by: Rosie Genova
Series: An Italian Kitchen Mystery
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Release Date: September 30, 2022
Publisher: Two Roses Books
When a Halloween stalker shows up on Mischief Night, Vic encounters lots of tricks, no treats, and one murder …
It’s the post-summer season in Oceanside Park, and mystery writer Victoria Rienzi’s hometown is preparing for one last blast on the boardwalk—its annual Mischief Night parade, held the evening before Halloween. While Nonna keeps her busy making treat bags full of Italian candy, Vic dreams up the perfect costumes for herself and Tim: Nick and Nora Charles, the famed detective pair from The Thin Man movies. Completing their look is a canine scamp, Willie, borrowed to play the part of Nora’s pet terrier.
But Victoria’s excitement is dimmed by the presence of a stalker, Edward Millman, who’s seen lurking around the Rienzi family restaurant. And who shows up at the Mischief Night parade dressed as Victoria’s book sleuth, Bernardo Vitali. But halfway through the parade, Willie sniffs out trouble, leading Vic and Tim on a not-so-merry chase that brings them to a dead body—Victoria’s stalker, Edward Millman. And in a scene straight out of Victoria’s latest book, Millman is found with a knife sticking from his chest, along with a nasty note: You deserved this.
As Vic digs into the details of the victim’s life, she wonders: Is it life imitating art? Or is there a more deadly form of mischief at work this Halloween?
Halloween Post
My new release, Minestrone Mischief, is a Halloween story, one I have wanted to write for some time. It was great fun for me to add seasonal details, a costume parade, and Mischief Night pranks because I have always loved Halloween. Even as an adult, I fall under its spell: The spooky feeling on a chilly fall night when there's a big yellow harvest moon outside my window. Seeing my neighborhood come alive with tiny witches, fairies, robots, and superheroes. (And let’s not forget candy corn.) But the way I really jump into the scary season is with a few of my favorite Halloween films.
Once that calendar page turns to October, I begin scouring the cable channels and streaming platforms to plan which ones to watch. Be advised, however, I avoid gore at all costs. And no zombies, please! I like to be scared, but only a little—in fact, my taste runs to the classics. And my go-to Halloween movie is that lovely old chestnut, Arsenic and Old Lace. The opening title, “This is a Halloween tale of Brooklyn, where anything can happen and it usually does,” sets the scene for a wonderful black-and-white rendering of a neighborhood full of old houses, lots of fluttering leaves, and an old cemetery.
For those who don’t know the film, Cary Grant plays Mortimer Brewster, the most “normal” person in a rather quirky family of two elderly aunts, a cousin who thinks he’s Teddy Roosevelt, and a psychopath criminal brother who turns up at the worst of moments.
Cary Grant with Jean Adair and Josephine Hull
The 1944 film, directed by Frank Capra, is a comedy, but a dark one. (Let’s just say when Mortimer discovers what his aunts have hidden in the window seat, the real Halloween fun begins.) The movie has plenty of laugh-out-loud moments, but genuine chills as well. For me, Arsenic and Old Lace provides the perfect combination of shivers and coziness. What about you, friends? Is there a Halloween classic you like to watch—or read—during the month of October?
Purchase Minestrone Mischief from:
An Italian Kitchen Mystery Series:
The Wedding Soup Murder ~ Review
A Dish Best Served Cold ~ Review
Places to find Rosie Genova:
You can follow Minestrone Mischief Blog Tour here.
Hey Kim! Thanks so much for sharing my blog post about one of my old favorites. And Happy Halloween!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome.
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