by Lorie Lewis Ham & Sandra Murphy

Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of Murder at the Breakers, and a link to purchase it from Amazon.

On Friday, February 2 at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT, Alyssa Maxwell’s first Gilded Newport Mystery, Murder at the Breakers, will be premiering on the Hallmark Movies & Mystery Channel. The movie stars Ali Skovbye (Firefly Lane) as series sleuth Emma Cross and Danny Griffin (Get Even) as Police Detective Jesse Whyte. We had the chance recently to interview Alyssa about the movie. We are also reposting here our review of the latest book in the series, Murder at the Elms.

Interview with Alyssa Maxwell about upcoming Hallmark Movie:

KRL: It must be exciting to have one of your books turned into a Hallmark movie, so how did that all come about?

Alyssa: Luck definitely played a part! The Preservation Society of Newport County has been incredibly supportive of this series and carry the books in all their gift shops. Just before the pandemic, executive producer James Walsh happened to tour The Breakers and found Murder at The Breakers in the gift shop. He bought it, read it, and thought it would make a perfect Hallmark mystery, provided they were willing to do a period piece, which they hadn’t done before. The pandemic and then the writers’ strike slowed the process down, but nonetheless, here we are! Murder at The Breakers will be Hallmark’s first historical mystery – I’m really honored by that!

KRL: Did you get to be on the set at all, or have any input on the adaptation of your book to screen? If so, what was that like?

Alyssa: No, I wasn’t on set. I would have loved to be, but my agent and I received notice that they would begin filming only about a week in advance. I also didn’t have input into the production. When a writer sells movie and TV rights, it’s standard procedure that you concede all creative license to the production company. You could say my creative input was the book itself.

KRL: What are your thoughts on the casting?

Alyssa: I’m very excited about it! Ali Skovbye is a beautiful Emma Cross, and exactly the right age to play her. She has also proven her talent through years of experience, beginning when she was a child. One fun fact is that the actors playing Mrs. Vanderbilt and her daughter, Gertrude, April Telek and Ava Telek, are real life mother and daughter. As for Jesse and Derrick, I’m delighted with the actors and believe they will add a whole new dimension to the rivalry between the two characters.

KRL: Do you get to see the movie ahead of time, or just when it airs?

Alyssa: I was lucky enough to see the director’s cut a couple of months back. This is before the scenes were cleaned up. For example, there is a modern ship in the background of an outdoor scene, with a note off to the side to edit it out. I have a feeling it will pale in comparison to the finished, polished product, but it was a thrill to watch all the same. There is something both exhilarating and humbling about seeing your own characters moving across a screen, speaking words you wrote. I continually pinch myself.

KRL: Can you tell us a bit about the book series and its main characters?

Alyssa: Emma Cross is a Newporter born and raised as well as being a descendant of the first Cornelius Vanderbilt. Since any inherited fortune has long since been depleted, Emma works as a reporter for a local Newport newspaper. Early in the series, including Murder at The Breakers, she is a society reporter for the “Fancies and Fashions” page, but she longs to be taken seriously and report on hard news. Hailing from two worlds as she does, her background allows her to move freely among “ordinary Newporters” and the rarified realm of society’s Four Hundred, America’s richest and most elite industrialist families. This puts her in the perfect position to investigate crimes at Newport’s palatial estates as well as its back alleys and modest neighborhoods.

KRL: Where did you get the idea for the series, and more specifically the book the movie is based on?

Alyssa: I fell in love with Newport on my very first visit. Since my husband hails from Newport and his family has deep roots there, I’ve gained a knowledge of the city and insight into what makes it and its people so special. When I contemplated my first mystery, setting it in Newport was an easy decision. The mansions themselves determined that my time period would be the Gilded Age, and my research into the era and the families who dwelled in those mansions informed each plot.

I learned that in 1895 The Breakers had been newly rebuilt after a fire destroyed the original house, and that the first event to be held there would be Gertrude Vanderbilt’s coming-out party. At that party, there were rumblings of discontent among Cornelius and his wife Alice over their son’s involvement with a woman named Grace Wilson (Winslow in the movie). And the general rivalries and dealings among the railroad magnates of the time also fueled the entirely fictional murder plot that takes place within the framework of history.

Alyssa Maxwell

KRL: Do you know if they will be filming more of the books?

Alyssa: There’s been no word on that yet. I believe it depends on how well the first one does.

KRL: How many books are there in the series so far?

Alyssa: There are eleven books available now, with a twelfth, Murder at Vinland, coming August 20, 2024. There will be at least three more after that.

KRL: What kind of research did you have to do?

Alyssa: My research often has me hunting down books on the era: histories, biographies, and autobiographies. Archived newspapers have been invaluable, especially with small but important details often left out of more general descriptions of the era. And of course, the internet is a treasure trove of images depicting everything from fashion to food to architecture to geography and everything in between. Luckily for me, there is no lack of information about the Gilded Age.

KRL: Where can readers find you online?

Alyssa: Here are all my social media links:

facebook.com/AlyssaMaxwellauthor
twitter.com/Alyssa__Maxwell
pinterest.com/alymaxauthor
instagram.com/alyssamaxwellauthor
goodreads.com/author/show/7163135.Alyssa_Maxwell
bookbub.com/profile/alyssa-maxwell

KRL: Anything else you would like to add?

Alyssa: I think most authors dream of seeing their books adapted to film, but we all know the chances are slim. I feel incredibly lucky and blessed, not only because of Murder at The Breakers will soon play out on the small screen, but that this series has met with the success it has. Over the years, I’ve been delighted to learn just how many people share a passion for Newport and its history, and that so many of them have embraced this series with an enthusiasm that’s humbling. So, whether or not Hallmark continues with the series – and I hope they do! – my first priority will always be the books, and continuing to write stories that readers will love.

Murder at the Elms by Alyssa Maxwell
Review by Sandra Murphy

It’s 1901 and Emma and Derrick are adapting to married life after a honeymoon in Italy. Now it’s back to work running their newspaper. One newsworthy item is The Elms, a mansion built by coal baron Edward Berwind. It’s exceptional for the time because it is one of the first in America to have electricity and it’s generated by coal from Berwind’s own mines.

The other item of note is all the servants have threatened to strike for better wages and regular half days off, sure that the threat will work since a large party is planned. Everyone is shocked when Berwind fires the entire staff and brings in new servants.

The party goes on with Emma and Derrick on hand. The party atmosphere is ruined when a chambermaid is found dead in the coal tunnel, a laborer has gone missing, and so has a valuable diamond necklace that belongs to a houseguest. The chambermaid was the only servant not to threaten a strike, an unpopular move with the rest of the servants.

Detective Jesse Whyte has asked for Emma and Derrick’s help before in solving a case with the elite—they consider themselves above talking to a policeman—and is once again here. Is the maid’s death connected to the missing necklace? Is the missing laborer the culprit? You’ll have to read the book to find out—guessing isn’t as easy as you think.

This is book 11 in the series, many reviewed here in KRL. Not only are the characters described so well they feel like friends, but Maxwell notes The Preservation Society of Newport County has a virtual house tour available on their website. It adds accuracy of course, but also allows readers to follow the characters room by room as they try to solve the mystery.

To enter to win a copy of Murder at the Breakers, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “breakers” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen on February 10, 2024. U.S. residents only, and you must be 18 or older to enter. If entering via email please include your mailing address in case you win. You can read our privacy statement here if you like.

Check out other mystery articles, reviews, book giveaways & mystery short stories in our mystery section. And join our mystery Facebook group to keep up with everything mystery we post, and have a chance at some extra giveaways. Also listen to our new mystery podcast where mystery short stories and first chapters are read by actors! They are also available on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, and Spotify.

You can also click here to purchase this book.

Sandra Murphy lives in the shadow of the Arch in St. Louis Missouri. She’s editor for Peace, Love, and Crime: Crime Stories Inspired by the Songs of the ’60s, with twenty-two cozy stories. She also edited A Murder of Crows, twenty-one stories featuring animals and crime (no animals were harmed). She also writes for magazines, newsletters, and the occasional guest blog. Both anthologies are available at the usual outlets, print or ebook.

Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.