Sometimes the best way to know a person is by asking questions, where you can learn more about what makes them tick. Let’s see who we have today.

What is your name?
– – My name is Savannah Reid. Yes, I have a middle one, but only people from my childhood use it, and then, only when I’ve done something to irritate them. It isn’t difficult. They’re a highly irritable lot.

How old are you?
– – My wise, Southern granny told me that a lady never answers a question that requires a number for an answer. This would include one’s age, weight, the size of her bloomers, income, credit card balance, or phone number. . .unless the gentleman is of upstanding character and has a particularly beguiling twinkle in his eye. All right. . .I’m in my early forties.

What is your profession?
– – After quitting the police force (okay, getting fired), I went into business for myself as a private detective. Now I can choose which cases I take, sleep in if I like, and ignore some of the “rules.” Hey, it pays the bills. Most of the time.

Do you have a significant other?
– – My best friend (and partner on The Job) became my husband. Eventually. And yes, he’s quite significant. He’s my soulmate, my darlin’, my rock. . .except for when he’s being a major pain in the tuckus. That’s when I remind him that he could become a suspicious smell in the attic.

What is his name?
– – Dirk Coulter

What is his profession?
– – He is a detective sergeant on the police force. As was I, before I “quit.”

Any children?
– – Sadly, no.

Do you have any sibling(s)?
– – Far too many. I’m the oldest of nine. Wouldn’t mind dropping a couple of them off on a dark country road and never looking back. See “irritable lot” above.

Cats, dogs or other pets?
– – Two enormous black cats, Diamante and Cleopatra.

What town do you live in?
– – San Carmelita – a sleepy little beach community in Southern California (sleepy when there aren’t any murders or other wide-awake skullduggery going on.)

Do you rent or own?
– – Unfortunately, I own, which means when the roof leaks or the toilet overflows, it’s my problem. No, Dirk’s not much of a handyman. The only tool he owned before he married me was a Harley-Davidson beer bottle opener.

House or building complex?
– – Spanish style house with white stucco that always needs painting and a red tiled roof with a few missing “teeth.” See above.

What is your favorite spot in your house?
– – I have two actually. The comfy, rose print chintz chair in my living room where I sit with the kitties on my footstool or lap, read romance novels, and eat chocolate. The second is my Victorian, clawfoot tub in my bathroom with rose-printed wallpaper, where I luxuriate in a tubful of lilac-scented bubbles, read romance novels, and eat chocolate.

Who is your best friend?
– – My husband Dirk, unless he’s being a turkey butt (see former reference to smell in attic) and then my BFF is Tammy, my sweet assistant. I love her to pieces, even though she’s a size zero. Yes. Zero. While I’m a size. . .well. . .not zero. (We don’t talk about numbers, right?)

Amateur sleuth or professional?
– – Professional all the way.

Whom do you work with when sleuthing?
– – Dirk, Tammy, my all-wise Granny Reid, and my other BFFs, Ryan and John. Having served as FBI agents, they’re handy to have around, not to mention extremely easy on the eyes and gourmet cooks.

Favorite meal?
– – Anything Ryan and John cook or. . .my all-time favorite, the one I would choose if I were on death row and only had one more meal to eat (what a grim thought) would be – insert drum roll – my Granny Reid’s traditional after church Sunday dinner. Fried chicken, mashed potatoes, cream gravy, green beans, with her apple pie, blackberry cobbler, German chocolate cake, or pecan fudge for dessert.

Favorite dessert?
– – Any and all of the above!

Favorite hobby?
– – Cooking. It’s a family tradition. No one goes hungry, or even feels a tiny pang, in the presence of a Reid woman. Except maybe my sister, Marietta, who’s too lazy to zap a frozen TV dinner. But then, she’s a beautician and cuts hair in her kitchen, so you probably wouldn’t want to eat there anyway.

Favorite vacation spot?
– – Vacation? Vacation? I can’t afford a vacation. Gals with leaky roofs don’t get to go on vacations. But I can’t complain, since I live in a beautiful town that a lot of other people visit when they go on vacation. Apparently, their roofs don’t leak or they rent.

Favorite color?
– – Red! “What shade of red?” you ask. Shiny, heart-shaped, Valentine chocolate box red.

Favorite author?
– – Sonja Massie. She’s mostly a mystery writer and didn’t do a lot of romances, but her Dream Carver is my favorite book, next to Gone With the Wind. (I know, a shameless pitch if ever there was one.) 😉

Favorite sports team?
– – Sports? Oh, um, yeah. . . I kinda like football. Well, I like looking at guys playing football. Especially when they’re running the other direction. And what team? Uh, I guess the Yankees. Maybe the Celtics. The Olympic male gymnasts are sorta cool.

Movies or Broadway?
– – My favorite shows are those I can share with my hubby. So, until Broadway produces a non-musical starring Clint Eastwood as James Bond, I guess it’s movies.

Are you a morning or a night person?
– – I would like to shoot morning people. Especially those who sing loudly, open curtains wide to let in the blinding sunlight and then have the audacity to ask you how you are at the crack of dadgum dawn-thirty. Okay, “shooting” is a bit harsh. But could we just ship them off to an island in the Pacific where, every morning, they can all sing together in perfect, perpetual harmony while we sit around, grumpily guzzling our coffee behind drawn sun-blocking drapes, and growl at each other?

In a few sentences, what is a typical day in your life like?
– – I track down a few of society’s nastier members and try to get some measure of justice for their victims. And I eat good food. I cook and feed my loved ones. And I pet Diamante and Cleopatra and listen to them purr. And I annoy the heck outta Dirk by trying to improve his character.

You can read about Savannah in Hide and Sneak, the 23rd book in the “Savannah Reid” mystery series. The first book in the series is Just Desserts.

As one of nine siblings raised in the Deep South, plus-sized P.I. Savannah Reid has experienced her share of family drama. But shotgun weddings and snooty in-laws don’t worry her nearly as much as a search for a missing mother and child—especially when it leads to murder . . .

Savannah and her husband have settled back in San Carmelita, California, and life is slowly returning to normal—if “normal” means babysitting newlyweds Tammy and Waycross’s incredibly fussy infant daughter. But soothing a squalling baby is kid’s stuff compared to the Midnight Magnolia Detective Agency’s latest case. Handsome up-and-coming actor Ethan Malloy has enlisted the help of Savannah and Co. in a desperate attempt to track down his missing wife and toddler, not long before the beloved family nanny gets murdered.

With the police involved and paparazzi swarming at every turn, the discreet search becomes a sensationalized homicide investigation, leaving Savannah rushing to apprehend the killer and save the missing child. Famous heartthrobs can attract the wrong kind of attention, and some snooping into the complicated private lives of Ethan and his wife tells Savannah that she’s in for a deadly chase. As Savannah dismantles bombshell after bombshell while balancing delicate family matters of her own, she soon finds herself closing in on a terrifying culprit—one who’s willing to do anything for a moment in the spotlight . . .

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About the author
G.A. McKevett is the author of the acclaimed Savannah Reid mystery series. Also writing under the name Sonja Massie, she has authored over 60 books ranging from cozy mysteries, to historical romances, to nonfiction works on the history of Ireland. Her earthy humor and fast-paced plots delight her fans, while critics applaud her offbeat characterizations and incisive observations on human nature. Irish by ancestry, she has lived in Toronto, Ireland and Los Angeles, but now resides in New York. Readers can visit her online at SonjaMassie.com.

All comments are welcomed.