10 Fun Facts About My Protagonists

I’m happy to welcome back award-winning author and journalist donalee Moulton. Today, donalee shares interesting facts about the characters who populate her new release, Melt.

Here’s donalee!

My new book Melt is a mystery. It’s also a story about friendship. Melt is what happens when three yogis with a penchant for solving crime are asked to help prevent a seventeen-year-old boy from going to jail for the rest of his life. It requires more than a downward dog.

Welcome to Melt. Here are 10 fun facts about the people who populate these pages.

1. There is power in numbers. In my previous books, there was a main character. In this book, there are three. Someone asked me which of the triad was the most important. The answer: no one. Each woman—Charlene, Lexie, and Woo Woo—is equally significant and plays a key role. They also, as friends, become greater than the individual sum of their parts.

2. There is power in PPT. When you write a book, characters develop personality quirks you hadn’t anticipated. One character has a penchant for PowerPoint. Hint: It’s the auditor.

3. There is power in professionalism. I did not do a detailed backstory for the three protagonists when they were first introduced in Bind. Much of how the characters evolved was organic. They seemed to tell me who they were—and what they did for a living. Can you guess who is the auditor, the comedian, the reflexologist?

4. There is power in having a puppy. This is my first cast of characters that features a pet. Madoff is the auditor’s dog, but he becomes everyone’s favorite ball of fur, and everyone is active in his life: walking him, rubbing his belly, giving him well-deserved treats, and tucking him in bed when he stays up past his bedtime.

5. There is power in pasta. As with the first book, food plays a central role in Melt. It brings the women and their friends together for pleasure—and for less-pleasurable activities. The food that is dished up also serves as a way of introducing readers to some favorite restaurants, bakeries, and delis in Halifax.

6. There is power in the pub. In the first book, the two detectives meet for beer, burgers, and business in a pub. Pubs are part of the fabric of life in Nova Scotia. They are places to unwind, eat good food at good prices, and sip something hoppy (or otherwise). In Melt, the detectives continue to gather at the Dry Dock. In some cases, they’re joined by the three women who have also become part of the fabric of their lives.

7. There is power in a punchline. To my surprise, and perhaps my chagrin, Melt is funny. I should be neither surprised nor chagrined by this because my writing often has an edge to it. I just didn’t see it turning up here. The characters knew better.

8. There is power in place. I grew up and live in Nova Scotia. It made sense to locate Charlene, Lexie, Woo Woo, and their friends here. What I didn’t realize was how knowing a place well would transfer to the page. Many readers have told me how much they enjoy seeing where they live come to life. Many of those who don’t live here have told me they feel like they have come to know Nova Scotia as locals know it.

9. There is power in poetry. For the first time, poetry makes its way into one of my mystery books. It’s an inside joke admittedly, but it is also a reminder that poetry isn’t something we learn in high school and leave behind. If we’re lucky, it’s something we take with us as life unfolds.

10. There is power in a provocative first line. The first line for Melt came to me quickly. It made me chuckle, and it set the scene for the opening chapter. I second guessed myself though wondering if the line was too much. In the end, I ended up where I started. Happily. Let me know what you think—you can read the first page below.

The first page

Luke’s balls are itchy.

His left hand, casually resting on his left thigh, is mere inches from his testicles. He could surreptitiously edge his hand forward and find relief.

“Surreptitiously” is not a word in Luke’s usual vocabulary. It has nothing to do with IQ. Indeed, Luke is smart enough to read the room before he moves his hand a nanometer. He scans the beige walls, the brown tables, the black gowns, the onyx gavel. A courtroom, he concludes, is not the best place to scratch your scrotum. Luke clenches his legs together to stop the itching. Now he has to piss.

Luke looks up to see the judge looking down at him. “I want to confirm your plea. You understand by pleading guilty to trafficking a schedule one drug you could spend 25 years in a federal prison.”

This is not news to Luke. It is not good news, certainly, but it is not a surprise. It is what he has signed on for. Luke’s lawyer nudges him. Luke stands up. He returns the judge’s gaze without malice or defiance. “Yes, your honor, I understand.”

The associate chief justice of the supreme court of Nova Scotia quickly and efficiently takes in Luke’s demeanor, his clarity of voice. She takes in his blue suit, at least one size too large; his tartan tie, with Value Village written all over it; his left hand, which seems to have a small twitch. She looks into Luke Castle’s eyes. She sees what she often sees: fear. What she does not see is hope.

About the author

donalee Moulton’s first mystery book Hung out to Die was published in 2023. A historical mystery, Conflagration!, was published in 2024. It won the 2024 Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense (Historical Fiction). donalee has two new books out in 2025, Bind and Melt, the first in a new series, the Lotus Detective Agency.

A short story “Swan Song” was one of 21 selected for publication in Cold Canadian Crime. It was shortlisted for an Award of Excellence. Other short stories have been published in numerous anthologies and magazines. donalee’s short story “Troubled Water” was shortlisted for a 2024 Derringer Award and a 2024 Award of Excellence from the Crime Writers of Canada.

donalee is an award-winning freelance journalist. She has written articles for print and online publications across North America including The Globe and Mail, Chatelaine, Lawyer’s Daily, National Post,, and Canadian Business. As well, donalee is the author of The Thong Principle: Saying What You Mean and Meaning What You Say and co-authored the new book Better Policy | Better Performance: The Who, Why, and What of Organizational Policy.

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