Yes, you read that title correctly! Last week, Mary Lee’s newest Sugar & Spice release, Night of the Living Bread, dropped, and we (Anita) thought it would be fun if Anita asked Mary Lee all the hard-hitting questions readers are dying to know the answers to.
I want to start with something we both love, plot twists! So, without spoiling anything, what was the most unexpected twist that emerged while writing the Night of the Living Bread?
I really hate to admit this one because, as you know, I’m a plotter. So the surprises should be minor ones, right? But early in this book, suddenly Mame Reinhart burst in at the crime scene, much to Sheriff Terry’s surprise as well as mine. And she was wonderful and just what the scene needed. And then when I read the scene to you all at the next critique group meeting, I realized she was just what the book needed too. So, a few rewrites later, Mame became an important part of the story.
Throughout the past couple of years, you’ve talked about concentrating on plot. Did this story’s resolution end up being more (or less) complicated than you had originally planned?
It’s always hard. Why is it so hard? This one, like every other one, was more complicated than what I had in mind at the beginning. A pretty straightforward murder mystery plot. And then I thought it needed a cold case, and then there were actually two plotlines to tie up at the end instead of one.
What’s one mystery trope you secretly love but haven’t written about yet?
I love a locked room mystery but have never attempted one. A murder is committed, but in circumstances under which it appears to be impossible and impossible to solve. And Then There Were None, The Murders at the Rue Morgue, The Hollow Man and, of course, Murder on the Orient Express. So good!
What’s one item in your office that you’d choose as a murder weapon if you were writing a story right now?
Hmmm, I’m looking around. No sharp objects. Nothing heavy except a very large dictionary and a very spoiled cat. Not good murder weapons. Ah, I see it now – a wall of bookcases. I think a little push, and that would do the trick.
If you could trade lives with a character in Night of the Living Bread for one day, who would it be and why?
I think it would have to be Sugar. (Though I did hesitate a few minutes while I considered Disco. Running a memorabilia shop sounded like a lot of fun to me. Until I decided it sounded a little too close to a description of my basement.)
So Sugar it is. Sugar’s life isn’t perfect by any means, but she’s found a pursuit she enjoys, and her business partner is her best friend. The future looks bright. The cookbook business is doing well, and the small-town pace is just right. Life in cozy little St. Ignatius is good. Well, except for the murders…
If you could team up two of your characters from different books (or series), who would make the best (or worst) crime-solving duo?
Best and the most fun – Greer Gooder from the Sugar & Spice Mysteries with Diana Knight from the Pampered Pets series. Maybe with Betty Foxx to help out. Those ladies would give even the best and brightest in law enforcement a run for their money!
Your books have fabulous recipes. How do you decide which recipes to use, and how do you test them?
Finding the recipes is no problem. I have tons of cookbooks. Tons. Plus, magazines with great recipes. And I collect recipes from friends and family. (If it says Diane’s biscuits in the book, I probably got it from Diane.) As far as selection when plotting a book, I’m also thinking about what recipes will come up as part of the story and what type of cookbook Dixie and Sugar will be working on.
But the second part of your question – about the testing – requires a full confession. You see, like Sugar in the books, I’m not the baker in the family. That would be my better half, Tim, who is a fabulous baker and a good sport. He makes all the recipes before I include them. And, like Sugar, I’m a great taster!
You have a famous coworker, Zoey the cat. How does she help with your writing? Does she get to taste your recipes?
I do share my office with a feline coworker. Zoey came to live with us during the pandemic, and as I was doing a lot of work from home days, she adapted to the routine right away. As far as her “help” and I use that term loosely, some days she rearranges the pens on my desk. Other days, she shreds documents, though not always the ones I want shredded. Mostly, she keeps watch at my window, especially keeping close surveillance on suspicious squirrel activity in the backyard. And she announces breaks and meal times – loudly. It’s exhausting work, so frequent naps are required.
And no recipe tasting for her, she has special treats.
Thanks, Mary Lee, for allowing me to pepper you with questions. You’re the best! I know everyone will love Night of the Living Bread as much as I do!
Check out the links below to grab Mary Lee’s book.
Mary Lee Ashford is the author of the Sugar & Spice mystery series from Oliver Heber Books and also half of the Sparkle Abbey writing team who pen the national best-selling Pampered Pets series. She is a lifelong bibliophile, an avid reader, and a public library champion. Prior to publishing, Mary Lee won the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense. She is the founding president of Sisters in Crime – Iowa as well as a member of Mystery Writers of America and Novelists, Inc. She lives in the Midwest with her family and her feline coworker.
