Tag Archives: cozy gay mystery

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ On Fire

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Hello and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, the blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in excerpts of ten sentences or fewer.

Okay, now I’m suffering from empty nest syndrome. I’ve been working on Wild for two years, and releasing my baby into the…well, wild…makes for a strange mix of relief and anxiety. Other than obsessively track sales, what’s a writer to do? Oh, yes, write.  The first draft of Snow is nearly done, and there’s a back log of projects that could keep me busy for a decade or so. But for now, I’ll take a few days to stare wistfully into the middle distance and wonder what people do who don’t have a cast of characters constantly chattering away in their heads, demanding to be brought to life.

Last week, Jacqui (in his cat form) got caught napping in Wyatt’s laundry basket. Now he has to figure out how to explain to Wyatt why he snuck out in the night…without his clothes.

***

Jacqui raced home as if his tail were on fire.

Not so bad. Had to happen.

Left my phone, my clothes, everything behind. How will I explain it?

Oh.

Jacqui tore up his street, cut through the gap between two buildings, and scrambled up the madrone tree behind his apartment. He was in the habit of leaving his bedroom window open, just in case, and now, the in case had occurred.

He squeezed in, jumped on the bed, shook himself.

What’s that smell?

That’s ten.  Here’s a bit more to follow up on Cat’s observation:

Gotta be fast. Wyatt’s gonna call or come over. He’s wondering where we are right now. He’ll see the phone on the kitchen counter. Shit, he’ll come over, make sure I’m alive.

Wait. Something’s off.

No time. Shift. Now.

***

Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4 ~ Available Now!

Cat Shifter Jacqui Corleone has finally met his fated mate, but unlike in a romance novel, reality has other plans. For one thing, Wyatt doesn’t know Jacqui is a shifter. For another thing, the dog men are back, and along with their slobber and their bad breath they bring a new level of danger to Jacqui’s life, and to Wyatt’s. When Jacqui meets other cat shifters for the first time, he’s tantalized by a glimpse into their strange new world, but cats aren’t much nicer than dogs, and soon Jacqui must choose if he’s going to run again, or stand and fight against an enemy more powerful than he ever imagined.

Click Here to buy on Amazon.

Prowl, Book #1 in the series, is available for free until Midnight Saturday (8/29). Click here to dive into Jacqui!

Meet Jacqui the Cat

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This Thursday, 8/27, Wild, Book #4 in my Jacqui the Cat Mysteries series will be released.  In order to celebrate, and to of course encourage those of you haven’t met Jacqui yet to take a gander, I’ve made Prowl, Book #1, free on Amazon starting today. The offer will continue through Saturday.

 

Here’s the blurb:

Jacqui Corleone is a fashion designer, a yoga-instructor and a concerned citizen who selflessly helps the police solve crimes.  Oh, and he occasionally turns into a small wild cat. Probably due to a wizard’s curse or an evil government plot to create super warriors.

Or, he’s a cat cursed to turn into a human and only the bite of a sexy alpha lion will allow him to remain in his superior form of Cat.

Jacqui does not have a split personality, but sometimes his cat personality can get rather loud.

Loud? You’re loud.

Jacqui Corleone is a cat shifter who doesn’t know why or how he turns into a cat. He lives a solitary life in Friday Harbor on San Juan Island. He’s not afraid of intimacy (yes, he is) but sensibly refrains from potentially awkward entanglements.  Unfortunately, the sexy new deputy sheriff just moved in across the street and Jacqui’s vow not to get mixed up with island dudes is sorely challenged.

When the mysterious disappearance of three blue pots draws Jacqui to investigate, he prowls ever deeper into danger–and into the arms of Deputy Wyatt West (he wishes).

Prowl: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #1, free on Amazon until 8/29

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ A Threat

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Hello and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, the blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in ten sentences or fewer.

I’m sharing from Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4, to be released August 27th! I’ve jumped ahead to Chapter 2. After his encounter with the strange stray, Jacqui allowed himself to accidentally on purpose fall asleep as Cat in Wyatt’s laundry basket. Wyatt’s relationship with Jacqui in his cat form is rather fraught. You can probably guess by the fact that Wyatt calls him Satan. A few people have told me Wyatt seems a little mean, but you have to remember, Jacqui is half-Caracal, so he’s big, as well as being a typical stray cat with attitude to spare.

***

A click woke him up. Bright lights flooded his hidey-hole. Jacqui lifted his head from beneath a towel, ears spiked and on full rotation.

“Holy fucking—?” Wyatt said. He stood in the doorway, hand still on the light switch, looking rumpled in baggy pajama pants, brown hair sideways, delicious chest exposed, adorable.

But also over six feet tall, looming, angry, a threat.

Jacqui sprang out of the basket and jumped to the top of the dryer. His claws skittered on the slick surface and he nearly slid off the far edge.

“Satan! Where the hell did you come from?” Wyatt demanded.

That’s ten. Here’s a few more to “complete” the thought.

Jacqui did not reply. He shot out of the gap in the window and landed in the shrub with paws desperately grasping for purchase. He half-fell, half-climbed to the ground and took off in a shot.

“And stay out!” Wyatt shouted after him, and slammed the window shut.

***

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Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4 ~ Available for pre-order Now! Release date August 27th.

Cat Shifter Jacqui Corleone has finally met his fated mate, but unlike in a romance novel, reality has other plans. For one thing, Wyatt doesn’t know Jacqui is a shifter. For another thing, the dog men are back, and along with their slobber and their bad breath they bring a new level of danger to Jacqui’s life, and to Wyatt’s. When Jacqui meets other cat shifters for the first time, he’s tantalized by a glimpse into their strange new world, but cats aren’t much nicer than dogs, and soon Jacqui must choose if he’s going to run again, or stand and fight against an enemy more powerful than he ever imagined.

Clicker Here to pre-order on Amazon.

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ Cat Stalker

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Hello and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, the blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in excerpts of ten sentences or fewer.

I’m so excited! The stars have finally aligned, the curse has lifted, and I have a release date for Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4! Jacqui will once again prowl the virtual bookshelves on August 27th! To celebrate, I’ve posted the awesome cover below.

I’ve been sharing from the first chapter of Wild, in which Jacqui encounters a strange cat who isn’t like the normal domestics he’s used to. Last week, Jacqui thought the cat talked to him via telepathy, but surely he just imagined it? I’ve skipped ahead a bit to round out the scene. This is after Jacqui ran off the interloper, or tried to, anyway. Next week I’ll share from a different scene, to give a little taste of what Jacqui’s up against.

***

The encounter left Jacqui feeling oddly disturbed. He sniffed here and there, scratched the trunk of a maple tree, knocked over some glass bottles left out beside a trash can, but he couldn’t get into it. His human mind buzzed too loudly and he decided to head for home, or Wyatt’s, that is, for some soothing skin-to-skin contact.

But we’ve only just begun to prowl!

Creepy vibes, gotta get back, shift, think.

One little thing goes weird and you get all human on me.

Jacqui overrode Cat’s protests, which wasn’t easy when he was in cat form, and slinked through the shadows and shrubbery back to Wyatt’s condo. When he reached the overgrown rhododendron, he glanced back, and spotted the mangy tom lurking on the corner. It had followed him.

Creepy cat stalker—Great.

***

Cover by Robin Ludwig Design

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Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4 ~ Available for pre-order Now! Release date August 27th.

Jacqui Corleone has finally met his fated mate (Newsflash: it’s Wyatt), but unlike a romance novel, reality has other plans. The dog men are back, and along with their slobber and bad manners they bring a new level of danger to Jacqui’s life, and to Wyatt’s.  Jacqui meets other cat shifters for the first time and is tantalized by a glimpse into their strange new world.  Only cats aren’t much nicer than dogs, and soon Jacqui must choose if he’s going to run again, or stand and fight against an enemy more powerful than he ever imagined. And that’s saying a lot.

Clicker Here to pre-order on Amazon.

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ Challenge

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Hello and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, the blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in excerpts of ten sentences or less.  I’m sharing from Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4, otherwise known as The Book from Hell, which appears to be cursed by the gods.  First, it took me twice as long to write as it was supposed to, and now forces beyond my control are conspiring to keep me from publishing.  But it will be worth it! I swear.  I swear a lot, actually, when it comes to this book.  But enough of my writerly woes.  In this scene from the first chapter, Jacqui in his cat form is confronting a new cat in the hood, who isn’t acting like any other cat Jacqui has ever met.

***

Gradually the hairs along its spine lowered and it flopped over on its side. After a moment, it rolled onto its back, staring at him from an upside down position.

The ruffian kept its glowing eyes on Jacqui’s, and an uncomfortable feeling started to grow in Jacqui’s belly. Another cat had never supplicated before him in this manner, and they usually averted their eyes, because eye contact between cats signaled a type of challenge.

The stray rolled back and forth, coating its grimy fur with bits of gravel and twigs. Clearly male, unfixed, it was sadly a case for the local animal rescue center. They didn’t euthanize, except for when it came to a wild mutation like Cat.

Okay, Ruffian, Jacqui thought at the cat, go ahead and relax and roll in the dirt. Tomorrow I’ll get you into a carrier and take you to the shelter.

No chance, said the cat, flopping back to its side.

(That’s ten. Here’s a few more to finish out the moment):

Wait. What?

Did that beast just talk to us?

Jacqui stilled and focused very hard. Did you just talk to me?

Ruffian lifted a leg and began to lick his nether regions. No more words invaded Jacqui’s head.

Imagining things.

***

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Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4 coming soon! Blurb-in-progress-

Jacqui Corleone has finally met his fated mate (Newsflash: it’s Wyatt), but unlike a romance novel, reality has other plans. The dog men are back, and along with their slobber and bad manners they bring a new level of danger to Jacqui’s life, and to Wyatt’s.  Jacqui meets other cat shifters for the first time and is tantalized by a glimpse into their strange new world.  Only cats aren’t much nicer than dogs, and soon Jacqui must choose if he’s going to run again, or stand and fight against an enemy more powerful than he ever imagined. And that’s saying a lot.

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ Human Tendencies

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Hello and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, the blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in excerpts of ten sentences or fewer.  After several days of near 100 degree temperatures, I’m wrung out, and really wishing I could go somewhere else. But right now, that still seems like a faraway and unlikely dream. Thank goodness for fiction, and the stories that take us away and let us travel even when we’re stuck.  So let’s pop on up to Friday Harbor on San Juan Island and join Jacqui on his midnight prowl.

I’ve been sharing from the first chapter of my upcoming release, Wild, Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4. In this scene, Jacqui in his cat form has encountered a mysterious stray, who doesn’t act like the other domestic cats he’s encountered before.

***

Jacqui slinked up all stealthy-like, to get a good look before the ruffian fled in terror.

The strange cat seemed to be mesmerized by the front of Jacqui’s apartment building. Jacqui scanned it, but didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. The nesting birds were all fast asleep. Ironically, because the neighborhood cats avoided the general area, the trees in front of Jacqui’s place had become a kind of bird refuge; a cruel trick of Mother Nature, designed to test his peaceful, non-bird killing human tendencies to the limit.

The cat turned, spotted Jacqui, and immediately went into a full, I’m-too-scared-to-run arch, accompanied by an ear-splitting yowl.

Relax, Jacqui thought at the beast, but if mind-to-mind communication existed between cats, he had yet to discover how it worked. Body language worked better, so he sat down and yawned.

The other cat remained locked in position, but at least it stopped screaming. Jacqui looked away, to give the poor thing an opportunity to flee.

***

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Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4 coming soon! Blurb-in-progress-

Jacqui Corleone has finally met his fated mate (Newsflash: it’s Wyatt), but unlike a romance novel, reality has other plans. The dog men are back, and along with their slobber and bad manners they bring a new level of danger to Jacqui’s life, and to Wyatt’s.  Jacqui meets other cat shifters for the first time and is tantalized by a glimpse into their strange new world.  Only cats aren’t much nicer than dogs, and soon Jacqui must choose if he’s going to run again, or stand and fight against an enemy more powerful than he ever imagined. And that’s saying a lot.