Ileana Renfroe's debut novel A Fashionable Fate

 

Welcome to debut author Ileana Renfroe who also hosts a fun Facebook page called Cozy Mystery Village that supports fellow cozy authors and readers! I was so lucky to get to beta read this book and adore the characters and the great setting fo Colten Island. In case you haven't already guessed, I loved A Fashionable Fate, which is Book 1 in her new Rosa The Cuban Psychic Mystery series! 

Who doesn't love a fashion-designing psychic with a handsome guide and a Nana who reads tarot cards? This book sets up a fun new series filled with many twists and turns - and some great recipes in the back! It's a quick, entertaining read and I'm already awaiting Book 2!

For the longest time Ileana Muñoz-Renfroe wanted to be an author. Almost twenty years later and after raising two children and owning numerous businesses, she decided to take the plunge.

About a year ago as she sat in a Café in Paris the idea of Rosa popped into her head and the stories and characters became real. Since two of her passions are the paranormal and high-end fashion, she found a way to combine them and create Rosa The Cuban Psychic Mysteries. This series brings together her Cuban and American culture to make for a fun cozy mystery story.

She is hard at work on writing a spin-off to Rosa The Cuban Psychic Mysteries and a brand-new series involving the character Candeedo Brewdinkle.

When she is not writing she enjoys traveling, reading, entertaining, and listening to music.

Author Web Page:  https://www.imrenfroe.com 

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/IleanaRenfroe

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/imrenfroe/

Cozy Mystery Village:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/cozymysteryvillage/

Tell us about your life outside of writing.

For now, things are on hold, but normally I would be off visiting my children, traveling as much as possible and entertaining.

Do you have a work in progress?

Yes, I actually have three: Book 2 of Rosa The Cuban Psychic Mysteries, Book 1 of Candeedo Brewdinkle, and Book 1 of Las Cubanitas which is a spin-off of Rosa The Cuban Psychic Mysteries. This Las Cubanitas series will be about Rosa and her best friends Maruchi, Ellie, Alexandra, and Caridad traveling around the world always seemingly caught in the middle of a murder investigation.

What was the most difficult section/piece you ever wrote? What made it difficult?

The most difficult piece was in fact A Fashionable Fate, mostly because it was my first book. However, once I went through the structural edits from my editor, I started to get a better handle on the writing and felt much more confident. Confident enough for this book to be released December 18, 2020!

What sort of research do you do for your work?

For this book, I searched family recipes and the different ways to kill someone, so that I was able to be as accurate as possible on the manner of death. For the Candeedo Brewdinkle book series, I have researched different eras, locations and potential weapons.

Which books and authors do you read for pleasure? Is there an author who inspires you?

One of my overall favorite authors and one who has always been an inspiration is Agatha Christie. The way she weaves a story and keeps you guessing until the very end is what I strived to do in this novel and all future novels.

When I am not writing, I enjoy reading various genres. Depending on my mood, I will read paranormal, romance, British humor, and I have even been known to read some harlequin. I have yet to find a novel that I completely detested.

Was there a person who encouraged you to write?

Both of my children. They always tell me to do what makes me happy and writing has been one thing that I’ve truly enjoyed doing for a long time. When I found myself in full lockdown with my daughter, she pushed me to finally finish Book 1, and thankfully because of her, I went and finished the book. 

A FASHIONABLE FATE: ROSA THE CUBAN PSYCHIC MYSTERIES

For the past three years, Rosa de los Reyes, owner of Rosa's Boutique, has organized the fashion show gala on Colten Island. This year, things are getting a little heated and quite deadly.

Rosa not only needs to use her psychic abilities but also needs to tap into the gossip at La Misteriosa, the Cuban Café owned by her Nana (abuela), to figure out who killed one of the models before the event has even started. To make matters worse, another dead body turns up, and in the middle of all this is an international smuggling operation that is underway.

The closer Rosa and her spirit guide, Raul, get to finding the truth, the stickier the situation gets as they race against time to stop the killer from striking again and stopping the crooks from getting away.

https://www.amazon.com/Fashionable-Fate-Psychic-Paranormal-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B08P23PTBP