Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Summer Walsh is Back!

Many years ago, I started writing a series of quirky cozy mysteries for Avalon Books featuring Summer Walsh a former detective who just happens to be in the right place at the right time (or is it the wrong place at the wrong time?) Rather than confuse people who enjoy romances and women's fiction by Debby Mayne, I chose to write these mysteries under my maiden name, Deborah Tisdale.

The first book in the series, Corpse on the Court, opens with Summer taking some time to regroup after leaving the Nashville Police Department, and what better place to rest and relax than her uncle's resort retirement community in Florida? However, her plans were shelved on the day she arrived, and her detective instincts kicked in. When her uncle was accused of murdering someone in his retirement community in the first book of the series, she knew he couldn't possibly have done it. After all, her sweet and clueless uncle didn't have a mean bone in his body. He was a ladies' man who left a trail of broken hearts, but he would never have resorted to murder.

This story got mixed reviews, but the people who liked it really liked it - mostly because they fell in love with the characters. There are plenty of other, more serious murder mysteries available for those who don't enjoy the lighter side of detective work.

Just a few years ago, Amazon purchased Avalon's backlist, and they placed Corpse on the Court in their Thomas and Mercer imprint, making it available to anyone who owns a Kindle or downloads the app. I've heard from readers who said they loved my quirky characters, and they wondered when my next Summer Walsh book would release. I'm happy to say that day has finally come! Late last year, I published Murder Under the Mistletoe, a slightly shorter mystery set in a Charleston, South Carolina, B&B.

I had a blast getting back into this series and reuniting with Summer who is often the only sane person the room. Now I'm happy to say that I just finished writing Summer's next book, Gun in the Garden. I'll post a link here once it's available to order.

My future Summer Walsh books will be long novellas and short novels, depending on how long it takes Summer to solve each case. I hope you fall in love with these stories and enjoy reading them as much as I do writing them! Here are links to the first two Summer Walsh books so you can get started.

Order here: Corpse on the Court


Order here: Murder Under the Mistletoe