Pet Detectives, Part 3

by Toni LoTempio

While I admit I’m partial to feline detectives, I have a soft spot in my heart for canine ones as well!  Here are a few excellent cozies featuring some Sherlock-like pooches!

The Barking Detective Series – Waverly Curtis

Since I also have a soft spot for animals that talk (long story)  one of my favorites is The Barking Detective series featuring Pepe, the talking Chihuahua!  Pepe may have soft white fur, big brown eyes, and mucho attitude--but he's no furry fashion fad. Pepe can talk--even if his new owner, Geri Sullivan, seems to be the only person who can understand him.

In volume 1, Dial C for Chihuahua, Geri takes on her first assignment for a quirky investigator named Jimmy G and stumbles over a Seattle millionaire's corpse, Pepe proves to be worth his weight in liver treats. Suspicion falls on the not-so-grieving widow, who wants to finance a reality TV show, Dancing With Dogs, and Geri, who found the body.  She and Pepe go undercover to ferret out the real killer and clear Geri’s name.

In Book 3, The Big Chihuahua, P.I. Geri and Pepe take on a case  involving a hapless husband trying to win back his wayward wife. This entails  sneaking into a cult of dog-worshippers, whose charismatic leader pegs Pepe as the next incarnation of the spirit Dogawanda. But the discovery of a body, murdered between mantras, suggests there's more chicanery than channeling going on in this suspicious sect.

All in all a very entertaining series worth a look.


The Dog Walker Detective Series by Judi McCoy

This fun series features  Ellie Engleman, psychic dog-walker!  Elle discovers that she can hear what her canine clientele is thinking, a talent that comes in handy in the first volume, Hounding the Pavement, when a dog’s owner turns up dead. 

In the latest entry, Fashion Faux Paw, It's Fashion Week in New York and Ellie's in charge of the dogs' modeling outfits that match their mommy-mdoels for a fashion competition. But before the first round closes, one of the designers drops dead of anaphylactic shock, her Epipen useless because someone's emptied it.

The victim's peanut allergy was well-known, so Ellie and her dog Rudy must comb through the brash designer's rivals, colleagues, and many enemies to discover who was so desperate that she committed the ultimate crime of fashion.

Last but definitely not least….

The Animals in Focus Mystery Series – Sheila Webster Boneham

Not only has the very talented Sheila Webster Boneham written countless non-fiction books on dogs and cats, she has a series from Midnight Ink that features an Australian Shepherd!  Drop Dead on Recall features 50-something animal photographer Janet MacPhail, her Aussie Jay, and her tabby cat Leo!  (You knew a cat would get in here somehow, didn’t you????)  When a talented handler is murdered at an obedience trial, Janet becomes a “Person of Interest.”  Janet and her canine and feline friends all band together to sniff out the killer. 

In the second volume, The Money Bird, a photo session at Twisted Lake takes a peculiar turn as Drake, her friend Tom’s Labrador, fetches a blood-soaked bag holding an exotic feather and a torn one-hundred-dollar bill.

When one of her photography students turns up dead at the lake, Janet investigates a secretive retreat center with help from Australian Shepherd Jay and her quirky neighbor Goldie. Between dog-training classes, photo assignments, and romantic interludes with Tom, Janet is determined to get to the bottom of things before another victim’s wings are clipped for good.

Book 3 – Catwalk – gives equal time to both cats and dogs!  (‘cause that’s the kind of person Sheila is!) When Janet  gets a frantic call from champion dog owner Alberta Shofelter about a "cat-napping," she and her Australian Shepherd Jay jump in to assist. Fur flies when the search turns into a nasty run-in with local big shot Charles Rasmussen, a bully who enjoys throwing his weight around.

As Rasmussen makes good on his promise to cause trouble, Janet tries to keep up with her mom's romantic travails, figure out her own relationship with Tom, and train her animals for the upcoming agility trials. But when a body is discovered at the Dog Dayz event, it stops the participants dead in their tracks—and sets Janet on the trail of a killer. Catwalk is available now for pre-order.

Hope this has given you a few good canine mysteries to sink your teeth into! Next time…ROCCO and I chat about the Nick and Nora mystery series and how he became the inspiration!

While Toni Lotempio does not commit – or solve – murders in real life, she has no trouble doing it on paper. Her lifelong love of mysteries began early on when she was introduced to her first Nancy Drew mystery at age 10 – The Secret in the Old Attic.  Toni is also passionate about her love for animals, as demonstrated with her four cats: Trixie, Princess, Maxx and, of course, ROCCO, who not only provided the inspiration for the character of Nick the cat in the Nick and Nora mystery series, but who also writes his own blog and does charity work for Nathan Fillion’s charity, Kids Need to Read!   Toni’s also devoted to miniseries like The Thorn Birds, Dancing with the Stars, reruns of Murder She Wrote and Castle (of course!).   She (and ROCCO, albeit he’s uncredited) pen the Nick and Nora mystery series from Berkley Prime Crime – the first volume, Meow if Its Murder, debuts Dec. 2, 2014.  She, Rocco and company make their home in Clifton, New Jersey, just twenty minutes from the Big Apple – New York.  Follow ROCCO’s blog for author interviews and contests at www.catsbooksmorecats.blogspot.com

Cat Detectives, Part 2

by Toni LoTempio

A few months ago, I wrote a blog listing some of my favorite cat detectives.   Here are a few more you might enjoy.

The Midnight Louie series, by Carole Nelson Douglas

Louie is a twenty pound, jet black tomcat with all of his – um- assets intact (well for the most part.  He has had a vasectomy – yeah, you heard me right) Louie is the first furpurrson of mystery, or as he puts it, the star of his own multivolume mystery series. And make no mistake about it, Louie is THE star, even though at times he finds himself sharing center stage with some very interesting humans.

Louie shares the stage in his books with four human characters, two men, two women; two amateur sleuths, two pros. Crime-solving Temple Barr, PR woman and burgeoning sleuth, is Louie’s roommate. (No one “owns” Louie.) He’s Temple’s protector and “muscle.” Hard-boiled female homicide lieutenant C.R. Molina has to put up with the pair of them. Max Kinsella is Temple’s ex, a magician and counter-terrorist operative on the run. Matt Devine is an ex-priest radio advice counselor who’s become Temple’s fiancée.  And this is not to mention the feline characters, which include his alleged daughter, Midnight Louise (who loves ragging on dear old pops), Ma Barker, his mom who still oftentimes refers to him by his given  name, Grasshopper, a bomb and drug sniffing Maltese, Nose E, several assorted cats, big and little…oh! And let’s not forget those glamour pusses, cats of the female persuasion that set Louie’s tail to thumping:  Shaded silver and gold Persians Yvette and Solange, between whose affections Louie bounces like a furry black ball; the deadly Hyacinth, a seal point Siamese whose claws are dipped nightly (supposedly) in Curare; and Satin, a comely black chick with a fluffy tail, one of Louie’s first amours and the maybe-momma of Midnight Louise.

Douglas writes the series as if it were a daytime soap, interweaving plot points and characters throughout.  And, like any loyal soap follower, we’re all dying to know what happens next? Who will Temple end up with, her long time love, the Mystifying Max?  Or radio hottie/ex-priest Matt Devine? More importantly, will Louie ever be able to decide between those darling Persians, Yvette and Solange?

As Louie says, he lives in “the city that never sleeps” – and with a crew like that, who could?

The Black Cat Bookshop Mysteries by Ali Brandon

This charming cozy series centers on Darla Pettistone, a Texas gal who inherits a Brooklyn bookstore (Pettistone’s Fine Books) from her aunt.  The bookstore also comes with a mascot – a large black cat named Hamlet! 

In the first instalment, DOUBLE BOOKED FOR DEATH, Darla scores a coup by nabbing hot YA author Valerie Baylor (think Twilight fervor) for a store signing. Trouble is, there's a pesky protestor on site, potential religious activists threatening to disrupt things, and a less-than-charming support team traveling with Valerie. Still, all is going well until Valerie steps outside for a smoke and her ultimate death.  Determined to get to the bottom of the incident, Darla helps hunky police detective Reese investigate. Naturally, Darla also learns to pay attention to Hamlet, who lends a paw by pointing out clues.  A fun read and well written – and Hamlet is a scene stealer!

 The Cats and Curios Mystery Series – Rebecca M. Hale

This charming series centers around “the niece” an unnamed character, and her two cats, Rupert and Isabella,  In the first adventure, HOW TO WASH A CAT, they delve into the  mystery surrounding the uncle’s death, which begins amid the curios and novelties of a San Francisco antiques shop and follows a twisted trail of dangerous deception that leads all the way back to the days of the Gold Rush itself. Other adventures in the series center around a white alligator on the loose in San Francisco and in the latest entry, they follow clues that  lead them on a merry chase from Coit Tower’ famous murals through the New Deal art of San Francisco – and just when it seems they’ve hit a brick wall, they get some surprising help from beyond! But the niece has a far greater concern – is her uncle’s disappearance related to the recently murdered City Hall intern?  An extremely well written and plotted series, catnip for both felines and humans alike!

Next time:  We look at dog detectives, other types of animal detectives, and some two footed ones too!

Toni LoTempio – admin by day, writer by night, As T. C. Lotempio,she pens cozy mysteries, debuting with the upcoming Nick and Nora mystery series from Berkeley Prime Crime. (MEOW IF IT’S MURDER, Fall 2014).  She and her cat ROCCO (at left) do fundraising for Nathan Fillion’s charity, KIDS NEED TO READ, when they aren’t interviewing authors on ROCCO’s blog! You can keep up with all the latest interviews and news (including her 2014 releases!)  at www.catsbooksmorecats.blogspot.com

Cat Detectives, Part 1

By Toni LoTempio

Cat Detectives, anyone?

As a writer of cozy mysteries featuring an extremely communicative cat (the Nick and Nora mysteries, debut December 2014) I must confess to being partial to mysteries that feature cats! (not that I don’t like dogs, or give dogs equal time, I do, I do!  But when you own a twenty-two pound blogging cat, your loyalties are naturally going to gravitate toward the feline end!).

I thought I’d list a few of my favorite cozy series that prominently feature cats here, FYI.  (Sorry I can’t add mine yet – MEOW IF IT’S MURDER doesn’t debut until December – but don’t worry, more on that to come!).

The Magical Cats Series, by Sofie Kelly.

This series centers around Kathleen Paulson, a librarian from Boston, and two stray cats with special powers, Owen and Hercules, in fictional Mayville Heights, Minnesota.  Kathleen has moved to Mayville Heights from Boston after her fiancée marries a waitress after an argument, and ends up adopting two strays, a tabby named Owen and a tuxedo named Hercules. Turns out the cats have magical powers: Owen can turn invisible and Hercules can walk through walls!  Which provides quite a bit of humor!  There is also a bit of romance in the form of uptight detective Marcus Gordon.   Plenty of quirky characters and homespun charm!  Kathleen finds herself a murder suspect in the first volume setting up the romantic tension between herself and Detective Gordon for future adventure.  In the latest entry, FINAL CATCALL, Kathleen’s ex-boyfriend Andrew shows up, desperate to win her back, but Kathleen’s unsure just where she stands with Detective Marcus. And when a local theatre festival relocates to Mayville Heights and its insufferable director is found shot, Kathleen (and her cats) are in the thick of a puzzling mystery once again.

The Cat in the Stacks series by Miranda (aka Dean) James.

Set in the fictional town of Athena, Mississippi, the action centers around librarian Charlie Harris and his Maine Coon cat, Diesel.  Diesel is quite large for his size, but very lovable, and Charlie walks him on a leash and takes him pretty much everywhere he goes.  Unlike the cats in the “Magical Cats” series, Diesel is more of a sidekick for Charlie than an active participant in the mystery solving – although he does lend a paw from time to time.  The series has many charming characters, some of which have even been put into a spin-off series by James.  The most recent entry, THE SILENCE OF THE LIBRARY, revolves around a library exhibit to honor YA novelists – in particular, one octogenarian, Electra Barnes Cartwright, the author of the beloved “Veronica Thane” series.  Once news of the author’s appearance goes viral, another rumor surfaces – that of five unpublished manuscripts – drawing out one rabid fan who will stop at nothing short of murder to get hold of the rare books.  Series book devotees will find the references and facts about actual series books interspersed throughout the book interesting, and it adds to the mystery.  Charlie and Diesel should be around entertaining us for many years to come.

The Mrs. Murphy Series by Rita Mae Brown (and Sneaky Pie Brown)

What can you say about a mystery series co-authored by a cat!  The first adventure, WISH YOU WERE HERE, published in 1991, introduced us to Mary Minor Haristeen, (aka Harry) and her constant companions, Mrs. Murphy, a tabby and Tucker, a Welsh Corgi.  Harry is the postmistess of the town of Crozet, Virginia, a job that puts her in an excellent to figure out who is murdering, in ghastly fashion, various pillars of her community. Postcards are sent to a wealthy contractor shortly before parts of his body are found in a cement mixer and then to a storeowner whose corpse, tied to a railroad track, is cut in three parts by the express. The cards alert Harry and friends to a plot that will take more lives before they discover the treasure that inspires the violence.  Quirky is the middle name of most of the characters in this long-running series, and Brown always gives a brief rundown of all the characters at the beginning of each book, apparently to keep readers from becoming confused at the large cast.

The most recent release, THE LITTER OF THE LAW, is the 21^st adventure!  Autumn has descended and crops are being harvested all over Crozet, Virginia, ideal conditions for a scenic drive for Harry and husband Fair. Bucolic views are all well and good, but Harry’s nose for trouble leads her straight to a cornfield’s macabre scarecrow—an all too real murder victim that frightens all but the noisy crows!  Nothing, however, frightens the irrepressible Mrs. Murphy, because we all know that while it’s Harry who receives the credit for the crime solving, it’s really Mrs. Murphy and her friends, Pewter the cat and Tucker the dog, who are the real detectives!

These are just a few of my favorites! There are many more out there…soon to be joined by Nick the cat and Nora! Stay tuned!

ROCCO – THE INCREDIBLE
BLOGGING CAT!

Toni LoTempio – admin by day, writer by night, As T. C. Lotempio,she pens cozy mysteries, debuting with the upcoming Nick and Nora mystery series from Berkeley Prime Crime. (MEOW IF IT’S MURDER, Fall 2014).  She and her cat ROCCO do fundraising for Nathan Fillion’s charity, KIDS NEED TO READ, when they aren’t interviewing authors on ROCCO’s blog! You can keep up with all the latest interviews and news (including her 2014 releases!)  at www.catsbooksmorecats.blogspot.com