It’s January in Florida.

The temperature is in the 50s and the tourists have arrived!

 by Savannah Webb, owner of Webb's Glass Shop

My name is Savannah Webb and I own a small storefront building on Central Avenue that has been in my family for generations. I’ve noticed more traffic now in Webb’s Glass Shop. The January chill brings thousands and thousands of tourists and snowbirds to St. Petersburg. They are keen to escape the frigid ice of the north and enjoy the sun and sand. Our downtown is busy with sidewalk cafes, museums, and art galleries. In the evenings, there are dozens of bands ranging from classical ensembles to hard rock to acoustic bluegrass -- all entertaining their customers far into the wee hours of the morning.

It is also the start of the festival season. Just this weekend, at the Albert Whitted Park downtown, there will be an enchanting European style equestrian arts show. Ma'Ceo Cavello Equestrian Arts offers high-end entertainment in an intimate atmosphere in their Big Top Theatre.

The Museum of Fine Arts presents the Third Annual MUSE Benefit for the Arts. MUSE will celebrate artistic inspiration at the fundraising benefit and will recognize the breadth and beauty of art and culture in our City of the Arts. The event will pay tribute to those that continue to inspire and guide St. Petersburg to its standing as an international arts destination.

Near my house is an Orchid workshop in Sunken Gardens. An orchid specialist will answer all your orchid questions; from caring for common and unusual specimens to the best ways to mount and basket these beguiling plants. Pick from many uncommon orchids during the plant sale following the program.

Those events are just the highlights for one weekend in January. I’m lucky to live in the City of the Arts.


You can read more about Savannah’s next adventure in Shards of Murder, the second book in the Webb’s Glass Shop Mystery series, published by Kensington Books and available at your favorite outlet on February 23, 2016.

About Shards of Murder:

When a glass-making competition turns deadly, glass shop owner Savannah Webb must search for a window into a criminal’s mind. . .

As the new proprietor of Webb’s Glass Shop, Savannah has been appointed to fill her late father’s shoes as a judge for the Spinnaker Arts Festival, held in downtown St. Petersburg, Florida. With her innovative glass works, the clear winner is Megan Loyola, a student of Savannah’s former mentor.

But when Megan doesn’t show up to accept her $25,000 award, rumors start flying. And when Savannah discovers the woman’s dead body on festival grounds, the police immediately suspect her of murder. To keep from appearing before a judge herself, Savannah sorts through the broken pieces of glass scattered around the victim for clues as to who took this killer competition too far. . .


GIVEAWAY: Leave a comment with your email address, for the chance to win a signed Advanced Release Copy of Shards of Murder. Canadian and US addresses only. Comment by midnight tonight (January 24th).

Meet the author:

Cheryl Hollon writes full time after she left an engineering career designing and building military flight simulators in amazing countries such as England, Wales, Australia, Singapore, Taiwan and India. Fulfilling the dream of a lifetime, she combines her love of writing with a passion for creating glass art. In the small glass studio behind the house, Cheryl and her husband George design, create, and produce fused glass, stained glass and painted glass artworks.

You can visit Cheryl and her books at her Website, or Facebook, or Twitter.