Marmalade Cats and Cozy Chats

Cozy Cat Lady

Cats and cozy mysteries go together like marmalade and muffins, or Cheddar and cheese, or...

This is our space for discussing everything we love about both. And the excuse is that my new cozy mystery series like so many others has a very clever pair of cats at its heart.

Introducing Oliver who is a bit of a Twister and kicks everything off by finding a Box in the Garden:

But not just any box -- a very special box.
Just as Ollie is a very special cat.

Ginger cats are more than a bit special. They're talkative, argumentative and clever.

I grew up with Orlando the Marmalade Cat on the radio and was adopted by my very own Tigger in my first Battersea flat. It wasn't me he loved but my feisty kitten to whom he remained ever loyal.

Is Oliver the best name for him? He's determined and oh-so-clever. And he can twist almost everyone he meets round his little paw.

Planning a Cozy Mystery Series

Box in the Garden  was my choice to write first. But my next will be the book  my readers choose. Thank you for loving cats and cozy mysteries and cherishing both.

I have a choice of two titles, both the work of the same amazing cover artist.  Choose from A or B to cast your vote for what I write first:

A                                                          B

Bury with Kid Gloves is the story of Marta Cranshaw, an exhausted ex-teacher who wants to eke out  her retirement income by writing features for the local village paper.

She scoops more than she bargained for when she fishes not a prince but a body from the frog pond of  the icy lady of the manor  who volunteers for a once in a lifetime interview.

But it's the self appointed guardian of the manor--a fluffy moggy with delusions of being a calico cat--who takes charge of the murder investigation and sticks her paw in at the most awkward moments.
  

Too Deep for Digging : Marta's new neighbors are a jolly crowd of archaeological students with more interest in partying than digging.

But when their excavations unearth a skeleton and a historic treasure chest, they dig up the seething emotions that underpin placid village life.

With dearest Ollie also seething with passion for the aristocratic little not-quite-calico cat that is Olivia, Marta needs all her wits about her and her large wellington boots to stomp out all the prevailing passions and set her adopted village to rights again.