My Spooky News-Day!

You’ve heard of things stranger than fiction? Well, this is one of those tales.

On 1st October, the news pinged into my inbox that A Whiff of Herbal Murder had started its final publication journey. And as chance would have it, I was due to lunch with my two best friends from school days ‒ who both, incidentally, share the same names.

I almost turned up at the wrong venue, as we normally meet at a garden centre. But it was a birthday meet, and my friends wanted to visit the Old Watermill in Barton for lunch.

It’s a beautiful drive from our house to the mill, the road skirting ‘The Clappers’: a sweep of majestic hills topped with trees. My friends and I arrived together and set out for our usual café venue ‒ with a diversion via the Ladies. If we hadn’t made that diversion, we would never have seen the new herbal tea room: The Savvy Herbalist Apothecary. Its owner serves delicious lunches and snacks, herbal teas and coffees as well as the usual varieties, and takes consultations during the morning.

An odd coincidence, considering the title of my book. We ventured in and were made most welcome.

The plot thickens. The room was enticingly full of jars and bottles, tinctures and tea leaves … and books, books, books, plus a wonderful apothecary’s cabinet. Our lovely hostess invited us to browse a book while we lunched. Perfect! I selected what I thought was a boxed book on herbs; it turned out to be a set of herb cards, all with the same anonymous backs, all face down. I could never have anticipated what followed.

The first card I turned over was Camomile; and if you’ve read my story, you’ll know its significance. The other was the story’s ‘poison’ herb: the villain of my piece.

It was a strange, cosmic welcome for my little book, and made the day so special. All I needed was a tea-leaf reading to finish it! I had a Prosecco instead.

Here’s to my first cosy mystery, born on a spooky day at the beginning of October. And to its readers, with a big thank you from me for having faith in it.

Cheers x
Susan