Get Me. How has your protagonist changed between the first book and the new one?

Unlike the first book, where a visit to her college triggered past trauma, Sins of the Mother finds Caitlin back in her hometown of Los Angeles two years later, hard at work as the award-winning investigative journalist she’s always been.

Though still single and not ashamed to end the day with a cocktail or joint, she’s grown emotionally, staying in regular touch with her therapist and past friends, and even easing into the idea of becoming a role model for Lakshmi Anjale, a young journalist eager to follow in Caitlin’s footsteps.

While the ever-changing landscape of her career in print journalism is a source of stress, she finds herself thrown off-balance by a call out of nowhere asking her to come to coastal Oregon to identify a body, believed to belong to her birth mother.

Rather than triggering past trauma, Caitlin is straight-up excited to close a chapter of her life that’s kept an angry fire burning inside since her childhood.

Can Sins of the Mother be read as a standalone? or should readers start with Come and Get Me?

Sins of the Mother definitely stands alone.

While the book involves a battle between a white supremacist group and an end-of-the-world cult, it’s ultimately a story about family with a more universal theme than Come and Get Me’s look at trauma recovery.

That said, Sins of the Mother continues threads that were mentioned in Come and Get Me, such as Caitlin’s idealization of her adoptive father, Matthew Bergman, a mostly single LAPD officer, as well as her birth mother’s career as an adult film star.

Of course, depending on when readers are finding this interview, the ebook version of Come and Get Me will be discounted to only $1.99 until September 12, 2020. Obviously, this means readers should buy ten copies of each book and read until memorized.

I have a baby now and apparently they need clothes at some point.

Certainly, being a man and writing a realistic female character is its own challenge, and something I take seriously.

Mystery Scene Magazine describes Caitlin as a “strong, complex, and capable woman who kicks a** and takes names.” How did you decide to write a female protagonist? What were the challenges of “getting her right?”

Caitlin began life as a character in a screenplay as the foil to a hard-boiled, ex-cop searching for redemption; the honest journalist with a few bad habits but a strict moral compass.

As I’d written that screenplay in the heyday of independent film, the character was meant to be a chance for one of my best friends to move out of girl-next-door guest stars to something with real depth and range, a break-out lead role that a talented actor could mine for gold.

Once I’d novelized that screenplay, me and everyone who read the manuscript knew that she was the character who should move into the future. Certainly, being a man and writing a realistic female character is its own challenge, and something I take seriously.

While Come and Get Me was my attempt to empathize and express my helpless rage on the behalf of victims of sexual assault on college campuses, I knew I would never claim any authority or ownership on the subject. I made sure to vet that manuscript through not only my therapist, but also over 25 beta readers before a publisher ever saw a draft.

Of those 25, 20 were women. Of those women, at least two were in their 70s, 60s, 50s, 40s, 30s, and 20s, and included people of color and all sexual orientations. That process, plus the effort to keep Caitlin speaking like my friend, rather than speaking for the entire female experience, helps me stay on track.

Sins of the Mother is far less traumatic, though I still made sure to consult mental health professionals on the effects of growing up in a cult, as well as hours of extensive research, and the eyes of my trusted beta readers. Through this process, I feel like Caitlin stays grounded, and while not always likeable, she’s believable, honest, and able to tackle the worst in us all.

You have become a new father! How has fatherhood impacted your writing?

At the same time my wife and I were family planning (as much as anyone really can), I was sketching out the story of Sins of the Mother. This look at the families we’re born into versus the families we choose reminded me of how much we’re made of the people who love us, and especially those who withhold their love.

Therefore, the story touches on all sorts of families, including the obvious models of adoptive parent relationships and mentorship, but also the twisted world of cults.

Ultimately, I believe that the best families are founded on supportive love, and hopefully my son will see the benefits of that exploration.

So far, he doesn’t care for the act of writing and seems to think it detracts from our time together. Maybe I shouldn’t have sung Harry Chapin’s Cats in the Cradle to him so often while he was in the womb.

What does Sins of the Mother add to the crime fiction genre?

I like to think Caitlin Bergman, and particularly how she reacts in Sins of the Mother, brings a realistic hero to the modern crime thriller.

Though she officially lives in a series now, and series readers have certain expectations, I strive to see her change and be changed by the events in each book. No real person saves the day every time, and even if they do, their trials charge a toll to the body, mind, and soul.

Hopefully readers will laugh and cry along with Caitlin’s adventures, seeing themselves in her, at both their best and lowest moments, regardless of gender, race, politics, or location.

“Don’t waste time telling yourself why people will reject your work.”

What are you working on now?

Beyond keeping the boy alive and undented, I have several projects in the works—from the next Caitlin Bergman novel, an exploration of the failings of our mental health system, to a stand-alone suspense thriller.

Final Words of Wisdom

Don’t waste time telling yourself why people will reject your work. Anything can be improved once you’ve typed THE END, so force yourself to get to that last page. People can’t reject, or even publish, what they never get to read.
From self-published indies to traditionally published best-sellers, there is no author who gets to sit back and just write. Embrace the world of publicity if you want to reach readers, even if that means dipping into your own pocket. No one else is dreaming your dreams.


Want to read more about August? Check out my interview for his debut novel, Come and Get Me. Click the link here.

August Norman: The Author

Originally from central Indiana, thriller and mystery author August Norman has called Los Angeles home for two decades, writing for and/or appearing in movies, television, stage productions, web series, and even, commercial advertising.

A lover and champion of crime fiction, August is an active member of the Mystery Writers of America, the International Thriller Writers, and Sisters In Crime (National and LA), and regularly attends the Santa Barbara Writer’s Conference.

Don’t miss his first novel, Come and Get Me, available at all your favorite outlets in ebook, audiobook, and hardback. Click the link here for more information.

To learn more about August, click on any of the following links:  Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Goodreads

Thanks for hanging out with us August Norman! Great to see you back with book two. Looking forward to your next venture!

Elena Taylor is the author of All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio book format at all your favorite on-line retailers. And don’t forget many independent bookstores can order books for you and have them shipped to your home or for curbside pickup.

For more information on All We Buried, click on the link here to visit the home page.

Header photo by DonWhite84 on Pixabay. Click here for more information.

 

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Post Covid: Is it Too Soon to Make Plans?

Post Covid: Can we imagine what comes next?

It’s challenging most days to see beyond the time of Covid, but one thing history has taught is that all things come to an end.

Civilizations.

The reigns of kings . . .

. . . and pandemics.

There is a lot of speculation by economists and psychologists and sociologists about how we’ll recover, economically, mentally, and as a culture.

Will workers return to office buildings? Can cities survive? or is everyone going to move out into the small towns? Will we be more connected by a common experience? or even more divided by politics and race, religion and socio-economics.

But what I’m wondering right now . . . once we are post Covid . . .  when can I have a real vacation?

I’ve started to fantasize about where we’ll go. Somewhere in the lower forty-eight so we can bring the dog.

Somewhere luxurious. A place I can either call for room service or walk to a nearby restaurant.

Post Covid, I want . . .

. . . beauty, so no big cities, but a location with all my favorite simple things that I’ve been missing throughout the lockdown.

A really great coffeeshop. A place with ridiculously fancy drinks or a terrific cappuccino.

And baked goods. The decadent kind that are still warm from the oven and filled with almond paste or chocolate and dusted with powdered sugar.

Thai food. Spicy curries and Tom Kha Gai and spicy green beans.

A swimming pool. Clear water, just warm enough to feel refreshing, preferably with a jacuzzi attached for a good soak after a swim.

And a spa. I’d kill for a good massage. Or at least maim for one.

Post Covid, I’m looking forward to . . .

. . . there are plenty of places I’d love to visit, but part of the enjoyment right now is to imagine a life without the restrictions we’ve been living under.

To walk into a corner store to browse, without following arrows or wearing a mask.

To sit at a bar and ask the bartender to make their specialty and not wonder if the person at the end might have a disease that will kill me if they sit less than six feet away.

I’m looking forward to seeing friends and family in person, not on a Zoom screen, where we all look like we’re playing some strange version of Hollywood Squares.  (Some days I consider substituting a photo of Miss Piggy for my video, she and I have the same hair.)

But it’s the little things that make life so pleasurable. That’s what I’m fantasizing about right now. Not big things. Little things.

Once this is all over, where will you go? I’d love to hear your dream vacation plans.

Elena Taylor is the author of All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio book format at all your favorite on-line retailers. And don’t forget many independent bookstores can order books for you and have them shipped to your home or for curbside pickup.

For more information on All We Buried, click on the link here to visit the home page.

 

 

 

Photos

Pool and cocktail, from Pexels on Pixabay.

Crown, from Skeeze on Pixabay.

Bakery, from Pexels on Pixabay.

Cocktails, from Licorbeirao on Pixabay.

 

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Debbie De Louise: Sneaky’s Summer Mystery

Debbie De Louise launches her latest Cobble Cove Mystery. Visit all her stops along the way by clicking the link here!

Book Blast
 Sneaky’s Summer Mystery: A Cobble Cove Story

The Book

Sneaky’s Summer Mystery: A Cobble Cove Story

Cozy Mystery

Publisher: Solstice Publishing (August 5, 2020)

Print Length: 42 pages

Digital ASIN: B08FCJCJW7

Cobble Cove is in the midst of an August heatwave. It’s the worst time for the air conditioner at the Cobble Cove library to break down. Alicia has no choice but to close the library and bring Sneaky, the library cat, home with her.

After scheduling the air conditioner service with Rudy Gibbs, a technician from Hapnabber’s Repair Shop, she is surprised to learn that John knew Rudy when they were teenagers.

When Rudy turns up dead after working on the AC at the library and Alicia learns of it during a barbecue she and John host with Gilly and Ramsay, Sneaky and Kittykai must once again protect their favorite ladies when they conduct their own investigation into the murder.

To buy the book, click the link here.

Debbie De Louise: The Author

Debbie De Louise is an award-winning author and a reference librarian at a public library on Long Island. She is a member of Sisters-in-Crime, International Thriller Writers, Long Island Authors Group, and the Cat Writers’ Association.

She’s the author of eight novels including the four books of her Cobble Cove cozy mystery series and two short eBooks based on the books. She lives on Long Island with her husband, daughter, and three cats.

To learn more about Debbie, click on her name, photo, or any of the following links: Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Amazon, AllAuthor, Instagram, Linkedin, Bookbub, Pinterest, Debbie’s Character’s Chat Group, and Sneaky the Library Cat’s blog.

 

Elena Taylor is the author of All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio book format at all your favorite on-line retailers. And don’t forget many independent bookstores can order books for you and have them shipped to your home or for curbside pickup.

For more information on All We Buried, click on the link here to visit the home page.

The post Debbie De Louise: Sneaky’s Summer Mystery appeared first on Elena Taylor.

Twitter: My Failings in Social Media and Other Stories

Twitter—huh—what is it good for?

Common Facebook Topic – My backyard

I’m not good with Twitter. It’s true. I try, but I’m terrible at it. How does is really work? What’s the meaning of it? I tweet, like, and repost, but I don’t “get it”. As a result, I’m always a little anxious when I hit that tweet button.

The social media I use the most is Facebook, where I have both a personal and an author page. Most of my posts on my personal page are about my horses and moments of Zen. So I try (most days) to post thirty seconds of something peaceful in my world because it feels like sharing something valuable.

With the lockdown, a lot of the video I take now is of the river in my backyard. From my favorite chair. It’s amazing how much the river changes because of the weather and season. Rain and sunshine changes the level, the speed, and the clarity. Just like a person, it has loud, raucous days and quiet, contemplative days depending on the mood and what’s happening upstream. I like to share the natural beauty because what’s calming to me might be calming to others.

Follow me on Facebook, click the link here.

Radar loves his cone . . .

I also post a lot of video of my horses (theme here, right?). My youngest horse, Radar, is a very funny boy. I post a lot of videos of him playing with a traffic cone because it’s hilarious. He’s an absolute hoot in his love affair with the “toy.” People write and tell me how much they enjoy seeing him play.

Jasper and Radar also play together, a beautiful sight. And surprising for those who aren’t familiar with equine behavior. It feels good to show them having fun.

Twitter always feels confusing. What should I tweet? A good quote? Or a title? Should I like or retweet? If I comment, should I retweet the comment? or the entire post. I always feel a vague sense of unease when I add a hashtag. I think . . . is this a stupid hashtag? Does this have a meaning I don’t know? Do I have enough? Too many? Most importantly, why am I craving hash brown potatoes right now?

The other social media I use on a regular basis is Instagram, because I enjoy the visuals. People post wonderful images and I understand how to comment. The fact that the only option is a heart also means I don’t have to struggle with the decision between like, love, care, sad, laugh, vomit . . .

Follow me on Instagram, click the link here.

Handsome Jasper

I post photos of my river and my horses because, apparently, that’s what I’m most comfortable with on social media. But I don’t tweet those two things.

With Twitter I feel like I have to be “smarter” —more cognizant of the socio-political climate. I read a lot of news and listen to NPR and try to stay relatively current. But I never feel like I am connected enough with the Zeitgeist to tweet about it.

It feels vaguely dangerous and there’s enough danger in the real world for me to want to stay away from the virtual kind.

I hope I don’t get in trouble for writing this article.

Which leads me to the most important question.

So . . . should I tweet this?

Follow me on Twitter, click the link here.

Elena Taylor is the author of All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio book format at all your favorite on-line retailers. And don’t forget many independent bookstores can order books for you and have them shipped to your home or for curbside pickup.

For more information on All We Buried, click on the link here to visit the home page.

Header photo by FirmBee on Pixabay. Click here for more information.

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Master of Illusion: Spotlight on Author Nupur Tustin

I’m thrilled to Spotlight Master of Illusion by mystery author Nupur Tustin on her Great Escapes Virtual Blog Tour. Click the link here to check out all Nupur’s tour stops.

Rafflecopter giveaway, click the link here.

Wondering about other Great Escapes Virtual Blog Tours? Don’t miss recent posts for mystery authors Cathy Ace and Cathy Perkins.
Click on their names to learn more. 

Master of Illusion

Book One

Master of Illusion: A Celine Skye Psychic Mystery

Cozy Mystery/Psychic Mystery

1st in Series

Publisher: Foiled Plots Press (July 28, 2020)

Paperback: 292 pages

ISBN-10: 099824306X

ISBN-13: 978-0998243061

Digital ASIN: B08BTFMTJS

When death arrives in Paso Robles, so do clues to an infamous art heist in Boston. . .

For seven years, psychic Celine Skye has led a life free of visions in quiet Paso Robles. But now the visions are back. Along with a dubious customer from Boston.

Celine has always been able to sense death. But not even she can foresee her employer Dirck’s murder. Finding his corpse in the wine bar he owns is bad enough.

Grappling with the suspicion that Dirck’s death could be connected with the Gardner Museum heist is even worse.

As Celine struggles to make sense of the psychic clues she receives, there’s just one question in her mind: What exactly did Dirck know about the Gardner Museum heist to get himself killed?

To buy the book, click on any of the following links: Amazon, Nook, Apple, and Kobo

Nupur Tustin

The Author

A former journalist, Nupur Tustin misuses a Ph.D. in Communication and an M.A. in English to paint intrigue. She also orchestrates mayhem in composer Joseph Haydn’s Europe.

To learn more about Nupur, click on her name, photo, or any of the following links: Blog, Facebook, Goodreads, and BookBub

Elena Taylor is the author of All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio book format at all your favorite on-line retailers. And don’t forget many independent bookstores can order books for you and have them shipped to your home or for curbside pickup.

For more information on All We Buried, click on the link here to visit the home page.

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Vicki Delany Launches Tea and Treachery

Tea & Treachery — Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour

Welcome to the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for the newly released Tea and Treachery by Vicki Delany

Visit all the stops along the tour to learn about Vicki Delany and her most recent release.

Character Interview: Tea & Treachery

Click the link here to enter the Rafflecopter Giveaway!

Vicki Delany: The Author

Tea and the Author

Vicki Delany is one of Canada’s most prolific and varied crime writers and a national bestseller in the U.S. She has written more than thirty-five books: clever cozies to Gothic thrillers to gritty police procedurals, to historical fiction and novellas for adult literacy.

She is currently writing four cozy mystery series: the Tea by the Sea mysteries for Kensington, the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop series for Crooked Lane Books, the Year Round Christmas mysteries for Penguin Random House, and the Lighthouse Library series (as Eva Gates) for Crooked Lane.

Vicki is a past president of the Crime Writers of Canada and co-founder and organizer of the Women Killing It Crime Writing Festival. She is the 2019 recipient of the Derrick Murdoch award for contributions to Canadian crime writing. Vicki lives in Prince Edward County, Ontario.

To learn more about Vicki, click on her name or photo or any of the following links: Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram

Tea & Treachery by Vicki Delany

In this charming new cozy mystery series from nationally bestselling author, Vicki Delany, a New York City expat-turned-Cape Cod tea shop owner must solve the murder of a local real estate developer to help her feisty grandmother out of a jam . . .

As the proud proprietor and head pastry chef of Tea by the Sea, a traditional English tearoom on the picturesque bluffs of Cape Cod, Roberts has her hands full, often literally. But nothing keeps her busier than steering her sassy grandmother, Rose, away from trouble. Rose operates the grand old Victorian B & B adjacent to Lily’s tea shop . . . for now. An aggressive real estate developer, Jack Ford, is pushing hard to rezone nearby land, with an eye toward building a sprawling golf resort, which would drive Rose and Lily out of business.

Tempers are already steaming, but things really get sticky when Ford is found dead at the foot of Rose’s property and the police think she had something to do with his dramatic demise. Lily can’t let her grandmother get burned by a false murder charge. So she starts her own investigation and discovers Ford’s been brewing bad blood all over town, from his jilted lover to his trophy wife to his shady business partners. Now, it’s down to Lily to stir up some clues, sift through the suspects, and uncover the real killer before Rose is left holding the tea bag.

To buy the book, click on any of the following links: Amazon, Barnes&Noble, Kobo, GooglePlay, and IndieBound

 

Cozy Mystery

1st in Series

Publisher: Kensington (July 28, 2020)

Hardcover: 304 pages

ISBN-10: 1496725069

ISBN-13: 978-1496725066

Digital ASIN: B07ZPKGT3R

Character Interview
By Lily Roberts from Tea & Treachery by Vicki Delany

What is the title of your most recent adventure?

Tea and Treachery:  A Tea by the Sea Mystery

What is your full name? Do you like the name your author gave you? Or would you give yourself something different?

I’m Lily Roberts. I love my name.  My grandmother is named Rose and all the women in our family have flower names. I love that association with my family’s history.

How did you get involved in the current investigation? Is it your first? Or one of many? 

This is the first time such a thing has happened around here and I certainly hope it will be the last.  My grandmother, Rose, had a verbal altercation with a property developer looking to buy the land next door, and next thing we knew, the man was found dead at the bottom of the bluffs at Rose’s B&B overlooking Cape Cod Bay

“Sidekick? I have no sidekick.”

Describe your favorite sidekick or tell us why you are a lone wolf.

Sidekick? I have no sidekick. I don’t want anything to do with this. I’m busy enough running my tea room and cooking the breakfasts in my grandmother’s B&B. Unfortunately, for me, my best friend Bernie and Rose herself seem to think they need to be involved. And  that means I’m dragged along after them.

Where does your adventure take place?

The town of North Augusta on Cape Cod. My grandmother owns Victoria-on-Sea, a huge Victorian house she runs as a B&B and I own and bake at Tea by the Sea, a traditional afternoon tea room.

“Baking is my happy place.”

What is your most defining characteristic?

I bake. I bake a lot. Baking is my happy place.

Rate your story: Cozy, cozy with a touch of romance, cozy with a little extra action, private eye, action-packed, leave-the-lights-on-all-night, other.

We are a cozy, with maybe a hint of romance.  And recipes too.

What does your author have in store for you next?

Murder in a Tea Cup will be my second adventure.

What a pleasure to meet you Lily Roberts! I love Cape Cod, next time I’m out your way I’ll be sure to stop and join you for tea!

Elena Taylor is the author of All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio book format at all your favorite on-line retailers. And don’t forget many independent bookstores can order books for you and have them shipped to your home or for curbside pickup.

For more information on All We Buried, click on the link here to visit the home page.

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Lucy Lakestone: Risky Whisky Guest Post

Lucy Lakestone is today’s guest blogger as part of her Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour! You can find all her tour stops by clicking the link here.

Thrilled to have Lucy here today to chat about some of my favorite things, adventure, travel, mysteries . . . and cocktails in exciting locales!

Click the link here to enter the Rafflecopter Giveaway!

Love a little food and drink with your mysteries? Click the link here to read about Catherine Bruns culinary mystery series!

Mysterious, mystery author!

Lucy Lakestone: The Author

Lucy Lakestone is an award-winning author who lives on Florida’s east central coast, among the towns that serve as an inspiration for the hot romances of her Bohemia Beach Series and the jumping-off point for the Bohemia Bartenders Mysteries.

She’s been a journalist, photographer, editor and video producer but prefers living in her imagination, where the moon is full and the cocktails are divine.

To learn more about Lucy Lakestone, click on her name, photo or any of the following links: BookBub, Goodreads, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and Amazon

The Book: Risky Whisky

Book One!

Risky Whiskey (Bohemia Bartenders Mysteries)

Cozy Mystery

1st in Series

Publisher: Velvet Petal Press (July 21, 2020)

Print Length: 250 pages

Digital ASIN: B088Q9NW98

Stirring up trouble in New Orleans …

Eager to shake up her drinks and her life, mixologist Pepper Revelle jumps at an invitation to join the elite Bohemia Bartenders. Leader Neil thinks she’ll be the perfect advance gal for his team at a colorful cocktail convention in her hometown of New Orleans, but the job turns out to be more bananas than a drunk monkey.

Setting up the key tasting for their distiller client, she and Neil discover their whiskey has gone dangerously bad. But how? And was this shocking poisoning more than an accident?

As Pepper and Neil try to figure out what happened, keep the drinks flowing and help distiller Dash Reynolds survive the weekend, they find themselves the target of increasingly scary attacks. Maybe it’s the danger, or maybe it’s the drinks, but Pepper also can’t help an inconvenient attraction to cocktail nerd Neil as they stir up trouble and try to figure out who’s out to get them — before they’re sliced and squeezed like a lemon twist in a Sazerac.

Risky Whiskey is the first book in the Bohemia Bartenders Mysteries, funny whodunits with a dash of romance set in a convivial collective of cocktail lovers, eccentrics and mixologists. These cozy culinary comedies contain a hint of heat, a splash of cursing and shots of laughter, served over hand-carved ice.

To buy the book, click on any of the following links: Apple iBooks, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Google Play, and Kobo


World of Mixologists Creates Movable Feast for Culinary Mysteries
by Lucy Lakestone

Cozy mysteries seem to have a lot of rules, though there are disagreements on the finer points. One of them, though, is pretty solid: The mysteries in a series should take place in the same cozy setting.

But what if that setting changes in every book?

If it does — what an adventure! The truth is, the mixologists and other characters in Risky Whiskey, the first book in the Bohemia Bartenders Mysteries, resemble a traveling circus in some ways. They travel to different events to ply their trade, from conventions to festivals, but in true cozy fashion, there are many characters in common in each book. They almost create a setting just by being together in one place.

New Orleans

I’ve learned from my own travels in the cocktail world that, as in almost any convention culture, one does really end up seeing the same people over and over again at different events.

Maybe the Bohemia Bartenders Mysteries push the cozy definition in other ways. There’s a little cursing and a little heat. Think about it: Would you call Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series cozy mysteries? Despite having a little cursing and heat, they fit the definition in every other way (and I’m a huge fan).

“The important thing is, the familiar characters are fun to follow from book to book.”

The important thing is, the familiar characters are fun to follow from book to book. You’re always going to get the outgoing Pepper Revelle, who’s perpetually ready to rush into a zany situation no matter her penchant for comedic disaster, and nerdy Neil, head of the bartender team, her opposite in every way. Maybe that’s why she likes him so much.

Their three fellow bartenders help make the magic happen as they mix craft cocktails for high-energy events. And there are characters from distillers to celebrities that you’ll see in multiple books.

Changing the settings provides both challenge and reward for a writer. I love getting deep into a setting, because details can yield fascinating plot opportunities. Reinventing the lime wheel with every book, however, means extra research and care. Good thing I love research!

Fort Lauderdale

New Orleans yielded Pepper’s backstory; she grew up there and survived Hurricane Katrina. It’s where she learned to love cocktail culture. And in book two, Wrecked by Rum, Fort Lauderdale offers a wonderful resort setting as well as a fictional Polynesian restaurant inspired by the real Mai-Kai, where denizens of the tiki culture still make frequent pilgrimages for delicious drinks and a floor show that’s been around since the 1950s.

“… even though the mixologists will travel from New Orleans …   to Fort Lauderdale … they’ll end up in their own (fictional) Florida town, Bohemia Beach, for book three…”

But even though the mixologists will travel from New Orleans in Risky Whiskey to Fort Lauderdale in Wrecked by Rum, they’ll end up in their own (fictional) Florida town, Bohemia Beach, for book three, Vexed by Vodka. And readers will get a better look at Pepper’s bar, her Aunt Celestine, and their adorable Cavapoo dog, Astra, who pops in and out of the series. I foresee more visits to Bohemia Beach in between more exotic trips. Does that make the series a cozy within a cozy?

Perhaps.

In these tough times, when travel is not easy or safe and conventions are on hold, it’s fun to travel in my imagination with my characters and enjoy the virtual fun of being with other people — fun that I hope we will all experience again soon. My books are set in the “before time” or possibly an alternate universe where we are all safe and happy. But I’ll gladly drink a toast to getting on the road with my cocktail-loving friends again.

Cheers!

I love to travel when I read! Thank you for spending time with us on your blog tour.

Elena Taylor is the author of All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio book format at all your favorite on-line retailers. And don’t forget many independent bookstores can order books for you and have them shipped to your home or for curbside pickup.

For more information on All We Buried, click on the link here to visit the home page.

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Snacks: The Most Expensive Business Line Item of 2020

Snacks . . . why they make my life a little better in the midst of a challenging time.

Business expenses for me used to include a lot of travel, for book events and conferences, teaching writers workshops and signing books. There was the costs of postcards to hand out and business cards, grown-up clothes, and promotional materials.

Now the biggest business expense I have is . . . Snacks.

Now the biggest business expense I have is . . . Snacks.

I was catching up on my “paperwork” today, which basically means I enter information into an excel spreadsheet that shows purchases I’ve made relating to the business of being a writer.

Snacks.

That’s definitely the most expensive item on my 2020 expenditures. Or at least, the line item where I have spent the most money overall.

Me and Catherine Bruns — Power couple of Left Coast Crime!

Travel in 2020 = one trip to San Diego. I was one of the lucky people who got to attend the first day of Left Coast Crime, San Diego. While it was a total bummer to miss out on the rest of the weekend, my one day was fabulous. I got to meet terrific readers, moderated an amazing panel, and was on a second. I was also able to speed date with my favorite work-wife, Catherine Bruns.

I consider snacks essential for my writing career.

Then . . . zero. No more trips. No more postcards. No grown-up clothes—no matter how many “deals” Betabrand emails me. No swag.

But I’ve bought a lot of snacks. I consider snacks essential for my writing career.

Apparently I have to have an assortment of almonds, parmesan cheese crisps, and chocolates to write anything resembling a manuscript during covid. Not that I didn’t snack before, but snacking has achieved a much higher status than it used to.

First off . . . I haven’t seen the inside of a grocery store since March. My hubby does all the shopping. He is able to go during senior hours, plus he’s the  extrovert, so he needs the interactions more than I do.

Now buying snacks online is  the equivalent of impulse buying, but with more planning.

Nuts.com is my favorite site right now. It’s better than porn. Because . . . snacks.

I love smoked almonds. They are definitely top of my snack list. I also really enjoyed the caramel popcorn. That didn’t last long at all. I tell myself it’s because I didn’t want it to get stale.

Nothing competes with snacks . . .

Apparently snacks have always been important – these were for my flight home from San Diego in March.

I do spend money on books. That’s a legit expense when you write for a living. Plus, as a developmental editor and the industry expert at Allegory Editing, I have to stay on top current trends, authors, and publishers.

But that line item still can’t compete with snacks.

We are in a strange time and I count myself incredibly lucky to work from home, have a beautiful place to live, have outdoor time with my horses daily . . . and can buy snacks over the internet.

What random thing is helping you get through? I’d love to hear from you.

—Elena

Elena Taylor is the author of All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio book format at all your favorite on-line retailers. And don’t forget many independent bookstores can order books for you and have them shipped to your home or for curbside pickup.

For more information on All We Buried, click on the link here to visit the home page.

 

 

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Surviving Covid: I’m Doing The Best I Can

If you’re wondering how I came up with Taylor . . .

Surviving Covid: I’m doing the best I can . . . as a writer, an editor, and an over fifty woman with preexisting conditions. (My doctors never have been able to figure out why my body can’t hold iron . . . and “undiagnosed tachycardia” really is a diagnosis, how’s that for a kick in the pants?)

Many of you know that my legal name is Elena Hartwell, Taylor is a pen name. I’ve always been fond of Hartwell and the history of the family line.

Hart

The very first “Hartwell” came over to Britain from Normandy as the righthand man to William the Conqueror in 1066. My ancestor, William Peverel, and William the Conqueror were so close, there was even speculation Peverel was actually a bastard brother of the first Norman king of England. Though as William the Conqueror was also a bastard, that rumor is a bit murky.

The king gave Peverel a piece of land, know for the “well” that existed there where the “harts” came to drink. A well, in those days was a naturally occurring spring. A hart was a large stag, typically over five years of age. The deer in that area were red deer. Thus the land became known as Hartwell and William’s descendants took on the name.

This brings me to the family crest (coat of arms) and family motto. Sorte Sua Contentus.
Content with his lot.

Sorte Sua Contentus

I’ve always loved that motto. Nothing about valor or brutality, nobility or ruthlessness, though one could certainly speculate that Peveral was all those things. No, the family was given the most wonderful of mottos. Contentment.

As we’ve continued to move through this very strange year, I’ve often thought, what’s my motto for enduring our current situation?

Surviving Covid

As we’ve continue to move through this very strange year, I often think, what’s my motto for enduring our current situation?

If I carved a coat of arms for myself today, I would use the motto: Ego non possum facere optimum – which, if Google translator worked correctly, means I’m doing the best I can.

I think that’s what we’re all doing. It’s just that “I’m doing the best I can” manifests differently for each of us.

We are each made of a different constitution. What’s easy for one person is a struggle for another.

We are all blessed with different abilities and traits. Some of us are stoic and pragmatic, others are given to anxiety and depression.

And while we all experience the same pandemic, none of us have the identical set of circumstances. So one person’s inconvenience can be another person’s death sentence. It makes it tricky to fully appreciate another person’s state of being.

 I’m doing the best I can

My backyard

Surviving Covid

For myself, I am incredibly grateful for my set of circumstances. I primarily work from home, live in a gorgeous location, and have space around me. And I have my horses to keep me outside, active, and engaged in something other than the daily news.

But even for me this can be a struggle. I can’t imagine what the situation is like for those less fortunate.

I see a lot of anger on social media. Anger toward  people who are jeopardizing the health and well-being of others. A lot of people throw around words like stupid, selfish, and thoughtless. And maybe that’s true. Maybe those people are stupid, selfish, and thoughtless. Or maybe something else is true.

Maybe they lack education. Or lack access to informed, scientific-backed research. Perhaps they lack the courage to go against the norms of their own social circle.

Or maybe they are just scared. Fear is an intense motivating factor in much of human behavior.

Five Reasons to Stop Using the Term New Normal, Click here to read more.

Surviving Covid

Regardless of why people do what they do, what choices they make, what behavior they exhibit. It’s also possible they are doing the best they can.

I recently read about a 30-year-old who went to a COVID party. Another young friend had contracted the disease and they “had a party to see if it was real”. Of course several people became ill and this one thirtysomething died from the disease. According to the Guardian, his last words were “‘I think I made a mistake, I thought this was a hoax, but it’s not.”

We’ve all done stupid things. For most of us, the price just wasn’t this high.

Was he stupid? Selfish? Thoughtless? We could attribute those adjectives to him. Or we could look a little deeper. What led him and his friends to believe this was the thing to do? Why were they so unaware of the seriousness of the disease? Why did they go against science? What created the worldview that led them down this path?

Those are the questions I think about when I read about events such as this. Rather than assume stupidity or arrogance, let’s consider instead, how did we, as a culture, get here?

Anger as a survival tactic

I understand the anger. Especially if we believe there is a direct potential impact on our own well-being. Human beings come into the world pre-programmed to protect self, family, and tribe. Those instincts run deep.

But I’m going to encourage all of us to consider that everyone is doing the best they can, and that’s all that each of us are capable of, within our own set of given circumstances.

Let’s take politics out of the conversation about how to keep each other safe. Let’s respect the most vulnerable among us cannot afford to get this disease. It might never touch you, but it could kill your neighbor.

And your neighbor is just doing the best they can.

Header photo by Comfreak on Pixabay. Click here for more information.

Elena Taylor is the author of All We Buried, available now in print, e-book, and audio book format at all your favorite on-line retailers. And don’t forget many independent bookstores can order books for you and have them shipped to your home or for curbside pickup.

For more information on All We Buried, click on the link here to visit the home page.

 

 

 

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