Who Killed Lilly Paine?

This Saturday, May 20th, the newest Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles book drops.

Who Killed Lilly Paine?
by
KD McNiven

And you can pre-order it right now on Amazon.

KD McNiven

McNiven is no stranger to Action-Adventure Thrillers, Police Procedural Thrillers, and Science Fiction Thrillers.

Now she adds the Mystery Thriller to her repertoire.

KD is one of three new additions to the Underground Authors. She brings experience and talent to the table, to give us a new look at the goings on in Magnolia Bluff, Texas.

What’s It All About?

Who Killed Lilly Paine? is the 13th book in the exciting multi-author Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles series.

The book revolves around two foci: the death of teenager Lilly Paine, and Deputy Detective Maddy Dawson’s re-acclimation to her home town of Magnolia Bluff. And neither one is going to be easy.

The murder is complex and the murderer elusive.

Maddy’s return home is more of an escape from a bad situation in her previous job in Nevada, than it is a joyous home coming.

During the course of the story, Maddy not only has to deal with her personal demons and self-doubts, but also the threats on her life as she slowly closes in on the killer.

Who Killed Lilly Paine? is an emotive thrill read, as well as a puzzler of a whodunit. A good addition to the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles.

Where Can You Get It?

Who Killed Lilly Paine? is on pre-order right now on Amazon. The book’s official launch date is May 20th. Reserve your copy today!

Comments are always welcome! And until next time, happy reading!

CW Hawes is a playwright; award-winning poet; and a fictioneer, with a bestselling novel. He’s also an armchair philosopher, political theorist, social commentator, and traveler. He loves a good cup of tea and agrees that everything’s better with pizza.

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Only the Good Die Young

Cindy Davis is back with more adventures of Bliss in that bucolic Texas Hill Country town, Magnolia Bluff.

Today is launch day for

Only the Good Die Young

Book 12 in the multi-author Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles series.

Bliss

Quite frankly, Bliss is one of my favorite characters in the world of Magnolia Bluff, Texas.

She’s a snarky and fun-loving person who will die for pizza and swoons over peanut butter. But most of all, she especially loves being free and independent. A rolling stone with no responsibilities.

Only the Good Die Young

In Only the Good Die Young, Bliss is once again back in Magnolia Bluff. Only this time she’s in town willingly — houseboat-sitting for her friend, Olivia, and helping the Doyle family celebrate Easter.

And what a celebration it is: piles of good food, and great music from the popular local band Loco-Motion.

Everything is going along just great until the lead singer picks up her favorite guitar, touches the strings, and turns into a living — and soon dead — fireworks display.

Now that Nina Warren is dead, and the logical suspect pool is Bliss’s favorite family, the Doyles, she wants to be involved in the investigation.

Of course Chief of Police Tommy Jager doesn’t want Bliss’s help.

And of course, Bliss and her friends ignore Tommy and begin poking around in the life of the late singer.

I don’t want to give away the storyline. That would spoil the mystery.

Cindy Davis’s Best

Instead, let me say that with Bliss and her adventures, Cindy Davis has hit the ball out of the park.

These are fabulously entertaining cozy mysteries. Just plain old good clean fun. With a healthy dollop of the paranormal thrown in that really spices things up.

Ms. Davis has a knack for making the paranormal seem so very normal. And she does so with a deft hand. The Bliss books are clearly Cindy Davis at her best.

You will definitely want to get in on the action, the laughs, the fun, the pizza, and especially the noggin-scratchin’ puzzler of a mystery.

Who wanted Nina Warren dead, and why? Count on Bliss to find out and end up dying for her efforts. Well, almost. Maybe.

I love the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles series. Eleven writers producing some of the best mysteries and thrillers for your entertainment.

And I especially love Bliss. I think you will too.

Only the Good Die Young by Cindy Davis. On sale right now — on Amazon.

Comments are always welcome! And until next time, happy reading!

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Worldbuilding and Magnolia Bluff

Worldbuilding

Worldbuilding is often seen as the exclusive purview of the fantasy and science fiction genres. After all, in those genres the writer is often literally building a world. Creating races of beings. And inventing all manner of things that don’t exist.

Yet, I’d submit that every writer of fiction, to a greater or lesser degree, engages in worldbuilding. After all, even the most real life setting is peopled with human beings the writer has created out of his head.

In addition, the writer may add buildings where none exist, or the reverse. He may create restaurants that have no correspondence to anything real. Yet there they exist in his “real life” setting.

Just because a setting appears “real” doesn’t mean it actually is.

Nevertheless someone may protest, “But that’s not a world the writer is creating.”

And I counter with, “Why not?”

The mystery writer’s world is just as made up as is the fantasy writer’s. Both worlds don’t actually exist. They’ve been built to meet the needs of the the story being told.

A Multi-Author Series

Back in 2021, I proposed to my fellow Underground Authors that we write a multi-author novel series.

We’d just published an outstanding short story collection, Beyond the Sea (get it on Amazon).

So why not go one further?

But what the heck is a multi-author novel series? Well, it’s like any other series of novels — except each book is written by a different writer.

Of course, in practice it’s not as simple as it sounds. It’s more along the lines of attempting to herd a clowder of cats. And that’s mostly due to the temperament of creative-type folks.

Nevertheless, once the idea caught fire with the Underground Authors it took hold and we had ourselves a raging creative prairie fire.

We set ground rules. And proceeded to create our world.

Magnolia Bluff

Out of thin air, we created the town of Magnolia Bluff and set it down in the beautiful Texas Hill Country. The town is very loosely taken from the actual town of Burnet, Texas. We also re-named Buchanan Lake to Burnet Reservoir.

I found Texas state highway numbers no longer being used and used them create highways into and out of town.

We created lots of buildings and institutions, but most of all we created people. Because no town can exist without people.

Out of our imaginations, much like Athena springing from Zeus’s forehead fully dressed for battle, we created a pantheon of major and minor players.

There’s Harry Thurgood, owner of the Really Good Wood-Fired Coffee Shop, a man with a mysterious past.

There’s the Reverend Ember Cole, pastor of the Methodist Church, who also has a past she doesn’t want revealed.

Every town worth it’s salt has a newspaper. So our town has Graham Huston, owner and editor of the Magnolia Bluff Chronicle.

There’s also Bliss, who’s just passing through, but like a boomerang, keeps coming back.

There’s also vacationing Father Frank, JJ, and Jo.

Dr. Mike Kurelek is available to help people with their problems. He also teaches psychology at Burnet College.

What is a town without a library? And Magnolia Bluff has one. Caroline McCluskey is the head librarian.

And a town can’t get by without law enforcement. So we have Police Chief Tommy Jager, Sheriff Buck Blanton, Police Investigator Reece Sovern, Conservation Officer Madison Jackson, and Judge Rutherford B Jones. All doing their duty to make Magnolia Bluff a safe place to live.

There are also those prodigal children who leave their home, sometimes for many years, but manage to find their way back. Blue Bonet is one of those.

But these aren’t the only people. There are 10,000 souls in our town, so there are a lot more folks for you to meet and greet. Not counting the funerals you might encounter while visiting. In fact, count on the funerals.

Each of the Underground Authors has his or her core characters. They are the “untouchables”. The rest of us may use them and abuse them, but we can’t kill them off.

We are now up to 12 writers. Twelve writers building one town, and its people, history, and traditions one book at a time.

Yes, sirree Bob. Worldbuilding at its finest.

Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles

Book 12, Only the Good Die Young by Cindy Davis, is on pre-order now. Pick up a copy and immerse yourself in the world of Magnolia Bluff.

You can check out the series page on Amazon. There you will discover more immersion experiences in our wonderful Hill Country town.

Comments are always welcome! And until next time, happy reading!

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Interview with the Reverend Ember Cole

Today, I have the honor of talking with the Reverend Ember Cole, pastor of Saint Luke’s Methodist Church in beautiful Magnolia Bluff, Texas. The home base for the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles.

CW: Welcome, Ember. Glad you can be with me here today on the blog.

EC: My pleasure, CW. Thanks for inviting me.

CW: So to start, why do you wear a Catholic hat?

EC: (laughs) It’s easily recognized as religious, and with the clerical collar immediately marks me as a person of the cloth. And because women ministers are still something of a rare breed, that helps me in my ministry.

CW: Makes sense. To go one further, why did you choose the ministry for a career?

EC: I don’t think of the ministry as a career. I see it as a life of service to my fellow human beings.

CW: What kind of service?

EC: To help them with both their physical and spiritual needs. Especially the spiritual. To borrow a turn of phrase from my evangelical colleagues, we all have a God-size hole in us. And we too often fill it with everything but God. But only God really fits. It’s the square peg, round hole thing.

CW: Gotcha. So you don’t consider yourself an evangelical?

EC: Not in the sense they mean by it. I believe we should tell people about Jesus and encourage them to believe, so I’m evangelical in that sense of the word. But I don’t accept the other things they believe.

CW: Such as?

EC: The verbal and plenary inspiration of the scriptures. The virgin birth. And very recently, I’ve started to doubt if there even was an actual physical Jesus.

CW: Whoa, Reverend! No Jesus?

EC: (laughs) Yeah, that’s a bit of a shocker, isn’t it?

CW: I mean, like, how did everything get started if there wasn’t a Jesus to kick things off?

EC: Oh, there was somebody. It was Peter. Paul quite clearly says Jesus first appeared to Peter. Then after Peter, Jesus went on to appear to many others.

CW: Wait a minute. Are we talking about a spiritual Jesus here?

EC: In a sense, yes. You see, the idea is that God created Jesus, you know, the Word, and through the Word all things came into being.

Then Satan rebelled and God kicked him out of heaven, which the ancients thought was the most distant sphere from us. We’d think of their spheres surrounding the earth as dimensions or parallel universes. So Satan came to our dimension.

Then God sent Jesus to our dimension, but not physically to earth. He appeared in Satan’s realm, which the ancients thought was up by the moon. Today, it makes more sense to think of it as another dimension, or a parallel universe.

CW: Okay, so Jesus moves from God’s dimension to Satan’s dimension.

EC: Right. At least something like that. Using our contemporary understanding.

CW: Okay. So Jesus is now hanging out with Satan.

EC: (laughs) Something like that. Then Jesus lets Satan kill Him. After which, Jesus rose from the dead, and first appeared to Peter. In a dream, maybe. Or a vision. Lastly, He appeared to Paul in a vision.

CW: That’s… That’s… Wow, that’s different. And all this happened not on earth, but in another dimension.

EC: Right.

CW: Mind boggling.

EC: But it is what Paul wrote and taught. And Paul’s genuine letters are the first Christian writings that we have. Paul never mentions talking to an eyewitness, nor does he ever mention Jesus’s birth or His family. What Paul does write is that all, and I repeat, all of the information he got was by visions or through the scriptures. Never an eyewitness to an earthly Jesus. And if we think about it, why wouldn’t he if such a witness existed? But Paul never does. Only visions and scripture. And those make sense only if Jesus was never here on earth in the first place.

CW: Huh. That isn’t what I learned in seminary. And the Methodist Church is okay with you believing this view?

EC: You went to seminary? Well, that’s interesting. I wonder…

CW: That was a lifetime ago. But what about your bishop? What does he think?

EC: Well, the church probably isn’t okay with it. And my bishop doesn’t know. You’re the first person I’ve told about this. But then you…

CW: Nope. I’m just an amanuensis. So this is news to me.

EC: But aren’t you the writer?

CW: Amanuensis. I receive and write down. Like Paul.

EC: (giggles) That’s funny. Because I do believe in visions and dreams. In a sense, you might say I’m something of a charismatic Methodist. Part of the Third Wave.

CW: And your bishop is okay with that?

EC: Probably not. But what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him. Or me.

CW: Oh, clever you!

EC: In spite of what Harry thinks, I’m not completely naïve when it comes to politics. (smiles)

CW: And everything is politics.

EC: That it is.

CW: And speaking of politics, is Mary Lou Fight still after you?

EC: Yes. She’d like to come back to Saint Luke’s, but won’t as long as I’m there. So she’s still exploring ways to get me out.

CW: Does that bother you?

EC: Not really. I mean, yes, it’s frustrating. And it annoys the hell out of me at times.

CW: Wait. Did you just say hell?

EC: I did. You’ve never heard a minister ever say hell before?

CW: I was Baptist, so yes I have. Sorry. You were saying?

EC: Mary Lou is my cross to bear, so to speak.

CW: Even though you don’t believe there was a literal cross.

EC: (smiles) Yeah. Funny how the historicist and literalist views have influenced out language.

CW: Yes, it is.

EC: I very much feel sorry for Mary Lou. She is a miserable person at heart. If any one needs the love of Jesus, it is that woman. And I hope she finds it.

CW: Do you have a motto or mantra that keeps you going throughout the day?

EC: I do. Paul’s words in Romans chapter eight, verse twenty-eight: “…all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”

CW: That’s a very good verse. Very positive. Optimistic.

EC: It is.

CW: I know this last question might sound morbid, but I always tell myself momento mori, remember you will die. It’s a great guiding principle to help keep things in perspective.

EC: It is.

CW: So, how would you like to die?

EC: Oh, that’s easy. In the arms of my lover.

CW: Harry?

EC: Well, that would be nice. But I was actually referring to Jesus.

CW: Oh, wow. Yeah, okay. I can see that.

EC: (singing)

Jesus, lover of my soul,
Let me to thy bosom fly
While the nearer waters roll,
While the tempest still is high.
Hide me, O my Saviour, hide,
Till the storm of life is past;
Safe into the haven guide,
O receive my soul at last.

CW: That’s a great hymn.

EC: It is. I also love the lines in the third stanza: “Thou, O Christ, art all I want; more than all in Thee I find.”

CW: Yeah. You, Ember Cole, are a woman of tremendous faith. Magnolia Bluff is fortunate to have you. Thanks for being on the blog.

EC: Thanks for having me. And may Christ be with you.

CW: And also with you. And if you have any questions for Rev Em, drop them in the comments below.

Comments are always welcome! And until next time, happy reading!

If you enjoyed this post, please consider buying me a cup of tea. Thanks! PayPal.me/CWHawes

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When Bad Things Happen to Good Mice

The Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles keep rolling along.

This month, on March 18th, as a matter of fact, Book 11 launches

When Bad Things Happen to Good Mice

And you can pick the book up on pre-order now.

Cindy Davis gives us another fun cozy mystery, filled with great humor, plenty of suspense, and a touch of the paranormal. After all, who doesn’t like ghosts? And the pizza shop owner knowing what kind of pizza you want?

Bliss seems to be the recipient of bad mojo. Here she is camping under the stars, minding her own business, when Chief Jager hauls her back to town on a charge of murder.

Murder of her boyfriend. Well, ex-boyfriend.

Why?

Because a body, presumed to be Bliss’s ex-boyfriend, was found in the ashes of the Annual Celtic Faire bonfire.

Of course, Bliss was miles away when he died. But not so, according to a witness, someone Bliss considered a friend.

The witness claims she saw Bliss in town the day of the bonfire. And no one can prove otherwise.

Chief Jager is getting pressure from all sides to solve the murder. And to catch the petty thief who’s been all over town breaking and entering and stealing cash.

With the help of her ability to see people’s auras, get clues from Tom Chapin songs that pop into her head, and the clues her toucan Diablo drops on her, Bliss thinks the murder and the thefts are related.

Chief Jager, though, doesn’t buy it. Well, not until it’s discovered that the body in the bonfire wasn’t Bliss’s ex-boyfriend after all.

So who was he? And why was he killed? And why have the thefts suddenly stopped?

Bliss, with charges dropped, is on a mission to find out.

It’s not every day that a mystery is filled with suspense and thrills, and is great fun. But that’s what Cindy Davis delivers in this latest installment of the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles.

So if you’re looking to have a good time while taking a break from spring cleaning, or relaxing in the comfy coziness of your favorite chair or sofa on a lazy afternoon, or while sitting in bed before you hit the hay — then pick up a copy of

When Bad Things Happen to Good Mice

You won’t regret it!

And if you’re new to the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles series, you can start your adventure with

Death Wears a Crimson Hat

And you can find all of the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles on Amazon.

Comments are always welcome! And until next time, happy reading!

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The Dog Gone Diamond Dilemma Review

Esther Williams is missing. Has been for months. Now her dog is stolen right in front of Caroline McCluskey, Esther’s friend and neighbor.

Caroline decides she has to do something. The police aren’t getting anywhere, and somebody needs to find Esther.

So begins The Dog Gone Diamond Dilemma by Linda Pirtle. The 10th book in the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles.

This year 10 authors continue to tell us about the mayhem, the shenanigans, the murders, and the excitement of small-town living.

Join us for the ride! The Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles at Amazon.

So what does Caroline, our friendly librarian, do to find her friend? She calls together the Friends of the Round Table: her buddies Magnolia Nadine and Daphne.

The trio start gathering clues and paying attention to gossip. And then things start happening. Heads get whacked. Bullets are flying. And bodies are falling.

Will the Friends of the Round Table be able to solve the problem of their missing friend? Or will they end up as numbers in the body count?

The Dog Gone Diamond Dilemma is an uncozy, cozy mystery. It’s not all tea and crumpets, or coffee and doughnuts in this installment of the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles.

While keeping the feel of a cozy mystery, Linda Pirtle has infused plenty of thriller elements into her book. The result is an intriguing and exciting hybrid of thrills and spills, along with warmth and love, and plenty of sleuthing.

The Dog Gone Diamond Dilemma, Book 10 in the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles series, brought to you by The Underground Authors. Available at Amazon.

Comments are always welcome! And until next time, happy reading!

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Interview with Harry Thurgood

Today, I have the honor to be talking with Harry Thurgood, Magnolia Bluff’s Man of Mystery. He’s the owner of the Really Good Wood-Fired Coffee Shop, in beautiful Magnolia Bluff, Texas.

So, without further ado, let’s get started.

CW: Welcome, Harry. Glad you can be with me here today on the blog.

HT: My pleasure, CW. Thanks for having me. Everyone likes free advertising.

CW: That they do. To start, just what, exactly, is wood-fired coffee?

HT: (chuckles) It’s how coffee used to be roasted, back in the 1800s. Before the invention of the gas-fired roaster.

CW: That’s it?

HT: That’s it. Of course, the type of wood used, how hot you get the fire, length of roasting time — all that has a part in the finished product.

CW: Thanks for clarifying that.

HT: I thought you would have known, being the creator—

CW: (I hold up my hand to cut him off.) No. I’m not the creator. I’m simply the amanuensis recording what happens. You, Ember, Reece, Scarlett, Mary Lou, and all the others, you all are telling the story.

HT: Amanuensis, eh? (Shrugs) Okay. Thanks for letting me know.

CW: You guys are the storytellers.

HT: (laughs) Okay.

CW: There are nine books chronicling the lives of the people in Magnolia Bluff, along with some unfortunate murders that take place. You show up in most of these books, so I’d like to find out more about you.

HT: Okay. Go ahead and ask. I’m not an open book. Man of Mystery, you know. But the covers open far enough so you can riffle the pages.

CW: All right, then. You want to keep your past in the past. (Harry nods.) Can you tell me why you decided to move to Magnolia Bluff?

HT: I was looking for a place far away from where I was, that was relatively quiet, and where I could just blend in.

CW: It doesn’t seem like you quite succeeded in doing that.

HT: Not quite. But I don’t regret moving to the town. That is where I met the love of my life.

CW: You’re referring to the Reverend Ember Cole.

HT: I am.

CW: How did you two meet?

HT: We both moved to Magnolia Bluff about the same time. I, to start my new life. She, to pastor the Methodist Church. One day, not long after I opened the coffee shop, in she walks. I thought the silent film star Louise Brooks had come back to life. And to my mind, Louise was the perfect It Girl.

CW: Swept you off your feet, in other words.

HT: She did. And just like Louise, she has “It”. But she also has so much more. She’s warm and caring, so very giving, funny.

CW: She’s the one.

HT: That she is.

CW: So now that you’ve found the love of your life, what’s next?

HT: I’d love for her to marry me. Are you sure you’re just the amanuensis?

CW: Very sure.

HT: Well, I’d love to marry Ember and just settle down to a very comfortable and quiet existence. But our town seems to be plagued with murders and that disrupts the tranquility. Makes life more complex than it needs to be.

CW: Reece Sovern and Mary Lou Fight, especially Mary Lou, seem to thrive on the excitement.

HT: Mary Lou definitely. Reece is just doing his job. I think he’d rather have nothing but boring days until he retires. Mary Lou, though, I think really needs to get a life.

CW: She probably thinks she has one.

HT: Probably does at that.

CW: Do you have any hobbies? Or things you are especially passionate about?

HT: I’m not an artist, but I appreciate fine art. It has the capacity to transport the soul to a better place than the here and now. And even though I’m not a musician, I enjoy fine music. Because it too has the ability to enrich the soul. As for hobbies, I’m not a sportsman. Although I do enjoy target shooting and the game of chess. Just the other night, I battled Capablanca. Lost, of course.

CW: I take it that was in a book.

HT: (smiling) Yes, his match with Lasker for World Champion. Although, with computers nowadays, you can play the greats.

CW: Very true. We’ll have to play a game or two sometime.

HT: The internet is a wonderful invention.

CW: That it is. Do you have a favorite artist or composer?

HT: I love the paintings of Albert Bierstadt and Grant Wood. And I think the music of Arthur Foote and Sir Granville Bantock is just divine.

CW: I like those artists and composers as well. Such beauty.

HT: You sure you’re just the amanuensis?

CW: Yep. Aside from Ember, do you have any friends in Magnolia Bluff?

HT: I wouldn’t say I have any close friends in town. I do like Scarlett Hayden. She has an “I don’t care” attitude that I like. And I think she’s a very caring person at heart. And if it wasn’t for Ember, I think she and I might have eventually gotten together. I also like Graham Huston. He’s well read, pensive, and, like me, is trying to leave his past in the past. Elder Smythe and his wife are very nice people. I admire their simple lifestyle. And quite honestly, I like Reece Sovern. He’s a good man. Honorable.

CW: What’s the one thing you like most about living in Magnolia Bluff?

HT: It is a pretty little town in the middle of a gorgeous part of Texas. And I love the fact that it is quiet and peaceful. At least most days.

CW: Sounds like a great place to live.

HT: It is. Just keep looking behind you. (Gives me a questioning look.) Amanuensis, you say?

CW: I do. Thanks for talking with me today, Harry.

HT: My pleasure, CW.

And you can get in on all the Magnolia Bluff action by visiting the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles series page on Amazon. Nine books for your reading pleasure, and Book 10 comes out next week.

Comments are always welcome! And if you have a question for Harry Thurgood, drop it below in the comments section.

Until next time, happy reading!

If you enjoyed this post, please consider buying me a cup of tea. Thanks! PayPal.me/CWHawes

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A Dewey Decimal Dilemma

Linda Pirtle began writing mystery novels on a dare. And it’s a good thing for mystery readers that she took that dare.

And it’s a good thing she’s part of the Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles series.

A Dewey Decimal Dilemma is Book 7 in the series — and it’s another winner. It’s on pre-order at Amazon.

I don’t know what it is about this series, but each of the authors has given us a book that is at the top of his or her game.

Don’t get me wrong: all of the writers in the series are top drawer. But there is something about the dynamic in this project that has brought out the best of the best. The synergy of working together has produced stellar results.

And A Dewey Decimal Dilemma is no exception.

I’m putting this down on the table: I don’t care overly much for the current-day cozy mystery. Generally speaking, there’s too much ChickLit in the books for my liking. And I find the world of ChickLit about as inviting as being stranded at the South Pole without boots or parka.

But in A Dewey Decimal Dilemma Linda Pirtle has given us a cozy mystery that is contemporary, yet harkens back to the Golden Age of the murder mystery.

To my mind, Mrs. Pirtle has given us an amateur sleuth mystery that is as enjoyable for men as it is for women, even though the sleuth is female — and that is quite an accomplishment.

The main character, our sleuth, is Caroline McCluskey. A widow, she’s the head librarian of Magnolia Bluff’s library. There’s a bit of romance in the story, but it isn’t cloying. Nor is there an unnecessary preoccupation with her job.

Instead, we see Caroline as a person who gets tangled up in a murder investigation. She is someone not unlike ourselves.

The storyline focuses on the murder and it does so in classic fashion. Giving us a twisting, turning viper of a story.

The writing itself is taut. Nothing frilly, flowery, or extraneous; yet, we also get a picture of Magnolia Bluff and the people who live there that is both colorful and that reveals new dimensions about some of them. What I like to call value-added writing.

A Dewey Decimal Dilemma sits squarely in the tradition of the mystery genre’s Golden Age. Yet, it is a contemporary story with a modern woman as the sleuth. And all the while Mrs. Pirtle avoids the billowing methane vapors of ChickLit, so a guy can enjoy the story.

A Dewey Decimal Dilemma launches October 20th. Don’t miss this one. It’s a winner. And you can pre-order it on Amazon.

Comments are always welcome! And until next time, happy reading!

CW Hawes is a playwright, award-winning poet, and a fictioneer, with a bestselling novel. He’s also an armchair philosopher, political theorist, social commentator, and traveler. He loves a good cup of tea and agrees that everything’s better with pizza.

If you enjoyed this post, please consider buying me a cup of tea. Thanks! PayPal.me/CWHawes

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The Crimson Hat Queen

Meet the Characters of Magnolia Bluff
The Crimson Hat Queen

Her followers are arrogant and quick to look down their noses at anyone who does not measure up to their social standing.

Once again we are walking the streets of Magnolia Bluff, Texas. And once again we are meeting one of the town’s citizens.

Today we are meeting Mary Lou Fight. Wife of the town’s bank president. Founder and Queen of the Magnolia Bluff Crimson Hat Society. And once again I thank Caleb Pirtle for letting me borrow his blogpost.

Every small town has one, the self-proclaimed, self-anointed queen of society.

She thinks she runs the town.

She has money.

She has friends who do her every bidding.

They want to stay on her good side.

They want to be invited to her parties.

They want to be viewed as part of the town’s upper social class.

In Death Wears a Crimson Hat, they are the disciples of Mary Lou Fight.

And Mary Lou is the Queen of the Crimson Hat Society.

Don’t believe me?

Just ask her

In general, her followers are arrogant and quick to look down their noses at anyone who does not measure up to their social standing.

They are the Gossips.

The Backbiters.

And the Character Assassins.

Lose the favor of Mary Lou Fight, and you might as well pack up and leave town.

She will make your life a living hell.

And she will enjoy every minute of it.

***

The Reverend Ember Cole walked through the door of the Really Good Wood-Fired Coffee Shop at precisely five minutes after one and froze.

There, in the corner, Mary Lou Fight was holding court with the five members of her Crimson Hat Society, all decked out in their red hats, yellow feather boas, and indigo attire.

Mary Lou and her husband Gunter were prominent, very prominent members of Ember’s church. And an unrelenting source of grief for her.

Scarlett Hayden saw her and waved.

The only honest one in the bunch, Ember thought and waved back. She proceeded to the counter where Harry was standing at the end opposite from where Mary Lou was holding court. The eyes of the Queen of the Crimson Hats followed Ember.

The Reverend took a seat, and Harry handed her a menu. “I know you don’t need this, but ol’ eagle-eye is watching us.”

“And I bet her mouth is still talking to her flock.”

“It is. And was that a note of disdain I heard? Isn’t that a sin or something?”

“That woman makes the Devil look like Gabriel.”

“You know what they say: there’s telephone, telegraph, but don’t tell Mary Lou.”

Ember smiled. “I don’t think that’s how it goes.”

“But it’s the truth.”

“That it is.”

From the large entryway, he followed her through a door on the right into a room that was probably twice the size of his coffee shop. The maid left and closed the door.

A fireplace was along one wall, a white grand piano was at the far end, and an assortment of sofas and chairs formed areas for people to sit and engage in conversation. Paintings hung on the walls, and large windows essentially replaced the walls at the far end of the room.

From one of the sofas in the middle of the room, Mary Lou Fight stood. She wore a cream-colored dress. The only accent Harry could see was the strand of pearls she wore around her neck.

“Mr. Thurgood, to what do I owe the honor of your visit?”

“I wanted to see how the other half lives.”

She arched an eyebrow. “Have a seat.” She indicated a chair. Harry walked to it and sat after Mary Lou had returned to her seat on the couch.

“And what do you think, Mr. Thurgood?” she purred.

“What I’ve always suspected. The other half lives quite well.”

“Jesus said that we’ll always have the poor with us. I suppose, by implication, that also means the rich will always be with us as well. Wouldn’t you rather be rich?”

“I’d rather be happy.”

She smiled at his reply and asked if he’d like something to drink. “I’m having tea.”

“No, thank you. But you go ahead.”

She rang a bell. The maid appeared. “Tea, please, Gabriela.” The maid nodded and departed.

She turned back to Harry. “I suppose you heard about Louisa Middlebrook.”

“I did. Tragic. Can’t figure out why someone would feel the need to kill her.”

“She was one of my girls. It is very sad, and I don’t understand it either.”

Mary Lou watched Harry leave. She raised her teacup to her lips and sipped tea.

Perhaps I underestimated that lounge lizard, she thought.

She took another sip of tea, set the cup in the saucer, and set them on the coffee table.

She stood, walked to one of the floor-to-ceiling windows, and looked out on her world.

“I think it’s time to teach Mr. Thurgood, if that’s even his name, a lesson.” A smile touched her lips. “Yes, this is a job for Hunter. He’ll find all the dirt hiding in your closet Harry Thurgood, and with it — I will break you!”

Her laughter filled the room.

I hope you enjoyed that snippet. Mary Lou Fight is one woman you don’t want to tangle with unless you are very well prepared. And most aren’t.

Harry Thurgood is skating on some mighty thin ice.

You can read the original post here. And you can get a copy of Death Wears a Crimson Hat on Amazon.

The world of Magnolia Bluff is fun and idyllic and deadly. There are four adventures available for your reading pleasure. Number five is on preorder. Check out the world of Magnolia Bluff on Amazon.

Comments are always welcome. And until next time, happy reading!

If you enjoyed this post, please consider buying me a cup of tea. Thanks! PayPal.me/CWHawes

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The High Sheriff of Magnolia Bluff

There are always people who stand out in a crowd. Or a small town for that matter.

And in Magnolia Bluff, we have quite a few who stand out. One of them is Sheriff Buck Blanton, who we first meet in Eulogy in Black and White.

Once again, I’ve borrowed Caleb Pirtle’s excellent post (with his permission, of course). You can find the original here.

Buck has one facial expression. He grins when he sees you. He grins if he is about to hit you with the hickory club that hangs from his belt.

Every small town has a law officer who’s tough, who takes no nonsense off of anybody.

But he has a good heart.

Probably not a pure soul.

But a good heart.

He’ll go out of his way to help you.

But only God can help you if you break the law.

In the Texas Hill Country town of Magnolia Bluff, that lawman is the high sheriff, Buck Blanton. Here is the scene when you meet him for the first time in Eulogy in Black and White.

Buck Blanton makes a sudden U-turn, its headlights splintered by the rain. I pull my denim jacket collar tighter around my throat and watch him ease slowly to the curb beside me and stop. The only sounds Magnolia Bluff can manage at four minutes past eight on a soggy morning are distant rumbles of thunder and Buck’s windshield wipers slapping back and forth in a lackadaisical effort to shove the spatter of raindrops aside.

The sheriff rolls down his window and pushes his blue-tinted Shady Rays sunglasses up above his thickening gray eyebrows. Buck fits the job description of a country sheriff perfectly. Sunglasses, rain or shine. A thick neck. Broad shoulders. Barrel chest. Sagging jowls. Broad nose, probably broken more than once. Hands big enough to grab a grown man by the throat, jerk him off the floor, and shake him into submission. A gray felt Stetson hat lies in the seat beside him. I can’t see his feet, but I know he’s wearing his full quill Justin cowboy boots as black as his skin. Wouldn’t be caught dead without them. Says he was born in them. Says he will die in them. I don’t doubt it for a minute.

“On your way up to see Freddy?” He asks, glancing at the flowers in my hand. The rain has beaten them up pretty good. His voice is deep and mellow, a full octave lower than the thunder.

I nod.

Buck has one facial expression. He grins when he sees you. He grins if he is about to hit you with the hickory club that hangs from his belt. He grins if he’s praying over your lost soul at the First Baptist Church. He’s grinning when he throws you in jail. He’s grinning if he has to shoot you first. I suspect he grins in his sleep.

“Need a lift?”

I shake my head.

“It’s a bad day for walking,” he says. “You still got a mile or so to go before you reach Freddy.”

I shrug. “It’s fine,” I say. “I’m already wet.”

Buck opens the car door. “Get in before I arrest your sorry ass,” he says.

I look closely.

His grin has reached his eyes.

I climb into the front passenger seat. “Hate to mess up your upholstery,” I tell him.

“Don’t matter.” The sheriff wheels back down an empty street. “I’ll have a couple of drunks in here before the day’s out, and they’ll be a damn sight wetter than you are.” He leans forward and studies the rolling black clouds closing in from the west end of Burnet Reservoir. “That’s the trouble with the weather,” Buck says. “It rains on the just and the unjust alike.”

“Sound like a preacher,” I say.

“Tried it once.” Buck shrugs. “Didn’t like it. Found it’s easier to drag the bad guys to jail than drag them to the altar.”

You can find Eulogy in Black and White on Amazon. And you’ll be glad you did.

Comments are always welcome. And until next time, happy reading!

If you enjoyed this post, please consider buying me a cup of tea. Thanks! PayPal.me/CWHawes

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