Murder of the Obeah Man by Judy Fishel | Book Review | Author Interview | I hope this is just the beginning of many more cozy mysteries featuring Jeenya Birdsong. Her warmth and caring make her a delightful sleuth. Her years of experience as an herbalist and spiritual advisor give her a distinct advantage in solving mysteries.
Murder of the Obeah Man by Judy Fishel Published by Flying Heron Books on May 23, 2020
Genres: Cozy Mystery, Detective/Sleuth, Fiction, Multi-Cultural, Mystery
Format: eBook, Paperback
Pages: 284
When the old owl hooted just outside her window, Jeenya Birdsong cringed. She knew what it meant. Long ago her Granny, high up in the Blue Mountains in Jamaica, had taught her to know the omens. She had no doubt. This was a sign that someone was dying. More than that, it was probably MURDER.
Jeenya, an herbalist, healer, and spiritual advisor, soon decides to help the detectives find the killer. Her husband would worry, saying it was too dangerous. She worried about getting in the way or making a total fool of herself.
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Murder of the Obeah Man is discounted on Amazon until June 13, 2020.
Murder of the Obeah ManShop on Amazon eBook 
Murder of the Obeah ManShop on Amazon Paperback
This book is also available on Barnes & Noble and iTunes.
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My thoughts on Murder of the Obeah Man by Judy Fishel:
Judy Fishel may be better known for writing educational books, but her debut murder/mystery is a killer.
Jeenya Birdsong is a herbalist and spiritual advisor with a heart of gold. She has a way of looking inside a person’s soul and sees the good as well as the bad. She and her husband Zeke are happy in their life at Jamaica Estates in Florida.
Detectives Rick and Hazel are assigned to investigate the murder of a local Obeah Man. Rick has a past connection with the Birdsong family, as he and their grandson, Homer, were childhood friends and went to fight in Iraq together. Rick was injured, but Homer never made it back. Jeenya and Zeke have a special place in their heart for Rick. Since the Jamaican community is rather tight-knit, Jeenya decides to use her skills to help with the investigation.
Fishel has an incredible way of describing scenes that makes you feel like you are right there. The sounds, colors, and smells are so vividly portrayed. I am impressed with her skills. I could hear the owl hooting and the drums beating, but most of all, it was the smells that drew me in. The rich scent of curry and freshly baked brownies sent me off to my kitchen to do a little cooking.
As education was Judy Fishel’s early occupation, it’s not surprising that I learned so much while being entertained with this book. I feel like a have a little more understanding of the culture and history of Obeah, Revivalists, Jamaica, and even how they all fit together in Florida today.
Jeenya is such a lovely, warm character. I certainly hope this is just the first of many more mysteries to come in a series. The book was too good to end after only one story.
I received a review copy of this book from the author. This is my honest, unbiased opinion.
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Murder of the Obeah Man by Judy Fishel
About Judy Fishel
Judy Fishel grew up in Florida and remembers the times her Grandfather took her to Palm City, where they looked for tiny ground orchids next to the large citrus groves. She also remembers the terrible freezes that killed most of the citrus trees. Now she still looks over the lovely St. Lucie River at Palm City on the other shore. It only made sense that she would set her story in there.
She began work on this book fifteen years ago researching Jamaica. Most of the characters have come from Jamaica to live in Palm City. When the pieces just didn't fit right, she put it aside and wrote two books on study skills mainly for college students - Straight A's are NOT Enough. Last year, her main character, Jeenya Birdsong, began appearing in her dreams. After many changes in the book and with help from Jeenya, the pieces really do fit together.
If you are lucky, Jeenya might appear if some of your dreams.
Judy and her husband both enjoy bird-watching and have traveled to many parts of the world to look at birds. But, they always enjoy looking out their windows to see the Great Blue Herons, the cormorants, anhingas, pelicans, ospreys, and occasional wood ducks that sit on their dock.
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An interview with Judy Fishel:
What inspired you to write in this genre?
Af first I preferred Science Fiction. I loved Marion Zimmer Bradley’s books on Darkover. I loved Ender’s Game but especially those that came after that. Most of all I loved Anne McCaffrey’s books on Pern, especially Dragon Song, Dragon Singer, and Dragon Drums – meant for Teenagers. I read all three at least once a year.
Then I switched to reading Mysteries – not the shoot em up books but those that focus on interesting characters. That’s what I wanted to write.
If an author fictionalized your life, in which genre would the story belong?
I think it would be something about how we learned. Even in middle school and high school, I tried to understand why we study so hard and forget it so quickly. I started studying for the SAT when I was in middle school and developed some important strategies. Before I finished writing this book I did a lot of research and on how we learned and wrote “Straight A’s Are NOT Enough.” and then a second edition. This would be the genre for my life story.
But writing “Murder of the Obeah Man” was much more fun and many more people will read and enjoy it.
Do you have a set writing schedule?
Yes! Once I’ve worked on my characters and have a brief outline of the plot, I start writing from about 6 AM and keep going until about 11 PM, stopping for meals prepared by my sweet husband who cooks, cleans the dishes, does the laundry, does the shopping, and vacuums while I’m working. I’d stop 3 days a week when we went to the gym. Now I can’t even do that.
What is your favorite type of music?
I enjoy music from the 50’s. I also love watching American Idol. It isn’t for the music. I like to see young people with no real chance of being a singer – and how they keep working and sometimes win. Who would have believed this year that Just Sam would win?
How do you choose the names of your characters?
I use books of baby names of course including those on the internet with names from different countries and different time periods. I try to use names in one family that all go together and also try to use names that somehow seems to fit the characters. A lot of time is spent with long lists before I decide on the names.
When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I was very ambitious, as I wanted to be 28 things like a mother, a cook, a teacher, a landscaper, a writer, a nuclear physicist, a missionary in Korea, and many others. I did NOT want to be a Doctor or Lawyer. My parents wanted me to do those. I ended up with a degree in Philosophy before I was realistic and took classes in education – and taught mostly Math and Science in Middle and High School.
Do you have a hobby you would like to share with us?
My husband and I enjoy bird-watching and have enjoyed the birds in Kenya, Thailand, Bhutan India, Argentina, Antarctica, Costa Rica, Mexico. Trinidad and Tobago, and finally in Jamaica and many places in the US.
Who has influenced your writing the most?
For this book, I chose a book by my favorite Mystery writer, William Kent Krueger. I read a page or two and took notes of what he did that made his book really wonderful. I took notes on his character, the plot, the scenery, and most of all, the beautiful writing. Then I’d work on a few pages of my book, not to copy him but to apply what I’d learned.
Is there anything you would like my readers to know about you and your book?
I started the book 15 years ago as I learned a lot about Jamaica. I wrote it and rewrote it, but it really didn’t work. It wasn’t much good. I finally put it away and worked on Straight A’s Are NOT Enough. They worked really well. My first sale was for 1500 copies in one school that gave a copy to every freshman… and they had a grant of course. I never had another sale like that but they continue to sell well.
Last summer I started again with Murder of the Obeah Man. I studied books by Kent Krueger. I also began having dreams about Jeenya Birdsong, my main character. It seemed to me like she was telling me about the various characters and what they were like as children. I changed the person who killed the Obeah Man.
With the help of Kent Krueger and Jeenya (a fictional character), I was amazed. The book wasn’t just better. It was better than I ever dreamed it could be. At least it seems to me that it was great. I hope you agree. And if you read the book and love it, please help pass the word to other mystery lovers. Tell your friends about it, write something on Facebook about it. Please write a review on Amazon. I’d really appreciate it.
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Murder of the Obeah Man by Judy Fishel
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Murder of the Obeah ManShop on Amazon eBook Murder of the Obeah ManShop on Amazon Paperback
This book is also available on Barnes & Noble and iTunes.
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I really like the sound of this one. There is a lot that intrigues me, especially the herbalist/healer role. Thanks for sharing this one Gina.