Calling all cozy mystery fans—best-selling author, Abby Vandiver, joins us this week to talk about her latest book, A Deadly Inside Scoop. Welcome, Abby!
Author Name: Abby Vandiver (writing as Abby Collette)
Book Title: A Deadly Inside Scoop (1st in An Ice Cream Parlor Mystery series)
Book Genre: Cozy Mystery
Release Date: Out Now
Publisher: Berkley
How would you describe your latest book in one (or maybe two) killer sentences?
Ice cream and murder!
How long did it take for you to write the book? Did you do have to do any research?
I do lots of research for all of my books. I always say I mix fact with fiction. But the research on my latest series, An Ice Cream Parlor Mystery, was so easy—I got to eat ice cream! And for writing a book, I can write pretty fast. I can finish a book in about three weeks to a month.
Wow! That’s amazingly fast. What drew you to the mystery genre?
I have always loved a good mystery. I love the idea of trying to follow clues or interpret what people are thinking or doing and why. The intrigue pulls me in, makes me think and for me that is exhilarating!
If you were speaking to someone who hasn’t read your writing before, why should they want to read your novels?
Oh! That’s a hard one. All my books are good depictions of my writing, and for my series, each book is a standalone so you can read them in any order. Still I would say, you should pick the first book in one of my cozy series to read. I guess I would recommend: Bed & Breakfast Bedlam, A Tiny Collierville Murder, Secrets, Lies and Crawfish Pies, or of course, A Deadly Inside Scoop.
What are your interests outside of writing and reading?
I love to binge watch Netflix (think Outlander, Umbrella Academy, Just Add Magic, and Lost in Space). And I love to travel. Sometimes I wake up and decided to get in my car and hit the road!
Are you working on a new project?
I am lucky enough to be a full-time writer, so that means I’m always working on new projects—trying to come up with new ideas, otherwise I wouldn’t be doing my job!
Where can readers find you (website, blog, social media, etc.)? Feel free to include any upcoming, live/online events, too!
I have lots of events coming up. Many have changed from in-person to virtual since the world was turned upside down, so the best way to keep up with me (and stay in touch) is to follow me on my social media platforms.
Website: www.authorabby.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/authorabbyl.vandiver
Twitter: www.twitter.com/abbyvandiver
Instagram: www.instagram.com/abbylvandiver
Wonderful! Thanks so much for the interview, Abby! A Deadly Inside Scoop is available NOW and her next in the series, A Game of Cones, will launch March 2, 2021.
A Deadly Inside Scoop
This book kicks off a charming cozy mystery series set in an ice cream shop—with a fabulous cast of quirky characters.
Recent MBA grad Bronwyn Crewse has just taken over her family’s ice cream shop in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, and she’s going back to basics. Win is renovating Crewse Creamery to restore its former glory, and filling the menu with delicious, homemade ice cream flavors—many from her grandmother’s original recipes. But unexpected construction delays mean she misses the summer season, and the shop has a literal cold opening: the day she opens her doors an early first snow descends on the village and keeps the customers away.
To make matters worse, that evening, Win finds a body in the snow, and it turns out the dead man was a grifter with an old feud with the Crewse family. Soon, Win’s father is implicated in his death. It’s not easy to juggle a new-to-her business while solving a crime, but Win is determined to do it. With the help of her quirky best friends and her tight-knit family, she’ll catch the ice cold killer before she has a meltdown…
Author bio:
WALL STREET JOURNAL, USA TODAY and internationally bestselling author, Abby L. Vandiver, who also writes as Abby Collette, has always enjoyed writing, combining that with her gift for telling stories and love of mystery she became an author. A hybrid, she has written as an indie as well as a traditionally published author. Abby has penned more than twenty books and short stories. Her new cozy from Penguin Berkley, A DEADLY INSIDE SCOOP, is the first in the new Ice Cream Parlor Mystery series.
Abby resides in South Euclid, Ohio and enjoys spending time with her grandchildren and facilitating self-publishing and writing craft classes at her local library.