Blog tour ~ guest post: A Mirror Murder by Helen Hollick

I am delighted to have Helen as a guest today  ~ thanks to Rachel’s Random Resources for organizing.

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Genre: Cozy Mystery/ slight historical (set in the 1970s)

Publication Date: 2021

Estimated Page Count: 140

Standalone First book in the Jan Christopher mystery series

The Detail Behind The Jan Christopher Murder Mysteries

By Helen Hollick

So why Cosy Mysteries? The obvious answer is ‘Why not?’ but that would make this a very short article wouldn’t it?

I enjoy well-acted, good scripted TV mysteries – Morse, Lewis, Foyle’s War, Vera – but these are more serious Police Crime dramas. Poirot, Miss Marple, Father Brown and such have always appealed to me, possibly, I think, because they have more of an historical setting. (Apart from the Morse spinoff, Endeavour set in the 1960s and ’70s.) The main enjoyment being to work out ‘whodunit’ before the TV cop or amateur sleuth manages to do it.

Bookwise, the Cosy Mystery has recently become very popular., especially for talented Indie Published writers. (I must admit to being a tad miffed that so many Celebs are jumping on the money-making bandwagon, especially when most are ghost written anyway.) Usually, the Cosy Mystery is a quick, easy read, concentrating on an amateur solving a crime rather than a detailed police procedure novel. More often than not, as well, they, at least as far as the UK market goes, are set in a St Mary Mead type quiet English village, where, as my character DC Lawrence Walker claims in the first in my series, A Mirror Murder, that the average most notable crime is who stole the village notice board! Until murder strikes, of course.

For quite some while I had been contemplating writing something where I could use my twelve or so years working as a public library assistant during the 1970s. As we went into the first Covid lockdown I decided to venture into writing something different to the books I’d already published. This was it, I was going to use anecdotes from those library days and write a cosy mystery. I had a couple of ideas for usable plots, based around the memory of people who regularly came into the library, colleagues and various events that, despite the years in between, I clearly recalled – some because they were hilarious (no spoilers!) others because they were frustrating or annoying. (Anyone who works with the public will know exactly what I mean!)

As I started writing, two things became apparent.

“The 1970s. Shouldn’t be a problem,” I thought. After all, it wouldn’t be like writing about and researching some of my other novels set in the era of 1066 or the early 1700s would it? How wrong I was!

I remember the 1970s, of course I do, I was 17 in 1970. There were no mobile phones, no computers, no internet – no Facebook or Instagram! Most households here in the UK had only one TV – black and white, colour was still quite new. One telephone, usually in the hall. If a private conversation was essential (with a boyfriend without your parents or Little Sister listening) had to be made from a public telephone box. Few of us drove. Very few households had more than one car, and ‘dad’ usually did the driving. Plus women did not play football, cricket or rugby!

The police were starting to use Scene Of Crime Officers and radio communication, but the norm was the blue police telephone box… yes, the Dr Who TARDIS! But when writing something where readers would notice inaccuracies, simple ‘remembering’ was not enough. I soon discovered that just as much research as writing something set in post-Roman Britain was just as essential.

What brand of floor cleaner was used? What chocolate bars were popular? What movies? (Except we called them ‘films’, back then and we went to the cinema or pictures, not the ‘movies’!) What meal would be on the menu in a typical English pub? (Prawn Cocktail, followed by Chicken in a Basket, probably.) I found the research challenging, but enjoyable. I’m not saying I’ve managed to get every detail right, but I’ve done my best to be faithful to memory.

I think Jan and her co-stars would approve.

Book blurb:

The first in a series of quick-read, cozy mysteries set during the 1970s in North East London and North Devon, featuring the characters of Jan Christopher, her Aunt Madge, her uncle, DCI Toby Christopher and romantic interest DC Lawrence Walker – plus several other endearing, regular characters.

The background of Jan’s career as a library assistant is based on the author’s own library years during the 1970s, using many borrowed (often hilarious!) anecdotes, her life in suburban north east London on the edge of Epping Forest, and her present life in rural North Devon…

July 1971
Eighteen-year-old library assistant Jan Christopher’s life is to change on a rainy evening, when her legal guardian and uncle, DCI Toby Christopher, gives her a lift home after work. Driving the car, is her uncle’s new Detective Constable, Lawrence Walker – and it is love at first sight for the young couple. But romance is soon to take a back seat when a baby boy is taken from his pram, a naked man is scaring young ladies in nearby Epping Forest, and an elderly lady is found, brutally murdered… Are the events related? How will they affect the staff and public of the local library where Jan works – will romance survive and blossom between library assistant Jan Christopher and DC Walker? Or will a brutal murder intervene?

“I sank into this gentle cosy mystery story with the same enthusiasm and relish as I approach a hot bubble bath, (in fact this would be a great book to relax in the bath with!), and really enjoyed getting to know the central character…” Debbie Young bestselling cozy mystery author

“Jan is a charming heroine. You feel you get to know her and her love of books and her interest in the people in the library where she works. She’s also funny, and her Aunt Madge bursts with character – the sort of aunt I would love to have had. I remember the 70s very well and Ms Hollick certainly gives a good flavour of the period.” Denise Barnes (bestselling romance author Molly Green)

“A delightful read about an unexpected murder in North East London. Told from the viewpoint of a young library assistant, the author draws on her own experience to weave an intriguing tale” Richard Ashen (South Chingford Community Library)

“Lots of nostalgic, well-researched, detail about life in the 1970s, which readers of a certain age will lap up; plus some wonderful, and occasionally hilarious, ‘behind the counter’ scenes of working in a public library, which any previous or present-day library assistant will recognise!” Reader’s Review

AMAZON UNIVERSAL BUY LINK: https://getbook.at/MirrorMurder

Episode 2: A MYSTERY OF MURDER

 set in rural Devon, Christmas 1971

Library Assistant Jan Christopher is to spend Christmas in Devon with her boyfriend, DS Laurie Walker and his family, but when a murder is discovered, followed by a not very accidental accident, the traditional Christmas spirit is somewhat marred…What happened to Laurie’s ex-girlfriend? Where is the vicar’s wife? Who took those old photographs? And will the farmer up the lane ever mend those broken fences?

“There are lots of things to enjoy in the second in the Jan Christopher cosy mystery series” Best-selling cozy mystery author Debbie Young

“A laid back sort of novel, the kind that you can relax while reading, and simply let the story happen. This author has a particularly unique style of writing… this book wasn’t simply a story, but an experience. You almost have the feeling that the author is reading the book to you, and is adding in her own little quips every now and again. I loved every second… The whole mystery is well thought out… utterly amazing!” Review: I Got Lost In A Book Blog

“The pace is gently cosy, despite the murder… Jan is a wonderful character; young, naïve, but also savvy when needed. And Laurie is a gem. All the characters and their foibles and actions stay true to the era… a lovely, warm story.” Review: Ruins & Reading

More in the series:

Episode 3 A MISTAKE OF MURDER

Was murder deliberate – or a tragic mistake?

Episode 4 A MEADOW MURDER

Make hay while the sun shines? But what happens when a murder is discovered, and country life is disrupted?

Episode 5 A MEMORY OF MURDER

A missing girl, annoying decorators, circus performers and a wanna-be rock star to deal with. But who remembers the brutal, cold case murder of a policeman?

Episode 6 A MISCHIEF OF MURDER

The village Flower and Veg Show should be a fun annual event – but who added mischief and murder to the traditional schedule?

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Purchase Links

A Mirror Murder Amazon Universal Link https://getbook.at/MirrorMurder

Amazon Author Page Universal Link: https://viewauthor.at/HelenHollick

Author Bio –

About Helen:

Known for her captivating storytelling and rich attention to historical detail, Helen’s historical fiction, nautical adventure series, cosy mysteries – and her short stories – skilfully invite readers to step into worlds where the boundaries between fact and  fiction blend together.

Helen started writing as a teenager, but after discovering a passion for history, was initially published in 1993 in the UK with her Arthurian Pendragon’s Banner Trilogy and two Anglo-Saxon novels about the events that led to the 1066 Battle of Hastings, one of which, The Forever Queen (USA title – A Hollow Crown in the UK) became a USA Today best-seller. Her Sea Witch Voyages are nautical-based adventures inspired by the Golden Age of Piracy. She also writes the Jan Christopher cosy mystery series set during the 1970s, and based around her, sometimes hilarious, years of working as a North London library assistant. Her 2025 release is Ghost Encounters, a book about the ghosts of North Devon – even if you don’t believe in ghosts you might enjoy the snippets of interesting history and the many location photograhs.

Helen and her family moved from London to Devon after a Lottery win on the opening night of the London Olympics, 2012. She spends her time glowering at the overgrown garden, fending off the geese, chasing the peacocks away from her roses, helping with the horses and wishing the friendly, resident ghosts would occasionally help with the housework…

Social Media Links –

Website: https://helenhollickauthor.blogspot.com/

Facebook: 

https://www.facebook.com/helen.hollick

Twitter/X: @HelenHollick   https://x.com/HelenHollick

Blog: supporting authors & their books

https://ofhistoryandkings.blogspot.com

Bluesky:

@helenhollick.bsky.social

Monthly ‘newsletter’ blog:

Thoughts from a Devonshire Farmhouse.

https://thoughtsfromadevonshirefarmhouse.blogspot.com

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