1. I hear you have a black Labrador Retriever in your Sidney Lake Lowcountry Mysteries. Tell us about the series.

The Rising Tide is the first book in the series and introduces all the main characters: Prof. Sidney Lake, soon-to-retire professor of Victorian Lit.; Tillie James, Lake’s Gullah housekeeper from the Lowcountry islands; Mickey, Lake’s black lab and partner that serves as his sounding board for his theories and ideas; and Hattie Ryan, Lake’s associate at the college who doesn’t put up with his pompous approach to the police and others in authority. The book also introduces the reader to the Gullah people and culture and explores their history and language.

Praise for The Rising Tide: “You may want to pick up this really good mystery set in the Lowcountry. I really enjoyed it.” — Ellen C. Priest, Editor/publisher, Summerville, South Carolina Journal Scene

The Rising Tide is available in ebook and paperback.

Amazon paperback buy link: https://www.amazon.com/Rising-Tide-Sidney-Lowcountry-Mystery-ebook/dp/B0FJ6SJ3S2/

The Murder of Amos Dunn is the second book. Here we have a mystery where both Tillie James and Mickey shine, as they lead Prof. Lake in directions he and the police had not thought of. Amos Dunn is a successful Black man from the North, who has done very well for himself in the Lowcountry town of Morgan and is found dead in his store. The police chalk it up to a simple robbery gone wrong but not Tillie, who questions a notebook Amos was known to always on his person and was not found on his body.

Praise for The Murder of Amos Dunn: “This is a great read and my favorite mystery for 2020.” — Kale on Books

The Murder of Amos Dunn is available in ebook and paperback.

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Murder-Amos-Dunn-Tim-Holland/dp/1961548410

Deception is the third in the series. When Sidney Lake learned the author’s copy of Anne Brontë’s novel The Tenant of Wildfell Hall had been stolen, he firmly believed he would never see it again, much less hold it in his hands. But there it was. In the hands of an appraiser at the National Arts and Crafts Show. Could it be the same three-volume first edition of the book or a forgery? The Lowcountry of South Carolina takes center stage as Sidney Lake and Tillie James pursue the answers to questions not everyone wants asked.

Praise for Deception: “I rate Deception 4 out of 4 stars. The book was an engaging, entertaining, enlightening, and intriguing one. It is one of the best mystery novels I have read.” — Ziggy, Official Reviewer for The On-Line Book Club

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Deception-Sidney-Lake-Lowcountry-Mystery/dp/1953434789/ 

Deception Barnes & Noble paperback buy link: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/deception-timothy-holland/1141774831?ean=9781953434784

December Rain is the fourth in the mystery series. Here we have the ultimate puzzle. It begins in the year 1718 in colonial Charles Town, South Carolina, where the reader is introduced to a mixture of real and historical characters. The story is told in alternating chapters between the history ones and current day ones (where crimes and murders are taking place). It covers the happenings during the early slavery of the Gullah people, King Georges War, The French and Indian War, The American Revolution, the battle between the Rebels and the Loyalists before and after the revolution, the War of 1812, the Civil War, and finally merges with the current time, where the search for a killer continues.

(NOTE: I ‘ve been asked to participate in Jamestown, VA’s 250-year celebration, where I will feature December Rain.)

Praise for December Rain: “It’s very good, and the history background makes it a standout.” — Mary Skinner, former director of English program at Oceanside School System, Oceanside, New York.

December Rain is available in ebook and paperback.

Amazon paperback buy link: https://www.amazon.com/December-Rain-Sidney-Lowcountry-Mystery-ebook/dp/B0CVFL7GJQ

 

2. Why did you add a black lab to this series?

Mickey (legal name, Mrs. Micawber), is the black Labrador Retriever who often steals center stage in the series. One of the models for Mickey is Sophie, my Chocolate Lab, who shares the sofa with me in my office as I write. Sophie also helps do the laundry as her job is to go to the bathrooms and find any used clothing she can and bring it to me in the laundry room.

The first model for Mickey was another Lab Retriever of mine named Cassie. She was given a tag to wear that designated her as the “Official Greeter” for the community. Sadly, she passed away at 14.

While most postal carriers are wary of dogs, Chris (the mailman), Cassie, and Sophie were best of friends. Sophie would even go into his truck to pick up the mail directly from him before he had a chance to put in into the mailbox.

 

3. What was the inspiration for this series?

I began writing about the Lowcountry of South Carolina about twenty years ago while I lived in Beaufort, SC. As part of my community activities for Clemson’s Senior Leadership Program, I was asked to create a Beaufort Heritage Day program. My first outreach was to Marquetta Goodwine, the founder of the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition. I asked her to give a talk on the Gullah heritage that permeates everything in the region. She was shocked. No one had ever asked a member of the Gullah community to participate in a heritage program. It was then I decided to begin work on a mystery novel that would make the Gullah people and the Lowcountry of South Carolina its center. And so, The Rising Tide was created. Tillie James, the Gullah housekeeper turned entrepreneur, grew as a much-loved character. The positive response resulted in the writing of the three following novels and another one in the planning stage.

Blue Fortune Enterprises (BFE) under their Cactus Mystery imprint (https://blue-fortune.com/cactus-mystery-press) is the publisher of the latest Sidney Lake mystery, December Rain and is reissuing the first three novels. Sidney Lake and Tillie James are not finished, however, as there are more stories yet to be told.

 

4. What other books have you written?

BFE will also be the publisher of my new Matt Donovan mystery novels, the first of which, An Impulse for Murder, will be out in the Fall of 2026.

Matt Donovan is a retired NYPD detective who previously headed the White Collar Crime Division. He now has a consulting company that is on retainer to a firm that validates private investments, not vetted by the SEC, for their suitability as investments in retirement and general market portfolios. In An Impulse for Murder, there’s an apparent murder of an arrogant, mysterious, wealthy investment manager in Suffolk, VA, who was peddling participations in a real estate project. Matt Donovan, who’s a student of philosophy and a devotee of Plato’s Republic, evaluates suspects by using the habits and characterizations Plato describes in great detail of the Immoral Man.

 

What the Mirror Doesn’t See was my second novel:

It is 1993, the banking world is in turmoil, and in NJ, there is outright panic. The big New York banks and emerging regionals are gobbling up everything in the state. The Fed has opened the floodgates, and traditional banking ethics are disappearing.

At a used book sale, Jim Fairmont, a career banker having worked for First State Bank for more than twenty-five years, finds a blank, signed invoice belonging to an auto parts supplier. The document is contained in a box of books donated by Larry McBride, a new-breed, brash, former New York banker.

Jim begins to investigate McBride’s relationships with some of First State’s customers. What he uncovers is much bigger than he ever imagined. His discoveries put him in the sights of New Jersey’s underworld, who are determined to protect McBride and his clients, putting not only Jim’s life in danger, but those of his close associates’ as well.

Praise for What the Mirror Doesn’t See: “I found it educational, entertaining, and hard to put down.” — Regan Murphy, The Review Team of Jones and Murphy

What the Mirror Doesn’t See Amazon paperback buy link: https://www.amazon.com/What-Mirror-Doesnt-See-Holland/dp/1626948712

 

5. Where can readers learn more about you and your books?

I’m a featured author at the Williamsburg Book Festival on March 7 and the Suffolk Authors Festival on March 14. And here is my website: https://www.Tim-Holland.com

WIN A “SIDNEY LAKE” MYSTERY: Tim will give away an ebook of The Rising Tide to one lucky commenter on his interview! So don’t forget to comment below!

 

Thank you, Tim, for being my March interviewee! I always enjoy learning about new-to-me mystery series.

MONTHLY BLOG EBOOK CONTEST! Would you like to win a Marcia James’ ebook? Visitors to this pro-pet blog can join in the fun, comment, and/or share photos of their pets for a chance to win one of my ebooks!

Each month, I’ll randomly pick one blog commenter to win. To leave a comment and/or a photo, click on the word “Reply,” which is just below the social media icons for THIS interview. (Don’t scroll past this interview to the next interview.) Go Pets!