Hats and holidays

I wear many hats in real life and cyberspace. Truthfully, you won't catch me without a hat on my head if its daylight. It seems I got my lifetime dose of sunshine nearly fifty years ago, so I have to be extremely careful. Sunblock is my best friend.

I inhabit the realms of mystery and romance, of traditional publishing and indie publishing, which can be something of a logistical challenge at best. The good news is I never have to wonder what I'm going to do next. Something is always happening. And I like it that way!

This week, starting this past Wednesday on Dec 5 through this Sunday Dec 9, my zany cozy mystery is yours for the taking on Kindle. With great reviews from Kirkus, Mysterious Reviews, The Reading Reviewer, and a wonderful fanbase on Amazon, this Five Star rated book is a winner for readers who enjoy romantic mysteries.

You'll want to follow this link to download a complimentary copy. http://tinyurl.com/8u7bcnq 
Be sure to tell your friends. On The Nickel the holiday gift that keeps on giving!

This year, thanks to the gift of fabric and an inherited sewing machine, I've been sewing aprons for my family. In our tiny house, the only space to do this is on the kitchen table. Fortunately, my husband goes with the flow. Last night he rested the bowl of taco meat on the table top ironing board beside his place mat without batting an eye.

Other holiday traditions I enjoy, besides gathering with family and friends, is helping out at the giftwrapping both at our outlet mall. So many folks come in and want something special for their loved ones and they ooh and ahh over the pretty handmade bows and shiny paper. We have foil wraps, jumbo bows, and best of all, big ears to listen to everyone's story.

grandson Abe

That's right. Everyone has a story, and the need to share it drives us to seek out others. The best gift, IMO, is to take the time to listen to someone this season. Sit down and really listen to what they have to say.

I have a dear friend who works at soup kitchens in December. She makes big pots of soup at home and brings them in to share with everyone at the kitchen. Another friend spends extra time helping out at the shelter.

What about you? Do you have your hands full with the regular hustle and bustle? Do you cut corners on decorating or baking to make it all work out? Just wondering.

Don't forget to get your copy of On The Nickel.

Wishing you the merriest of holidays!

Maggie Toussaint
www.maggietoussaint.com

On The Nickel is now available as an E-book

Friends, Readers, and Countrymen,

Lend me your ... eyes! I have great news. The second book in my popular Cleopatra Jones mystery series is now available as an ebook on Kindle. It's priced at $2.99 Amazon.com

Which book is On The Nickel? I'm so glad you asked!!

Kirkus Reviews said this: "The second in this amusing and romantic series (In for a Penny, 2008) is a welcome addition to the cozy ranks."

 

If that doesn't whet your whistle, read this glowing review by Rising Star Reviews:

 

"Do you like cozy mysteries with a Southern flair, a little bit of sexiness, and a lot of fun in-between the murder and mayhem? Then On the Nickel might be the satisfying read you've been waiting for. The novel stars Cleopatra Jones, an accountant, a struggling nine-hole golfer, mother of two teenage girls, and daughter to a mother who often needs corralling more than the young girls in the household. Throw in a mighty sexy golf pro and a pregnant Saint Bernard, and you have an entertaining read in itself.

 

To make the story even more interesting, a murder occurs in the church parking lot where Cleo's mother often meets with the Ladies Outreach Committee. And Mama's car has an unexplained dent in the fender.

 

On the Nickel is the second in the Cleopatra Jones Mysteries. The first is In for a Penny, which will entertain you as much as the second. Maggie Toussaint should know how to write "Southern"—she IS Southern to the core. I recommend both novels."

 

Note: In For A Penny is also $2.99 on Kindle!

 

Here's a snip of Review from Auntie M Writes: "Toussaint gets all the points right: love-able but demanding teenagers; the push from an ex wanting a second chance; the pull of an exciting new love; even the behind-the-scenes hierarchy and drama of Southern churchwomen groups.

 

This is perfect for summer reading, with its lighthearted, balanced storyline combining more than a hint of romance, as Cleo scrambles find the real murderer of Erica Hodges, and all before her St. Bernard delivers those puppies!"

http://auntiemwrites.wordpress.com/2011/08/21/on-the-nickel-maggie-toussaint/#comment-627

 

Here's a snip from THE READING REVIEWER: "What a complete and utter delight this book is. Cleo is a wonderful character and all the people in her life just add icing to the cake to make the book a great read." -- Mary Gramlich

 

And a last enticement:  "A good curl-up-on-the-couch mystery!" from reader Ruthann Heidgerken.

 

Click on over to see the book, like and tag it, and read the first two chapters through the LOOK INSIDE feature! Amazon.com

 

I'm glad to be able to bring this series to you in digital format. The third book in this series is under contract and will release in hardcover in 2013.

 

Maggie Toussaint

www.maggietoussaint.com

www.facebook.com/MaggieToussaintAuthor#

Bear cakes, books, and babies, oh my!

Ben and a Bear Cake

Nothing I like better than visiting my kids and grandkids. Our family is spread out all over the country, so we can't just jump in the car and show up for dinner. My oldest grandson recently had the honor of being served a bear cake, and I was lucky enough to come away with the best picture ever. I also jumped gleefully off the diet wagon and had a pancake and they were that good.

Donnell Bell and Maggie at Marigold's

On this same trip I had lunch with mystery author Donnell Bell (The Past Came Hunting), and she's on the silent auction committee for Left Coast Crime. Her co-chair is Mike Befeler, so if you're headed to Left Coast Crime next March go ahead and be thinking of items you can donate to the auction. I just had a wonderful idea occur to me for what I'd like to donate.

Mule deer just out for a stroll

I am most pleased to announce a new book contract! HOT WATER, the second book in my seaside series, was acquired by The Wild Rose Press. In this romantic suspense, a small town cop trying to make detective is paired with the state arson investigator. They're on the trail of a serial arsonist who has a habit of leaving dead bodies in his fires. Thanks to fan Martha Carney who kept insisting that Laurie Ann deserved her own story.

Colorado

Because all good things come in threes, I'm working on the final book of that trilogy. The working title is Still Waters, but there are a lot of books with that title out there, so count on it having a different name when I shop it to my publisher. The series started out with MUDDY WATERS, in which Roxie the realtor and Sloan the security expert hunt for a missing inheritance.

Blue skies in Colorado

Last in the great news department is the pending re-release of ON THE NICKEL, the second in my popular Cleopatra Jones mystery series. The first in that series, IN FOR A PENNY, was released in July as an e-book. Both books were hardcover and large print editions for Five Star / Cengage. My publisher for the e-book versions is Muddle House Publishing, my own imprint.

I worked with the most fantastic cover artist ever to develop the new cover for ON THE NICKEL. I found a batch of photos I liked. Polly helped me to pick the picture that had the clearest message, then she went to work on the fonts. She even managed to work the nickel into the cover without it looking cheesy. Hail to Polly Iyer, a great author and cover artist. Check her site at PollyIyer.com to see all the powerful covers she created for herself. I'm awed that she took me on.

Look for ON THE NICKEL to debut in late October. Mama's car killed the church lady, but who was behind the wheel?

Craig in Colorado

Thanks for visiting Mudpies and catching up on my news. Here's one more tidbit: Happy aniversary to me! 35 years ago today I said "I do" to a wonderful man.

Until next time,

Maggie Toussaint
www.maggietoussaint.com
www.facebook.com/MaggieToussaintAuthor#

Favorite setting for my mysteries

by Maggie Toussaint

Since my Cleopatra Jones amateur sleuth series focuses on Cleo's family, I tend to write scenes at her home, her office, her ladies nine-hole golf league, her car, and her church. On the Nickel, the second mystery in the series, has several church scenes, but they don't have much to do with a church service. Most of the scenes involve activities that occur in a church building.

For instance, when Detective Radcliffe bars Cleo and her friend Jonette from the church parking lot crime scene, they race around to the back, to the thicket, where for years they watched the Sunday School ladies hide Easter eggs. While vying for the best vantage point, Cleo falls through the thorny bushes, landing smack dab in the middle of trouble - ending with her being led away in handcuffs.

Other church scenes involve a funeral reception, a church ladies meeting, and a bulletin-folding morning. In this book, Cleo tries to prove her mother didn't kill the church lady, her arch-rival, even though her mother's car is the murder weapon.

Cleo is Episcopalian, which is a Protestant church, just south of Catholicism and close kin to Methodists and Lutherans. Like the church, Cleo's life has seen upheaval in the last few years. Like the church, she is somewhat resistant to change, but life has a way of changing anyway, doesn't it? The conflict of new versus old, of time-honed prayers and joyful noise, of joy found and lost - those distinctly different yet eternally connected viewpoints are all rolled into a woman trying to cope in a world she can't control.

While I try to paint her into a corner with setting, character, and plot points, Cleo finds a way to cut through all the noise and triumph. She's my hero.

Want to read more? This post is a stop on a rolling blog tour. KT Wagner shares her thoughts on favorite settings at http://northernlightsgothic.com/a-setting-i-love-to-write  and Kathleen Kaska expounds on the topic at http://kathleenkaskawrites.blogspot.com/2011/09/favorite-place-to-set-scene-do-you-have.html while Ryder Islington talks setting at http://ryderislington.wordpress.com/2011/09/12/favorite-settings-in-my-writing/ and Nancy Lauzon adds her two cents at http://chickdickmysteries.com/2011/09/11/favorite-place-to-set-a-scene/.

Have a great week!

Maggie Toussaint
Mystery and romance author
http://www.maggietoussaint.com/

New Look, New Reviews, a Giveaway, and a Free Read

Ta Da! Everything is brand new around here, but I think the paint is finally dry. I simplified my blog format, have some great reviews to share, a book or two to give away, and a free read to chat up. Read on!

My latest release - the Large Print version of On The Nickel - will be available at Amazon in Large Print after July 6, but you can pre-order now if you want to be the first to get your hands on a copy. In this book Cleo has to figure out who ran over the church lady. She hopes it wasn't Mama, but there's a person-sized dent in Mama's car.

I recently received two wonderful reviews for On The Nickel:

Do you like cozy mysteries with a Southern flair, a little bit of sexiness, and a lot of fun in-between the murder and mayhem? Then On the Nickel might be the satisfying read you've been waiting for. The novel stars Cleopatra Jones, an accountant, a struggling nine-hole golfer, mother of two teenage girls, and daughter to a mother who often needs corralling more than the young girls in the household. Throw in a mighty sexy golf pro and a pregnant Saint Bernard, and you have an entertaining read in itself.

To make the story even more interesting, a murder occurs in the church parking lot where Cleo's mother often meets with the Ladies Outreach Committee. And Mama's car has an unexplained dent in the fender.

On the Nickel is the second in the Cleopatra Jones Mysteries. The first is In for a Penny, which will entertain you as much as the second. Maggie Toussaint should know how to write "Southern"—she IS Southern to the core. I recommend both novels. -- Celia Yeary-Reviewer

THANKS CELIA YEARY!

 
Witty and suspenseful. All Cleopatra Jones wants is to raise her two teen-aged daughters, improve her golf game and advance her relationship with handsome golf pro, Rafe Golden. She has no desire to get drug into the center of another homicide investigation. (see In for a Penny).
But when Erica Hodges is killed by a hit and run driver in the Trinity Episcopal Church parking lot, and Cleo's own mother is the prime suspect, Cleo has no choice.
On the Nickel is a fun read with enough humor and intrigue to keep you turning the pages while Cleopatra tries to thwart the advances of her ex-husband, Charlie; encourage advances from Rafe and clear her mother's name, all while raising two teen-aged daughters and caring for a pregnant St Bernard.
A good curl-up-on-the-couch mystery. -- Ruthann Heidgerken, Amazon reviewer

THANKS RUTHANN HEIDGERKEN!

Previously, On The Nickel was reviewed by Kirkus, Library Journal, Publisher's Weekly, Harriet Klausner, The Reading Reviewer, and Mysterious Reviews. My web guy is in the process of getting all the reviews posted to my site, http://www.maggietoussaint.com/
 
In honor of the large print release, I created a free read with my Cleopatra Jones characters. Basically, Cleo and Rafe spend a weekend at the beach. Sand Dollar Secrets has a little romance, a little bit of coastal Georgia, and a little mystery to solve. This short story will also be up at my site soon, but it's already posted here. Where, you ask? Go back to the top of the page and just before the first post are two tabs - "home" and "sand dollar secrets" - all you have to do is click on the words and you'll see my short story. I hope you love it!
 
Lastly, I'm running a week long comment fest. Stop by and leave a comment (and make sure I know how to get in touch with you!). For every 20 comments that aren't mine, I'll give away a copy of your choice of my titles.
 
So dive on in, leave a comment, and check back here next Sunday when I'll announce the winners!
 
Beat the heat - with a fun summer read!!!
 
Maggie Toussaint

Money Money Money



Maggie's office - with Madonna's new puppies!

  

  Greed is one of the biggies, one of the “Thou Shalt Nots,” but human nature continues to err on the side of “I want more.”

Not so good if you desire peace on earth, but great news if you’re a mystery writer like me. Using people’s foibles is a time-honored means of moving a story along.

My Cleopatra Jones mystery series is based on a small town amateur sleuth who has expertise in accounting. Her insider knowledge comes in handy when she’s on a case.

In my brand new book in the series, On the Nickel, Cleo is propelled into action when Mama’s nemesis, the church lady from hell, is found dead by hit and run – and Mama’s Olds has a person-sized dent in the front.

Tension between the two seniors had been rising of late, and the church lady had even filed a police report citing Mama with terroristic threats. Cleo is in a bind. She knows that when people get cornered, they strike out and do terrible things. The church lady had cornered Mama, that’s for sure, but had Mama lashed out?

Cleo needs to know. The clock is ticking because the police are closing in on Mama. The only thing Cleo knows is that Mama is lying to her.

While Cleo digs around in the church lady’s life, she finds financial discrepancies. Money is a problem – the church lady is flat broke. The more Cleo digs, the more the noose tightens around Mama’s neck. Can she save her mother from the slammer?

Here’s a snip from the story:

The events of the day returned in a rush as I locked my car. I ticked them off on my fingers.

One, there had been a vehicular accident at the church. Two, Erica Hodges was dead. Three, Mama had a history of run-ins with Erica Hodges. Four, on Monday I listened to Mama and Erica Hodges exchange insults in public. Five, Mama’s whereabouts today were a mystery and her over-the-top behavior even more of a mystery.

I don’t know what made me look at her Oldsmobile. Honestly, I don’t know why I looked at all. But I did. And then I wished I’d gone straight inside the house and minded my own business.

The motion-detector light on the corner of the house had activated when I pulled into the driveway. The parking pad was now brightly illuminated.

I touched the jagged safety glass of Mama’s shattered headlight cover. A suffocating sensation tightened my throat at the large indentation in her not-so-shiny bumper. The hood of her car mounded in the middle, pushed back from the leading edge. This car had hit something.

Or someone.

Dread charged through my veins, taking my breath away. Fear clawed at my heart, dragging me down to a place where I didn’t want to go. Dazed and bewildered, I staggered over to my Volvo for support. The hood warmed my cold fingers.

This was very, very bad.

Unthinkable.

The pieces of the puzzle resolved in my head. With each connected piece, the picture became clearer. Mama and Erica. Rivals and combatants. Mama alive. Erica dead. Mama’s car damaged. Erica dead.

Even to a rank amateur like me, the evidence pointed to a devastating conclusion. I shook my head in disbelief. This was Mama I was talking about. She was stubborn, opinionated, and bossy, and those were her finer qualities.

Stars twinkled in the night sky overhead. Crickets chirped in the darkness. A light went on in my next-door neighbor’s kitchen. A diesel pickup truck rumbled past on Main Street. And I stood beside my mother’s damaged car in my driveway.

Ordinary things. Trivial things

But my life wasn’t ordinary or trivial any longer.

A cold-blooded killer lived under my roof.

--

Maggie Toussaint

On The Nickel

Five Star / Cengage ISBN 9781594149542

Available for order at Amazon, $25.95

www.maggietoussaint.com http://mudpiesandmagnolias.blogspot.com/

Maggie Toussaint is a native Georgian who had a nearly 30-year sojourn in Maryland. While there, she tried her hand at golf and spent many hours chasing white balls in the woods. That experience imprinted on her vivid imagination and had her thinking, what if there was a dead body out here? That idea led to the first Cleopatra Jones book, In For A Penny. On The Nickel is off to a great start with reviews by Library Journal, Kirkus, and Publisher’s Weekly. Maggie also writes romantic suspense, with four books out now. Check www.maggietoussaint.com for excerpts, reviews, stunning covers, and buy links for each title.

Request these titles at your library!

Holy Toledo, Batman! Kirkus Loves Us!

Omigosh and halellujah! When a nice review comes in, it is truly time to celebrate. My publisher forwarded me the review out today from Kirkus for ON THE NICKEL, my brand new mystery. It's out now through the publisher's website, and it will be available through online stores such as Amazon and B&N on April 6.

Anyhoo, I'm dancing around coastal Georgia like Snoopy doing the happy dog dance. Without further ado, here's the KIRKUS review:


Just when life is finally improving for divorced accountant Cleopatra Jones, a secret from the past reaches out to bite her Mama.


After years of putting up with rude, pushy behavior from town doyenne Erica Hodges, Cleopatra Jones' Mama finally blows her top at a church meeting. When Erica is found run over in the church parking lot, Mama is naturally a prime suspect. Since her friend Detective Britt Radcliff seems stuck on Mama as the guilty party, Cleo is forced to investigate Erica's death. But Mama refuses to explain the recent damage to her car Cleo has noticed. At the same time, Cleo has her hands full with her cheating ex-husband, who's trying to get her back, her heavily pregnant Saint Bernard and her sexy golf pro, Rafe Golden, who's improving more than her game. Once she finds time to investigate, Cleo learns that not only was Erica hated by most everyone who knew her, including her two children, but that after running through a large fortune, she'd been getting along by indulging in blackmail. Mama's feud with Erica goes all the way back to their early boyfriends, one of whom Mama is now secretly dating again. When Mama's car is identified as the murder weapon, she's arrested, and Cleo must put herself in danger to ferret out the truth.


The second in this amusing and romantic series (In for a Penny, 2008) is a welcome addition to the cozy ranks.

I'm grinning like all get out. What a wonderful review!
 
Maggie Toussaint
a Georgia peach

Ta Da!!! Fab new cover

I had a wonderful knock-my-socks-off moment today when I opened the email containing my brand new bookcover. On The Nickel won't release until late March 2011, but still, I have a "face" to go with it.

In the story, the murder happens at the church. Mama's car runs over the church lady. The cops think Mama murdered her rival, but Mama swears otherwise. Sleuth Cleopatra Jones isn't about to let her mother go to prison, so she takes action.

This is the second book in the Cleopatra Jones series. The first book, In For A Penny, is out in hardcover. Visit www.maggietoussaint.com for buy links, reviews, and an excerpt.

And now, without further ado, my beautiful cover for On The Nickel:



Maggie Toussaint
doing the happy cover dance
www.maggietoussaint.com