It's Locked! A Cozy Mystery Celebration: Interview With Auralee Wallace!

Hi, everyone! Today I'm happy to present an interview with Auralee Wallace, the author of the Evenfall Witches Mysteries!

Would you please tell us a little about the Evenfall Witches Mysteries?

The Evenfall Witches B&B Mysteries center around a family of witches running a bed & breakfast – who just so happen to solve the occasional murder. For nearly four hundred years, the family has used their magic to quietly help the citizens of their sleepy New England town thrive. Every witch in the family has their own magical specialty, including the youngest member, Brynn, who has been gifted with the power to commune with restless spirits. Ghosts never remember much about their passings, but Brynn can usually piece together a picture of their lives - and their deaths - to get them the answers they need to find peace.

What was the inspiration for the books?

This will come as no surprise to those who have read In the Company of Witches, but I was deeply inspired by Practical Magic, Gilmore Girls, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and The Ghostwhisper. Also, by every witch-based picture book and fairy tale I read as a child, and I read a lot of them. And Halloween! I love Halloween.

Random Question! What's your favorite mystery TV series?

That’s a tough one. Hmm, even though they are very different from what I write, I’m a sucker for BBC mysteries. About ten years ago I caught my husband watching a new show without me. (I know. I couldn’t believe it either. He was already halfway through episode three!) It looked like something I might like, so I made him go back to the beginning. That show was Happy Valley…which led to Broadchurch (tough one to watch), then Luther and Marcella. Recently, we got into Lupin. 

Oh! But I really want to check out the new Nancy Drew series. I think I’d like the paranormal element.

If you’re able to talk about it, what are you currently working on?

So, this one is a bit complicated. My editor at Berkley started another career which left The Evenfall Witches without a home. That being said, Berkley was happy with the sales of the books (as was I!) and proposed I work on a new series along the lines of The Maid and Thursday Murder Club. All that being said, I’m not sure if I’m ready to give up on the Evenfall Witches just yet, and I am pondering some other avenues.

What are some of your favorite cozy mysteries? And what are some you’re looking forward to reading?

I do like Juliet Blackwell’s Witchcraft Mysteries and Heather Blake’s Wishcraft Mysteries for obvious paranormal reasons, but I’m also really looking forward to checking out C.J. Connor’s Board to Death. I think it will be a good one.

Thank you so much to Auralee Wallace for participating in this event!

Author Bio: Auralee Wallace is the author of multiple novels, including the Otter Lake mystery series and the Evenfall Witches B&B Mysteries. She has an undergraduate degree in psychology and a Master’s degree in English literature, and she worked in the publishing industry for a number of years before teaching at the college level.

When this perpetually sleep-deprived mother of three children and one rescue cat isn’t writing, reading, or playing soccer, she can be found watching BBC mysteries and warring with a family of peregrine falcons for the rights to her backyard.

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