Featured Authors: Joyce & Jim Lavene

Today, I'm turning the blog over to my main character, Tess Tremaine, to talk with Jessie Morton, the mc in Joyce & Jim Lavene's newly-released novel, Murderous Matrimony, a supernatural mystery. And there's a giveaway! Enter to win a copy of each of the five print books in the Ren Faire mystery series as well as the E-novella, Perilous Pranks and an E-copy of Murderous Matrimony, plus the entire collection, for now, of their Ren Faire Mysteries and a Ren Faire Mystery tote bag to hold all of them.

About the character:

Jessie Morton is a woman who loves the Renaissance faire where she lives with her lover, Chase Manhattan. She enjoys history and crafts. Her dissertation for her PhD was Renaissance Crafts in Modern Day. She is an excellent archer and has skills in hat making, basket weaving, glass making, sword making and tapestry.

Tess talks with Jessie Morton

Jessie, how did you first meet Jim and Joyce?
We were introduced in Wicked Weaves, the first Renaissance Faire mystery. Joyce and Jim were crazy about the Ren Faire and so was I. It was a good fit from the beginning.

Want to dish about them?

They write a lot – five mystery series and counting. They have paranormal and supernatural leanings. They live in North Carolina with two cats and a dog. They enjoy long road trips into the mountains, and like pizza.

They sound wonderful. Did you ever think that your life would end up being in a book?

No! Are you kidding? Why would anyone write about me? I’ve lived an ordinary life – except my summers at the Ren Faire.

Tell us about your favorite scene in the book.

My favorite scene in the new Ren Faire mystery book, Murderous Matrimony, is when Wanda (the blue ghost that haunts me) gets her comeuppance. Can’t say anymore about that without giving away the plot, you know. But I LOVED IT!

Did you have a hard time convincing Jim and Joyce to write any particular scenes for you?

Oh no! Joyce and Jim and I are simpatico. They write what I tell them.

Lucky girl. Did you hear that, Amy? Jessie, what do you like to do when you are not being actively read somewhere?

I like to walk around the Village and see everything that’s going on. I love Vegetable Justice where people throw squishy fruits and vegetables at their friends while they are trapped in the stocks. I love spending time with Chase, my fiancée.

I can think of a few people I would love to introduce to Vegetable Justice. If you could rewrite anything in your book, what would it be?

I would rewrite the wedding so there weren’t so many people there. I really wanted a simple wedding with just me and Chase and a few friends.

Tell the truth. What do you think of your fellow characters?

Well, I love Chase (of course). Wanda, I could do without. Merlin the Magician is a little strange. Madame Lucinda, our resident fortune teller is a little odd. I think she may be part dragon.

Oh my. You do have some interesting friends. Do have any secret aspirations that Jim and Joyce don’t know about?

I would love to be in a story about making food. I mean, the craft stuff is good, but let’s do some food!

If you had a free day with no responsibilities and your only mission was to enjoy yourself, what would you do?

I have no idea. I’m not that person.



What impression do you make on people when they first meet you? How about after they've known you for a while?

I like to think that people read me as an every day kind of character. Nothing special, really. Just a little snoopy. After they’ve known me for a while, I hope they see that I’m smart and thoughtful.



What's the worst thing that's happened in your life?

The worst thing was when I dyed Wanda blue with a dye pack in her shower, and when I went to gloat, she was dead. I didn’t kill her, but someone took advantage of my prank.

Tell us about your best friend.

My best friend is sword maker Daisy Reynolds. She’s a big woman with blond curly hair and kewpie doll lips. She makes amazing swords and knives. She wears a breastplate with a phoenix on it and lives with a giant of a man, Bart.



What are you most afraid of?

Being bored.



What’s the best trait your author has given you? What’s the worst?

The best is common sense – it means I can see things that to her characters miss. The worst is my size twelve feet. What’s up with that? 



Oh dear. I don't know. But you're perfectly lovely, so don't let that one trait bother you. What’s your author’s worst habit?

Leaving me hanging from roofs (and in other perilous places) to go to bed.



Describe the town where you live.
I live in Renaissance Faire Village and Marketplace in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. It’s on the site of the old air Force base. The Village is five miles around, not counting Sherwood Forest, of course, or the jousting arena. There are crafters, shopkeepers, and other real people living here, but also characters like Robin Hood, fairies, Little Bo Peep, Mother Goose, and others.

Sounds lively. Will you encourage your author to write more in this series?

This is already their sixth book in the series with Wicked Weaves, Ghastly Glass, Deadly Daggers, Harrowing Hats, and Treacherous Toys. There is also a novella – Perilous Pranks. They tell me there is another book on the way too. I’m hoping for Killer Kites!
Thanks for having me here today!

And thank you for being here, Jessie. Call me when Killer Kites comes out! Jack loves kites!

About the authors:

Joyce and Jim Lavene write award-winning, best-selling mystery fiction as themselves, J.J. Cook, and Ellie Grant. They have written and published more than 70 novels for Harlequin, Berkley, Amazon, and Gallery Books along with hundreds of non-fiction articles for national and regional publications. They live in rural North Carolina with their family. Visit them at www.joyceandjimlavene.com.

Connect with the authors:
Website | Facebook | 
Twitter |

Buy the book:
Amazon | Amazon author page

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