Murder’s No Votive Confidence
Nantucket
candle store owner Stella Wright specializes in creating unique candles for
every occasion. But someone sets the stage for murder when a Memorial Day
celebration becomes a wedding to die for . . .
Jessica
Sterlingʼs candlelight-themed nuptial promises to be the perfect kick-off to
the summerʼs first official holiday weekend. Stellaʼs thrilled to have been
chosen to provide the decorative centerpiece for the wedding ceremony: a
two-foot, tall scented unity candle—a symbol of the happy coupleʼs love. But it
looks like the bride-to-beʼs uncle wonʼt be walking his niece down the aisle
after heʼs found dead. The murder weapon is Stellaʼs seemingly indestructible
candle, now split in two.
When
a beloved local bartender is arrested, Stellaʼs sure a visiting police Captain
running the case made a rush to justice. With superstitious brides-to-be
cancelling orders and sales waxing and waning at her store, the Wick &
Flame owner decides to do some sleuthing of her own. Abetted by a charming
reporter and challenged by the townʼs sexiest cop, Stellaʼs determined to shine
a light on the truth and uncover a killer whoʼs snuffing out her own flame.
Islands off the coast of
Massachusetts seem to be my theme this month. Murder’s No Votive Confidence is set on Nantucket, an island east
of Chappaquiddick. This is Christin Brecher’s debut novel in her Nantucket
Candle Maker mystery series. I found it fascinating and had to limit the
questions I asked her about the book, the setting, the characters, and how
those characters related to one another.
Stella Wright is a native of the
island. After college, she returned home and opened a candle shop, the Wick
& Flame. Millie Wright, her mother, has a unique nose that makes her a
perfume expert, and Stella has inherited that trait, which resulted in having
the moniker, The Hound, bestowed on her in seventh grade by Andy Southerland,
now a police officer.
When Stella creates a unity
candle for a wedding ceremony and finds a member of the wedding party murdered,
it isn’t much of a stretch that she noses around to find out whodunnit. And she
has many reasons for wanting to do so.
I’m not going to spoil the
ending, but it was one of the best culminations of a mystery I’ve read in a
long time. Really fun!
Please welcome Christin
Brecher to WWK E.
B. Davis
How far is Nantucket from the
mainland? How long does it take to get there by ferry? Would you describe the
island for our readers?
Nantucket is 30 miles off the coast of Massachusetts. Sometimes referred to as the Gray Lady
because of the fog that often shrouds her, she is small, but mighty! Arriving
to the island feels like a step back in time.
Even when the summer traffic is crazy, and the prices are sky high, the
charm of the island’s aesthetic is timeless with cobblestones on Main Street,
shingled homes, bikes, dogs, and gorgeous beaches. And the ice cream at the Juice Bar is not to
be missed!
When I was a kid, we took a two-hour ferry to get to the
island after a five-hour drive from New York City. It was both torture and magic to spend those
hours on the boat. You realize how far
out to sea you are, and once the small island’s skyline comes into view it
feels as if you’ve found Brigadoon. These
days there’s a fast ferry that takes an hour, and I confess I take it all the
time! Tons of flights, too. But if you have the time and patience, a slow
ride across the seas is worth it.
What is the historical
significance of candles and candle making on Nantucket?
Nantucket became one of the wealthiest communities in
America in the late 18th and early 19th centuries because
of its success in the whaling industry. Nantucketers
discovered the value of spermaceti oil, found in the brain cavity of the sperm
whales. This precious oil was used,
among other things, to make candles which were considered to be the cleanest,
whitest, and longest lasting candles in the world. Fast Fact:
On a recent visit to Nantucket’s Whaling Museum (right across the street
from the Juice Bar!), I learned that at one point the island’s candle industry
accounted for one third of its economy, with exports around the world.
Although Stella has many relatives
on the island, she doesn’t resemble any of them. Why?
Stella is part of a close-knit family that has lived on the
island for generations. They are easy to
spot because of their trademark fair skin and red hair. Stella, however, stands out from the crowd
with her olive complexion and her thick mane of dark, wavy hair.
Her markedly different appearance relates to a mystery in
Stella’s own life – the identity of her father.
Her mother, Millie Wright, was an adventuress in her twenties,
travelling the globe in search of unique scents to make perfumes, her passion. One day, she returned to Nantucket with “a
treasure that trumped them all,” Stella.
Although her mother never talks about Stella’s father, Stella has some
ideas about her roots. Perhaps one day,
she will set off to solve this mystery, too!
The wedding reception is being
held at the Melville Inn. Is the inn based on a real hostelry?
I am too superstitious to set a murder mystery at a place
where so many couple actually have their weddings, so you will not find the
Melville Inn on Nantucket. You can,
however, find a gorgeous hotel that’s pretty darn close: The Wauwinet Hotel.
Jessica Sterling, the bride,
asked her late father’s brother, Uncle Simon, to walk her down the aisle since
her father died. I was surprised she asked him since it seems the brothers were
estranged. Why did she ask him?
Emily tells Stella about the bride’s decision to invite Simon
to walk her down the aisle. A bold choice,
it was made by a gal in search of a fairy tale wedding, replete with family and
tradition. Unfortunately, her father and
her fiancé’s parents have passed away, so her choices for a family member to
stand in are limited, and Uncle Simon wins the honor. Although Simon Sterling
seems, at first, to be a thoroughly unlikable character, there’s more to him
than meets the eye.
Uncle Simon had contraband in
his room—a cat named Tinker. Tinker always shows up at the right place where a
murder clue appears. How does he do that, and does Stella appreciate his
pointers, even though she isn’t fond of cats?
Tinker is a savvy dude who knew the victim, Uncle Simon,
better than anyone at the wedding.
Although Stella has little experience with cats, and their introduction
to each other is less than cordial, she soon realizes that Tinker has one paw
up on everyone. She can’t help but fall
for the little guy.
When Uncle Simon is found
murdered, the weapon appears to be the unity candle Stella made. Would a candle
be strong enough to kill?
A typical taper candle or pillar candle would not be strong
enough to kill a man. Stella’s unity candle,
however, is a force. Designed to be the
centerpiece of the Sterling wedding ceremony, it is two feet high, six inches
in diameter, and made of a strong, dense wax.
Beautifully decorated to match the bride’s beaded gown, it looks
precious. If someone whacked you across
the head with it, however, you wouldn’t stand a chance.
Why did Stella compromise the
crime scene?
The crime scene is a mess.
Eight people who have never seen a murdered man find themselves in the inn’s
Game Room, beside Uncle Simon. They are
shocked by the violence that has taken place at the peaceful Melville Inn, during
the perfectly planned Sterling Wedding weekend.
In a panic, they all make mistakes.
Stella’s is to pick up her unity candle.
Although she quickly realizes her error, her action is a desperate
attempt to erase the fact that her beautiful creation was used as a murder
weapon.
When the bartender, Bill Duffy,
is arrested for the murder, Stella thinks they rushed the arrest and took the
expedient suspect. Since she babysat for Bill and his wife, Maude, who also
works at the inn, Stella thinks she knows the couple. What does she find out
about Bill that makes her break into their house?
As Stella searches for the murderer, she learns that
everyone at the Sterling wedding has a secret.
While the revelation of some of these stories has nothing to do with the
murder, others lead her closer to the killer.
In spite of her affection for Bill and Maude Duffy, Stella learns that
even they have secrets, and she knows she must follow up every lead. As for what she learns? I’d tell you, but…
What is FIGAWI?
The Sterling Wedding takes place Memorial Day weekend, which
is also the weekend of FIGAWI, the island’s one-of-a-kind annual sailing event. FIGAWI stands for “where-the-fug-ah-we?” Now an international event, the race started
decades ago as a dare between two friends who got lost en route from the Cape to
the island, hence the name!
As astute as Stella is, she is
totally blind when it comes to Andy, especially his reactions to her dating new
island journalist, Peter Bailey. Why can’t she see how interested Andy is in
her?
Two words: Friend Zone.
Andy made the mistake of giving Stella an embarrassing nickname, “The
After a few subsequent pranks back and forth,
they settled into a lifelong, but often antagonistic, friendship. Andy is happily dating a woman named
Georgianna when Simon Sterling is killed, while Stella is ready for a new love
in Peter Baily after having suffered a heart-breaking disappointment the year
before. While solving Simon Sterling’s
murder, however, new feelings, perhaps long-buried feelings, begin to bubble
for each of them. I’m curious to see how
these two redefine their friendship now that Stella has discovered her talent for
sleuthing.
Hound,” when she sniffed out a gas leak in science class in seventh grade. Why does Stella take over some of her best friend, Emily Gardner’s duties as an event coordinator for the wedding?
Emily Gardner is Stella’s other life-long
best friend. Emily is married and
expecting her first child’s arrival soon after the Sterling wedding. Unfortunately, third trimester complications
hit her during the weekend event. Because
Stella has been hired to lead the wedding’s candle design and knows the wedding
plans so well, Emily leans on her when things get tricky.
Why does the inn have its own
boat?
The Melville Inn is a swanky spot, with every amenity to
make the guests’ stay special. The launch
is one example. Since the inn is secluded,
but on the harbor, it’s faster to shuttle guests to town via a launch than by
car. On board, they can enjoy the
sparkling waters, while reaching town in only minutes
How do you name your characters,
which are perfect, BTW?
Thank you!
I have fun naming characters, especially after I’ve spent
time with them. Often the names spring
to mind, but Stella Wright was a calculated decision. Stella means star in Italian, and I
just wonder if Millie had that in mind when she named her daughter. Wright is inspired by the right whales, which
launched the island’s famous trade.
These whales used to swim off the shores of Nantucket and were named
because they were “the right whale to kill.”
If you are familiar with Nantucket, you will also notice
that a couple of names (eg. Gardner) are old island names, but all of the
characters are fictional – none of them based on people I know.
Your cover art is enticing. Did
you have any input into its creation?
I had no input on the cover, but the designers at Kensington
know exactly how to design a cozy mystery, I agree! My favorite part of the cover is the title
image, which is inspired by the quarter board signs which are common on
Nantucket. Best of all, this title
design is going to be featured on each book.
What’s next for Stella and her
cronies?
You’ll find out on February 25th, when the
Nantucket Candle Maker Mysteries continue with Murder Makes Scents!
Stella and her globe-trotting mom,
Millie come home from a perfume industry conference in Paris, where their trip
was marred by witnessing the stabbing death of a young man. It’s a relief for
Stella to be back on her picturesque island, with the comforting company of her
cat, Tinker. But lingering danger may have followed them back across the ocean.
After someone breaks into her candle
store, the Wick & Flame, Stella starts feeling spooked. Their croissants
continue to crumble when Millie suffers a blow to the head. Stella receives an
anonymous note claiming that her mother smuggled a secret formula out of
France—and threatening her life if it isn’t returned. Now Stella’s picked up
the scent of a cold-hearted criminal and an intriguing puzzle, and things are
about to get wicked.
