Book Clubbed On Tour {+ Giveaway}

It’s a pleasure to welcome New York Times bestselling author Lorna Barrett here today to talk about BOOK CLUBBED, the latest installment in her Booktown Mystery series.

Lorna has her hands full this month as BOOK CLUBBED (Book #8) was released in hardcover and NOT THE KILLING TYPE (Book #7) was released in mass market paperback. To celebrate these releases, thanks to Lorna and the lovely Danielle at Penguin Group, I have a print copy of BOOK CLUBBED to giveaway. Please see the end of the post for details.

Here’s a brief look at BOOK CLUBBED:

Bookstore owner Tricia Miles and her sister, Angelica, put their own problems on the shelf to catch a killer who turns a bookcase into a murder weapon…
      Cranky Chamber of Commerce receptionist Betsy Dittmeyer is done reading people the riot act. After she’s crushed by a fallen bookcase, the next item to be read is her last will and testament—which is packed with surprises. It soon comes to light that Betsy was hiding volumes of dark secrets behind that perpetual frown of hers—and one of them just might have been a motive for murder.
      While Tricia tries to help Angelica—the newly elected Chamber of Commerce president and Betsy’s boss—solve the mystery, she discovers a hidden chapter in her own family history that rocks her to her very core. And with her ex-husband and the chief of police vying for her affections, it’s doubly hard to focus on who might have buried Betsy in a tomb of tomes.
      But as Tricia and Angelica try to read between the lines, they need to watch their step…and make sure the killer doesn’t catch them between the stacks.

Please join me in welcoming Lorna as she graciously answers some questions about her books.

You have two books out today, the new hardcover, BOOK CLUBBED in hardcover, and NOT THE KILLING TYPE in paperback, so you are doing double duty promoting both. Tricia is wonderful character, where do you get your inspiration for her adventures?

Lorna:
I have no idea. They just come to me.

Not The Killing Type was a lot of fun to write, but I think I enjoyed writing Book Clubbed even more, I’ve just finished Booktown #9, which I’m calling A Fatal Chapter. Not sure if that will be the final title, though. They get changed a lot.

I like to play with various ideas. The idea of a Chamber of Commerce election seemed like a great jumping off point for Not The Killing Type. For Book Clubbed, I decided the Chamber president needed a new reception—that meant bumping off the old one. I had a wonderful time coming up with her life history.

Is the fictional Booktown based on a real place?

Lorna:
The town was inspired by the real Hay on Wey, but since I’ve never been there … have no idea if it resembles it in any way. (And probably not a bit.) But the idea of a village with a lot of used bookstores was the germ of the idea for the series.

What authors do you enjoy?

Lorna:
I reread Barbara Michaels and Dick Francis a lot. For fun, I like Mary Kay Andrews, and I enjoy cozies by my friends: Leann Sweeney, Ellery Adams, Mary Jane Maffini (Victoria Abbott) and Mary Kenney, just to name a few.

What are reading for fun right now?

Lorna:
An advance review copy for a new cozy mystery series. It’s a lot of fun.

If money was no object and you could escape to anywhere in the world to write where would you go and what do you think the book would be about?

Lorna:
I’ve been on three cruises in the last two years and spent most of my time writing. Getting away from the Internet is great for productivity. (Sadly, I don’t have that kind of discipline at home.) I can (and have and will again) write anywhere at any time. But if I had a choice, I’d go back to England and stay a few months. I have no idea what I’d write, but I’d write something.

Lorna, thanks for visiting and sharing this insight into your writing. England sounds like a wonderful place to write.

Now a bit of background on Lorna for those who aren’t familiar with her.

The immensely popular Booktown Mystery series is what put Lorna Barrett’s name on the New York Times Bestseller list, but it’s her talent -- whether writing as Lorna, or L.L. Bartlett, or Lorraine Bartlett -- that keeps her there. 

This multi-published, Agatha-nominated author pens the exciting Jeff Resnick Mysteries, as well as the acclaimed Victoria Square Mystery series and the Tales of Telenia saga, and has many short stories and novellas to her name(s). 

Check out the descriptions and links to all her works, and sign up for her emailed newsletter here: http://www.LornaBarrett.com/

GIVEAWAY DETAILS:

This giveaway is for one print copy of BOOK CLUBBED. The giveaway is open to U.S. residents only and will end Tuesday, July 15. 

To enter, just click on the Rafflecopter widget below and following the instructions. The widget may take a few seconds to load, so please be patient. The winner from this giveaway will have 72 hours to respond after being contacted or another winner will be selected. The email will have ‘Thoughts in Progress Lorna Barrett’s Tour’ in the subject line, just so you know what to watch for (in case it goes into your spam folder).

Thanks so much for stopping by today. Where do you think would be a great location to write a book?

*This post contains affiliate links. a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sunday Salon: Chapter & Hearse by Lorna Barrett

Stoneham, New Hampshire, is a book lovers paradise with a street lined with various specialty bookstores. But a cookbook signing is just the beginning of an explosive night in the peaceful little town.

When no one attends a book signing for her sister, Angelica, bookstore owner Tricia Miles goes out to roundup Angelica’s boyfriend Bob Kelly and find out why he was absent from the signing. Before she reaches the history book store where she believes he is, an explosion destroys the building killing the store owner and sending Bob to the hospital.

With Angelica scheduled to go on a book tour the next day, she talks Tricia into looking in on Bob for her. When Bob avoids Tricia’s questions about the events prior the explosion, she becomes suspicious. Meanwhile, Angelica has her own share of bad luck on her tour - slashed tires, busted headlights and the like.

Despite being called the town jinx, Tricia can’t help but begin to do some investigating on her own. The more she investigates, the more she realizes she has to find the killer before her sister is the next victim.

Author Lorna Barrett weaves together a number of interesting sub-plots involving the secondary characters. Their daily troubles add to the twists and turns of this delightful cozy murder mystery.

CHAPTER & HEARSE is the fourth installment in the Booktown Mystery series, but it is a stand alone book. There are references to prior events involving the characters but the reader isn’t left in the dark if they haven’t read any of the previous books.

Recipes are included in the back of the book as an added bonus. In addition, there is a preview of the new Victoria Square Mysteries by Lorraine Bartlett, A CRAFTY KILLING, coming February 2011.

CHAPTER & HEARSE is a suspenseful adventure that will keep you guessing right up until the end. There’s murder, mayhem, romance, humor and intrigue, what more could you want?

 Lorna Barrett’s website is http://www.lornabarrett.com

Chapter & Hearse by Lorna Barrett, A Booktown Mystery, Berkley Prime Crime, @2010, ISBN: 978-0-425-23601-7, Paperback, 352 pages

FTC Full Disclosure - This book was sent to me by the publisher in hopes I would review it. However, receiving the complimentary copy did not influence my review.