It has been well over thirty days and nights since my Human Girl, the one they call “Maggie Hope,” unceremoniously dumped me at this place they call “Number 10 Downing Street.”
It’s all right. A bit drafty. Lots of mice.
She was concerned I would be a nuisance. As if! Her friend David, the one who needs more cat hair on his trousers, assured her it would not be a problem. “We’re British,” he said. “We love animals. It’s children we can’t stand. That’s why we invented boarding schools.”
Fair enough.
And thank the Goddess Bastet there are no children here. But.
But.
There is a dog. Rufus. He seems to belong to the Alpha Human. They call him Churchill. The alpha human, not the dog. The dog is Rufus. He’s a poodle. He’s such a Rufus. He often sulks.
I loathe him.
And then there’s Nelson, a small cat. He’s afraid of everything. It’s embarrassing, really.
Apparently he’s named after someone important, a “Lord Nelson” who was very brave.
Cat Nelson is not.
Whenever something scary happens, Alpha-human Churchill says, “Summon the Spirit of the Tiger Nelson! No one named Nelson ever hid under furniture!”
And yet, under the sofa he goes.
I am embarrassed for the British Empire, really I am.
He’s very nice, though, this Winston Churchill. Always say, “Good morning, Cat!” Sometimes I twine around his ankles during dinner and he slips me bits of fish or chicken. He pets me and says, “Good Cat. Marvelous Cat.” Obviously a man of excellent taste and judgment. He’s even apologized to me that there is no cream in wartime. I don’t know what “wartime” is, but I prefer the salmon. But if he would like to feel guilty, I will let him. More salmon that way.
I wonder what Maggie, my human, is doing. I spend long hours missing her—and then how I will punish her when she returns.
I will turn my back on her, no matter how much she pleads and uses soft voices.
I will not respond to pets.
I will pin my ears back and possibly hiss.
I will show my delightful belly, then nip if she tried to touch.
If, and I say if, she shows sufficient remorse, I will let her back into my good graces.
In the meantime, I count the days. And wait.
And plot.
The Queen’s Accomplice is the sixth book in the Maggie Hope mystery series, published by Bantam Books, October 2016.
England, 1942. Great Britain and the U.S. have joined forces to fight the Nazis. The relentless Blitz may have paused, but London’s nightly blackouts continue.
Under the cover of darkness, a madman is brutally killing and mutilating young women in eerie and exact re-creations of Jack the Ripper’s crimes. What’s more, he’s exclusively targeting women about to serve as Winston Churchill’s spies and saboteurs abroad.
The officers at MI-5 quickly realize they need the help of special agent Maggie Hope to find the killer dubbed “the Blackout Beast.” A trap is set. But once the murderer has his sights on Maggie, not even Buckingham Palace can protect the resourceful spy from her fate.
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Meet the author
Susan MacNeal is the Barry Award–winning and Edgar, ITW Thriller, Dilys, Agatha, Macavity, and Lefty Award–nominated 
author of the New York Times bestselling Maggie Hope mysteries, including Mr. Churchill’s Secretary, Princess Elizabeth’s Spy, His Majesty’s Hope, The Prime Minister’s Secret Agent, and Mrs. Roosevelt’s Confidante. She lives in Park Slope, Brooklyn, with her husband and child. She’s hard at work on the next Maggie Hope novel, The Paris Spy, which Bantam Books will publish in hardcover in August 2017.
Connect with Susan at susaneliamacneal.com, on Twitter at @SusanMacNeal, on Instagram and on her blog. Photo courtesy of Andrea Vaszko
All comments are welcomed.
Giveaway: Leave a comment below for your chance to win a print copy of The Queen’s Accomplice. US entries only, please. The giveaway ends October 2, 2016 at 12 PM (noon) EST. Good luck everyone!
As usual I enjoyed the post! I have to start reading this series soon, sounds like an exciting historical adventure. Thanks for the giveaway.
I’ve never read Ms. MacNeal books, but after reading your post she is going on my must read list! Hope to win this one.
Sounds brilliant!
This a wonderful series. I read the first two and have all the rest on my wish list. They are real page turners and you can learn about the period time that she writes about. Would really, really love to win this! Thank you for this giveaway.
My husband, who is a WW II buff, would enjoy this book as much as I will. Looking forward to reading it.
Dru. Again a great, exciting, intriguing post. This series looks most exciting. Loved thin intro to a new writer and series. Thanks for the heads up. Do hope this will be an early start.
I love the Maggie Hope books and anxiously await each new one. Cat is a hoot – and has such a “cattitude”. Love the line about animals and children! Sure hope I win this!
Oh. My. Goodness. Gracious! I want this book. What a creative way to look into history.
I am sorry your give away doesn’t extend to Canada but no worries I will be reading the latest installment of Maggie’s adventures. Terrific series great heroine and exacting details how could anyone resist. Please keep on writing about Maggie Hope.
I love, love, love historical fiction and especially any that deal with the British heritage. I would love a copy of this book to call my own. Thank you for the opportunity. robeader53@yahoo.com
This series is captivating and wonderful. The characters, plots and era are intriguing and the writing fabulous. Thanks for this wonderful feature.
Thank you for this opportunity to win “The Queen’s Accomplice”! I absolutely love this series and can hardly wait until Tuesday. I’ve already warned my husband that he will be woefully neglected that day so I can devour it. I like to read books like this really fast, then go back and re-read it at a slower pace. I also tend to re-read books I love over and over again. It’s like visiting old friends. Again, thanks so much!
I loved the short story about Maggie’s cat. I have read all the series and also await the arrival of the next one. Loved meeting you in Phoenix this year and
will see you in Honolulu in March.
A truly wonderful series! I would love to read The Queen’s Accomplice ~ Thanks for the giveaway!
This series is new to me; but sounds fascinating. Is the POV from the cat throughout the whole book?
I am in love with this unique series since it interests greatly. The period and locale are my favorite and each novel is memorable. many thanks.
This series is a treasure which I appreciate so much. What a special giveaway. Thanks.
I’m so excited that the new book is almost here. I’d don’t know how I found the first book but I was hooked and always look for the next book as soon as I finish the one I’m reading. I was raised in WWll and Susan has answered long ago questions I didn’t know WHY?
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This is a great series. Special giveaway so thank you. It is a fascinating and historically accurate series and very well written. Fictional but the characters seem so real and the events. Great to read something with a strong and lovable female lead. Love it!
Would love to read the story between covers – bed and book!
I would love to read the story between covers – bed and book!
Thank you, K, for sharing your thoughts.
not sure if previous response posted..sorry…. THis is an interesting book/series ideas… would love 2 win, Especially would be interested and great @ writing songs for the book on tape (MP3). i’d love to do so from Cat’s p.o.v. Talented family. Best of luck, Annie Lynn. http://www.annielynn.net
This is a wonderful series. Thank you for the chance to win.
Delightful loved it. Love all her books on waiting list for new one. Loking forward to the next already.
What a great giveaway, thanks Dru and Susan.
What a great excerpt! This is a new author and series to me. I would really enjoy reading “The Queen’s Accomplice”. Thanks for the grass giveaway.
A new-to-me author to try. Thanks for a chance to win a copy.
Oh WOW…..this sure does sound like a super duper awesome and super exciting book to read!!!! This is a new author for me. I love that the story is about an awesome cat and that there are other animals in it too….these are my favorite kind of mysteries to read!!! Sure would love to win this one! Then I will have to get all the other books in this series and read them as well!!! Thank you so very much dear Dru and Susan for the chance to win!!! God bless you both!!!!
I have read Susan’s “Maggie Hope” mysteries from the very beginning and can’t wait each year for her next book. They are wonderful! Would love the chance to win her newest “The Queen’s Accomplice”.
This is a series I have wanted to read. I would love to win a copy. Thanks for the chance.
I love this series.
What a great intro to life at #10. We’re really looking forward to the book, thanks for the chance to win a copy.
Yes, this has to be a must read. Sounds like a great series. I’m glad Dru had Maggie’s cat “talk” bout its time at Number 10 Downing Street. Susan Elia MacNeal must be a cat person.
Thank you for the chance and alerting me to the series.
I’m so excited about reading the next book. I wish that I read this earlier for the giveaway chance. But I know it’s going to be great. I hope to read more about K the cat. It makes me wonder about my own cat lol.