Interview with Kathleen Kaska, author of Murder at the Pontchartrain (Book 6 in the Sydney Lockhart Mystery Series)

 

Today it gives the Indie Crime Scene great pleasure to interview Kathleen Kaska, whose novel Murder at the Pontchartrain has its debut on June 28th.

Murder at the Pontchartrain is the sixth book in your series of Sydney Lockhart Mysteries. What can you tell new readers about the linking theme behind the series, and the Pontchartrain hotel in the title?

The theme is simple: another hotel, another murder, another Sydney Lockhart mystery. The books are set in the early 1950s at different historic hotels. Sydney started off as a reporter on assignment in Hot Springs, Arkansas. She checked into the historic Arlington Hotel and found a dead body in her room. She was the main suspect and had to prove her innocence. I chose historic hotels as the settings in this series because I love staying at them when I travel. They have their own stories to tell, which I weave into the plots of my mysteries. The theme also involves determined women struggling to make it in a man’s world.

Sydney Lockhart is staying in New Orleans with her partner, Ralph Dixon, who she plans to marry. New Orleans is known as the Big Easy and Crescent City. What is the significance of these names and their part in the story?

The Big Easy kind of has an “anything goes” meaning. And that’s certainly the case in Sydney's investigation in New Orleans. Sydney and Dixon’s wedding plans are thwarted when a murder occurs in the Pontchartrain Hotel. The investigation leads them to lively Bourbon Street, the historic St. Louis Cemetery, the dark corners of the city, and the eerie swamps where people venture and sometimes don’t return. The term Crescent City comes from the city being built around the curve in the Mississippi River.

Needless to say, Sydney’s plans to marry Dixon don't go according to plan. Soon he’s in jail for a double murder, and Sydney has to tangle with the KKK in the bayou. What went wrong and how much can you tell us?

What went wrong? Without giving away any details, I will say that I don’t make it easy for Sydney and Dixon to tie the knot. This is their second attempt to make it to the altar. I wanted to put more obstacles in their way, and this time, the obstacle wasn’t just a murder. Dixon messed up big time in this investigation, leaving Sydney to do all the work and to question Dixon’s loyalty.

Sydney has a variety of allies as she tries to solve the crimes and free Dixon: her cousin Ruth, working undercover as a hotel chef; her twelve-year-old charge, Lydia LaBeau, dressed as a voodoo queen; and Rip Thigbee, a ghost detective. Introduce us to these helpers: is Rip Thigbee literally a ghost?

Ruth Echland, Sydney’s sidekick and wealthy socialite, works hard to appear as a dumb blonde. She’ll stop at nothing to help Sydney out of a jam, whether Sydney likes it or not. Lydia is twelve, going on thirty. She showed up in Murder at the Driskill, and many of my readers commented on how much they liked her. She and Ruth do not get along, which adds to the chaos in Sydney’s life. 

Rip’s a detective who investigates lost souls. Sydney met Rip in San Antonio when she was looking for the killer of a notorious bookie. Her investigation led her to the Keyhole Club where Rip was the bouncer. He innocently stepped into some nasty trouble but managed to turn the situation around by saving Sydney’s life and helping her with the investigation. When the smoke cleared, Rip decided Texas was too hot to handle, so he moved to New Orleans to open his business next door to the House of Voodoo, a convenient location. 

The story has “a little voodoo magic” in it. What is voodoo magic and how did you research it?

I read several books on the history of voodoo and its origin in New Orleans. It’s a fascinating religion. However, many might not realize it’s steeped in Catholicism. Marie Laveau, the longest reigning voodoo queen, was also a devout Catholic who attended Mass every morning at St. Louis Cathedral. Her clients came from all walks of life: wealthy women, political figures, and businessmen, all looking for a shortcut to solve their troubles or to reach their dreams. Laveau became a wealthy, well-respected figure in New Orleans. The current voodoo queen is Miriam Chamani. In 1990, she founded the Voodoo Spiritual Temple in New Orleans. She has a huge following on Instagram.

How did you immerse yourself in the atmosphere of 1950’s New Orleans and the old French Quarter?

I spent a lot of time there, wandering around and talking to locals. There’s no other city in the country like New Orleans. The culture, food, music, and the gusto of living life to its fullest reigns supreme. I love being on Bourbon Street in the evening. No matter the time of year, the locals are in full party mode. I seem to go through a magical transition when I’m there. I’m normally an early-to-rise, early-to-bed type of person, except when I’m in New Orleans. I have no trouble sleeping late, throwing on a T-shirt and jeans, stopping at Café Du Monde for beignets and coffee, shopping, refueling at one of the many fabulous restaurants, and ending the day listening to great music. I prefer Zydeco over jazz, but it’s all good. 

Sydney’s antagonists in Murder at the Pontchartrain include the Ku Klux Klan. How does she deal with such ruthless adversaries?

By the time Sydney’s investigation leads her to the Klan, she’s desperate to find the killer and get Dixon out of jail. But, unfortunately, she’s run out of options, and, at this point, she is willing to stop at nothing, even holding two Klan members at gunpoint and threatening blackmail to get to the truth.

Sydney is an experienced investigator and has often found herself accused of homicide. How has she changed and grown over the series and how does she deal with this latest threat?

Sydney is a gutsy gal with a witty sense of humor. She solved the first series of murders at the Arlington Hotel and the Luther Hotel out of desperation. Dixon noticed her investigatory skills and nudged her toward working with him. Over time, she gained confidence, and solving another murder in another hotel became routine, and she became a bit cocky. It’s up to me to ensure she doesn’t get too comfortable. In Murder at the Menger, she is attacked and loses her memory, mainly of her time before she arrived in San Antonio. Not only does she need to find out why someone is trying to kill her, she needs to discover herself. 

Talk to us about cocktails. What’s a Hurricane? And what about a Sazerac, as referred to by Daniella Bernett?

A Hurricane, made with dark and light rum, passion fruit, orange juice, and simple syrup, was invented in the 1940s at Pat O’Brien’s bar in the French Quarter. In one scene little Lydia goes missing and after a frantic, but successful search, Sydney ends up at the bar where she sucks down one too many Hurricanes. A Sazerac is another drink that originated in New Orleans. It’s made with Sazerac de Forge et Fils cognac, absinthe, and a sugar cube. They are served at the Sazerac Bar in the Roosevelt Hotel in the French Quarter. And, yes, the Roosevelt Hotel is on my list for future Sydney books. I’m glad you mentioned Daniella Bernett. She’s a friend and writes the amazing mystery series, the Emmeline Kirby and Gregory Longdon series. 

Did you go and stay at the Pontchartrain in New Orleans as part of your research and what was it like? 

I do stay at the hotels I write about. Each one is magical in its own way. I love walking into a historic hotel; it’s like stepping back in time. After I retired from teaching, my husband and I took a nineteen-month road trip and found several of these jewels. Some were quaint, and some were downright luxurious. The Pontchartrain has been updated since the 1950s, but it has maintained its old charm. Check out their website and you’ll see what I mean. 

I include the town or city’s history and the hotel’s history. I read old newspapers about what was happening at the time the stories took place. For instance, in Murder at the Arlington, Hot Springs was a hotbed of illegal gambling, which I wove into the story. Al Capone used to have a private suite at the Arlington. In Murder at the Menger, several scenes take place in the Key Hole Club. This was a famous blues club where racial issues did not exist once you stepped in the door.  Louis Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie, and Della Reese played here often. In Murder at the Galvez, I used the Pelican Island development controversy in the plot.

Is there an imaginary soundtrack to Murder at the Pontchartrain and does it feature Jazz, Cajun or Zydeco?

As I mentioned earlier, Sydney finds herself in the French Quarter, a nearby swamp, and St. Louis Cemetery; all three music genres can come into play, Jazz being the Dixieland variety. I would add Gospel to the mix. In the soundtrack, you would hear Hank Williams’ “Jambalaya," Billie Holiday singing “Blue Moon," Champion Jack Dupree on the piano belting out “Junker’s Blues”, and Louis Armstrong on his horn playing “Mack the Knife.” And since Sydney skilfully solves the mystery, the closing tune would be “This Little Light of Mine.”

You are an ardent and active fan of Sherlock Holmes. How do you divide your time between your Holmes projects and your own fiction?

I’m not writing much Holmes right now, but he’s always hovering. Twelve years ago, I founded a Sherlock Holmes society, The Dogs in the Nighttime, in Anacortes, Washington, where I live. We meet monthly and discuss anything Holmes. We’re a lively group, and I look forward to every meeting. To add to my knowledge of Holmes, I attended the Sherlock Holmes Weekend in New York City for the first time in January. It’s a gathering of Sherlockians from all over. It was quite an experience, getting to meet and mingle with the big dogs.

What is next for Sydney Lockhart and her friends?

I have three more hotel murder mysteries in the works right now. I’ll see which location attracts me the most.

What are your plans for future books or series?

I just finished a quirky British mystery set on the Cornish Coast and a hardboiled detective mystery set in 1945 in Manhattan. I’ve also started one set in my hometown in Central Texas. It’s been a crazy, busy two years. My Sydney Lockhart series was picked up by a new publisher in 2021, and we’ve been working on rebranding and reissuing them. We have two more to go. My goals for next year are to finish the next Sydney mystery, clean up the British and hardboiled mysteries, and see what happens.

Amazon | Anamcara Press

About Kathleen Kaska:

Kathleen Kaska is the author of the awarding-winning mystery series: the Sydney Lockhart Mystery Series set in the 1950s and the Kate Caraway Animal-Rights Mystery Series. Her first two Lockhart mysteries, Murder at the Arlington and Murder at the Luther, were selected as bonus books for the Pulpwood Queen Book Group, the country’s largest book group. She also writes mystery trivia, including The Sherlock Holmes Quiz Book. Her Holmes short story, “The Adventure at Old Basingstoke,” appears in Sherlock Holmes of Baking Street. She is the founder of The Dogs in the Nighttime, the Sherlock Holmes Society of Anacortes, Washington, a scion of The Baker Street Irregulars. 

Kathleen is the owner of Metaphor Writing Coach. She coaches new and emerging writers and helps them discover their unique voices, and guides them as they learn the craft of writing and the art of storytelling. Kathleen also edits manuscripts and advises writers on how to look for the right publisher.

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