As the owner of Fortune’s Cove Books, I have a weakness for crime fiction and the means to indulge it. But I didn’t expect to start my day by finding a corpse.
Hi. I’m Kate Rowan. Normally, I would have been in the bookstore already, working on my display of summer reads, and sipping at a take-out cup of tea from The Old Fire-hall Café. Instead, I decided to get a chair out of storage before heading to work and found myself standing only a few steps away from a dead body.
Let me set the scene. The paperback I was holding was lying splayed open on the dead man’s chest. The imagery in the last chapter of Artists in Crime was still fresh in my mind, the little scarlet thread of blood and the glinting hilt of the dagger. The pages riffled, a dry whisper of sound, stirred by the breeze. It could have almost been a final exhalation of breath.
“Where did you find the body?” My best friend Marcus’s Eton accent resonated through the cell phone.
“Sprawled at the bottom of the basement stairs.” I rent a room in a Victorian house, owned by my great-aunt. The house, with its cracked façade and fairy tale tower, looks like it’s sprung straight from the pages of a gothic romance. But don’t let appearances fool you. I don’t need a knight in shining armor to rescue me. I may be five foot nothing, but I can fight my own battles. Besides throwing a mean right-hook, I can pick locks, and find my way around a hardware store.
“Are you sure Mr. Wendell’s dead?” Marcus asked.
Gray-cast skin. One claw-like hand clutching at his chest, calloused fingers stiff. Eyes torn wide. “Yes.” I met the dead man’s gaze, resisting the urge to flinch. “Absolutely sure.”
Based on the descriptions I’d read in crime novels, I wagered a guess that Mr. Wendell had a heart attack and died of natural causes. But, as Marcus always says, it’s risky drawing conclusions on reality from fiction.
Little did I know then, but that day would lead me down a trail of blackmail, obsession and murder. . .
You can read more about Kate in An Excuse for Murder, released March 20, 2019.
As a former bodyguard, it should be easy for Gary Fenris to kill, especially when the motive is revenge. But Gary has made two mistakes in his life. The first was letting the woman he loved die on his watch. The second was thinking vengeance could bring him peace.
Local bookstore owner and amateur lock pick Kate Rowan loves nothing more than a good mystery. Her curiosity soon leads her down a trail of blackmail, obsession and death. Despite the risk – or maybe because of it – Gary finds himself drawn to Kate. When danger strikes, Gary is forced to face the fact that he used love as an excuse for murder. And he’s got one last score to settle.
Purchase Link
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Meet the author
Vanessa Westermann is a former Arthur Ellis Awards judge, and has given a talk on the evolution of women’s crime writing, at the Toronto Chapter of Sisters in Crime. Like Kate, she has a passion for mysteries and the means to indulge it, through her blog, which features literary reviews and author interviews.
Vanessa currently lives in Canada and is plotting her next (fictitious) crime, while drinking copious amounts of tea.
Visit her blog at vanessa-westermann.info or follow her on Twitter.
All comments are welcomed.
The characters Kate reads about in her books often seem like old friends. Which fictional character would you most like to meet for a cup of coffee (or tea) and why? Thanks to Vanessa Westermann for donating a kindle copy of An Excuse for Murder. This giveaway ends May 14, 2019. Please leave comment in box below. The winner will be notified by email (so check your spam folder). Good luck everyone!
Kate is definitely not having a good day. An Excuse for Murder sounds like a good read — thanks for featuring it on your blog, Dru Ann ~
Thanks, Celia! And thank you to Dru for hosting Kate on your wonderful blog.
I really enjoyed the description of the book. “An Excuse for Murder” sounds like a great book.
This book really sounds like something I’d like to read. Congratulations to the author.
A recent fictional character that I’d like to meet for coffee would be Davis Way (Cole) in Gretchen Archer’s fantastic Davis Way Crime Caper Series. I’d probably have to plan our coffee time on a ship, a helicopter, a casino that’s on fire or a speeding car to get to find a way to be with this character but hopefully it could be a quiet time while her twins were sleeping and no one was trying to rob the casino of millions!!!
Thank you for the introduction to this author and series!
Thank you, Cynthia!
I love the idea of having coffee with Davis Way in a helicopter. You’d have to have a steady hand with the coffee cup though…
This sounds like a interesting book to read!
Like Kate, I often think of characters from series I read as “real” people who are friends. But how could I ever limit myself to just one friend?? Some of my favorites are the women who plow ahead into an investigation, more concerned about righting a wrong than keeping themselves out of trouble! This would include people like Stephanie Plum, Maggie Lee from the Hitwoman series, and Fortune Redding from Jana DeLeon’s Sinful series.
Barbara, I also love reading about strong female protagonists who show strength and courage!
Tough question. Looking at what I’ve read recently I’d have to say Hugo Marston from Mark Pryor’s series and Rowland Sinclair from Sulari Gentill’s series. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg!
Pat, great choices!
I think it would be fun to meet Stephanie Plum.
I agree! I’m sure coffee with Stephanie Plum would be a riot.
I’ve never heard of this author but now I will be sure to check it out. Thanks Dru Ann for your blog and the information you provide to us who enjoy reading so much.
Sounds like a great book–I’ve always wanted to own a book store, but reading about one is the next best thing.
**** WINNER ****
An Excuse For Murder is Pat Dupuy
Congratulations!