Good day, book people. Can you believe we almost to the end of another month? Time really seems to be flying by lately and, for some reason, I don’t have enough time to read all the books I want to read. I hope you’re not having a similar problem. As we enjoy the cooler weather, it’s the perfect time of year to cuddle up under a blanket, grab your favorite beverage, and catch up on our reading. Today, I’ll hope you’ll cuddle with your blanket and beverage and visit awhile with today’s guest author. I’m delighted to welcome back to the blog today’s guest, D.M. Barr, the incredibly gifted and talented author of Murder Worth the Weight. Ms. Barr will be discussing side plots with us today. I hope you’ll enjoy what she has to say, and suggest you add Murder Worth the Weight to your Fall TBR read list. Thank you, Ms. Barr, for returning today, I’ll now turn the blog over to you.
One of my favorite side plots from Murder Worth the Wait involves Benji’s, the dueling piano bar that’s featured in the story. It’s not only a setting for many of the scenes, but the pianists play a role as well.
My husband first discovered the dueling piano bar concept on a business trip, where he encountered one of the many Howl at the Moon clubs. Being a skilled piano player and songwriter (when he isn’t being a lawyer—check out www.broadjam.com/biggerinperson if you’d like to hear his work), he came home and excitedly described the concept to me: Two pianos, facing each other, played by very adept and personable pianists who could improvise (both musically and comically) on demand, take requests from the audience, and invite audience participation. A third musician, often a drummer, accompanied the pianists. Requests that were accompanied by payment often got played more quickly and a grand time is had by all, although because commentary by the performers could turn ribald, it was definitely an R-rated experience.
My husband Josh doesn’t get enthusiastic all that often (read: never) so I took note and on our next vacation, I booked our family aboard a European cruise aboard Norwegian Cruise Line’s Epic, which featured both Howl at the Moon and a version of Second City, an improv comedy venue (we met studying improv; he was with the touring company of Chicago City Limits where I was a groupie and a student.) On our first night aboard, we attended our first HATM performance, where I submitted a $20 bill along with request that read, “Please play Johnny Be Good” though I’ve never known anyone to play it better than my husband.” My ploy worked because the next thing we knew, they invited Josh on stage to play, and his talent must have surprised them because from that night on, they called him up every performance to play (usually Elton John songs, because that’s his specialty) and dubbed him “Big Daddy.”
Did I mention I’m a groupie? Seeing my husband on stage brought back memories of how we met, when he played piano for Chicago City Limit’s touring company and improvised music along with their skits. I was even prouder when the Howl at the Moon performers, Orin Sands, James Sakal, and Rhonda Hughes, invited my son on stage to play and sing Aerosmith’s “Dream On.” Even my daughter got in on the act, really letting loose and belting a few numbers. We’d close down the venue at 1:00 a.m. and then go for late night munchies with the performers. Josh started getting recognized by other cruisers. It was truly our best vacation ever.
The HATM performers became friends after the cruise, and we’ve sailed with them and other dueling pianists (Whitney Maxwell and James Byrom, to name a few) on various NCL cruises. And yes, they still call “Big Daddy” up to the stage every night when they’re performing and we’re in the audience, something for which I’m everlastingly grateful since it gives my husband an opportunity to perform. When I had the opportunity to commemorate our friendship by featuring them in Murder Worth the Weight, I jumped at it and am glad to say they were good sports and were okay with how I portrayed them—especially James who in real life, in not the diva in any way. Thank goodness he has a great sense of humor.
Another side plot in the book involves Rachel and her Cockney Rhyming Slang. My first boyfriend was a cadet-officer on the Queen Elizabeth II (QE2…yeah, I love ships) and he introduced me to this form of communication when I was just eighteen. Some readers take a bit of time catching on, but I loved embellishing this character’s quirkiness with this blast from my past. For those who want to learn more about Cockney Rhyming Slang, you can check out some phrases here: https://www.theguardian.com/education/2014/jun/09/guide-to-cockney-rhyming-slang and here: https://www.ruf.rice.edu/~kemmer/Words04/usage/slang_cockney.html. Enjoy!
Murder Worth the Weight
by D.M. Barr
September 13 – October 8, 2021 Virtual Book Tour
Synopsis:
Whenever Terry Mangel’s body acceptance revival meeting rolls into town, local diet execs and “fat shamers” turn up dead, often in grotesque, ironic ways. All single murders in small suburbs, no one’s noticed a pattern, until rookie investigative reporter Camarin Torres takes a closer look.
Torres is a crusader against discrimination. She reluctantly accepts a job offered by handsome publisher Lyle Fletcher, a man with a vendetta, who sees the recent college grad as salvation for Trend, his fledgling fashion magazine. Torres, however, detests everything the publication stands for, and joins solely to transform its judgmental, objectifying content.
As an unexpected romance blossoms, the overconfident, justice-hungry reporter defies orders and infiltrates Mangel’s world, only to find herself in the cross hairs of a vigilante group targeting the $60 billion diet industry. To this vindictive mob, murder is definitely worth the weight. But as Torres soon learns, unmasking the killer may save her life but shatter her heart: every clue seems to implicate Fletcher, her mercurial mentor and lover, as the group’s mastermind.
Previously published as Slashing Mona Lisa
Book Details:
Genre: Suspense, Romantic Suspense, Psychological Suspense, Women’s Fiction
Published by: Punctuated Publishing
Publication Date: 08/09/2021
Number of Pages: 340
ISBN: 9780997711868
Purchase Links #CommissionEarned: IndieBound.org | Amazon | Amazon Kindle | Barnes & Noble | BookDepository.com | Goodreads | !ndigo ebook | Kobo ebook
Author Bio:
By day, a mild-mannered salesperson, wife, mother, rescuer of senior shelter dogs, competitive trivia player and author groupie, happily living just north of New York City. By night, an author of sex, suspense and satire. My background includes stints in travel marketing, travel journalism, meeting planning, public relations and real estate. I was, for a long and happy time, an award-winning magazine writer and editor. Then kids happened. And I needed to actually make money. Now they’re off doing whatever it is they do (of which I have no idea since they won’t friend me on Facebook) and I can spend my spare time weaving tales of debauchery and whatever else tickles my fancy. The main thing to remember about my work is that I am NOT one of my characters. For example, unlike as a real estate broker, I’ve never played Bondage Bingo in one of my empty listings. As a yo-yo dieter, I’ve never offed anyone at my local diet clinic. While I’m a bit paranoid, I’ve never suspected my husband of wanting to murder me for my inheritance. Well, that’s not entirely true, but let’s go with that for now. And while I’ve volunteered at senior centers, I’ve never mastered the hula hoop. But that’s not to say I haven’t wanted to…
Catch Up With D.M. Barr:
DMBarr.com
Goodreads
BookBub – @DMBarr
Instagram – @authordmbarr
Twitter – @authordmbarr
Facebook – @authordmbarr
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The Book Diva's Reads 
What an awesome guest post!!
I am going to check out your husbands playing!
I loved the Cockney Rhyming Slang in the book and I never knew that was a “thing”! It must get very complicated. LOL
Great book!
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