Virtual Book Tour: Murder at Morningside by Sandra Bretting @GoddessFish

Murder at Morningside

by Sandra Bretting

GENRE: Cozy Mystery

BLURB:

Heads turn when milliner Missy Dubois waltzes into town to set up shop on the Great River Road in Louisiana. Heaven only knows the brides who get married in the grand old mansions there could use a bit of help.

But then Missy discovers a murder among the magnolias, and even the worst “bridezilla” seems suddenly tame.  

EXCERPT:

Time rewound with each footfall as I began to climb the grand outer staircase at Morningside Plantation. The limestone steps, burdened with the history of five generations, heaved their way toward heaven.

At the top lay a wide-plank verandah supported by columns painted pure white, like the clouds. By the time I took a third step, the digital camera in my right hand began to dissolve into the sterling silver handle of a ladies parasol. The visitors’ guide in my left hand magically transformed into a ballroom dance card bound by a satin cord.

Another step and the Mississippi River came into view as it flowed to the Gulf, languid as a waltz and the color of sweet tea. Could that be a whistle from a steamboat ferrying passengers past the plantation? If so, a turn and a wave wouldn’t be out of the question once I reached the top of the stairs, and good manners would dictate it.

I was about to do that when I realized the whistle was only my friend’s cell and not a Mississippi riverboat. “Ambrose! Turn that thing off. Honestly.”

“Sorry.” He shrugged. “I always forget you were Scarlett O’Hara in a past life.”

The mood was broken, though, and the sterling silver in my hand returned to plastic while the linen dance card hardened to a glossy brochure.

Author Interview:

What inspired you to write Murder at Morningside?

My husband and I traveled to the Great River Road in Louisiana a few years ago, and I fell in love with the antebellum mansions there.  I remember touring these gothic gardens and thinking they would make a wonderful site for a murder! Of course, I never told the tour guide that.

When or at what age did you know you wanted to be a writer?

I got the writing “bug” when I was in elementary school, but I didn’t know what type of writer I wanted to be. Ironically, it was while studying journalism at the University of Missouri that I fell in love with creative writing and decided it was my life’s calling.

What is the earliest age you remember reading your first book?

I remember reading the “Dick and Jane” books in kindergarten. One of the things I remember most is the inky smell of the pages. I’d pester my parents to buy me more at the school book fair, which they always did, God bless ‘em.

What genre of books do you enjoy reading?

I read in several genres; I’m not monogamous. I’ll read a cozy one week and a thriller the next, and maybe top off my month with a book for young adults.

What is your favorite book?

You mean I only get one?! My favorite work of fiction is probably To Kill a Mockingbird. I reread it every few years.

  
You know I think we all have a favorite author. Who is your favorite author and why?

Again…only one?! If I had to choose, I’d pick Hemingway. Anyone who could make a story about a man catching a fish sound exciting is a genius.

 
If you could travel back in time here on earth to any place or time. Where would you go and why?

I think I’d travel back to the old South so I could attend a ball at one of the mansions I write about. I want to wear a hoopskirt and have a gentleman pull out my chair for me. At least for one night.

When writing a book do you find that writing comes easy for you or is it a difficult task?

It’s somewhere in-between.  I think I’m a good writer; but I’m an excellent editor. The creative writing is the hard part, and then the clean-up lets me have a little fun.

Do you have any little fuzzy friends? Like a dog or a cat? Or any pets?

My family adopted a sweet little girl from the local shelter who’s half wiener dog and half Jack Russell. So she has this amazingly long body, but she can jump four feet high.

What is your "to die for", favorite food/foods to eat?

I love a good steak (I live in Texas, after all), and I’ll eat anything with chocolate on it for dessert. They could put chocolate on a dinner napkin and I’d probably eat it.

Do you have any advice for anyone who would like to be an author?

Definitely start by taking creative writing classes at a local college or through a community center. If there’s not one nearby, you can always go online and find out what books the “name brand” writing programs are having its students read. Most of all, it’s important to have fun along the way, because it’s all about the journey.

AUTHOR BIO:

Sandra Bretting works as a freelance feature writer under contract to the Houston Chronicle. She received a journalism degree from the University of Missouri School of Journalism and wrote for other publications (including the Los Angeles Times and Orange Coast Magazine) before moving to Texas.

Her Missy DuBois Mysteries series debuts from Kensington/Lyrical Underground in May 2016. Bretting’s previous mysteries include Unholy Lies (2012) and Bless the Dying (2014).

Readers can reach her online at

Website ~ Facebook

Giveaway:

$20 Amazon or B/N GC
 

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