Interview and Book Giveaway With Donna Fletcher Crow

by Jeff Reynolds

I'm excited to have Donna Fletcher Crow back with Sleuths and Suspects. We'll be giving away a copy of her latest Monastery Murder (e-book) -- check to see what the rules are below.

WE HAVE A WINNER!!!

CONGRATULATIONS TO ASE JOHANNESSEN!!!

This is the third time Donna has been here. Heidi Glick interviewed her about three years ago when the first Monastery Murder, A Very Private Grave, was released. Last year, I interviewed her about the third book, An Unholy Communion. If you want to recall those interviews, here are the links:

http://sleuthsandsuspects.blogspot.com/2011/08/interview-with-author-donna-fletcher

http://sleuthsandsuspects.blogspot.com/2013/04/interview-with-donna-fletcher-crow

Jeff Reynolds:  Welcome back to Sleuths and Suspects, Donna. Let me start by asking you what's new with you both in the literary world and in the literal one (other than the most recent Monastery Murder) since you last visited us in April, 2013?

Donna Crow:  Thank you, Jeff. I’m delighted to be back. I always love visiting with readers. Top of the list in the “What’s new?” category has to be two new grandchildren. Our daughter Elizabeth in Calgary had Lucy Alexandra last September and our daughter-in-law Mindy here in Boise gave birth to Asher Hudson in March. That brings the grand total to 13 grandchildren.

In my writing life my 44th book, A Jane Austen Encounter, Book 3 in my Elizabeth and Richard literary suspense series came out last autumn.

JR:  The Monastery Murders are towards the top of my list of my all-time favorite series, and Father Anthony is my favorite fictitious character (I could make a joke that he took over from fellow Brit James Bond, but Bond was displaced when I was still in High School -- by Hercule Poirot as well as others). Would you like to tell us about the latest addition to the series?

DC: What wonderful company for Father Antony! And I’m sure he’s very honoured. But I’m afraid Antony needs all the support you can give him this time because he really has his hands full in A Newly Crimsoned Reliquary. Felicity is off to do a spot of translating for a community of nuns in Oxford and in spite of Antony’s warning her not to get into trouble we all know her proclivity for running headlong into danger. Then he learns that he must rush to the bedside of his Uncle Edward who raised Antony and his sister. All that just a few days before he is to lead a seminar of students in Oxford. Then he finds out that Felicity has forged an uneasy friendship with his estranged sister Gwena and expects him to make peace in the family. Then one of his students is killed in a ghastly accident. Or was it an accident?

JR:  In your previous interview you referred to this book as A Muffled Tolling. What led to the renaming of the book?

DC:  That’s right, Jeff. A Muffled Tolling was my working title for this book because English change-ringing and the tradition of muffling, or more specifically half-muffling, bells for funerals and commemorations of the dead—something that has always fascinated me—is such an important part of this story. This seemed particularly appropriate because the book is set at the time of All Souls’ and my daughter had told me about her experience of muffling bells at Oxford for the commemoration.

My editor, however, didn’t feel it sounded sufficiently mysterious. We worked very hard on this title, e-mailing long lists of possibilities (some of them quite dreadful) back and forth until the word “crimsoned”  jumped out at me from an Easter hymn. Reliquaries are an important part of the plot as well, so bells were abandoned for the title. “Newly” was my editor’s contribution. This was all quite a process, but I’m pleased with the results in the end.


JR:  Hope you don't mind if I regress to your previous installment, An Unholy Communion. That story had a very strong spiritual warfare theme. What inspired that focus, and how does that focus relate to us in the U.S. in 2014?
 
DC:  One of the reasons I write murder mysteries is because they so clearly illustrate the clash between good and evil in our world and the ultimate triumph of good over evil. Certainly that struggle is presented more concretely in An Unholy Communion because my characters are faced with actual satanic worship. This was a very hard book to write because I had to research the occult and learned things I’d really rather not know about. I chose the theme, though, because I wanted to show the reality of evil in our world. None of the demonic manifestations in my plot are made up. They are all based on experiences recorded by priests working in Deliverance ministry.

JR:  An interesting thing about spiritual warfare is that it often manifests in the physical realm, and A Newly Crimsoned Reliquary gives some illustrations of it, dealing with persecution believers endure both from unbelievers and from those who claim the name of Christ. Do you see persecution of Christians as a threat in our society? If so, how can we prepare for it?

DC:  When I was a child demonic practices like those in An Unholy Communion were something missionaries told about when they returned from foreign fields. Certainly nothing that would happen here. And the persecution of Christians happened in Roman times and behind the Iron Curtain. I am constantly amazed at how close to home all of that has come just in my lifetime. I think the only possible defense is a strong prayer life and a supportive community of believers.

JR:  The highlight in this novel (I could say the highlight in the series, though the youth pilgrimage in An Unholy Communion rivals that) is the debate between an atheist and Father Anthony. So let me ask my usual multi-part question: First, should apologetics be a part of our lives as a believer? Second, is telling stories more effective than dealing with, for example, the classic arguments of God's existence which Father Anthony considered using?

DC: You never do ask easy questions do you, Jeff? That debate was nothing I had ever planned to write. I usually try to make my arguments less combatively, but debating is such a hallowed Oxford tradition (my model for the evening was actually the Oxford Union, but I didn’t call it that) that the scene just fell into place.

I certainly believe we need to know what we believe and why we believe it. I believe theology is very important. The question is how to present it best to a world that really doesn’t want to listen. For that, look to the Scriptures: Jesus told parables. The Bible itself is a narrative—the story of God’s redemptive acts among His people. 

JR:  What's next, both in the Monastery Mysteries and in your other fictious endeavors?

DC: Last week I sent The Flame Ignites, an Elizabeth and Richard prequel to my publisher. This goes back to 1984 and tells how Elizabeth and Richard first met. All the books in that series have literary figures in the background and for this book it’s the beloved American novelist Elswyth Thane and Rudyard Kipling.

Later today I will start the next Monastery Murder, which I’m calling An All-Consuming Fire. Antony has been asked to narrate a BBC documentary on the English Mystics Richard Rolle, Walter Hilton and the author of The Cloud of Unknowing. Felicity is determined to stay quietly behind in the Community of the Transfiguration because her mother (remember the prickly Cynthia from A Darkly Hidden Truth?) is coming over to spend Christmas with her and help her prepare for their Epiphany wedding. I am wondering just how well that will work out.

JR:  Thank you for your time, Donna. To refresh everybody's memory, how can they keep up with your latest activities?

DC:  Thank you, Jeff. It’s always a delight to visit with you and I love the opportunity to get acquainted with your readers.

To read more about all of my books and see pictures from my garden and research trips, including my bell-ringing lesson with the Oxford University Society of Change Ringers, go to: http://www.donnafletchercrow.com/  and I would love to have you follow me on Facebook at: http://ning.it/OHi0MY

Jeff to reader:  At this point, it's time for a giveaway of an e-book version of A Newly Crimsoned Reliquary. Here are the rules:

1. Leave a comment. That easy enough?
2. Include your e-mail address so we can notify you. You can write it out if you wish, like AuntDotKahm(at)Ant(dot)com.
3. Finally, what do you think is the best way to prepare for persecution/spiritual warfare/defending the faith? Or do you think these issues are better left to theologians and ministers?

Interview and Book Giveaway with Donna Fletcher Crow

WE HAVE A WINNER!

Congratulations to Zippy Mom

There are so far two individuals whom I've had the opportunity - make that privilege - to interview twice. The first was Ojo (aka Joey) Taylor, keyboardist/bassist/songwriter for the Christian alternative band Undercover. The second is today's interviewee, Donna Fletcher Crow. Maybe they're gluttons for punishment?

Donna has just released An Unholy Communion, the third in her Monastery Murders series. In my last blog, I said that my favorite series is Amy Wallace's Defenders of Hope trilogy, and I'm sticking to that story. But the Monastary Murders is right behind it. Also, if I made a list of my favorite fiction characters, Father Anthony would be near the top of the list. Also, my all-time favorite book cover is for A Darkly Hidden Truth -- the most beautiful cover I've seen.




At the end of this blog, we'll be giving away a copy of An Unholy Communion.

Jeff Reynolds: Welcome to Sleuths and Suspects, Donna. How long have you been writing, and what got you interested?

Donna Fletcher Crow: Hi Jeff, I’m delighted to be here. Looking back I think I’ve written all my life. I've been writing for publication for about 30 years. My writing grew out of my reading. I’ve always loved to read— as an only child growing up on a farm books were my only companions. Well, books and my horse. A minor character in a novel I read got hold of me and demanded that I tell the rest of his story. That first novel became Brandley’s Search, later republished as Where Love Begins.  It set the theme for my six-book series the Cambridge Chronicles about the Evangelical Anglican movement.

JR: How many novels have you written? I'll be getting to the Monastery Murders series in a minute, but what other series have you written, and what makes these series unique?

DC: I keep losing count, Jeff, but I think it’s about 43 books. Most of them have been series, like The Cambridge Chronicles. I currently have 3 series going. Lord Danvers  is a Victorian true-crime series. My most recent title in that is A Tincture of Murder where I use the work of the Oxford Movement slum priests to get into some really grotty areas of Victorian York and see how these dedicated ministers changed the lives of the poorest of the poor.  Http://ning.it/10E1Epq  A Jane Austen Encounter  will be next in my Elizabeth & Richard Mysteries. English professors Elizabeth and Richard are on sabbatical in England visiting all the places Jane Austen lived. This follows a trip I took last year— except I didn’t have to cope with dead bodies. This book emphasizes the importance of her Christian faith in Jane’s writing.

JR: Please tell us about the Monastery Murders, and especially your new release, An Unholy Communion.

DC: Thank you for asking! The Monastery Murders are contemporary clerical mysteries set in a monastery in Yorkshire. The monks run a theological college— coincidentally exactly like the one where my daughter studied. Felicity Howard is a young American woman in her first year of study. She has a lot to learn, but she’s a quick study— as well as being rather rash and headstrong. Felicity and her church history lecturer (who, fortunately, isn’t a monk) somehow keep getting involved in mysteries that require investigations into the lives of holy men and women from ages past, so you get a lot of church history along with a murder mystery and a love story.

An Unholy Communion is book three in the series. When a body plummets from a tower and lands at Felicity’s feet Antony convinces her to join him in leading a group of young people on a pilgrimage to visit ancient holy sites across Wales. It is idyllic until shadowy figures start dogging their steps. Then they find a dead body face down in a holy well. . .  Http://ning.it/ZnSEcF  

JR: I love the emphasis on church history in that series. What inspired you to work on those themes, and what would you like to see happen as a result of this series?

DC: My passion, Jeff, is to see spiritual renewal in England— and subsequently in our own country. I believe one of the factors contributing to a loss of faith is the lack of appreciation of our spiritual heritage. I want my readers to gain a new understanding of what people have endured in times past for us to be able to enjoy our comfortable worship today. I also believe that in an attempt to be relevant we are in danger of losing traditions that have been important to Christians for 2000 years. I want my readers, both in the church and in the world, to realize the validity of traditional Christianity.

JR: Hope you don't mind a more philosophic question. From your study of church history and your observance of what's going on today, do you have any advice on how we should be living in these days of danger? Besides reading plenty of Donna Fletcher Crow novels, that is?

DC: Great, Jeff! What a wonderful place to start! The basic message hasn’t changed in 2000 years. Live in fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ and in openness and obedience to the Holy Spirit. Aside from the obvious things like Bible reading and prayer, how that is lived out will be different for each believer. For me, getting back to the basics such as frequent Holy Communion has been essential. Reading John Wesley’s “The Duty of Constant Communion” might be a good start ( http://ning.it/ZnEad1 )

JR: What other ministries and hobbies do you have besides writing?

DC: I am active in our local church— teaching children, altar guild, whatever needs doing, really. We’re a small congregation, so everyone pitches in. As to hobbies, reading is tops, then growing roses (pictures here http://ning.it/ngWoAU ) and traveling to visit my grandchildren in Los Angeles, Boston, Calgary and Kentucky.

JR: What's next on the writing end? Any new Monastery Murders ready to depart the cloister?

DC: A Muffled Tolling, which takes place in Oxford, has bell-ringing in the background, and tells the story of the Oxford martyrs, is next on my agenda. I’ll be on to that just as soon as I finish one more rewrite of A Jane Austen Encounter.  I’d also like to mention that my Arthurian epic Glastonbury, The Novel of Christian England, has just come out in an all-new print edition http://ning.it/ZnPky9  Last year it was released in ebook format as Glastonbury, The Novel of The Holy Grail http://ning.it/ZnRLkv .

JR: Thank you again for your time, Donna, and I hope you have a blessed day.

DC: Thank you so much, Jeff, it’s been delightful visiting with you. I would also like to invite your readers to visit my website at http://www.donnafletchercrow.com/ and to follow me on Facebook at: http://ning.it/OHi0MY 

Jeff to the reader: Thanks for taking the time to read this. Have you had the honor of reading any of Donna's books? What are your thoughts on church history and its relevance to today? 

And if you'd like a copy of An Unholy Communion, we'll pick one lucky reader next Wednesday. Just leave a comment and include your e-mail. Feel free to spell it out like mine would be mendingnets at yahoo dot com. (Does that mean I'm entered into the Giveaway?!)