Maddie Swallows Mystery Series: Cozy Mystery by Kat Bellemore ➱ Book Series Tour with Guest Post & Rafflecopter
If you love small towns, quirky characters, and an intriguing whodunit, you’ll love this cozy mystery series!
Dead Before Dinner
A Maddie Swallows Mystery Book 1
by Kat Bellemore
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Green
chile has never been more dangerous.
Psychologist
Maddie Swallows’ decision to return to New Mexico seemed like a
good idea at the time, considering the divorce and her two teenagers
she’d dragged along for the ride.
But that was before the
New Year’s Eve party she was guilt-tripped into attending. Before a
member of the town council wound up dead and everyone at the party
became a suspect. And before she was forced to unravel the secrets of
her former hometown in order to clear her name.
Of course,
with the help of two precocious teenagers and one meddling mother,
the real murderer doesn’t stand a chance.
Dead
before Dinner is
the first book of the Maddie Swallows series. If you love small
towns, quirky characters, and an intriguing whodunit, you’ll love
this cozy mystery.
Pick up Dead
before Dinner and
get swept away in this New Mexican mystery series today!
**Start the series for FREE!**
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Dead Upon Arrival
A Maddie Swallows Mystery Book 2
Flying high in the New Mexican sky has never been more lethal.
The biggest hot air balloon festival would have been a vacation if Maddie didn’t have to balance her apathetic teenagers, a meddling mother, and act as therapist for a desperate patient. Let alone solve a murder case!
When Maddie witnesses someone fall from a hot air balloon, it seems like a tragic accident. But as facts come to light, the police are convinced it’s foul play. And Maddie’s friend is to blame.
With the remainder of the festival canceled and all attendees required to stay for questioning, Maddie has two days to discover the truth behind the murder and free her friend from suspicion.
Dead Upon Arrival is the second book in the Maddie Swallows mystery series. If you like humor, intrigue, and, of course, hot air balloons, you'll love this cozy mystery.
Grab Dead Upon Arrival and test your whodunit skills today!
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Dead Before I Do
A Maddie Swallows Mystery Book 3
When
Maddie Swallows attends an out-of-town wedding with her best friend,
Benji, she expects free food, dancing, and some awkward moments as
she tries to figure out her feelings for her long-time friend.
What
she finds instead is a dead groom and an entire wedding guest list
who had reason to kill the guy.
It doesn’t help that Maddie
was the last person to see the groom alive and is placed in the local
police’s crosshairs as they work to solve the murder.
It
will take some unexpected sleuthing, and a few therapy sessions, for
this psychiatrist to prove her innocence, and bring justice to the
real killer.
Dead
Before I Do is
the third book of the Maddie Swallows mystery series. If you love
quirky characters, romance, and plenty of intrigue, you'll love this
cozy mystery.
Pick up Dead
Before I Do and
travel to White Sands National Park for Maddie's latest mystery
today!
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**Coming soon on July 31st!**
A Maddie Swallows Mystery Book 4
“Who owns the home?”
Sheriff Potts barked. I didn’t blame Debbie for not wanting to raise her hand
and confess that it was she who had hosted the party. When she didn’t answer
right away, Sheriff Potts folded her arms over her chest, seemingly trying to
appear as menacing as possible. It worked. “Well?”
Debbie finally found
her voice, her pink hair seeming to have lost some of its luster since Mrs.
Bailey had died in her dining room. “Me. It’s my home.”
“And you made all the
food yourself?” Sheriff Potts asked, pulling a pad of paper from her pocket.
Debbie started to
shake her head, but then shared a look with Kandy, and it morphed into a nod. I
couldn't decipher Kandy’s expression, but I could have sworn it was a warning.
“Yes ma’am. I prepared the food.”
Sheriff Potts walked
over to the deceased and pulled back the sheet, studying Mrs. Bailey before
talking into a radio that hung on her hip.
A man appeared and immediately started to take pictures.
“I’ll be interviewing
you each separately about what happened here, and no one leaves until I’m
satisfied,” she said.
“Excuse me,
Danielle,” Sam dared to say, stepping forward, with Katie shrinking behind him.
She didn’t look like she wanted to be noticed by the police, or anyone else for
that matter. Hadn’t spoken a word all night.
Sheriff Potts
narrowed her eyes at the mayor’s informal use of her first name but didn’t say
anything.
“I don’t understand
the need for theatrics,” he continued. “Are you saying Marci died under
suspicious circumstances?”
“That’s what I’m here
to find out, Mr. Mayor.” Sheriff Potts stepped closer to him than seemed
necessary. “Were you aware of any allergies the deceased may have had?”
“Of course. Everyone
was. A year ago, she accused me of trying to kill her because we had a salsa
contest at our Christmas festival. The food, of course, not the dance. Marci
was deathly allergic to nightshade vegetables—all nightshades. Tomatoes, bell
peppers, potatoes, even chilli powder. But we had other options at that
Christmas festival, and it wasn’t like she’d accidentally dish herself out a
helping of chips and salsa.”
“But you’re saying
she could have accidentally dished herself out a helping of those nightshades
here, this evening.”
“Now, wait a minute,”
James bellowed from across the room. “We all arrived between six and
six-thirty, yet it was after seven o’clock and we hadn’t even been served our
appetizers yet. No one had eaten.”
Dead Upon Arrival
Andy rubbed a hand over his smooth head, like just thinking about what he had to tell us was stressing him out. “Charles Reed was not a good man, I’m going to just put that out there. Horrible guy. I’d known him years ago when he was a crew member for some pretty prominent ballooners. He spent more time schmoozing than doing his actual job. Don’t get me wrong, the guy knew his way around a balloon. Knew how to fly one too. He would have been a fantastic pilot if he’d put his mind to it. Instead, all he cared about was making connections. Either the pilots didn’t have enough brains to notice, or more likely, they didn’t care. They were rich. They liked the attention. I think Charles was more of a pet to them. Either way, they must have noticed how smart the guy was because they brought him in on some business deals, and next thing you know, the guy has ridiculous amounts of money.”
“How long ago was that?” I asked.
Andy looked up at the ceiling, like he had to think about it. “Maybe about five years ago. Anyway, none of us had liked him much when he was crew, and we liked him a lot less once he had his own balloon. The guy was smart and talented, well spoken—and yet he wouldn’t lift a finger when it came to flying in the festivals. Never competed in any of the competitions—just smiled and waved, like his presence was a gift. The act worked on the lady folks, unfortunately. One of the many reasons none of us ever brought women to the festivals. Those who did regretted it.” Andy’s expression darkened. It only lasted a moment, then it cleared, and he glanced at me. “Until this year, that is. Rafael and I were both shocked that Parker had brought Ruby.”
Benji leaned against the wall. “I remember you and Rafael complaining about Charles a couple of years back. I hadn’t made the connection that it was the same guy. You mean to tell me that this was the man who—”
“Yeah.” Andy’s tone was sharp as if letting Benji know that this was not a topic that was up for discussion. I would definitely be asking Benji more about that later.
“What on earth were you doing piloting for him?” Benji sounded incredulous, like whatever Charles Reed had done to Andy, it had been bad.
Dead Before I Do
I would not be deterred. It wasn’t like murderers were all happy and wanting to chat. If I were a murderer, I’d try to avoid conversation as much as possible too. Which was why we needed to have one. “You’re here for Mark and Bree’s wedding, aren’t you?” I paused. “Or you were. Us too. Crazy situation, huh? Can’t wait until they finally let us leave. Are you staying on the fifth floor where everything happened? That would be terrifying.”
The man turned abruptly, his eyebrows furrowed so intensely that they met in the middle. “No, I’m on the second floor. Now, do you mind? I’d like to finish the rest of this disastrous weekend in peace, and you aren’t helping.”
I raised a questioning eyebrow. If he was staying on the second floor, what had he been doing on the fifth floor right before the wedding?
The man gave me a side glance and must have noticed my skepticism, and his scowl deepened. “I’ll try a different vending machine.”
He turned to leave, and without thinking, I stepped in his way. If I didn’t talk to this guy now, he would disappear, and I wouldn’t get another chance.
“Yesterday, I was getting off the elevator on the fifth floor as you were getting on. Seemed like you were pretty upset with someone. By the looks of things, that guy was Mark.” My current approach was so direct that it bordered on rude, but I didn’t know how else to proceed with this guy. He wasn't interested in chit chat, and I was counting the fact that I had gotten him to respond at all as a personal victory.
The man straightened to the point that he towered over us. I had seriously underestimated how big this guy was and was now questioning my tactic. “Did I look similar to the way I do now?” He gestured toward his angry expression.
I gave a little nod.
“And you’re snooping around, asking questions because you think of yourself as a detective, right? Think you can help the police. Only problem is, if you think I killed him, what position does that put you in now? Who says I’d stop at Mark?”
Connecting with my readers
When I set out to write the Maddie Swallows series, I had
never read a cozy mystery book that included young children, with the exception
of the Flavia De Luce series. She’s a child herself, but I suppose that still
counts.
It just isn’t done very often. And that seemed strange to me.
I wanted characters that my readers could connect with. And
so was born Maddie Swallows, a divorced, single mom to two teenagers. Who also
happens to be a psychologist and is forced to leave her position at a large
university and return to her hometown where she opens up a much-needed therapy
office. (It wouldn’t be a cozy mystery without someone returning home after a
long hiatus, right?)
I love writing with children as a main part of the series. They are hilarious
and always trying to put themselves in the middle of things using skills that
teenagers are best at. Like technology. (Don’t worry, they’re never in real
danger.)
There’s of course the meddling mother and estranged childhood
best friend in the mix.
My real goal with this series was to keep it real. The local
sheriff isn’t bumbling around—she’s good at her job. Just needs a little help
from the resident psychologist, whether she likes to admit it or not.
My hope is that you laugh a lot, that Maddie and her kids
pull on your heartstrings at least a little, and that you’re able to solve the
mystery right alongside them in the end.
Read the first book in the series, Dead Before Dinner, for
free HERE.
Kat Bellemore is a small-town romance and cozy mystery author. Deciding to have New Mexico as the setting for two of her series was an easy choice, considering its amazing sunsets, blue skies and tasty green chile. That, and she currently lives there with her husband and two cute kids. They hope to one day add a dog to the family, but for now, the native animals of the desert will have to do. Though, Kat wouldn't mind ridding the world of scorpions and centipedes. They're just mean.
You can visit Kat at www.kat-bellemore.com.
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This looks like an excellent cozy mystery!
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a fun book and series.
ReplyDelete