Guest Blogger: Edith Maxwell/Maddie Day – Two Releases in One Month!

Two Releases in One Month! by Edith Maxwell/Maddie Day

First, big thanks and a (virtual hug) to my buddy Debra for hosting me here. It’s been so fun watching our careers develop on parallel tracks. Please read down for a double giveaway.

But two new books in September, you ask? Yes, I am in the enviable (maybe) and crazy position of having two mysteries release in a single month. Taken Too Soon, the sixth Quaker Midwife Mystery (written as Edith Maxwell), came out September 8th. Candy Slain Murder, number eight in the Country Store Mysteries (penned by my alter ego Maddie Day), releases on the 28th. Yes, from two different publishers. Beyond the Page and Kensington arrange their schedules without consulting me, thus the convergence.

So what’s an author to do? How do I promote and celebrate two books simultaneously?

Three years ago I was in the same position, with new books in these same two series both coming out in April. Back then, of course, we were having lovely events like in-person launch parties. I threw one, as I have many times, at Jabberwocky Bookshop, my local indy. I made sugar cookies from the 1880s and Kahlua Brownies from Pans ‘N Pancakes, my fictional Country Store restaurant. I brought my Quaker bonnet and a Hoosiers ball cap.

Here’s what happened. In front of about fifty fans, friends, and family, Edith and Maddie interviewed each other. Maddie picked up her Indiana cap and asked Edith a question about Called to Justice. Then I (Edith) switched positions (and hats), answered the question, and asked Maddie something about When the Grits Hit the Fan. It was fun, and people loved it. I signed lots of copies of both books afterward, too.

Now what to do? Should I repeat the dual self interview? Nah. Been there, done that. There are a couple of common threads between Taken Too Soon and Candy Slain Murder – except I can’t tell you because it would spoil both stories. But I hope you’ll read the two books and tell me what you find.

So I’m sitting tight and writing posts like these and others. Please check my web site for a list of other guest posts, including at least one post featuring a recipe from the book. And – I do have a box of Candy Slain Murder. I’d love to give away a signed copy to one of you and an ebook of Taken Too Soon to another.

Readers: Which other authors do you read who write under different names? Do you prefer historical mystery or contemporary?

Taken Too Soon

Quaker midwife Rose Carroll’s maiden aunt calls Rose to Cape Cod with her new husband when Tillie’s teenage ward is found dead. Rose and David’s modest honeymoon turns into a murder investigation. A Native midwife and her family are among the suspects, as is David’s own brother. With the help of the local detective, Rose digs in the shifting sands of the case until the murderer is revealed.

Candy Slain Murder

As December sweeps through South Lick, Indiana, Robbie Jordan’s life seems merry and as bright as the string lights glistening around town – until things get bumpy. A man claims to be the long-lost half-brother of Robbie’s assistant. A fire destroys the home of a controversial anesthesiologist, exposing skeletal remains in his attic. Unavoidably intrigued, all Robbie wants for Christmas is to stop her winter wonderland from becoming a real nightmare. With a decades-old mystery taking shape, can she run as fast as she can in pursuit of a killer who’s harder to crack than a stale gingerbread man?

 

Maddie Day pens the Country Store Mysteries and the Cozy Capers Book Group Mysteries. Agatha Award winning Edith Maxwell writes the historical Quaker Midwife Mysteries and short crime fiction. With twenty-two mysteries in print and more underway, Maxwell lives with her beau and their energizer kitten north of Boston, where she writes, gardens, cooks, and wastes time on Facebook. She hopes you’ll find her on social media under both names and at her web site.

 

 

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