Guest Blogger - Millicent Binks

I am thrilled to be introducing a lovely friend of mine and a fellow Bookouture author. Millicent Binks has the second book, Murder in Hollywood, in her fabulous series, The Opal Laplume series releasing on Monday 18th of August. You may have already seen or read her first book in the series, A Most Parisian Murder already! I asked her to stop by and tell us more about herself, the series and how and where she writes! Millicent is a writer, former costume designer and burlesque performer. Her work includes a column for The Evening Standard and a cover story for The Sunday Times Magazine that was optioned for TV by NBCUniversal. Her cosy crime series features English milliner and amateur sleuth, The Honourable Opal Laplume who has adventures in Paris, Hollywood and the Scottish Highlands. About Murder in Hollywood! Lights, camera, action and… murder?

1934. Opal Laplume’s star is on the rise when she gets a job making costumes for Hollywood’s biggest talkie star, Jane Margeaux. But when Jane is fatally shot on set by a prop gun, and security guard Augusto finds a bullet missing from his pistol, it falls to Opal to save her favourite new friend from a wrongful murder accusation. Opal soon discovers that Jane had a list of enemies as long as the train on her designer gown. Jane’s co-star Betty envied her rise to fame, but did her jealousy take a deadly turn? Jane’s loyal assistant Virginia was overworked and underpaid. Did she get Jane out of the way to get ahead at the studio? Or did Jane’s fortune-hunting husband Carey see an opportunity to inherit his wife’s jaw-dropping Sunset Boulevard mansion? Just when Opal thinks she’s found her prime suspect, a crew member is found dead in the California desert with a briefcase stuffed full of movie scripts. And a close look at the director’s cut of Jane’s latest picture reveals a secret message hidden in plain sight. Soon, Opal will find that Jane was hiding the biggest secret in Hollywood – one truly worth killing for. Can Opal keep her English cool among the Tinseltown drama and crack the case before it’s a wrap for the entire crew? Grab a first-row seat to this fabulous and utterly charming Golden Age whodunnit full of glamour, intrigue and murder set in 1930s Hollywood. Fans of Agatha Christie, T.E. Kinsey and Verity Bright won’t be able to put this down! This sounds fabulous! I asked Millicent to tell us more about where she writes as she leads such an action packed life as a gal around town! I’m a nomadic writer with a laptop, roaming London for places to work. Cafés and hotel bars have taught me to tune out the noise, though the vibrancy of life around me can be inspiring- unless a very annoying song comes on! Libraries—especially the BFI—bring that school-like focus, everyone being productive together is contagious. Occasionally I write at Claridge’s, tucked behind a pillar in the corner. A pot of tea there isn’t too pricey once you realise what you get with it. They keep topping up biscuits and hot water all evening—a bargain for how good the tea and service is! The art deco charm of the place immerses me in the time period I write about. Part of me longs for a set desk and a solid writing routine, but I haven’t quite mastered that yet. My legs get fidgety so sometimes it’s nice to sit with my legs outstretched on the sofa with my laptop on a ‘gaming pillow’ a silly block type padded table. At home I’m always distracted by my cats; Madame de Pompadot and Tarquin, my hubby who’s always excited to tell me about his shoe customers (he works for Jospeh Cheaney Shoes) and I’m always on the lookout for something to improve on in the house. So a desk at home would have to include straps, blinkers and earmuffs to get me to focus properly! You can get Millicent's wonderful book Murder in Hollywood HERE

Book Signing

Come find me this Sunday 20th July

2-4 at Whitehill Country Park on the Stoke Gabriel road at the fabulous craft fair where I'll be signing copies of both series! Delicious cakes and drinks 🍸 on sale too!

A special guest blog from Verity Bright

I know that many of you are also readers of my colleagues, the husband and wife duo of Verity Bright. For those of you who may not have heard, very sadly, Laura was tragically killed not long ago and her husband seriously injured. Death at a Paris Hotel is a book that was very dear to Laura's heart. She was enormously talented and threw herself into her research for their books. I know how much this book meant to her. You can get your copy HERE For Lady Eleanor Swift, Paris means champagne at breakfast, romantic walks by the Eiffel Tower… and her deadliest case yet! Newlyweds Lady Swift and Detective Hugh Seldon are honeymooning in the most romantic city on earth. Clifford, her butler, has come along for the trip to make sure everything goes to plan for the happy couple. And Gladstone, the mischievous bulldog, to make sure it doesn’t! But the pair are shocked when, just as they are toasting their new marriage at the best table in their hotel’s opulent restaurant, a man tumbles through the glass roof and lands amid the silverware and coq au vin. Before he dies, he presses a striking pearl brooch into Eleanor’s hands. She has the strangest feeling of déjà vu. Has she met this man before? All too quickly, the local police arrive and immediately accuse the new Mr and Mrs of working with the victim – a thief who’d just robbed the museum down the block. With her new husband by her side, Eleanor races to clear their name and discover who would kill to get their hands on the unusual brooch. Following a clue about a doomed love affair takes the gang from the famous cabarets and cobbled streets of Paris to rubbing shoulders with the aristocracy at the very top of the Eiffel Tower. But soon Eleanor notices a mysterious man in black following their every footstep. Is he friend or foe? And can Eleanor and Hugh unravel the case before the City of Light becomes the city of death?

Summer Solstice already!

It's hard to believe that half the year has already shot past. Here in Devon the weather is hot and dry, a sure sign that I'm busy writing Christmas books! One, the next Miss Underhay is very Christmassy with crackling log fires, carols, mince pies and murder. The other book will be the 4th in the Secret Detective Agency series and is set in the grey and dark days of January 1942 with Jane and Arthur facing new perils. Murder in Paris, book 21 in the Miss underhay series is just going through edits and I'm looking forward to you all reading it. Likewise, Murder most British, Jane and Arthur's third adventure. This time in war torn London.

The Christmas Miss Underhay book is being set around here, one of my favourite places and just a couple of miles from my house. This of course is a picture in sunnier times. But in winter with the mist swirling and no one around except a murderer...

Cover Reveal - Murder in Paris!

Ta dah! Cover reveal for Murder in Paris - book 21 and a new adventure for Kitty and Matt. HERE

Freshly baked baguettes and strong coffee,a moonlit walk beneath the twinkling lights of the Eiffel tower, sunset over the rooftops… and oh là là! A murder in the French capital? This is one for Kitty Underhay! Paris, 1937. Kitty Underhay, with a croissant in hand and her handsome husband Matt by her side, is soaking up the delightfully Parisian charms of the French capital. Kitty attends a fashion show where she is enamoured by the dazzling gowns, but the afternoon takes a very sour turn when one of the models, Simone Belliste, is found dead with a pair of razor sharp tailoring scissors nearby. Kitty and Matt are determined to work out who could be behind the murder. They perch in tiny cafés on cobblestone streets, deliberating over who would do such a thing. Simone had many admirers, including a wealthy older Englishman who had been wooing her and a handsome young Frenchman who was besotted with her. But she was also surrounded by glamorous designers, competitive models, and a jealous younger sister… and nobody is without motive. Just as Kitty and Matt are jotting down their list of suspects, they receive a call: Simone’s sister Nathalie has been attacked, and her valuable folder of dressmaking patterns is missing. Can they unravel the secrets surrounding the two sisters? Or will they be next in line…? With a murderer in their midst, can the team of two find the killer before it’s adieu for both of them? Or will this Parisian sojourn be their last?

Book 20!

Can you believe it? Book 20 in the Miss Underhay series is out today! Thank you to everyone who has stuck with me on this crazy journey. I never expected people to love Kitty and Matt as much as me so it's an absolute joy to keep writing these mysteries. I hope you'll enjoy this one!

You can get your copy HERE

Bristol Crime Festival

UK readers - I'll be on two panels at TICKETS Friday 16th and Sunday 18th May so coming up very quickly. There are some fabulous authors appearing so if you are in and around Bristol next weekend it would be lovely to see you :)