"Spackled and Spooked" made the IMBA list!

The Independent Mystery Booksellers Association's bestsellers for August 2009:

Softcover

1 – Steig Larsson, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Vintage
2 – Aaron Elkins, Uneasy Relations, Berkley
3 – Juliet Blackwell, Secondhand Spirits, Berkley
4 – Michael Connelly, The Brass Verdict, Little Brown
5 - Rhys Bowen, A Royal Pain, Berkley
6 – tie
Elizabeth Lynn Casey, Sew Deadly, Berkley
Jennie Bentley, Spackled and Spooked, Berkley
8 – Ellen Crosby, The Bordeaux Betrayal, Pocket
9 - Deborah Crombie, Where Memories Lie, Avon
10 – Michael Koryta, Envy the Night, St. Martin’s


Woot! Woot! Woot!

It's all about MEEEEE!

OK, so I've been bad about taking pictures of all the fun stuff that's been happening to me lately. The launch party at Sherlock's Books in Lebanon went by without pictures. The signing at Davis-Kidd, ditto, along with - of course - the TV interview. There were people taking pictures at Killer Nashville last weekend, but I wasn't among them, so if there are pictures of me floating around out there, I haven't seen'em. I also forgot the camera when I did Evening with an Author at Tinney Contemporary last Thursday night.

But today, I remembered the camera. I even remembered to put batteries in it before I left. Therefore, I am able to give you the following three photos from Mysteries and More, the only bona fide "mysteries only" bookstore in Nashville!

Here I am with Mary and Gregg Bruss, the lovely owners of Mysteries and More; thank you so much for having me!

Here I am with my independent publicist, Tom Robinson from Author and Book Media, without whom Spackled and Spooked as well as Fatal Fixer-Upper would be in a lot fewer places.

And here I am with one of the many lovely folks who came out to support me and Mysteries and More by buying one or both of my books! Thanks so much to all of you!

If you're interested in an autographed copy of Fatal Fixer-Upper or Spackled and Spooked, talk to Greg and Mary; they've got'em! You can order from Mysteries and More right HERE.

That's it for now; I'm done with signings and appearances until the Southern Festival of Books in October. It's time to get busy writing DIY#4, tentatively titled Mortar and Murder.

Catch you later!

Woo-Hoo!!!

"Spackled and Spooked" hit #5 on Barnes and Noble's bestseller lists this week. That's up six places from last year, when "Fatal Fixer-Upper" hit #11. We've not only broken into the Top 10, but the Top 5!

Here it is, from the tower at Barnes and Noble in Hendersonville, Tennessee, where the fine folks were happy to have me sign stock last week. Notice the stellar company I'm keeping. And notice especially the cover of "Sew Deadly," across and two spaces down from "Spackled and Spooked," in the lower right hand corner of the picture

"Sew Deadly" was written by my fellow Good Girl and Berkley Babe, Laura Bradford, AKA Elizabeth Lynn Casey, and it was released on the same day as "Spackled and Spooked." It's the first in the Southern Sewing Circle mysteries, also from Berkley Prime Crime. Best of luck to Laura/Elizabeth Lynn on her release!

So there you have it. And if you were among the many nice people who bought "Spackled and Spooked" at a Barnes and Noble near you in the past week, thanks for your help in making my book a best seller! I couldn't be happier!

Enter to win

Want a signed copy of "Fatal Fixer-Upper"? Or a signed copy of "Spackled and Spooked" (once I get my hands on one)?

Here's your chance. Sign up for my newsletter anytime between right now and August 4th, 2009 - when "Spackled and Spooked" hits shelves - and you could be the lucky winner! I'll pick one name at random and send copies of "Spackled and Spooked" and "Fatal Fixer-Upper," as well as a subscription to DIY-Ideas Magazine, where Avery (and I) get lots of our renovating ideas!

Here's the place to go: Newsletter

Be sure to respond to the email that comes your way, confirming that yes, you do want to receive Jennie Bentley's (very infrequent) newsletter.

Thanks, y'all! And good luck!

Check me out, I'm on BookPage!

Many of you may not know this, since I didn't myself until last year, but venerable BookPage - you know, the newspaper-looking magazine you pick up at your local library - is headquartered here in Nashville.

Last fall, just before the release of "Fatal Fixer-Upper," I had occasion to visit their offices and meet with the fine folks over there. At the time, they promised me they'd put me on their then-in-progress brand new website.

So I waited, and waited, and waited some more.

I'd almost given up hope, but now, just in time for the release of "Spackled and Spooked," they're ready! You can check out my article HERE, and while you're on the BookPage website anyway, be sure to have a look at everything else, as well. Lots of good stuff there!

Interview with Tom Robinson, Author & Book Media, re Spackled and Spooked

Q & A With Author Jennie Bentley on Spackled and Spooked
(Penguin Berkley Prime Crime, August release)


Q--How does Avery Baker grow or change in this sequel from the debut book Fatal fixer-upper?

A--Avery is still Avery, you know. A little neurotic and insecure, a little too worried about her boyfriend’s perfect ex-wife, and still adjusting to life in a small town in Maine after spending her life so far in New York City. But she has gained some confidence as a renovator since tackling her aunt’s house, and she has realized that some of her wilder ideas may not always be the way to go. I think she’s a little mellower now, not as determined to prove herself or as inclined to see everything that happens as a threat to her identity. As her relationship with Derek develops and deepens, she becomes more sure of herself, of who she is and what she wants from her life. She’s growing up a little, and settling more comfortably into her new life.

Q--Did you know how Spackled and Spooked would end before you started writing it?

A--When we’re talking about traditional mysteries, they pretty much always end the same way. The sleuth, in this case Avery, figures out who the bad guy is, why he did what he did, and then the police show up and arrest him. Or her. I knew from the beginning who the murderer was and why he killed his first victim. I didn’t know until I got to the end of the book how Avery would figure things out or how the final confrontation would take place. That all develops as I write. But I usually have at least a pretty good idea where I want to end up before I start, as it’s hard to get to where you’re going unless you know where that is.

Q--Because of your background of fixing up homes, did you know the details of the home repairs outlined in this book?

A--I’ve renovated my share of bathrooms over the years, yeah. (That’s the project in this book. In Fatal fixer-upper, all the projects were kitchen related; in Spackled and Spooked, they deal with bathrooms. In the next book, which comes in May 2010, we’re talking romantic bedroom.)

I tend not to do my own plumbing or electrical work—there’s too much scope for disaster there, and good reasons why plumbers and electricians are supposed to be licensed—but as far as the cosmetics go, I’ve been there and done that. We’ve got directions for a few different paint techniques, brown-paper-bagging walls, installing a vessel sink—or, Avery being Avery, a salad bowl—and turning a piece of furniture, in this case a chest of drawers, into a sink base.

Q--Since you've been writing the series, what have been some of the varying comments you've received about this DYI/Home Renovation mystery genre?

A--Most people I hear from write to tell me they enjoyed the book. Since I don’t really hear from the people who don’t, it’s all been good.

Home renovation is such a big thing right now, that the books seem to resonate with a lot of people. One of the comments that stuck with me, was someone who told me that while she’s addicted to HGTV—just the target audience my publisher was looking for!—she appreciates the way the projects in my books relate to real people. Most folks don’t have several square miles of granite in their kitchen, or an extra $20,000 to drop into a bathroom renovation, and the fact that the tips in my books are designed for real people, and that Avery and Derek do their fixing up on a normal, and if possible frugal, budget, gives the books broad appeal.

Oh yes, and then someone e-mailed me to say that my book reminded them of the early writings of Elizabeth Peters, my all-time favorite author, which just totally made my day!

Q--How long did it take you to write Spackled and Spooked?

A--Spackled and Spooked wrote itself, pretty much. Seriously, it was a very easy book to write. I guess the first draft took 2-3 months, and then another couple of months to revise, get feedback, and revise again. And then I had to do another round of revisions six months later, after my editor had a chance to read the manuscript and send me her thoughts. That’s the usual time it takes me to write a book. Start to finish in under six months, and then another year after that for the publisher to get the cover art and type setting and various incarnations of proof editing done.


Media contact:

Tom Robinson tcr811@aol.com 615-794-2998; http://www.authorandbookmedia.com/

Megan Swartz Megan.Swartz@us.penguingroup.com 212-366-2155

Behold: the cover of Spackled and Spooked!

I got this from my editor today. Isn't it pretty? Like the first one, this is done by Paperdog Studio, and they did a fabulous job! Both cats made it onto this cover: that's Jemmy behind the blue bowl and Inky hanging from the shower ring. And check out the sinister shadow in the old mirror! Don't you love it?!