’Tis a fine day to be a pig.
Of course, every day is fine day to be a pig, especially a pig who lives at the Renaissance Faire in Sherwood, Tennessee. My people, Mal McClaren and his sister, Elinore, provide me a charming pen with a pool and a slide—and they like to keep my mind supple with a variety of locks and fasteners that are supposed to keep me in it.
Of course, they know it won’t.
Mal and Elinore grew up in Scotland. Mal used to be a vet, and now he shears the sheep and does the herding demonstrations. Elinore says he knows a lot about everything except women. He had one once, and married her, and then she broke his heart. As Elinore says, she was a piece of work.
But there’s a bonnie new lass at the faire, Robbi Bryan, and Mal’s been making eyes at her when he thinks nobody sees. She’s an archer and a falconer, and I can tell she’s got a broken heart of her own.
The faire is filled wi’ bonnie folk. Dale, the bard, keeps beehives overflowing with honey. Miller, the miller, makes the finest pasties ye’ll ever taste, and he’s always after sharing ’em. Joanne, the blacksmith keeps a corn crib brimming with grain for me, and always engages in a lively game of tag when she catches me in it. “Tuck,” she says, once she’s finished shouting, “you’re incorrigible.”
It’s a fine word, isn’t it? Incorrigible. Just what a pig should be.
Part of my job is to keep my people happy, and the other part is to keep myself happy, and that’s what I do. I never wanted for anything more.
Until Trouble came to the faire.
Trouble is a cat with green-gold eyes and a coat as black as the devil’s waistcoat. Sure, and he’s a clever one. He solves crimes, he says, like Sherlock Holmes. Sherlock Who? I thought when he told me. And What kind of crimes does he think he’ll be solving here?
And then we had one. Nae just a crime, but a murder.
I never thought about murder before, but sure, and hasn’t it stood the whole world on its ear? Now the faire is in danger of closing, and everyone is busy suspecting everybody else, and no one is happy at all.
Trouble is determined to solve the crime. He says I can be his Watson. I’m nae sure what that means, but it sounds like a good thing to be. And if it will set things to rights again, he can count me in.
What of it, if he’s a bit full of himself? He’s a cat, after all. What else would he be? I’m glad for him to make his clever deductions while I provide distractions and deliver messages and serve as his stepladder. As an old sow once told me, ’tis the small gestures that win the day.
And win it we must, so the faire can go on, and the Rennies—what the faire folk call themselves—can go on baking pasties and forging swords and making music. And so that Mal and Robbi can stop worrying about the killer and realize they were made for each other.
You can read more about Trouble and Tuck in Trouble Most Faire, Book #11 in the Familiar Legacy multi-author series, released October 7, 2019.
CASTLES, CUDGELS—AND MURDER
After the worst breakup in human history, Robbi Bryan needs a carefree summer and a place to fly her falcon. To give her wounded heart time to recover, she joins the Sherwood Renaissance Faire. But the faire holds much more than jugglers, archers, and a chance to reenact the days of yore. Robbi finds herself entangled in a web of secrets, lies, rivalries, and murder. The last thing she has time for is a handsome Scotsman with some hefty baggage of his own.
Mal McClaren has found a haven and a retreat among the permanent residents of Sherwood, Tennessee’s year-round Ren Faire. When a murder threatens his home, the brawny Scotsman comes up with a risky plan to find the killer and save the faire. He didn’t count on falling for a feisty falconer with a troubled past.
Trouble, the famous black cat detective, has never lost a human in his charge. He’s also never had—or wanted—a sidekick. But with a killer on the loose and the future of the faire in jeopardy, Trouble must work paw-in-hoof with Tuck, an incorrigible potbellied pig, to unmask the killer and show two wounded people that love is a risk worth taking.
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Giveaway: Tell us, what was the cleverest thing you’ve known a pet to do? Leave a comment below for your chance to win a print copy of Trouble Most Faire. U.S. entries only, please. The giveaway ends October 13, 2019. Good luck everyone!
About the author
Jaden Terrell is a Shamus Award finalist and the internationally published author of the Nashville-based Jared McKean private detective series. At the other end of the spectrum, she recently joined the Mad Catters’ shared universe with Trouble Most Faire, a cozy black cat detective romantic mystery set at a Renaissance Faire. A recipient of the 2017 Killer Nashville Builder Award, as well as the 2009 Magnolia Award and the 2017 Silver Quill Award for service to the Southeast Chapter of Mystery Writers of America, Terrell is a former special education teacher with a heart for service. Learn more at jadenterrell.com.
All comments are welcomed.
My cat was a retriever. Just lie a dog, he would return a small stick for us t throw again and again.
I want this book!
A friend of our had a cat like that. He would chase milk rings all day long if you could throw them that long. Cats are so clever!
My cat learned to open doors. Not exactly solving mysteries and saving lives, I know.
But a useful skill for solving mysteries and saving lives!
my cat also opened closed doors.He also selects the next book I am going to read from my bookcase. Just pulls it out of the shelf.Also sits over my shoulder while am reading. Looks like he is reading along with me.
When I was a child, we had a lovely little gray cat who used to read with me. She’d scan every line, and if I started to turn the page before she was finished, she’d put her paw on the page to stop me.
Years ago we had a pair of airemutts-half airedale, half mystery. Whenever you said cheese, they promptly sat at attention, side by side. Moochers!
When my little papillon was a puppy, I taught him that when I said, “Ready for your closeup?” he should turn his head to show his profile. Now whenever he wants a treat, he comes to sit in front of me and shows me his closeup. I can practically hear him saying, “Look, Ma! I’m being cute!”
I had a Maine Coon cat who watched me open the door between the house and the garage. The next thing I know, he’s up on his hind legs trying to turn the knob and let himself out to explore.
I love the idea of a sleuthing cat with a pig as a sidekick.
They’re so full of personality. I had so much fun writing this book, in large part because of the animals.
And…Maine Coons are gorgeous cats.
My dog, Bogie, who is a small rescue dog has many abilities. I call him The Philosopher. He is wise, very sensitive and aware. He knows all, sees all and senses all. Ho knows whom to avoid and whom to trust. He warns us of anything which could be a danger.
Anne, have you read The Art of Racing in the Rain? It’s beautiful (but heartbreaking) book about a dog who is also a philosopher. One of my favorites, but it’s definitely bittersweet.
My cat will knock her food out of the bowl, chase it around the kitchen, then pick it up with her paw and put it in her mouth. She can unzip a zipped lunch bag to steal a sandwich. She had also been known to flip light switches.
What a clever girl. Especially the lunch bags. It’s amazing what they can teach themselves!
Cat would run through the house at high speed, leap into the air when she got to the wall and land on the bulletin board upside down and would hang for a few minutes and then would start all over again. she was always so much fun and i do miss her!!
What a bundle of energy! She sounds like so much fun. If only there was a way to bottle that.
Well, I taught our mini schnauzer to bite my kid brother’s ankles whenever he annoyed me. LOL
I can see how that could be a useful skill, LOL.
When my cat, Ms. Mouser, was happy she would suck on her back paw and knead with her front paws and purr so loud. It was so cute and I loved it when she would sit on my lap and let me pet her and watch her.
That sounds so precious. What a sweet baby.
My friend had decorated a cake with flowers and leaves. The cake was left on the kitchen table. When she went back, she noticed the design was different. Her cat had delicately licked off some of the leaves – if one hadn’t seen the cake when it was first decorated, one would never had known. Fortunately, my friend was able to remove the top layer and replace it.
Your friend’s cat was an accomplished icing thief. Very subtle. I remember reading a recipe book called Greene on Greens, about cooking vegetables. He told a story about making asparagus for a dinner party and left the kitchen for a few minutes, only to discover upon his return that his cat had eaten the tip off of every last stalk. He hurriedly made a lovely asparagus bisque, and no one was any the wiser.
**** WINNER ****
Trouble Most Faire is Alicia
Congratulations!