Guest Post (and a Giveaway!): Jackie Layton & Clutter Free

Welcome to the Blog Tour for Clutter Free by Jackie Layton, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours! I’m delighted to have Jackie on the blog today to chat about her new book!

CLUTTER FREE by Jackie Layton
SERIES: An Organized Crime Cozy Mystery #1
GENRE: Cozy Mystery (Clean)
PUBLISHER: Level Best Books
RELEASE DATE: August 29, 2023
PAGES: 315

Returning to Fox Island where she grew up, Kate Sloan begins her career as a professional organizer. When a woman accuses Kate’s police chief brother of having an affair, Kate’s priority shifts from organizing to proving her brother’s innocence. Kate visits the woman, hoping for a confession. The woman won’t admit she lied, and to make the situation worse, the accuser is found dead the next day by Kate and her business partner.

Kate has an eye for seeing what’s out of place, and she knows how to fix problems. Can she utilize her organizational skills to toss red herrings and focus on legitimate clues? Kate’s business is at risk as well as her brother’s career. The clock is ticking, and this could be the deadliest deadline of Kate’s life. She must discover the truth behind the victim’s vicious lies, but most of all, she needs to solve the murder before she becomes the next victim.

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by Jackie Layton, author of Clutter Free

Kate Sloan, the amateur sleuth in Clutter Free, is a professional organizer. I’ve never been very organized. When I walk into my house, I usually kick off my shoes and drop my purse in the nearest chair. When I wake up in the morning, I don’t immediately make the bed. I’ll get to it eventually, but like to ease into the day. I’ve been known to let the mail pile up, until company comes for a visit. It wasn’t like I was a hoarder. I was clean, and there was always a place to sit if you came to visit. But I was a little messy.

I used to tell myself it was because I was busy being a wife, a mother, and a pharmacist. I’d eventually get organized. Then one day it happened. I was an empty nester. We moved to South Carolina, and I became a full-time author and a part-time pharmacist. The time had come to get organized.

I studied magazines and read blogs. I practiced being organized. I tackled my pantry, then I reorganized the linen closet. I even transformed the dreaded junk drawer.

During this time, it occurred to me that a professional organizer would be a fun character to solve crimes. Attention to details is one of Kate’s greatest strengths. She is good at noticing a person’s pain or joy, organizing a mess, and finding clues to solve a mystery.

Before Kate moved to Fox Island, Georgia, she discovered organizing stuff was a way to deal with the chaos in her life. She becomes a real estate agent and find it fun to declutter peoples’ homes. The houses are easier to sell, when they’ve been decluttered and staged. They also sell for a better price. These experiences showed Kate that she enjoyed organizing more than selling houses.

Kate’s only son moves to Texas, and her husband died years earlier, and Kate is ready for a big change in her life. She moves to the town where she grew up and starts Let’s Get Organized with her best friend, Bess Walker.

Here are some of Kate’s favorite organizing tips:

• Focus on what’s most important
• Manage your time well
• Make lists
• Reduce clutter
• Once you organize a space, keep it organized. Don’t allow yourself to get lazy.

Kate’s not perfect. One of her faults is asking too many questions. Before his death, her husband hurt Kate deeply, and she tends to put a shield around her heart. She wants to be more relaxed and free, but it’s a challenge.

Once you get to know Kate, you’ll discover she has a great sense of humor. She’s loyal and smart. If you run into trouble and need a friend on your side, Kate is a great person to turn to.

In Clutter Free, a woman spreads terrible lies about Kate’s brother, Paul. Kate can’t let that happen, and she beings the process of proving her brother is innocent. In her wildest dreams, she never could have predicted there would soon be a murder on the island. Kate will use her organizational skills to discern what’s a good clue and what’s a red herring, if she’s going to catch a killer.

Connect with Jackie by visiting jackielaytoncozyauthor.com to follow her on social media and sign up for email updates.

(1) winner will win a paperback copy of Clutter Free and Weeding Out Lies, a $10 Starbucks gift card, and a polka dot shopping bag!

(1) additional winner will win a paperback copy of Clutter Free!

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight September 11, 2023 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on September 18, 2023. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.

Enter Giveaway

This giveaway is hosted by JustRead Tours, not RimSP
Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!

What about you? What makes you want to read Clutter Free by Jackie Layton?