by Kathleen Costa

This week we are reviewing Take the Honey and Run By Jennie Marts, the first book in a new series. We also have an interesting interview with Jennie. Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of the book, and a link to purchase it from Amazon.

Take the Honey and Run: A Bee Keeping Mystery By Jennie Marts
Review by Kathleen Costa

Bailey Jeanne Briggs, Bailes to her close friends, is a popular mystery writer and, with her twelve-year-old daughter Daisy and golden retriever Cooper in tow, she’s heading to Humble Hills, Colorado, to visit her near seventy-year-old grandmother Blossom Briggs, loving dubbed Granny Bee, who is currently hobbling in a medical boot. However, the tractor in front of them is impeding their journey, so they worry they’ll being late for Granny Bee’s weekly high tea, a faux pas Granny Bee is unlikely to overlook. Watch out! Nearly missing a runaway cow and running off the road could be an acceptable excuse for their tardiness, but the identity of the man in the tractor overshadows any worries about Granny Bee’s possible “sting-eye” reaction. Last time Bailey saw Sawyer Dunn, her former “hot, bad-boy cowboy” boyfriend, was after a tractor prank that ended in a pond. His punishment was to be sent to live with an uncle in Montana, so she’s surprised to find him back in Colorado. There’s no doubt it’ll be an interesting reunion.

Take the Honey and Run Earns 5/5 Tractor Tales … Engaging Cozy Gem!
Hitching a ride on Sawyer’s tractor, sans any seatbelts, Bailey and Daisy soon arrive at Honeybuzz Mountain Ranch, where Bailey grew up, just in time to see her granny threatening Werner Humble, the mayor of Humble Hills, “… You set foot on my land again, and I swear on my bees, I will kill you.” But, the anger appears to be a group issue because watching her back are the four women from Granny Bee’s book club, The Hive, brandishing a rolling pin, a rolled up newspaper, and a cumulative sting-eye. Werner sees the futility of hanging about, so he takes the hint and leaves.

With peace restored and excuses made, it turned out to be a delightful reunion with Granny, a couple of great-aunts, her BFF Evie Delgado, and the rest of the book club, especially since the “tea” served was really a fabulous Beehive Honey Wheat microbrew … things have changed. The next morning, Bailey volunteers to return Werner’s jacket she found behind a chair; she figured it better she return it, then have Granny involved in another threatening encounter. Well, that’s what she hoped would happen. Instead, when she arrived at Werner Humble’s home, there’s no answer to her knocking or calling out his name, but peering through the window, she sees him lying on the floor, arms outstretched, dead, like “dead-dead,” covered in you-know-who’s honey. When she calls 9-1-1 for help, she gets another surprise … “You’re the sheriff?”

Buzzzzing Good! Jennie Marts premier book in her Bee Keeping Mystery series was a “couldn’t put down” cozy read with its clever murder details, multi-generational characters, small town dynamic, a bit of romantic entanglements, fascinating beekeeping and honey ideas, and enough snarky humor and nail-biting predicaments for all to enjoy. It seems the victim’s unwelcome romantic overtures made him persona non gratis with Granny Bee as well as her sisters, but as a motive for murder, it’s a bit of a stretch. However, woman [women] scorned, an anxious nephew, and disgruntled former employees along with secret rendezvous, hidden evidence, schemes, and spying all seem legitimate points for Bailey to share with the police.

Bailes’s experience with research and questioning experts for her mysteries gives her a unique skill set and perspective I found entertaining, and even though it seems unlikely Granny Bee could have done the deed, it’s Bailey who sees connections in the evidence, odd behavior others miss, and suspects with reasonable motives needing to be considered. But, I was intrigued by the fact she didn’t work alone and her “posse” looks to her and the manner in which she wrote her fictional mysteries to solve this murder. Her best friend and partner in crime, her granny and the senior ladies of The Hive, and even her preteen daughter have their own value, insights, and skills to share adding humor, friendship, some perilous moments, and an enjoyable dynamic among a strong bunch of women. Well-written with a final undisclosed secret that I can’t wait for more to see if I guessed right.

So, are you Team Hot Cowboy or Team Hot Mechanic? Jennie Marts is known for her romance books, so adding a bit of romance into the mystery was an enjoyable element. I am Team Hot Cowboy not just because you get a two for one deal (What better boyfriend to have than a sheriff if you’re a mystery writer or amateur detective!), but also because their past misunderstandings and a few secrets make the connection entertaining. Besides, the hot mechanic will always be there when your car needs to be towed.

A cozy without recipes is like a mystery without a murder! Jennie included several easy-to-follow recipes straight from Blossom Briggs’ kitchen (aka Granny Bee) for the honey lover in us all: Granny Bee’s Honey, I’m Home Hot Spiced Honey, Whipped Ricotta Cheese Dip, Honey Banana Bread, Honey Poke Cake with Honey Sauce and Marshmallow Frosting, Honey-glazed Quesitos (Cream Cheese Pastries), and Crispy Honey Cookies.

Be a Big Jennie Marts Fan!
USA Today best-selling author Jennie Marts is author of several romance novels, but she added a bit of mystery and murder to the romance in this new Bee Keeping Mystery series as well her Page Turners series currently at seven books. Each “page turner” offers a different woman, a different setting, a different profession, and a different set of complications, but always a strong capable female entangled in an intriguing and entertaining tale.

Kathleen Costa is a long-time resident of the Central Valley, and although born in Idaho, she considers herself a “California Girl.” Graduating from CSU-Sacramento, she is 35+ year veteran teacher having taught in grades 1-8 in schools from Sacramento to Los Angeles to Stockton to Lodi. Currently Kathleen is enjoying year 2 of retirement revitalizing hobbies along with exploring writing, reading for pleasure, and spending 24/7 with her husband of 26+ years.

Interview with Jennie Marts:

KRL: How long have you been writing?

Jennie: I have been writing my whole life – stories, journals, poetry, really bad song lyrics – but I started my official writing career when I turned 40. So, I’ve been professionally writing novels for fifteen years now.

KRL: When did your first novel come out, what was it called, and would you tell us a little about it?

Jennie: My first book came out at the end of 2012. It’s called Another Saturday Night & I Ain’t Got No Body. It’s a cozy mystery/romantic comedy about an ordinary schoolteacher whose book club sets her up on six blind dates and one of them might be with a murderer. There are seven books in the Page Turners mystery series, and each one features a mystery and romance of a different woman in the book club. This series is a fan favorite. Whenever I spend time with the women in the Page Turners book club, it feels like I’m visiting old friends.

Jennie Marts

KRL: I know you haven’t always written mysteries/suspense; can you tell us what else have you written and how you ended up writing mysteries?

Jennie: I started out writing mysteries then moved into romance, but several of my romances have just a bit of suspense or a mystery thrown in. I have over thirty books published in six series: The Page Turner mysteries, Hearts of Montana (western romance), Cotton Creek Romantic Comedies, the Bannister Brothers (hockey romance), the Cowboys of Creedence (hockey-playing cowboys), and the Creedence Horse Rescue series (western romance). Plus, I’ve written two sweet romances for Hallmark Publishing.

As for why I like writing mysteries, I think it’s because I love reading them—love that thrill of trying to figure out the clues and whodunnit—so I knew I would eventually come back to writing more mysteries. All my books have dogs and food in them, so I love the cozy mysteries where I get to add dogs, yummy food, and humor!

KRL: Fun! What brought you to choose the setting and characters in your latest book/series?

Jennie: Take the Honey and Run is a bee keeping mystery set in a small mountain town in Colorado. We live in Colorado, and I love everything about the state. I’m originally from a small town in Kansas and we lived in a small town in Montana when we were first married, so I just love writing about life and the family and friendships that happen in small town communities. My husband is a certified beekeeper and has always shared such fascinating stories about the life and habits of bees, I knew I had to add them into a book eventually.

KRL: Do you write to entertain or is there something more you want the readers to experience from your work?

Jennie: I love to make readers laugh, and I also love to make them cry. I do want to entertain them, to give them an escape and a story where everything works out in a happy ending. I think everyone is searching for connection, and I love stories where my characters find that, not just by falling in love, but through their friendships with other women and in their community. I was very close to my grandmothers, which is why so many of my books have a spunky spitfire old lady in them. I love showing readers that just because a character is over a certain age doesn’t mean they don’t still have value and wisdom and laughter to share.

KRL: Do you have a schedule for your writing or just work whenever you can?

Jennie: I write full-time, so I’m at my desk usually by nine, take an hour lunch break, then work again until five. Not all of that is writing time, there is also marketing, editing, social media, emails, making graphics, writing new proposals, and occasionally surfing the internet-lol! But I do have a daily word count goal of trying to write 2000-3000 words a day or 10-15,000 words a week. I am trying to keep my weekends free for family and life, but there is always the next scene percolating in my brain.

KRL: What is your ideal time to write?

Jennie: I try to get most of my words written in the morning, but I’m also a bit of a night owl, so on occasion (usually when I’m chasing a deadline), I’ll end up writing late into the night.

KRL: Do you outline? If not, do you have some other interesting way that you keep track of what’s going on, or what needs to happen in your book when you are writing it?

Jennie: I used to be a pantser, but once I started writing 3-5 books a year, I had to start plotting because I just didn’t have time to wait around for new ideas to come to me. I do use the 3-act-structure for my books and usually have most of the major beats figured out. But I do tend to have a lot of things come to me once I’m in the midst of the book.

I have a separate notebook and file folder for each book, or a smaller 3 subject notebook for a three-book series, where I keep track of all my notes for that book and do some freehand writing in. The front of the folder is where I write character (and animal/pets) names and keep track of what page each chapter starts on (I try to keep my chapters around 7-10 pages).

KRL: Did you find it difficult to get published in the beginning?

Jennie: Of course. Publishing is a really hard business to get into and stay. I always say writing is like having really hard homework every single day of your life. I did attend several writing conferences where I met and pitched to several of my editors and my agent, and where I studied and learned more about the craft of writing to continually improve my work. I’m a hybrid, so I indie-published my first book, then used the success of that book, the things I had learned, and the networking contacts I’d made at conferences to launch my traditional publishing career. But my first three publishing houses I worked with came from pitching and meeting those editors in person at writing conferences.

KRL: Do you have a great rejection/critique or acceptance story you’d like to share?

Jennie: Several years ago, I attended a conference where my whole goal was to find Stacey Donovan, the editor of Hallmark Publishing at the time, and introduce myself. She had a proposal of mine that involved a female mechanic and a male chef who had inherited a garage and had to work together in order to both get what they wanted. I was late for a workshop and lost in the hotel when I stepped onto an elevator and Stacey was standing there. I asked if she had a minute to talk, and she graciously accepted. When I asked about my proposal, she said the female mechanic was a hard no, just not something Hallmark did at the time.

We talked through some other ideas, and when I asked her what other things were “‘hard no’s’ for Hallmark” at the time, she said, “Really only four things: female mechanics, male chefs, any kind of inheritance story, and reality TV.” So, basically, I’d written her a proposal with the trifecta of rejections! LOL! Luckily, we came up with some other ideas, and Stacey and I had a great author/editor relationship and had the best time working on two other books for Hallmark Publishing together, Rescuing Harmony Ranch and Cowboy Ever After.

KRL: Most interesting book signing story-in a bookstore or other venue?

Jennie: I don’t know if it’s interesting, but when I met Susan Elizabeth Phillips at a book signing -hers, not mine, I tried to tell her how great it was to meet her and how much she inspired me, and I was so overcome with emotion that I just started crying. And not just teary-eyed, like real tears streaming down my face. She laughed and hugged me and gave me a little notebook with her name on it. She is the best!

KRL: What are your future writing goals?

Jennie: I plan to continue to write great books that my readers love. I’ve always got new ideas in the works, but I’m sure my books will continue to have small towns, quirky characters, hot heroes, and smart funny heroines. Oh, and dogs. And probably a goat.

KRL: Who are your writing heroes?

Jennie: Janet Evanovich, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Nora Roberts

KRL: What kind of research do you do?

Jennie: As little as possible. Lol. Just kidding. I absolutely research things if I need to. I love to use people I know to help with research, like my next-door neighbor who is a police officer, my dad and sister who are veterinarians, my friend’s husbands who are lawyers, doctors, firefighters.

For years, I worked at a bank inside of a grocery store, and if I needed help, I would have the tellers tell me when the local firefighters came in, as they shopped for groceries every few days. I would hijack them in the produce department to ask them questions. I had a guy I opened an account for who was a retired FBI Agent who was a great resource, and once I stopped two mounted police officers who were on horseback in the parking lot to ask them a few questions about DNA and being a sheriff of a small town.

My internet history is nuts with crazy searches like ‘how big is a pygmy goat’s poop’ for a goat yoga scene I did, ‘which is the best gun for a single woman to carry’, ‘which poison can use to kill someone and not leave a trace’, ‘why do goats faint’, ‘how much does a Kitchenaid mixer weigh’ – murder weapon, and ‘how long does it take a dead body in a hot tub to start to bloat’. If I don’t know the answer, I always do the research to make sure I’m getting the details right, but I try not to go too far down the research rabbit holes, or I’d never get the books written.

KRL: What do you like to read?

Jennie: I enjoy mysteries, thrillers, women fiction, romantic comedies. I just love books that draw me into the story and make me fall in love with the characters. My favorite series are the Stephanie Plum books by Janet Evanovich, and I am also a huge Harry Potter Fan. I also love Fredrik Backman’s books. Britt-Marie Was Here was a favorite I read this year, and I adored Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt.

KRL: What are your favorite TV shows or movies?

Jennie: I have never missed an episode of Survivor, Frankie & Grace makes me laugh hysterically, I adore Call the Midwife, Shrinking was so good, I can’t get enough of Yellowstone – Rip is my favorite – and I love Ted Lasso and Roy Kent soooo much that my kids gave me a plaque to hang in my office that reads “Don’t You Dare Settle For Fine.” It tears me up every time I think of that scene. I think Ted Lasso is just everything!! As far as movies, the ones I can think of offhand that I’ve seen numerous times are Dirty Dancing, The Breakfast Club, Pretty Woman, all the Harry Potter movies, all the Avengers movies and Notting Hill and The Proposal. I have a mad crush on Chris Hemsworth,

KRL: Have you any advice for aspiring or beginning writers?

Jennie: The advice that I always give is that writing is a marathon, not a sprint. It seems like everything takes a long time to happen in this business…books take a long time to write, queries take a long time to hear on, a publishing career takes a long time to establish, but if you love it, the wait is worth it. Always keep writing, learn craft, read, read, read, attend writer’s conferences, and spend time with other writers.

KRL: What is something people would be surprised to know about you?

Jennie: When I was in tenth grade, I went through a ‘rocker’ phase – wore my hair in a rocker mullet, heavy metal t-shirts, and bandanas tied around our ankles. If you went to high school in the 80’s, you’ll remember that funny style! I loved the Scorpions, had a crush on Eddie Van Halen, and could sing every word to Crazy Train by Ozzy. I still remember going to a Scorpions concert and the opening act was this new guy that we all thought was just trying to be David Lee Roth – it was Jon Bon Jovi. Lol.

KRL: Do you have any pets?

Jennie: Yes, we have two dogs, a sweet sheltie/mini-collie named Maggie, and an adorable Golden Retriever named Cooper, who is the inspiration for the golden named Cooper in Take the Honey and Run. We also have a parakeet who is at least twelve years old, and she loves to tweet to the oldies. She especially goes crazy singing and tweeting when we play ‘Blueberry Hill’. It’s one of her favorites.

KRL: Is there anything you would like to add?

Jennie: I hope that readers find and fall in love with the characters in Take the Honey and Run! I had the best time writing this book, and I think it’s so much fun. It’s twisty and funny and has a little romance and has honey-inspired recipes at the end of some of the delicious treats the characters eat in the book. And also, a big thank you to you for having me!

KRL: Where can people find you online?

Jennie: Website: jenniemarts.com
Twitter: twitter.com/JennieMarts
Facebook: Jennie Marts Books: facebook.com/JennieMartsBooks

I also have a reader group on Facebook called Jennie’s Page Turners that I would love to invite anyone to join: facebook.com/groups/190207341316308
Amazon: amazon.com/stores/Jennie-Marts/author/B00AQYGFPY?ref
Instagram: instagram.com/jenniemartswriter

Enter to win a copy of Take the Honey and Run by Jennie Marts by making a comment below about a potpourri of topics: (1) your favorite way to enjoy honey, (2) an anecdote about a grandparent, or (3) are bees your friend or foe?, or simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “honey,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen July 22, 2023. 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.

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