No Spoilers, Please!

DEBORAH CROMBIE: I always seem to come late to the TV party. I don't mean the latest streaming sensation (although I'm usually late to those, too) but the long-running mainstream American TV series that have been cultural touchstones over the decades. 

Star Trek, for instance, I only started to watch when it was in syndication, when I was in college, but the adventures of Captain Kirk and the Enterprise playing in the background got me through many long study sessions.

Then, when my daughter was born I had to spend a couple of weeks in the hospital, and I discovered Mork and Mindy. The series would have ended a couple of years before that, but I'd never seen an episode, and Robin Williams' brilliant goofiness was just the thing I needed to look forward to at the end of those long days.

I  missed the entire George Clooney era on ER, which must have been at least the first five seasons, although I later became a devoted fan and never missed an episode. (I did a panel with the fabulous Eriq La Salle at Bouchercon last year! I was totally tongue-tied!)

Streaming comes into the catch-up equation now, of course, with multiple seasons of old shows now airing on the services. Until last fall, I knew nothing about Suits other than that Meghan Markle, now Duchess of Sussex, had been in it. But when it popped up on Netflix, we got hooked and watched all nine seasons over a couple of months.

And that brings us to the latest binge, Grey's Anatomy. With all the fuss surrounding Bridgerton, I knew that Shonda Rhimes (Bridgerton's creator and producer) was producer, showrunner, and writer for Grey's Anatomy, but I had never seen an episode. I also knew the show was hugely popular and had won or been nominated for every major television award, but that was pretty much it.

Enter streaming, and we are now almost through season 5. I don't know that I'll make it all the way through, what is it now, 20 seasons? But for the time being, this is my evening 45 minutes of comfort TV. Grey has aged extremely well, I think, partly because it was groundbreaking in its day for its color-blind casting and strong character development, and partly because the hospital world exists a bit outside of time. The characters in the early seasons may have Blackberries rather than smart phones, but nothing much else has changed. 

Here's a quote from Shonda Rhimes about her concept for the series that I particularly loved and I think it it still feels so resonant: "I wanted to create a world in which you felt as if you were watching very real women. Most of the women I saw on TV didn't seem like people I actually knew. They felt like ideas of what women are. They never got to be nasty or competitive or hungry or angry. They were often just the loving wife or the nice friend. But who gets to be the bitch? Who gets to be the three-dimensional woman?"

But the big problem with coming late to such a long running show is avoiding spoilers! If I want to look up a cast member or an episode, I have to do it half-blindfolded, or I'll learn what happens to characters in episodes I haven't seen!

Reds and readers, have you come late to shows that had previously passed you by? 

Oh, and the best thing about these late discoveries, other than the ability to binge? NO commercials!!!

If You Can Imagine It...

DEBORAH CROMBIE:  Running errands on Sunday, I was pulling out of the hardware store parking lot when, lo, the car of my dreams passed before me. I literally gasped with pleasure and found myself grinning like an idiot for the next few minutes. This baby is what made my heart go pitter-patter, the Heritage Bronco Sport in baby blue with a white top.

Why I have such a thing for this car I can't really tell you (although it's partly copycat-ism, as my friend Gigi Norwood bought a Bronco last year, and I love hers. They are just such fun!) But a new car would be a big thing, as my lovely, dependable Honda Accord is going on sixteen! It just hit 90 K miles and is still a really great car, so I feel guilty even contemplating retiring her. But it's nice to have a dream. Maybe, I thought, I should print a picture of the baby blue Bronco and tack it up somewhere for a bit of inspiration.

And that thought took me way back, to the days when my daughter was a toddler and I was driving a horrible gray Dodge minivan, courtesy of my ex's work, and hated it. Vision boards must have been a thing then, because I cut out a photo of my then dream car, a Mazda 626 sedan, and taped it on my bathroom mirror. (Why I thought that Mazda was a sexy car, I don't now know, but it was certainly an improvement over the minivan.)

I was just beginning to try to write, so I added images of some other things I wanted to manifest. There were facsimile books, I think, and writing mantras. There were photos of pretty historic American houses (we were living in brick suburbia then, not our Arts and Crafts bungalow,) and inviting English country house rooms, and, of course, England–all things I did eventually manage to bring into my life in one way or another, even if some of them were fictional. (Including the Mazda, which I drove for eight years, then traded it for a cherry red Honda Prelude–now THAT was a sexy car!!)

But time went on and I sort of forgot all about the visualizing thing. However, it occurs to me now that I could really use some of that positive energy in my life. (Especially when it comes to finishing books…) 

Apparently, vision boards are still a thing, as a quick look on Pinterest and Amazon turned up all sorts of snazzy layouts and supplies. Did you know you can buy a "Royalty Vision Board Magazine of Opulence and Luxury for Women?" Or whiteboards with ready-made categories, including "wealth management?" These kits and supplies are a far cry from what I had in mind, and seem terribly impersonal... I wonder if that matters? It certainly doesn't sound as much fun as picking out your own special images, but the mind is a tricky thing.

What do you think about this, Reds and readers? Have you ever made a vision board, or used visualization techniques to manifest things in your life? Inquiring minds want to know! (And could use tips!)

Do You Have a Jinxed Appliance?

DEBORAH CROMBIE:  So this is how our relaxing Memorial Day went. See photo 1. What is missing from under our kitchen counter? 

See photo 2. (Hint: it doesn't normally live in the dining room.)

Yes, that is the underside of our relatively new KitchenAid dishwasher, undergoing surgery for the second time in the last few months. 

I normally run the dishwasher on delay last thing before I go to bed, then unload first thing in the morning. Yesterday the readout said "Clean" but when I started pulling the dishes out I discovered that they were, in fact, NOT clean, and that the little detergent pod was lying undisolved in the bottom of the tub. (Don't you hate that, when you've put up a few things before you realize they are still icky, then have to pull them out of cabinets and drawers again?)

Hmm. My resident handyman (Rick!) quickly diagnosed the problem--there was no water going into the tub. 

Quite a few YouTube videos later, Rick thought he'd ruled out a blocked line, and that it was probably in the control panel. (Or something like that. Mechanical explanations go in one of my ears and out the other...) Having dealt with this machine before, he had it out and in the dining room pretty quickly. Part ordered, should arrive Thursday, then fingers crossed! And we managed burgers on the grill before ten o'clock, which I count as a success on a torn up kitchen/appliance failure/plumbing disaster day.

We have had a history with dishwashers in this kitchen. When we did the big remodel back in the late aughts, we put in a fancy KitchenAid double drawer washer, thinking we didn't really need to fill a big machine every day. A cool idea, maybe, but nothing ever quite fit, and it turned out that the dishes were never really clean either. And while the first may have been down to KitchenAid's design, the second problem was not. Turned out, when the poor thing finally gave up the ghost and we went to replace it, that our contractor had plumbed it with cold water rather than hot. 

Duh.

The new one (with hot water!!) has been much better but apparently has a bit of a delicate constitution. 

Have you ever had a jinxed appliance, Reds and readers? I hesitate to even whisper this, as I'm afraid I'll create some bad ju-ju for our nearly twenty-year-old, wonderful Maytag refrigerator...

And is there a handy person in your house?

Annette Dashofy--A Thriller by Any Other Name

DEBORAH CROMBIE: We are always tickled to host one of our regular back bloggers and special Reds friend, Annette Dashofy, and especially when she's here to talk about a new Zoe Chambers mystery, WHAT COMES AROUND! 

And what a great cover! Today, Annette poses an interesting question of identity, with some fascinating criteria... 

A Mystery By Any Other Name…

By AnnetteDashofy

 

A couple of weeks ago, I found myself double booked. I was scheduled to appear at the Greater Pittsburgh Festival of Books (which is wonderful, by the way; go if you ever get the chance) at 10:30 a.m. on the Thriller Panel. I joined Nick Petrie and Joseph Reid AKA Parker Adams, two fabulous authors, who fit the thriller definition perfectly. Me? I wasn’t so sure, but what the heck.

Then I was scheduled to join Liz Milliron and Joyce Tremel at a library event at 2:00 p.m. The library was less than an hour away, so I wasn’t stressed. The ironic part is that panel was dubbed a Cozy Panel. Joyce is one of the best cozy authors I know. But cozy? Liz and I weren’t so sure we fit.

During the Thriller Panel, Nick explained that a mystery was a whodunit. A thriller was more about why something was happening and could it be stopped? He commented that he wrote thrillers with a mystery in the middle. This made me think. Later during the panel, I mentioned that I write mysteries with a thriller at the end.

Honestly, I hadn’t given it a lot of thought until that moment, but in the majority of my novels, there’s a whodunit for the first three quarters or so of the book, but once the killer is unmasked, he (or she) becomes desperate, and a thrill ride ensues.

As for cozy mysteries, the key prerequisite seems to be an amateur sleuth. I think.

In my Zoe Chambers series, both Zoe and Pete work the front lines as law enforcement, EMS, or with the coroner’s office, depending how far into the series you are. In my Detective Honeywell series, Matthias is a police detective, so no amateurs there either. Still, I find my books labeled as cozies, and if that’s what my readers want, who am I to argue?

Which is the point I’m trying to get at. Does it matter? I know, I know, booksellers want to know where to shelve the novels, and therefore, publishers want to use the right category when listing a title. But my question to the Reds and the other writers reading this is: do you think about what specific genre you’re creating when you’re planning or writing your novel? And readers, how much does it affect your buying choice whether a book is a cozy, a traditional mystery, a suspense novel, or a thriller? 

DEBS: Such an interesting definition from Nick! By those parameters, I definitely write whodunits, and my books are usually categorized as either "traditional" mysteries, or "police procedurals," and either one of those can cover an incredibly broad range. As for reading, I'm game for anything if the story sounds interesting and I like the writing.  Can't wait to hear what our readers think about Annette's question!

Just as Monongahela County Coroner Zoe Chambers-Adams decides to fire her abrasive chief deputy, Dr. Charles Davis, and put an end to his constant undermining of her position, a suspicious car crash severely injures the county’s only other forensic pathologist. To keep the office operational, Zoe has little choice but to keep Davis on staff.

When Zoe and her husband—Vance Township Police Chief Pete Adams—respond to a brutal homicide, they quickly learn the victim had come to town for the sole purpose of sharing vital information with Zoe. And the decedent’s ex-husband is none other than Zoe’s deputy coroner.

As Zoe and Pete dig deeper into the victim’s past, more questions arise along with a tangle of connections between multiple cases, including a very cold one that leads Zoe and those she cares about directly into the crosshairs of a crazed killer.

Annette Dashofy is the USA Today bestselling author of the Zoe Chambers mystery series and the Detective Honeywell series. She won the 2021 Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award for excellence in Thoroughbred racing literature for her standalone, Death By Equine, and has garnered seven Agatha Award nominations. Her short fiction includes a Derringer finalist. Annette and her husband live on ten acres of what was her grandfather’s dairy farm in southwestern Pennsylvania with their very spoiled cat, Kensi.

USA Today Best Selling Author of the Zoe Chambers Mysteries

What Comes Around: Zoe Chambers #13 Now Available!

Keep Your Family Close: Detective Honeywell Mystery #2 Available in digital!

Death By Equine: A Dr. Jessie Cameron Mystery, WINNER of the Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award

www.annettedashofy.com

https://www.facebook.com/annette.dashofy/

Summer Reading

DEBORAH CROMBIE: Memorial Day is the traditional kickoff of summer in the U.S. Schools are (mostly) out, pools are open, vacations are planned. And for us bookish people, it's the time of year when we are inundated with ads for SUMMER READS!!! We talked about "beach reads" on the blog the other day, so I'm wondering if we can differentiate a "summer read" from a "beach read?" (I love, by the way, that SUMMER READING is the title of our Jenn McKinlay's wonderful novel from last year–and if you somehow missed it, add it to your list!) I am taking a stance on this and saying that "beach read" is a sub category of "summer read!)

Either way, heres a start on summer reads from Bookbub, with a lovely shout out to our Jenn's LOVE AT FIRST BOOK!

And here's another Bookbub list--this one designated "beach reads--several of which are already in my to-read pile. A glut of riches!

So do those of us not actually going on vacations still get to have "summer reads?" (The closest I ever get to vacation reading is on my trips to England, when I get to read whenever I want, for as long as I want–sometimes even into the wee hours of the morning, a luxury I seldom get at home.) I certainly don't want to feel left out, so here are a few books that I've earmarked for some special summer time.

I've bought all four of Liz Williams' Fallow Sisters novels, starting with COMET WEATHER. This series is described by Paul Cornell as "...a golden slice of British rural fantasy…" which I adore, and I've been saving them for a time when I could clear the decks a little.

Also, Susan Coll's BOOKISH PEOPLE, which is described as a "quirky gem" and sounded just the thing to enjoy while having a cup of tea in the garden.

And Nancy Thayer's THE SUMMER WE STARTED OVER, which I think, as it's set on Nantucket in the summer, crosses over into beach read category, but I'm fine with that.

Oh, adding two more on the British front!! Sara Nisha Adams' (author of THE READING LIST) THE TWILIGHT GARDEN, and David Nicholls' (author of the fabulous ONE DAY) YOU ARE HERE!

What have you saved for summer reading, dear Reds? And how are you all spending Memorial Day?

JENN McKINLAY: Thanks for the nod, Debs. SUMMER READING was so much fun to write! 

As for what i’m reading this summer, I am trying to catch up to all of the recent cozy fantasy books since I’m stepping into that genre, so my beach reads are mostly in that vein with A WIZARD’S GUIDE TO DEFENSIVE BAKING by T. Kingfisher, HALF A SOUL by Olivia Atwater, and THAT TIME I GOT DRUNK AND SAVED A DEMON by Kimberly Lemming. You can tell by the titles, I’m in for a good summer!

LUCY BURDETTE: A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking, Jenn??? That sounds irresistible though I don’t think I’ve ever read cozy fantasy. I started LOVE AT FIRST BOOK yesterday and I’m trying so hard to read slowly so it doesn’t go by too quickly. I love being in Ireland with you and your characters. And I love this line: “Don’t talk.” I held up my hand as I took another spoonful of the chowder. “I’m having a moment with my food.”

I think next up will be Ruth Reichl’s The Paris Novel. I certainly won’t go to Paris this summer with the Olympics happening, so I can go on the page. I’m trying to save the paperbacks for a long plane ride…

HALLIE EPHRON: I’m listening to Meryl Streep reading TOM LAKE by Ann Patchett. Harmonious mother and daughters, my favorite subjects. It’s a little confusing the way it moves back and forth in time… something that would NOT be confusing if I were reading the printed page. Just one of the many differences between reading/reading and listening/reading. 

RHYS BOWEN:  I loved the WIZARD’S GUIDE TO DEFENSIVE BAKING, Jenn. So different! And I’ve read Nancy’s Nantucket book–having had a lovely lunch with her there last year I feel a special affinity!  I’ve just had a rather busy week (British understatement) with two lots of copy edits and one proposal plus three chapters all due at the same time, but I have been sneaking a few minutes each day for Jenn’s LOVE AT FIRST BOOK and nearly finished it but I don’t want to.  Next up is Harini’s NEST OF VIPERS. 

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: I am so happy that I get to read Ruth Ware’s new  ONE PERFECT COUPLE –it takes place on an island, so THAT’s summer, right?

And in preparation to interview him, Chris Whittakers’ new ALL THE COLORS OF THE DARK, a big fat book–and that’s summer too, right? The perfect time for epic drama.

And for another interview–something completely different—Kristy Woodson Harvey’s A HAPPIER LIFE . It has a beach chair and a floppy hat and the beach on the cover–so that’s summer, too! 

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: Put me down as another Nancy Thayer fan - summer doesn’t start until I’ve read her most recent Nantucket novel. I’m a reader who likes her books in season, which means from June through August, I want to read mysteries, thrillers, romances and adult fiction set in expensive summer resorts or on east coast beaches, or at a tropical island. 

For the first, Lucy Foley’s latest: THE MIDNIGHT FEAST. If you’re a fan (I am) you know you’re going to get a luxurious, isolated setting, a Clue-like list of victims guests, and rich people behaving Very Badly. The fact the murder occurs on the summer solstice is just the chef’s kiss for this book.

JACKPOT SUMMER (Elyssa Freidman) scratches the second itch, as four siblings gather on the Jersey Shore to pack up their widowed father’s house - oh, and to win millions on a Powerball ticket. Will sudden wealth solve all their problems, or tear the family apart?

Finally, THE DESIGN OF US (Sajni Patel) coming out in July, presses all my rom-com buttons: fake dating, enemies-to-lovers, raincloud meets sunny-side-up-egg PLUS an Indian wedding, all set on the Big Island of Hawai’i.

Oh, and bonus goodie: LIES AND WEDDINGS by Kevin Kwan, author of CRAZY RICH ASIANS. It’s a pastiche of Anthony Trollope’s DOCTOR THORNE, with lots more money, travel, and sexy men!      

DEBS: How will we ever squeeze in a fraction of these??? I have to admit that I started Liz Williams' COMET WEATHER and it is absolutely delicious!! So glad today is a holiday and I can indulge myself a bit because I don't want to put it down!

Readers (at least our American set) how are you spending Memorial Day? And what are you cooking?     

 

Dinner Anxiety aka Supper Stress @LucyBurdette

 

LUCY BURDETTE: All through last week, I couldn't get settled about making dinner. I had food, I had recipes, but nothing sounded quite right nor did I feel like making it. For the first time in a while, something I made tasted and smelled terrible to me. That only fed the uncertainty. (I suspect that this has to do with how hard I'm working on a draft of Key West food critic #15. All my creative juices are running in that direction.) This is kind of a silly question, but do you ever suffer from dinner anxiety?

This soup was one of the things that turned out well, the result of bits and pieces I had left to use—leeks, carrots, and kale. Apparently, Olive Garden has a popular chicken gnocchi soup though I’ve not tasted it. But I started with that recipe and tweaked it to add more vegetables. It’s a good recipe to use up leftover cooked chicken that you have in the freezer.

Ingredients

3-4 tablespoons butter

4 or so small leeks or two large

3 sticks of celery, sliced

1 cup carrots, diced

2 small garlic cloves or one large, minced

¼ cup all-purpose flour

1 to 2 cups half-and-half or whole milk

4 cups chicken broth

½ teaspoon mustard powder

2 cups diced cooked chicken

12 oz. frozen potato gnocchi

1 cup fresh spinach or kale, roughly chopped

Fresh parsley

½ tsp red pepper flakes, optional but really good

Salt and pepper, to taste




Slice the leeks, the celery, and the carrots. Melt the butter in a large pan and sauté those vegetables for a few minutes until soft. Add the chopped garlic and sauté for a minute or more. Add the 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour and the mustard powder and stir that until beginning to thicken. Slowly add the chicken broth, stirring frequently like a gravy. Sprinkle in black pepper and red pepper.




Simmer for 10 minutes or so, then add the chicken and the gnocchi. Simmer another few minutes until the pasta is cooked through.




Add the milk and the kale and simmer until the kale is soft. (I also added some chopped fresh parsley because I had it in the fridge.)




We found this delicious—I added no salt, but more black pepper. And served with corn bread. Yummy!

What's for dinner at your house, especially when you can't think of a thing? Are you a planner or a pantser when it comes to supper?

Lucy’s Tom Sawyer Garden by John Brady

LUCY BURDETTE: Read on, you'll see that today's blog needs no introduction!

JOHN BRADY AKA MR. TOP RETIREMENTS: When Lucy and I moved into our first house together 30 some years ago, it didn’t take long before she announced that we were going to have to have a garden, just like she used to have in her natural woman days in Tennessee. The new back yard was sunny, so we dug up a spot and got busy. She was insistent that it was going to be organic - manure and compost, but no chemicals of any kind. She chose plants like chard, radishes and tomato plants. We had a pretty good garden in no time, and even started an asparagus patch. That was one of our biggest successes because it not only tasted unlike anything you can buy, but it comes back up year after year. The chard was a big hit with our two guinea pigs, Tommy Moe and Chubby Checkers. The zucchini was so prolific that the kids drew the limit: no more zucchini boats! No more zucchini anything!

Then twenty five years ago we moved down the street to our current home. By that time Lucy had me hooked like Tom Sawyer, so we went through the same garden process again, including a new asparagus patch. One development I started noticing was that the master organic gardener’s enthusiasm seemed to be flagging a bit. Yes, each spring she was the driving force behind selection of plants from the nursery and seeds in vast quantities. But Lucy‘s appearances in the garden, particularly for digging and weeding, grew more and more into cameos. 

If I couldn’t count on Lucy for weeding, I was enjoying what she did with what was coming out of our plot.  One of the best successes was our bountiful cucumbers. Using skills from her days in Tennessee, we turned countless cucumbers into delicious bread and butter pickles. Another skill from her old southern days was okra. She found a variety that could thrive in Connecticut,  and we enjoyed those rounds dipped in batter and fried. Tomatoes, green beans, and beets were mainstays as well. The butternut squash not only thrived, but it actually climbed over the fence into the driveway. For some reason having to do with our soil, eggplant and lettuce pretty much refused to grow.

All is Not Well - Huns and Pestilence

But all is not well in our little garden of Eden. You might have a vision of coastal Connecticut as a fairly benign place. In fact, it is a dangerous, hostile environment, one where vegetative predators roam like the desperadoes of the old west.  Anxious to protect our hard earned crops, even the calmest person could turn into an obsessive-compulsive mess.   

Rabbits were the first destructive force we found. To counteract them we paid for a beautiful fence around the entire plot. Unfortunately, the devastation to our plants continued. Finally, we noticed a series of holes in the fence - it was made out of plastic, and our little bunnies just just chewed through it to enjoy the all you can eat buffet. A new, more expensive, wire fence ensued, 

After a season of feeling safe behind our new fort walls, more devastation returned. When you go to the garden in the morning and see that the crop that you were so proud of the night before is now a row of of plants clear cut about 2 inches above the ground, you are hosting a new friend, the woodchuck.  Otherwise known as a groundhog, Phil might be popular in Punxsutawney, but his cousin Woody is certainly not welcome in our garden.

Then there is the problem of raccoons, At age 25, our wonderful asparagus plants are starting to peter out. So last spring I researched the perfect replacement variety for our Connecticut plot. I followed the instructions carefully, digging deep, preparing the soil with topsoil, compost, and of course, organic fertilizer. Over the summer I weeded and gradually covered the young asparagus shoots with soil to get them back to ground level. About that time I noticed the asparagus was getting nipped off, but some managed to survive. I had high hopes that what would emerge in the spring would justify my many hours of backtracking labor. 

Returning from Florida last month I saw asparagus spears emerging from the ground in a few spots - hurrah! That joy didn’t last long, however,  as each day another spear was gnawed off about an inch off the ground. Desolation and desperation followed.

Lucy has been following what ensued with wry amusement. Since she refuses to sit in the garden all night with a shotgun, all of my compulsive urges have kicked in. I constructed cages around all the remaining plants from stakes and netting. I sprinkled cayenne pepper and coffee grinds around the plants. 

Then I bought a battery operated video camera with motion detector, hoping to find the perpetrator. After about a week, I discovered via a grainy video who the culprit is - a young raccoon. Somehow Rocky has figured out how to climb over 4 foot tall fence (topped with additional bird netting) to enjoy the feast. 

Hope springs eternal.  I ordered 25 more asparagus roots and planted them this week, hoping that my latest protections can keep Rocky a bay. Along with them, I ordered wire panels that I intend to circle around each plant. 

At this point Lucy has confirmed that I fit at least one description in her old psychiatric reference tome. But she only draws the line at violence. Since trapping or shooting are out, this sheriff welcomes any suggestions on how we can maintain the peace in the wild West of this Connecticut garden.

John Brady is Lucy's adorable and funny husband and the creator of Top Retirements, his website crammed with advice for baby boomers thinking about the how and where of retirement. Here's an article about his retirement with a Q and A about yours.

Confessions of a Super Fan by Katie Tietjen

 

LUCY BURDETTE: Back in April, I did an event for the Friends of the Library in Durham, CT. There I met Katie Tietjen, a brand new author with Crooked Lane Books. Since then, I attended her book launch at RJ Julia Booksellers, read her wonderful debut, Death in the Details, and persuaded her to blog with us. Welcome Katie!! 

KATIE TIETJEN: Since 2017, I’ve been stalking a dead heiress.

Here’s what you need to know first: Before Frances Glessner Lee became the mother of forensic science, she made dollhouses. 

Lots of them.

After all, domestic arts and crafts were a socially appropriate hobby for a good little heiress—and she was great at it. 

One year, for her parents’ anniversary, she created an exact replica of their beloved Chicago Symphony Orchestra. She nailed every detail, from the musicians themselves to their instruments, including miniscule violins that actually played. 

Decades later—after she married, raised three children, and divorced—she began putting her miniature-making skills to a very different use: death investigation.

I know, I know—that sounds like an incongruous leap, but stay with me. 

Lee had become fascinated by the field of legal medicine. The more she learned about America’s corrupt coroner system and the haphazard way investigators trampled all over potential evidence, the more it ate at her. Sloppy miscarriages of justice in the real world clashed terribly with the tiny, precise, orderly worlds she created. 

And so she decided to use the second to try and fix the first.

Photo courtesy of the Glessner House Museum

Lee created eighteen Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death, each one of which depicted a detailed scene of someone’s demise. Was it murder? Suicide? Accident? Police officers from across the country attended Lee’s seminars at Harvard to learn better investigative strategies from studying her nutshells. 

It was the perfect mashup of the traditionally feminine art of miniatures and the traditionally masculine world of legal medicine, and Lee existed in the small center section of this very unique Venn diagram.

photo courtesy of the Glessner House Museum

As soon as I heard an NPR story about the Nutshells being on rare public display at the Smithsonian, I immediately booked a trip to Washington, DC. Within the next few years, I would also travel to New Hampshire and Chicago on Frances Glessner Lee-related missions.

Meanwhile, I started drafting fiction inspired by Lee. While walking around the Smithsonian, I decided it’d be fun to write a series of murder mysteries based around the different scenes depicted in the Nutshells. For Death in the Details, my inspiration was the one called “Barn,” and it shows a farmer hanging from a noose in (you guessed it) a barn.

Like Lee, my fictional protagonist, Maple, has a strong commitment to justice, an incredible eye for detail, an almost ruthless work ethic—and a penchant for making dollhouses, of course. Unlike Lee, Maple grew up in poverty and is a recent WWII widow who finds herself suddenly strapped for cash. 

Though she trained as a lawyer, she can’t get anyone to hire her in that field. To make ends meet, she decides to make and sell custom dollhouses, but when she goes to deliver the first one, she discovers her customer’s dead body hanging from a noose in his own barn. 

Maple sees details at the scene that could point to foul play; when the sheriff dismisses her concerns, she builds a miniature re-creation of the scene, marches into his office with it, and begins walking him through all the ways he messed up. 

You can imagine how well that goes (hint: he throws her out of his office), but by the end of the story, Maple figures out what happened to Elijah Wallace. Order is restored, at least to some extent, and justice is served.

I’m grateful to Frances Glessner Lee for so many things—first and foremost, her incredible work to advance the field of legal medicine and her willingness to break into a space not many women were occupying.

Photo by Karen Wylie Moore

But I’m also grateful to her for providing my imagination with a launching pad, for letting me study her Nutshells and think what if…? I had so much fun writing this book, and at the end of the day, the credit for that goes to her. 

What person (real or fictional) do you find so fascinating that you can't get them out of your head? 

Katie Tietjen is an award-winning writer, teacher, and school librarian. A Frances Glessner Lee enthusiast, she’s traveled thousands of miles to visit her homes, see her nutshells, and even attend her birthday party. Katie lives in New England with her husband and two sons. Death in the Details is her first novel. (FGL photos credit to The Glessner House Museum (Chicago)

ABOUT DEATH IN THE DETAILS: Maple Bishop is ready to put WWII and the grief of losing her husband Bill behind her.

But when she discovers that Bill left her penniless, Maple realizes she could lose her Vermont home next and sets out to make money the only way she knows how: by selling her intricately crafted dollhouses. Business is off to a good start—until Maple discovers her first customer dead, his body hanging precariously in his own barn.

Something about the supposed suicide rubs Maple the wrong way, but local authorities brush off her concerns. Determined to help them see “what’s big in what’s small,” Maple turns to what she knows best, painstakingly recreating the gruesome scene in miniature: death in a nutshell.

With the help of a rookie officer named Kenny, Maple uses her macabre miniature to dig into the dark undercurrents of her sleepy town, where everyone seems to have a secret—and a grudge. But when her nosy neighbor goes missing and she herself becomes a suspect, it’ll be up to Maple to find the devil in the details—and put him behind bars.

Have You Considered This? (good advice on every subject!)

 LUCY BURDETTE: it’s graduation season, the time for giving advice as young people sally out into the world. Makes me think of THE GRADUATE wherein the new graduate played by Dustin Hoffman is given cryptic one-word advice: plastics. (He needed other help too!) It’s also wedding season, and even though the happy couples may not think they need advice, they do. The reds team wrote a wonderful blog about advice for maintaining a happy marriage several years ago, and it’s well worth rereading (or reading for the first time.) Even if you’re not married, or think you know everything.  

I’d love to get one piece of short advice from all of you—you know the audience (advice takers) has a short attention span! Here are a few that caught my attention in the NYT article from December 2023 (I cannot find the link, so sorry!) that got me thinking about this subject:

You’re 73 years old — can you stop with the one-man shows? — Michael Kearns, Los Angeles

Nothing good is happening on your phone past 8 p.m. — Miriam Lichtenberg, Brooklyn, N.Y.

We are all juggling so many balls. Differentiate between glass balls and rubber balls — and don’t be afraid to drop the rubber balls. — Kathryn Cunningham, Carrboro, N.C.

Wait as long as possible to get your kids a phone. — Laura LaGrone, Asheville, N.C.

Breathe in, thinking, “I listen for the silence.” Breathe out: “I am not the hero of every story.” Breathe in: “I will not get free alone.” Out: “I am worthy of belonging.” — Richard Ashford, Chevy Chase, Md.

LUCY AGAIN: You see, the advice ranged over many different topics. Now it’s your turn Reds, what would you tell the world in a sentence or two? 

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: Wear sunscreen every day. Yes, even on those days when it’s raining - that’s when you put on the 15 SPF instead of 30. Cover everything that’s exposed. You’ll lower your chance of skin cancer by 40-50%, and I guarantee you’ll thank me when you look in the mirror on your fiftieth birthday.

HALLIE EPHRON: Smell the lilacs. Watch the catbirds making a nest. Sit outside and take in the setting sun. Savor. 

JENN McKINLAY: Be kind. It costs nothing. You have no idea what other people are going through and their struggle is none of your business, but you can always choose kindness.

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Worrying is worshipping the problem—so don’t give your fears life by giving them that much attention.  

And count your blessings.  

RHYS BOWEN: Life isn’t fair. Get over it. Sometimes someone else will get what you deserve and sometimes you’ll get what they deserve. All you can do is your best, all the time.

DEBORAH CROMBIE: Be open to possibilities. Plans and goals are great, but you have no idea what unexpected twists your life may take.

Okay Reds, your turn now! One piece of important advice…

Lucy and John’s Excellent New York City Adventure @LucyBurdette

LUCY BURDETTE: At least once a year, John and I take the train to New York to take advantage of what the city has to offer. I confess that I’m a creature of habit. We’ll often choose a Broadway show or two to splurge on, and then run through my obsessions.

 These include a visit to the Strand Bookstore (I know, I know, I have more books piled up already than I can read in a lifetime. But still…) And we often visit the Eataly store where we have a delicious Italian lunch and come out with a huge bag of their pasta. 

Plus have dinner at our favorite Greek restaurant in the East Village, Pylos. 

Since John teases me about being such a creature of habit, this time we squeezed in a few new stops. We visited the Morgan Library and Museum to see an exhibit about Beatrix Potter, featuring many of her letters and drawings and book illustrations. What a fascinating woman, a scientist and conservationist, as well as a writer and artist. 

She also was a whiz at character merchandising. I particularly loved this game board, which was apparently too complicated to produce commercially. 

From there, we took the ferry from 34th Street to Astoria. What a glorious way to travel on a beautiful day!  

We were headed to a retrospective of ceramic artist Toshiko Tokaezu at the Noguchi Museum. She was my college best friend’s mentor, and I’m pretty sure I took a class from her, though I lacked talent and she scared me to death! I knew he would not be able to attend the exhibit so we went in his honor. 

I highly recommend both the museum and the retrospective, which will be traveling once it closes in Queens. 

I’ll put extra photos from Beatrix Potter and the Noguchi at the end if you want more. When you go someplace outside your home turf, do you revisit familiar stops or like to try new things?