I’m Gus Farnham, owner of a restaurant here in Busman’s Harbor, Maine. My restaurant is for local folks, a place where they can get away from playing the “old salt” routine for the terrorists. I mean the tourists.
I started the restaurant with my wife, Mrs. Gus, in 1962 and the menu hasn’t changed a jot since. Some wag in town has tacked paper signs to the restaurant walls. Here’s what two of them say:
GUS DOESN’T SERVE HORS D’OEUVRES. HE DOESN’T BELIEVE YOU NEED FOOD WHILE WAITING FOR FOOD.
And,
YOU CAN ASK GUS FOR SALAD. YOU’LL NEVER GET IT, BUT YOU CAN ASK FOR IT.
People say the customer is always right. They never met some of the people who wander in here.
Lately, Julia Snowden’s been coming around asking me about the history of the harbor, and who Mr. Busman was and such. Julia was born here which makes her okay in my book, but then went off to school and worked in New York for almost a decade, so she has some funny notions. Now she’s back in town, working at her family’s business, the Snowden Family Clambake Company, while helping out on the Founder’s Day committee.
“Gus, tell me who our founder was?” she asked.
“Which time?” I answered.
“Which time what?” Julia said.
“The first founder of Busman’s Harbor was a Wabanaki Chief. The Wabanaki tribes called this land Ketakamigwa, ‘the big land on the seacoast.’ They came here seasonally and farmed, fished, lobstered and traded with other tribes, and eventually with the French.”
“And this founding chief’s name wasn’t, by any chance, Mr. Busman?” Julia asked, hoping, I could tell, for a shortcut.
“Alas, his name’s been lost to the misty dawns of time.” I poured her a cup of coffee. You can’t have people sitting around for hours yakking and not buying. “The first European settlers were fishermen,” I continued. “In those days for cod to be sent home to England, it had to be dried on wooden racks. There was fierce competition by the fishing crews for the best areas for drying operations, and it didn’t take long for captains to figure out that if they left a small group of men over the winter, they’d have a huge advantage come the spring.”
“When was this?”
“1615.”
“Before the Pilgrims?” Julia clarified.
“Definitely. Those Massachusetts-come-latelies are always claiming the credit.”
“These fishermen, was one of them was named Busman?” Julia prompted.
“Not too many auto-buses in the early seventeenth century,” I reminded her.
“Maybe he was French?” I could tell Julia was getting a little desperate. “Bisou man? Perhaps a bit of a kisser? I’m sure it got lonely staying all winter.”
“Ha, ha,” I said. “By the way your French is terrible.”
“Gus, seriously. I need to know for the Founder’s Day celebration.”
I looked at my wristwatch, the one my dad gave me when I got out of the Army. “Oh, will you look at the time. Mrs. Gus will be wondering what happened to me.”
“Gus! Who was Mr. Busman?”
“Sorry, Julia. Looks like you’re going to have come back another time to get the rest of the story.”
You can read more about Gus in Boiled Over, the second book in the “Maine Clambake” mystery series, published by Kensington. The first book in the series is Clammed Up. Books are available at retail and online booksellers.
GIVEAWAY
Comment on this post by 6 p.m. EST on May 19, and you will be entered for a chance to win a copy of BOILED OVER. One winner will be chosen at random. Unless specified, U.S. entries only.
Meet the author
Barbara Ross is the author of the Maine Clambake Mystery series. Clammed Up (Kensington, Sept 2013) was nominated for an Agatha Award for Best Contemporary Novel as well as the RT Book Reviews, Reviewer’s Choice Best Book Award for Amateur Sleuth. Boiled Over was published on May 6, 2014.
Barbara is a co-editor/co-publisher at Level Best Books, which produces an award-winning anthology of crime and mystery stories by New England authors every November. “Bread Baby” in Best New England Crime Stories 2014: Stone Cold was nominated for an Agatha Award for Best Short Story.
Barbara blogs with a wonderful group of Maine mystery authors at Maine Crime Writers and with a group of writers of New England-based cozy mysteries at Wicked Cozy Authors.
Barbara and her husband Bill divide their time between Somerville, MA and Boothbay Harbor, ME.
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I read the first in this series and absolutely loved it ! I have been impatiently waiting for this installment !
This sounds good and I love the cover!
Thank you for the chance to win a copy of this fun looking book
I love New England cozy’s , Growing up I spent a lot of time in N.England, so it brings back memories 🙂 Would love to win this
I love books that take place in Maine. I knew several people from Maine and what characters they were. Would love to win a book in this series.
Sounds like a typical older New Englander to me…:-)
Would love to read it, thank you for the chance 🙂
Hilarious! I will have to move this book to the top of my TBR pile.
Thanks everybody. And Gram, Gus is loosely based on a real person and real restaurant, so you are not wrong!
This book sounds like a lot of fun. The cover, by the way, is delectable. If only I could pluck the food right from the page.
Wish we had a “Gus” in my town. I like his style.
We used to have a couple of restaurants like this locally – the owner was in charge and didn’t go in for all the fancy stuff. Usually great food. Another series for the TBR pile.
Avoidance. Well played Gus.
I need this book in order to find out —-Who Was Mr Busman? Thanks for the introduction.
Great cover and I love books that show how people talk in different areas. Thank you for the chance.
CarolNWong(at)aol(dot)com
I just finished Clammed Up not long ago and I loved Gus, he is a character and a half. I can’t wait to read this one, thanks for the chance to win.
This sounds so fun. Thanks for the chance to win. Love books like this one.
I am really looking forward to reading Boiled Over as I loved the first book in this series and definitely want to keep reading more. Thank you for the cute blog and giveaway.
Cynthia
Thank you for a chance to win a copy of Boiled Over. I have just purchased Clammed Up and plan on reading it sometime this month.
“Boiled Over” sounds like a good book. I am looking forward to reading it. Thank you for having this giveaway.
sign me up for this giveaway!!!
thank you!!
Love the books cover. Looks like a great cozy mystery.
Gus reminds me of Jack, a guy in Marblehead who had a coffee shop in his house. He wouldn’t put a sign up, because he didn’t want his house to look like a restaurant, and it might attract too many customers. He didn’t allow high school kids in between 2 and 5, when he closed. We couldn’t go in before school, either. If he wasn’t too busy he would let you order a coke, but you couldn’t stay. You had to drink it and leave. If you took too long he kicked you out, and you had to leave your coke behind. You couldn’t complain to your parents, because there was a good chance they were there laughing, or they would hear about it and laugh later. I was there once when he kicked everyone out, because a someone ordered “… a fried egg sandwich over easy with no runnies except the yolk.”
I have a cousin who is into genealogy who would chuckle over Gus’ comment about Massachussets-come-latelies! Thanks for the chance to win!
I’m smiling and giggling after reading that—I think I want to read the book to smile some more about Gus..
suefarrell.farrell@gmail.com
I’ve heard nothing but great things about this book. Would love to win a copy
contest is closed.