12 Mysteries of Christmas + Giveaway By Kate Carlisle

JENN McKINLAY: Yay! Yay! Yay! Today, my guest is one of my very favorite writers, my plotting partner, and all around gal pal the one the only...Kate Carlisle! And she has a super fun holiday blog post to share for those of us struggling in the gifting arts. Take it, Kate!

Kate Carlisle is the New York Times bestselling author of two ongoing series: the Bibliophile Mysteries featuring San Francisco bookbinder Brooklyn Wainwright, whose rare book restoration skills uncover old secrets, treachery and murder; and the Fixer-Upper Mysteries, featuring Shannon Hammer, a home contractor who discovers not only skeletons in her neighbors' closets, but murder victims, too. Hallmark Movies & Mysteries has brought three of the Fixer-Upper Mysteries to life in a series starring Jewel and Colin Ferguson. Watch for Kate's cameo in the second film!

I love a Christmas mystery. I even wrote one—Deck the Hallways. I don't know what it is about the holidays and murder that just seem to go together… Maybe all that Christmas muzak sends people over the edge.

To be truly satisfying, a Christmas mystery needs more than just to be set during the holiday season. It needs to be filled with cozy Christmas elements. The spirit of the season (murder notwithstanding). These 12 Mysteries of Christmas will fill your heart with joy. . . and your stocking with homicide!

Six Cats a Slayin' by Miranda James

Charlie Harris and his Maine Coon cat, Diesel, are busy decking the halls for the holidays when an unexpected delivery and a shocking murder conspire to shake up the season.

Deck the Hallways by Kate Carlisle (aka, me)

Someone's been slayed! If contractor Shannon Hammer can't nail the real culprit in the St. Nick of time, her dad will wind up in the clink...

Hercule Poirot's Christmas by Agatha Christie

The holidays are anything but merry when a family reunion is marred by murder—and the notoriously fastidious investigator is quickly on the case.

How the Finch Stole Christmas by Donna Andrews

When Meg's family stages a production of A Christmas Carol, the show must go on, even if the famous—though slightly over-the-hill—actor who's come to town to play the starring role of Scrooge has brought a sleigh-load of baggage and enemies with him.

White Colander Crime by Victorian Hamilton

The Heritage Society is re-creating a perfect Victorian Christmas—until good tidings go bad... At the end of a long day of festival fun, food columnist Jaymie Leighton discovers the body of local woman who predicted her own murder.

Rest Ye Murdered Gentlemen by Vicki Delany

In Rudolph, New York, it’s Christmastime all year long. But this December, while the snow-lined streets seem merry and bright, a murder is about to ruin everyone’s holiday cheer.

Wreath between the Lines by Daryl Wood Gerber

The holidays are cookbook shop owner Jenna Hart's favorite time of year, until the friend of a friend is murdered with a Christmas tree star.

Not a Creature Was Purring by Krista Davis

Innkeeper Holly Miller finds it ruff staying cheerful over the holidays when the dead body of a beloved businessman turns up in the pet-friendly town of Wagtail, Virginia.

'Twas the Knife before Christmas by Jacqueline Frost

When a body turns up in a larger-than-life candy bowl filled with peppermints on the Mistletoe, Maine town square, Holly White is horrified to learn her best friend Caroline is the main suspect.

Death with All the Trimmings by Lucy Burdette

The only snow in Key West this Christmas is Hayley Snow, food critic for Key Zest magazine, who is not getting time off for the holiday…or time off from murder.

A Midwinter's Tail by Bethany Blake

Nothing gets professional pet sitter Daphne Templeton into the Christmas spirit more than the town’s annual Bark the Halls Ball. . . until the founder of a national chain of pet care franchises is found murdered, and Daphne's friend is the prime suspect.

A Holiday Yarn by Sally Goldenbaum

Holiday time is magical in Sea Harbor, as the Seaside Knitters turn winter yarns of deep reds, greens, and golds into gifts. But when murder comes to this small New England town, they must set aside their needles to pursue justice—and restore joy to the season.

Let's have some fun today! Give a little murderous twist to the title or lyric of a Christmas song, turning it into a great title for a Christmas mystery novel. For example: Rudolph, the Red-Handed Culprit. Everyone who plays this little reindeer game with me will be entered for a chance to win a signed copy of Deck the Hallways. (Please note: it's not enough just to post a generic comment. You need to play the game.)

ABOUT DECK THE HALLWAYS

Read chapter one for free at http://katecarlisle.com/deck-the-hallways.php

Someone's been slayed! If contractor Shannon Hammer can't nail the real culprit in the St. Nick of time, her dad will wind up in the clink...

Even at Christmastime, Shannon is more spackle than sparkle, which is why she leaps at the chance to transform a grand old Victorian mansion into ten charming apartments for homeless families. Filled with the spirit of the season, all of Lighthouse Cove turns out to help—including her best friends, a troupe of far-from-angelic Santa Claus impersonators, and her father, Jack.

But their merriment is soon dashed by a heated scuffle between Jack and the miserly president of the bank who's backing the project. When the man is murdered, all eyes are on Jack, and visions of prison time dance in Shannon's head. Now, she needs to pull off a crime-solving miracle, before her father's Christmas goose is cooked...

JENN: What about it, Reds and Readers? Dazzle me! What's your murderous twist to the title or lyric of a Christmas song? 

When Neighbors Become Rivals by Kate Carlisle

JENN: I am so excited to have my friend Kate Carlisle here with us today! Kate always makes me laugh - in person and in print - so needless to say I already have her newest book in my hot little hands and if you don't, you should!

Kate Carlisle is the New York Times bestselling author of the Fixer-Upper Mysteries, featuring Shannon Hammer, a home contractor who discovers not only skeletons in her neighbors' closets, but murder victims, too. Eaves of Destruction, Fixer-Upper Mystery 5, is available now. Hallmark Movies & Mysteries is bringing the Fixer-Upper Mysteries to TV in a series of movies starring Jewel and Colin Ferguson. Visit Kate online at www.KateCarlisle.com.

We all dream of that happy little neighborhood, where we get together for block parties, water each other's plants when one of us is out of town,  exchange cards at Christmas. Barring that, we hope that we can politely ignore each other and go on with our lives.

Sometimes neither of those things works out. Sometimes neighbors become friendly rivals, and sometimes those friendly rivalries turn darker.

Which is wildly awkward, since—hello!—you see each other every day. It's embarrassing as a full-grown adult to skulk at your windows before taking out the trash so you can make sure your neighbor's not outside at the time! (Personal note: Not that I've ever done that! My neighbors are all lovely.)

Have you ever lived in a neighborhood where everything becomes a competition? Whose yard is the nicest? Who has the biggest, brightest, gaudiest display of Christmas lights?

I recently read an article about a man who started buying Christmas lights with his high school paychecks, and has continued to add to his collection every year. Imagine if he lived across the street! You could go broke trying to compete with him.

Or blind.

In Eaves of Destruction, it's time for the Annual Victorian Home and Garden Show. For years, Petsy Jorgensen has seethed at her failure to win Best in Show. This year, she's determined to take the honor away from her neighbor, Joan Derry, no matter what. Contractor Shannon Hammer has been hired to do finish work for both homeowners, and she's determined to remain unbiased and do her best work for both, despite strong pressure to show favoritism.

The rivalry escalates, as these things often do. . . but in this case, someone winds up dead. And Shannon feels honor-bound to catch the killer since the murder happened on her watch.

Murder is on the to-do list when construction contractor Shannon Hammer looks for a killer in the fifth Fixer-Upper Mystery....

At the annual Victorian Home and Garden Tour, Lighthouse Cove, California's premier contractor, Shannon Hammer, realizes that the competition is about to turn deadly....

Shannon is in high demand among rival homeowners, who will do anything to win Best in Show. One-upmanship and even espionage break out among neighbors, construction crews, decorators, and landscapers. Thanks to several new hires, Shannon is sure she can handle the extra load—until murder throws a wrench in the works.

The small town's corrupt building inspector is found dead on one of Shannon's jobsites, and soon plenty of suspects are coming out of the woodwork. When another body is discovered, Shannon calls on her team of close friends and devilishly astute thriller writer Mac to help her nail down the details and build a case against the killer before the door shuts on someone else—for good.

And now to you, readers. What kind of relationship do you have with your neighbors? Has your relationship with them changed since you first moved in?

When a Book Becomes a Movie!

Jenn McKinlay

Jenn and Kate, drinking wine. Shocker.

The book to movie conundrum. I don't think there is an author alive who doesn't think about what will happen if their book becomes a movie, so I am thrilled to have Kate Carlisle, my long time friend, mentor, wine-drinking buddy, and partner in shenanigans, share her perspective of this very thing, since Kate's fabulous Fixer-Upper Mysteries were brought to the small screen by Hallmark Movies and Mysteries, in the first of what will be a series of movies starring Jewel and Colin Ferguson. Yay!

 
Kate Carlisle is the New York Times bestselling author of the Bibliophile Mysteries and the Fixer-Upper Mysteries. 

Learn more about her books at www.KateCarlisle.com.

Kate: On January 15, I had the honor of seeing characters who were born in my head come to life on the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries channel. It was quite a milestone in my career. And here's the best part: I loved the movie!

Jenn: I did, too! Jewel and Colin had real chemistry and as an amateur sleuth she was utterly charming.

Kate: The feedback from readers has been overwhelmingly positive. I have heard from a few who questioned why the producers made changes to the story. The way I look at it, Shannon now lives in two parallel universes—in the books, and in the movies. We can enjoy them both for what they are, even if they're not identical.

Jenn: Agreed. They are such different formats. Still, your sly sense of humor, snappy dialogue, and clever plotting was evident in the film just like your books. Such a treat for me and all of your readers to see your work in a new medium.

Kate: When I'm writing books, I don't have the same limitations that filmmakers have. I can write a car chase without worrying about how I can afford to total two cars. They also have only two hours, minus commercial breaks, in order to tell a satisfying story. That means they need to limit the number of characters, and get all emotions across as best they can through dialogue and the actors' expressions.

As a novelist, I have no limits other than my imagination, and that I stay true to the world I've created. In the small resort town of Lighthouse Cove, California, the best man for the job is a woman—Shannon Hammer, owner of Hammer Construction Company and an expert in Victorian home restoration and renovation. Shannon discovers not only skeletons in her neighbors' closets, but murder victims, too! Book 1 is A HIGH-END FINISH.

Jenn: I loved this book! The whole series is just wonderful. BTW, Mac is my fictional boyfriend! 

FIVE THINGS THAT SURPRISED ME ABOUT TURNING MY BOOK INTO A HALLMARK MOVIE

1. The initial offer. I wasn't shopping my books around to producers. I had no idea this was in the works until my agent called to tell me that Hallmark was interested in my series. Can you imagine how I danced around the house as soon as that phone call ended?

2. The casting. Right from the first call, I was told they were looking for a project for singer/songwriter/actress Jewel, and I couldn't have been more thrilled. She is the perfect blend of feminine, smart, and tough to capture Shannon's character. And Colin Ferguson, her male lead, is handsome, intelligent, and has great comic timing. Here I am with him (and a copy of THIS OLD HOMICIDE) at the red carpet gala in Hollywood the night before the first movie aired.

3. Seeing my name in the opening credits. "Based on the Fixer-Upper Mysteries by Kate Carlisle." Pinch me!

4. The explosion. In the first scene of the movie, a boat explodes. That wasn't in the book, but wow, did it make a great impact on screen. It kicked off the mystery with a bang. Literally.

5. The secrecy. I wasn't allowed to publicize the movie until given the go-ahead. Hallmark Movies & Mysteries issued a press release, but I couldn't say a word. Filming started. Jewel and Colin Ferguson both posted videos and pictures from the set on their Instagram account, while I remained silent. For months, readers would email me or post questions on my Facebook page about the Hallmark movie because they'd read about it online, and I simply… couldn't answer.

But now I can shout it to the world—and the good news hasn't stopped coming. That was just the first Fixer-Upper Mystery movie! Filming on the second will happen in February. I'm planning to visit the set this time, and I'll be sure to share pictures in my newsletter. Sign up at www.KateCarlisle.com. While you're there, check out the free goodies available to members of my mailing list in the Secret Room.

Jenn: I can not wait to see pictures from the set! Very exciting!

So, Reds, what is your favorite book-to-movie adaptation? Any questions for Kate?