Spotlight on Maddie Day's Cozy Capers Book Group #giveaway

MADDIE DAY here, delighted that Murder at the Toy Soldier, my eighth Cozy Capers Book Group Mystery, releases on Tuesday! 

To celebrate the new book, I thought I'd shine the spotlight on the entire series from book one to the latest.

When I was beginning the series, I created the perfect fictional coastal Cape Cod town for a cozy setting. If you know the upper Cape, Westham is vaguely modeled on Falmouth. I dreamed up Mackenzie Almeida, her bike shop, her family, and her friends in the Cozy Capers book group.

Murder on Cape Cod is book one.

My editor proposed the title, and then suggested that each following book would feature a location or business in Westham. "I can do that," I said.

Because Mac owns a bike shop and I no longer ride, I needed to do some bike shop research. Luckily, Falmouth has Corner Cycle, and the staff were more than helpful when I wandered in asking questions and taking pictures, especially in the repair room.

Many coastal US towns have shops that sell salt water taffy, so I made up Salty Taffy's candy shop as a Main Street business. Book group member Gin owns the store, and Gin and Mac are good friends and walking pals. But when Gin becomes a suspect in Murder at the Taffy Shop, the Cozy Capers get to work to clear her name.

I loved this display a local fan made for her library's Books in Bloom event - complete with taffy, seashells, and a mini bike!

Book group member Tulia owns the Lobstah Shack, a popular seafood lunch and takeout restaurant. In book three, Murder at the Lobstah Shack, Tulia opens her place in the morning only to find a body in the walk-in cooler.

Each book in this series includes recipes, and I was delighted when Doreen Sheridan over at Criminal Element included my recipe for lobster quiche from this book.

In the next book, Murder in a Cape Cottage, Mac and her boyfriend Tim are about to get married on New Year's Eve. Sure, finding a skeleton in the wall of their house as they start renovations threatens to throw a wrench in the works. It's only six days until the wedding, and Mac's grandmother Reba steps in to invent their wedding cocktail.

Murder in a Cape Bookstore, the fifth in the series, was a natural for a series featuring a book group, and the book hit #1 in cozy mysteries!

I took an intriguing research trip down a rabbit hole to find a tropical natural poison for the murder weapon. Let's just say this little blue creature plays a role!

In Murder in a Cape Cottage, I invented a local pub called the Rusty Anchor. It's the setting for finding the body in book six, Murder in the Rusty Anchor. Every time I write about the pub, I want to stop in for a draft beer and plate of hot, crispy Anchor fries - and then I remember I made it up! 

The most recent book is Murder at Cape Costumers, which I had a lot of fun writing. It's set at Halloween, using inspiration from a news article I had cut out from the Boston Globe and saved.

You can read the whole story in my guest post from last summer over at Jungle Red Writers.

And that brings us to Murder at the Toy Soldier, which you can bet I'll be celebrating on Tuesday! 

I shared Tim's recipe for Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies here on August 14, and you'll have Tulia's Fish Cakes next Friday. Mac's mom Astra shared a day in her life at Dru's Book Musings last Friday, and Monday I write about characters who need caring for on Debra Goldstein's blog, It's Not Always a Mystery. 

Mostly I'm just glad the book is nearly out and about to land in the hands of fans and readers everywhere. It's already had some lovely reviews, including from Dru Ann Love herself. 

• "This is a fast-paced page turner that I could not put down. It was great fun to reconnect with the characters I have grown invested in. Though this is a series, it will be easy to jump in with this book. Then you will be hooked!" -Suzie on Goodreads
• "...just the right pace, with an engaging plot and a variety of suspects (as usual) ... Maddie Day does an amazing job ... I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a fantastic cozy mystery series to binge-read! - Katie K on Goodreads
• "...another fun, cozy mystery with an engaging cast, a solid mystery, and plenty of small town charm." - DeeG Reads on Goodreads
• "...a delightfully entertaining whodunit and one of the best books in this charming series." - Dru's Book Musings

Thanks for letting me shine the spotlight on this popular series. You have plenty of time to get caught up. Book nine, Murder in the Lighthouse, releases in February of 2027, and I've signed a contract for two more books after that!

Readers: Do you have a favorite Cozy Capers book? If you haven't read the series, which book will you begin with? I'll send one commenter a signed copy of the new book!

📚🍪🐟

A Poisonous Pour is out and available wherever books are sold!

Next up is Murder at the Toy Soldier, Cozy Capers Book Group #8, which releases in late August.

My most recent releases are Murder at Cape Costumers,

Scone Cold Dead, #13 in the Country Store Mysteries,

and A Case for the Ladies.

Check out all my writing.

We hope you'll visit Maddie and her Agatha Award-winning alter ego Edith Maxwell on our web site, sign up for our monthly newsletter, visit us on social media, and check our all our books and short stories.

Maddie Day (aka Edith Maxwell) is a talented amateur chef and holds a PhD in Linguistics from Indiana University. An Agatha Award-winning and bestselling author, she is a member of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America and also writes award-winning short crime fiction. She lives with her beau and sweet cat Martin north of Boston, where she’s currently working on her next mystery when she isn’t cooking up something delectable in the kitchen.