Autumn leaves show us their fall colors first and then they flutter to the ground. Oh, how I enjoyed jumping into leaves as an adult. That’s right. Down where I grew up, our trees are mostly deciduous. Fall was something I read about and saw pictures of but never experienced until I was grown up.
Something about fall that keeps coming to mind today. Perhaps it’s the bright pop of red, orange, and yellow leaves in trees that have been green since spring. Or it might be the whimsical way leaves fall, twirling in the air or wafting along on a stiff breeze.
With fall on my mind, I decided to share the ways my sleuth, Tabby Winslow, falls in my latest release, TALLOWED GROUND. I wasn’t conscious of this thematic element in her characterization until I sat down to write this post.
First, Tabby is falling into trouble. A seemingly routine fishing expedition by Detectives Nowry and Belfor of the Savannah Police Department (SPD) turns into pointed questions. Instead of being a subject matter expert on tallow, she’s a person of interest in a recent homicide. The victim is a man she barely knew but he had been drunk and disorderly in her shop. He’d threatened her. She’d filed a restraining order against him. Now she’s in a deep hole of suspicion.
Second, Tabby believes her boyfriend will propose during their Valentine’s Day romantic dinner. Then just about everyone in the restaurant is saying yes to marriage. It’s annoying and nerve-wracking. Is Quig falling out of love with her? Since she’s totally fallen for him, tiny waves of dissonance occur, keeping her on pins and needles.
And thirdly, once the killer realizes Tabby is after him, he comes for her. Tabby falls into the worst sort of trouble. Worse, she doesn’t know who kidnapped her or where she is. It’s all she can do to be positive in that darkness. She vows to save herself. But she can’t prepare because she doesn’t know who, what, where, or when.
In summary, these layers of “falling” quicken TALLOWED GROUND’s pacing, ratchet up the tension, and according to one reviewer, “High stakes and a creepy setting fuel the tension in this compelling story. A page-turner that will keep you reading into the night!”—Nancy J Cohen, award winning author of The Bad Hair Day Mysteries.
If you’d like to fall into a good book or a good series, check out TALLOWED GROUND, book three of A Magic Candle Shop Mysteries, which came out on September 10, 2024. It is available in digital and trade paperback from most online vendors.
A Bit About TALLOWED GROUND:
When a killer props his third and latest victim against the double tombstone of Tabby and Sage Winslow’s grandparents’ grave in Savannah, Georgia, the psychic twins are stunned. Even worse, the victim is the very man they filed a restraining order against a few months ago for trashing their book and candle shop. Coincidence...or a connection? Then a clue about the murders points to Tabby’s career as a candlemaker. Now, she is a person of interest in the killing spree.
The twins investigate all three victims, finding little that might tie the cases together besides where the bodies were found—in or near Bonaventure Cemetery, a beautiful 100-acre historic graveyard with a storied past. Then Tabby’s Medical Examiner boyfriend is mysteriously pulled from the case, with his dream job in jeopardy. The situation reaches a flashpoint when new evidence points to Tabby. With her freedom and the family business in peril, Tabby matches her wits and psychic abilities against the wily killer.
That is, until Tabby’s spirited inquiry as an amateur sleuth lands her in the worst kind of trouble. Can Tabby clear her name before the fiend snuffs her flame…for good?
Southern author Maggie Toussaint writes cozy and paranormal mysteries under her name and a pen name of Valona Jones, romantic suspense, and dystopian fiction under the pen name of Rigel Carson, with more than twenty-seven novels of fiction published. Her upcoming release, TALLOWED GROUND, book three in A Magic Candle Shop Mysteries, is a cozy paranormal mystery series written under the pen name of Valona Jones. A multi-year finalist for Georgia Author of the Year, she’s won Silver Falchions, two Readers’ Choice awards, and the EPIC Award. She’s a member of Mystery Writers of America-Southeast chapter and Sisters In Crime-Guppy chapter. She lives in coastal Georgia, where secrets, heritage, and ancient oaks cast long shadows. Visit her at https://maggietoussaint.com/
CREDIT HEADSHOT TO CSAW PRODUCTIONS - (MAGGIE TOUSSAINT HEADSHOT)
Thanks, Debra, for posting my blog on your blog. It’s an honor to be here.