Hi, everyone. Thank you for having me here today. I am so excited to share with you some of the characters in my head. As an author who writes in several genres, I have so many people living inside my head, it’s hard to keep them all straight at times. That’s why having amazing critique partners like Barbara Witek and Danielle LaBue is crucial for me.
They keep me sane!
One genre I love to write in is the cozy mystery. Mine all have mystery, humor, and romance. As far as my cozy mystery series go, I have a few of them. Two of my most popular are my Sunny Meadows Mysteries and my Kalli Ballas Mysteries. They are so much fun to write that I decided to write a crossover series, combining the two. So far there are two: CRUISING INTO DANGER and ROAD TRIP TO RUIN. I will give away a signed copy of both books to one lucky commenter. Leave your comments by next Tuesday (5/7) to be in the running!
For this blog post, I thought I would interview these ladies so you could learn more about what makes them special.
Kari: So, Sunny, tell me a little about who you are and where you come from.
Sunny: Well, originally, I’m an only child from the Big Apple, with a doctor father and lawyer mother who had high expectations of me. I couldn’t take the pressure, so I moved to Divinity, NY, and opened my own fortune-teller business. I’ve always been psychic, so reading people’s past and future seemed like a good fit.
Kari: What about you, Kalli?
Kalli: Well, I’ve always lived in Clearview, CT. I was adopted into a big, fat, Greek family who make up half the town and half the businesses. I also ventured out on my own by designing my Kalli Originals line of lingerie in my best friend’s clothing boutique downtown. My family might act like they disapprove, but the women are secretly my biggest customers.
Kari: Sunny, tell me a little about Detective Mitch Stone.
Sunny: Oh, boy, where do I begin? He’s cynical, stubborn, and doesn’t fully believe in my abilities, but he’s finally come around to supporting me as a consultant to the police department. He calls me Tink because I’m his short, blonde pixie, and I call him Detective Grumpy Pants…no explanation necessary. He might drive me crazy half the time, but he’s a keeper.
Kari: Kalli, what about Detective Stevens?
Kalli: Well, he’s half Greek, and apparently that’s Greek enough for the mamas. After I fell out of the loft at my friend’s boutique, I woke up with the ability to read minds, but only when touching someone. Given that I’m an OCD germaphobe, that’s a nightmare to me. Nik is the only man to ever make me get out of my own head and enjoy the moment. That makes him a keeper as well.
Kari: What about pets? Do you or Mitch have any, Sunny?
Sunny: Mitch doesn’t have any, but I have a mysterious white cat that came with the ancient Victorian house I bought when I moved to Divinity. He comes and goes as he pleases and takes care of himself. Mitch and Morty don’t really get along, but for me they have come to a truce of sorts.
Kari: What about you, Kalli?
Kalli: I have a prissy calico cat named Priscilla, and Nik has a big, slobbery St. Bernard named Wolfgang. Wolf and I have come to an understanding of sorts, and miraculously, our pets have learned to tolerate each other…for now. Oh! And Nik surprised me with our newest addition, Willow recently, and I’m so happy he did. She’s actually the daughter of Wolf and my best friend’s dog, which makes her extra special.
Kari: Without giving any spoilers away, how did you two meet?
Sunny: We met on a cruise to the Bermuda triangle. Two tickets to paradise is where we thought we were going, but ended up at destination disaster, with a dead body and a lockdown at sea until the murder was solved. Kalli and I made a great team, much to our detectives’ dismay, but they couldn’t stop us from putting our gifts to use.
Kalli: We kept our friendship going after that when I went to visit Sunny and her friends at a cabin in the woods. One thing after the next went wrong, and we ended up back in Divinity, where a woman was murdered and I ended up the number one suspect. Needless to say, my big, fat, Greek family taking over Divinity was a sight to behold.
Kari: No worries there. A little birdie told me Sunny’s family will be making a trip to Clearview soon enough. Well, thank you ladies for telling everyone a little more about yourselves. I can’t wait for everyone to see you two in action!
Remember to comment by 5/7 for a chance to win a signed copy of both my crossover books. It’s been a pleasure 😉 Good luck and happy reading!
Kari Lee Townsend is a National Bestselling Author of mysteries & a tween superhero series. She also writes romance and women’s fiction as Kari Lee Harmon. With a background in English education, she’s now a full-time writer, wife to her own superhero, mom of three sons, one darling diva, one daughter-in-law & two lovable fur babies. These days you’ll find her walking her dogs or hard at work on her next story, living a blessed life.
You can find her on her website, on Instagram, on Twitter here and here, on Facebook here and here, and yes, even on TikTok!
31 Comments
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I love both Sunny’s and Kalli’s series. All of the characters are fun and quirky, and the mysteries are interesting and nicely twisty.
What made you decide to write characters with paranormal abilities?
Awe thanks! I love anything paranormal. It fascinates me. So if I’m going to research something for a book, I figured why not research something I’m genuinely interested in. Good luck 😉
Thank you for the fun interview
New author to me.
Awesome. Hope you get to read some of my books. Good luck 😉
New to me characters, but they do sound interesting. I look forward to reading them.
I sure do have fun writing them! Good luck 😉
These books sound so fun! I love cozy mysteries with humor.
I love writing both series, and the crossover books have been so much fun to write. I have a couple more planned for sure. Good luck 😉
Thank you for sharing!
You’re welcome. Good luck!
love to win the new books.
Good luck to you 😉
Big fan of Kallie’s series! Love all the shenanigans the mamas get up too lol. Great books with a whole lotta laughs while solving some tricky mysteries.
Yay! So glad to hear that. The Greek mamas are a hoot! Good luck.
Sunny being a psychic and Kalli designing lingerie offers a depth of intuitive reasoning from their backgrounds to sprinkle into stories. Owning cats is another form of being introspective and having good listeners. Thanks for the interviews.
You’re very welcome! Thanks for the interesting response and good luck to you 😉
New characters for me and I look forward to reading these.
Awe thank you. They are a blast to write. Good luck;)
Thanks for this opportunity.
You’re welcome and good luck 😉
I would love to read about everyone, especially the Saint Bernard.
I do have fun with the animals 😉 Good luck!
I am always looking for new authors to read. You books sound like the kind I love to read
Awe thank you!! I love mysteries with humor, pets, and a little romance 😉 Good luck to you!
I would enjoy reading one of your books.
New characters for me and I look forward to reading these.
Yay! Good luck to you 😉
I’ve read a couple of Sunny books, but no Kalli – would love to dive into it! Best wishes =)
Oh nice! Good luck to you 😉
New characters for me and I look forward to reading these.
I do love fun, quirky characters! Good luck 😉