On the Lamb by Tina Kashian Character Interview

On the Lamb (A Kebab Kitchen Mystery)

by Tina Kashian

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On the Lamb (A Kebab Kitchen Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
4th in Series
Publisher: Kensington (February 25, 2020)
Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages

Lucy Berberian is busy preparing her family’s Mediterranean restaurant for Easter on the Jersey Shore—but a batch of sweets is to die for . . .

Bikers are thundering into the seaside town of Ocean Crest for the annual Bikers on the Beach gathering that raises funds for injured veterans. It’s a big boost for the Kebab Kitchen, as well as for local businesses like Melanie Haven’s candy shop. But Melanie is about to find herself in a sticky situation.

When Melanie and Lucy attend a beach bonfire, a local landlord is found dead after apparently choking on a piece of salt water taffy. Melanie, who was known to have a contentious relationship with the victim, is quickly skewered as the prime suspect. But Lucy is determined to prove her friend’s innocence before the real killer coasts free . . .

Recipes included!

Character guest post

First, I’d like to thank Christy’s Cozy Corners for inviting me as a guest today to celebrate the release of On the Lamb. I’m happy to be here!

Thanks, Tina! I’m glad you’re here too!

Character Interview of amateur sleuth, Lucy Berberian

Question: Tell us a bit about your profession?

My name is Lucy Berberian. I’m a thirty-something refugee of a Philadelphia law firm. I returned home only to find myself sucked back into my family’s Mediterranean restaurant. But after realizing the business isn’t so bad and my true friends are in Ocean Crest, I stepped up and decided to manage the restaurant so my parents could ease into retirement. It’s been challenging work, but I love it.

Question: Tell us about your Jersey Shore town.

Kebab Kitchen, my family’s Mediterranean restaurant, is located in Ocean Crest at the Jersey Shore. It’s a small town that triples in population during the summer season. The town is quaint and has a mile-long boardwalk that brags a pier with an old-fashioned wooden roller coaster and Ferris wheel. It’s a perfect place to vacation with your family—as long as the murderer is found and arrested.

Question: Tell us about your dating life. Do you have a significant other?

Is this a trap? Or did my mother put you up to this? My mom is constantly nagging me for more grandchildren. For the longest time my love life was as dry as the Sahara. Then there were two tall, dark haired and handsome men in my life.

Azad Zakarian is a college ex-boyfriend who broke my heart years ago. He’s since changed and wanted a second chance to make things right. He makes my heart pound whenever he steps in the kitchen. And the fact that he is now Kebab Kitchen’s new head chef and works for me makes things as sticky as baklava syrup between us. After proving himself, we are now together.

Michael Citteroni runs the bicycle rental shop next door. Even though he could grace the cover of a men’s fashion magazine, I feel a kinship with him. Just like me, he has an overbearing ethnic father. Michael owns a Harley-Davidson, and against better judgment, I rode with him for the first time a month ago. Turns out, I loved it and we have gone on more than one ride to the boardwalk. Our friendship has caused a bit of strife between Azad and Michael, but Azad knows I won’t give up a friend and he’s okay with this now. Kind of.

Question: What about your other fellow characters?

Katie Watson has been my best friend since grade school. She is also married to an Ocean Crest beat cop and I’ve recently moved out of the guest bedroom in their cozy rancher. I’ve been looking for my own place. My apartment seeking has been in secret because Katie gets upset whenever I mention it. Katie is also a great crime fighting partner. She is obsessed with crime TV shows like the reruns of Matlock, Columbo, and CSI, and her knowledge has come in quite handy.

My parents, Angela and Raffi Berberian, play an important role in my life. We are a tight-knit Armenian, Lebanese and Greek family. That also means that everyone is in everyone else’s business. My matchmaking mama has been on my case to marry Azad and add another twig to the family tree. Her preference has always been Azad, and that alone almost made me run for the hills, but I’m older and wiser now and think I can handle the family expectations. We’ll see…

Sally is our long-time waitress and Emma is my older sister. Emma hasn’t been known for her faithfulness in the past and she dubbed the town’s sole Investigator Clinging Calvin in high school. Unfortunately, Detective Calvin Clemmons, hasn’t forgotten the slight and he holds a grudge against the family. This has definitely come back to haunt me during my sleuthing.

Question: Do you have any pets?

We’ve adopted an outdoor restaurant cat named Gadoo, which means cat in Armenian. Not very original, I know. Gadoo is orange and black and feisty, and I always stock his favorite treats from the local grocery store. I plan on taking Gadoo with me in my new place, but I know I’ll have to battle my mother for him.

Question: How do you feel about your life right now?

Well, things haven’t gone exactly as planned. When I’m invited to a beach bonfire with friend, I’m excited for a night out. But things take a turn for the worse when a disliked, local landlord shows up on the beach and gets in a screaming match with one of my friends, Melanie Haven, owner of Haven Candies on the boardwalk. And when that same landlord is found dead on the beach after apparently choking on a piece of Melanie’s salt water taffy, Melanie is in a sticky mess of trouble. The police look at her as a number one suspect. I know better, and I feel duty bound to find the real killer before salt water taffy disappears from the boardwalk forever.

About the author

Tina Kashian spent her childhood summers at the New Jersey shore, building sandcastles, boogie boarding, and riding the boardwalk Ferris wheel. She also grew up in the restaurant business where her Armenian parents owned a restaurant for thirty years. She worked almost every job—rolling silverware and wiping down tables as a tween, to hosting and waitressing as a teenager.

After college, Tina worked as a NJ Deputy Attorney General, a patent attorney, and a mechanical engineer. Her law cases inspired an inquiring mind of crime, and since then, Tina has been hooked on mysteries. The Kebab Kitchen Cozy Mystery series launches with Hummus and Homicide, followed by Stabbed in the Baklava and One Feta in the Grave by Kensington Books. Tina still lives in New Jersey with her supportive husband and two young daughters.

Please visit www.tinakashian.com and join her Newsletter to enter free contests to win books, get delicious recipes, and to learn when her books will be released.

Author Links

• Website: tinakashian.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TinaKashianAuthor/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/TinaKashian1
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tinakashian/
• Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16902011.Tina_Kashian

 

Purchase Links

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