Welcome to my stop on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for The Case of the Parrot Loving Professor by Debbie De Louise. Stop by each blog on the tour for interviews, guest posts, spotlights, reviews and more!
The Case of the Parrot Loving Professor
by Debbie De Louise
The Case of the Parrot Loving Professor
Cozy Mystery
2nd in Series
Setting – Buttercup Bend, a fictional town in the Catskills, New York
Next Chapter Publishing (November 6, 2022)
Paperback : 290 pages
Cathy Carter knew that returning to college would be tough, but she never expected it would involve finding her anthropology professor’s dead body.
There are no shortages of suspects in Dr. Bodkin’s murder. Besides his three ex-wives and estranged son and daughter, there are also the members of the Talking Parrots Club, a group of four parrot enthusiasts, of which he was the president and founder.
As Cathy delves into Bodkin’s murder, she discovers a relationship between her teacher and the Mennonite family from whom she purchased the farmland for her new pet rescue center. She and her friend Nancy, now employed at a detective agency, work together to help Detective Hunt and Sheriff Miller solve the crime.
Author guest post: Writing the 2nd Book of a Cozy Mystery Series by Debbie De Louise
Writing the second book of a cozy mystery series presents several challenges. These include aging/developing the characters, adding new characters, advancing the premises presented in the first book, and creating a new mystery with subplots and twists.
After I wrote the first book of my Buttercup Bend series, The Case of the Cat Crazy Lady, I already had some ideas for the next few books. I knew that I wanted to keep the book titles consistent. They would always begin with “The Case of” and include an animal and the name of the victim. Because the main character of my series, Cathy Carter, was planning to go back to college at the end of the first book, I knew I should write that into the next mystery. When I decided on killing off her professor, I searched for an animal beginning with the letter “p.” Alliteration is always good to use in a book title. Thus, I coined, “The Case of the Parrot Loving Professor.” Then I plotted the story.
Besides Cathy returning to college, there were other developments between the main characters in the series. These advanced the plot and also allowed me to further develop the characters and add personal experiences of my own. Brody Broom, a suspect in the first book, was now living in his murdered sister’s house and had adopted a cat. I named that cat, Stripey, after my mackerel tabby who passed away in May. Brody is dating the innkeeper who was one of the few people who believed in his innocence. Cathy ends up with two kittens after her old cat from the first book dies. These kittens are named after and based on my four-year-old cats, Harry and Hermione. Cathy’s gardener, Steve, and veterinarian Michael are vying to become her steady boyfriend. Meanwhile, Cathy’s friend Nancy, now employed at a detective agency, is seeing the Assistant Deputy, Brian, on a regular basis.
Besides these character developments, I’ve also added new characters. When Cathy goes back to school, she makes friends with Gloria, a fellow co-ed who happens to be the niece of Dr. Bodkin, the murdered professor. Also joining the cast of Book 2 are Bodkin’s 3 ex-wives, his son and daughter, and the three men who were members of the professor’s parrot club along with their birds and Charlie, Bodkin’s parrot, who witnessed his murder. In this book, we also meet the new employee of Cathy’s second rescue center and her teenage daughter. There’s also an old woman named Marjorie MaGregor who is the only member of the MaGregor family still living in Buttercup Bend. Her son, Martin, sold his farmland to Cathy in the previous book. He and his brothers, practitioners of the Mennonite religion, moved away right after Maggie Broom, the “Cat Crazy Lady’s,” murder was solved.
Last but not least, I threw in a few subplots that tied into the main plot. I featured a 1970’s costume dance, a mysterious box found in an abandoned toolshed, and the celebration for Cathy’s 27th birthday.
Tying all these elements together is no easy task, and I find that I make changes along the way. I wasn’t sure of the killer until more than three-quarters of the way through writing the book. Some authors may do things differently, but I find that I work best this way.
I hosted a contest in my author newsletter to come up with a title for my next book and will be plotting Book 3 of “The Case of the Llama Loving Librarian,” shortly.
About Debbie De Louise
Debbie De Louise is a reference librarian at a public library. She’s the author of 14 novels including the six books of the Cobble Cove cozy mystery series featuring Alicia the librarian and Sneaky, the library cat, and the new Buttercup Bend cozy mysteries featuring Cathy Carter, the owner of a pet cemetery and rescue center. Debbie’s other books include standalone mysteries, a paranormal romance, a time-travel novel, and a collection of cat poems. She also writes articles for Catster.com and has published dozens of short stories and poems in anthologies. She’s a member of the Cat Writers’ Association, Sisters-in-Crime, International Thriller Writers, and the Long Island Authors Group. She lives on Long Island with her husband, daughter, and two cats. Learn more about her and her books by visiting https://debbiedelouise.com.
Author Links
Website/Blog/Newsletter Sign-Up: https://debbiedelouise.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/debbie.delouise.author/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Deblibrarian
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2750133.Debbie_De_Louise
Amazon Author Page: http://amzn.to/2bIHdaQ
All Author: https://allauthor.com/author/debbiedelouise/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/debbie_writer/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbiedelouise/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/debbie-de-louise
Debbie’s Character’s Chat Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/748912598599469/\
Sneaky the Library Cat’s blog: https://Sneakylibrarycat.wordpress.com
Purchase Links – Amazon – Books2Read
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The Case of the Parrot Loving Professor TOUR PARTICIPANTS
December 12 – Guatemala Paula Loves to Read – REVIEW
December 12 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
December 13 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT, EXCERPT
December 13 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – GUEST POST
December 13 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
December 14 – Literary Gold – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
December 14 – I’m Into Books – SPOTLIGHT
December 14 – Bootsie’s Book Nook – SPOTLIGHT
December 15 – MJB Reviewers – SPOTLIGHT, EXCERPT
December 15 – Brooke Blogs – SPOTLIGHT
December 16 – Novels Alive – REVIEW, SPOTLIGHT
December 16 – Lady Hawkeye – SPOTLIGHT
December 17 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
December 17 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT
December 17 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – SPOTLIGHT
December 18 – Cozy Up With Kathy – CHARACTER GUEST POST
December 18 – #BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee Blog – SPOTLIGHT
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Thanks so much for hosting a spot on my blog tour and featuring my guest post. Happy Holidays!
You’re welcome! Thanks for stopping!
The Case of the Parrot Loving Professor by Debbie De Louise sounds like a fun and entertaining mystery read!
I love parrots!