Deception in Mariposa Beach by Teresa Michael is a Cozy Mystery Event pick #cozymystery #giveaway
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    • Oct 15, 2020
    • 6 min read

Deception in Mariposa Beach by Teresa Michael is a Cozy Mystery Event pick #cozymystery #giveaway



Title: Deception in Mariposa Beach

Author: Teresa Michael

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Book Blurb:

Welcome back to Mariposa Beach for the third book in the Mariposa Café Mystery Series, where it’s all about fun Florida mysteries featuring fearless, female sleuths.

There’s a new, big-time New York City director in town–Jerry Mann–but whether or not he’ll live to see opening night of the play he’s there to direct isn’t a guarantee. With several new crimes to solve that appear to have followed Mr. Mann to Mariposa Beach, Libby Marshall, a former prosecutor, and her super-hot detective boyfriend, Jack Seiler, will need all the help they can get from the quirky crew and patrons of the Mariposa Café.

But, this time, it’s more than a little personal for Libby. Her Aunt Julia appears to have a mysterious past with Jerry Mann, and it’s looking like a past that will have a major impact on Libby’s future.

The Mariposa Café Mysteries are Friends meets Miami Vice.

Excerpt:

Libby Marshall stood in the back of the theater, waiting for her cousin, David Bailey, to finish rehearsal. He had the lead role in the Mariposa Players Sunset Theater production of The Drowsy Chaperone. When David called and asked if she could pick him up from rehearsal, Libby was happy to do so and headed to the theater after she closed the café a little after six. As the co-owner of the Mariposa Café, located two blocks from the beach in their southwest Florida town of Mariposa Beach, she wasn’t far away from the theater, at all.

David ambled up the aisle, his backpack slung over his shoulder. “Thanks for picking me up and letting me stay at your house. It saves me a long drive home and then a drive back to school just a few hours later.”

“You’re welcome to stay at my house anytime,” Libby said, totally agreeing that there was no reason for him to drive the forty miles to Longboat Key where he lived with his mother, Libby’s Aunt Julia, and then back to Mariposa Beach where he was a theater arts teacher at the Performing Arts School.

They jogged across the gravel parking lot through the pelting rain to Libby’s Jeep. David threw his bag into the back seat and slid into the passenger seat. Libby pulled the drivers’ door closed, wiped the rain off her face, and started the car.

“Miserable night,” she said, putting the car in gear. “The bridge was a little slick when I came across.”

Originally a church, the Sunset Theater stood on a lush barrier island with enviable frontage on the Gulf of Mexico famous for beautiful sunset vistas, thus the name Sunset Theater. Located south of Mariposa Beach, a narrow bridge was the only entrance at the northernmost point of the island; however, a more substantial bridge provided southern access to the island’s beaches and residences.

“Jerry borrowed my car. Living in New York, he doesn’t drive very often. I warned him about that bridge before he left to meet Mom at the Crow’s Nest,” David said.

Jerry Mann was the visiting director contracted for the spring musical at the Sunset Theater. Jerry had directed David in a couple of Broadway plays when David lived and worked in New York City.

“What happened to his rental car?” Libby asked.

“He had a problem with the brakes, so he had the rental agency pick up the car at The Inn, but they didn’t have another to give him tonight,” David said and yawned. “He didn’t want to miss this dinner. He’s trying to make amends with Mom for past misdeeds.”

“Do you know what happened between them back in the day?” Libby asked.

“I have an idea, but I don’t know for sure.”

“They were involved, right?” Libby asked, glanced at David, then returned her eyes to the road ahead.

“I think she ended up with a broken heart, and he’s here thirty-five years later, begging for her forgiveness.”

“What do you think his chances are of making up with her? Aunt Julia does tend to hold a grudge. We’ve both been on the wrong end of that stick. She was sure mad at us for not warning her that Jerry was in town after he showed up at the café looking for you three weeks ago.”

“I got an ear full about it. But, Mom agreed to have dinner with him, so that’s something,” David said. “I’m trying to stay out of my mother’s love life.”

“You looked good up there on stage,” Libby said, figuring it was time to change the subject.


David sighed. “It’s been a while. I must admit I do miss being on stage.”

It had been a little over two years since David had relocated to Mariposa Beach from New York, about a year after Libby had moved to Florida from Ohio. And she was so glad he was there.

“How’s rehearsal going?” she asked.

David shook his head. “There’s a lot of tension on the set. You can feel it in the air.”

“Really? With whom?”

“Primarily between Sanford Reed, the theater’s creative director, and Executive Producing Director and CEO, Mr. Gleason, but I’m not exactly sure what’s going on. Creative differences, I guess. Jerry seems to be trying to steer clear of it all.”

“Wise move. That kind of tension can surely make for a difficult few weeks and probably results in not the best performances.”

David gave a little snort, laid his head against the seat and closed his eyes.

Approaching the narrow bridge, Libby slowed down. No oncoming lights were visible from the opposite side, but she caught a sudden flash behind her and checked the rearview mirror. Blinding headlights appeared, bearing down on them way too fast.

“Holy crap! What’s this guy doing?”

David sat up with a start. “What?”

“He’s trying to pass us.” Libby braked and began to steer toward the right.

“On the bridge? That’s crazy!” David turned to look out the back. The truck’s headlights illuminated his face like a spotlight.

Libby braked harder and tried to move onto the shoulder to allow the truck to pass. She heard the shrill scrape of metal as the large pick-up truck sideswiped the Jeep, pushing it into a skid. The truck sped across the bridge as the Jeep slammed through the guardrail and over the side. They slid down the short embankment, coming to rest with a body-shaking thud against a concrete post, and then sank into the mud at the edge of the canal.

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Why is your featured book a must-read?

Deception in Mariposa Beach is the third book in the Mariposa Café Mystery Series. It’s a fun Florida mystery that picks up with Libby and the quirky residents of Mariposa Beach as they welcome a famous New York director to town. Accidents and trouble plague the production and when Jerry Mann, the director, is assaulted, Libby’s Aunt Julia is arrested and family secrets revealed. Will Jerry wake up from his coma before another attack on a cast member? Can Libby figure out who’s responsible before opening night? There’s humor, romance, a ghost, a mysterious past and life-changing family secrets are revealed, and, of course, musical theater.

Giveaway –

Enter to win an e-book bundle of all 42 books featured in the Cozy Mystery Bookish Event:

Open Internationally.

Runs October 13 – 19, 2020.

Winner will be drawn on October 23, 2020.


Author Biography:

Teresa Michael has always loved a good mystery and has turned her love of writing and mystery stories into the Mariposa Café mystery series. She likes to read and belongs to a book club whose members have pushed her out of her comfort zone into enjoying all genres, though a good mystery or thriller is still her first choice.

She loves to travel and has visited forty-nine states having spent nine years on the road working for a healthcare software vendor. She also spent many years as the Team Manager of the U.S. Archery team for the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia, and the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, as well as other international tournaments all over the world.

She recently retired from a career in healthcare and lives in Sarasota, Florida, with her husband and two cats, Lily and Lido. She enjoys visiting her children and grandchildren and spending time with her family creating new memories. She’s busy on the next Mariposa Café mystery, developing a new mystery series, planning the next trip, and still trying to get to that fiftieth state

Social Media Links:

Instagram: @teresamichael1

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