December always makes me think of the longer hours of darkness. Thankfully this December we get to celebrate the release of Murder at the Lobstah Shack by Maddie Day aka Edith Maxwell. The book is set after Columbus Days when the hours of light rapidly shorten.
Here’s a bit about the book: When murder turns out to be the special of the day at her friend’s seafood restaurant, bicycle shop owner Mackenzie “Mac” Almeida and her fellow book club sleuths have to net a killer…
From clam chowdahs to oysters on the half-shell, Tulia Peters’ Lobstah Shack offers locals and tourists in Westham, Massachusetts, some of Cape Cod’s most amazing cuisine. But when the body of Annette DiCicero is discovered in the kitchen’s walk-in freezer—with a custom-made claw-handled lobster pick lodged in her neck—spoiled appetites are the least of Tulia’s worries.
After a heated public argument with Annette, Tulia is a person of interest in the police’s homicide investigation. To clear Tulia’s name, Mac and the Cozy Capers Book Group snoop into Annette’s personal life. Between her temperamental husband, his shady business partner, and two women tied to Annette’s past life as “Miss New Bedford”, there are now several suspects and multiple motives. And they’re getting crabby about Mac intruding on their affairs…
Wickeds, do you change your routine in the late fall/early winter?
Jessie: Super congratulations on the release, Edith! My routine shifts in details a bit but not really in the broad strokes. I prefer to walk with my dog, Sam, when it’s light out and perhaps not quite as cold. That requires me to move our morning walk a bit later and the afternoon one a bit earlier. I knit year round, but in the summer I work on small projects like socks or lace weight shawls. In the cooler months I turn my efforts to larger projects that warm my lap like sweaters.
Sherry: Congratulations, Edith! Another book out — woo-hoo! I tend to go to bed a bit earlier in December than I do the rest of the year. And when I’m sitting on the couch reading or watching TV, I’m snuggled in a throw of some sort. I also tend to start looking for recipes that lean to comfort food — usually updated healthy versions.
Julie: Congratulations, Edith! I’m not a fan of the cold, but find that once I’m out and moving it can be refreshing. It’s much easier to take a long walk than it is during the dog days of summer. Also, like Jessie, I knit larger projects, much to my cats’ delight.
Barb: Congratulations, Edith! I really hate it when it gets dark so early, (like right now) so I decorate for the holidays to ward off the blues. Then Bill and I head south for the worst of the winter. One of the best things about Key West is that it’s so much farther west in the eastern time zone, we get an hour more sunlight in the evening just by going there. However, once we get to Key West, our routine–writing, photography, home and friends–is entirely the same as up north. So you could say our routine changes completely–or not at all.
Edith/Maddie: Thank you, all! My routine changes in that my vegetable garden no longer needs my attention, and I can stop reminding Hugh to mow the lawn (we have different standards on that…). I also love wearing my Murder and Mayhem writing hoodie in the mornings and pulling on knee-high boots with a skirt or jeans for a dinner out. Plus it gets cool enough to bake bread and make soups and stews. Like Julie, I find brisk walks in cold air much more pleasant than when it’s hot out. And who knows, maybe I’ll take up knitting again!
Readers: Does your routine change?