Mysteries with a Southern Accent
Crazy for Words is mystery author, Heather Weidner's blog on writing, reading, and anything that catches her interest.
Happy Mermaid Day! I’ve added this to the list of my holidays since I write the Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mysteries.
Here’s a list of Mermaid Advice that I received from mystery author Jayne Ormerod. Enjoy your celebration!
“Sea” life’s beauty.
Avoid “pier” pressure.
Take time to coast.
Make waves.
Be sure of yourself.
Don’t be “shellfish.”
Seize the day.
What have you been reading this fall? I’ve been in my editing cave a lot lately with the two books that are coming out early next year, so I haven’t been reading as much as I like to. And there are so many new books out there that look like a lot of fun. So far this fall, I’ve been reading Eve Calder, Catherine Bruns, Julie Anne Lindsey, Jenn McKinlay, Spencer Quinn, Vivien Chien, Lee Goldberg, Kristin Kisska, Libby Klein, Tina Kashian, Sarah Fox, and Paige Shelton. All are great reads. If you haven’t already, add them to your TBR list.
Recently I finished John Grisham’s THE EXCHANGE and Janet Evanovich’s DIRTY THIRTY. I recently found Eve Calder’s series on the Cookie House. What fun. I can’t wait to read more.
What has been your fall favorite?
I was so busy this summer with the day-gig thing and some upcoming book projects that the time and warm weather slipped away from me.
What did you do on your summer vacation? I wrote a lot of recommendations and proposals and did a boatload of end-of-year performance reviews. I also wrote two short stories for two anthology projects, and I completed two novels. They are the sixth book in the Jules Keene Glamping series and the second one in the Pearly Girls Mystery series. (And as of this morning, I’m almost at the half-way point for the third Pearly Girls one.)
I’m gearing up for some book launches, too. Christmas Lights and Catfights comes out in October. That’s the third in the Jules Keene series. The second in the Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mysteries, Twinkle Twinkle Au Revoir drops in January. And the brand new Pearly Girls Mystery launches in the spring. It’s called Murder Strikes a Chord.
What have you been up to? I’ve got a lot of fall events scheduled, and I think I may need to plan an autumn vacation.
What were your favorite summer reads? I love all kinds of books, but I always gravitate to mysteries and thrillers. Lee Goldberg is one of my new favorites.
This summer, I went back and read all of the Michael Connelly books I had missed. I am such a fan of Bosch and the Lincoln Lawyer. And I like how his Renee Ballard character is evolving. Now, I am all caught up and can’t wait for the next one.
I am such a fan girl of S. A. Cosby. I love his stories, and I get so excited every time a new one comes out. He is a must read if you like southern suspense.
Some of my favorite cozy mysteries this summer were by Maddie Day, Vicki Delany, Barbara Ross, Mindy Quigley, and Maria DiRico.
What’s your next read?
I have been a fan on mysteries since Scooby-Doo and Nancy Drew. I loved all the 70s Saturday morning cartoons where the amateur sleuths solved the crimes and capers…”The Funky Phantom,” “Josie and the Pussycats,” “Speed Buggy,” “The Pink Panther.” The list is long. These were definitely my gateway mysteries to my current habit.
I read lots of genres, but I always gravitate n to the mystery. It has so many interesting subgenres and has been a reading staple for so many for generations.
Here are my Top 10 reasons…
I love a good puzzle and the opportunity to solve it before the end of the book.
I want to see justice served in the end.
Mysteries are an escape from the craziness of normal life.
Cozy mystery sleuths always have interesting jobs and hobbies. I like to learn new things.
The locations are intriguing. I love take book vacations to all kinds of interesting places.
The amateur sleuths are fun. They prove that every-day people can solve crimes. (As a kid, I loved that Nancy Drew was a teenager with a car who could solve crimes before the adults did.)
The mystery genre has so many subgenres that there is something for every taste. I bounce around from sweet and cozy (but deadly) to dark thrillers that keep me up at night.
I love puns, double entendre, and other kinds of wordplay. Mystery writers are masters at multiple meanings, clues, and red herrings.
I am fascinated with technology, pop culture, and science, and they all appear everywhere in this genre.
The community of mystery writers is so amazingly kind and generous with their time and advice. It is such a fabulous group to be a part of. I just came back from the Malice Domestic Conference in Bethesda, MD, and it was a whirlwind weekend full of so many mystery writers and readers.
And that’s why I love mysteries. What would you add to my list?
I am so excited. My new cozy mystery series by Level Best Books is launching in January, and it’s the Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mysteries.
I am a beach girl, so this has been so much fun to write. Jade Hicks is the owner of ‘Tis the Season, a Christmas shoppe in the tiny town of Mermaid Bay, Virginia. It’s near the Historic Triangle on the coast near Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown. Jade spends most of her days (and nights) striving to keep the store viable in today’s crazy world.
Jade has a great team who helps her keep the brick-and-mortar store open year-round to cater to tourists during beach season. They are Peppermint Patti Hall, the bubbly ball of energy who has the world’s largest Ugly Christmas Sweater collection, Lorelei Tucker, the fashion plate of an aunt who keeps her ear close to the Mermaid Bay gossip mill, and Bernie Nash, Jade’s part-time handyman and Santa doppelganger. They help her share the Christmas spirit with the locals and thousands of visitors who flock to our town that prides itself in preserving the historic traditions of a bygone era.
Jade’s trusty sidekick and faithful companion is Chloe, a French bulldog who likes long walks on the beach, frequent naps, and plenty of snacks. She’s a good ambassador for the store. Though she grudgingly shares that role with the tuxedo cat, Neville (the Devil Cat) who really rules the showrooms with his iron paw.
Sticks and Stones and a Bag of Bones is the first in the series. They will be followed by Twinkle Twinkle Au Revoir and A Tisket a Tasket Not Another Casket.
Sticks and Stones and a Bag of Bones opens with the town’s big Christmas in July festivities that include a lighted boat parade, a fun run in the sand, and a Christmas craft show. Before all the hubbub starts, Jade and Chloe start their day with a quiet walk on the beach to enjoy the sounds and smells of the shore. It was the perfect beach day. The puffy white clouds floated above the bay, dotted with a few ships on the horizon. Seagulls and sandpipers outnumbered the people, and the lapping of the waves on the wet sand provided a soothing soundtrack. All was quiet until a scream rang out and shattered the peace.
An early morning jogger tripped over something in the sand that turned out to be a suitcase that had washed ashore. Its contents, a collection of bones, a skull, and rusty pistol spilled out onto the sand and drew a small crowd of gawkers. The gruesome discovery, along with some cryptic warning notes that some of the local business owners received a few days earlier, rock the small community. Word spreads like wildfire, and the town leaders schedule an emergency meeting to decide what to do about the weekend’s festivities and the macabre find.
Thankfully, calmer heads prevail, and the Sheriff (and Jade’s handsome boyfriend) Nick Driscoll reminds everyone that his office had stepped up security. There didn’t seem to be any imminent threats, and he warns everyone to be cautious. His investigation is ongoing, so he didn’t offer any more details, and unfortunately, that didn’t calm some of the jangled nerves. In the absence of an explanation, rumors about mob hits and murders fly around faster than a pickup game of Frisbee.
Jade and most of the other business owners in town are excited about the upcoming festivities. The hope is that this will be the start of a new annual tradition for Mermaid Bay, and a night that everyone in the town will never forget.
Here’s the cover of the first book in the Mermaid Bay Christmas Shoppe Mysteries. I am so excited that Chloe made the cover. (Neville the Devil Cat will be jealous when he finds out.)
What have you been reading lately? I have finally caught up to present day with Louise Penny and Robert Crais’s novels. I love them all.
I’m still working my way through Michael Connelly’s series, but I’m getting closer. I love Harry Bosch, Mickey Haller, and Renee Ballard. All of his novels are well worth the read (and the TV/movie interpretations are good, too.)
I also found a Patricia Cornwell novel that I hadn’t read, BLACK NOTICE. It was good. She was living in Richmond when we moved here, and I remember driving around town looking for the local spots in her books.
Recently, I read Mia Manansala’s ARSENIC AND ADOBO. What a great mystery, and I can’t wait to read more of her work. I also forgot how funny Laura Levine is. Her mysteries are engaging, fast reads.
And on the thriller side, I absolutely loved Steve Berry’s THE OMEGA FACTOR. This heist story with religious and historic implications has so many twists and turns. It’s fast-paced and packed full of adventure.
What have you been reading lately?
My TBR piles grow every week. Every time I think I’ve made a dent, there are so many new things to add. Here’s what I’ve been reading so far this summer. It’s an eclectic mix of mysteries, suspense, thrillers, police procedurals, and classics.
I have finally caught up with all of Louise Penny’s novels. I love all of my visits to Three Pines. The stories are well done, and the characters are old friends by now.
After watching the new Lincoln Lawyer and the Bosch reboot, I realized that I haven’t read all of the Michael Connelly books. I love the Lincoln Lawyer and Harry Bosch. Renee Ballard is growing on me. Connelly is a master with characters and action, and I’m working my way through his collection.
Elle Cosimono’s Finlay Donovan is a very funny character. Her adventures are fun reads. Nancy Cole Silveman’s The Navigator’s Daughter, is a page-turning historical mystery.
My favorite cozies this spring/summer are from Ellen Byron’s new Vintage Cookbook Mysteries, Julie Anne Lindsey/Bree Baker, Sherry Harris’s Chloe Jackson Mysteries, Libby Klein’s Poppy McAllister Mysteries, anything by Diane Kelly, and Jackie Layton.
Originally from Virginia Beach, Heather Weidner has been a mystery fan since Scooby Doo and Nancy Drew. She currently lives in Central Virginia with her husband and a pair of Jack Russell terriers.
Heather writes the Delanie Fitzgerald mystery series for readers who like humorous mysteries with a strong, female sleuth.
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