Nancy Lynn Jarvis, author of What Lucy Heard, a PIP Inc. mystery, is visiting Ascroft, eh? today to tell us why she enjoyed writing this novel and the previous ones in the series.

Welcome, Nancy. I’ll turn the floor over to you –

Regan McHenry Real Estate Mysteries series; six in the PIP Inc. Mysteries series; a stand-alone novel about octogenarians who decide to save their mobile home park from foreclosure by robbing the bank that holds the mortgage and using their ill-gotten money to pay off their debt; and done a little guidebook about hosting Airbnb. I also convinced 128 cozy mystery writers to submit recipes from their books for a cookbook titled “Cozy Food,” and had the great pleasure of editing two short story anthologies, “Santa Cruz Weird” and “Santa Cruz Ghost Stories.” Whew.

Every time I finish a book, I think putting it together was the most fun I’ve had in my many years as a writer. But I must admit writing mysteries is the most personally entertaining of all genres I’ve faced. “What Lucy Heard,” my latest release, is no exception. 

What makes each book so entertaining for me to write is that I get to explore topics or events that interest me and introduce characters whose lives are fun to mess with, and occasionally end. Sometimes my villains become so sympathetic to me that as I write them, I’m secretly hoping they’ll figure out a way to escape justice.  I’ve only let that happen once…well maybe twice. Sort of.

My books have complicated plots; I love twists and red herrings. I take great pleasure in seeing if I can give readers all the information that they need to solve the crime while keeping them off balance. I admit, though, I broke that rule in one book when I wanted readers to solve the mystery one chapter before my protagonist did. My goal was to make them scream, “What’s wrong with you? Don’t you realize the danger you’re in? You’re going to get yourself killed!”

Enough reminiscing, though. What made “What Lucy Heard” so much fun for me to write? I got to play with a murder suspect who had motive and opportunity, whose fingerprints were on the murder weapon, and who several reliable witnesses placed at the scene of the crime. Open and shut, right? My protagonist, Pat Pirard, didn’t think so, at least not at first. Perhaps her clever mind saw something others didn’t. Or not. What fun I had teasing Pat.

I’m a political junkie who keeps up with current news. As I listened to breaking news stories earlier this year, I was able to add subtle references to them in the book. The cover of the book features a Cybertruck. When I was deciding what sort of vehicle the accused murderer should drive, something which matters for the story, I picked a Cybertruck not only because it’s quiet but also because that vehicle was so prominent in the news in the days of Elon Musk.

 At one point in the story Pat, the former Santa Cruz County Law Librarian who has become an unlicensed private investigator to keep her and her dalmatian, Dot, and her ginger tabby, Lord Peter Wimsey—yes, a definite nod to the famed Dorthy Sayers detective—housed and fed after she was downsized out of her job, is coyly asking a suspect if it’s possible to make a text message disappear. She knows the answer, but she wants to see if they do. Her suspect says it’s easy if you use something like Signal to do it. I came up with that particular app after the news was all about a reporter accidently being included in a hi-level phone conversation he shouldn’t have heard and that a feature of the app was that conversations could be made to disappear.

 I used other prominent events, too, but if I told you what they were here, they would become spoiler alerts which I don’t want to give you because “What Lucy Heard” is a great mystery for you to solve and the title alone is a major clue.

The murder victim was a serial philanderer which gave me many suspects to play with since there were numerous people who had reason to want him dead. If that storyline reminds you of anything in the news today, it’s probably not a coincidence. And the book ends with the protagonist asking her husband what will happen to the killer. He responds that rule of law must be followed or we have nothing, also a significant topic in the news today.

Thank you for sharing this with us, Nancy, and good luck with What Lucy Heard, the latest book in the PIP Inc. mystery series. Readers can learn more about Nancy Lynn Jarvis by visiting the author’s website and Goodreads and Amazon author pages

The book is available online at Amazon.

About Nancy Lynn Jarvis: Nancy wore many hats before she started writing cozy mysteries. After earning a BA in behavioral science from San Jose State University, she worked in the advertising department of the San Jose Mercury News, as a librarian, as the business manager for Shakespeare/Santa Cruz, and as a Realtor.

Nancy’s work history reflects her philosophy: people should try something radically different every few years, a philosophy she applies to her writing, as well. She has written seven Regan McHenry Real Estate Mysteries; six PIP Inc. Mysteries; a stand-alone novel “Mags and the AARP Gang” about a group of octogenarian bank robbers; edited “Cozy Food: 128 Cozy Mystery Writers Share Their Favorite Recipes,” and short story anthologies, “Santa Cruz Weird,” and “Santa Cruz Ghost Stories.” She also has an ebook on Amazon which she keeps adding to as she writes more short stories.