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Murder by the Millions book tour includes a fun interview with the author and a giveaway below. Share, comment, subscribe to Sarandipity’s.
Book Details
Murder by the Millions (A Literary Dining Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
2nd in Series
Setting – North Carolina
Publisher : Kensington Cozies
Publication date : October 28, 2025
Print length : 320 pages
ISBN-10 : 1496748204
ISBN-13 : 978-1496748201
Digital ISBN-13 : 978-1496748225
ASIN : B0DX58P859
Audiobook ASIN B0DW5MKYKZ
Audio CD ISBN-13 : 979-8228545793
In a beautiful mountain community near Asheville, North Carolina, caterer and personal chef Allie Catt serves up mouthwatering, literary-themed dinner parties inspired by her clients’ favorite books. Her next event is sure to be a roaring success—if a murderer isn’t a killjoy . . .
If it were true that the best thing a girl can be in this world is a fool, then Allie Catt would be out of luck. Fortunately, Allie’s business is a smashing success. And following her Pride and Prejudice event, grander plans await . . .
Feast for the Eyes bookstore manager and Allie’s best friend, Tegan, is hosting a book club soiree and wants it to be a glittering affair based on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s iconic Jazz Age-set novel, The Great Gatsby. Soon, Art Deco table settings and visions of flappers are dancing the Charleston in their heads. Even Tegan’s prickly sister, Vanna, is on board. And surely, Allie’s tuxedo cat, Darcy, thinks it’s the cat’s meow.
Amid the planning, charismatic developer Jason Gardner arrives in town to buy some historic buildings on Main Street. He, too, has plans: to create a modern mall. Allie is more than concerned. She even wants to protest. But when Jason invites her to cater a lavish party, she finds him surprisingly likable. Then she’s summoned to his estate for a meeting—and finds him dead.
Once again Allie’s landed in the middle of a crime scene. Worse, one of her earrings is later discovered near the body. And when police learn she was upset about the mall, she’s suspect #1. Allie’s blossoming sleuthing skills once cleared Tegan’s name, but can she save herself—before a killer writes her a not-so-great Gatsbyesque ending . . .
About Daryl Wood Gerber
Daryl Wood Gerber is the Agatha Award-winning, nationally bestselling author of the Literary Dining Mysteries, the Fairy Garden Mysteries, the French Bistro Mysteries, and the Cookbook Nook Mysteries, as well as the Cheese Shop Mysteries written under the name Avery Aames. She also writes standalone suspense novels and the Aspen Adams Novels of Suspense. Prior to her career as a novelist, she was an actress with roles in television shows including “Murder, She Wrote,” and she wrote for the popular TV sitcom “Out of this World.” Originally from the Bay Area, she now lives in Southern California, where she likes to cook, garden, and spend time with her frisky Goldendoodle named Sparky.
Author Links
WEBSITE: https://darylwoodgerber.com
FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/darylwoodgerber
BOOKBUB: https://bookbub.com/authors/daryl-wood-gerber
YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/woodgerb1
INSTAGRAM: https://instagram.com/darylwoodgerber
GOODREADS: https://goodreads.com/darylwoodgerber
TIKTOK: www.tiktok.com/@daryl_wood_gerber
AMAZON: https://bit.ly/Daryl_Wood_Gerber_page
NEWSLETTER: https://darylwoodgerber.com/contact-media/
Author Interview
What is your favorite part of this book and why?
In Murder by the Millions, I love the way Allie and her friend Tegan and Tegan’s half-sister Vanna are putting the finishing touches on the literary dining party. They discuss the foods of the Roaring 20’s era and the costumes. They talk about the classic novel, The Great Gatsby. The research that went into this book was delicious. When they meet a handsome stranger who has moved to down to develop a mall, the antics are quite funny.
If you could spend time with a character from your book whom would it be? And what would you do during that day?
I’d love to spend time with Allie. She’s an inspired baker and chef. She seamlessly bakes three or four items at the same time. I’m a good cook, but Allie makes it seem easy breezy. Yeah, not! Baking and cooking are difficult. Cleanup is also difficult. I sure wish I had someone to do that for me. But she and I would plan a literary dining party, and then we would research the heck out of it together. Maybe we’d take a hike in the mountains to clear our brains. Ultimately, we would end up at the pub for a delicious burger and beer. I’d need to drink gluten-free beer, of course. But it would be heavenly.
What books/authors have most inspired you?
Agatha Christie inspires me every time I read one of her books. I love reading some of my favorite cozy mystery authors, too, because I learn from them. I study the pacing. I enjoy the humor they include; like Krista Davis, Ginger Bolton, and more. I love reading a good thriller and, yet again, studying the pace while drinking in all the research the author might have done. How did Lisa Gardner get an inside track to the FBI, for example? How I wish I could.
Are your characters based off real people or did they all come entirely from your imagination?
Most of my characters are completely from my imagination. I set the background, the history, the age and the look. Often I might pull up some photos online in general terms—say, 30-year-old blondes, or 40-year-old redheads or dapper men in the fifties. This will give me a visual jumping off point for the characters. To come up with their names, I often do name searches. I decide on the first letter of the first name—for example an S— and then I search for the surname in the same way. I like the name to sound natural, not forced, but I have stumbled across some really kooky names . . . and used them. By now, I’ve created WAY OVER 1,000 characters. I try to have a different first name for each.
What made you want to become a writer?
My first stab at becoming a writer was when I was 10, and I wrote the beginning of a Nancy Drew-style novel. I didn’t complete it, although I did complete a short story about a giraffe. �� And then in 7 th grade, my teacher told me I wasn’t a writer…and I believed him. Dumb me! I put down my pen until . . .
When I was acting in Los Angeles, I heard that in order to give myself a chance at becoming a star, I needed to write a vehicle for myself. I wasn’t vain enough to believe I could star in it, so I wrote a screenplay for a romantic comedy actress. Example: Julia Roberts. I added a second lead roll that perhaps I might do. The screenwriting class helped me understand writing and structure and how to create a rollercoaster plot that would keep a reader/audience enthralled. I wrote a few screenplays, and then we
moved across the country for my husband’s career, and I decided I’d write a novel. That teacher’s voice was out of my ear by now. Phew! I took mystery and suspense writing classes, joined the online group Sisters in Crime Guppies, and joined a critique group. Other authors’ support helped me ride the tide until my first novel was published.
Purchase Links
AMAZON BARNES AND NOBLE BOOKSHOP.ORG KOBO MYSTERIOUS GALAXY
MURDER BY THE MILLIONS TOUR PARTICIPANTS
October 21 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW
October 21 – The Avid Reader – REVIEW
October 21 – Hall Ways Blog – REVIEW
October 21 – Jody’s Bookish Haven – SPOTLIGHT
October 21 – Books, Ramblings, and Tea – SPOTLIGHT
October 22 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – REVIEW
October 22 – Ascroft, eh? – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
October 22 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – REVIEW
October 23 – Ruff Drafts – RECIPE
October 23 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
October 23 – The Plain-Spoken Pen – REVIEW
October 24 – View from the Birdhouse – REVIEW
October 24 – Books1987 – SPOTLIGHT
October 24 – Sarandipity’s – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
October 24 – Novels Alive – REVIEW
October 25 – Boys’ Mom Reads! – REVIEW
October 25 – Caboodle of Cozies – AUTHOR GUEST POST
October 26 – StoreyBook Reviews – REVIEW
October 26 – Elizabeth McKenna – Author – SPOTLIGHT
October 27 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
October 27 – @bibliophile_foodie – REVIEW
October 27 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT
Giveaway
There is a King Sumo Giveaway for this tour. Prize – Choice of Book 1 or 2 of the Literary Dining Mysteries by Daryl Wood Gerber and a Tote Bag with Swag.
