Welcome to my stop on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for The Golden Hour Murder: A Robyn Cavanagh Mystery by Jeanne Quigley. Stop by each blog on the tour for interviews, guest posts, spotlights, reviews and more!
The Golden Hour Murder: A Robyn Cavanagh Mystery
by Jeanne Quigley
The Golden Hour Murder: A Robyn Cavanagh Mystery
Cozy Mystery
2nd in Series
Setting – New York
Independently Published (February 11, 2025)
Print length : 271 pages
It’s October and Mother Nature has painted photographer Robyn Cavanagh’s suburban New York hometown in rich colors of red, orange, and gold. Autumn has provided many scenic locales to shoot, but Robyn is happily preoccupied with one particular landscape. She’s landed the biggest job of her flourishing career: a contract to photograph the lush Linden Acres farm.
Her work begins with sunshine-filled days of apple and pumpkin picking and starry nights featuring a spectacular display of glowing jack-o’-lanterns. The merry mood darkens after Robyn discovers the body of Doug Paxton, the estranged husband of a member of the Linden clan.
Robyn can’t look through her camera’s viewfinder without picturing Doug’s body in the Linden pumpkin patch. Along with her friend Will Vonderlin, she plays detective to solve Doug’s murder. Will the killer be caught before the apples and pumpkins are turned into Thanksgiving pies, or will Robyn lose her best client and watch her career fade along with the autumn colors?
Character Guest Post Robyn’s Big Shot
Hi, everyone! Thank you for your warm welcome. I’m Robyn Cavanagh, and I’m excited to meet you and tell you a bit about myself. I live in the small town of Garland, NY in northern Orange County. Do you have a few minutes to hear about my exciting new job? I was just hired to photograph Linden Acres, a farm owned for generations by the Linden family.
This job is a gift in so many ways. It’s my big shot. Pardon the photography pun.
Christmas came early when Hank Linden, the family’s patriarch, hired me. His trust in my ability to provide appealing photographs of Linden Acres launched my confidence on a rocket to the stars. I don’t boast years of experience. Photography is my second career; I’ve been taking portraits of graduating students, engaged couples, newborns, and families posing for their Christmas card photo for only three years. Still, Hank believes I can capture the magnificence of his land. Conveying in photos the magic of the farm will be a challenge, but I’m ready for it. Linden Acres is a glistening gem in Garland’s crown that I’m eager to display in all its splendor.
The contract with the Lindens is the most lucrative of my photography career. The money I’ve earned taking portraits contributes to my income but isn’t enough to be my primary livelihood. I enjoy the work I do and salary I earn as a self-employed accountant, but photography is a passion that allows my self-expression to shine. By creating a beautiful portfolio for the Lindens, more well-paying contracts will come my way—I hope—and I’ll be able to dedicate more time to my thriving career. More photographs, less number-crunching, please.
Being the official photographer for Linden Acres makes me a part of a beloved institution that brings our community together and nourishes both body and soul. The place has worked its charms on me throughout my life. While photographing the farm’s landscape, I’ve recalled the hayrides and apple cider doughnuts I enjoyed on school field trips, the visits with my family to pick apples and pumpkins, and the quick trips to buy corn on the cob and tomatoes for our summer barbecues. I’m so proud I have the opportunity to help spread the word of the many delights Linden Acres has to offer.
There is one downside, and it’s a big one. Linden son-in-law Doug Paxton was killed the day after the start of the farm’s annual Fall Fun Festival. It happened early on a chilly autumn Sunday morning, right outside the Pop Barn where Doug oversaw the production of the farm’s gourmet popcorn. I found him during the morning’s golden hour, that first sixty minutes after dawn when the light is perfect for shooting photographs.
Doug was hit by a vehicle while he was jogging along one of the farm’s access roads. I’d met him the previous morning when I was photographing the pumpkin field. Doug had put his steady pace on pause, and we’d chatted for a few minutes.
Now he’s dead, and I’m compelled to help the police find the person who killed him. I want to do it for Doug, who recommended me for the job, and the Linden family. And I want to restore the tranquility and joy the farm supplies to many, myself included.
My contract suddenly includes an unwritten role: Amateur Sleuth.
Under cover of taking photographs, I plan to visit the farm to dig for clues. From the country store and its bakery to the elegant Noreen’s Table restaurant and the Pop Barn, my job as Linden photographer provides me unquestioned access to the farm’s employees and places.
I’d appreciate your assistance in solving what I call The Golden Hour Murder. I have a lot of ground to cover—literally—and need all the help I can get. We’ll have plenty of fun, too, exploring the farm together and enjoying the many gifts of Linden Acres.
See you soon!
About Jeanne Quigley
Jeanne Quigley is the author of the Veronica Walsh Mysteries and the Robyn Cavanagh Mysteries. Unlike her fictional sleuths, she has never been a soap opera star, accountant, or professional photographer, but she has worked in the music industry, for an educational publisher, and in a county agency. She lives in New York’s historic Hudson Valley.
Website www.jeannequigley.wordpress.com
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/jeannemquigley
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/jeannequigleyauthor/
Purchase Links: Amazon B&N Kobo Apple
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The Golden Hour TOUR PARTICIPANTS
February 12 – Jody’s Bookish Haven – SPOTLIGHT
February 12 – Frugal Freelancer – AUTHOR GUEST POST
February 13 – fundinmental – SPOTLIGHT
February 14 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW
February 15 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT
February 15 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – SPOTLIGHT
February 16 – Boys’ Mom Reads! – REVIEW
February 17 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – CHARACTER GUEST POST
February 17 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
February 18 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
February 18 – Baroness Book Trove – SPOTLIGHT
February 19 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
February 19 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
February 19 – Reading Is My SuperPower – AUTHOR GUEST POST
February 20 – Sarah Can’t Stop Reading Books – REVIEW
February 20 – Deal Sharing Aunt – CHARACTER INTERVIEW
February 21 – Novels Alive – REVIEW
February 21 – MJB Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
February 21 – Books, Ramblings, and Tea – SPOTLIGHT
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Thank you, Christy, for welcoming Robyn and me to your blog! It was fun writing this post from
Robyn’s perspective. I hope you and your readers enjoy it. Thank you for the opportunity to present Robyn and The Golden Hour Murder.
You’re welcome! Thanks for stopping!