King Harald’s Snow Job (King Harald Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Conger Road Press (August 1, 2017)
Paperback: 302 pages

Synopsis

It’s early December and Andy Skyberg is itching to blow town for a weekend of holiday cheer with old friends—including a date with an attractive divorcée who thinks he’s hot.

But first, Aunt Bev needs a teensy bit of help. She’s managing the Girls’ Weekend Out event at the Beaver Tail Resort and could use some extra muscle. Andy figures he can spare a few hours before hitting the road.

Mother Nature, though, has other plans. A giant blizzard makes an unexpected turn. Andy and his pooch King Harald find themselves snowbound—in a hotel full of hard-partying women, stranded travelers, a hockey team, a man-eating novelist, a belligerent blogger, and one violent, devious jewel thief.

Before you know it, man and mutt are up to their noses in another case. It’s a winter wonderland of fast-paced fun and merry madness, as the sleuthing duo dig out from King Harald’s Snow Job.

Guest Post

Blizzard Buddies

In my newest mystery, my human and doggy sleuths find themselves snowbound at a luxury resort when a powerful blizzard makes an unexpected turn and socks them in. As they investigate a jewelry theft and assault in the resort, outside the snow is going sideways and piling up inch-by-inch and dangerous wind chills set in. Roads are closed and no one is going anywhere for a while.

Anyone who’s lived in a northern climate—as I have all my life—knows what it’s like when a foot or two of snow comes blasting in. With modern weather reporting, we have enough advance warning to gas up the snow blower, pull out the roof rake, and buy enough food to feed a Super Bowl party. As the white stuff comes down, and keeps coming, a certain resentment arises in one’s breast. How dare Mother Nature keep me away from the symphony concert tonight! Doesn’t she know I have important things to do?

But watching the billions of flakes (probably a lot more, actually) coat everything in white is a bit like taking a natural tranquilizer—it slows your tempo and induces calm. You accept that there’s nothing you can do until the storm winds down. It’s a great time for popcorn and a double feature. Or a cozy-reading marathon. Or whipping up a feast. Or yakking on the phone with friends.

Actually, my favorite part comes when the action’s over and weather radar’s big blue blob has moved on east. Then I get to sally forth with my orange plastic shovel (I prefer plastic; snow slides off easier) and commiserate with the folks I call my “blizzard buddies.” Some of them are neighbors I rarely see, so we get to catch up a little. Others just like to chew the fat, as we stand leaning on our shovels. I have fond memories of good post-blizzard chats with neighbors now long gone.

I especially remember the guy down at the south end of our alley, where I would trudge to clear the alley mouth. (That’s where you are most apt to get stuck in snow, transitioning from alley to street.) We talked about all kinds of stuff, from the work we were doing to his days in the navy back in WWII. I still kind of miss him. Funny thing was, though, après-blizzard was the only time I talked with him. Otherwise, it was just a wave driving by.

A good blizzard—however inconvenient—is much like Robert Frost’s celebrated fence that makes good neighbors. It brings us closer together, with a mutual cause, for at least a day. And unlike things like hurricanes and tornadoes and floods, it’s not likely to kill you, unless you take foolish risks.

And a big ol’ blizzard makes a great conversation piece that lasts a lifetime. I mean, did I ever tell you about the Great Halloween Blizzard of ’91? I went out and measured 34 inches in my backyard. It took days to shovel all that white stuff. Why, we were stuck in the house so long that…

About the Author

Richard Audry is the pen name of D. R. Martin. As Richard Audry, he is the author of the King Harald Canine Cozy mystery series and the Mary MacDougall historical mystery series. Under his own name he has written the Johnny Graphic middle-grade ghost adventure series, the Marta Hjelm mystery, Smoking Ruin, and two books of literary commentary: Travis McGee & Me; and Four Science Fiction Masters.

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