Alene sits down for a question-and-answer session with dru’s book musings so that we can get to know her better.

What is your full name?
Alene Baron

How old are you?
39

What is your profession?
I own and manage a café in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood, about a 15-minute walk from where we live.

Do you have a significant other?
Yes – his name is Frank Shaw, he’s a homicide detective, also long divorced, with a troubled adult daughter.

Do you have any children?
Yes – Sierra is nearly 13, Quinn is nearly 11, and Noah is turning 8 this summer.

Do you have any siblings?
My younger sister Lydia is a lawyer who lives about fifteen minutes away. Our relationship is a bit volatile, but I love her.

Are your parents nearby?
My mother died of breast cancer just before I graduated from college. My father is 65 and lives with an autoimmune disease that sometimes requires hospitalization (myasthenia gravis). He was a successful financial planner and after my divorce insisted that I move back home to his large apartment, with my three children. It’s actually been wonderful having him around.

Who is your best friend?
Ruthie Rosin- we were paired as roommates at Northwestern and she’s also the brilliant pastry chef at my café. Anytime I’m extra polite or kind, it’s because I learned it from Ruthie.

Do you have cats, dogs, or other pets?
Much to the chagrin of my children, we live in a pet-free building.

What town do you live in?
Chicago, near the Belmont Harbor.

What type of dwelling do you own or rent?
Condo on the 6th floor of a high-rise building.

What is your favorite spot in your home?
I love being in my kitchen, looking out the windows at the tip of Lincoln Park and the wide expanse of Lake Michigan.

What is your favorite meal and dessert?
A big, crunchy salad, a slice of vegetable pizza, and a healthful but gooey piece of vegan chocolate cake made by Ruthie Rosin.

Do you have any hobbies?
When I’m not playing games or doing puzzles with my kids, I love reading mysteries, running along the lake, and knitting.

What music do you listen to?
I love my mom’s favorite music from the 70’s and sexy-voiced male singers of many genres.

What is your favorite color?
A deep, rich crimson, like the art wall in the café.

What is your favorite vacation spot?
Tough one since I run a business and hardly ever take vacations, but I have fond memories of camping up in Wisconsin or playing in the Indiana Dunes.

Are you a morning or night person?
Totally morning – I go out running, sometimes before dawn, 3 days a week.

What is your idea of a really fun time?
Dinner, after-dinner games, and bedtime with the kids when nobody bickers or cries. It’s like a dream come true when it happens. Also, going out with Frank. Anywhere. It’s always a fun time.

If you were to write a memoir, what would you call it?
“Stop Bickering and let Mommy Read her Book.”

Amateur or professional sleuth and whom do you work with?
I’m not a sleuth at all – I leave all that to Frank Shaw, a homicide detective with the Chicago Police Department. I admit that there have been a few times when people I love were involved in a terrible situation and I was forced to get a little involved, but I hope it won’t happen again.

What is a typical day in your life like?
I’m off on Sundays, but the rest of the week, I get out of bed about 5am. I go for a run or to the gym for a workout, unless my dad or a child needs some loving attention. I come home and shower, make sure the kids are up and ready for camp or school, get to the café and check the schedule, supplies, and order status. Work until closing at 4. Stop at the store or do other errands on the way home. Kiss the kids and chat about their days, check the homework situation. Maybe get to see Frank, but otherwise, talk on the phone. Go to bed. Read. Pass out. Not as glamorous as you thought, right?

Charred, A Whipped and Sipped Mystery Book #3
Genre: Cozy
Release: February 2023
Format: Print and Digital
Purchase Link

Alene Baron is dealing with frustrated employees, closed schools, and a homeless man who harasses customers outside the door of her café. Then, two dead bodies turn up in the burned remains of buildings owned by the husband of Alene’s best friend and pastry chef, Ruthie. Both bodies are wearing jackets that once belonged to Ruthie and crumbled in the pockets are the café’s distinctive wrappers. At the same time, Alene’s uncle, a convicted felon, has resurfaced after disappearing for 22 years. It’s all too much for the owner of the Whipped and Sipped Café.

About the author
G.P. Gottlieb earned several music degrees and performed, taught, administrated, and raised three children while writing stories, songs, and several unwieldy manuscripts. After recovering from breast cancer in 2015, she took baking classes for fun and began writing in earnest, melding two passions, nourishment for mind and body and recipe-laced murder mysteries. As host for New Books in Literature, a podcast channel on the New Books Network, Gottlieb has interviewed nearly 170 authors. And her third novel Charred: A Whipped and Sipped Mystery #3 will be published in February 2023.

All comments are welcomed.