MEGA-COZY MYSTERY BOOK GIVEAWAY

In February 2013, a group of cozy mystery authors got together to form Booklover’s Bench as a way of supporting each other with cross-promotion. Over time, membership changed as both writing lives and personal lives changed, but the group is still going strong. Today, it consists of authors Terry Ambrose, Nancy J. Cohen, Debra H. Goldstein, Cheryl Hollon, Diane A.S. Stuckart, Maggie Toussaint, and Lois Winston. 

The Booklover’s Bench “Let’s Talk” features a blog every Thursday by one of our authors. The fourth Monday of each month features either “Authors on the Bench” or “Characters on the Bench,” where we all respond to one question.

 

We promote each other through our blogs, websites, newsletters, contests, and social media posts. Our goal is to increase the readership of all our members. We do this by offering interesting content, contests, and book giveaways.

 

Each month we hold a Rafflecopter book giveaway where the winner can choose one of seven books offered that month. However, every February in celebration of the anniversary of our founding, the lucky winner receives all seven books offered for the month. 

 

Want a chance to win? Click on over to Booklover’s Bench to enter between now and February 18^th and while you’re there, check out the beautiful new redesign of the website.

#CRAFTS WITH ANASTASIA--CHRISTMAS IN JULY

Last Thursday was not only Independence Day, it was author Lois Winston’s second blog post over at Booklover’s Bench, where she's now one of six mystery authors who blog on a rotating basis.

As mentioned here earlier, Booklover’s Bench offers a monthly Rafflecopter giveaway of books by the contributing authors. However, in addition, sometimes the authors also have giveaways connected to their posts. If you post a comment to the blog, you’re entered in that author’s additional giveaway.

For her post this month, Lois is talking about her upside-down world where, as a designer, she’s spent years working on Christmas in July. This year she’s pulling double-duty because not only is she working on designs for a Christmas cross stitch book that will release in 2020, she’s also working on the latest book about me, which happens to take place at Christmastime. Handmade Ho-Ho Homicide, the eighth Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery, will be available in October. Want a sneak peak? Click here to read the first chapter.) 

But there’s more…

Click on over to Booklover’s Bench and post a comment for a chance to win a cross stitch book featuring cross stitch charts of the Twelve Days of Christmas as seen above. One winner will be randomly drawn from all the comments posted.

Don’t delay, both drawings end July 18^th.

ANASTASIA WELCOMES BOOKLOVER'S BENCH

No craft-themed post today. Instead, I want to tell all of you about some exciting news—especially for those of you who love receiving free books. (Is there anyone reading this who doesn’t?)

Author Lois Winston, my doppelganger and she who writes about me, has been invited to join the wonderful mystery authors over at Booklover’s Bench, where she’ll blog once every six weeks about all things book-related. Booklover’s Bench is not just another book blog, though. Their tagline is “Where readers are winners” because once a month they hold a drawing to give away a free book from their Book Vault, a place where their authors deposit a book each month. Blog visitors can enter the monthly Rafflecopter, and the winner gets to choose one of the books in that month’s vault. Cool, huh?

Lois will be posting her introductory blog at Booklover’s Bench on May 23rd.  Today I thought I’d take the opportunity (at Lois’s suggestion) to introduce you to the other Booklover’s Bench authors. Some of the names may be familiar to those of you who are frequent visitors to Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers because they’ve often appeared as our guests.

Maggie Toussaint 

Southern author Maggie Toussaint writes mystery and suspense. She’s won two Silver Falchion Awards, the Readers’ Choice Award, and the EPIC Award. She has been a finalist twice for Georgia Author of the Year. Her series include the Dreamwalker Mystery Series, the Lindsey & Ike Series, the Cleopatra Jones Series, the Guardian of Earth Series, and the Mossy Bog Series. Maggie is on the board of Southeast Mystery Writers of America and is Vice-President for Low Country Sisters In Crime.

She lives in coastal Georgia, where secrets, heritage, and ancient oaks cast long shadows. Yoga, beachcombing, and music are a few of her favorite things.

Nancy J. Cohen 

Nancy J. Cohen writes the Bad Hair Day Mysteries featuring South Florida hairstylist Marla Vail. Titles in this series have made the IMBA bestseller list, been selected by Suspense Magazine as best cozy mystery, won a Readers’ Favorite gold medal, and earned third place in the Arizona Literary Awards. Nancy’s instructional guide, Writing the Cozy Mystery, is an Agatha Award finalist. A featured speaker at libraries, conferences, and community events, she is listed in Contemporary Authors, Poets & Writers, and Who’s Who in U.S. Writers, Editors, & Poets. When not busy writing, she enjoys fine dining, visiting Disney World, cruising, and shopping.

Diane A.S.Stuckart 

Diane A.S. Stuckart is the New York Times bestselling author of the Black Cat Bookshop Mystery series (written as Ali Brandon). She’s also the author of the award-winning Leonardo da Vinci historical mysteries, as well as several historical romances and numerous short stories. Her upcoming new cozy mystery series are the Tarot Cat Mysteries from Midnight Ink (November 2018 launch) and the Georgia B&B Mysteries from Crooked Lane (May 2019 launch—writing as Anna Gerard).

Diane is a member of Mystery Writers of America and has served as the 2018 Chapter President of the MWA Florida chapter. In addition to her mystery writing affiliations, she’s a member of the Cat Writers’ Association and belongs to the Palm Beach County Beekeepers Association. She’s a native Texan with a degree in Journalism from the University of Oklahoma, but has been living in the West Palm Beach FL area for the past dozen or so years. She shares her “almost in the Everglades” home with her husband, dogs, cats, and a few beehives.

Cheryl Hollon 

Cheryl Hollon writes full-time after an engineering career designing and installing military flight simulators in England, Wales, Australia, Singapore, Taiwan, and India. Living the dream, she combines a love of writing with a passion for creating glass art in the small studio behind her house in St. Petersburg, Florida. Cheryl is President of the Florida Gulf Coast Sisters in Crime, a member of Mystery Writers of America, International Thriller Writers, and Novelists, Inc.

Debra H.Goldstein 

Judge Debra H. Goldstein is the author of One Taste Too Many, the first of Kensington’s new Sarah Blair cozy mystery series. She also wrote Should Have Played Poker and 2012 IPPY Award winning Maze in Blue. Her short stories, including Anthony and Agatha nominated “The Night They Burned Ms. Dixie’s Place,” have appeared in numerous periodicals and anthologies including Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Black Cat Mystery Magazine, and Mystery Weekly. Debra serves on the national boards of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America and is president of SinC’s Guppy Chapter and the Southeast Chapter of MWA.

And of course, our very own…

Lois Winston 

USA Today bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes the critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries and the Empty Nest Mysteries. She’s also published in romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction. A Book-of-the-Year nominee from ForeWord Reviews, Assault With a Deadly Glue Gun, the first book in her ongoing Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, also received starred reviews from both Publishers Weekly and Booklist. Kirkus Reviews dubbed Anastasia, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” Lois would like the quote etched on her headstone, although she hopes the need for such a monument will be decades in the future. Lois is also a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry.

We hope you’ll add Booklover’s Bench to your weekly blog-reading list for a chance to get to know these wonderful authors and their books. And don’t forget to enter the Rafflecopter each month for a chance to win a free book.