Vicki Batman's Blog, page 4
June 9, 2022
Favorite Handbag and Book welcomes author Wendy Kendall: A Tough Question: What is Your Favorite Handbag? and her book
About the Handbag:
Toughest question – what's your favorite handbag? The amateur sleuth of my cozy mysteries is a purse designer because I adore purses. For today's blog, I reveled in a review of my large collection that includes vintage purses as old as 19th century, and more through the decades to contemporary. Some of my favorites are because they belonged to great-great-grandmothers, and there's my mother's favorites, I treasure my first purse, fun memories of purses I bought at the Little Rock, Arkansas Esse Purse Museum, designer bags, homemade bags, and more. Decisions, decisions. Today I'm sharing with you a delightful, contemporary favorite. Have you discovered Nicole Lee? My first view of Nicole Lee handbags was in Las Vegas where I saw a lady carrying a bag I fell in love with at first sight. Of course, I complimented her purse. Don't you always notice other's purses and compliment those that captivate you? I gushed over her colorful bag, and the vivacious woman pictured on the front. That encounter led me in purse-suit of Nicole Lee handbags online, and I've purchased several, including a fabulous briefcase for work.
This beauty sits 8 1/2” tall and 14 1/2” wide. It opens 3” wide. My Nicole Lee flower girl is fun to carry all seasons. You can see that the sides do zipper up if wanted, and that artfully alters the shape of the silhouette. The back panel is plain black patent leather, with an outside zippered pocket across the middle. That's a handy spot for a cell phone, and keys, and other need-in-a-flash items.
The roomy inside has a fun, big polka dot lining. I love that because instead of a dark interior, it's light and so I can more easily find what I'm looking for. On one side there are two deep pockets, and across from it a big zippered pocket. There's also a key leash that's quite handy. It all has a smooth, easy zippered closure.
Handbags are practical, and fun. They reflect personality traits of the women who carry them, and across the decades they reflect women's herstory. So, tell us - what's your favorite handbag?
About the Book:
Kat Out of the Bag – From designer bags to body bags
When celebrated purse designer Katherine Watson hosts a gala for her Purse-onality Women's History museum, she never expected the next day's headline to read: Murder at the Gala Premiere.
Working to solve the murder, Katherine matches wits with local cop Jason Holmes and his K-9 partner, Hobbs. Although Holmes and Watson disagree often, they discover an undeniable attraction building between them. They'll have to put their feelings on hold and focus on solving the murder before Katherine becomes the killer's next knockoff.
About the Author:
The result of Wendy Kendall's passion for purses, mystery and romance is an intriguing In Purse-Suit mysteries series. Kat Out of the Bag introduces Katherine Watson purse designer/sleuth, investigating murder as she moves from designer bags to body bags. The prequel, Purse-Stachio Makes A Splash delves into a chilling cold case. The romantic suspense, Snow Kiss Cookies To Die For creates an intriguing tangle of mystery and love. Her 2022 release, Cherry Shakes In The Park blends danger, divas, and frothy summer delights. Wendy enjoys the Pacific Northwest life and time with her two adult sons. She's a blogger, YouTube podcaster, speaker, project manager, and syndicated columnist. Just wait until you see what Katherine Watson and her friends in Bayside face next in the series.
Answer these questions:
Red, White or Blue? Red has always been my favorite color. So vibrant, outstanding, and beautiful shades from bright to burgundy
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter? Definitely love the heat and sun of summer. This summer my new book Cherry Shakes in the Park releases and reflects my love of this delightful season.
Cake or Pie? Cake is my favorite dessert, especially those with sweet frosting.
Coffee, Tea, or Champagne? I love the treat of champagne, but my all day go-to is tea. I indulge in all kinds of tea blends from all over the world. If forced to pick one favorite I'd say a London Fog. I prefer hot tea to iced tea, and I also like making sun tea in the summer.
Country music or Michael Buble? Another hard choice, but I do have a preference for crooner Michael.
Pencil or Pen? Pen. I love all pens including fountain pens, although I can't use those. I'm lefthanded and so I smear the ink with a fountain pen. I have a pair of fountain pens that stand up in silver stands that have great sentimental value since my father gave them to me when I won the middle grade writing contest. They're just for decoration and inspiration though.
Find Out More at:
Find Kat Out of the Bag at: Vendor
Find Wendy Kendall at: Website
May 26, 2022
Handbags, Books...whatever: Your Favorite Book and Book welcomes author Lis Angus - How Wonderful Writing and Editing Brings Characters to Life
As long as he has good wifi, Jackson Brodie can run his private investigations business from just about anywhere. As the novel opens—Atkinson’s fifth book featuring Brodie— he’s in a coastal village in Yorkshire, rather bored with his current assignment and meanwhile coping with a sullen teenage son. Then he falls over a cliff while trying to prevent a suicide. Brodie is easily distracted and doesn’t actually do a lot of detecting. In fact, much of the book takes place without him. A complicated plot unfolds, with characters involved in sex trafficking, child abduction, criminal conspiracy, and more. Intertwining story lines include:
· A convicted pedophile who may soon get parole, and is rumored to be about to name a “Mr. Big” who was never identified as part of the pedophile ring;
· Two aging performers – a foul-mouthed comic and a drag queen – who entertain tour group audiences nostalgic for the nineteen-eighties;
· A group of golfing friends with a secret source of income;
· A young mother with a dark background, determined to keep her daughter and stepson safe;
· Two young Polish girls who think they’re coming to the UK to work in an upscale hotel;
· A client who wants Jackson to keep finding additional proof that her husband is unfaithful;
· A former dominatrix who’s happy to act as a honey trap, though she’s “more hornet than honey bee;”
· Two sets of police officers whose separate investigations suddenly converge.
If this sounds confusing, it’s saved by Kate Atkinson’s wonderful writing and her ability to bring characters to full life in a page or two (an ability she honed as a short-story writer before turning to novels.) I’m a big fan of Atkinson’s—I’ve read all of her books, and I love every one of them.
About Your Book:
Ottawa psychologist and single mother Susan Koss discovers that a strange man has been following her twelve-year-old daughter Maddy. She fears he’s a predator, but it’s worse than that. The man, Daniel Kazan, believes Maddy is his granddaughter, abducted as a baby, and he’s obsessed with getting her back.
Susan insists on a DNA test to disprove Daniel’s claim, but the result is one she can’t understand or explain: it says she’s not Maddy’s mother.
Then Maddy vanishes. Susan’s convinced Daniel has taken her, but he has an alibi, and two searches of his house turn up nothing. The hunt is on—police are on full mobilization, and Susan fears the worst.
About the Author:
Lis Angus is a Canadian suspense writer. Early in her career, she worked with children and
families in crisis; later she worked as a policy advisor, business writer and editor. Her novel, NOT YOUR CHILD, was second-place winner in the 2021 Daphne du Maurier Mystery/Suspense awards, and was published by The Wild Rose Press in April 2022. Lis now lives south of Ottawa with her husband.
Answer these questions:
Red, White or Blue? I’d say “red”—but then I remember that my kitchen is full of blue accents.
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter? Spring, for the joy of things coming back to life. And fall, for the last warm breezes and crisp leaves before winter arrives. (Are you sensing that I like to pick more than one thing?)
Cake or Pie? Haha—I could pick both again. But I’ll say “pie.” Pumpkin pie with whipped cream s the perfect dessert. (Only in the fall, though!)
Coffee, Tea, or Champagne? Coffee, without doubt. Dark and black, in a large mug.
Country music or Michael Buble? Neither. How about Simon and Garfunkel?
Pencil or Pen? Pen. A nice smooth-flowing fineline sharpie is perfect.
Find out more at:
Find Not Your Child at: Vendor
Find Lis Angus at: Website
May 19, 2022
Favorite Handbag and Book welcomes author Colleen L. Donnelly - Does Your Handbag Make a Statement? and her book. Letters and Lies
You’ve heard of shoe fetishes? I have a bag fetish. Not feminine purses that coordinate with an outfit, but bags that make a statement. And bring out statements of envy from others. My current one, a sleek, leather, tightly sewn, lightweight, backpack type is doing just that. I discovered it in a travel store while Christmas shopping, a high-end retailer that features bags and suitcases, unique games, gifts, and clothing, and that I visit only once a year due to their prices. Slammed by love at first sight, I bought it as a gift. To myself. And babbled incessantly to justify such an expense to a clerk who didn’t care who I bought it for. She assured me it was Italian leather and a name brand and drummed her fingers while I debated between black or tan.
I had the money, an early Christmas gift, but who spent more money on themselves than others this time of year? For a bag? Even one with such a well-constructed interior of two main sections with zippers and pockets in a leather-trimmed satiny fabric? I did. Gollum. And after overspending on everyone else to ease my guilt, I carried my Precious away, and everywhere I go.
About the Book:
He said, “Don’t come; I can’t marry you.” She said, “I’m coming anyway.”
Louise Archer boards a westbound train in St. Louis to find the Kansas homesteader who wooed and proposed to her by correspondence, then jilted her by telegram – Don't come, I can't marry you. Giving a false name to hide her humiliation, her lie backfires when a marshal interferes and offers her his seat.
Marshal Everett McCloud intends to verify the woman coming to marry his homesteading friend is suitable. At the St. Louis train station, his plan detours when he offers his seat to a captivating woman whose name thankfully isn't Louise Archer.
Everett's plans thwart hers, until he begins to resemble the man she came west to find, and she the woman meant to marry his friend.
Born and raised in the Midwest, Colleen L Donnelly studied and worked in science, using that
career to travel and explore other parts of the country. An avid fan of literature, both reading and writing, she loves tales involving moral dilemmas and the choices people come up against. A lover of the outdoors as well as a comfy living room, Colleen is always searching inside and out for the next good story.
Answer these questions:
Red, White or Blue? Red
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter? Fall
Cake or Pie? Pie. Easier to make sugar-free
Coffee, Tea, or Champagne? COFFEE
Country music or Michael Buble? Is neither okay?
Pencil or Pen? Pen. Always. Even for crossword puzzles.
Find the Book at:
Letters and Lies at: Amazon
Colleen L Donnelly at: Website
May 12, 2022
Favorite Movie and Book welcomes mystery author Harini Nagendra - A Diamond Heist Gone Awry and her new book, The Bangalore Detectives Club
Your Favorite Movie:
Victoria No. 203 is an Indian (Hindi language) film from 1972, the year I was born. It’s a classic heist comedy, which was a favorite TV re-run when I was a kid, and a staple family favorite. A diamond heist goes awry, and the mastermind behind the theft, a rich businessman, hides the diamonds in a Victoria horse carriage (no. 203). The poor unsuspecting owner of the Victoria is arrested, and his daughter sets out to prove his innocence. She dresses up as a man, wearing her father’s clothes and driving the Victoria at night while sleuthing for the truth. Two elderly con men, released from jail, find out about the heist and make friends with the heroine and her young brother, pretending to be friends of the family so that they can look for the diamonds. Of course, they end up getting very attached to the heroine, adopting her and her brother, helping her free her father and establish his innocence – and of course, finding the jewels! Saira Banu, one of India’s top actors of the times, is at her glamorous best in this musical, with bouffant hair-dos, chandelier earrings, and slinky sequined saris.
The comical dynamics between the squabbling con men, a love story, a side plot about a child kidnapped at birth, and a number of other intersecting plots and twists make this a very entertaining film.
The first in a charming, joyful crime series set in 1920s Bangalore, featuring sari-wearing detective Kaveri and her husband Ramu. Perfect for fans of Alexander McCall Smith’s The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency.
When clever, headstrong Kaveri moves to Bangalore to marry handsome young doctor Ramu, she's resigned herself to a quiet life. But that all changes the night of the party at the Century Club, where she escapes to the garden for some peace and quiet—and instead spots an uninvited guest in the shadows. Half an hour later, the party turns into a murder scene. When a vulnerable woman is connected to the crime, Kaveri becomes determined to save her and launches a private investigation to find the killer, tracing his steps from an illustrious brothel to an Englishman's mansion. She soon finds that sleuthing in a sari isn't as hard as it seems when you have a talent for mathematics, a head for logic, and a doctor for a husband . . .And she's going to need them all as the case leads her deeper into a hotbed of danger, sedition, and intrigue in Bangalore's darkest alleyways.
About the Author:Harini Nagendra is a professor of ecology at Azim Premji University, and a well-known public speaker and writer on issues of nature and sustainability. She is internationally recognized for
her scholarship on sustainability, with honors that include the 2009 Cozzarelli Prize from the US National Academy of Sciences and the 2013 Elinor Ostrom Senior Scholar award. Her non-fiction books include Nature in the City: Bengaluru in the Past, Present and Future, and two books co-authored with Seema Mundoli – So Many Leaves, and Cities and Canopies: Trees in Indian Cities. The Bangalore Detectives Club is her first crime fiction novel. Harini lives in Bangalore with her family, in a home filled with maps. She loves trees, mysteries, and traditional recipes.
Answer these questions:
Red, White or Blue? Blue, most definitely. It’s the favorite color in our family.
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter? Spring, with all the flowers and birdsong.
Cake or Pie? Cake – especially if it’s chocolate!
Coffee, Tea, or Champagne? Tea, all kinds – though I like an occasional cup of coffee. I’m not much for fizzy drinks.
Country music or Michael Buble? Country music, I love the guitaring!
Pencil or Pen? Pencils, especially the colored ones.
Find the Book at:
The Bangalore Detectives Club at: Amazon
Harini Nagendra at: Website
May 5, 2022
Favorite Movie and Book welcomes author Laurel Peterson: Has Everyone Seen this Movie? and her book The Fallen
wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c6/Sound_of_music So everyone has seen The Sound of Music, right? I had to drag my husband through it, kicking and screaming, because it was a romance and people suddenly broke into song for no good reason. (He prefers movies where everyone dies at the end. Go figure!)
While I have mixed feelings about musicals (and much less patience for them now than I did when I was younger), I love this movie for its scenery, its romance, and its stars. (Of course, the real story is only tangentially like the movie, but I still got my parents to go to the Trapp Family Lodge for lunch in the 80s.)
So, in case you haven’t seen it (spoiler alerts!), the story is about a young Austrian nun, Maria, who isn’t fitting in at the convent in Salzberg. The Mother Superior sends her off to be a nanny to a local Navy officer with seven unruly children. She tames them and he falls in love with her (although there is a socialite she has to run off first), and then Hitler invades Austria. The husband is called up to serve the Third Reich, but his conscience won’t let him, so the family has to flee in the middle of the night after performing at a local folk festival. What’s not to love?
Cinderella was my gateway drug to the Sound of Music, since it also is a kind of Cinderella story. I was introduced to the movie by my mother, my grandmother and all her sisters. It’s important not to break family tradition.
While musicals aren’t my favorite genre, I do love a good romance. I also like thrillers and detective stories, which makes sense, since I write those kinds of books. So if you love a good love story, great scenery, some catchy tunes, cute kids, great costumes, or mountains, this is the movie for you.
About my Book:.jpg)
Clara Montague is having dreams again, the kind that should steer her away from trouble but always leads her to it. She survives a drive-by shooting that takes the life of a cop but complicates her new romantic relationship with police chief Kyle Dupont. Her conservative tony town isn’t thrilled to have an African American chief or have him dating on of their own. The deeply hidden motives behind the shooting eventually lead Kyle and Clara to New Orleans. Will Clara’s visions be enough to keep them safe from Kyle’s past?
About the Author:
Laurel S. Peterson is an English professor whose poetry has been published in many literary journals. She has two poetry chapbooks, That’s the Way the Music Sounds (Finishing Line) and Talking to the Mirror (Last Automat), and two full-length collections, Do You Expect Your Art to Answer? and Daughter of Sky (Futurecycle). She has also written two mystery novels, Shadow Notes and the Fallen (Woodhall). She serves on the editorial board of Inkwell magazine, and served as Norwalk, Connecticut’s, Poet Laureate from April 2016 – April 2019. You can find her on Facebook, Twitter and on her website. (See below.)
Answer these questions:
Red, White or Blue? Cobalt blue, please. But deep pink is a close tie.
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter? Fall, except I have to work in the fall (college is back in session) and I don’t in the summer, so summer. But the weather is better in the fall in New England.
Cake or Pie? Cake! (Preferably chocolate with white icing.)
Coffee, Tea, or Champagne? Champagne!
Country music or Michael Buble? Country music: Lyle Lovett. Gotta love his album The Road to Ensenada where he takes apart his relationship with Julia Roberts. “She’s the One-Eyed Fiona” ranks up there as one of the great, hilarious songs. (Fiona is Roberts’ middle name.) Just to be clear: I’m not taking sides, but it’s like dating a writer. Break up with her and be ready to appear in her next book as the dead body.
Pencil or Pen? Pencil for crosswords; pen for everything else.
Find the Book at:
The Fallen at: The Fallen
Laurel Peterson at: Laurel Peterson
April 28, 2022
Favorite Movie and Book welcomes author Darlene Dziomba - What kind of humor makes you laugh? and her book
I love humor, particularly sarcastic humor. When I watch “My Cousin Vinny” my ribs hurt from laughing. The movie’s premise does not sound the least bit funny. Two New Yorkers, Billy and Stan, are mistakenly arrested for murder in a small town in Alabama. However, the intersection between small-town folks and city-oriented New Yorkers provides excellent fodder for hilarity.
My book “Clues From The Canines” has a similar bent. There is nothing funny about a murder or the grief of the victim’s friends. Can you imagine finding out that your latest love interest is dead at work? And none of your coworkers know about your relationship, so can’t understand your erratic behavior? The cast of characters in my book will prove as memorable as those in “My Cousin Vinny”. There’s the salacious coworker who constantly flirts, the wise-cracking boss who regularly sings off-key, and a group of canines who find clever ways to get their owners’ attention.
As the title suggests, the dogs of Clues From The Canines help influence the humans decisions. An obedient, mild-mannered German shepherd will become aggressive and bark menacingly, so the humans understand that danger is near.
Animals serve a role in the movie. Vinny keeps falling asleep in court due to sleep deprivation from a not so quiet sleepy town. The prosecutor offers Vinny his cabin in the woods. This seems idyllic until a hooting owl wakes Vinny in the middle of the night. He drives his car until he finds a quiet spot and can sleep, only to find out in the morning that he parked on a mud bog and is stuck as well as late for court.
Food plays a significant role in both the movie and my book. Billy and Stan accidentally steal a can of tuna from a convenience store, and they assume this is why they are being pulled over by the police and arrested. Their lawyer, Vinny, uses the timing of cooking grits to prove their innocence by refuting witness testimony. The witness will claim to have heard a gunshot five minutes after seeing Billy and Stan enter the store, just as his grits finished cooking. Vinny asks, “How is it that it only takes you five minutes to cook your grits when it takes the entire grit eating population of Alabama twenty minutes to cook their grits?”.
Lily Dreyfus works out her theories and gathers evidence over meals. Crucial information that helps her put two seemingly unrelated events together comes over breakfast at the local farmers’ market. Eileen, eating a sensible scone, relays an interaction with law enforcement at the local high school where she works. Lily, savoring a jelly donut, bites into one fact of Eileen’s story. The two will argue over the conclusions Lily draws. Lily’s conclusions will prove correct, and they’ll settle their earlier argument over takeout Thai food.
While murder is no laughing matter, the mayhem of My Cousin Vinny and the sarcastic wit in Clues From The Canines will make you laugh out loud.
About the Book:
Lily Dreyfuss is stunned by the news that her physically fit, former Marine, boyfriend is dead. When the police rule the death as suspicious, she resolves to sniff out the killer. Lily gathers her pack, both human and canine, to point the police to the perpetrator. She must maintain her professional demeanor at the animal shelter in which she works while determining if one of is after a family fortune.
About Darlene Dziomba: I have worked in Fiscal Operations and Financial Planning for the University of Pennsylvania for over thirty years. My parents always joked that from the time I learned to walk, I could not pass a dog without wanting to pet it. Pre COVID, I volunteered at the Animal Welfare Association, a local New Jersey animal shelter. I hope to return to it when the virus dissipates. I am an avid reader, gardener, and traveler. I live in New Jersey with my four-legged best friend, Billie.
Red, White or Blue? Red, I want them to see me coming.
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter? Fall, warm days, crisp nights, apple cider… Warm apple cider; cold apple cider; alcoholic hard cider…
Cake or Pie? My dad’s chocolate cake, there is no better baked good on this earth!
Coffee, Tea, or Champagne? Tea. Earl Grey for the morning lift; chai when I need a little spice; caramel for a little sweetness; iced in all flavors, all summer long. I especially like peach iced tea.
Country music or Michael Buble? Um, I’m from New Jersey. Could I get Bruce Springsteen as a choice?
Pencil or Pen? Pen, even for crossword puzzles. Once I commit to an answer, I commit to it.
Find Clues From the Canine at: Amazon
Find Darlene at: Website
April 23, 2022
Handbags, Books...whatever welcomes the authors of LOVE WINS, A Ukraine Charity anthology
About the Book:
Love Wins: A Ukraine Charity Anthology with authors:
Dania Voss, Maribelle McCrea, Marlene Cheng, K.M. Jenkins, Deborah King, Annie McEwen, Pamela Clayfield, Tiffany Carby, Aimee O’Brian, R.A. Clarke, N. N. Light, Judy Fisher, Robert Beech, E.J. Powell, Alex Grehy, Maris Parker
I’m so thrilled to be a guest on this blog. Thank you so much for hosting me. My name is N. N. Light, otherwise known as Mrs. N. I write uplifting stories with my husband and better half, Mr. N.
In late February of this year, Russia invaded Ukraine. My heart plummeted as I saw the brute force of Russia’s army attach a sovereign nation. Can this really be happening? After all we have been through as a people, can we just sit by and watch the elimination of a race of people? I knew I needed to find some way to help. I certainly didn’t have the resources to fly over there but what could I do? The answer came in an Instagram post about two weeks ago. My fellow author, Dania Voss, put out a message on Instagram asking for more romance stories for a charity anthology. I signed up right away and I’m so honored to be a part of the Love Wins anthology. 100% of the proceeds go to a charity with boots on the ground helping Ukrainians in need.
We can’t stop the bombs from falling but we can do our part from this corner of our world. Please consider purchasing the anthology for $1.99. Not only will you be helping innocent people struggling to stay alive, but you’ll get fifteen romance novellas/short stories. These stories vary between sweet and contemporary.
N. N. Light is the award-winning husband-wife writing team, commonly known as Mr. N and Mrs. N. Books are their addiction and lifeblood.
Life is meant to be lived; cherish the exciting moments, and relish in those all too brief moments of relaxation. They are here to live their own lives, read as many books as humanly possible and live it passionately. N. N. Light's Book Heaven serves as a vessel to project their passions, and clue in their loyal readers as to what inspires them in this crazy world. So, sit back, relax, and read on.
April 21, 2022
Favorite Handbag and Book welcomes author Susan Van Kirk: Have You Bought Something When Traveling and Treasure It? and her book!
My favorite handbag is a straw purse about 6”(H) by 9”(W). In 2007, I drove from Illinois with one of my friends, and we visited several cities on the East Coast. I had been a history major in my undergrad years and had taught American Literature for almost four decades by then. We visited Boston, Providence, Salem, Block Island, and Newport. We indulged in many of the historical sites like the Freedom Walk, the Old North Church, the Granary Burying Ground, King’s Chapel, and the U.S.S. Constitution.
Literary sites were also on the list with The House of the Seven Gables and Spenser’s Boylston Street. When we got to Newport, we had to visit two Vanderbilt houses and the Marble House. We took the Cliff Walk and marveled at all the history from my favorite historical period, The Gilded Age. In a gift shop in Newport, I bought this straw purse, and every time I use it, it reminds me of this trip and the amazing time we had.
About the Book:
Poisons, Poppets, and the Past. Oh, My!
Retired teacher Grace Kimball is elated when former student Fiona Mackenzie returns to Endurance to make burial plans for her recently deceased mother, Sybil Mackenzie. But this will be no ordinary funeral because Fiona’s mother—a self-proclaimed witch—died in prison following a sensational Endurance murder trial ten years earlier. Detective TJ Sweeney doesn’t need witchcraft or visions to know Sybil Mackenzie’s presence—dead or alive—will rekindle anger in the residents of the small town.
When the judge from Sybil’s trial is poisoned, the evidence points toward Fiona, the witch’s child. Who else has a garden full of poisonous plants? Who else lost her mother to ten years in prison? Who knows the kind of dark magic the witch’s child can create? Her mother put a curse on all involved in her trial. Has Fiona returned to get revenge?
TJ finds other suspects ripe with motives to murder. Add vicious whispers and malicious rumors in the local coffee shops, pushy reporters looking for a story, and clashing opinions on social media. The town of Endurance is like a tinderbox just waiting for someone to light a match. Can Grace and TJ find the judge’s killer before that match is struck?
About the Author:
Susan Van Kirk is the President of the Guppy Chapter of Sisters in Crime and a writer of mysteries. She lives at the center of the universe—the Midwest—and writes during the
ridiculously cold and icy winters. Why leave the house and break something? Van Kirk taught forty-four years in high school and college and raised three children. Miraculously, she has low blood pressure. She has written the Endurance Mysteries composed of four novels and a novella, and A Death at Tippitt Pond. Level Best Books will be publishing the first book of her Art Center Mysteries, Death in a Pale Hue, on June 7, 2022. She is a member of Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime.
Questions:
Red, White or Blue? Blue—it’s always cool colors.
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter? Spring in the Midwest
Cake or Pie? Definitely pie
Coffee, Tea, or Champagne? Coffee
Country music or Michael Buble? Not really. Classic Rock
Pencil or Pen? Pencil
Find The Witch's Child at: Amazon
Find Susan Van Kirk at: Website
April 14, 2022
Blog: Favorite Handbag and Book with author Martha Crites - Oh, the Places You Have Gone and her book
This old Keen handbag isn’t lovely, but oh, the places it has been: 7 trips to Spain, 5 to Mexico and 1 each to Puerto Rico, Portugal and France. Most of my trips were related to the Camino de Santiago, the medieval pilgrimage route through Spain. Mexico and Puerto Rico could be considered either language practice or getting warm during Seattle winters. Though my handbag never got to walk the Camino (lucky Vicki didn’t ask for a photo of my favorite backpack), this purse was my airplane favorite and patiently waited in hotel luggage rooms during my long walks. I stuffed it for this picture, but I usually travel light. The Camino has inspired many memoirs, but I haven’t included it in a mystery novel yet. In my recent book, Danger to Others, I sent my amateur sleuth’s daughter to Spain just in case. Maybe that would work for a short story!
Thousands of pilgrims arrive in Santiago each year. None of us ever forget the time spent walking in nature and the camaraderie formed with people from all over the world. Some of us return again and again. This October I’ll serve as a volunteer host in an albergue, a hostel where only pilgrims stay. My handbag can’t wait. If you’d like to learn more about the Camino, you can visit American Pilgrims on the Camino online.
Here’s a tip about that water bottle, a Nalgene flask from REI. It’s light and fits a handbag much better that something big and round, but back in the US, I took a sip in a coffee shop one day while waiting for my order. The barista nearly kicked me out, thinking that I was drinking the hard stuff—be aware!
About the Book:
Late October in the Pacific Northwest foothills brings more than a change of season. Psychiatric evaluator Grace Vaccaro is on edge. A field evaluation gone wrong leads to a shooting, Grace’s mother has died and ghosts from her family past are everywhere. When a young psychiatric patient says she killed her therapist, Grace suspects it’s a delusion until she escapes from the hospital.
About Martha Crites:
Martha Crites worked in community mental health for many years and taught at the Quileute Tribal School on the Washington coast. When she isn’t working and writing, you will find her
walking and volunteering on the Camino de Santiago, the medieval pilgrimage trail in Spain. Her first novel, Grave Disturbance, was a finalist for the Pacific Northwest Writers Association's Nancy Pearl Award. Her second Grace Vaccaro mystery was just released. Martha’s short work has been featured in the anthology, Camino de Santiago: a spiritual companion. She lives with her husband and their nearly perfect Labrador retriever in Seattle, Washington.
Answer these questions:
Red, White or Blue? White. I just bought a white ukulele for travel.
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter? Fall.
Cake or Pie? I usually don’t go for cake but have you ever baked Julia Child’s Queen of Sheba Cake?
Coffee, Tea, or Champagne? Coffee, please.
Country music or Michael Buble? I started learning the ukulele during the pandemic and country music suits this beginner perfectly—3 chords.
Pencil or Pen? Pilot G-2 10. In blue, not that I’m picky.
Find DANGER TO OTHERS at: Amazon Buy Link
Visit Martha at: https://marthacrites.com
April 8, 2022
Favorite Movie and Book: Author M S Spencer-It's Romantic! It's Hilarious
Ninotchka (1939). From IMDb: “A stern Soviet woman sent to Paris to supervise the sale of jewels seized from Russian nobles finds herself attracted to a man who represents everything she is supposed to detest.”
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Directed by Ernst Lubitsch, starring Greta Garbo & Melvyn Douglas, it’s the only movie in which Garbo laughs. It’s romantic, but also hilarious. Filmed before WWII broke out, the Communists were still a fairly unknown quantity, and the greatest conflict was between the White Russians (pro-Tsar and mostly aristocrats) and the Red Russians.
It portrays the new USSR accurately (censorship, fear, oppression) versus the free Europe but in such a lighthearted, human way that it manages to be heartwarming. It’s also close to my heart because at the end of the movie the comic relief trio of Russian envoys open a restaurant in Istanbul—a restaurant that still existed in the 1970s when I went there!
About the Book:
Barnaby and Philo’s story begins with very bad chili and a dead body.
Barnaby is in St. Augustine, Florida, to teach a college seminar, and plans to use The Secret—a treasure hunt book—as a framework for his class. He enlists Philo Brice, owner of an antique map store, to aid him in seeking clues in the historic sites of the ancient city.
Together they face murderers, thieves, thugs, and fanatics, heightening their already strong attraction to each other. Can they solve the puzzle and unearth the treasure before the villains do? Philo and Barnaby pursue several twisting paths and false leads before arriving at a startling conclusion.
About the Author:
Librarian, anthropologist, Congressional aide, speechwriter—M. S. Spencer has traveled the
globe. She has published fifteen romantic suspense or murder mystery novels, with two more on the way. She has two fabulous grown children and an incredible granddaughter. She divides her time between the Gulf Coast of Florida and a tiny village in Maine.
Answer these questions:
Red, White or Blue? : All three (they go together so well!)
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter? Spring in Florida; Fall in Maine
Cake or Pie? Me-oh-my, pie!
Coffee, Tea, or Champagne? Champagne for breakfast, lunch & dinner
Country music or Michael Buble? Country all the way; not sure who Buble is.
Pencil or Pen? Pen, even for crosswords.
Find Hidden Gem: the Secret of St. Augustine at: books2read
Find M. S. Spencer at: Website
