Review/Guest Post: Perish in the Palm by Kari Lee Townsend

About the Book

Genre: Cozy Mystery, #4 in A Sunny Meadows Mystery Series
Paperback: 274 pages
ISBN-13: 978-151208194
E-Book ASIN: B011AXSMDM


Synopsis from Goodreads...

Sunny’s life is finally on track. Her fortune-telling business in the quaint town of Divinity, New York is running smoothly, her parents have finally stopped interfering, and her boyfriend Detective Mitch Stone has moved in with her. But then her life derails, leaving the palm of her hand empty and her dreams just out of reach. With Sunny’s mischievous cat Morty under foot and quirky Granny Gert flitting around, cohabitation with Mitch becomes nearly impossible. Then Sunny’s parents show up for her best friend’s wedding, causing all sorts of trouble. Sunny’s future is put on hold when the innkeeper’s lifeline is literally cut short at the reception, and Sunnys’ mother is named the prime suspect. Sunny must use her clairvoyant abilities to clear her mother’s name and take her life back in her own hands before the real killer gives a whole new meaning to ‘till death do us part…

My Review

What could be more fun than being part of her best friend’s wedding? Sunny Meadows is thrilled that her best friend Jo has met the love of her life and is settling down. To add to her joy, Sunny’s fortune telling business is doing well and her boyfriend Detective Mitch Stone is moving in with her, not to mention her Granny Gert and her mischievous cat Morty.

Unfortunately for Sunny, her parents stay for an extended visit to help with the wedding plans. However, they aren’t much help when Sunny’s mother fights with the owner of the inn hosting the wedding. Things get much worse when the owner is murdered and Sunny’s mother is the number one suspect. In fact, she’s the only suspect.

Sunny intends to use her fortune telling powers to help her mother. She quickly discovers she needs more help than that so she enlists her friends in her quest to learn what really happened. Her cat, Morty, isn’t going to be left out of the investigation and joins in the hunt for a killer.

I loved the first three books in this series and was quite excited to see another book in the series released. This one has it all – mystery, intrigue, romance, humor and a cast of characters ranging from evil to absolutely delightful. It’s a quick read that leaves you wanting more. There were a ton of twists and turns…just when you think the story has come to an end, you learn that it’s far from over. I can’t wait for the next one.



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FTC Disclosure: The author provided me with a copy of this book to review for this blog tour. This did not influence my thoughts and opinions in any way. All opinions expressed are my own.

Author Guest Post

My Writing Process

by Kari Lee Townsend

There is no right or wrong method when it comes to an author’s writing process. In fact mine has varied over the years. I started out never plotting anything and just winging it. Then I tried to plot an entire book which is really hard for me. Now I do a combination of the two.

When I’m writing a romance novel or a women’s fiction novel, I always start with a situation. What is the main premise of the book and where is the story going to take place. Then I come up with my main characters, their descriptions and their issues. Secondary characters often occur as I’m writing the story. I always know the beginning of a book which is the setup, and I always know how I want the book to end. How I get from beginning to end is half the fun of writing the book.

With my mysteries, I have to plot more than I do for other genres. For the investigation to make sense, I have to stay on track. I always start with who I want to be the main suspect first, especially if the series is already set up. Then I figure out who is going to die and how they will be murdered. After that I come up with the real killer’s identity and their motive. Next I figure out a list of suspects, their motives and what clues lead to their suspicion. Then I add in red herrings to throw the reader off. Finally, I always have more than one extra person who is around but not suspicious. If you only have one of those, the savvy readers will know that’s the killer.

It’s a difficult balancing act to drop enough clues so the real killer won’t come out of the blue. Yet you can’t drop so many that you give the killer away too easily. I like to include some surprising twists and turns along the way. I tend to plot my mysteries a couple of chapters at a time and then start writing. It’s during the accrual writing process that some of my best ideas occur. I always have an outline of what I want to happen, and then I have a working outline of what I actually wrote. That way when one of those clever ideas happens, I won’t have to reread everything I’ve just written. I will know exactly where to plug in the new element. People will ask me how I just sit down and write like that. I tell them I don’t. No one does. That writing is rewriting over and over until all the holes are filled and the story is complete.

I go even further on my working outline to make it even easier on myself. I include the setting of each scene and highlight it one color. Then I include the characters in each scene and highlight them each a color. That way when I glance at my outline, I can see my book as a whole. This helps to know if I have been in the same places too often, or if a charter has been on the page too often or not enough throughout the book. I usually highlight the clues I drop as well so I can be sure that I wrap up all mini mysteries and red herrings by the end. Nothing makes a reader angrier than if a loose end is left dangling.

Writing the end is very satisfying, but starting a brand new story full of so many possibilities is even more exciting. Thanks for having me here today. I had fun and hope you did as well. To find out more about me and all of my books, check out my website at www.karileetownsend.com

About the Author

National Bestselling Author, Agatha, RT Reviewers Choice & Golden Duck Award Nominee. Kari Lee Townsend lives in central New York with her very understanding husband, her three busy boys, and her oh-so-dramatic daughter. A former teacher with a masters in English education and a background in freelance editing, she is a long-time lover of reading and writing. She is best known as the author of the Fortune Teller Mystery series, but also writes romance and women’s fiction (under the name Kari lee Harmon), as well as children’s fiction about tween superheroes. These days, you’ll find her at home happily writing her next novel and still trying to find out whodunit.

Author Links

Webpage : http://www.karileetownsend.com
Email: Karileetownsend@gmail.com
Street Team: Kari’s Lakeside Readers
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Purchase Links:

Amazon   B&N

Tour Participants

September 17 – Babs Book Bistro – Review, Guest Post, Giveaway

September 18 – Tea and A Book – Review, Interview

September 19 – Community Bookstop – Interview

September 20 – Shelley’s Book Case – Review, Guest Post, Giveaway

September 21 – deal sharing aunt – Interview, Giveaway

September 22 – Lilac Reviews  – Review

September 23 – readalot  – Review, Giveaway

September 24 – Laura’s Interests – Review, Giveaway

September 25 – Cozy Up With Kathy – Review, Interview

September 26 – Brooke Blogs – Guest Post, Giveaway

September 27 – Book Splurge – Review

September 28 – Socrates’ Book Reviews – Review, Guest Post

September 29 – Bea’s Book Nook  – Review

September 30 – Natural Bri – Review, Giveaway