Monday, May 18, 2020

A Deadly Inside Scoop by Abby Collette | Blog Tour with Guest Post and Giveaway


A Deadly Inside Scoop (An Ice Cream Parlor Mystery)
by Abby Collette


About A Deadly Inside Scoop



A Deadly Inside Scoop (An Ice Cream Parlor Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Publisher: Berkley (May 12, 2020)
Paperback: 384 pages
ISBN-10: 0593099664
ISBN-13: 978-0593099667
Digital ASIN: B07WJF48NC
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This book kicks off a charming cozy mystery series set in an ice cream shop — with a fabulous cast of quirky characters.

Recent MBA grad Bronwyn Crewse has just taken over her family's ice cream shop in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, and she's going back to basics. Win is renovating Crewse Creamery to restore its former glory, and filling the menu with delicious, homemade ice cream flavors — many from her grandmother’s original recipes. But unexpected construction delays mean she misses the summer season, and the shop has a literal cold opening: the day she opens her doors, an early first snow descends on the village and keeps the customers away.

To make matters worse, that evening Win finds a body in the snow, and it turns out the dead man was a grifter with an old feud with the Crewse family. Soon, Win’s father is implicated in his death. It's not easy to juggle a new-to-her business while solving a crime, but Win is determined to do it. With the help of her quirky best friends and her tight-knit family, she'll catch the ice cold killer before she has a meltdown...


About The Guest Post





Why I Write Cozies

Abby L. Vandiver


I love a good mystery. To me, they are just the best kind of story. So when I decided to write a book, of course it was the genre I chose. Since I published my first novel, I’ve written many more books and even though they can be accurately categorized in other genres, each still had an element of mystery to them. 

After finding my niche, to my delight, I found that a lot of other people like mysteries too. In fact, they are the second bestselling genre, coming in right after romance. I got to write the type of story I loved and maybe sell a book or two. How cool is that?

Books in the category are usually suspenseful, especially near the end when the answer to the mystery is revealed. And as of late, more mysteries are thrillers as well. Sometimes the genres are even combined to list all three together as one, e.g., the Mystery, Thriller, and Suspense category on Amazon. In these books, for the protagonist to solve the mystery they’re set upon an adventure – the story filled with action a la Indiana Jones. And around practically every corner lies mortal peril, thrusting the hero/heroine into danger turning the story into a real page-turner. The main character must then use his/her wit and skill to narrowly escape the throes of the evil, wrongdoing villain (a la Dan Brown) and in the end, bring him down exacting justice for all. 

But do all the books in the genre have to be like that? In some instances, I’ve learned, it’s expected. Some lovers of mystery books, like readers drawn to the description of my first books, The Mars Origin Series, were expecting to get a sit-on-the-edge-of-your-seat thrill along with the “what-happened.”

My first book, In the Beginning, had initially been compared to Indiana Jones and Dan Brown by some. Because, I concluded, it had a biblical tagline to it, an alternative history twist, and a protagonist who had information that could possibly change the world as we know it. But when true fans of The Da Vinci Code read it, they gasped – What? There’s no action! No killing! No chases through the city! And oh no! No swear words or sex! Egad!

My book, I wanted to scream to them, was a character-driven, thought-provoking, compelling (with some dry wit) work framed around a “what-if.” But with the subject matter as presented, readers weren’t happy with that answer and they screamed right back – “We need lots of action! Give us some violence! Blood. Guts. Gore.” Readers wanted more. And even though it was a struggle for me, in the next two books in the series, I tried to give them what they wanted. I added a little violence. More adventure. And some of the ever-craved-for action (still no sex). I wasn’t the master of it, but I think I pulled it off. But as I finished up the last book, it was plain for me to see – it just wasn’t in me to deliver what thriller mystery fans wanted. 

The books did well, making #1 on Amazon bestseller list in their categories, but the fast-paced, action-packed ride that I’d written was not the stuff that could compete with The Bourne Identity or Angels and Demons. So I thought, I still want to write mystery, and okay, I could do a murder – nothing violent – but I wasn’t averse to death being a part of my story. But the car chases, the punch-roll-kick action of the characters, and the descriptive sex scenes . . . Well . . . Not so much.

Then I found cozies . . .

***Picture sky opening up, sun rays fanning out to the horizon, cueing the angelic music***

Oh, happy day!

Cozy mysteries are the best. Aren’t they? Quirky, fun characters, a keep-you-guessing whodunit, and a little humor to boot. Action and violence are – of all things – not expected! Now that was something I could do. And who knew? There were readers galore that didn’t do the guts and gore, just like me!

The first three books in my Logan Dickerson Cozy Mystery Series of my first try at cozies were Amazon International Bestsellers, and since then I’ve written more than twenty cozy novels and short stories. My most recent, A Deadly Inside Scoop, was released on May 12 and now that I found cozies I plan on writing many more. 

So be sure to stay tuned . . .



About Abby Collette


Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author Abby Collette loves a good mystery. Born and raised in Cleveland, it’s even a mystery to her why she has yet to move to a warmer place. Author of the two Southern cozy mystery series Logan Dickerson Mysteries featuring a second-generation archaeologist and a nonagenarian who is always digging up trouble, and the Romaine Wilder Mysteries, set in East Texas, it pairs a medical examiner and her feisty auntie who owns a funeral home and is always ready to solve a whodunnit. Abby spends her time writing, facilitating writing workshops at local libraries, and spending time with her grandchildren, each of which is her favorite.


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TOUR PARTICIPANTS

May 12 – Book Club Librarian – REVIEW

May 12 – The Layaway Dragon – REVIEW

May 12 – I'm All About Books – SPOTLIGHT

May 12 – Ascroft, eh? – CHARACTER INTERVIEW

May 13 – Christy's Cozy Corners – REVIEW

May 13 – Literary Gold – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

May 13 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

May 14 – Christa Reads and Writes – REVIEW

May 14 – Ruff Drafts – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

May 14 – Celticlady's Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

May 14 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW*

May 14 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book - REVIEW

May 15 – The Avid Reader – REVIEW

May 15 – Diane Reviews Books- REVIEW, AUTHOR INTERVIEW

May 15 – Hearts & Scribbles – SPOTLIGHT

May 16 – StoreyBook Reviews – REVIEW

May 16 – The Book Diva's Reads – SPOTLIGHT, RECIPE

May 16 – Here's How It Happens – SPOTLIGHT

May 17 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – REVIEW, CHARACTER INTERVIEW

May 17 – Baroness' Book Trove – SPOTLIGHT

May 17 – Brooke Showalter – SPOTLIGHT, RECIPE

May 17 – Lisa Ks Book Reviews – REVIEW*

May 18 – Jane Reads – GUEST POST

May 18 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW

May 18 – Mystery Thrillers and Romantic Suspense Reviews – SPOTLIGHT







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