Sunday Brunch: What’s coming from your Desk? + #Giveaway

VICKI DELANY: Hard to believe that 2021 is almost half over. Back in January, I asked the gang what they were working on, and I think it’s time to check in again. What are you working on now? Can you tell us about any new releases coming in the latter half of 2021 or projects on the boil for early next year?

I’ll start. I’m excited about the first in my new series set in a Catskills resort in 1953. Think Jell-O salads with canned pineapple, cigarette smoke (lots and lots of cigarette smoke), colorful cocktails, big band music, girdles and stockings, Reds under the beds. Deadly Sumer Nights releases September 7 from Berkley and is now available for pre-order. 

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MADDIE: Ooh, Vicki, I love the sound of that - and the cover! My next book out is NO GRATER CRIME, which releases at the end of August - and ends with a wedding.

MURDER AT THE LOBSTAH SHACK, my third Cozy Capers Book Group mystery, releases in late November. 

There's a body in the walk-in, a rancorous New England town meeting, delicious lobster rolls, and so much more. Next after that is BATTER OFF DEAD, the tenth Country Store Mystery, which releases at the end of February!

A senior citizen is killed during July Friday night fireworks, but the real fireworks come after as Robbie Jordan hunts down the murderer before any more old folks die.

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LESLIE BUDEWITZ: These books all sound so good! I've already had two books out this year, BITTERROOT LAKE (written as Alicia Beckman) and CARRIED TO THE GRAVE AND OTHER STORIES, the 6th Food Lovers' Village mystery, so all my attention is on writing for a while. I'm working on the 6th Spice Shop mystery, set at Christmas and tentatively titled PEPPERMINT BARKED. Seattle Spice Shop owner Pepper Reece investigates when a young woman working the Christmas rush in her friend’s Vinny’s wine shop is attacked, on the busiest shopping day of the year. It won't be out until June 2022, so no cover yet, but I can assure you this will be a summer of testing recipes featuring a very specific ingredient -- and I bet you can guess what it is!

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LESLIE KARST: So many books to look forward to, gals! Yippee!

As for me, I’ve finished the edits on the first in a new series set on the Big Island of Hawai‘i, called Molten Death. The mystery features retired caterer, Valerie Corbin, and her wife Kristen, whose vacation is horribly disrupted when Valerie witnesses a body being covered over by hot, flowing lava. When no one else believes that she saw what she did, Valerie sets out to discover the identity of the body in the lava, and how the person ended up entombed in black rock. (And yes, there's lots of food in the book!)

Molten Death is currently out on submission to publishers (fingers crossed!), and in the meantime, I’m working on the sequel.

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MAYA CORRIGAN: The Catskills, lobster, and lava! I can't wait to read those upcoming books. I've just written the sweetest two words in the English language--"The End"--on my draft of the 8th Five-Ingredient Mystery. Deadline is 6 weeks from now, pub date in 2022. It starts with a Deadly Desserts Bake-Off . . . and you know what happens next. 

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LUCY BURDETTE: I love the sound of all of these--what great summer reading! I'm super excited that #11 in the Key West food critic mysteries, A SCONE OF CONTENTION, will be out on August 10. It has the same gang of characters but takes place in gorgeous Scotland--so much fun to write. Now I'm busy writing #12, due September 1. We're back in Key West where Hayley has found a body on the beach--no title yet but hopefully one will come to me soon!

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PEG COCHRAN/MARGARET LOUDON: Such great reads coming from all of you! Vicki, I remember the fifties lol and can't wait to read that. Right now I'm waiting for the release of A Fatal Footnote on July 6--it's the second book in my Open Book Series set in England. I'm working on revisions for book #3 right now--Peril on the Page and I can't wait till I can reveal the cover. I'm also plotting out the 7th Cranberry Cove book so I'm traveling from England back to Michigan! And I have a new series proposal out on submission. No news yet but I'll keep you posted.

 

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MARY JANE MAFFINI: I love catching up on everyone's forthcoming books and adding them to my lists. Thanks for starting this conversation, Vicki. We cook up quite a fantastic buffet of mysteries for readers to feast on.

I am coming down the home stretch with the sixth book in the Charlotte Adams organizer series. The first five books are being re-released with sparkling new covers, one per month. So far we had Organize Your Corpses in May and The Cluttered Corpse in June.

It feels wonderful to spend time with Charlotte and her organizing and time management approach again, even if she is a teensy bit bossy, ahem. I wish I had a cover for the sixth book, Death Plans a Perfect Trip, coming in October. The story takes Charlotte and Jack on a wild international ride (Paris, Lisbon and Cinque Terre) and gives Charlotte a chance to suggest many travel planning tips and fashion advice. Of course, as she is trying to prevent a murder and being pursued by some dangerous felons, Charlotte doesn’t really follow her own advice. Here’s my tip for Charlotte: stay away from crumbling paths on steep embankments that could crumble into the Ligurian sea and don’t trust anybody. Just sayin’.

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CLEO COYLE: Last month, our latest Haunted Bookshop Mystery was published. The Ghost and the Haunted Portrait was the 7th title in the series, and we're now working on #8, due to be released next year. More to come soon on the new Jack and Pen Haunted Bookshop Mystery!

☕ We're also keeping busy writing our long-running Coffeehouse Mystery series. We're excited about the new paperback edition of Brewed Awakening that's about to be published in July. It was originally released in hardcover, so for fans who collect the paperback versions of our Coffeehouse titles, that's great news. 

Click the covers to learn more.

As for new works, we're finishing up edits on HONEY ROASTED, our 19th Coffeehouse title, coming in January. And we'll soon be starting the writing of our 20th entry and working out story arcs for future books. Our readers can look forward to plenty more mysteries from us. Stay tuned!

 GIVEAWAY!

To be entered in this week's drawing,

join us in the comments.

Include your email address,
so we can contact the winner!

Comments Open through

Wednesday, June 23

Sunday Brunch Giveaway!

> TEA & TREACHERY by Vicki Delany

> MURDER ON CAPE COD (ARC) by Maddie Day

Comments Open through

Wednesday, June 23

Don't forget to include
an email address!

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