Deck the Halls With Homicide: Killer Chocolate Mysteries by Christina Romeril | Author Interview

Christy Maurer

1 week ago

Deck the Halls With Homicide: Killer Chocolate Mysteries by Christina Romeril | Author Interview

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Welcome to my stop on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for Deck the Halls With Homicide: Killer Chocolate Mysteries by Christina Romeril. Stop by each blog on the tour for interviews, guest posts, spotlights, reviews and more!

Deck the Halls With Homicide: Killer Chocolate Mysteries

by Christina Romeril

Deck the Halls With Homicide: Killer Chocolate Mysteries
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Setting – Harriston, Montana (fictional)
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Independently Published
Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 28, 2025
Print length ‏ : ‎ 326 pages
Paperback

Perfect for fans of Jacqueline Frost and Vicki Delany, when a holiday decorating contest turns deadly, twin sisters Alex and Hanna trade tinsel and twinkle lights for tracking the twists and turns of a cunning killer.

Alex and Hanna, owners of Murder and Mayhem book and chocolate shop, are hoping for a quiet holiday. That is, after Alex is finished judging the Deck the Halls contest organized by Vanessa, nicknamed “The Dragon.” The whole experience has turned Alex’s usual festive spirit a little grinchy. Instead of inspiring holiday cheer with fun lawn displays, the contest has turned cutthroat and decorations have started disappearing. After Alex’s beau, Tom, is seen in a heated argument with the Dragon about his stolen trimmings, Alex finds him dressed as Santa, kneeling over Vanessa’s dead body…with one of his missing candy cane decorations buried in her chest. It’s no surprise he becomes the sheriff’s top suspect.

Alex and Hanna quickly amass a cast of suspects deeper than Santa’s reindeer roster, including an old family friend tasked by their mother with romantic interference; a nosy reporter eager to reveal Alex’s previous murder-y exploits; and the victim’s psychologist-to-the-stars husband with a spicy secret. But as they try to catch a crafty killer, Alex also grapples with the escalating wrath of Tom’s daughter, and a mysterious psychic dropping cryptic clues, while Hanna deals with her own Christmas crisis.

Murder puts a bitter spin on the twins’ sweet confections and they must find the killer and wrap up the case to keep Santa off the naughty list.

Author Interview

Thanks for taking the time to share a bit about yourself with my readers and me!

Thanks so much for having me!

Tell us a little about yourself.

Hi. I’m Christina Romeril and for the past twenty-six years I’ve called Southern Alberta home. Living near the Rocky Mountains is amazing and I visit Waterton Lakes National Park as often as I can over the summer. My husband and I adopted two Chihuahua puppies, Nacho and Paco, in June and I love being a Chihuahua Mama.

Over the years I’ve tried all sorts of cozy hobbies. I’ve been a crafter (primarily wood items that I painted). I’ve also tried: quilting, calligraphy, photography, crocheting, gardening, and sewing. I don’t do any of them regularly and some of them not at all anymore, but it’s all about trying something new, for me. These days I spend most of my time writing, or doing writing adjacent activities. In my free time I like to exercise-I know many people don’t get that, but I even became a certified personal trainer and then realized I didn’t really want to teach people, I just liked working out on my own.

I write the Killer Chocolate Mystery series. I wrote my first book, A Christmas Candy Killing, in 2021 and it was published in 2023.

How long have you been writing?

I started writing about twenty years ago, but it was very sporadic and usually just a few pages. It wasn’t until 2021 that I sat down and wrote my first novel in about five months. It became A Christmas Candy Killing and was published in 2023.

Did you always want to be an author? What made you choose the cozy mystery genre?

When I was thirteen, I realized I wanted to write, but it was many years before I acted on that desire. Mysteries were my first love when I started reading the Trixie Belden series in third grade. I’ve read a wide variety of genres over the years, but mystery has always been my favorite. When I decided to write my first book, I wanted to write along the lines of Agatha Christie. So, I started reading lots and lots of modern cozies and began writing.

Do you prefer to read cozy mystery books, or do you have another favorite genre? What are you reading now?

I love cozy mysteries, especially those with humor. But I also love other mysteries (though not too dark), and thrillers (especially political or psychological). I’m currently reading Ian and Will Fergusen’s Killer on the First Page.

Do you have a favorite place to write?

I have two offices, one is upstairs in my house and the other is my she shed in my backyard. I love writing in the she shed and that would be my favorite place, but it means bringing my computer and other odds and ends out there which is a little inconvenient at times, so I end up just working in the house. I’d love to write on the deck on really hot days, but I find it’s too distracting, even the wind and the bugs are too much when I’m writing. I definitely need a quiet, distraction free place to write.

What’s on your desk (if you write at one!)?

I actually have two desks in my house office. One has my computer and monitor, lamp, picture of my kids, and a pile of papers. It seems there are always piles of papers. The other has my printer, agenda, fake plant, a picture of my husband, and more piles of papers and notebooks, and another lamp. I got the second desk to reduce the piles of paper, but it’s a work in progress.

What is the first book you remember reading as a child? What was one of your favorite books you read as a child?

I really don’t remember the first book I read. The first one to leave an impression was one in the Trixie Belden series, but I don’t remember which one I read first. I still have every one of those books on my shelf. Those and the Nancy Drew books were definitely my favorites.

Do you like audiobooks, physical books, or e-books better? Why?

My first choice is always a physical book because I like the feel of it in my hands and the smell of the paper. Ebooks are my second choice because they are practical, especially when I travel. I don’t actually like audiobooks. When I read, I hear the dialogue in my head and it’s almost like watching a movie screen. Hearing someone else’s voice is jarring and I just don’t enjoy it, though I wish I did because I’d love to be able to listen to books when I drive and am doing mindless chores.

If you had the opportunity to live anywhere in the world for a year while writing a book that took place in that same setting, where would you choose?

Oddly enough, I think I’d choose Washington, D.C. I’ve visited there a couple of times and love it. It would be awesome to set a mystery there. I’ve travelled to Egypt and loved seeing where Agatha Christie set some of her mysteries, but I’d still like to go to D.C.

What or who has influenced you the most as a writer?

That’s a hard question. Obviously, all the books I’ve read have been a huge influence. When I was in high school, I used to read hundreds of books over the summer months, literally shopping bags full of paperbacks every week (mostly Harlequin romances), but also gothic romantic suspense. At the time I thought I should become a romance writer. Since I started writing consistently with my first novel, I’d say the podcast The Shit No One Tells You About Writing has been a huge influence on me. It’s really made me dissect the books I love and understand how they were constructed.

Do you have any author friends who support you while you’re writing? Do you belong to any writing groups?

I have a wide group of author friends and they’re a huge support for my writing. I met many of them through my literary agent, Dawn Dowdle, who has since passed away, and at the reader/writer conferences Malice Domestic and Left Coast Crime. I’m now a part of a writer’s critique group who were almost all from my literary agency. I’m also part of the Facebook group, Murder, They Write, which is ten authors, all from the literary agency.

Finally, what are you working on now? Can you tell us a bit about it?

I’m working on two projects. The first is a cozy adjacent mystery along the lines of Finlay Donvan. It’s been stalled lately as I try and work through a few plot issues. The other project is book four in the Killer Chocolate Mystery series. That book will not be set at Christmas. I’ve decided to set it in March or April, and I’m having fun writing an outline.

Thank you again for taking the time to answer my questions!

Thanks so much for having me on your blog today and letting me tell you and your readers a bit about myself!

About Christina Romeril

Christina Romeril grew up in Kitchener, Ontario, and has been devouring stacks of books since third grade when the Trixie Belden series sparked a love of mysteries. She has lived on both coasts of Canada as a former member of the Canadian military. As an Alberta transplant, she is fascinated by mountains and loves to spend time with her husband and two Chihuahuas, Nacho and Paco, exploring Waterton National Park in the Canadian Rockies.

Author Links

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

Website https://christinaromeril.com/

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

Purchase Links – Amazon Bookshop.org B&N Kobo Apple Books