Edith Maxwell's Blog, page 66

Castles, Ghosts, and Ice Cream, Oh My! (plus giveaway) Welcome Back Meri Allen

It’s always great to have Meri Allen aka Shari Randall visit the Wickeds. Whether she’s writing about lobsters or ice cream her books are deliciously entertaining and I gobble them up! Today she’s here celebrating the release of Mint Chocolate Murder.

Meri: Every time I take a trip, I recall the Anne Tyler book and movie, The Accidental Tourist. The Accidental Tourist of the title is a man who hates to travel and writes dreary guidebooks for businesspeople like him who only travel because of work.

I’m the opposite. My husband jokes that I get excited about driving to the next town. To me,  less-discovered sights are just as much fun as the famous ones. One of my local, less-discovered favorites is Gillette’s Castle in East Haddam, Connecticut. Ever since I first visited it on a Girl Scout field trip too many years ago, I’ve been dying to set a murder there and I finally got my wish in my latest Ice Cream Shop mystery, Mint Chocolate Murder.

Gillette’s Castle is not a pretty Sleeping Beauty-style castle. In the book, one character describes it as “fortification, not Disney vacation.” But the medieval inspired stone building fascinates, not just for its rough-hewn exterior and magical setting, but for the story of its builder.

William Gillette (1853 – 1937) was scion of a prominent Connecticut family who found fame as an actor on stage and screen. His most famous role? Sherlock Holmes.

His Sherlock, long and lean, became the prototype for the detective on film. Further, because Gillette was also a playwright, he ad libbed several “Holmes-isms” that are not found in the canon. He’s the one who uttered “Elementary.” He added the famous deerstalker and pipe to his costume.

Friends of Gillette Castle State Park

When he decided to build his dream house castle on the Seventh Sister Hill overlooking the Connecticut River, he incorporated some inventive touches, including secret nooks and specially angled mirrors so he could jump out and surprise his guests by appearing from “nowhere.” Yet the interior is surprisingly homey for a medieval style castle with its own miniature railroad curling around the property. Visitors are not allowed to visit every space in the castle but I’m convinced there must be a secret staircase somewhere.

In adapting the castle for the book, I kept the rough fieldstone exterior (Why? No spoilers!) and glowering medieval look. Instead of Gillette, I made the original owner of the castle a Gilded Age millionaire industrialist who loved Scotland so much he imported the very stones themselves to create his own “pile” and named it Moy Mull. Town gossips declared the stones haunted, and decades later teens who visited Moy Mull after it fell into decades of disrepair whispered about hearing the ghostly Weeping Lady herself, who mourns from the castle tower.

In the present day of the story, Moy Mull is brought back to regal life by a former super model who invites my main character, Riley Rhodes, to create treats for a fantasy ice cream social. Riley discovers the castle still holds secrets, and the Weeping Lady still cries from the tower.

If you’re going to have a castle, you have to have a ghost, right?

Giveaway! I’ll send one copy (print or ebook) of MINT CHOCOLATE MURDER to one lucky commenter. US Only.

Readers: Have you visited any castles? If you decided to have a castle setting for a book, what would you put in it?

Meri Allen is the author of the Ice Cream Shop mystery series. As Shari Randall, she penned the Lobster Shack Mystery series. She lives on the Connecticut shore and enjoys haunting bookstores and antiques shops.

More about Mint Chocolate Murder: When Udderly Delightful Ice Cream shop manager Riley Rhodes is summoned to Penniman’s Moy Mull Castle, it’s the cherry on top of a successful summer season. The gothic pile built by an eccentric New England Gilded Age millionaire has been transformed into a premiere arts colony by Maud Monaco, a reclusive former supermodel. As part of Moy Mull’s Fall Arts Festival, Maud is throwing a fantasy ice cream social and hires Riley to whip up unique treats to celebrate the opening of an exhibit by Adam Blasco, a photographer as obnoxious as he is talented.

As Penniman fills up with Maud’s art-world friends arriving for the festival, gossip swirls around Blasco, who has a dark history of obsession with his models. Riley’s curiosity and instincts for sleuthing – she was a CIA librarian – are piqued, and she wonders at the hold the cold-hearted photographer has over the mistress of Moy Mull.

But when Adam is found dead behind the locked door of Moy Mull’s dungeon, Riley realizes there’s more than one suspect who’d wanted to put the malicious photographer on ice.

Guest Cheryl Hollon – and a once in a lifetime trip!

By Liz, happy to welcome Cheryl Hollon back to the blog! She’s talking about a huge bucket list trip today – so cool! Take it away Cheryl!

I’ve returned from a once-in-a-lifetime tour to visit a site on my bucket list – Petra, Jordan. I’ve been fascinated with this wonder of the modern world since it was featured in one of my all-time favorite movies:  Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The final scenes in the movie feature the iconic Treasury, the centerpiece of Jordan’s ancient Nabatean city of Petra. That’s me. I was standing in front of the Treasury.

This trip was more than just a bucket list accomplishment. It taught me an important lesson about my dreams and ambitions. The following picture is the perfect example of trusting that you’re making progress toward that dream. It’s the trust that is so difficult. While our tour group trudged down this hot, dusty canyon, I didn’t know that the goal was just around that little bend. The same can be confirmed at any point along your journey – don’t quit just before that last bend in your path. The Treasury could be just around the corner. 

Another main highlight of the trip was the fabulous food. We were treated to fresh-made hummus, tabouli, falafel, kunafa, bedouin coffee, and excellent chai tea. Our guide always preceded each new dining site with this statement, “Eat as if you’ve never seen food before.” I did, it was marvelous! 

I would love to know your plans for a bucket list adventure. Is it a destination or a goal? My next trip is to see the pyramids at Giza, but my next goal is to finish the mystery I’m writing. Leave a comment to enter a signed book giveaway for DEATH A SKETCH. Please don’t wait until it’s too late. Go! Go now!

Readers, what’s on your bucket list? Let us know in the comments!

The Paint & Shine Mysteries are set in the Daniel Boone National Forest. My parents were born, raised, and now rest in peace in the Adams Family Cemetery in Wolfe County, Kentucky. The characters spend a lot of time preparing traditional southern meals and creating moonshine cocktails. Please consider buying local. Independent bookstores need your help during this challenging time. Libraries are fabulous when your budget is tight.

Wicked…Thursday? Casting away clutter

Since we spent our Wicked Wednesday yesterday talking about Barb’s and Jessie’s new releases, we moved our last Cast Away post to today…and we’re talking about stuff.

I’ve gotten a lot better at getting rid of things. Having just moved, I took a lot of pride in tossing stuff I’d outgrown, or didn’t need anymore. I even got to the point where, if I didn’t have a place to put it, it was gone. I was totally sick of trying to find a place for everything.

Wickeds, what about you? What things in your home do you want to get rid of but haven’t done so yet? What keeps you from getting rid of them? 

Barb: My mother-in-law was a borderline hoarder and having spent literally years cleaning up and clearing out her mess, both during and after her lifetime, I’m predisposed to divest. However, it’s a constant battle. My brother’s take is that after millennia in which humans’ primary concern was scarcity, we are hardwired to collect and keep stuff. We’re maybe the first or second generation whose primary concern is getting rid of things.

Edith/Maddie: For me it’s hard to get rid of things with sentimental value. I still have my Chinese calligraphy kit that I haven’t used in decades. A hand-painted porcelain box from Japan that was my mom’s. Cards from my sons over the years. I also never know what to do with notes and handouts from writing workshops. I basically never go back and look at them, but I feel like I should keep them. Help!

Julie: I now live in a one bedroom apartment with no storage, and it’s full. Like Edith, I have trouble getting rid of sentimental things. That said, we’re helping our parents clear their house, which means I’m going to get more sentimental stuff, so this is a timely conversation. What I need to get rid of is paper. Files, books, wrapping paper, craft items. I’m drowning in paper.

Jessie: Good luck with this, Julie! Paper and sentimental items are so much to sort! There are always things I would like to winnow. I went through my studio space this spring and removed a large quantity of fabric that is not right for my life any longer. I also sorted out art supplies that were more appropriate for young children. I still need to cull photographs that need to be evaluated for inclusion in albums and my spice drawers could use some scrutiny!

Sherry: I have a basement storage room full of stuff that is easy to ignore. Some is from my grandparents’ farm, some from my daughter’s growing up years, and some is the sentimental things that are hard to get rid of. I’ve been working on it, but it’s easy to ignore. With a lot of paper things I just take a photo and sent them on their way to the recycler.

Readers, what about you? Are you good at casting away clutter, or do you keep everything? Tell us below!

Wicked Wednesday – Celebrating our new releases!

It’s release week for Murder Through the English Post, Jessie’s sixth Beryl and Edwina Mystery, and Hallowed Out, Barb’s re-released Maine Clambake novella. Congrats, ladies! Both books sound so fun. Here are the blurbs – then I have a question for you all!

Murder Through the English Post:

When a rash of poisoned pen letters envelops their sleepy English village, Beryl and Edwina, the delightfully mismatched friends and sleuths-of-a-certain-age, step up to stamp out the evil-minded epistles in Jessica Ellicott’s sixth historical mystery set in the wake of WWI.

What began for two dear if very different friends—an American adventuress and a prim and proper Brit—as a creative response to the lean times following the Great War has evolved into a respectable private enquiry business. So much so that Constable Gibbs calls upon Beryl and Edwina to solve a curious campaign of character assassination.
 
A series of anonymous accusations sent via post have set friend against friend and neighbor against neighbor. In her new position as magistrate, Edwina has already had to settle one dispute that led to fisticuffs. Even Beryl has received a poison pen letter, and while she finds its message preposterous and laughable, others are taking the missives to heart. Their headstrong housekeeper Beddoes is ready to resign and one villager has attempted to take her own life.
 
The disruption of the peace goes far beyond malicious mischief when another villager is murdered. Now it’s up to the intrepid sleuths to read between the lines and narrow down the suspects to identify the lethal letter writer and ensure that justice is delivered. . .

Hallowed Out:

With its history of hauntings and ghost sightings, Busman’s Harbor is the perfect setting for Halloween festivities. Despite her busy schedule, Julia agrees to help out with a haunted house tour to protect her mother from overwhelming herself. But when a reenactment of a Prohibition-era gangster’s murder ends with a literal bang and a dead actor from New Jersey, Julia Snowden must identify a killer before she ends up sleeping with the fishes.  (Note: Hallowed Out is a re-release, as a standalone ebook, of the novella that appears in the book Haunted House Murder, along with novellas by Leslie Meier and Lee Hollis in hardcover, mass market paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats. So if you already own Haunted House Murder, don’t buy Hallowed Out.)

To celebrate, I’d love to ask you all about poisoned pen letters – I’m fascinated! Any of you Wickeds ever get one (aside from social media, of course…)? The mean girl in the seventh grade? A nasty neighbor?

Edith/Maddie: So many congratulations to Jessie and Barb! I don’t think I’ve ever gotten a nasty anonymous note. There was a mean girl when I was an early teen who seemed to have a vendetta against me for reasons I still don’t know, but she would say her thinly veiled barbs to my face. Nothing hidden about it.

Julie: Congratulations Barb and Jessie! I don’t think I’ve even received a poisoned pen letter, though I have a tendency to block these things out. I’ll ask my sister if she remembers one. I did break a few chain letters, but that’s a different sort of energy.

Sherry: I’m so happy for both of you and more great books for us to read! Oh, Julie breaking chain letters — it seemed like such a horrible thing to do! But I did it. When I was in eighth grade I got a valentine (with postage due) that was supposedly from my boyfriend. It was from some mean boys who thought they were hilarious.

Jessie: Thanks, everyone! Edith, what a sad thing! And Sherry, that vinegar valentine sounds so spiteful! So far, I have been very fortunate in most of my communications, attributed or not. I hope my luck holds and the drama stays on the page!

Barb: Thanks, everyone. Jessie, I love the idea of poison pen letters. I recently re-read Agatha Christie’s The Moving Finger. (I can’t even remember why I re-read it.) The idea of these anonymous letters in a small community is so creepy. I can’t remember if I’ve ever received one. Somehow the question has started a niggling memory, but I can’t put my finger on it. Of course now everything is anonymous–and right out in the open.

Readers, how about you? Anyone ever get a poisoned pen? Tell us in the comments!

Double Launch Day!

Jessie: In New England, delighted that the temperatures have finally tumbled to the mid-eighties!

I adore launch day and it is twice as nice when it is shared with a friend! To celebrate I thought it would be fun to create a digital jigsaw puzzle out of the covers of Barb’s Hallowed Out and my own Murder Through the English Post. After all, puzzles are perfect for mystery readers, jigsaw, and otherwise!

https://www.jigsawplanet.com/?rc=play&pid=18db027f6182https://www.jigsawplanet.com/?rc=play&pid=238212e689ccc

Readers, do you like puzzles? Jigsaws, word searches, sudoku?

A Richness of Covers, plus #GIVEAWAY

Edith/Maddie here, sweating it out during New England’s hottest week yet this year.

I’m declaring a “richness” to be the group-name for book covers. And I have three to reveal to you! In celebration, I’m going to give away my last two ARCs of Murder in a Cape Cottage, book #4 in the Cozy Capers Book Group Mysteries, even though all three covers are from the Country Store Mysteries. More richness, I guess.

You might remember that my novella “Christmas Cocoa and a Corpse” released in 2019 in the Christmas Cocoa Murder collection. Like Barb, I am lucky enough to have my novella re-release as a standalone ebook, which will be out September 27. (That’s the same day my new novella, “Scarfed Down,” comes out in Christmas Scarf Murder, and also the same day Murder in a Cape Cottage releases – more riches from Kensington!)

I just got the ebook cover and wanted to share it with you.

Isn’t it gorgeous? I love the depiction of Robbie’s country store porch all decorated for Christmas, including Birdy with his knitted scarf (not that any self-respecting cat would leave a scarf on long enough to get his picture taken, but, whatever).

Here’s the novella description:

ʼTis the season to indulge in hot chocolate and irresistible holiday treats—until too much of a good thing turns downright deadly . . .

When local businessman Jed Greenberg is found dead with a chocolate Lab whimpering over his body, the police start sniffing around Robbie Jordan’s country restaurant for answers. Was it something in Robbie’s hot cocoa that killed Jed, or was it Cocoa, the puppy? As the suspects pile as high as her holiday tree, Robbie attempts to get to the bottom of the sickly-sweet murder . . .

But when I was poking around Amazon, what should I find but an audiobook release of the novella, and it already came out last month! I had no idea. Maybe my editor told me. If so, I’d lost track of the news. Here’s the cover for the “Christmas Cocoa and a Corpse” e-audiobook.

It’s also a fun cover. Neither novella cover includes the chocolate Labrador puppy named Cocoa who is important to the story, but that’s okay. Just remember, if you’ve already read the novella in the collection, this one will be exactly the same. (That is, save you money for new books…)

Finally, I don’t think I’ve shared the cover for the next full-length Country Store Mystery, Four Leaf Cleaver, which will be out at the end of January. As you might guess, it’s a St. Patrick’s Day mystery.

Look at Birdy with his green bow tie!

An Irish cook-off is held in Pans ‘N Pancakes. And somebody is killed. And Robbie, no surprise, gets involved. But more about that when we get closer to the date. Big kudos to fan Grace Koshida who suggested the fabulous winning title after I sent out the request for punny names on my Facebook page.

All three of the stories behind these covers are up for pre-order (or order, if we’re talking about the audiobook). Preorders really help the author. As our friend Hank Phillippi Ryan says (only half joking), it’s only my career. Now, how do I paste in a winking emoji?

Readers: Which cover do you like best? Are you all caught up on the Country Store series? How about the Cozy Capers books? I’ll send two commenters an advance copy of Murder in a Cape Cottage.

Welcome Isis Crawford – A Catered Doggie Wedding

Liz here, happy to welcome Isis Crawford to the blog! She’s talking about a doggie wedding – a subject near and dear to my heart. Take it away, Isis!

  When my editor suggested I write A Catered Doggie Wedding, my thoughts instantly  turned to  my two  golden retrievers, Sam and Annabelle, and what it would have been like to try and get them to stay in one place, let alone trot down the aisle in an orderly fashion. Bertha and Ernie are far better behaved than Sam and Annabelle ever were. That’s one of the nice things about writing – you can make your characters, be they man or beast, do what you want them to, something I’ve never managed to accomplish in real life. Maybe, that’s why I enjoy writing books! Everyone has to do what I tell them to.

  For example, Bertha and Ernie (named after Bert and Ernie from Sesame Street in case you haven’t guessed) would never steal my bra and dash out the door with it, or snag an entire roast chicken off the dining room table while the guests are in the living room and eat it on the run, or open the refrigerator door, take a carton of eggs from the shelf and devour all twelve eggs, being careful to leave the shells behind.  No, in my mind Bertha and Ernie are exemplary, a model of canine manners  – except for Ernie tearing off Bertha’s veil  and digging up the doggie daycare back yard hunting for grubs– but then no one is perfect.

  And then I thought about another wedding. My son’s. He had a formal wedding and his dog, Barry the Beagle, aka Barry The Bad, was included in the guest list. In fact, he even had his own babysitter, a necessary add-on since he had a tendency to jump on a table and gobble up everything in sight. And I must say, Barry looked very dapper in his bowtie. His behavior was perfect. He trotted down the aisle and sat next to my son as vows were exchanged, only baying when the music started. Fortunately, he didn’t see a squirrel because if he had things would have turned out differently.

  As someone who  used to make wedding cakes as well as other pastries for a living, it was fun conjuring up a doggie chocolate free wedding cake as well as a menu for the event. What would one serve at the reception?  Hot dogs, of course!   And sausages. And corn dogs. And pastry wrapped mini dogs, my personnel favorites.  Then there are potato wedges and bone shaped rolls. Of course, if one wanted to get fancier  steak would be the ticket, something my current dog, a golden mini doodle called Fred, loves. He is the first dog I have ever had that I actually cook for.  Who knew that some of his favorite foods would be salami, fennel, and prosciutto?  But he’s pretty happy with McDonalds as well if truth be told. So were Sam and Annabel for that matter. In fact, my kids and I used to get them Double Whoopers and fries on their birthdays. Maybe, I’ll do the same for Fred this year.

 In any case, I hope you enjoy reading A Catered Doggie Wedding. I know I certainly had fun writing it. 

Readers, would you organize (or attend) a doggie wedding? Tell us in the comments!

Dog Days of Summer

By Liz, mostly enjoying the heat wave at the beach

And no, for once this post is NOT about my dogs!

I don’t know about where you are, but it’s been hot here in Massachusetts this week. 

I don’t mind it, honestly – I’m way more of a warm person than a cold person, although humidity is not my friend. But whenever we hit the dog days of summer, It actually reminds me of my childhood summers—my absolute favorite time of the year when I was a kid. (Who am I kidding – it’s my favorite time of the year period.)

I absolutely lived for summer. The social aspect of school was always a lot for me, and when summer rolled around and I didn’t have to go pretend to fit in every day, I was super relieved. The days stretched out ahead of me like there was all the time in the world. I always had a stack of books, and I was lucky enough to have a small, above-ground pool in my yard. 

The house I grew up in back then was only one of three on the entire street. Between my house and the one behind it, there was a patch of land where wild blackberry bushes grew. One of my favorite memories was taking a bowl out back and picking tons of blackberries. My mother also had a huge garden with blueberry trees and strawberry plants, so berries were a big part of that summer feeling. To this day, there’s nothing like summer berries to take me right back. 

Photo by Mario Mendez on Unsplash

Back then, it was pretty common to spend most of the day outside. I rode my bike all over the neighborhood exploring, making up stories to keep myself entertained. I’d come home for lunch and watch a couple of Monkees reruns—another one of my favorite memories, I adored that show!—then head right back outside. 

On special days, my mother would take us to the beach. I could usually tell when it was going to be a beach day—I’d hear her downstairs earlier than usual getting things ready, checking to see when low tide was that day, packing snacks in a cooler. Those were the best days—we’d go to Salisbury Beach and set up shop, and I’d spend the rest of the day in the water. I usually made a new friend or two to swim with. 

Other days, we’d head over to my grandparents’ house, another favorite pastime. My grandpa and I would sit outside and talk on the stone lions that stood guard outside the house. On the days when it was too hot to do that, we’d hang out on the screened-in porch and eat snacks. 

When my dad came home from work, we’d usually swim in the pool together for a bit. I’d show him the new stroke I’d learned at my swim lesson, or we’d have races. I think he usually let me win. On weekends, we’d hang out together while he did yard work. Our backyard seemed so big back then, with the smell of fresh-cut grass and summer barbecues lingering over it. 

The ice cream shop at the bottom of our street was a frequent stop, either on our way home from somewhere or we’d make a special trip after dinner. Chocolate-vanilla swirl soft serve was my go-to then. I can’t pass a soft-serve ice cream shop without thinking about that place. It’s a travel agency now (I actually can’t believe they still have those!). 

Photo by Dylan Ferreira on Unsplash

I think one of the reasons I love summer so much is because of these memories. Aside from the warm weather, of course. 

Readers, what’s your favorite childhood memory? Leave a comment below!

Wicked Wednesday – Who’s on your island?

Happy Wednesday! Let’s get back to the idea of a deserted island for this week’s edition of Cast Away. I could use a rest on a deserted island right about now…

Wickeds – your main character is stranded on a small island. What three things would they have with them? What about you? What three things would you have?

 

Barb: This is a funny question for me, because my main character, Julia Snowden, is REGULARLY on a small island. As the next book opens, Julia is living on Morrow Island in the renovated mansion built by her mother’s ancestors. Based on that, I’d say the three things she needs are her family around her, the window seat in her apartment for reading, and Le Roi, the family Maine coon cat. Those things sound pretty good to me.

Edith/Maddie: That’s so civilized, Barb! Robbie Jordan would have Abe, her bike (depending on the island), and a pan to cook in. Mac would need her parrot Belle, a cozy mystery to read, and her family nearby. Rose Carroll would have her birthing satchel, her David, and writing materials. I would need writing materials, too, plus matches and a bottle of whiskey.

Julie: “Stranded on a small island” gives me heart palpitations. Neither Lilly nor I are big on “roughing it”. Assuming there’s somewhere to sleep, etc. I’d take a solar-powered generator, an iPad (for reading, drawing and writing), and a pot for boiling water, etc. (I realize I wouldn’t last long on a remote island.) Lilly would probably be more practical. She’d bring one of the Garden Squad with her for company, a pot for cooking, and flares that she could light to get off the island.

Jessie: Since I am on a couple of deadlines all at once I am in love with the idea of being stranded on a small island! I would take my dog, Sam, my current knitting project and my writing go bag that accompanies me back and forth between NH and ME. It is filled with notebooks, pens, and ink. My sleuth Beryl would take a pair of sensible walking shoes, fire-starting equipment, and a case of gin.

Sherry: I’m with Julie! I don’t like roughing it and if our power is out for a couple of hours I panic. Chloe would need a satellite phone to call for help, Rip because firemen usually know how to start a fire, and rum so she can make happy drinks with all the fruit growing on the island. She’s not going to call for help for the first few days because being alone with Rip sounds just about perfect to Chloe.

Readers: What are you three desert island must-haves?

Welcome Amy Lillard – Confessions of a Dog-Loving Cat Person

By Liz, happy to welcome Amy Lillard, a fellow animal lover – and of course author- to the Wickeds! I love Amy’s post about how, despite her love for cats, her books usually have dogs in them. Take it away, Amy!

Readers are always asking me if the characters in my books reflect the people around me and how much of myself do I add to the story. A lot, I tell them, and sometimes not much at all. I agree with Tennyson who said, “I am a part of all that I have met.” Writing is very much the same. It’s impossible not to add little pieces of yourself along the way. Though sometimes as writers we add more (or less) than we do other times.

A few years ago I happened to notice that I tend to add dogs to my books. Which is not earth-shatteringly innovative. I’m not sure how it started, just one day I realized that almost all my books have one canine or another. I guess that’s not too spectacular except…I am not a dog person. 

All of my adult life (and most of my childhood) I have had a cat. Currently I have two. But I am surrounded by dog people. Everyone in my family including my son has a dog, or two. My older sister has four! But not me. I’m all about the cats. Oh, I’ve had a dog. I had a great beagle that I supposedly got for my son, but who ended up being a wonderful family pet, adored by all.

The first book I purposely added a dog to was a romance. The dog was Bruno from Can’t Buy Me Love. He was patterned after Kizzy, the dog my dad’s girlfriend had when I was in high school. Bruno (and Kizzy) were both black Tiny Toy poodles. I adored that dog, Kizzy, that is. But I have say Bruno was a lot of fun too, if only on the page. Then came other dogs in my romances: a sheepdog in one, a Chihuahua in another, a German shepherd with separation anxiety, and on and on. 

Fast forward a couple of years and I start writing mysteries. By now my precious beagle had crossed the rainbow bridge. What better way to commemorate him than by adding him to one of my series? That’s how the puppies came about in the Kappy King Mystery Series. The main dog in the book is Elmer. My dog was Ammo. Now, Ammo didn’t seem to be the best name for an Amish dog. But what could I change it to? When we would tell people Ammo’s name, a lot of them thought we were saying Elmo. For obvious reasons, I decided to alter it a bit more for my books. That’s how Elmer was born.

That was fun, adding my dog to a book. So I decided to add more real-life dogs to my fiction stories. My Main Street Book Club Mystery Series has a very large and very talkative Airedale named Dewey. In real life Dewey’s name is…well, Dewey, and he belongs to my best friend. I also added my next-door neighbor’s hyper hyper hyper (did I mention he was hyper?) Jack Russell to Marry Me, Millie. (Sorry mystery readers, we’re back at romance once more.)

My latest mystery, Dairy, Dairy, Quite Contrary has the cutest cover with the cutest dog up front and center. In the book he’s Duke and in the dedication you can learn how he got his name. In real life, he’s Bentley, a.k.a. Batman. Batty is my younger sister’s dog. He’s the perfect sidekick for my mystery-solving, advice-giving, table-waiting heroine, Sissy Yoder. Duke (and Batman) are Yorkies. Very small Yorkies. Like three pounds of love and fur…I mean, three pounds of ferocious canine. (Well, they think they are ferocious. Who are we to tell them any differently?)

So I guess you could say that I’m a dog-loving cat person. And I have more dogs I want to add. My neighbor’s Shelty, the pit bull across the street, and my son’s ginormous Great Pyrenees, just to name a few. So why dogs and not cats? I have no idea. The dogs are just there. Like they were part of the story before I even got started.

I have added cats to a couple of my books. The project I’m working on now has a cat, though he won’t take a big part in the story for a while. If at all. (And it’s a proposal which means maybe it could be a book someday, or maybe it won’t.) And I haven’t gotten into the story far enough to see if there’s a dog lurking around a corner somewhere.

I suppose cats are a little harder to add in because they sleep like thirty-nine hours a day. Maybe it’s because they can’t (or won’t) fetch the paper or learn any tricks. Or maybe, just maybe, dogs can be more fun. What? Who said that? Certainly not me, because I am a cat person.

Readers, what about you? Cats or dogs? Leave a comment below.

About Amy:

Amy loves nothing more than a good book. Except for her family…and maybe homemade tacos…and nail polish. But reading and writing are definitely way up on the list.

Born and bred in Mississippi, Amy is a transplanted Southern Belle who now lives in Oklahoma with her deputy husband and two spoiled cats. ^..^

When she’s not creating happy endings, she has a variety of hobbies, but her favorite is whatever gets her out of housework.

Amy is an award winning author with more than fifty novels and novellas in print. She loves to hear from readers. You can find her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Goodreads, TikTok, and Pinterest.