A Book Club to Die For

November 10, 2022

A Book Club to Die For

A Book Club to Die For (A Beloved Bookroom)
by Dorothy St. James

About A Book Club to Die For

A Book Club to Die For (A Beloved Bookroom)
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Setting – Cypress, South Carolina
‎Berkley (November 1, 2022)
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0593098633
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593098639
Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09PZSBCVW

When a member of an exclusive book club is checked out, spunky librarian Trudell Becket must sort fact from fiction to solve the murder.

The Cypress Arete Society is one of the town’s oldest and most exclusive clubs. When assistant librarian Trudell Becket is invited to speak to the group about the library, its modernization, and her efforts to bring printed books to the reading public, her friend Flossie invites herself along. Flossie has been on the book club’s waiting list for five years, and she’s determined to find out why she’s never received an invitation to join.

But not long after Tru and Flossie arrive for the meeting, they’re shocked to find the club’s president, Rebecca White, dead in the kitchen. Rebecca was a former TV actress and local celebrity, but was not known for being patient or pleasant. She’d been particularly unkind to the book club’s host for the evening, who also happens to be the mother of Detective Jace Bailey, Tru’s boyfriend. And Rebecca had made it clear that she didn’t think Flossie was book club material.

With her boyfriend and one of her best friends wrapped up in a murder, Tru has to work fast to figure out who cut Rebecca’s story short before the killer takes another victim out of circulation….

About Dorothy St. James

Dorothy St. James is a former Folly Beach beach bum. She now lives in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, with her family, slightly (OK, terribly) needy dogs, and the friendliest cat you’ll ever meet. Author of a dozen novels, Dorothy enjoys writing both cozy mysteries and romance.

Q&A With the Author

When did you first consider yourself to be a writer?

I have always said that I was born with a desire to write. But that might not be entirely accurate. I think visiting the bookmobile at a very young age made me fall in love with books. And from there grew my desire to be part of the magic of books. I wanted to write books. As soon as I learned to write, I started penning books for my family. I was probably four or five at the time. I’ve considered myself a writer ever since then. That said, though, I’ve never stopped feeling like an imposter. Like perhaps I don’t quite belong to the writing world. From talking with other authors, I’ve learned that this is a common affliction.

What advice do you have for a new writer?

Read. Read everything you can get your hands on. But especially read the works of debut authors and bestselling authors. While reading these books, ask yourself what did the author (especially a debut author) do to catch the eye of the editor. Is it the writing? Is it the plot? Is it the characters? And then ask yourself how you can push yourself as an author to write a story that will resonate in a similar way with your readers.

What is the easiest part of the writing process for you?

Editing. Crafting a story while facing that blank page often causing me to panic. Will I be able to develop the characters so they are likeable and relatable? Am I picking the right scenes to include in the book? Is this a book people will want to read?

After I get all of that down on paper, I can start to see what the story is and what I want to do with it. That’s when I start to feel comfortable and confident. I love going in a changing up the prose, making the plot stronger, adding twists that will make the reader gasp.

What is your favorite part of this story?

I enjoyed the locked room part of the mystery in A BOOK CLUB TO DIE FOR. While I’ve written locked room mysteries in the past, this one proved to be especially challenging. I even started to doubt that anyone other than the police’s main suspect had committed the crime. Writing that part of the mystery really kept me on my toes and thinking about what would Hazel’s guilt mean for Tru’s relationship with her son, Jace.

Tru, who is an assistant librarian and the sleuth in the Beloved Bookroom Mystery series, finds that all her relationships become strained as her investigations progresses. Writing about it all proved great fun!

Which Character was the most fun to write about? Why?

Dewey Decimal is the stray tabby turned library cat. He has grown from being a minor character into quite a fun character to think about. Dewey seems to know more about the mystery than any of the humans in town. He tries to leave clues for his non-feline friends, but because they’re not nearly as smart as a cat, they have a difficult time figuring out what he’s trying to tell them. Because of his helpful nature, he’s always keeping this writer on her toes, trying to keep up with him. He’s a demanding, and yet totally adorable kitty!

Which Character was the hardest to write about? Why?

Oh wow, answering this question feels like I might be betraying a character. I love all of my characters, even the ones who might be a bit challenging. That said, I guess for this book the most difficult character to write was Rebecca White. She’s the president of the book club who dies at the beginning of the book. Even though she’s dead, I wanted to make sure that she became a fully fleshed out character for the reader. This was a challenge. Rebecca, as a washed-up TV star, was an interesting character that I wanted to play with. How do you portray a character who isn’t alive and living on the page? Many people in town found Rebecca difficult to work with while others seemed to worship her. I wanted to explore the different parts of her personality. I wanted her to become real for the reader. I hope I managed that!

I hope you put A BOOK CLUB TO DIE FOR on the top of your TBR list!

Follow Dorothy Online:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/dorothy.stjames

Twitter: www.twitter.com/dorothywrites

Instagram: www.instagram.com/dorothymcfalls

Website: www.dorothystjames.com

Purchase Links – Amazon – Penguin Random House – B&N – Kobo – IndieBound

TOUR PARTICIPANTS

November 1 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

November 1 – I’m Into Books – SPOTLIGHT

November 1 – The Mystery Section – SPOTLIGHT

November 2 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT