ABOUT THE BOOK
Residents of Rudolph keep the spirit of Christmas alive year-round—but their joy is threatened when a group of grinches visits the town, in the charming fourth installment of the Year-Round Christmas series.
It's the week before Thanksgiving, and Merry Wilkinson, owner of Mrs. Claus's Treasures, is preparing for a weekend reunion of her mother's college friends. But when the group of women comes into Merry's shop, Merry is met with frosty attitudes and cold hearts.
The women argue amongst themselves constantly, and the bickering only intensifies after one of the friends is poisoned. With her father's role as Santa in danger due to his proximity to the crime, Merry will need to use all of her investigative gifts to wrap this mystery up and save Santa and her favorite holiday.
Series: Year Round Christmas mystery, book 4
Publisher: Berkley (August 27, 2019)
Print length: 304 pages
On tour with: Great Escapes Book Tours
IFs ANDs OR WHATs INTERVIEW WITH VICKI DELANY
Ifs
Q: If you could live in any time period which would it be?
A: Now. Never anything but right now. We have peace, we have democracy, we have laws, we have respect for human rights, we have antibiotics and pain-killers. History has no appeal to me, outside of the pages of a book.
Q: If you could time travel for an infinite period of time, where would you go?
A: I’d love to visit Pharaonic Egypt. See the building of the pyramids, watch the creating of hieroglyphics, observe their ceremonies, see a King or Queen’s burial. Of course, wherever I went, I’d hope to be immune to disease or being mistaken for a poor local. Almost anywhere in the pre-industrial world would be marvelous to see the night sky.
Q: If you could be anything besides a writer, what would it be?
A: I think I’d like to be an opera singer. Now, that will never happen because I’m genuinely tone deaf, but I like the idea of standing on stage in an overly dramatic costume and hitting the high notes while the orchestra swells in the background.
Q: If you could choose a fictional town to live in what would it be and from what book?
A: I’d probably like West London, Massachusetts from my Sherlock Holmes Bookshop series. I could hang out at the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium and have afternoon tea at Mrs. Hudson’s Tea Room next door. I don’t think I’d like to live in Rudolph, New York, the setting of my Year Round Christmas mysteries. I love Christmas, but not all the time.
Q: If you could live anywhere in the world, where in the world would it be?
A: Pretty hard to beat Prince Edward County, Ontario, where I live now. But I sometimes get tired of the winter. I could live in the Turks and Caicos or on the beach in Mozambique.
Ands
5 things you love about where you live:
• farms
• wineries
• bookstore
• friends
and
• not in the city
5 things you never want to run out of:
• imagination
• love
• peace
• quiet
and
• wine
5 things you always put in your books:
• food
• clothing
• scenery
• laughs
and
• mystery
5 favorite places you’ve been:
• Tofo Mozambique
• Hoi An Vietnam
• Malacca, Malaysia
• Masi Mara, Kenya
and
• Nelson, British Columbia, Canada
Whats
Q: What’s your all-time favorite place?
A: I’ve been to a lot of marvelous places in my life, but other than home and where family live, it has to be Wildwaters Lodge near Jinja, Uganda.
Q: What’s your all-time favorite movie?
A: Lord of the RingsQ: What’s your all-time favorite picture of yourself?
A: This is me with my Canadian writer friends Anthony Bidulka, Barbara Fradkin, Robin Harlick, and Mary Jane Maffini at Bouchercon in Indianapolis. I love this picture, because it’s a fun picture of good friends being silly.
Q: What’s your all-time favorite city?
A: Amsterdam.
Q: What’s one thing that very few people know about you?
A: I am an extreme introvert. Really. Remember that introvert doesn’t mean shy. (I’m not shy)
What’s your biggest pet peeve?
People or places who call afternoon tea, high tea.
Q: What’s your favorite vacation spot?
A: Far too many to mention. I rarely go back to the same place. Earlier this year I was in Mozambique. Later in the year I’m going to Russia. Although, I do love Muskoka, in Ontario., where I’ve been quite a bit.
Q: What’s your favorite beverage?
A: I’ve been known to enjoy a glass of white wine or two.
Q: Would you rather tweet or post on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest?
A: I have a presence on all those things, but I find I use Facebook the most. Come over and say hi. I run lots of contests and give book news.
Q: What’s your all-time favorite place you’ve visited?
Q: What’s one thing you never leave the house without? A: My iPhone. Not because I’m obsessed with it, but if I’m in an accident, I want to be able to notify my family.
Q: What is the wallpaper on your computer’s desktop?
A: My three daughters at my second daughter’s wedding. On my phone, it’s my grandson. On my iPad, it’s the beach at nightfall Tofo, Mozambique .
Q: What author would you most like to review one of your books?
A: Louise Penny. And she did!
Q: What book are you currently working on?
A: The fifth in the Year Round Christmas series, still untitled. I’m also finishing up the seventh in the Lighthouse Library series by me as Eva Gates. Also still untitled.
Q: What’s your all-time favorite place in your town?
Q: What’s your latest recommendation for:
Food: Why not check out what’s happening at Mystery Lovers Kitchen. Ten cozy writers talk food and books, with recipes that suit every level of cook.
Music: I love Gin Wigmore, a New Zealand singer. A much grittier, raspier Adele.
Book: The Lost Man by Jane Harper. Wow. The sense of place is overwhelming.
Audiobook: Can I say Something Read Something Dead by Eva Gates? That’s the latest one I listened to. I like to listen to all my books once on audio. It’s a different experience.
Netflix: The best thing I’ve seen on Netflix is Happy Valley with Sarah Lancashire.
Miscellaneous: If at all possible, get your vegetables from a small-scale, local farmer. Heirloom tomatoes in particular are a whole other thing than that what you buy at the grocery store.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Vicki lives and writes in bucolic Prince Edward County, Ontario. She is a past president of the Crime Writers of Canada. Her work has been nominated for the Derringer, the Bony Blithe, the Ontario Library Association Golden Oak, and the Arthur Ellis Awards. Vicki is the recipient of the 2019 Derick Murdoch Award for contributions to Canadian crime writing.
Social media links:
Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instragram
Buy the book:
Amazon
