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

What is your full name?
Calamity Doris Barnstable, but I go by Callie. Wouldn’t you?

How old are you?
Gosh, that’s personal! I’m 42.

What is your profession?
I’m a private investigator, specializing in cold cases and missing persons.

Do you have a significant other?
Thanks for the reminder—not! I’m currently between significant others, though I do have my eye on someone.

Do you have any children?
Never married, no kids (or pets).

Do you have any siblings?
Nope.

Are your parents nearby?
My father died in an occupational accident in 2016, my mother. . .we won’t go there. Suffice it to say she hasn’t been in my life since I was six.

Who is your best friend?
My oldest friend is Arabella Carpenter. She owns the Glass Dolphin antiques shop in Lount’s Landing. We’ve been friends since high school. My closest friend before she reunited with her ex and moved to Ottawa, about 6 hours away, is Chantelle Marchand. I miss her living across the street. And I’m getting closer to Sam(antha) Sanchez, a tattoo artist I met on a case. But “best?” I’m not sure any of them could be described as best. I’m the sort of friend who loves true confessions as long as I’m not the one doing the confessing.

What town do you live in and is it small or big?
I live in Marketville. It’s smallish, but growing, a commuter type town about 90 minutes north of Toronto, Canada. The sort of place folks move to with two kids, a cat, and a collie. Don’t ask how a single 36-year-old Toronto girl ended up there, but surprisingly, I don’t miss the city.

What type of dwelling do you own or rent?
I own a narrow two-bedroom Victorian on the dodgy end of Edward Street. It also serves as my office.

What is your favorite spot in your home?
Probably my combination office/living/dining room. I have this antique mission oak table that doubles as a workspace. I bought it from Arabella’s shop.

What is your favorite meal and dessert?
Pizza, thin crust, though I vary on the toppings. I can go plain cheese or exotic. I’m not a huge dessert person, but I do enjoy chocolate chip cookies, especially dunked in a cup of tea.

Do you have any hobbies?
I like to run. Not marathons or anything, just fitness running, though I’ve been a bit lazy lately. I should probably get another hobby or two, now that you mention it.

What is your favorite vacation spot?
What’s a vacation? I haven’t had the time or money to go anywhere in forever.

What is your idea of a really fun time?
Gosh, I don’t know. I’m not much on parties or crowds. I do enjoy sitting with a friend and chatting over wine and pizza. I’m sorry, I sound quite dull, don’t I? But my work. . .that’s fascinating. I suppose you could say working on a cold case is my idea of a really fun time.

If you were to write a memoir, what would you call it? 
Don’t Call Me Calamity.

Amateur or professional sleuth and whom do you work with?
I started off as an amateur sleuth, but now I’m professional. My current partner is a young woman named Denim Hopkins. She’s new to the game but a fast learner.

What is a typical day in your life like in general and when you are on a case?
I lead a quiet life, run, watch TV, enjoy the odd play or movie, that sort of thing. When I’m on a case, I’m pretty much thinking on it or working it 24/7. Recently, I’ve been doing more and more missing persons’ work. The families of the missing aren’t looking for closure—that’s a TV term—but they are looking for answers. I try to find them.

Before There Were Skeletons, A Marketville Mystery #4
Genre: Traditional
Release: October 2022
Purchase Link

The last time anyone saw Veronica Goodman was the night of February 14, 1995, the only clue to her disappearance a silver heart-shaped pendant, found in the parking lot behind the bar where she worked. Twenty-seven years later, Veronica’s daughter, Katie, just a year old when her mother vanished, hires Past & Present Investigations to find out what happened that fateful night.

Calamity (Callie) Barnstable is drawn to the case, the similarities to her own mother’s disappearance on Valentine’s Day 1986 hauntingly familiar. A disappearance she thought she’d come to terms with. Until Veronica’s case, and five high school yearbooks, take her back in time. . .a time before there were skeletons.

About the author
A former journalist and magazine editor, Judy Penz Sheluk is the bestselling author of two mystery series: The Glass Dolphin Mysteries and the Marketville Mysteries. Her short crime fiction appears in several collections, including the Superior Shores Anthologies, which she also edited. Judy is a member of Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and Crime Writers of Canada, where she served as Chair on the Board of Directors. She lives on the shores of Lake Superior in Northern Ontario. Find her at judypenzsheluk.com.

All comments are welcomed.