GUEST POST BY MARIS SOULE

ABOUT THE BOOK

P.J. Benson knows Sheriff’s Detective Wade Kingsley wouldn’t blow up his own boat to kill his ex-wife and her new husband, Michael Brewster. Sure, Wade wasn’t happy that his ex was taking their six-year-old son, Jason, to live in California, but Wade and Jason were also onboard the boat when it blew up. Wade would never have endangered his son that way. Nevertheless, the investigating detectives consider Wade their prime suspect, and Wade’s ex in-laws loudly accuse him and threaten to file for custody of Jason. 

Under the circumstances, P.J. is certain this isn’t the right time to tell Wade she’s pregnant, but bouts of morning sickness give her away. Wade is upset by the news. P.J. wonders if it’s because he’s afraid he’ll be put in prison for a double homicide he didn’t commit, or if he’s afraid the new baby will cause P.J. to become schizophrenic, as was the case with her mother. Even P.J. is worried about that. Although Wade doesn’t want her playing detective, P.J. soon discovers that Michael Brewster wasn’t as great a guy as everyone thought. But did anyone hate the man enough to kill him?

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GUEST POST BY MARIS SOULE

I like visiting new places, but I also love writing about areas I know. Eat Crow and Die takes place in three locations that I’m quite familiar with.

Zenith, Michigan may be a fictitious village, but most of the residents of Climax, Michigan and the area around that village (where I lived for 27 years) recognize the businesses as those they pass every time they go through town. The grocery store in Climax went out of business a few years ago, but the one in Zenith is still there. My main character, P.J. Benson, often meets neighbors and friends at the store. And I remember getting my hair cut at the beauty parlor near the town’s only restaurant and bar. If ever a neighbor coming out of the beauty parlor saw me going into that bar with a stranger, I know it would be all over town within an hour. P.J. also knows that’s true.

When P.J. drives Wade to South Haven to view where his boat exploded and sank, it was easy for me to write about the traffic jams they encountered. During the summer, I’m constantly dealing with the out-of-state drivers, beach goers, and waits for the drawbridge.

We had a boat explode not far from our boat slip. That was a totally different situation from what I created in Eat Crow and Die, but the pictures of that boat burning and the news articles about the passengers who were tossed into the water from the blast certainly triggered my imagination. I knew I had to start Eat Crow and Die with Wade’s boat exploding. (Poor Wade.)

I’ve been in the hospitals in Kalamazoo, and in the casinos that have sprung up in southwest Michigan. It was fun to weave both of those locations into P.J.’s quest to discover who blew up Wade Kingsley’s boat, how it was accomplished, and why?

I hope those who enjoy a mystery with a touch of humor will find Eat Crow and Die a pleasure to read.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Maris Soule has been writing for over 30 years. Prior to switching to mysteries, Soule had 25 category romances published and is a two-time RITA finalist. In addition to A Killer Past, Soule has three published mysteries in her P.J. Benson Mystery series (The Crows, As the Crow Flies, and Eat Crow and Die).

Born and raised in California, Soule was working on a master’s degree at U.C. Santa Barbara when a redhead with blue eyes talked her into switching from a Masters to a Mrs. He also talked her into moving to Michigan, where over the years they’ve raised two children and a slew of animals. The two now spend their summers near Lake Michigan and their winters in Florida.

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