Murder, She Meowed (A Pawsitively Organic Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
7th in Series
Kensington (January 29, 2019)
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages

Synopsis

Kristan “Stan” Connor loves concocting tasty organic treats for dogs and cats—and she also loves her fiancé, pub owner Jake McGee. But she’s not so enthusiastic about finding a dead body at her own bachelorette party . . .

Stan and Jake’s wedding will soon take place on the town green in Frog Ledge, Connecticut, followed by a reception at their beloved Irish pub filled with friends, family, and their four favorite canine companions. Stan just has to endure the traditional girls’ night out first. Male strippers jumping out of gigantic cakes aren’t her preferred entertainment. But the hired hottie never gets around to taking it all off . . . because someone takes him out first with one of Stan’s kitchen knives. A heartbroken Stan recognizes the victim as one of the delivery men from the local farm—who must have been moonlighting for some extra cash. Now the guest list has turned into a suspect list—and Stan’s making a vow to find the killer . . .

Includes Gourmet Pet Food Recipes!

Guest Post

Today I am lucky to have Liz Mugavero here today sharing how she researches her books.

 

I get asked a lot how I do research for my books. The answer is, in lots of ways. I read, I Google, I talk to experts when I need to. I’ve even spent the day at a dairy farm for one of my books. But by far, my favorite research experiences have been involving law enforcement.

A few years ago, I had the opportunity to participate in the Citizens’ Police Academy in my old town. I jumped at the chance to participate in the 11-week program because, well, you know me—I love this stuff. Crime, law enforcement, the whys of murder and mayhem, how it all fits together. I take every chance I get to do a deeper dive into how law enforcement works, the things cops  see and how it affects them.

Like the time I went to the fabulous Writer’s Police Academy. We did building searches, shot guns and dug up bodies from a shallow grave. Or the time when, as a journalist, I was asked to participate in a weekend-long SIG SAUER Academy program on handguns. Then there was the (now retired) chief of police whom I drafted as my consultant for another book. All of those experiences were invaluable.

Research like this has a huge impact on how I come up with ideas for a book and how I write about investigating a crime and other tactics. But it also helps me plot the book, develop characters, and ensure my setting fits with the story and the crime.

So I went into the program with the attitude of, Cool, I get to do more research, have more hands-on training, get to know some local police and hopefully get a contact on the force who’ll take my never-ending questions.

I have to admit, I was also curious about what I would find—both in town, and on the force. This town had a reputation. I’d lived there for about seven years before I took the course, and really only passed through on my way to work and home, or visit the food co-op, the gas station or a restaurant.

(Note – It’s kind of complicated, but I lived in the larger town and was not covered by the local police. Only the city district had its own force, and the rest of the town was covered by the state police.)

But it’s always good to get some understanding of your surroundings, right? So off I went, buoyed by the promise of SWAT teams and K9s and maybe, just maybe, getting to taser someone. I was like the nerdy kid looking forward to the first day of school.

I wasn’t disappointed. Sgt. Glode and Cpl. Miller, who ran the program, did a phenomenal job. This was the second iteration of the academy. There were about 30 of us—double the amount they expected, but they didn’t want to turn anyone away. The whole point, they said, was to educate the people of the town so they could take the message about what they do and how they do it back to the rest of the population.

Each week they focused on a different topic, and every officer on the force contributed. Some weeks had more than one topic, depending on subject matter. SWAT week, for instance, took the whole three hours. We got to see the weapons, sit in the MRAP (mine resistant, ambush protected military vehicle donated to the town), and even beat down a steel door with a battering ram.

During K9 week, we got to meet the three police dogs, all sworn officers, and watch them sniff out drugs their handlers had stashed for our benefit. During Use of Force week, we did drills—facing off with potential assailants and handling whatever situation arose. Some were able to talk their way out of it, others had to fight, still others had to taser. (Yes, I got to use the taser.) It was fun. It was also scary when you saw how fast things could go wrong.

Given the amount of news coverage lately about police use of force, this exercise was definitely timely. And so important, especially for people who have no experience with law enforcement and how they do their jobs. Experiencing it, even in a role-playing capacity, gives a whole new perspective. Now they can sort through the facts of a specific incident before passing judgment on either party for their actions. As another police officer so succinctly put it, “All lives matter.”

So what’d I learn, aside from the mechanics of tasering someone? Here’s a few:

You can’t judge a community by reputation alone. Every place has its problems. This place is lucky to have such a dedicated group of men and women protecting its citizens.

Riding a police bike through an obstacle course is really, really hard. You have to go wicked slow. For the record, I didn’t do it. I knew I would fall off the bike. Or take out most of the cones.

Cops get scared, too. I suppose I knew this already, but in a sure, everyone gets scared sort of way. These officers have to deal with serious, sometimes deadly situations. I give them major credit for hitting the streets every day. Give them some support and respect.

We all need to be part of the solution. Towns and cities won’t improve if everyone is fighting each other. Citizens who’ve taken courses like this can help simply by bringing the message to the rest of the public. Get everyone talking to each other and working together. It’s got to make a difference.

My grandfather was a policeman for nearly 30 years. He started out walking the beat and finally became a detective. He shared some stories with me, but not nearly enough before he died 18 years ago. Every time I get to do something like this, I feel like he’s finding a way to share more of his stories with me.

I’m thankful I got to be part of it. And I’m thankful to all the officers out there for their service.

P.S. The ride-along was fabulous, too!

About the Author

Liz Mugavero has been writing stories since she could hold a pen. Before that, she would tell them to anyone who would listen (not many at the time). After deciding early on she would write books for a living, she practiced by writing bad, angst-filled poems, short stories and even a storyline for a soap opera–all by age 15. She never wavered from her goals despite all the usual questions including, “So are you going to be an English teacher with that degree in English?” or, “That writing thing sounds nice, but how are you REALLY going to make a living?”

She went on to get a master’s in writing and publishing and spent time in journalism, PR, and presently, corporate communications. And she’s confident this writing thing IS the way to make a living.

Aside from writing, she loves animals (has a houseful), the beach, reading other writers’ masterpieces and Starbucks coffee.

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