Welcome to my stop on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for Candle With Care: A Magic Candle Shop Mystery by Valona Jones. Stop by each blog on the tour for interviews, guest posts, spotlights, reviews and more!
Candle With Care: A Magic Candle Shop Mystery
by Valona Jones
Candle With Care: A Magic Candle Shop Mystery
Paranormal Cozy Mystery
4th in Series
Setting – Georgia
Publisher: Muddle House (February 11, 2025)
Print length : 290 pages
Amateur sleuth and candle maker Tabby Winslow and her twin sister, Sage, are finally making a go of The Book and Candle Shop. It seems like the only heat they’ll feel this June is from the strong sunshine in Savannah, Georgia. Then their acquaintance Detective Sharmila Belfor is gravely injured in a vehicular assault and is in a coma. Cops turn the city upside down searching for the offender, keying in on the detective’s boyfriend Herbert R Ellis, her felon cousin, and her case files.
Fearing the police are looking at the wrong people, Herbert begs Tabby to investigate. He knows what most don’t, that Tabby has psychic abilities that allow her to home in on emotions and motives. Since he’s a lifelong friend of Dr. Quig Quigsly, Tabby’s fiancé, she agrees. But before she finds answers, Sage’s former coworker is murdered, and her twin pleads with Tabby to find the killer. With dead ends at every turn, Tabby fears the city’s troubles are paranormal in origin. By investigating the crimes, she risks exposure of the way her family manipulates energy and uses other psychic talents. Keeping a low profile is essential.
Meanwhile, Quig’s parents are throwing them a black-tie engagement party in two weeks, and Tabby is burning the candle at both ends. Can Tabby end the crime wave and protect her loved ones before she is quenched?
Guest Post
A Recipe for a Great Villain
By Valona Jones
There’s nothing more satisfying than to read a story with a sneaky villain. Most readers love to work through the clues and solve the mystery of whodunnit before the big reveal. As a writer, I love to hear from fans who say, I didn’t see this coming, but once the showdown happened, it all clicked into place.
Not bragging because that doesn’t happen every time but I have to tell you it’s like breathing in pure sunshine. Have you ever wondered how writers do that? At the risk of being excluded from the fellowship of mystery writers, I will reveal how it’s done, though I have to admit it isn’t as easy as it sounds.
Begin with a large bowl of Ordinary World. Have the villain appear as part of that backdrop, seemingly innocuous and going about his or her own business. It is absolutely essential that this person seem part of the world and non-threatening in a physical way to the sleuth.
Marinate the villain with a strong motive to kill. A common reason is greed. Even if someone knows of his reason, he/she presents such a mild appearance/ordinary behavior that no one realizes the depth of his feelings. Make sure the villain and the sleuth are evenly matched wits-wise.
Stir in a sleuth (amateur sleuth for my cozies) that has moxie, street smarts, and strong community ties.
Blend in a weakness that makes the villain seem someone to be pitied or avoided. Perhaps they are excessively chatty and you can’t get a word in edgewise. Maybe they have a legit axe to grind about dogs in the people park. Maybe they appear to be handicapped and someone to be pitied (and they are faking it). Maybe they write letters to the editor of the local paper griping about everything under the sun. Well, you get the idea and you probably know some people like this.
Dice up the effectiveness of local law enforcement (with sincere apologies to all of the excellent officers in the nation and world). They are hampered by dead end leads, people that don’t want to be found, and misinformation.
Sprinkle the killer sparingly through the story, making sure the reader knows of this person. Keep the Caspar-milk toast persona going the whole time. If you have too heavy a hand with his role, he/she loses their camouflage. Even though the villain thinks the story is all about him or her, it is the sleuth’s story.
Bake the story with increasingly higher stakes and jeopardy for the sleuth. The danger must be real, though no sleuths, dogs, or cats should die. Just when it seems like this villain will never be stopped and the sleuth won’t survive, the side of good triumphs and the villain is stopped.
Cool the story by tying up all the loose ends, with law enforcement and the sleuth on the same page. Make sure the ending is satisfying and realistic for the genre.
Serve with an interesting cover and a bar of chocolate.
I hope you enjoyed this villain recipe. It made me hungry, so now I’m heading to my stash for a bite of chocolate. What’s your favorite treat?
About Valona Jones
Valona Jones, aka Maggie Toussaint, writes paranormal cozies set in coastal Georgia. Her latest release, CANDLE WITH CARE, book 4 in the A Magic Candle Shop Mysteries, came out on February 11. 2025. Under the name of Maggie Toussaint, she also publishes cozy mysteries and romantic suspense. Her pen name for a three-book science fiction ecothriller is Rigel Carson. In total, she has published 29 works of fiction and won multiple awards. She lives in coastal Georgia, where time and tide wait for no one. Visit her sites: https://valonajones.com and https://maggietoussaint.com
Author Links
WEBSITE https://www.valonajones.com
FACEBOOK PAGE https://facebook.com/ValonaJonesAuthor
AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE https://amazon.com/author/valonajones/
GOODREADS PAGE https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/22140872.Valona_Jones
BOOKBUB PAGE https://www.bookbub.com/authors/valona-jones
Purchase Links – Amazon Kindle – Apple – Kobo
Enter the Giveaway
Candle with Care TOUR PARTICIPANTS
February 13 – MJB Reviewers – SPOTLIGHT
February 13 – Baroness Book Trove – REVIEW
February 14 – Jody’s Bookish Haven – SPOTLIGHT
February 14 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – AUTHOR GUEST POST
February 15 – Books, Ramblings, and Tea – SPOTLIGHT
February 16 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
February 17 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
February 18 – Angel’s Book Nook – SPOTLIGHT
February 18 – Ascroft, eh? – AUTHOR GUEST POST
February 19 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
February 20 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – AUTHOR GUEST POST
February 20 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT
February 21 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – REVIEW
February 22 – Deal Sharing Aunt – RECIPE
February 22 – Sneaky the Library Cat’s Blog – CHARACTER INTERVIEW
February 22 – Storybook Lady – REVIEW
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I’m looking forward to reading the book.
Christy, Thank you for hosting my latest book, Candle with Care, on your site. I hope you enjoyed the recipe for villains! It is always a pleasure to be here. Maggie Toussaint/Valona Jones
You’re welcome! I certainly did! Thanks for stopping today!
Wonderful article!
The recipe is as intriguing as the story!!!
😀
looks like a fun one