If one more person utters the word “cookie” I’m going to scream!

Whew! It felt good to get that off my chest. But I’ve gotten off track, so I’d better hop back on. Dru Ann wants me to tell you what a day in my life is like.

Not that any day is typical. I’m Lara Caphart, and I run a cat shelter with my Aunt Fran out of her Folk Victorian home in Whisker Jog, New Hampshire. We opened the shelter almost a year ago, and we’re so proud of what we’ve accomplished. Unlike most shelters, we don’t have cages or separate quarters for cats. For our furbabies, our home is their home—every square inch of it. Sure, it limits the number of cats we can accommodate. But over the past eleven months we’ve placed several cats and kittens in loving homes.

Anyway, back to a typical day. One thing I never do is “sleep in,” as people say. With multiple cats to feed and care for, I’m usually up before the sun rises—feeding, scooping litter boxes, and making sure everyone gets their fair share. That can be tricky when you’re working with so many felines, each with their own distinct tastes and quirks.

After completing my cat duties, I head to Bowker’s Coffee Stop—the coffee shop owned and operated by my bestie, Sherry Bowker, and her mom Daisy. Daisy’s muffins are delish, and I always wash one down with a cup or two of java. But it’s Daisy’s sugar cookies that everyone drools over, and this year she’s entering them in the annual cookie competition at the high school. Yep—Daisy wants that first prize of $1,000. . . bad. But I’ll get back to the cookie problem later.

Not only am I a cat caretaker, but I’m also a watercolor artist. On any given day, I’ll work on a project commissioned by a customer. Just recently I was hired by a woman who wants me to hand paint her Christmas cards! It’s a fun project, but what a challenge getting them done in time for the holiday!

Today happens to be an adoption day—we have them three days a week. That means I’ll have to “spiff up” the meet-and-greet room (formerly Aunt Fran’s back porch) and get it ready for guests—guests we hope will want to adopt a cat. Some magical cat/people match-ups have been made in that room! I also try to squeeze into my day a little quality time with Gideon Halley, my significant other. What a sweetheart he is—kind, loyal, hard-working. And darned cute, too. He’s a local lawyer with a killer schedule, so we see each other mostly on weekends.

Okay, I gotta get back to the cookie problem. I told you about Daisy, right? Every year she ends up placing second in the cookie competition instead of first. Why? I don’t have a clue. Her cookies are to die for! This year, I hear she’s amped up the design of her cookies to a level even Santa never dreamed of.

Here’s the problem: One of the judges had to bail at the last minute. Her replacement? The now retired home ec teacher who tormented Sherry in high school. I’ve never met Gladys Plouffe, but Sherry tells me she ruled her classes with an iron yardstick. Anyone who couldn’t sew—and Sherry couldn’t thread a needle—got immediately on Miss Plouffe’s bad side.

Poor Daisy. She’s super worried about it. Daisy had more than one run-in over the years with the cantankerous Miss Plouffe. She’s terrified that the woman will recognize her cookies from the coffee shop and refuse to judge them fairly. If that happens, Daisy will probably place second again—or maybe even third or fourth. Ugh. Why can’t people get along with each other and embrace the spirit of the season?

And then there’s my own secret—a cat no one else can see. She’s a beautiful Ragdoll cat with turquoise eyes, cream-colored fur, and cocoa-brown paws, ears, and tail. I’ve come to realize that Blue has been with me, as a sort of ethereal guardian, since I was a kid. She’s already intervened in a few dicey situations I’d gotten myself into with creepy killers. Try explaining that to the chief of police.

Aside from all that, I hope you’ll join me at the high school for the cookie competition on Saturday. Something tells me it’s not going to be all cookies and cream. If something bad goes down, I’m going to need all the help I can get. . .

Giveaway: Leave a comment below for your chance to win a kindle copy of Claws for Celebration. The giveaway will end December 9, 2018. Good luck everyone! Bonus question: Have you ever entered a food competition?

You can read more about Lara in Claws for Celebration, the third book in the “Cat Lady” mystery series.

Feline deadly this Christmas . . .

Whisker Jog, New Hampshire, celebrates all things Christmas, and few things are more beloved than the town’s annual holiday cookie competition. Lara Caphart, who runs the High Cliff Shelter for Cats with her Aunt Fran, is waiting for the green light for a brand-new category: pet-friendly cookies. But when the woman filling in as a last-minute judge dies after sampling someone’s Santa-themed treat, Lara’s recipe for healthy cat snacks will have to be put on the back burner.

The victim, Gladys Plouffe, was the town’s roundly despised former home economics teacher. The chief suspect is the mother of Lara’s best friend, who was hellbent on walking away with the bake-off’s cash prize. Cryptic clues from beyond the grave only deepen the mystery, pointing to a cat with striking blue eyes—a cat who bears an uncanny resemblance to Lara’s mysterious Ragdoll. As Lara begins a dangerous game of cat and mouse, not even her significant other may be able to stop a perfectly clawful killer from getting away with the purr-fect crime . . .

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About the author
Linda Reilly is the author of the Cat Lady Mysteries published in e-book format by Kensington Lyrical, and the Deep Fried Mysteries published by Berkley Prime Crime. A dyed-in-the-wool New Englander, she lives with her husband in southern New Hampshire. You can visit her at lindasreilly.com. She loves to hear from readers!

All comments are welcomed.