Saturday, October 13, 2018

BOOK TOUR


I'm so excited to be a stop on the blog tour for
GLITTER BOMB
Book 15 in the New Orleans Scrapbooking Mysteries
by Laura Childs
with
Terrie Farley Moran


An exploding Mardi Gras float has got to be the strangest murder weapon scrappy sleuth Carmela Bertrand has ever encountered in this latest Scrapbooking Mystery from the New York Times bestselling author.

It's Mardi Gras in New Orleans and scrapbook shop owner Carmela Bertrand is excited to be attending the Pluvius Parade along with her best friend Ava. Carmela's ex-husband Shamus rides by the duo on his float at the head of the parade, when suddenly the revelry turns to disaster. Shamus' float crashes and explodes, and although Shamus escapes unhurt, a member of his krewe is killed.

Carmela and Ava plunge into an investigation of the krewe-member's death, but as they dig deeper it starts to look less like an accident and more like a murder....and Shamus seems less like a victim, and more like a suspect.


Lisa Ks Interview with Laura Childs,
New York Times Bestselling Author of
Glitter Bomb, a New Orleans Scrapbook Mystery.


Laura, thank you for being here today!

Hey, Lisa K, it’s absolutely my pleasure. This is the exciting part – you finish a book, it finally pubs, and now you get to talk about it!


Please tell us a bit about Glitter Bomb.

Scrapbook shop owner Carmela and her BFF Ava are excited for Mardi Gras. After all, what’s better than a week of parades, parties, beignets, and beads? But while watching the Pluvius parade in the French Quarter, the King Neptune float explodes, sending a plume of glitter into the night sky – and killing a local hedge fund bigwig. Carmela’s ex-husband Shamus is tossed from the float, too, but soon becomes a key suspect. Running her own shadow investigation, Carmela tries to clear Shamus while dodging the watchful eye of her fiancée Detective Edgar Babcock. Haunted cemeteries, a fashion show, sports car rally, party at the zoo, and hungry alligators round out the mystery – proving that New Orleans is a favorite go-to spot for visitors as well as readers.


How did you come up with the concept?

Once I stood on Napoleon Avenue and watched those enormous, sparkling Mardi Gras floats emerge from the darkness, I knew it was the perfect opening scene for a murder mystery.


What are your future plans for this series? Any hints or spoilers you can give us about the next book?

Glitter Bomb is the 15th book in the New Orleans Scrapbook Mystery series and it certainly won’t be the last. Right now, Terrie Farley Moran and I are just finishing up Mumbo Gumbo Murder, which pubs next year. And I’m noodling ideas for Cadmium Red Dead, the next in the series.


Is writing an energizing experience, or does it take a lot out of you?

I spent several years as an advertising writer/producer and then 20 years as the CEO of my own ad agency, so writing is basically my day job. It doesn’t energize me, it doesn’t wear me down. And as long as I write every day, the words and ideas (luckily) keep flowing.


Once you knew you wanted to be a published author, who was the first person you reached out to for help?

A dear friend introduced me to Mary Higgins Clark, who invited me to attend a Mystery Writers of America symposium in New York. There, thanks to Mary’s help, I was able to network with dozens of agents, editors, and publishers. Within 5 months I was lucky enough to nail down a 3-book contract for my first series, the Tea Shop Mysteries.


What sort of research do you do for you books? Is it more computer based on hands on?

It’s more like boots on the ground. I adore New Orleans so I travel there quite often. And since I have friends living there, I’ve been lucky to visit the float dens, attend a Rex ball, and even march in a Mardi Gras parade. The thing about the Scrapbook Mysteries is . . . they’re not about scrapbooking. The scrapbook shop just helps spark a lot of crazy events. The books are so much more – an exciting mystery, action that never lets up, the incredible food, the spooky cemeteries, and the historic city itself.


What is your writing process?

I always start with an outline on a huge sheet of paper. That becomes my basic timeline from when the murder takes place in chapter 1, to a big exciting ending last chapter that wraps it all up. Then I fill it in, adding characters and suspects, what I call “touch points” between my main character and the killer, as well as several action sequences. Then I transfer everything to my computer and rough my outline out to about 80 pages.  If that feels good, I go back to chapter 1 and just start writing.


How do you come up with character names?

I have a list of possible character names that I keep adding to. Plus, I read the obituaries. Lots of great names there!


What are 3 things readers may not know about you?

I love traveling to foreign countries (Japan, China, and Indonesia are faves), I helped with financing and marketing so a dear friend could open a doggy daycare and dog training school, and I have a penchant for really good French wine.


Where can readers go to learn more about you and your books?

Find me at www.laurachilds.com and on Facebook at Laura Childs Author


Thank you so much, Laura,  for letting us get to know you better!

Thank you, Lisa K, it is always a great pleasure to visit your blog!



In this installment of the New Orleans Scrapbooking Mysteries, murder during Mardi Gras is colorfully explosive and makes for a great read!

Author Laura Childs knows how to pack a punch into a mystery. GLITTER BOMB is exciting, fun, and at times, intense. And I’ve noticed a subtle change in the tone of the stories since author Terrie Farley Moran has come on board. It’s a good change. You can’t go wrong with two fabulous authors writing a book together.

Over all, GLITTER BOMB was an excellent mystery with plenty of twists and turns, as well as false leads to keep my inner sleuth guessing all the way to the end.

Returning fans of the series are going to love GLITTER BOMB. New readers will enjoy it as well and may become hooked enough to start the series from the beginning.

Profanity warning to cozy mystery purists.


About The Authors

laura childs from facebook
 
Laura Childs is the New York Times bestselling author of the Tea Shop Mysteries, Scrapbook Mysteries, and Cackleberry Club Mysteries. In her previous life she was CEO/Creative Director of her own marketing firm and authored several screenplays. She is married to a professor of Chinese art history, loves to travel, rides horses, enjoys fundraising for various non-profits, and has two Chinese Shar-Pei dogs.

Laura specializes in cozy mysteries that have the pace of a thriller (a thrillzy!) Her three series are:

The Tea Shop Mysteries - set in the historic district of Charleston and featuring Theodosia Browning, owner of the Indigo Tea Shop. Theodosia is a savvy entrepreneur, and pet mom to service dog Earl Grey. She’s also an intelligent, focused amateur sleuth who doesn’t rely on coincidences or inept police work to solve crimes. This charming series is highly atmospheric and rife with the history and mystery that is Charleston.

The Scrapbooking Mysteries – a slightly edgier series that take place in New Orleans. The main character, Carmela, owns Memory Mine scrapbooking shop in the French Quarter and is forever getting into trouble with her friend, Ava, who owns the Juju Voodoo shop. New Orleans’ spooky above-ground cemeteries, jazz clubs, bayous, and Mardi Gras madness make their presence known here!

The Cackleberry Club Mysteries - set in Kindred, a fictional town in the Midwest. In a rehabbed Spur station, Suzanne, Toni, and Petra, three semi-desperate, forty-plus women have launched the Cackleberry Club. Eggs are the morning specialty here and this cozy cafe even offers a book nook and yarn shop. Business is good but murder could lead to the cafe’s undoing! This series offers recipes, knitting, cake decorating, and a dash of spirituality.

Laura’s Links: Webpage - http://www.laurachilds.com/
Facebook -  https://www.facebook.com/laura.childs.31


Short-listed twice for The Best American Mystery Stories, Terrie Farley Moran is delighted to introduce mystery fans to the Read ’Em and Eat café and bookstore, which debuted with Well Read, Then Dead. followed by Caught Read-Handed and Read to Death released in July of this year. The only thing Terrie enjoys more than wrangling mystery plots into submission is playing games and reading stories with any or all of her grandchildren.

Terrie’s Links: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/terrie.moran.9 
Blog: www.womenofmystery.net 
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/23186092-terrie-moran 

Purchase Links:

Amazon B&N     Google Books     IndieBound     Kobo     BookBub

GOOD LUCK!

a Rafflecopter giveaway



TOUR PARTICIPANTS

 October 1 – The Avid Reader – REVIEW
October 1 – Island Confidential – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
October 2 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW
October 2 – Valerie's Musings – SPOTLIGHT
October 3 – The Pulp and Mystery Shelf – GUEST POST
October 4 – Community Bookstop – REVIEW
October 4 – MJB Reviewers – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
October 4 – My Reading Journeys - REVIEW
October 5 – View from the Birdhouse – REVIEW
October 6 – I'm All About Books – SPOTLIGHT
October 7 – Rosepoint Publishing – REVIEW
October 7 – StoreyBook Reviews – GUEST POST
October 8 – Mallory Heart's Cozies – REVIEW
October 8 – A Holland Reads - REVIEW
October 9 – Socrates' Book Reviews – REVIEW
October 9 – A Blue Million Books – CHARACTER GUEST POST
October 10 – Laura's Interests – REVIEW
October 10 – Brooke Blogs – SPOTLIGHT
October 11 – Mysteries with Character – GUEST POST
October 11 – Ruff Drafts – SPOTLIGHT
October 12 – A Chick Who Reads – REVIEW
October 12 – The Montana Bookaholic – SPOTLIGHT
October 13 – Lisa Ks Book Reviews – REVIEW, AUTHOR INTERVIEW
October 13 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – SPOTLIGHT
October 14 – Readeropolis – CHARACTER GUEST POST
October 14 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT



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5 comments:

  1. Thank you for your review on "GLITTER BOMB" by Laura Childs and Terrie Farley Moran and for being part of the book tour.

    Loved reading the interview and can't wait for the opportunity to read the book.
    2clowns at arkansas dot net

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks, Lisa. Happy Saturday, to you!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks so much for the chance to win. Book looks so good.

    faithdcreech at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  4. I love scrapbooking mystery, they area my first love but i love them all . I am dreaming for Cadmiu Red Dead to be out sooooon!!!

    ReplyDelete