Trouble Brewing
Series: Barks and Beans Cafe Mystery #5
Author: Heather Day Gilbert
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Pages: 200
Release Date: October 18, 2021, by WoodHaven Press
Summary:
Convinced that the elderly lady in her care didn’t die of natural causes, Macy’s friend Della determines to look into the broken relationships surrounding the woman. She books a Halloween-themed getaway at a local inn and talks Macy into coming along with her to spy on her prime suspect.
As they join a ghost tour of the candlelit town, Macy and Della feel their guide is a little too fanatical as he shares his spooky tales. He tells the story of the Greenbrier ghost, a newlywed who supposedly came back from the grave to tell her family that her husband murdered her.
When a disturbing apparition makes its presence known, guests at the inn become apprehensive…and for good reason, because soon after, a young bride turns up dead. Although everything points to a copycat killer replicating the historical Greenbrier murder, Macy has her doubts. She’s discovered that the inn harbors secrets of its own, and when she pokes into one darkened corner too many, she might not stand a ghost of a chance.
Join siblings Macy and Bo Hatfield as they sniff out crimes in their hometown…with plenty of dogs along for the ride! The Barks & Beans Cafe cozy mystery series features a small town, an amateur sleuth, and no swearing or graphic scenes.
Interview with Macy Hatfield
How did you and your author meet?
My author wanted an amateur sleuth who loved to work with dogs (and had a loving sibling relationship with her brother), and she ran into me. It was easy for her to visualize my fluffy cloud of strawberry-blonde hair, my gray-blue eyes, and my pale skin. She also really liked my easygoing, youngest child personality (since she’s a tightly-wound oldest child, and quite a bit like my brother, Boaz “Bo” Hatfield!). She also wanted someone who lived in the quaint real-life town of Lewisburg, West Virginia, and it just so happens that I grew up here!
Why did this writer decide to feature you in a book?
I guess she figured out pretty quickly that I hear a lot of things working in our cafe. I oversee the “Barks” section—where shelter dogs are brought in daily to meet customers and hopefully find new homes. She also realized I’m willing to take huge risks to help the ones I love…like when my rescued Great Dane got dognapped in the first-in-series book, NO FILTER.
Do you have any friends or family helping you out?
My brother, Bo, is a constant support to me. He lives right up the road, and he’s the one who renovated our great-aunt’s house into a cafe on one side. I live on the other side. He provided me with a soft place to land after my sudden divorce from my cheating ex-husband, Jake the Snake. I have a lot of other friends in town, and I’ve even solved some mysteries with some of them.
Do you have a regular job and investigate on the side or are you a full time detective?
My full-time job is being the co-owner of the Barks & Beans Cafe, and I work there at least five days a week in the Barks section. My job is incredibly fulfilling, since I’ve been a dog person since I was young, and I’ve seen so many customers find just the right dog to adopt in our cafe.
What is the funniest thing that happens to you or another character in this story?
Let’s just say it has something to do with bats. You’ll have to read the book to find out. 😉
Have you solved other cases or is this your first one?
I’ve solved four other cases in the past. With the last one (SPILLED MILK), some friends and I uncovered a murderous mastermind. It was incredibly difficult to close the case since Bo was in another country and my ex-husband was in town for a visit!
Do you have a gift or special talent?
I’m a bit of a dog whisperer, although I don’t really make a huge deal of it.
Who is the most important individual in your life?
My brother Bo. He’s been there for me as long as I’ve been alive—especially after our parents died in a flash flood when I was just a toddler. Also, my now-deceased great aunt Athaleen, who adopted us and brought us up. She was like a mother and father rolled into one, and her wise Appalachian sayings have become part of me now.
What is your ideal vacation?
Not the beach—that’s Bo’s favorite. I’m a homebody, through and through. I love the mountains that surround us. I think a secluded cabin in the woods, maybe near a lake where we can kayak, sounds fun.
If you could change anything about your life what would it be?
Many times I wish I hadn’t married my ex-husband, thus saving myself a lot of heartache, but if we hadn’t gotten divorced, my brother wouldn’t have retired early and set up the cafe. I wouldn’t have met my loyal and sweet Great Dane, Coal. Not to mention my boyfriend…whose name I won’t divulge since you’ll want to read Book 4 to figure out which of my two eligible guy friends I chose. 🙂
Barks and Beans Cafe Mystery Series
Coming out in May 2022
About the Author
Heather Day Gilbert, an ECPA Christy Award finalist, and Grace award winner writes contemporary mysteries and Viking historicals. Her novels feature small towns, family relationships, and women who aren’t afraid to protect those they love. Like Belinda Blake, Heather plays video games, although so far she hasn’t done any exotic pet-sitting or hunted any murderers.
Giveaway
Prize: (1) Prize Package including Books 1-3 in the series in softcover, as well as a Barks & Beans Cafe steel travel tumbler (U.S. Only)
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Until the next time,
Happy Reading!
Thanks so much for sharing! These were fun interview questions for Macy.