BOOK TOUR
Sometimes Sarah’s mother, Maybelle, can be higher maintenance than her Siamese cat RahRah. Maybelle and her friend, Mr. George Rogers, have been chosen to be one of five couples competing for a small-town “perfect” wedding and dream honeymoon on a Southern Belles reality show—and guess who has to be chaperone. Even more vexing, the producers have decided to put up the crew and participants at the restaurant/bed and breakfast owned by Sarah’s nemesis Jane Clark.
But when someone turns up dead with Jane kneeling by the body with blood on her hands, she goes from being Sarah’s chief rival to the police’s chief suspect. Neither Sarah nor her twin, Chef Emily Johnson, can stand Jane—still, they don’t think she’s a murderer. The producers vow the show must go on, but to protect their mother and the other contestants, Sarah vows to find the true killer before someone else gets eliminated . . .
Includes quick and easy recipes!
LKBR: Hi, Debra. It’s great to have you with us.
LKBR: Please
tell us a bit about yourself.
DHG: Judge,
author, litigator, wife, step-mom, mother of twins, grandmother, and civic
volunteer, are all words used to describe me. My life and writings are equally
diverse. I’m the author of Kensington Press’ Sarah Blair mystery series. Sarah,
like me, is a cook of convenience who might be scorched if she gets too close
to a kitchen.
LKBR:
Please tell us about your new book.
DHG: In Five Belles Too Many, Sarah Blair’s
mother, Maybelle, is one of five finalists to win a perfect Southern wedding in
a television show competition. The show requires each finalist to have a chaperone.
Unlike the other twenty-year-old finalists, Maybelle is in her sixties, but she
still needs a chaperone and Sarah is forced to be it. Not only is Sarah
juggling her day job and the care of her furry pets, RahRah and Fluffy, the
television show is making the finalists and their chaperones stay in the bed
and breakfast owned by Sarah’s greatest nemesis, Jane Clark. Maybelle assures
Sarah that it is only for a few days and that she’ll be sleeping most of the
time she is under Jane’s roof; however, on the first night, Maybelle and Sarah
discover the show’s producer dead, with Jane bent over his body. Sarah may hate
Jane, the bimbo who broke up her marriage, but she doesn’t think
she’s a killer. Consequently, Sarah has to find the real killer before any of
the contestants or television crew are permanently eliminated.
LKBR: Do
you remember where you were/what you were doing when the idea of this
book/series came to you?
DHG: Having been a Jeopardy contestant and having had the
opportunity to see others shows from behind the scenes, I thought it be fun to
mix reality and fiction. A few years ago, a national television show offered
the perfect wedding and had different vendors competing to be the “chosen one.”
An invitation company that a friend worked for was the invitation winner and I
remembered how much work went into competing and was generated by winning.
Adding it all together, I thought it would be a fun adventure for Sarah Blair
with the twist that she was the chaperone and her mother was the contestant.
LKBR: How
did you go about submitting your first idea for a book? Was that first book
published?
DHG: The
book I dreamed about writing became Maze in Blue. Technically, I didn’t submit
it. Shortly after winning an essay contest and then having More Magazine online
print the essay, I was moderating a panel in front of over one hundred business
women. During the Q&A session, someone asked about my writing. I thanked
them for mentioning the essay and tried to steer things back to the panelists.
The next question posed was: “What else are you writing?” I answered that I had
just finished a mystery that I thought was ready for the world. A few hours
afte the panel, I received an email from the co-owner of a small publishing
house. She said a friend in the audience had told her there was a judge with a
mystery. When she asked if I would like her to read it, I offered to wrap it
with a bow. Her reply was to merely make it an attachment to an email. I did so and two weeks later, I was offered a
contract which I accepted. I thought getting published was a cinch.
LKBR: Is
writing your fulltime job? What’s your writing schedule like?
DHG: Although
I gave up my lifetime appointment as a federal Administrative Law Judge to
follow my passion to write, I only write sporadically – usually in the late
afternoon or the evening. Most of my days are spent doing other things.
LKBR: No
matter where you are, do you write down ideas when inspiration strikes?
DHG: Occasionally.
LKBR: Do
you write your book(s) from beginning to end or do you do you write scenes out
of order then pull them together?
DHG: I
write my books and short stories in a sequential fashion from beginning to end.
LKBR: Where
do you do most of your writing?
DHG: Most
of my writing is done in my sunroom office in an oversized chair that my mother
had made for my father for their first anniversary. My father had long legs so
the chair is extra deep. My sister and I played on the seat and wide arms of
the chair when we were children. Consequently, the chair is a comforting place
to write.
LKBR: What
are three things always within reach when you’re writing?
DHG: Something on which to play show music, my computer, and a beverage.
LKBR:
Please describe yourself in one sentence.
DHG: I am shy but funny; kind, but complex.
LKBR: Do
you have a message for your readers?
DHG: My message to my readers is to say thank you for the joy and support they have given me.
LKBR:
Thank you so much, Debra, for spending time with us today
As a cozy mystery reader and blogger, and someone who watches reality shows (I’m picky about them. Many aren’t for me), I had to give FIVE BELLES TOO MANY a try. I’m happy I did!
Author Debra H. Goldstein has delivered fast paced, intriguing whodunit that will have you suspecting everyone, including yourself. There’s such a variety of characters, narrowing down the suspect list wasn’t easy! And as you may have guessed, no, I didn’t figure out the killer.
Skillful writing, great plot, and recipes too! Rather you’re fan of reality tv or not, you will be a fan of FIVE BELLES TOO MANY.
About Debra H. Goldstein
Many, Four Cuts Too Many, Three Treats Too Many, Two Bites Too Many, and One Taste Too Many). Her novels and short stories received an IPPY award and have been named Agatha, Anthony, Derringer, and Silver Falchion finalists. Debra served on the national boards of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America and was president of the Guppy and SEMWA chapters. Find out more about Debra at https://www.DebraHGoldstein.com
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