A Christmas Candy Killing (A Killer Chocolate Mystery) by Christina Romeril | Author Guest Post

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Their chocolates are to die for—but things aren’t so sweet when a real killer comes to town, in this debut mystery perfect for fans of Joanne Fluke and Laura Childs.

A Christmas Candy Killing (A Killer Chocolate Mystery)

by Christina Romeril

A Christmas Candy Killing (A Killer Chocolate Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
The book is set in a fictional town, Harriston, Montana.
Crooked Lane Books (October 11, 2022)
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 304 pages

Identical twin sisters Alex and Hannah are the owners of Murder and Mayhem, a mystery bookshop that sells their famous poison-themed Killer Chocolates. But now, there’s a real killer in their midst. Shortly before Christmas, their septuagenarian neighbor, Jane, confides to Alex that a murderer from a true-crime show has taken up residence in the village. Unfortunately, she’s also shared her suspicions with town gossip Netta. The next morning, Alex shows up at Jane’s house to watch the show, but instead discovers Jane’s body, with a box of Killer Chocolates nearby.

The sheriff quickly zeroes in on two suspects: Alex, a beneficiary in Jane’s will, and Zack, a handyman who was seen leaving the crime scene. But Alex maintains her innocence and sets out to draft a list of other potential suspects—townsfolk who’d recently been seen arguing with Jane.

When Alex gets hold of Jane’s journal, she begins to understand the truth. But a bearer of ill tidings is arriving early this year—and Alex just might not make it to Christmas.

Guest post from Christina Romeril

For some people, being immersed in Christmas almost year round might become–tiresome. Not for me! Long before I penned my first bookish words, I was known as the Martha Stewart of Christmas. Since I moved out into my first apartment, Christmas has grown bigger each year. I now have well over thirty large rubber containers, an assortment of odd shaped boxes, and a closet full of pillows to transform every inch of my home into a Christmas wonderland around November 1st each year.

It seemed only natural that I would set my first cozy mystery at Christmas, and so A Christmas Candy Killing was born. My amateur sleuth, Alex Wright, and her twin sister share the same German heritage I have. Both my parents herald from Germany, and the twins and I were raised with German Christmas traditions.

As I got older, and my Christmas stash got bigger, I included many Canadian and American traditions to my annual celebrations. In Germany, Christmas Eve is when all the big stuff happens. Santa Claus with his global travel schedule clearly begins by dropping off some of his loot in places like Germany that celebrate a bit earlier. This was one of the things I adapted once I had my own family, Santa now drops off a few gifts overnight and we open them Christmas morning.

My mother started baking several weeks before Christmas, making stollens (a German version of fruitcake more resembling a dry bread with fruit), shortbread, and sugar cookies. While I haven’t tried stollen yet, I have made fruitcake once. While I enjoyed it, no one else seemed to want it and I was up to my eyeballs in the stuff until spring. These days I stick to cookies, squares, white chocolate popcorn, and a few other treats.

One thing I added last Christmas to the repertoire are chocolates! I included a couple of recipes at the back of A Christmas Candy Killing for other amateur chocolatiers. While Alex and Hanna are far more experienced than I am, I did manage to make some very respectable molded bonbons. A bonbon is basically a chocolate shell filled with almost anything. Think flavored ganache, caramel, or jelly. Oddly enough, unlike the fruitcake, I didn’t have any difficulty in giving them away. Full disclosure, 2021 was my first foray into chocolate making and it is a bit of a finicky exploit. While I did extensive research for the novel, I hadn’t actually made any until my editor requested recipes for the book.

If you’re most comfortable with boxed cake mixes and frosting out of a can (and there’s nothing wrong with that!), chocolate making may not be for you. But if you’re good at following precise instructions then I think you should be able to find success with chocolate making. Let me be clear, neither the twins nor I use any poison in our recipes. Any misuse of our chocolates after they leave our kitchens is on the
individual messing with them.

You might be wondering how someone who’d never made a chocolate in their life, decided to create a book around them. As I was trying to decide what my amateur sleuth did for a living I waffled between owning a bookstore and some kind of culinary career. In the end I decided to bring the two together. My brilliant editor suggested Alex have a twin, so I decided Hanna could be the one in charge of the kitchen and the main chocolatier. Alex is competent in the kitchen, but Hanna is the artist. This gives Alex more flexibility to go all over town hunting down suspects and discovering clues.

There’s nothing that seems to get people to spill their secrets like a treat to sweeten them up. Personally, I’m a fan of chocolate cupcakes loaded with icing, and caramel, or strawberry filled bonbons. I’d probably tell you whatever you wanted to know if you plied me with those confections. Like the twins, I live in a small village and the flow of information is definitely helped when there’s food involved.

I’ve had more than one person drop by my door with some yummy baked goodies in hand ready for a visit and a chat. That’s what makes living in a small town so great. Just like in my fictional setting of Harriston, Montana, people here in my village are genuinely interested and concerned about each other. It’s that sense of connection that makes cozy mystery settings feel like you’re wrapped in a warm, fuzzy blanket.

For most people October is a time when they are hauling out the Halloween decorations. They’re watching scary movies and perhaps making candy apples. But I’m counting down the days until I can start hauling out my thirty plus boxes, and my contingent of Christmas trees. The whole decorating process takes almost a week, so I’m planning to start in time to have every tree and piece of tinsel in place by sundown on November 1st. In December I can start the chocolate making, and the baking so I can ply my fellow villagers with sweet confections. Thankfully, I can leave the sleuthing to Alex and Hanna. I mean, what are the chances there’d be a murder in a nice little village like ours?

About Christina Romeril

Christina Romeril loves to plot murders, especially by poisoning. When she’s not plotting how to kill one of her characters she’s coming up with ways to dispose of the body. Since writing her debut novel her husband’s friends have been regularly checking on his well-being.

Christina also loves to read, eat chocolates, and travel when she’s not in her she shed writing. She grew up in Southern Ontario and spent most of her summers in Muskoka swimming, boating, and generally getting into mischief. She’s lived on both coasts of Canada and has a love of being near the water and close to a forest. Thus, it makes perfect sense that she moved to the prairies of Southern Alberta over twenty years ago.

During the warmer months you’ll find her escaping to nearby Waterton Lakes National Park with her cooler stocked full of chocolate and pastries. Occasionally, the once avid hiker will even set out on one of the many hiking trails and hope she doesn’t run into a hungry bear.

Christina is a member of Sisters in Crime and enjoys interacting on social media.

Author Links:

Webpage https://christinaromeril.com/

Blog https://christinaromeril.com/blog/

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/christinaromerilwriter

Twitter https://Twitter.com/romerilchris

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/christinaromerilwriter

GoodReads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/22222730.Christina_Romeril

Purchase Links – Amazon – B&N – Kobo