Welcome to my stop on the Virtual
Tour, presented by Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours, for Death Before Decaf
by Caroline Fardig. Please leave a comment or question for Caroline
to let her know you stopped by. You may
enter her tour wide giveaway by filling out the Rafflecopter form below. You may also follow all of the stops on her
tour by clicking on the banner above.
The more stops you visit, the better your odds of winning. My review shall post ASAP.
Researching for Death Before Decaf by Caroline FardigOne of my favorite parts of writing is when I’m formulating a new novel, when a world of possibilities is waiting to come together into a great story. Part of that process includes researching. I research the setting, the character’s jobs and hobbies, and any other things that might be helpful to know to make the story as real as possible.What was the first thing I did when I decided on the setting and framework of Death Before Decaf? Drag my husband to Nashville on a mini-vacation, of course! We hit every coffeehouse in Midtown, the trendy area just south of downtown that’s nestled between the campuses of Vanderbilt and Belmont Universities. That’s a lot of coffee in one weekend. We went to an open mic night at one of the coffeehouses, where we watched around a dozen musicians perform.When I travelled back to Nashville a few months later, I was determined to get up on that stage. This time I dragged a friend along with me, and I think my little pre-performance freak-out got on her nerves a bit. There was no reason for me to be nervous, because I was only performing in front of a handful of people, far fewer than I perform in front of every Sunday morning at church, but it still got to me. I performed “She’s a Mess,” the song I’d written for Death Before Decaf. I did pretty well. At least there was clapping instead of booing!
Caroline Performing "She's a Mess" Every time my kids go to Nashville, they insist on visiting the Parthenon and Centennial Park. (I think they want to go there only to re-create the Parthenon fight scene from Percy Jackson.) I don’t mind going back time and time again, though. I love the place so much; I have a painting of it in my office. A major scene from Mug Shot, the second book in the Java Jive series, takes place at Centennial Park.
Caroline and Her Husband at the Parthenon Even though I’m a Starbucks regular, I still wanted to be able to write intelligently about making espresso drinks, so I bought myself a real espresso maker (not like the Mr. Coffee fake espresso maker I had in college) and learned how to pour latte art. So far, I’ve only mastered making hearts, but now I can successfully make one every time rather than only hit or miss. I’m already on my second espresso maker, if that shows how much I use the thing.
Caroline's Beverage of Choice And last but not least, I had a ton of research I’d already done on running a café. Three years ago, I was all set to open my own place. I had my menu ready, my food pricing roughly set, and my remodeling plans completed for the space I’d chosen. I’d even put a down payment on a commercial property. Evidently the universe had other plans, because everything fell through. I was pretty bummed about it until the opportunity came to do something with the novel I’d been fiddling around with. I decided to become a full-time writer and never looked back. Now I realize it’s a lot easier to write about running a restaurant than it is to actually run one in real life!
By Caroline Fardig
A Java Jive Mystery, Book 1
Publisher: Alibi (An Imprint of Random House, LLC)
Release Date: November 17,
2015
Genre: Cozy Mystery/Female
Sleuth
Format: eBook
Length: 289 (2866KB)
ISBN: 9780804181303
ASIN: B00VOYNDKK
Buy Links: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | Google Play | iTunes | Random House
Perfect for fans of Janet Evanovich and Diane Mott
Davidson, Caroline Fardig’s captivating new mystery novel takes readers behind
the counter of a seemingly run-of-the-mill coffeehouse . . . where murder is
brewing.
After her music career crashes
and burns spectacularly, Juliet Langley is forced to turn to the only other
business she knows: food service. Unfortunately, bad luck strikes yet again
when her two-timing fiancé robs her blind and runs off with her best waitress.
Flushing what’s left of her beloved café down the toilet with her failed
engagement, Juliet packs up and moves back to her college stomping grounds in
Nashville to manage an old friend’s coffeehouse. At first glance, it seems as
though nothing’s changed at Java Jive. What could possibly go wrong? Only that
the place is hemorrhaging money, the staff is in open revolt, and Juliet finds
one unlucky employee dead in the dumpster out back before her first day is even
over.
The corpse just so happens to
belong to the cook who’d locked horns with Juliet over the finer points of the
health code. Unimpressed with her management style, the other disgruntled
employees are only too eager to spill the beans about her fiery temper to the
detective on the case. Add to the mix a hunky stranger who’s asking way too
many questions, and suddenly Juliet finds herself in some very hot water. If
she can’t simmer down and sleuth her way to the real killer, she’s going to get
burned.
About This Author
Caroline Fardig is the
author of Death Before Decaf and the Lizzie Hart series. She worked
as a schoolteacher, church organist, insurance agent, funeral parlor associate,
and stay-at-home mom before she realized that she wanted to be a writer when
she grew up. Born and raised in a small town in Indiana, Fardig still lives in
that same town with an understanding husband, two sweet kids, two energetic
dogs, and one malevolent cat.
Author Links
Twitter: https://twitter.com/carolinefardig
Website: http://www.carolinefardig.com/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/carolinefardig/
Amazon author page: http://www.amazon.com/Caroline-Fardig/e/B00C1866NE
Sounds like a great mystery book.
ReplyDeleteThank you for hosting me today! I have my coffeehouse performances posted on YouTube now, if anyone would want to listen! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaBxQXmhgMcsLS4C1vMZYUg
ReplyDelete