Hi there. My name is Kari Lee Townsend, and MAYHEM ON THE MIND is the fifth book in my Kalli Ballas Mystery series. Think MONK meets MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING! I sure do have a blast writing these books with the crazy Greek mamas getting into all sorts of trouble. Kalli is adopted, and her boyfriend Detective Nik Stevens is only half Greek, but that’s Greek enough. The mamas have babies on the mind. Meanwhile, Kalli and Nik haven’t even finished the remodel on the house they split, let alone talked about marriage and babies. They’re turning their two apartments into one house, but when a murder happens, mayhem ensues and any plans for the future are put on hold. I hope everyone is coping with this crazy winter and that our spring will be fabulous reading weather.   M is for Mamas – Greek or otherwise who cause all sorts of mischief! A is for Aphrodite’s – Kalli’s parents’ Greek restaurant. H is for Hera’s Halo – Aunt Tasoula’s pride and joy salon. E is for Evil – Aunt Tasoula’s arch nemesis winds up dead at their 40th class reunion, and she’s the number one suspect! Evil is…

I know what you’re thinking. The holidays are over – but not at Mermaid Bay’s absolutely adorable year-round Christmas Shoppe! Who doesn’t buy a holiday ornament while on vacation? I think I could fill two trees with destination ornaments, so this memorable series grabbed my attention right away, especially when I read about secondary character Peppermint Patti. Score! Rest easy dear reader, mystery author Heather Weidner isn’t writing about Saint Nick in January, in her second Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mystery, TWINKLE TWINKLE AU REVOIR she’s celebrating another special holiday with St. Valentine! Cozy authors know all about the best meet cutes in fiction, they just like to do it with towns, pets, secondary characters, and if there’s a love interest involved you’re sure to get a heartwarming introduction there too – Nick – Weidner’s buff sheriff version of the saint who likes to deliver gifts of justice all year round. With her love theme set from page one, Ms. Weidner takes readers on a delightful trip through Mermaid Bay which looks the same as it did in the 1950s – the perfect setting for the Love Channel’s television production of My Coastal Valentine. Are you in love yet? I…

1–What is the title of your latest release? PUBLIC ANCHOVY #1 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? A modern “dark and stormy night” whodunnit that winks at a lot of classic mystery tropes. Oh, and there’s pizza and cats. 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? My series is set in a very thinly-veiled version of Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, a resort town with an interesting history as a mob hideout and millionaire’s playground. Playing off of that, I chose a real location for the main location in Public Anchovy #1—a turn-of-the-century lakeside mansion called Black Point that was built by a beer baron. I lightly fictionalized it, transforming it into the isolated “Bluff Point.” 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Absolutely! Delilah O’Leary amps up some of my own personality traits, which is both good and bad. She’s very type A, but also funny and brave. Plus, since she’s a chef, whenever she’s around, there’s always good food. I would love to get together with her and the entire staff of her restaurant for “family meal,” the simple, homey staff meal that’s often dished up before or after service….

1–What is the title of your latest release? Thank you so much for hosting me on Fresh Fiction.  My latest release is HARD DOUGH HOMICIDE. It’s the second book in my Spice Isle Bakery Mystery culinary cozy mystery series, which I write as Olivia Matthews   2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? Here it goes: When her mother’s former boss is poisoned at an event catered by their family-owned bakery, a baker leads an investigation to uncover who had the ingredients for murder and the appetite to frame her mother.   3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? Great question! Like me, my protagonists are West Indian Americans, so it seemed perfect to set them in the Little Caribbean neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York. That’s where I grew up.   4–Would you hang out with your sleuth in real life? Absolutely! Especially if she brought me pastries from her bakery. Ha!   5–What are three words that describe your sleuth? Only three? OK. Loyal. Smart. And, although she’d disagree with me, brave. The reason she’d disagree is that she views herself as a scaredy cat, but it takes courage to face your fears….

Book Title: THE DOG ACROSS THE LAKE Character Name: Holly Miller   How would you describe your family or your childhood? I have a big, wonderful family, but it hasn’t always been that way. For starters, my parents were still in high school when I arrived. At the start, no one except my mom and dad were excited about me. I’m told I was everyone’s little princess when I was born, though. How could the first grandchild on both sides not be everyone’s favorite? Years later, my parents divorced, married other people, and had more children. That was a tough time for me. I spent most of my holiday vacations in airports, trying to fly across the country from one family to another. And I had half siblings whom I barely knew. I was older and never spent much time with any of them. It was awkward at best, and I was usually uncomfortable because I felt like an outsider. On the other hand, when I was a child, my parents sent me to spend my summers in Wagtail with my maternal grandmother, whom I call Oma, German for grandma. Those summers were the best. My aunt sent my cousin,…

1–What is the title of your latest release? HALLO-WAIIAN MURDER MYSTERY, #20 of the Aloha Lagoon Mysteries. 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? It’s Halloween in Aloha Lagoon, and dive tour leader Kiki Hepburn is hot on the trail of a killer – a trail which takes her to gardens of flowering poisonous plants, an animal shelter, and a zombie themed “Hallo-wedding”, with something stalking her every move… 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? It is part of the Aloha Lagoon series, so it is set at the Aloha Lagoon resort. I decided to make it at Halloween so I could have even more fun writing it! 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Yes, I would definitely go diving with Kiki! 5–What are three words that describe your protagonist? Smart, resourceful, and underestimated. 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? Poisonous plants. I was shocked to see how many plants I grew up playing with in my mom’s garden are actually poisonous! 7–Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done? I do a little as I write, but usually try to just…

Kate Carlisle is the New York Times bestselling author of two ongoing series: the Bibliophile Mysteries featuring San Francisco bookbinder Brooklyn Wainwright, whose rare book restoration skills uncover old secrets, treachery and murder; and the Fixer-Upper Mysteries (as seen on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries), featuring Shannon Hammer, a home contractor who discovers not only skeletons in her neighbors’ closets, but murder victims, too. Her latest Bibliophile Mystery is THE TWELVE BOOKS OF CHRISTMAS.   There are a lot of fabulous Christmas mystery books on the shelves. One of the things we love about Christmas books of any genre is the familiarity of the traditions. Reading about a familiar tradition is like hearing a beloved song—it immerses us immediately in the feeling of a happy memory. When I sat down to write THE TWELVE BOOKS OF CHRISTMAS, I made sure to include lots of the cozy holiday traditions that readers expect and want. I mean, just look at the cover! This scene comes straight from the book and is wonderfully drenched in all things Christmas. But the readers who pick up my books also crave knowledge—they want to be entertained, yes, but they also want to learn something. And they’re voracious….

1–What is the title of your latest release? HALLO-WAIIAN MURDER MYSTERY 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? It’s Halloween in Aloha Lagoon, and dive tour leader Kiki Hepburn is hot on the trail of a killer – a trail which takes her to gardens of flowering poisonous plants, an animal shelter, and a zombie themed “Hallo-wedding,” with something stalking her every move… 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? It is part of the Aloha Lagoon series, so it is set at the Aloha Lagoon resort. I decided to make it at Halloween so I could have even more fun writing it! 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Yes, I would definitely go diving with Kiki! 5–What are three words that describe your protagonist? Smart, resourceful, and underestimated. 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? Poisonous plants. I was shocked to see how many plants I grew up playing with in my mom’s garden are actually poisonous! 7–Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done? I do a little as I write, but usually try to just get the story out. After I’m…

Autumn is just around the corner and it’s time to knit a murder plot! Or maybe you would prefer to cook-up a scheme to blame another for your deadly deeds. Actually, why don’t we let the pros take on the crimes the way it ought to be done—on the page in a great mystery that will entertain you for hours. This month I’m featuring two wonderful novels by two seasoned writers who know how to weave layers of suspense into their intrigue. It’s all about the heroines to the rescue when the innocent are framed to take the fall in a brutal game of collusion and complicity and what better champions can we have than a best friend or a grandma?   KILLER HOOKS by Betty Hechtman releases September 26th and SIEVE AND LET DIE by Victoria Hamilton will be available on October 17th. Add these two books to your library and indulge in two delicious fall treats that won’t hurt your waistline. (Spoiler alert: the snacks you munch on while engrossed in these two page-turners may be bad for your health—choose wisely!) Killer Hooks Crochet Mysteries Book 15 9/26/23 Betty Hechtman KILLER HOOKS by Betty Hechtman Crochet Mysteries #15 Molly Pink…

1–What is the title of your latest release? PUPS, PUMPKINS AND MURDER 2–What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book? When Samantha Davies finds a murdered man—crushed beneath a 2,000-pound pumpkin! – her upstate New York fall suddenly turns very chilly. And when her good friend and owner of the local cafe becomes the police’s prime suspect, Sam takes it up on herself to find the real killer. With her faithful dachshund, Porkchop, by her side, can Sam get to the truth… before the killer gets to her? 3–How did you decide where your book was going to take place? I lie in an area in Upstate New York that is dotted with small towns. I thought what better place than Wings Falls where just about everyone knows who you are to have murders happen. 4–Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life? Absolutely. She loves to do many of the same things I do—rug hook, write, wear yoga pants, owns a dachshund. A girl definitely after my own heart. 5–What are three words that describe your protagonist? Loyal, spunky, and determined 6–What’s something you learned while writing this book? To let my characters lead the way. This…