From Across State Lines with Lynn Cahoon!
- PA Cozy Mystery Writers
- Apr 22
- 4 min read
Please give a warm welcome to Lynn from Tennessee…
Lynn Cahoon, author of Confessions of An Amateur Sleuth, in the Bainbridge Island mystery series is an Anthony-award nominated, New York Times and USA Today best-selling author. Lynn pens several cozy mystery series including “The Tourist Trap Mysteries,” “The Kitchen Witch Mysteries,” “Survivors’ Book Club Mysteries,” “The Farm to Fork Mysteries,” and “The Cat Latimer Mysteries.” Readers can expect a fun ride no matter where the mystery is set. She lives in a small town in Eastern Tennessee like the towns she loves to write about with her husband and three spoiled Keeshonds and an outdoor cat who just showed up one day.
Find out more and sign up for her newsletter at www.lynncahoon.com
Favorite Book Format: To read? I love print. Especially hard cover. The weight of the book, the size of the font, both allow me to fall into the story while curled up on my recliner.
Why did you decide to become an author?
My mother would tell you that I always liked to tell stories. For me, writing is a way to understand the world and my place in it. I got a scare from the universe almost twenty years ago now that made me question my life path. Luckily, I’m past the cancer year and healthy now. But it gave me the push to ask myself, what do I want from this crazy life? When being an author was clearly my answer, I knew I had to try. Now I’m writing full-time and loving the career.
Is your book set in the same state that you live in? (please describe the setting)
"The Bainbridge Island" series is set on an island just west of Seattle. It’s not a place I lived, but like a lot of my books, it’s set somewhere I WANTED to live. I grew up in Idaho (where my "Farm-to-Fork" and "Kitchen Witch" series are set) but growing up I always wanted to trade my small-town life for a big city. Seattle was that dream, or NYC. As life would have it, I actually love the smaller town life, which is why I live on a mountain an hour away from Knoxville. Bainbridge has that small tourist town feel with the advantages of a city a thirty-minute ferry ride away.
Do you have any reoccurring characters in your story? (please tell us about two of them)
“The Bainbridge Island” series is filled with recurring characters. Kind of like watching your favorite sic com. The Mystery Crew normally is Meg Gates, Dalton Hamilton, and Natasha Jones. They’ve been friends forever. Meg is enjoying being home, in addition to working at the bookstore, working for a local author, and writing a book on sleuthing. She’s going back to school after having a bit of bad luck after leaving the island to build her city life. In between, she’s helping solve local murders.
As a kid, Dalton Hamilton was deserted on the ferry by his mother but adopted by the police chief and his wife. He works on the ferry now after his time in the Coast Guard. Growing up, he was best friends with Meg’s brother, Junior. Now, he’s part of the group and helps with the sleuthing. He has a sailboat and is teaching the chef of the Local Crab how to sail. Book three, Tips and Tricks of an Amateur Sleuth is going to mess with his comfort zone, just a bit. (Evil author laugh.)
One Silly Thing About You: I love country dance workouts. I look like a chicken, but it’s fun.
Confessions of an Amateur Sleuth: A Bainbridge Island Mystery #2
A Little Bit About the Book:
Bainbridge Island bookseller, aspiring author, and amateur sleuth Meg (no relation to Bill) Gates investigates the murder of a crabby food critic in New York Times bestselling author Lynn Cahoon’s latest Pacific Northwest-set mystery for fans of Kate Carlisle, Lorna Barrett, Jenn McKinlay, and Ellery Adams.
Twenty-something bookseller and sleuth Meg Gates has a confession: solving crimes may be easier than writing. She’s been working on a guide to becoming a detective—but she’s her own worst critic. She needs a how-to in order to write her how-to!
At the Bainbridge Island writers’ group, she meets freelance food critic Lee Anderson, who invites her to join him for dinner at the Local Crab so he won’t be suspected of reviewing the place. Lee is a bit of a crab himself and intends to do a hatchet job on the eatery.
Instead, someone does a job on the critic—he’s found dead by the marina. Now Bainbridge’s culinary elite are on the suspect list.
With help from her beau, Dalton, and the Mystery Crew at Island Books, Meg dons her sleuthing cap to solve the mystery du jour—before another murder is served cold…
Who Doesn't Like a Giveaway?
To be entered into a PRINT BOOK GIVEAWAY (SIGNED COPY), for the first book in this series, simply email us at the email address listed on our "Contact Us" page, and let us know one thing that you really liked in this interview. Readers will have one week to enter, and then the winner will be selected on April 28th 2026, after 12 pm Eastern Time. Please put “Lynn Cahoon – Book Giveaway” in the subject field of your email. (United States Only)
What Format Is This Book Available In?
Hardcover | Paperback | Ebook | Audio
Lynn's book, Confessions of an Amateur Sleuth, is available for purchasing through the following links:
For more information, please visit her website: www.lynncahoon.com
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