Calling for the Money | Author Interview

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Welcome to the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for Calling for the Money (A Holly Price Mystery) by Cathy Perkins. Stop by each blog on the tour for interviews, spotlights, reviews and more!

Calling for the Money (A Holly Price Mystery)

by Cathy Perkins

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Calling for the Money (A Holly Price Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
5th in Series
Publisher: Red Mountain Publishing (June 25, 2020)
Number of Pages ~280

Holly Price has it all—or does she?

Holly worked her way to the top of her field. Now she has the job, the money, the whole package. Behind the scenes, however, she’s wresting with a crushing workload, a backstabbing boss, a ruthless reporter, and the devastating worry she’s made a massive life choice mistake.

Then a friend goes missing and a ruthless gang is … calling for the money.

Holly must confront her past, and define her future, if she wants to save both of them.

Author interview with Cathy Perkins

What made you decide to write financial cozy mystery books? That’s a new theme for me!

I was cutting up with an author friend, throwing around crazy ideas about what to write next. I told her about a hiking incident and finding the perfect place to hide a body—and it was game on! As for the financial part, my day job is in the financial area, and I didn’t see many books using that occupation for their characters. It’s perfect! Greed and con men and all sorts of shady motives. One of my favorite reviews riffs on Holly being an accountant: “Numbers? Boring? This book is anything but boring.” Whew! Glad she added that last part.

When did you know you wanted to become an author?

I’ve had a life-long love affair with reading but didn’t start writing until a few years ago. This probably isn’t how most people start, but I had a lengthy consulting job in a city about 90 miles away. I’d listen to music and daydream during the commute. Pretty soon the daydream had dialogue and I thought, hmm, this is turning into a good story. That particular book lives in a box under the bed, but I was hooked.

Where is your favorite place to write?

I write pretty much anywhere—at the kitchen counter or on an airplane. The oddest place was standing in line to vote. I got an idea and knew I couldn’t let it get away. The only paper I had with me was an old checkbook, so yep. Sacrificed in the name of story.

Do you have anything you have to have with/around you when you’re writing? Like a favorite drink, music, photos?

Okay, I admit it. I’ve never understood the “scene setting” rituals. {Shrug.} Authors are as unique as our stories!

In your bio, you say you’ve got dogs! What are their names and what kind are they? If you’ve got a picture handy, I’d love to share it!

I do—they are such sweeties! Amber is a yellow Lab. She’d getting old now but still dreams of chasing sticks and swimming rivers. Smokie is a German wirehair and too smart for her own good. She looks at you with those “people” eyes of hers and you just know she was human in a prior life and upgraded to dog in this one.

Of course, Smokie adores Amber and pesters the daylights out of her. (Only at times, really!) The Lab looks at us with exasperation and asks, why did you bring it home?

They’re so cute!!!

: Amber and Smokie : Sharing Sorta

: Smokie

Where is your favorite place to travel and do you have any plans for future travel? COVID-19 messed up our travel plans, so I’m living vicariously through others!

We love to travel, and I hear you on the pandemic destroying the travel industry. We were in New Mexico visiting friends when things got seriously dicey. We were a little concerned whether we’d be able to fly home. The airport was completely deserted, and I think there were maybe twenty people on our flight.

Our bucket list trip to Ecuador is now on hold—Ecuador was hit so hard it breaks my heart. Our trip to Canada with the entire family is also not likely to happen this year. We’re staying close to home in Washington state. There are definitely worse places to hang out!

Do you have any favorite authors or books? I know I always have a hard time picking favorites!

Oh, me too! I mentioned before that I’m a huge reader. My reading probably reflects my mood—sometimes I want a light, beach read escape and sometimes I want a deeper connection. I’ve always read across the mystery spectrum from cozies to thrillers. Right now, I’m focusing on the introspective side – Jonathon King, John Hart and pushing even further into women’s fiction, Mary Alice Monroe and Anne Rivers Siddons. I recently read Kristin Hannah’s The Great Alone and really enjoyed it. And of course, I always have dozens of books on my e-reader.

Is there anything else you’d like us to know about you?

While I’m a pretty quiet person, I love going to conferences and spending time with both author and reader friends (and meeting new ones). Conferences have been another victim of the pandemic.

I’ve missed being around all those people. Like most authors, I love writing stories for people to enjoy and appreciate the opportunity to “meet” some of your blog readers today. Hopefully, one day I’ll have the chance to meet some of them in the real world.

Thank you so much for sharing a bit about yourself!

About Cathy Perkins, Author of Calling for the Money

An award-winning author of financial mysteries, Cathy Perkins writes twisting dark suspense and light amateur sleuth stories. When not writing, she does battle with the beavers over the pond height or heads out on another travel adventure. She lives in Washington with her husband, children, several dogs, and the resident deer herd.