Tag: cozy mystery

A New Mexico Mystery Author Interview: Amy M. Bennett

Last week, I reviewed No Lifeguard on Duty, and today I have the pleasure of welcoming the author for an interview.

Bio: Amy M. Bennett, author of the Black Horse Campground mystery series, has worked as a cake decorator, vino-slinger, and retail worker in preparation for writing murder mysteries. She consumes way too much coffee, New Mexico wine, and true crime documentaries to be considered normal, but her husband and son love her anyway. She lives in Bent, New Mexico, and is always thinking about, if not actively writing, the next book.

AF: Were you always a mystery writer, or did you start with another genre? I ask because you have such a knack for the romantic elements in a mystery.

AMB: I have always loved mysteries, ever since I was a kid and grew up reading… The Three Investigators! Yes, you probably thought I was going to say Nancy Drew, but she was unrelatable to me, an awkward pre-teen with no illusions about being a pulled-together “titian-haired” 18-year-old with her own convertible! But three young teenage boys with a secret junkyard headquarters and the use of a vintage limo they won in a jellybean guessing contest? Okay, maybe still far-fetched, but more relatable to me! That’s what I’ve always wanted to do: create characters that are relatable. I tried to write mainstream romance, was even encouraged to write for Harlequin, but the mystery-lover in me kept going back to my roots.

AF: I may be able to guess the answer, but I’d like to hear it from you. Why did you choose a campground as the setting? Your background as professional cake decorator and your work at a winery offer more conventional cozy setting possibilities.

AMB: There are SOOOO many mystery series that are centered around food and wine (restaurants, cafes, bakeries, wineries, etc.) that I wanted to think of some setting that wasn’t overdone. After a camping trip with my husband and son to Silver City (NM) where we stayed in a very well-run KOA Campground, I realized I had my setting. I took a lot of notes on that trip and any subsequent vacation we took where we stayed in a campground. Also, my concern about having “Cabot Cove syndrome” was dispelled in part by the fact that campgrounds allowed my characters to interact with strangers from other places instead of the people they encountered in their day-to-day life, so a wider range of suspects and victims. (Incidentally, I’d have been eyeing Jessica Fletcher with a lot more suspicion with all the bodies dropping dead in Cabot Cove and she being the common denominator!)

AF: Do you have connections in local law enforcement in your area? If so, what did you learn from them? The scenes with the sheriff and deputies feel authentic and natural. You seem comfortable writing about them. If this is all from research, it’s good research.

AMB: I know a few police officers but, believe it or not, I’ve never taken advantage of them to do a “ride along” or an interview or anything like that. Back when NaNoWriMo was in its prime, they had a few forums where experts—law enforcement, legal, medical, etc.—would offer to answer questions about almost everything you could think of, so I did ask a lot of questions there. I also did a lot of research online about questions pertaining specifically to New Mexico law enforcement. Having a very small-town setting helps, because law enforcement is a lot more likely to be involved with the locals than in a big city.

AF: Where do you start when writing a book? Do you begin with a plot premise? A situation into which you put your characters to see what they do? A blank page and inspiration? Something else?

AMB: I started my series with a setting and a vague idea of who my characters were. That, and I knew I wanted to write a mystery! Now that I’ve established my setting and characters, I just say, “Okay, guys, now what?” Sometimes, when in the midst of a book, I get an idea that really doesn’t fit in the story I’m writing, I set it aside for a future book. Then I tell myself to throw that situation at my characters and see where it goes.

AF: What is the greatest challenge for you in writing a series, and what is the greatest satisfaction?

AMB: I had so many people tell me, at first, that they HATED love triangles in a mystery because the reasons were always so dumb. I think I was able to pull off the love triangle in a believable manner but I also knew when it was time to settle it and move on. The challenge is in coming up with a mystery that isn’t too easy to solve but also not so difficult that it confuses the reader. I also have to do better at keeping notes … I’m always having to revise names I’ve already used in previous stories!

AF: Is there anything I should have asked you that I didn’t think of? Answer that missing question.

AMB: I do have a story I love to share, and it has to do with getting recognition for my writing in a most unexpected way! I work for a local winery, Noisy Water, based out of Ruidoso. One of their best-selling and best known wines is a sweet white blend called Jo Mamma’s White. One time, my husband and I were working a wine festival in Tularosa and our booth had big banners advertising our wines and one of them had the Jo Mamma’s label printed on it. A woman was walking up to us excitedly and she said, “Oh, my gosh, IT’S REAL! I can’t believe it’s real! There really IS a Jo Mamma’s wine!” She went on to say, “I read a mystery book where the main character drank a wine called ‘Jo Mamma’s White’ and I honestly thought it was made up! I can’t believe there really is a Jo Mamma’s White!” Well, when I told her that I was the author of the book she read, she got so excited, she bought a bottle of the wine and asked me to sign it for her! I think that was the first time I and my books were better known than my workplace and their wines!

AF: Thank you for a delightful interview!

*****

To learn more about Amy’s books, go to

https://www.amymbennettbooks.com/books

 

A New Mexico Mystery Review: No Lifeguard on Duty by Amy M. Bennett

I accidentally started with book two in this series, and once I realized what I’d done, I was already hooked and didn’t want to stop and go back to book one (though you should start there to get acquainted with the cast). It was a pleasure to get the essence of the cozy mystery—an amateur sleuth allied with law enforcement: no onstage violence; a tight-knit community; natural, unforced humor; and strong interpersonal relationships—without cliches or cuteness. The setting at a campground is a change of pace for the genre, with great potential for variety in the series.

The plot is tight and full of surprises. I could only figure out half of whodunnit until a twist near the end revealed the rest. And I loved the characters. They are the lifeblood of the series. The relationships among Corrie and Rick and JD carry a thread of romantic rivalry and competition, and yet the two men with an interest in Corrie respect each other and work well together. There are lighter scenes, such as Corrie’s attempt to aid the investigation by going out to dinner with yet another law enforcement officer. (They dine at a real place that I recognized, the Inn of the Mountain Gods in Mescalero, which added to the fun.) Overall, though, this is not a comedic type of cozy, but a slice of life, an empathic portrayal of loss, healing, and friendship as well as crime in a small New Mexico town.

*****

Next week, I’ll post my interview with the author. That gives you time to start reading the series! https://www.amymbennettbooks.com/books

A New Mexico Mystery Review: Murder at the Petroglyphs by Patricia Smith Wood

Once again, Patricia Smith Wood has crafted an intricate puzzle of a mystery. In short, tight chapters, she reveals the discovery of a death, and the process of solving how a body came to be where it was—but this is no simple question of who done it. The twists and surprises keep coming. Wood’s books always give my brain a good workout trying to follow the clues. The relationships among her cast of professional and amateur sleuths makes the involvement of amateurs more plausible than in the average amateur sleuth mystery. Another reason to get involved is this: Harrie McKinsey has prophetic dreams, and in one of them she sees the dead body at Petroglyphs National Monument.

There are so many facets to the mystery, so many contributing investigators—FBI, CIA, and Albuquerque Police Department, as well as Harrie and her friends and colleagues at her editing service—Wood did well not to have major subplots. It’s unusual in what is technically a cozy mystery, but it was the right choice. Most cozies have romantic subplots, but the central characters here are in established relationships. Most cozies are comic. Though many of the characters in this book display a natural and engaging sense of humor, it isn’t a comic mystery. It’s cozy in the sense of limiting onstage violence and having amateur participation, with much mystery-solving taking place over dinner or coffee.

I enjoyed the various Albuquerque settings, from restaurants to major parks like the Petroglyphs to local secrets like the Hidden Park, and even an airfield used by drone enthusiasts.

Many scenes take place at Southwest Editing Services, Harrie’s business. I was surprised at the importance of paper copies as well as electronic copies of manuscripts in a professional editing service. I’d thought paper was a thing of the past, but apparently not. I learned something.

I would have liked a stronger thread connecting the opening and the ending. The title, the cover, the first chapter, and park ranger Nick Ellis’s deep connection to the spirits of the ancient ones made me expect more continuity on this theme. In fact, I initially expected a different kind of story altogether. Harrie doesn’t come across as having a mystical connection to the land and its history, so the sudden transfer of what has been Nick’s spiritual experience to her felt as if an editor said to bring that theme back. Harrie is already psychic about her life and family, and having her new dream come from the spirits struck me as out of character. A couple of backstory chapters and a few chunks of expository dialogue also felt like afterthoughts or requests for additions, rather than integral parts of the otherwise tightly woven plot.

The wrap-up of the mystery plot was one-hundred-percent unexpected, even though I figured out the borders of the puzzle. The explanation scene is realistic and well-structured. (I’m always grateful when a book doesn’t have one of these clichéd confessions from a killer holding protagonist at gunpoint.) Wood has real skill with crowd scenes. She can juggle six or eight people in a scene and never let the reader forget any of them.

Complexity is what she does best. If you like a mystery that puts your mind to work, you’ll enjoy this one.

A New Mexico Mystery Review: Bread of the Dead

 

bec99b44a2fd5c6e3780eab3ea253edbIn some ways this is the coziest of cozy mysteries, full of food and folk art, but in other ways it’s not typical of the genre. The victim is not only important to the amateur sleuth but to the reader. He’s the most deeply appealing and complex character in the story. In a light sort of mystery, the loss of such a person is unusual. It gives the protagonist a strong reason to do that otherwise unbelievable thing—amateur sleuthing—and it also makes the story function on two levels: solving a puzzle with all the usual elements of a cozy; and contemplating life, death and legacy, good works and grieving. The mood and meaning of the Day of the Dead festival—reconnection with the beloved departed—is central to the story and is set beautifully at the beginning.

Myers has a wonderful way with words and uses culinary imagery with flawless precision, true to her narrator’s point of view. Foodies will love this book. The amateur sleuth, Rita Lafitte, is a cook, and the food theme is woven smoothly throughout. Recipes and their meaning to friends and family form a framework that turns the plot in a way that even a kitchen-impaired reader like myself could enjoy.

The Santa Fe setting is rendered in detail that will satisfy any would-be visitor who hasn’t been there yet and wants to take a fantasy trip, and will spark memories for those who have visited before. At times, I felt as if the author had tried a little too hard to fit as much local color in as possible, but overall the portrait of the City Different and its environs was painted well, from Pueblo speed traps to purple taxis to the famous Plaza—and the food, of course.

A few of the characters and events are entertainingly over-the-top, while others are realistic, another aspect of this book’s dual personality. I found the spiritual materialism of Broomer, the irritable owner of an expensive Zen garden, unfortunately true to some aspects of Santa Fe life. The arts center for teens reflects a fictitious version of a real and vital part of the city.

I can’t say why I suspected the real culprit early on, and I was frequently thrown off the trail by other suspects and plausible motives. The final solution and the revelation still came as a surprise, as the various strands of the story came together in one of the most elegantly crafted discovery scenes I’ve read.

If you’re a cook, you’ll enjoy the final section: recipes for foods related to the story, including the Bread of the Dead.Day_of_the_Dead_Coyoacan_2014_-_136

Next week, look for an interview with Ann Myers.

http://www.annmyersbooks.com/

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24392805-bread-of-the-dead