Extra Slice of Cake With... Jessica Thompson

This week I am delighted to have author Jessica Thompson back for another slice of cake.

Jessica is the author of the Amazon best-selling mystery novels A Caterer’s Guide to Holidays and Homicide and A Caterer’s Guide to Love and Murder which was a finalist in the Wishing Shelf Awards. She also curated and featured her own short stories in a family friendly anthology of campfire stories, Beyond the Woods: A Supernatural Anthology. Active in her local writing community, she volunteers as the Assistant Communications Chair for the Storymakers Guild and as a Program Assistant for the Writer’s League of Texas. 

Jessica lives in the suburbs of Austin, Texas with her husband and two children. When not writing, she’s getting her boots dirty at her parents' nearby longhorn cattle ranch. Whether ranching, cooking, or gardening, she sees it all as plot-inspiring material for her next mystery.

Describe the types of books you love to read

Ooooh! I love Agatha Christie. I’m almost done reading her whole collection of novels. I really love all mystery, but especially clean mysteries. If it’s cozy, so be it, but it’s got to be clean. 

Which authors inspire you to write?

Again, Agatha Christie, but modern writers I love are Josi Kilpack (my favorite cozy author), Joanne Fluke (when I need to remember that I CAN do this), Bruce Hammack (his books are similar to my newest release), and J.R. Lancaster (again, her book is similar to my Shoot Shovel and Shut Up because it’s clean and compelling, but not cozy.)

Since we last had a slice of cake, what have you been working on?

I last came on to talk about my culinary cozy mysteries series, which has a new book coming out in January called A Caterer’s Guide to Valentines and Violence, but mostly I’ve been trying something new. My latest book is called Shoot Shovel and Shut Up. It’s a clean, classic mystery, but it’s not a cozy. It’s a modern Western mystery with a splash of romance.

I’ve also been in several anthologies, like Riddles, Resolutions and Revenge, A Beach of a Crime, and Bippity Boppity Boots - Southwestern Fairytale Retellings.

What is your next project?

The third book in my Caterer’s Guide to Crime series is coming out on January 11, 2024. It doesn’t have a link or cover yet, but … blurb time!

Feel the love … with a caterer, a captain, and a criminal.

“Hey, gorgeous!”

As she decides how she feels about her not-so-ex-fiancé, Violet and her friends must cater a formal Army event as their secrets boil over. When she and the handsome investigator discover the boss has been beaten, and not with a whisk, and her fiance becomes the prime suspect, Violet must bite off more than she can chew, decide who to trust, and find the creamy center of the crimes. 

But can she crack the criminal before she melts?

A Caterer’s Guide to Valentines and Violence is a prequel to the mystery series that’ll give you heart eyes!

Have you recently tried any new cake? What was the last cake you made/bought?

My most recent cake was chocolate and raspberry for my daughter’s birthday, but I’m hoping to soon make America’s Test Kitchen’s Magic Chocolate Flan Cake. I made it once years ago and it’s sooooo sexy.

You can connect with Jessica here:

My book Shoot Shovel and Shut Up: mybook.to/SSSU
Website: Jessicathompsonauthor.com
Instagram: instagram.com/jessicathauthor2
Facebook: facebook.com/jessicathauthor
Goodreads: goodreads.com/jessicathauthor
Bookbub: bookbub.com/profile/jessica-thompson
Amazon Author Profile: amazon.com/author/jessicathompsonmystery

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find out more about her books on her website clairebuss.co.uk. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. Never miss out on future posts by following me.