Wordless Wednesday: Pretty Woman in Boat at Sea - Vintage Postcard

Found at Birdhouse Books - vintage boat cards

Author Interview and Giveaway - Murder She Floats by Stephen Kaminski

Murder, She Floats:
A Damon Lassard Dabbling Detective Mystery
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Paperback: 212 pages
Publisher: Cozy Cat Press (August 22, 2014)
ISBN-13: 978-1939816498
E-Book ASIN: B00NR8QJI4


Synopsis

A suicide note found in a locked room. A shard of glass buried in a scoop of whipped potatoes. A pickle jar filled with poisonous spiders. Precious jewels yanked off of a woman’s neck but left at her feet. It’s just a week in the life of Damon Lassard when he boards The Vitamin of the Seas with his charismatic mother for a ‘relaxing’ Caribbean cruise. After Damon’s acerbic dining companion is found floating alongside the ship and local police rule the death a suicide, the loveable amateur sleuth is left to find the killer himself. He encounters seductive sirens, cunning con artists, and fascinating family members en route to solving not only the murder but a handful of clever capers as well.

Birdhouse Books Interviews Stephen Kaminski 

Birdhouse: When did you realize you wanted to be a writer?

Stephen: I realized I wanted to be a writer when I was in junior high school. I spent a lot of lazy, summer days in rural Michigan lying on a blanket in the grass reading mystery and spy novels and dreaming of writing them myself one day.  Circuitous educational and professional paths have sent me into various worlds—engineering, law, television media, and non-profit management—but writing mysteries has always been in my veins (where it battles coffee for ultimate supremacy; blood is a distant third).

Birdhouse: What was your favorite book as a child?

Stephen: That’s an incredibly hard question, but I’ll go with the combination of “A Light in the Attic” and “Where the Sidewalk Ends” by Shel Silverstein. The vivid imagery that gushed from Silverstein’s pen to my impressionable mind forever stuck with me.  They are now among my daughter’s favorite books.

Birdhouse: What is your writing day like?  Do you have any interesting writing quirks?  

Stephen: My writing day is not so much a “day” as a “When can I find 60-90 minutes?” approach.  A full-time job running a national health services organization and an active family life centered around a nine year-old tornado keeps me “swamped” until close to nine o’clock most evenings.  So typically, on weekdays, I write at my kitchen table (occasionally with a glass of red wine and always with a selection of candy—because everyone needs more candy!) after nine.  On weekends, I typically rise in the pre-dawn hours and write in my basement in the dark (swapping wine for coffee, but keeping chocolate and licorice at the ready) until the tornado kicks up her heels.    

Birdhouse: What was the most surprising thing you learned while creating this book?

Stephen: The most surprising, and interesting, thing I learned while creating this book relates to the inner workings of a cruise ship.  Murder, She Floats is set on a Caribbean cruise. In conducting research, I spent time exploring many crew-only areas of one of Royal Caribbean’s largest ships—the bridge, dining hall, crew bars, kitchens, theater back-stage areas, etc. The bowels of a massive ship is like a city unto itself and seeing these areas first-hand provided me with unique insight that makes the book very believable.   

Birdhouse: Who are your favorite authors?

Stephen: I have so many!  In no particular order: Ken Follett, Lawrence Block, Faye Kellerman, Alexander McCall Smith, Ruth Rendell, Jeffrey Archer, P.D. James, M.C. Beaton, Jonathan Kellerman, John Sandford, and Agatha Christie.    

Birdhouse: What is your next writing project?

Stephen: It’s a secret for now—something similar in style to the three books in my Damon Lassard Dabbling Detective series, but different.  Don’t worry, there will surely be at least one dead body!

Thank you so much for having me.

About This Author

STEPHEN KAMINSKI is the author of the Damon Lassard Dabbling Detective series published by Cozy Cat Press. The first three cozy mysteries in the series are It Takes Two to Strangle, Don’t Cry Over Killed Milk, and Murder, She Floats. Each of the three has won a Reader Views Literary Award and Don’t Cry Over Killed Milk Don’t Cry Over Killed Milk won the 2014 Murder & Mayhem Award for Best Classic Cozy and was a finalist in both the 2014 Clue Awards.  Stephen is a graduate of Johns Hopkins University and Harvard Law School. He serves as the CEO and Executive Director of a national healthcare association and lives with his wife and daughter in Arlington, Virginia.

Author Links:
http://www.damonlassard.com/
https://www.facebook.com/DamonLassard?ref=hl
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6541735.Stephen_Kaminski
https://twitter.com/Damon_Lassard 

Purchase Links
Amazon B&N

Giveaway  
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Did You Know Tuesday: The Astronaut Wives Club

My summer obsession this year has been The Astronaut Wives Club.  I read about this book, by Lily Koppel, when it was first released.   I knew I would love it, since it set in the 1960's, is about women's lives, and also involves NASA and the history of Mercury Seven.  And then there was a TV series based on the book as well.  Perfect for summer reading and viewing!

The Astronaut Wives Club focuses on the wives of the Mercury Seven astronauts:  Betty Grissom (wife of Gus Grissom), Rene Carpenter (Scott Carpenter), Louise Shepard (Alan Shepard), Annie Glenn (John Glenn), Trudy Cooper (Gordon Cooper), Jo Schirra (Wally Schirra), and Marge Slayton (Deke Slayton).  The Mercury Seven astronauts were selected in 1959, and they were the original astronauts.  The nonfiction book - and tv series - follows the lives of these families in the 1960's (with a glimpse at their later lives).

When I was a little girl in the late 1960's and early 1970's, NASA was current events news, so we discussed the astronauts and space missions in school.  And I still remember seeing the moon walk in 1969!  However, the Mercury Seven story unfolded before I was aware of the space race, so much of this story was new to me.

To say that I adored the book is an understatement.  It is my favorite read this year, and I have recommended it highly to friends and family.  I found the lives of the wives and the astronauts absolutely fascinating.  There were some small moments in the book where the writing was distracting (i.e. a ramble about Julia Roberts starring in the movie Charlie Wilson's War, which seemed off track and took me away from the 1960's setting of the book).  However, the subject matter kept me reading.

The TV series (10 episodes) was wonderful, and I highly recommend it as well, if you can find it on DVD or streaming.   Standouts in the cast were JoAnna Garcia Swisher as Betty Grissom, Dominique McElligott as Louise Shepherd, and Yvonne Strahovski as Rene Carpenter.  It was fun seeing Zoe Boyle ("Lavinia Swire" from Downton Abbey) and Evan Handler ("Harry Goldenblatt" from Sex and the City) in other roles here.

The lives of these women were fascinating.  They balanced marriage, motherhood, and 1960's suburbia with the daily stress of their husbands' extraordinarily dangerous work, as well as the constant pressure of "Cape Cookies" who were astronaut groupies, always circling the Mercury Seven men.

As a great fan of Mid-Century Americana, the period details from both the book and tv show were wonderful.  The set designers and costumers on the show did an amazing job with the fabulous atomic ranches, 1960's fashions, and retro food.

I wanted to share a few links for readers who also are interested in this story:

The official book site, with a photo gallery and short bios of the wives:  The Astronaut Wives Club

Photos of the astronaut wives - Meet the REAL Astronaut Wives Club

From Retro Renovation (a must follow blog!) - The 14 Beautiful Homes of the Astronaut Wives Club

A gallery of the retro food from Bon Appetit - All the Vintage Food from "The Astronaut Wives Club," From Meatloaf Cupcakes to Jell-O Potato Salad 

From Mid-Century Menu (another blog I love!) - Articles about the food featured in each episode - Astronaut Wives Club at Mid-Century Menu

Here is a little trailer from the TV show.  Enjoy!

If you want to see a bit more, here are the first 5 minutes of the first episode:

Did you read this book or watch the series?  I would love to hear your thoughts on either/both in the comments, below! 

Music Monday - "Rain" by The Beatles (1966)

I have always thought that "Rain" by the Beatles is one of the band's great underrated songs.  This was originally released in 1966 as a B-side to "Paperback Writer."  It was inspired by the strong rains the Beatles saw in Melbourne, Australia, when they were on tour.   This song was on the great Hey Jude album (maybe my all time favorite record album).  Here to listen and enjoy - whether it is rainy or sunny where you are:


Love the Beatles? What are your favorites of their songs? Any other Beatles songs that you consider underrated?  I'd love to hear from you in the comments, below.

Weekend Window Shopping at Birdhouse Books - Vintage Postcards and Children's Books

Happy weekend, vintage friends! I have some nice new arrivals to share with you.  These goodies can all be found at Birdhouse Books on eBay -- and they will be at Etsy and Amazon soon as well.

This vintage postcard features a beautiful woman with a basket of chestnuts.  This scene looks like Autumn!

This lovely vintage Christmas postcard depicts a cozy cottage and a bridge on a snowy day.

This is a vintage gel postcard (thicker, shiny surface) with a Christmas theme.

This lovely postcard is about the Spirit of Christmas.  Love the lettering as well as the illustration!

Blueberries for Sal is a picture book by Robert McCloskey.  A little girl out berrying with her mother meets a mother bear and her cub.

Brother Bear and Sister Bear learn about taking care of a dog in The Berenstain Bears' Trouble with Pets.

Gingerbread Mouse is a sweet Christmas picture book by Katy Bratun.

The Night Before Christmas has lovely old fashioned illustrations by Douglas Gorsline.

I hope you found some cards or books you like here ... and hope you have a wonderful weekend!