Fake Death (A Dotty Sayers Antique Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Kanga Press (April 8, 2022)
Number of Pages c. 240

Synopsis

A dead body. Multiple disguises. Can an amateur sleuth see through the charade – or become a tragic victim?

 

Young military widow, Dotty Sayers, is delighted with her new job at an auction house in Britain’s picturesque Cotswolds. She agrees to take part in a Remembrance parade to commemorate her husband and his fallen comrades. But drama ensues when an unknown soldier is found dead.

Dotty assists the police and appraises objects found at the victim’s house, but rather than identifying the deceased, she discovers numerous personas. When a suspect is arrested, and Dotty is asked to look after Earl Grey, a British Blue cat, she realizes appearances can be deceiving. Can she track down the real culprit and prevent an innocent man from being imprisoned?

Can Dotty unmask the killer without putting her own life at risk?

Fake Death is the first book in the captivating Dotty Sayers Antique Mystery series. If you like intriguing mysteries, entertaining characters and the glorious British countryside, then you’ll adore Victoria Tait’s enthralling tale.

Buy Fake Death and unmask a killer today!

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Guest Post

Should a Main Character Stay the Same or Change During a Series?

I enjoy writing in series and as I get to know my characters, I start to understand their habits, their likes, and their dislikes, and I can begin to have some fun with them.

In my first series, The Kenya Kanga Mysteries, my protagonist, ‘Mama Rose’ is in her golden years and already an intelligent, resourceful yet charitable woman.  She doesn’t change during the books, although she shows plenty of emotion when events occur around her, particularly when they involve her family and her terminally ill husband.

Many of the Golden-age crime writers wrote characters who remained the same.  Like Mama Rose, Miss Marple is a silver-haired amateur sleuth who observes rather than participates in local village events, and although she invariably identifies the culprit, his or her crime does not affect the elderly detective.

Poirot is similar, although the new Death on the Nile film attempts to add some backstory and create a resonance with viewers.  I like the changes, although I know many die-hard Christie fans do not.

Dorothy L Sayers’ Lord Peter Wimsey does not, in my opinion, change but the way the readers see him does.   In Gaudy Night, where he interacts with Harriet Vane, we learn there are depths to his seemingly foolish character not previously revealed, and that these are being utilised by the British intelligence services.

When I thought about my new Dotty Sayers Antique Mystery series, I wanted to push myself and write a female lead who does change and grow through the books.  I believe it is important to continue to study, learn and develop my writing craft so I can write books which increasingly appeal to readers, and hopefully sell more copies!

In the prequel, Hour is Come, which readers can download for free from my website, VictoriaTait.com, my main character, Dorothy Sayers, known as Dotty, is only 28 and she recently lost her husband in a military peacekeeping operation.

Alasdair, or Al, her husband, was 15 years her senior and she married him when she was in her late teens.  Her father had been controlling and she married a similar, domineering man.  Further, being part of the military community, many of the usual life tasks such as searching for accommodation, and organising workmen were done for her.

She is naïve and some readers have complained she is weak, but that is not so.  She is submissive, kind, and happy to please, so she concentrated on cooking, gardening, and maintaining a home for her husband.

She does not look after herself or buy fashionable new clothes.  Al thought such things a waste of money and he told her she did not need to impress him.  He kept her short of money, as a way to control her, so she learned to be frugal and resourceful, traits which start to surface as she investigates crimes.

On the death of her husband, in Hour is Come, she had to choose between returning to live with her controlling father and emotionally absent mother, or finding a job and live on her own.

Dotty continues her journey in Fake Death as life throws obstacles in her way and she has to decide whether to accept the security and comfort of the military life she is comfortable with, or throw off its shackles, and make her own way.

Join Dotty and find out what decision she makes, while at the same time, she pieces together clues to identify a double murderer in Fake Death.

About the Author

Victoria Tait is an exciting new author launching her Kenya Kanga Mystery series.  She’s drawn on 8 years living in rural Kenya with her family to transport her readers to a world of curiosity, community, and conspiracy.  The Kenya Kanga Mystery series brings to life the beauty of the Kenyan landscape, the magic of its wildlife, and the warmth of its people.

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