Jane Wunderly sits down for a Q&A with dru’s book musings responding to twenty or more questions so that we can learn more about her. Are you ready? Let’s get to know Jane.

What is your full name?
Jane Margaret Wunderly

How old are you?
32

What is your profession?
I don’t really have a profession—it is 1926 after all and women are only starting to really join the workforce, but I do quite enjoy solving mysteries. And who knows, perhaps someday I can make this into more of a “profession” for myself.

Do you have a significant other?
Well nothing official, but the handsome and mysterious Redvers does continue to pop up in my life.

What is their name and profession?
His name is Redvers Dibble, although he’d prefer not to use that last name. And he does some sort of work for the British crown, but he’s very mysterious about what it is exactly that he does.

Do you have any children?
No, I do not.

Do you have any siblings?
Sadly, I was an only child.

Are your parents nearby?
My mother passed away when I was young, and my father is a university professor who lives in Boston. When I’m not traveling the world with his sister Millie, I live with him.

Who is your best friend?
I have a friend called Elizabeth from my school days. We drifted apart when I married, but I’m hoping to rebuild that friendship when I’m home again.

Do you have any pets?
My father has two cats—Calliope and Thalia, and little Thalia is always glued to my side (or my lap) when I’m there.

What town do you live in?
I call Boston home.

Do you live in a small town or a big city?
Boston is quite a big city, and I’m afraid I do enjoy the city life.

Type of dwelling and do you own or rent?
It’s a brick rowhouse and my father owns it.

What is your favorite spot in your home?
There’s a comfortable armchair in the library that is quite my favorite place.

Favorite meal and dessert?
Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day and I’ve become quite fond of a full English breakfast—minus the baked beans. I can’t wrap my head around beans for breakfast. Dessert for me is another cup of coffee with a homemade cookie.

Do you have any hobbies?
I do love to read—especially one of the delicious mysteries that Ms. Christie comes up with. And I’ve recently taken up flying—I’m hoping I can find somewhere to continue my lessons once I return to America

What is your favorite vacation spot?
Even though I was accused of murder and got into a bit of a dangerous scrape, Egypt is still my favorite vacation that I’ve been able to take. Despite everything that happened, I loved seeing all that history in person.

What music do you listen to?
I’m a little too old to be a flapper—and it’s no secret that I truly can’t dance—but I do love listening to the jazz music coming out these days. Musicians like Louis Armstrong and Bessie Smith are doing really wonderful things, and if given a choice, that’s the type of music I like to put on the record player.

Do you have a favorite book?
I have to say it’s Pride and Prejudice. I like to re-read it every year.

What is your idea of a really fun time?
Even though I can’t dance, I do love listening to live music. A really fun evening would include an evening out to hear an orchestra or jazz band over a cocktail with someone that is a great conversationalist—and doesn’t necessarily expect me to get on the dance floor with them.

If you were to write a memoir, what would you call it?
At this point, it will probably be something like “How to Solve a Murder on Vacation” since it seems I can’t go on a relaxing trip without stumbling over a dead body.

Amateur or professional sleuth and whom do you work with? 
I’m an amateur sleuth, and I seem to keep teaming up with Mr. Redvers

In a few sentences, what is a typical day in your life like?
Before my trip to Egypt with my aunt Millie, a typical day started with my rising relatively early in the morning to have breakfast with my father. Then he wanders off to work on a project or teach a class. I like to retire to the library in the house and read for several hours. (If there’s nothing that sparks my fancy, I might head to the local bookshop to pick up the latest crime novel.) Inevitably my Aunt Millie comes and drag me out to socialize with her, either meeting with other matronly women at a tea shop or in someone’s overstuffed parlor. It’s hard to hide from Millie, even though I find these outings quite boring. Late afternoons I typically find a way to break free, return home to the cats and my favorite armchair and continue reading until it’s time for dinner with my father, followed by a post-meal cocktail and an early bedtime. 

What is a typical day when you are on a case?
Well a day always starts out with coffee, case or no case. Then I start talking to people and generally poking my nose into things while trying to stay out of the way of the police, although I’m not always terribly successful there. Every day is a little different, depending on what I need to know about people—but there’s usually some sneaking into rooms where I’m not supposed to be as well as chatting people up.

Murder at Wedgefield Manor, A Jane Wunderly Mystery #2
Genre: Historical
Release: March 2021
Purchase Link

In the wake of World War I, Jane Wunderly—a thoroughly modern young American widow—is traveling abroad, enjoying the hospitality of an English lord and a perfectly proper manor house, until murder makes an unwelcome appearance . . .

England, 1926: Wedgefield Manor, deep in the tranquil Essex countryside, provides a welcome rest stop for Jane and her matchmaking Aunt Millie before their return to America. While Millie spends time with her long-lost daughter, Lillian, and their host, Lord Hughes, Jane fills the hours devouring mystery novels and taking flying lessons—much to Millie’s disapproval. But any danger in the air is eclipsed by tragedy on the ground when one of the estate’s mechanics, Air Force veteran Simon Marshall, is killed in a motorcar collision.

The sliced brake cables prove this was no accident, yet was the intended victim someone other than Simon? The house is full of suspects–visiting relations, secretive servants, strangers prowling the grounds at night–and also full of targets. The enigmatic Mr. Redvers, who helped Jane solve a murder in Egypt, arrives on the scene to once more offer his assistance. It seems that everyone at Wedgefield wants Jane to help protect the Hughes family. But while she searches for answers, is she overlooking a killer hiding in plain sight?

About the author
Erica Ruth Neubauer spent eleven years in the military, nearly two as a Maryland police officer and one as a high school English teacher before finding her way as a writer. She has been a reviewer of mysteries and crime fiction for publications such as Publishers Weekly and Mystery Scene Magazine for several years, and she’s a member of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America. Erica Ruth lives in Milwaukee, WI.

All comments are welcomed.