I might’ve mentioned this before, but I love to eat. I strive for moderation, but it is almost impossible for me to resist the siren song of a big bowl of macaroni and cheese. (Does anyone else add ketchup? Anyone?)
Anyway, not surprisingly, food is practically a character unto itself in my Lucky Paws Petsitting Mysteries. If the people and pets of Sylvan Creek sit down together, somebody inevitably breaks out some puff pastry-encrusted brie or a platter of caramel-drizzled brownies. And don’t even get me started on the restaurant scenes.
I’m completely torn between the blue-plate specials at the down-home Silver Moon Diner—housed in a 1950s silver trailer—and the upscale offerings at the Wolf Hollow Mill, where the old mill wheel still turns on the side of the Revolutionary War-era stone building. (I’m a sucker for atmosphere, too.)
The funny thing is, I didn’t know how to cook anything until I was in my mid-forties. Honestly. My go-to dish was box mac and cheese. (Has anyone admitted to adding ketchup yet?)
Then I adopted three kids, and they needed to eat. Healthy food. Good food. So I overhauled my attitude about food preparation. What I used to consider a chore became a creative outlet, like writing. And, like writing, cooking was a chance to make something that would give people a reason to smile.
And from the moment I shifted my outlook, I was able to cook, really well. It was like years of watching Food Network had imparted all this knowledge, burying it deep in my brain, and it came spilling out in the kitchen. I would use terms I didn’t even realize I knew. Macerate this chiffonade in a coulis? Why yes, I believe I will!
Most importantly, I began to share meaningful time cooking and eating with my children. The kitchen really did become the heart of the home.
So when you read my novels, and Daphne, Piper, Moxie and Maeve sit down around a table, I hope you feel welcome, too, like you’re part of the gathering. Because that’s what my books are all about. Creating a sense of community, in a place you’ll hopefully want to return to, again and again.
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Pawprints & Predicaments (Lucky Paws Petsitting Mystery) by Bethany Blake
About the Book
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Kensington (February 27, 2018)
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
The Tail Waggin’ Winterfest is the highlight of the season in the famously pet-friendly Pocono Mountains town of Sylvan Creek. But despite attractions like an ice sculpture display, a dogsled race, and gourmet hot chocolate, Daphne Templeton finds herself annoyed by TV producer Lauren Savidge, who’s filming the festivities. She’s critical, controlling, and as chilly as the January air. Daphne would like to tell her to go jump in a lake—and as a matter of fact, that’s exactly what they’re both going to do . . .
It’s the first-ever polar bear plunge in Lake Wallapawakee, and Daphne and Lauren are among the eighty or so people who charge into the frigid water to raise funds for animals in need. Daphne makes it back to shore—with the help of a mysterious St. Bernard—but Lauren is dragged out stone cold dead. Now, with her trusty basset hound Socrates at her side, Daphne intends to assist Detective Jonathan Black in his investigation—whether he wants her to or not . . .
Includes recipes for homemade pet treats!
About the Author
Bethany Blake lives in a small, quaint town in Pennsylvania with her
husband and three daughters. When she’s not writing or riding horses, she’s
wrangling a menagerie of furry family members that includes a nervous pit bull,
a fearsome feline, a blind goldfish, and an attack cardinal named Robert. Like
Daphne Templeton, the heroine of her Lucky Paws Mysteries, Bethany holds a
Ph.D. and operates a pet sitting business called Barkley’s Premium Pet Care.
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