A Tail of Two Murders (Nick and Nora Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
9th in Series
Setting – California
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Beyond the Page Publishing
Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 20, 2026
Print length ‏ : ‎ 279 pages

Synopsis

It was the best of crimes, it was the worst of crimes, and Nick and Nora are dead-set on catching a killer without losing their heads . . .

When local police suspect that a dead body found in the woods is tied to an unsolved heist of rare gold coins, Nora Charles and her sidekick cat Nick are dying to get involved. But she’s got a catering gig to plan for at her friend Lance’s bar, and it looks like that might present a world of trouble all its own. The sleazy former owner of the bar has blown back into town and is aggressively harassing Lance to sell the bar back to him. Nora’s worried her friend is in real danger—until the former owner is found dead and Lance is pegged for the murder.

Certain that her friend is innocent, Nora begins digging into the victim’s seedy past to figure out who would have wanted him dead. Then a sudden spark of inspiration tells her that the murders and the unsolved heist are all connected, and that someone is knocking off their fellow thieves to get all the loot for themselves. After tracking down every person even remotely connected to the heist, Nora’s still baffled by who’s behind it all. But that’s about to change, because now she and Nick are all that’s standing between a killer and a fortune . . .

Includes mouthwatering sandwich recipes!

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Guest Post

Traditional Publishing vs Self Publishing – How to know which is right for you?

by T.C. LoTempio

As both a self and a traditionally published author, I’m often asked by aspiring authors, “how do I know which one is right for me?”

The answer is: It all depends on your goals.

Traditional publishing means the publishing house buys the rights to your book, pays you an advance, and manages the whole production process.  In a nutshell:

• Cost: It costs the author zero dollars. The publisher pays for editing, design, printing, and distribution.
• Earnings: You receive an advance on royalties, followed by royalty payments (typically 8% to 15% for physical books) after the advance is earned back
• Control: You have little final say over your cover design, title changes, or marketing angle.
• Timeline: The process is very slow and often takes 18 to 36 months from acceptance to release.
• Distribution & Prestige: You get wide access to physical bookstores, library systems, and major media outlets – hopefully.

That’s if you’re published by one of the Big Six:  Hachette, Macmillan, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Penguin and Random House (Big Five now, that Penguin and Random House merged into PRH).

There are smaller print publishers and digital publishers who will also offer advances and royalty payments, and whose timeline to publication is often faster than straight traditional publishing.  The downside to this is that they do not have the distribution and prestige behind them like that of the Big Five  mentioned above, which means more work for the author in publicity and getting the word out about your book. Often times it’s up to you.  On the plus side, the publisher does the editing, design printing and distribution, such as it is so that’s one worry off your plate.

Self-Publishing is good if you are a control freak.  Self-publishing means you act as the publisher, retaining total control and hiring your own team or using independent forms such as Amazon Kindle and Barnes and Noble.

• Cost: You pay upfront for professional editing, cover design, and formatting, which can usually total anywhere from $2,000 to $4,000.
• Earnings: You keep a much higher royalty rate on each book sold, usually 35% to 70%.
• Control: You retain 100% creative control over your story, cover, pricing, and publishing schedule.
• Timeline: You can publish your book online in a matter of weeks.
• Marketing: You are fully responsible for running ads, finding reviewers, and marketing the book yourself.

Another factor is the fact that very few publishing houses accept unagented submissions; so if your dream is to become traditionally published, the first thing you need to do is interest an agent in your manuscript.  Patience is a virtue – agents are swamped with queries, so it may take awhile for them to respond.

Self-publishing doesn’t require an agent; it just requires hard work on the part of the author and the willingness to put in the time to produce and market the book. The process can go a lot faster because you don’t have to wait on a ‘Yea” or a “Nea”.

So, after you’ve got that manuscript written, take a moment and consider what you want for your “baby”.  Are you willing to give up creative control, or would you rather be in charge? In my case, I always knew my goal was to be traditionally published, which is what finally happened- but it took me years.

In either case, it requires patience and hard work! So be prepared!  And good luck!

About the Author

T.C. LoTempio is the award-winning, nationally bestselling author of the Nick and Nora Mysteries, the Urban Tails Pet Shop Mysteries, and the Cat Rescue Mysteries. Born in New York City, she now resides in Phoenix, Arizona, with her two cats, Maxx and Rocco. Rocco prides himself on being the inspiration for her Nick and Nora series!

ROCCO’s blog * Website * Facebook * X/Twitter * Goodreads