The Fabulous Cathy Ace joins us today for a special Drinks with Reads: the inaugural entry in our First in a Series profiles. This is where we introduce the first book in a series so you can keep reading and reading through the great adventures of one set of characters. Cathy was one of our first guests on Mystery Playground when we started way back in 2012, so we thought we'd start her off here too with the first book in her Cait Morgan series, The Corpse with a Silver Tongue. And the series is on flash sale this week electronically...
It’s such a thrill to be invited to participate in Mystery Playground’s Friday Drinks with Reads. I’ve been able to celebrate the launch of most of my books here – but I’ll admit I didn’t know of the site’s existence when my debut novel was launched, which is why you won’t find an entry for the very first Cait Morgan Mystery, THE CORPSE WITH THE SILVER TONGUE, in the archives.
It’s almost impossible to remember a time when Cait Morgan wasn’t part of my life…some who know me might say this is because she’s very much like me (I couldn’t possibly comment!) but it’s also true that she was “born” in a short story back in 2007, and has been with me constantly since then; there are now eight novels in the series.
I always wanted Cait to travel the world solving traditional – as opposed to specifically cozy – mysteries, of the type Agatha Christie used to give us. I always loved the Poirot and Marple books set in “exotic” locations, and I wanted Cait’s adventures to take her to places where the history, art, architecture, food and drink are fascinating. I’ve been a bit of a nomad throughout my life, so she gets to visit a different country in each book – each being somewhere I have either lived, worked, or have spent at least several months, if not years, in total.
So, why did I choose Nice, in the south of France, for her first novel? Honestly, I love it, and I miss it. I used to spend three or four months a year there and was delighted that friends of mine allowed me to “use” their home as the setting for the sudden death (OK…you guessed it…it’s a murder!) at a birthday party which sits at the core of the book. Writing it allowed me to “be there” again, though, sadly, without the unique light of the Cote d’Azur illuminating my laptop. (If you want to know why there’s a cast iron snail in the photo, you’ll have to read the book!)
What makes this appearance here today even more special is that it gives me the chance to share some exciting news: I have just reacquired all the publishing rights for my Cait Morgan books (except the English print rights), which means I can now control their digital availability and pricing. So – drum roll please – I can tell you that the prices for ALL the digital Cait Morgan Mysteries have been dropped to $4.99 USD (or equivalent).
While you’re reading THE CORPSE WITH THE SILVER TONGUE, you can enjoy Cait Morgan’s favourite tipple. It’s not fancy, but it is quite specific. She adores Bombay Sapphire gin…yes, specifically Bombay Sapphire. Now I know there are a good many gins out there these days, and – of course – you might have your own gin-of-choice, but with a good tonic (something “plain and normal” like Schweppes, as opposed to one of the myriad available with added flavours) and a good quality lemon – one that feels heavy, so is likely to be really juicy (roll the lemon before cutting into it to get those juices moving!) there’s nothing quite like a straightforward Bombay Sapphire and tonic! This is how Cait enjoys hers:
Fill a large glass with ice
Squeeze a thick slice of lemon that you’ve cut into two over the ice and drop it in
Pour over ONE part Bombay Sapphire gin, then THREE parts tonic water
Stir slowly for a moment or two, allowing the ice to chill the drink
Enjoy! Cheers, folks!
(NB: yes, some gin was drunk during the shooting of this photograph!)
Here are links to more of Cathy's wonderful Drinks with Reads posts:
To find out more about The Cait Morgan Mysteries, and Cathy Ace:
Twitter: @AceCathy
Sign up for Cathy’s newsletter at her website.
Love this series. Thank you for being a guest, Cathy!
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