by Sarah Erwin

This week we are reviewing the first in a new mystery series by Lisa Q. Mathews, and we have a fun interview with Lisa as well. Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of the book and a link to purchase the book from Amazon.

The Jig Is Up: Irish Bed & Breakfast Mystery Book One by Lisa Q. Mathews
Review by Sarah Erwin

There really is nothing better than getting in on the ground floor of a new cozy mystery series, and Lisa Q. Mathews’ debut, The Jig Is Up is an absolute delight. In this first book of the Irish Bed & Breakfast Mystery series, Lisa’s crisp writing blends wit and mystery to create a charming and page-turning read.

Single-mom Kate Buckley gets a frantic and mysterious text message from her younger sister Colleen that has Kate scrambling to pack herself and her two daughters and travel home to Shamrock, Massachusetts. Upon their arrival, however, Colleen dismisses her concerns and tells Kate she misunderstood the text. Ever the older sister, Kate isn’t buying it and decides to hang around to see if she can find out what is going on.

Little does Kate know she’s walking right into a murder investigation….

Not long after Kate’s arrival, Colleen’s best friend Deirdre is found dead in the parish hall. Deirdre was an Irish dance show star and would be leading the dancing festivities for St. Patrick’s Week in Shamrock.

Despite being the daughter of the former police chief, Colleen quickly becomes a person of interest in the murder. Kate cannot let her sister be framed for a crime she knows Colleen didn’t commit. While Colleen agrees to take over the coaching of the dancers for the festivities, Kate dives deep into an investigation that uncovers secrets, and features some serious twists. I had a guess at the true culprit, and no spoilers here, but the ending had me sitting straight up and turning pages quickly––even with my guess!

The writing is sharp, and Lisa created a wonderfully unique town full of well-developed characters. I’m so glad Kate came to help her sister and stayed to discover the truth. I also appreciate a cozy mystery featuring a sleuth who is the mom of a teenager! I’ll be anxiously waiting for book two in this new series.

Sarah Erwin started her career as a children’s librarian, later becoming a public library director and now she’s a stay at home mom. While her career might have changed, her love of reading has been a constant since 4th grade and she reads over 200 books a year. Read along with her on her blog Sarah Can’t Stop Reading or on Instagram. Sarah lives in St. Louis, MO with her two kids, her husband and a family dog and cat.

Interview with Lisa Q. Mathews:

KRL: How long have you been writing?

Lisa: I started creating “books” with construction paper and paper fasteners when I was very young, copying other people’s stories out by hand from Highlights for Children and illustrating them until I could actually write my own. After college, I worked as a children’s book editor and wrote many books under pseudonyms for teens and middle graders before turning to adult mysteries. The Jig is Up—Book #1 in the Irish Bed & Breakfast Mysteries—is my first book in six years.

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

Lisa: Cardiac Arrest, Book #1 in the e-book series Ladies Smythe & Westin, was published by Carina Press/Harlequin in 2015. The double-sleuth series features a team of a 70-something widow from the Midwest and a 20-something LA party girl solving murders out of a fancy retirement community in Southwest Florida. (Summer Smythe camps in her late grandma’s condo.)

KRL: Have you always written mysteries/suspense and if not, what else have you written?

Lisa: I have almost always written mysteries! In one of my first jobs, I edited books in the Nancy Drew series – also The Bobbsey Twins. I wrote under a pseudonym for kids’ series such as Mary-Kate & Ashley, the Lizzie McGuire Mysteries, and a few Sweet Dreams romances. In addition to my adult series, my short story “Fly Me to the Morgue” was published in the Malice Domestic anthology Mystery Most Diabolical and was an Agatha Award finalist.

Lisa Q. Mathews

KRL: How fun about the kids books! What brought you to choose the setting and characters in your latest book/series?

Lisa: I have one sister, who is 16 years older than I am, but we have a large, extended Irish American family with relatives in Ireland. I’ve always wanted to write a series about sisters—and there are two sets of them in the Irish Bed & Breakfast Mysteries. My sleuth is a single mom of two daughters, ages 14 and 7.

The grandparents run a cozy but somewhat disorganized B&B in the fictional, Irish-themed town of Shamrock, MA, where the whole Buckley family lives. The dad is the (very reluctantly) retired police chief (he was shot in the line of duty and is now in a wheelchair). I’m from New England myself, and currently live there, but Shamrock is based in part on the wonderful Brooklyn neighborhood where I raised my kids.

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

Lisa: I write to entertain, but I also give my less-than-perfect characters plenty of room to learn and “grow” through the series. I hope readers will love and root for my characters even if they don’t always agree with the choices they make. While the books are cozy and often contain quirky characters and situations, they also include real-life “issues,” particularly family ones. The tagline for the Irish Bed & Breakfast Mysteries is “Family can be murder.”

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

Lisa: I wish I could answer “yes” to a regular schedule! I change mine every day, but I tend to write in time blocks.

KRL: What is your ideal time to write?

Lisa: I used to be a confirmed night owl, but I know better now. Early mornings are still not a great writing time for me, though, so that’s when I have my coffee, make my to-do list, answer emails, and plan events and social media stuff.

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?

Lisa: I am a pantser, which means I don’t technically outline. I rarely know who my killer will be at the start—it’s more fun that way, and if the killer fools me, hopefully, they’ll fool my readers, too. I tend to write a chapter, then make little bullet point ideas for the next one or two so I can think about them in the back of my mind before I return to my desk.

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

Lisa: To be honest, not as much I’d feared—but that may have been because I worked for so long as an in-house editor before querying. I had a pretty good idea as to what kinds of publishers might possibly be interested. And maybe more importantly, who would not be interested, lol. I also have a wonderful agent of many years.

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

Lisa: I signed up for an agent critique of my first Ladies manuscript at a conference. As I very nervously sat down, the agent held the manuscript out toward me and there was a smiley face at the top! That agent turned out to be The One.

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

Lisa: Well, I haven’t done a bookstore signing yet, as The Jig is Up is my first adult hardcover and just came out last week, but I hope to soon. It was a thrill to sign copies at the Bouchercon World Mystery conference last week! I have terrible handwriting, so I sign very carefully and add a little shamrock.

KRL: What are your future writing goals?

Lisa: I am currently finishing up Book #2 in the Irish Bed & Breakfast Mysteries. The title is Buried In Shamrocks and the book will be out in May 2025.

KRL: Who are your writing heroes?

Lisa: Maeve Binchy, Carl Hiaasen, Jean Kerr of Please Don’t Eat the Daisies fame, Erma Bombeck, Emily Henry, and Cleo Coyle.

KRL: What kind of research do you do?

Lisa: I like to take “field trips” for research whenever possible, and of course I research online as well – but I prefer in-person visits and expert interviews whenever possible (particularly law enforcement, because the Buckleys are a cop family). For Jig, my kids did Irish dance growing up, so I was familiar with practices and shows and festivals and competitions. I also attended The World Irish Dancing Championships when they were held in Boston years ago, which was fascinating and so much fun. Right now, I’m researching Irish music for Book #2 – and I have a cousin in Ireland who is a professional musician.

KRL: What do you like to read?

Lisa: I read just about everything, but when I don’t have my nose in a cozy, you may find me engrossed in a spy thriller or a rom-com. Right now, though, I’m reading Long Island by Colm Tóibín (the sequel to Brooklyn).

KRL: What are your favorite TV shows or movies?

Lisa: My “current-ish” favorite TV shows are Blue Bloods, Derry Girls, and Ted Lasso. I just rewatched Leap Year (again) on the plane returning from Bouchercon. I’ll also watch any Brit mystery.

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

Lisa: Yes! Never, EVER give up. No matter what.

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

Lisa: I’m an introverted extrovert. Also, I used to be a competitive ice dancer.

KRL: Do you have any pets?

Lisa: Our family includes a golden retriever named Farley – after comedian Chris Farley – and just today, we adopted Lura, as in Tura Lura Lura, a beautiful and sweet black kitty. Shout out to Pope Memorial SPCA in Concord, NH!

KRL: Is there anything you would like to add?

Lisa: Thank you so much for having me on Kings River Life! I’m truly honored.

KRL: You are very welcome! Thanks for chatting with us. Where can our readers find you online?

Lisa: Website/Newsletter Signup: lisaqmathews.com
Facebook Author Page: facebook.com/LisaQMathewsAuthor
Blog: chicksonthecase.com
Instagram: instagram.com/lisaqmathews
Twitter/X: twitter.com/lisaqmathews
Goodreads: goodreads.com/author/show/14418623.Lisa_Q_Mathews

You can click here to purchase this book from Amazon.

To enter to win a copy of The Jig is Up, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “jig” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen September 21, 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.

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.