Author Guest Post - Betty Hechtman

Please welcome author Betty Hechtman to the blog today.  Betty writes two national best selling series for Berkley. GONE WITH THE WOOL is the fourth Yarn Retreat mystery. SEAMS LIKE MURDER is the tenth Crochet mystery. In addition, she is the author of STOLEN TREASURE, A Blue Schwartz Mystery. She has a B.A. in Fine Arts has written newspaper, magazine pieces, short stories and several scripts. She splits her time between Tarzana and Chicago with yarn stashes in both places.

Meet Casey Feldstein

I thought it might be fun to interview Casey Feldstein, the amateur Sleuth in the Yarn Retreat series. It’s a little bit like being two people, though, since I get to ask the questions and then answer them.

Me: You probably get asked this all the time, but what is a Yarn Retreat?

Casey: You’re right. I do get that a lot. Yarn – well, that refers to the yarn craft activities we have. In my latest adventure GONE WITH THE WOOL, the group learns how to knit with a loom and crochet a Monarch butterfly. And retreat – it means to get away from it all. Vista Del Mar, the hotel and conference center where I put on the retreats is a perfect place for that. It’s located on the tip of the Monterey peninsula and the weather is moody with lots of fog. The place has gone totally unplugged, so there is no cell phone reception, no Wifi, or even television to bring in all the troubles of the outside world. There is a message board and some old fashioned phone booths with landlines so we’re not totally cut off.

Me: Speaking of troubles – there seem to be a lot of murders in Cadbury by the Sea since you moved there.

Casey: Oh, you noticed. My ex boss Frank – he runs a P.I. agency in Chicago where I used to live – says the same thing all the time. Working for him was my favorite job. I was either an assistant detective or a detective’s assistant, depending on who you talk to. We’re still in touch, though. He is my go to for advice since I seem to get involved with investigating all those murders you mentioned. He complains about it, but I know he likes helping.

Me: So what about your latest investigation.

Casey: Go figure. The whole town was wrapped up in the return of the Monacrch Butterflies – In case you don’t know, every October thousands of Monarchs come to Cadbury to overwinter. They have a sanctuary in a stand of trees. The whole town goes crazy with a week long festival to welcome them back. There’s a Butterfly Ball, a street fair, a parade and even a Butterfly Queen. And in the midst of it this woman with a lot of enemies turns up dead. I had to get involved because of who the main suspect was.

Me: I understand a lot of you amateur sleuths have a ghost. You know, something hanging over your head that worries you. What’s yours.

Casey: You had to bring that up. Okay, I’m in my mid thirties and so far have a history of not sticking with things. I’m hoping that maybe I’ve changed. But who knows....

Me: Do you want to talk about the two men in your life?”

Casey: They’re not exactly in my life. Dr. Sammy Glickner is my ex and insists that he’s staying in Cadbury because he can pursue his magic career while still working as a urologist. Of course, our paths keep crossing and I do have a soft spot for him, but its just friendship. Really. And Dane Mangano is the cop who lives down the street. There might be some chemistry between us, but I’m fighting getting involved.

Me: What would you like readers to know about you?

Casey: You didn’t mention my other job. I think it’s important that it be known that I am a dessert chef and muffin baker. I make the desserts for the Blue Door restaurant and bake muffins for all the coffee spots in town. Everything I make sells out. It could be why the people of Cadbury look the other way about the dead bodies that keep showing up. They like my baking too much. By the way, I share recipes and patterns. I hope that’s all, because I got a group of retreaters waiting for me. Bye.

Website: BettyHechtman.com Facebook: Betty Hechtman (author) Twitter: @BettyHechtman

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Thank you Ms. Hechtman for that fun introduction to Casey Feldstein from the Yarn Retreat mysteries.