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Q&A: Jessica Ellicott, MURDER CUTS THE MUSTARD
By Kathryn Gandek-Tighe
Posted: 2019-10-29T02:21:00Z
Writers usually hate writing book summaries. Will you share with us your real book blurb or one you wish you could have used?

In the lean years following World War I, brash American adventuress Beryl Helliwell and prim and proper Brit Edwina Davenport form a private inquiry agency to make ends meet, hoping that crime does indeed pay . . .
 
The latest occurrence to disturb the peace in the quaint English village of Walmsley Parva hits rather too close to home—in fact, the prime suspect has taken up residence in Edwina's potting shed. Her elderly gardener Simpkins has been secretly sleeping there after a row with his disreputable brother-in-law and housemate, Hector Lomax.
 
When Hector is found murdered in the local churchyard, Constable Gibbs comes looking for Simpkins, who was last seen arguing with his kin in the pub the night before. Based on the sad state of her garden, Edwina has grave doubts that the shiftless Simpkins could muster the effort to murder anyone. The two sleuths throw themselves into weeding out suspects and rooting out the real killer.
 
But this is no garden variety murder. The discovery of a valuable ring, a surprise connection to Colonel Kimberly's Condiment Company, and a second homicide all force Beryl and Edwina to play catch-up as they relish the chance to contain the culprit . .

What excited you most about writing this story?

Believe it or not, I had an idea about a mystery that involved mustard many years ago. I was delighted to finally have the opportunity to use it in a novel!

Who is your favorite character and why?


While I could never chose a favorite between Beryl and Edwina I have to confess as far as secondary characters go I have a very soft spot for Edwina’s jobbing gardener, Simpkins. He is a rascally old cuss and he brings out the best in my pair of sleuths even if Edwina would never admit that is the case!

Is there a setting in your book that you would like to visit?


I would love to be able to visit my fictional village of Walmsley Parva in its entirety! I love picturing the High Street, the Silver Spoon Tea Room and even the village post office-cum-stationer-cum-sweet shop owned by the local gossip. It would be enormous fun to stroll about in the flesh!

Which of your skill sets were useful constructing the plot?


Even though it did not used to come naturally to me I have learned how to be a rather decent outliner. I now plot all my novels scene by scene, at least in the broadest of strokes. It has become a part of my process and certainly came in handy on this novel as well as my last several. I find it really interesting to experience how much I enjoy the pleasure of considering the way the story could unfold by plotting ahead and then digging into the actual writing as a separate part of the adventure!

Agatha award nominee Jessica Ellicott loves fountain pens, Mini Coopers and throwing parties. She lives in northern New England where she obsessively knits wool socks and enthusiastically speaks Portuguese with a shocking disregard for the rules of grammar. She indulges her passion for historical fiction and all things British by writing the Beryl and Edwina Mysteries. As Jessica Estevao she wrote The Change of Fortune Mysteries. When inspiration strikes she writes contemporary mysteries as Jessie Crockett.
Tagged as CozyMystery
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