Today we’re welcoming author Mary
Firmin to our blog. We’ve both read and enjoyed her mystery, Deadly Pleasures, and now we have a few questions. Mary has kindly agreed to satisfy
our curiosity (plus give away a copy of her book!)
S&S: What made you decide to
write a murder mystery?
Mary: I love to read murder mysteries about serial killers,
and I really enjoyed creating a puzzle. Most people who read the book do not
figure out until nearly the end who is actually the Bondage Murderer. Of
course, there are a few who do. I originally heard a true story about four men
who hired a woman to be available for them sexually, and I was going to weave
the murder mystery around them. But then
I thought how much more interesting and forbidden it would be if four women did
the same thing.
S&S: Tell us a little bit about
your characters, especially Megan Riley and Matt Donovan. Which character was
the most fun to write?
Mary: Megan was the most fun to write. I think Megan is a
lot like me, but I’m sure there is a little bit of me in all my characters.
Matt Donovan is a character that came to me whole. When he first arrived on the
Ecstasea to question the girls, I saw
him in my mind’s eye and then just described him. He is a good man and it shows
through in the story. He still gets shocked at grisly murder scenes; he has a
great deal of love for his daughter. He is an all around good guy and was the
easiest to write about.
S&S: You did a great job with
the settings – the yacht club, Catalina Island, etc. Why did you feature those
particular places in Deadly Pleasures?
Mary: I lived in Santa Monica for
many years and sold real estate in all the areas of the book. Malibu, Venice Beach, Marina
del Rey. In fact I walked Venice Beach
every day. My husband and I owned a power boat and were long-time members of a
Southern California yacht club. We spent
a lot of time cruising up and down the coastline and spent many days and weeks
on Catalina Island. We both loved the
ocean.
"... never let me tie him up."
S&S: The BDSM clubs included in
your book must have been an “unusual” thing to research. How did you come up
with your ideas for that part of your story?
Mary: I am not a member of the BDSM community nor do I subscribe
to the lifestyle. But I did decide to
create a serial killer with a serious sexual problem. At the time a friend of
ours, who is a psychologist, told me how to research the BDSM lifestyle and
recommended Psychopathia Sexualis as
a book describing the clinical approach. My husband and I visited loads of
porno shops and viewed the apparatuses so I could describe them in my
book. We had lots of fun doing the
research, but he would never let me tie him up. And I wouldn’t let him either, so we were a
bust when it came to the bondage scene.
My husband passed away before the book was on the market, and that makes
me very sad because he never saw the book in print.
S&S: What part of the book was
the most difficult to write?
Mary: The most difficult part to write was the first crime
scene with Sherrie Weston. I have a daughter and it was hard to think about the
terrible things that the killer did to Sherrie and the other women. I know from reading tons of non-fiction and
true crime, that there are a lot of bad people out there and that’s why we
worry so much about our children.
"... some of them have Deadly Secrets."
S&S: Are you currently working
on another novel? If so, could you give us a few hints about it?
Mary:
Yes, I am planning a Deadly Trilogy. The second book is Deadly Secrets. It is about a murder, or two or three, in a golfing
community in the desert. Megan is there to sell a house for Kathleen, who ended
up marrying the boytoy. As usual she
jumps right into the middle of it, and when Matt comes to visit she is knee
deep in the drama. The relationship
between Matt and Megan is having some difficulties so their romance continues
to be a part of the story. Most people
in the desert migrate from other areas and many go there to retire, but some of
them have Deadly Secrets.
Megan
Riley has bigger things to worry about than the fact that her neighbor has just
been found dead.
Her
engagement has just ended, and she is once again on a quest to find Mr.
Right—or at least Mr. Right Now. Tired of emotional ties and ready for a new
adventure, Megan and her three best friends make a fateful decision. They hire
hunky stripper Michael Harrington as their timeshare boytoy—unaware he is the
prime suspect in a series of gruesome murders. Suddenly, they find themselves
involved in a complicated murder investigation led by a handsome detective who
is focused only on finding the twisted serial killer before he strikes again.
But who will be the next to die? Megan, the hardworking real estate agent;
newly divorced Kathleen; Alex, married to a wealthy businessman; or Rachel, the
spurned wife of a hot Hollywood screenwriter?
Following her own investigation, Megan takes a wild ride through L.A.'s
bondage parlors, hidden sex clubs, and the extravagant lifestyles of the rich
and famous; soon she discovers that her quest for adventure has abruptly transformed
into a dangerous game of life and death.
* "Sex and the City Meets James Patterson" - Blueink Review
GIVEAWAY !!!
Mary is graciously giving away an eBook copy of Deadly Pleasures. All you have to do is leave a comment below. Be sure to include your email address so we can contact you if you win.
For a limited time, Deadly
Pleasures is only 99¢
in eBook format. Here’s the link: Deadly Pleasures
It’s also available in paperback.
Visit Mary’s website for more information about the author:
