The Black Cat Detectives - An Interview & Giveaway

I'm pleased to welcome Kit Gray to Cozy Up With Kathy today. THE BLACK CAT DETECTIVES is Kit's debut novel and was released last month.  

 

Kathy: In THE BLACK CAT DETECTIVES we meet Bippity, Boppity, and Boop, three kittens who need to solve a murder. Why choose to make the cats detectives instead of their human?

KG: Mila is trying to solve the murder, too! In fact, the process teaches her a lot about herself, her community, and what’s important to her. But she doesn’t realize how much help she needs from her clever, loyal kittens.

There are a lot of reasons I loved the idea of telling ¾ of the story through the kittens’ eyes and making them detectives. One was the sheer potential for antics. Kittens, especially ones who can bend the laws of physics, can get up to all sorts of nonsense.

But on a more serious note, showing the story unfolding from the perspective of the kittens allowed me to offer an outsider’s perspective on the human characters and their world, which was a lot of fun to write, and I think added something interesting to the story.


Kathy: I currently have 5 cats, all rescues. Do you have cats of your own? 

KG: I am lucky to have two cats, a mama named Hylia and her baby, Mickey, and two dogs, a pitbull/lab cross called Titan and a pitbull/greyhound cross called Iris.

You may recognize the name Hylia from the book. I didn’t name her after the noble feline Queen character. Rather, a dear author friend of mine, April McCloud, had read an early draft. April is friends with a lady named JoAnn who fosters pregnant cats and new mamas in up in Rochester, NY, and talked JoAnn into naming the cat she was fostering after the character in my book.

Then she called me and told me about the real-life Hylia. Of course, I couldn’t resist rescuing her, and I am delighted to say that she very much resembles the character for whom she’s named.


Kathy: The kittens' human is Mila, an up-and-coming magician. Do you enjoy magic shows?

KG: I haven’t been to one in years, but I used to love them when I was growing up. To write Mila and her magic authentically, my daughter and I embarked on a quest to learn magic ourselves. Now, we perform tricks at book events, and even teach the audience how to do one or two of them!


Kathy: In addition to magic, there's also magick. Why choose a paranormal mystery and what makes them such fun?

KG: There was a very practical reason to add the layer of magic to my story. Without special abilities, there’s only so much three kittens could do to investigate a murder. I needed them to be extraordinarily intelligent and have some ability to subtly bend the laws of physics so that they would have the skills at paw to investigate the crime and save their human.

Though to be fair, I am not entirely convinced that my cats don’t have similar superpowers in real life!


Kathy: What first drew you to cozy mysteries?

KG: I grew up on cozy mysteries, starting with Agatha Christie and Lilian Jackson Braun. I’ve loved them all my life. I particularly like the combination of intellectually engaging, fun, and joyful that is so central to the cozy reading experience.


Kathy: Do you write in any other genres?

KG: I write a lot of dark speculative fiction, usually apocalyptic, and I’ve published some short pieces of creative nonfiction, some literary flash fiction, one horror short, and a bunch of poetry. But this is my first published novel, and I’m really happy about that! I love that it centers joy!


Kathy: Tell us about your series. 

KG: This is the first book in my series, though I do admit I’m hoping for the opportunity to write more. It centers three kittens with the ability to subtly bend the laws of physics, who must solve a murder mystery to save their human.


Kathy: Do you have a favorite character? If so, who and why?

KG: I have a huge soft spot for Boop, but Bippity is the easiest for me to write because her mind works the most like mine.


Kathy: Did you have a specific inspiration for your series?

KG: I had five elder rescue cats, and one terrible year, I lost them all to unrelated illnesses, one after another. It was the worst year of my life, and I lost track of my joy. Then it occurred to me that instead of my usual dark speculative novels, maybe I could write something joyful. Naturally, I immediately thought of murder!

It was such a balm, writing a story that brought to life so many facets of what I loved about the fur family I had lost, and knowing that they would live forever on the page. It helped me honor their memory, rediscover my own joy, and hopefully share that joy with the world.


Kathy: What made you decide to publish your work?

KG: When you write just for yourself, the story exists only in your own mind. When you write work to publish and share, each reader who picks up a book enters into an act of co-creation with the author. What I put on the page is only half of the equation. How each person who honors me with their time and attention sees and feels and imagines what I’ve written is the other half. To me, each unique instance of a story being brought to life by someone choosing to read it is a precious and magical thing.

Kathy: If you could have a dinner party and invite 4 authors, living or dead, in any genre, who would you invite?

KG: 1. Agatha Christie, 2. Octavia Butler, 3. Ursula K. LeGuin, 4. George Sand.

Kathy: What are you currently reading?

KG: Voted Most Likely to Murder by Lacey Moone and Hot Wings and Homicide by Carmela Dutra, and I’m re-reading The Mysterious Mr. Quin by Agatha Christie. 


Kathy: Will you share any of your hobbies or interests with us?

KG: I’m a solo parent to a homeschooled neurosparkly kiddo, an avid fan of carnivorous plants (I have a Nepenthes Lady Luck on my writing desk), and an enthusiastic baker.


Kathy: Name 4 items you always have in your fridge or pantry. 

KG: 1. A Dr. MacDougall’s instant pad Thai soup cup, which is my panacea when I get an upset stomach

2. A log of homemade cookie dough so kiddo can make a warm cookie for dessert when she wants one

3. Loads of fresh fruits and veggies, and invariably, somehow, one shriveled ancient apple

4. Homemade pancake & waffle mix, similar to bisquick but vegan


Kathy: Do you have plans for future books either in your current series or a new series?

KG: I do! I have one book I’m preparing with my agent so it can go on submission to editors, one that I’m currently drafting, three completed books waiting in the wings, and two that have been planned and are waiting for their turn to be written.


Kathy: What's your favorite thing about being an author?

KG: I’ve had a few people let me know that the kittens gave them joy in a way that’s going to stick with them. That’s the most wonderful feeling, and such an incredible honor. 

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 The Black Cat Detectives: A Mystery by Kit Gray

About The Black Cat Detectives

The Black Cat Detectives: A Mystery
Cozy Animal Mystery
Setting - Corvin's Crossing—a small fictional island off the coast of New England
Publisher: ‎ Crooked Lane Books
Publication Date: ‎ May 26, 2026
Print Length: ‎ 304 pages

A charming cozy mystery with a delightful twist: The detectives are three kittens with magical powers, determined to solve a most purr-plexing case.

Precocious kittens Bippity, Boppity, and Boop are exceedingly loyal to their human, the twenty-eight-year-old up-and-coming magician Mila. She saved them from starving to death in a dingy Corvin’s Crossing alleyway and has been nothing but loving ever since, even though her own life is in shambles.

So when Mila’s sketchy boyfriend and business manager turns up dead at the end of her big magic show—she’s the prime suspect. With evidence mounting, there’s nothing stopping the sheriff from hauling away Mila to the human pound. Unless the kittens can solve the crime and clear her name.

The kittens will have to use their dubious control over the laws of physics and every whisker of know-how they’ve got to catch the real killer if they want to save their happy home with Mila. This is one meow-stery more tangled than any ball of yarn they’ve encountered yet.

About Kit Gray

Kit Gray aka Elise Scott writes from their lived experiences of queerness, disability, neurodivergence, fat-positivity, and petting three cats with two hands. Their life has been an adventure, from facilitating equine therapy for trauma survivors to counseling at-risk youth with the aid of an inordinately large sub-woofer and beyond. They earned their BA from Mount Holyoke and their MS from Capella University. Their debut novel, a cozy mystery featuring three kittens with the ability to bend the laws of physics, who must solve a murder to save their rescuer from the human pound, is forthcoming from Crooked Lane in May 2026. Elise is a Not Quite Write Prize winner and Best-of-the-Net nominee. Their short work has appeared/is forthcoming in The Advocate, Choices: An Anthology of Reproductive Horror, The Not Quite Write Anthology 2025, The B'K, Five Minutes, Knee Brace, All Existing, and Quibble, among others. Find out what they’re working on now at http://elise-scott.com.

Author Links

• • Website https://elise-scott.com/
  • Facebook https://www.facebook.com/AuthorEliseScott/
  • BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/elisescott.bsky.social
  • Instagram https://www.instagram.com/elisescottwrites/
  • X https://x.com/buttonjar1
  • GoodReads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/58697146.Kit_Gray
  • Storygraph https://app.thestorygraph.com/profile/authorkitgray

Purchase Links - Penguin Random House Amazon B&N Bookshop.org

Gossiping about Grimoires - A Review

 Review

GOSSIPING ABOUT GRIMOIRES by Mildred Abbott
The First Whispering Witch Mystery 

Maeve Hawthorn has led a very sheltered life. Even writing a bestselling book series hasn't changed that. Accepting an all expense paid trip to New Orleans for a book signing is the most exciting thing she's ever done. The book signing turns into a disaster after which Maeve and her corgi, Mischief, are kidnapped. It turns out that magic is real and magical people of New Orleans are none too happy with her. While trying to prove that she didn't deliberately tell magical secrets to the world a powerful witch is killed. Both thrilled and terrified that magic is real Maeve must leave her comfort zone and try to solve the murder before she's silenced...or worse.

Secrets. allies, and familiars add to the excitement of magic in New Orleans. GOSSIPING ABOUT GRIMOIRES is a wonderful introduction to a magical world while also being a love letter to the city of New Orleans. Maeve is a unique protagonist, naive and self-admittedly a bit weird, her only friend is her corgi. Seeing her stretch her wings while trying to make new friends is heartwarming. My favorite characters are the various familiars, especially Hurricane and Tabitha. I love the joy they each have and the ease in which they accept each other and play. Of course, the special relationship between Maeve and Mischief is  wonderful to see.

I love the details about the city of New Orleans itself. Although it's been decades since I visited, the street names and various locations brought back wonderful memories. I felt as if I was back there, exploring the French Quarter along with Maeve and Mischief. New Orleans is a wonderful setting, especially for a magical series and I can't wait to return, if only via the next Whispering Witch Mystery. 

Both a coming of age and buddy novel GOSSIPING ABOUT GRIMOIRES is an exciting mystery combining puzzles to solve and a new world to explore.

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 The Whispering Witch Mysteries by Mildred Abbott

About The Whispering Witch Mystery Series

Start the Whispering Witch series today—a paranormal mystery where magic has consequences, trust is dangerous, and even a corgi might not make everything okay.

Gossiping About Grimoires (Whispering Witch Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery/Urban Paranormal 1st in Series
Setting - New Orleans, Mostly French Quarter
Publisher: ‎ Independently Published
Publication Date: ‎ March 1, 2026
Print Length: ‎ 400 pages

Maeve Hawthorn writes about witches for a living. They want her to stop.

When a book signing ends in her abduction, Maeve’s only priority is escaping with her corgi, Mischief, alive. That urgency deepens when she learns her captors are real witches, furious that Maeve has been exposing their secrets to the world.

Before Maeve can make sense of how her fiction has become reality, she’s caught in the middle of a murder that leaves her marked by magic she doesn’t understand. When a dying witch’s power floods into her, Maeve becomes the prime suspect in a crime she didn’t commit—and a target for every supernatural being certain she knows too much.

Turns out, magic isn’t a gift. It’s a liability. And clearing her name may cost Maeve far more than her safety.

With danger closing in and no clear allies other than Mischief, Maeve must navigate a hidden supernatural world that wants her silenced… or dead.

For readers who enjoy witchy mysteries with a little more at stake than a traditional cozy, Gossiping About Grimoires will appeal to fans of Danielle Garrett, Erin Johnson, and Juliet Blackwell.

(Includes the Shroom Boom recipe from Ayu Bakehouse, a beloved New Orleans bakery.)

Verifying About Vampires (Whispering Witch Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery/Urban Paranormal 2nd in Series
Setting - New Orleans, Mostly French Quarter
Publisher: ‎ Independently Published
Publication Date: ‎ April 30, 2026
Print Length: ‎ 400 pages

Maeve Hawthorn didn’t mean to get involved with vampires. They insisted. When a prominent member of New Orleans’ vampire community is accused of murder, Maeve is pulled into an investigation that could unravel the fragile balance between magical factions. Clearing their name isn’t just about justice — it may be the only way to prevent something far more dangerous. As Maeve follows a trail of secrets through candlelit courtyards and hidden supernatural circles, she discovers that truth in this world is layered, political, and rarely convenient. Meanwhile, living with her roommates and their familiars begins to feel like home. The witches who were once strangers are becoming allies. Maybe even family. But solving one mystery has a way of exposing others. And in a city built on power and old allegiances, someone is always watching. For readers who enjoy witchy mysteries with a little more at stake than a traditional cozy, Verifying About Vampires will appeal to fans of Danielle Garrett, Erin Johnson, and Juliet Blackwell. Continue the Whispering Witch series — a paranormal mystery where magic has consequences, loyalty is complicated, and even a corgi doesn't know all the answers. (Includes Butterscotch Pecan Scone recipe from Bywater Bakery, a favorite New Orleans bakery.)

Snitching About Spirits (Whispering Witch Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery/Urban Paranormal 3rd in Series
Setting - New Orleans, Mostly French Quarter
Publisher: ‎ Independently Published
Publication Date: ‎ June 30, 2026
Print Length: ‎ 400 pages 

Maeve Hawthorn started chatting with ghosts. They made demands.

When a murder victim refuses to stay silent and buried secrets start coming to light, Maeve is pulled deeper into the hidden power struggles shaping New Orleans’ magical world. What started as a single investigation is unraveling something much older—and far more dangerous.

As Maeve follows the trail through enchanted courtyards, secret alliances, and the fragile peace between supernatural factions, she begins to realize the truth may not be what anyone wants revealed. Meanwhile, living with her roommates and their familiars is starting to feel less like survival… and more like family.

But some secrets were buried for a reason.

And when the past finally surfaces, it may threaten far more than one witch’s life.

For readers who enjoy witchy mysteries with a little more at stake than a traditional cozy, Snitching About Spirits will appeal to fans of Danielle Garrett, Erin Johnson, and Juliet Blackwell.

Continue the Whispering Witch series — a paranormal mystery where magic carries a price, loyalties are tested, and even a corgi can't sniff out every secret.

(Includes a bewitching S’mores Cheesecake recipe from Deuxbelle, an award-winning New Orleans bakery.)

About Mildred Abbott

Mildred Abbott writes twisty cozy mysteries filled with humorous and complex characters. Whether brimming with magic or simply an above-average dose of curiosity, Mildred's amateur sleuths solve murders with the cutest sidekicks ever. Fifteen years as a special education teacher and a lifetime of loving rescue dogs results in creating adventures with a ton of heart and the need for lint rollers.

Author Links: 

Newsletter sign up: http://www.mildredabbott.com/contact-mildred.html  

Website: http://www.mildredabbott.com  

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MildredAbbottAuthor/  

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17347095.Mildred_Abbott 

  Instagram: @mildredabbott TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mildredabbottauthor  

Purchase Links - Amazon - Gossiping About Grimoires Verifying About Vampires Snitching About Spirits

Gossiping about Grimoires - An Interview & Giveaway

I'm pleased to welcome Mildred Abbott to Cozy Up With Kathy today. Mildred writes the Whispering Witch Mystery series. GOSSIPING ABOUT GRIMOIRES is the first book in the series. Be sure to come back tomorrow when I'll share my review.

Kathy: In GOSSIPING ABOUT GRIMOIRES we meet Maeve Hawthorn and her corgi, Mischief. Do you have any pets? Have they influenced your portrayal of Mischief?

MA: I have had pets my entire life. I grew up in a little farm town in Missouri and had all sorts of animals, but dogs have always been vital to me. In my adult life, I've had four corgis: Dunkyn, Dolan, Alastair, and Winifred. Oh yes, the corgi connection is very real and dear to my heart. Right now, I have two little mutts who are the loves of my life, Winston, a little Chihuahua terrier rescue who was so naughty that he was returned to the pound so many times they couldn't tell us how old he was or where he came from, sums him up pretty perfectly. And Phineas, a slightly larger terrier, dachshund, and schnauzer mix we got from the pound when he was about four months old. Dogs are life!


Kathy: Maeve writes about witchcraft, infuriating real witches. Have you ever written about subjects that people object to, for whatever reason?

MA: What a great question! And yes, in this day and age, or maybe it's always the case, someone's always upset about something. That's the beauty of freedom, we can all have our own opinions. I get so many wonderful emails from readers about all the things they love in my books and how much they adore the characters. And every once in a while I'll have an email with a list of things a certain character has done that they don't approve of. And, like Maeve, while I don't have actual witches upset with me, as far as I know, but there are plenty of people who did not want me to write anything about magic or paranormal and to simply stick with magic-free contemporary cozies. But... I say love and enjoy it all!


Kathy: Setting plays such an important role in a mystery. Indeed, some cities are a character unto themselves. What made you choose New Orleans as the setting for the Whispering Witch Mystery series?

MA: My other cozy mystery series, the Cozy Corgi, is set in Estes Park, Colorado. I lived there for several years right out of high school and lived in Colorado for nearly one-quarter of a century (way to make myself sound old!). I love having real places as the main settings in books both to give a sense of realness and authenticity to the writing but also to be able to throw in places and things that people can actually go visit and see for themselves. I moved to New Orleans a little over six years ago, and trying to see New Orleans from Maeve’s point of view as I was planning the series helped me fall deeply in love with the city, especially the French Quarter, which is where 98% of the Whispering Witch series takes place. I even have bakeries and restaurants in New Orleans lending me recipes to include in each installment!


Kathy: I love paranormal mysteries. What do you think makes them so popular? What makes them enjoyable to write?

MA: I think we all love to read to escape and to have experiences that are both enjoyable and out of our grasp in real life. For me, that's definitely a big part of why I love reading fantasy and paranormal. It's just so lovely to enter these worlds of magic and wonder as often as we can. Sometimes terrible and terrifying, but so often beautiful and wondrous. Anything can happen. I love it as a reader, but as a writer, the only limits are the ones that my little created world insists on itself. And then... who doesn't love a good whodunit puzzle? Talk about the best of both worlds!


Kathy: What first drew you to cozy mysteries?

MA: I grew up reading Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys, Agatha Christie, and several different mystery series when I was a kid. That slipped away for a while as an adult until I started reading Agatha Frost’s Peridale Cafe series and I fell in love all over again. Those books came during a pretty stressful, rough time in my life and they were just the perfect antidote to the realities of the real world. I had already been writing other genres and fell in love with Peridale Cafe so much that I reached out to Agatha Frost and asked if she minded if I'd switched genres to cozy mysteries because I was so enamored with her books. Agatha was lovely and welcomed me into the fold. I've not looked back since!


Kathy: Do you write in any other genres?

MA: In the past, yes. Although for the last many years I've written exclusively in cozy mystery only. I have books published under my own name, Brandon Witt, and then another pen name, Rosalind Abel. They definitely all have my voice and my view of the world, but all three are very, very different from each other.


Kathy: Tell us about your series. 

MA: At its heart, the Whispering Witch follows Maeve, who, like so many of us, longed for magic and the supernatural when she was a little girl. When she grew up, that's what she wrote about. Then... when real-life witches come calling, angry at her accidentally spilling their secrets, she ends up getting her heart’s desire, discovering this wondrous magical world and being able to be a part of it. As with most things in life, however, it's not quite as simple as that. She's going to have to decide if this is the world she wants, even with its complications and dangers, and then how to flourish and live the life she's always dreamed of. She and her corgi, Mischief!


Kathy: Do you have a favorite character? If so, who and why?

MA: Honestly, that's one of the things I did differently when I switched to the cozy mystery genre. While I loved all of my main characters in my other genres and under my other pen names, frequently one of the side characters would be the one I ended up loving the most and longing to spend more time with. I wanted to change that with my cozy mysteries and my paranormal cozy-adjacent series. I wanted the character I loved the most to be the star. And that's what I've done. I love watching Maeve in her earnest naivety navigate this new world, figure it out, and become stronger and more self-assured with every passing chapter. And of course, Mischief, writing a corgi with attitude? Come on. It doesn't get more fun than that!


Kathy: Did you have a specific inspiration for your series?

MA: New Orleans itself is very much the inspiration and woven in through the storyline and books in every single installment. Beyond that, my favorite shows, as cliché as it may be, at a very pivotal time in my life were Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Charmed, with a healthy addiction to the movie Practical Magic. I let myself sink into the things I loved about all of those every time I sit down to write.


Kathy: What made you decide to publish your work?

MA: I didn't learn to read until I was ten. As soon as I finally caught the bug, I never let go and my nose was always in a book. School was always extremely hard for me. During my sophomore year when I was fourteen, I had a writing class with Miss Hungerford. It was the first time in my entire life that homework in school was enjoyable. I loved that writing class. Miss Hungerford said she enjoyed my stories and it was the first time I was able to do okay at any school subject without a ton of tutoring or agony. From then on, I dreamed of writing books. And being a reader whose life has been so beautifully impacted by books, I wanted to give that to other people as well, wanted to invite people into my worlds and hope that they find beauty, comfort, humor, enjoyment, and escape within their pages.


Kathy: If you could have a dinner party and invite 4 authors, living or dead, in any genre, who would you invite?

MA: Kelley Armstrong, Agatha Frost, Sarah Beth Durst, and Peter Beagle.


Kathy: What are you currently reading?

MA: I'm a big audiobook fan, so I am re-listening to Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld series for probably the fourth or fifth time. I'm finishing up book two of K.A. Linde's Oak and Holly Cycle series, and desperate to start reading Sarah Beth Durst’s The Faraway Inn.


Kathy: Will you share any of your hobbies or interests with us? 

MA: I used to have a lot more hobbies, but being a self-published author and trying to make that a survivable income quite literally takes about every spare breath I have. In the meantime, I spend an exorbitant amount of time with my dogs and going on walks, and I absolutely love to cook. Cooking for my husband every night is one of my greatest joys. It's so relaxing and another creative outlet.


Kathy: Name 4 items you always have in your fridge or pantry.

MA: Oh Lord, this is telling. I should be ashamed to admit—but I might have spent my adult life split between Colorado and New Orleans, but you can't take the Midwest out of my heart. So... the first two: butter and mayonnaise (please don’t hate me). I'm a vegetarian, a new development over the past couple of years, so always a ton of vegetables. And then, they're not always in the fridge, but I could live on bread, cheese, and pasta and nothing else for the rest of my life and die very fat and happy.


Kathy: Do you have plans for future books either in your current series or a new series?

MA: Yes. The book four of the Whispering Witch series comes out this summer. And there are thirteen books planned in total for this series. The Cozy Corgi also is continuing, book forty is coming out this summer as well. I have other series brewing in the back of my head, of course, but I'll save those for a later date.


Kathy: What's your favorite thing about being an author?

MA: Another cliché for you, but it's true. I've heard lots of writers say the best part of writing is having written. And that is the truth. I love, love, love planning, and I love, love, love holding the book in my hand. Everything else is a mix of fear, joy, terror, and ecstasy.

************************************************************************

 The Whispering Witch Mysteries by Mildred Abbott

About The Whispering Witch Mystery Series

Start the Whispering Witch series today—a paranormal mystery where magic has consequences, trust is dangerous, and even a corgi might not make everything okay.

Gossiping About Grimoires (Whispering Witch Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery/Urban Paranormal 1st in Series
Setting - New Orleans, Mostly French Quarter
Publisher: ‎ Independently Published
Publication Date: ‎ March 1, 2026
Print Length: ‎ 400 pages

Maeve Hawthorn writes about witches for a living. They want her to stop.

When a book signing ends in her abduction, Maeve’s only priority is escaping with her corgi, Mischief, alive. That urgency deepens when she learns her captors are real witches, furious that Maeve has been exposing their secrets to the world.

Before Maeve can make sense of how her fiction has become reality, she’s caught in the middle of a murder that leaves her marked by magic she doesn’t understand. When a dying witch’s power floods into her, Maeve becomes the prime suspect in a crime she didn’t commit—and a target for every supernatural being certain she knows too much.

Turns out, magic isn’t a gift. It’s a liability. And clearing her name may cost Maeve far more than her safety.

With danger closing in and no clear allies other than Mischief, Maeve must navigate a hidden supernatural world that wants her silenced… or dead.

For readers who enjoy witchy mysteries with a little more at stake than a traditional cozy, Gossiping About Grimoires will appeal to fans of Danielle Garrett, Erin Johnson, and Juliet Blackwell.

(Includes the Shroom Boom recipe from Ayu Bakehouse, a beloved New Orleans bakery.)

Verifying About Vampires (Whispering Witch Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery/Urban Paranormal 2nd in Series
Setting - New Orleans, Mostly French Quarter
Publisher: ‎ Independently Published
Publication Date: ‎ April 30, 2026
Print Length: ‎ 400 pages

Maeve Hawthorn didn’t mean to get involved with vampires. They insisted. When a prominent member of New Orleans’ vampire community is accused of murder, Maeve is pulled into an investigation that could unravel the fragile balance between magical factions. Clearing their name isn’t just about justice — it may be the only way to prevent something far more dangerous. As Maeve follows a trail of secrets through candlelit courtyards and hidden supernatural circles, she discovers that truth in this world is layered, political, and rarely convenient. Meanwhile, living with her roommates and their familiars begins to feel like home. The witches who were once strangers are becoming allies. Maybe even family. But solving one mystery has a way of exposing others. And in a city built on power and old allegiances, someone is always watching. For readers who enjoy witchy mysteries with a little more at stake than a traditional cozy, Verifying About Vampires will appeal to fans of Danielle Garrett, Erin Johnson, and Juliet Blackwell. Continue the Whispering Witch series — a paranormal mystery where magic has consequences, loyalty is complicated, and even a corgi doesn't know all the answers. (Includes Butterscotch Pecan Scone recipe from Bywater Bakery, a favorite New Orleans bakery.)

Snitching About Spirits (Whispering Witch Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery/Urban Paranormal 3rd in Series
Setting - New Orleans, Mostly French Quarter
Publisher: ‎ Independently Published
Publication Date: ‎ June 30, 2026
Print Length: ‎ 400 pages 

Maeve Hawthorn started chatting with ghosts. They made demands.

When a murder victim refuses to stay silent and buried secrets start coming to light, Maeve is pulled deeper into the hidden power struggles shaping New Orleans’ magical world. What started as a single investigation is unraveling something much older—and far more dangerous.

As Maeve follows the trail through enchanted courtyards, secret alliances, and the fragile peace between supernatural factions, she begins to realize the truth may not be what anyone wants revealed. Meanwhile, living with her roommates and their familiars is starting to feel less like survival… and more like family.

But some secrets were buried for a reason.

And when the past finally surfaces, it may threaten far more than one witch’s life.

For readers who enjoy witchy mysteries with a little more at stake than a traditional cozy, Snitching About Spirits will appeal to fans of Danielle Garrett, Erin Johnson, and Juliet Blackwell.

Continue the Whispering Witch series — a paranormal mystery where magic carries a price, loyalties are tested, and even a corgi can't sniff out every secret.

(Includes a bewitching S’mores Cheesecake recipe from Deuxbelle, an award-winning New Orleans bakery.)

About Mildred Abbott

Mildred Abbott writes twisty cozy mysteries filled with humorous and complex characters. Whether brimming with magic or simply an above-average dose of curiosity, Mildred's amateur sleuths solve murders with the cutest sidekicks ever. Fifteen years as a special education teacher and a lifetime of loving rescue dogs results in creating adventures with a ton of heart and the need for lint rollers.

Author Links: 

Newsletter sign up: http://www.mildredabbott.com/contact-mildred.html  

Website: http://www.mildredabbott.com  

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MildredAbbottAuthor/  

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17347095.Mildred_Abbott 

  Instagram: @mildredabbott TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mildredabbottauthor  

Purchase Links - Amazon - Gossiping About Grimoires Verifying About Vampires Snitching About Spirits

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A Blue Ribbon Murder - A Review & Giveaway

 Review

A BLUE RIBBON MURDER by T.C. LoTempio
The Sixth Urban Tails Mystery 

 

With some aggressive campaigning Fox Hollow, Connecticut is hosting this year's Kitty Club Cat Show. With her mother as one of the event sponsors Shell McMillan, owner of the Urban Tails Pet Shop and former star of Spy Anyone, is not only serving as a vendor, she's entered Kahlua into the competition. That $25,000 grand prize certainly could help and there's also the added mystery of a second prize. While her Urban Tails booth is doing brisk business, she and her partner Gary can't help but notice plenty of cat fights. From volatile competitors and protesters to the exacting event organizer and her Lothario stepson there's plenty of catty behavior. But when Shell and Gary go to meet with Isobel, they find her murdered and the special prize gone. Did she interrupt the thief or was her murder the goal? Is there a thief and a killer or just one villain? While selling pet supplies and showing two of their cats Shell and Gary will once again put on their deerstalker hats and try to solve the crimes.

 

I really enjoy the Urban Tails Mystery series and loved the fun setting of a cat show in this sixth outing. While I missed seeing much of Josh I really love seeing Shell and Gary work their investigative magic. I also like how they work together, both in Urban Tails and as housemates. They really are a great team and always have each other's backs.The mystery was solid with smart sleuthing and a good variety of suspects and motives, although there was one time I yelled at Shell for running off to check out a suspect alone.

 

I love all of the cats and was glad to see Kahlua have her moment in the spotlight. Of course, Purriday is perfect and I love how he and Princess Fuzzypants love each other.

 

A BLUE RIBBON MURDER turns the controlled chaos of a cat show into a purrfect murder mystery.

 

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A Blue Ribbon Murder (Urban Tails Pet Shop Mysteries) by T. C. LoTempio

About A Blue Ribbon Murder

A Blue Ribbon Murder (Urban Tails Pet Shop Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery 6th in Series
Setting - Connecticut
Publisher: ‎ Beyond the Page
Publication Date: ‎ March 31, 2026
Print Length: ‎ 260 pages

When the organizer of a major cat competition is murdered and the grand prize is stolen, Shell McMillan will have to claw through the clues to catch a killer . . .

The Kitty Club Cat Show has come to Fox Hollow, and everyone from casual cat lovers to competitive breeders has shown up for the contest. Pet shop owner Shell McMillan has two cats entered, and like everyone else she has her eye on the grand prize, a vibrant red leash with a solid gold cat-head figurine attached. As the judging begins, cat owners clash and the fur flies, until a power outage throws the whole arena into darkness. But when the lights come back up, the event’s organizer is found dead and the grand prize is missing.

Shell knows the obvious suspect is the victim’s stepson, who’s up to his neck in gambling debts and would kill to get his hands on his inheritance. But there are plenty of disgruntled competitors to consider too, including some who had an old score to settle with the victim. Every clue is catnip for Shell, especially as she puzzles out whether the thief and the murderer are the same person. Either way, with two crimes to solve and a killer on the loose, she’ll have to tread carefully so that her dreams of Best in Show don’t end with Rest in Peace . . .

About T. C. LoTempio

While Toni Lotempio does not commit – or solve – murders in real life, she has no trouble doing it on paper. Her lifelong love of mysteries began early on when she was introduced to her first Nancy Drew mystery at age 10 – The Secret in the Old Attic. She and her cat pen the Nick and Nora mystery series originally from Berkley Prime Crime and now with Beyond the Page Publishing. They also write the Pet Shop Series and the Tiffany Austin Food Blogger series and brand new Cozy Bookshop Mysteries!

You can cat-ch up with them at ROCCO’s blog, www.catsbooksmorecats.blogspot.com or her website, www.tclotempio.net

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The Shrew Detective: The Case of the Pilfered Pearls - A Review

 Review

THE SHREW DETECTIVE: THE CASE OF THE PILFERED PEARLS
By Margi Preis Illustrated by Junyi Wu

Minerva, the Shrew Detective, loves her cozy home in the forest. Admiring her walls decorated with wonderful words from a dictionary she found, she ponders the big mysteries of life and the universe while enjoying lots of snacks. One day her cousin, Tenacity, rushes in desperately needing a detective or surely murder and mayhem will follow. Minerva goes with her, but balks when Tenacity starts to leave the forest. Even worse - she is going into the house...with humans! A pearl necklace belonging to the human woman has gone missing and the woman's already called in an exterminator to place traps around the house. If the necklace isn't found in twenty-four hours she will have the house fumigated! Thus the possible murder of all of the animals who also call the house home. From the chipmunk in the drainpipe and the mice in the walls to the flying squirrels in the attic and Tenacity herself, all are in danger! Will Minerva be able to find the necklace in time?

The first book in The Shrew Detective Mystery series is an absolute delight. Not only are the characters fleshed out, but the mystery is solid with enough clues to allow the reader to solve the mystery along with Minerva. The book is also full of humor and had me smiling at the many play on words including nods to classic mystery sleuths such as Sherlock Holmes, Nancy Drew, and even Inspector Dalgliesh. I also love how, not wanting to be referred to as "it", Minerva says her pronouns are "she/her".

The publisher states that this is a middle grade book for children ages 8-12. I beg to disagree. This is a book for readers of all ages - I'm 57 and I loved it! The author doesn't shy away from using advanced words, but she explains the meaning and sometimes includes a pronunciation guide. This is a great way to build vocabulary as well as not talk down to the reader. I also love how facts about shrews and the other small animals are included, both within the story and afterward in an author's note. Who knew shrews had to eat so often?!?

A clever mystery with engaging animals THE SHREW DETECTIVE: THE CASE OF THE PILFERED PEARLS is a wonderful start to a charming new series. 

Currently Reading...

I just finished reading The Shrew Detective: The Case of the Pilfered Pearls by Margi Preus, illustrated by Junyi Wu. This book is the first in The Shrew Detective Mystery series and will be released May 19.

Minerva, the Shrew Detective, loves her cozy home in the forest. Admiring her walls decorated with wonderful words from a dictionary she found, she ponders the big mysteries of life and the universe while enjoying lots of snacks. One day her cousin, Tenacity, rushes in desperately needing a detective or surely murder and mayhem will follow. Minerva goes with her, but balks when Tenacity starts to leave the forest. Even worse - she is going into the house...with humans! A pearl necklace belonging to the human woman has gone missing and the woman's already called in an exterminator to place traps around the house. If the necklace isn't found in twenty-four hours she will have the house fumigated! Thus the possible murder of all of the animals who also call the house home. From the chipmunk in the drainpipe and the mice in the walls to the flying squirrels in the attic and Tenacity herself, all are in danger! Will Minerva be able to find the necklace in time?

Black Cat and the Immigrant Child - A Guest Post & Giveaway

I'm pleased to allow Elaine Faber to take over Cozy Up With Kathy today. Elaine writes the Black Cat Mystery series. Black Cat and the Immigrant Child is the fifth book in the series.

Why Do Writers Write?

I’ll bet if 100 people were queried, at least 75% would claim that someday they plan to write a book, most likely a memoir. The remaining 25% would likely conclude that even though they may never get around to it, and the world will be the lesser for it, they could if they wanted to. The thousands of hours required to write, edit, and format a book for publication never enter the equation.

Yet a frightening number of us do spend the time and energy, and a zillion books DO get published every year. Most of them get posted on Amazon, where they are buried as deep as a sticker in a cow plop among millions of other books. Occasionally, one actually sells! 

Now, I’ve become one of those people who decided there was a book in me that would be a loss to the world if they did not delve into its pages. After about a skillion hours of writing, rewriting, editing, mentoring, and more rewriting, my novel was finally completed, formatted, published, and made available for sale to the millions of folks clamoring to be amused, entertained, charmed, and delighted by my scintillating characters. This became the first of twelve more novels to follow. 

In my cozy cat mystery series (the latest called Black Cat and the Immigrant Child) none have yet to become a New York Times Best Seller, but there is a cat who, with his ancestors’ memories, knows where the bodies are buried. In this adventure, he wants desperately to assist his inferior humans, who are usually too busy searching for bandits’ lost loot and protecting the little girl found on the prairie alongside a dead man. The story contains a smattering of romance, a few downright stinkerisms, cartels and drug lords, an innocent refugee child, and a cat that joins forces with a Maine Coone barn cat and a rat to help his inferior human catch a killer. 

So, why do I write when the hours are long, the glory is nonexistent, and the financial rewards are few and far between?

I guess I write because these characters are in me, screaming to get out, and even if I don’t have a Best-Seller, many of the good folks who read my novels come back and tell me about their reading experience. For just a little while, they left their troubles behind, traveled to a little resort town, and entered my make-believe world, where the good guy wins with lots of laughs along the way. For a few hours, they frolicked through the pages, with a cat determined to help Kimberlee solve the latest mystery.

That’s when I know. That’s why I write. That’s why it’s all worth it.

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Bio:

Elaine Faber has published 12 mystery novels and one ‘CAT’ anthology. She is a member of Sisters In Crime, Northern CA Writers and Publishers, and Elk Grove Writers’ Guild. Her stories have also appeared in multiple magazines and anthologies.

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 Black Cat and the Immigrant Child (A Black Cat Mystery) by Elaine Faber

About Black Cat and the Immigrant Child

Black Cat and the Immigrant Child (A Black Cat Mystery)
Cozy Mystery 5th in Series
Setting - Texas
Publisher: ‎ Michael L. Faber
Publication Date: ‎ January 6, 2026
Print Length: ‎ 254 pages

A tale of corruption and deceit met with compassion and tenacity.

Kimberlee, Dorian, and their pets return to Grandmother Lassiter’s multimillion-dollar horse ranch on the Mexico/Texas border to settle her affairs following her demise.

On their first day in Texas, an illegal immigrant, likely carrying drugs, is found murdered on the Lassiter ranch. A six-year-old girl is at his side.

Black Cat and Angel overhear a ranch hand admit to the murder and declare to eliminate the child who witnessed his crime.

Determined to shelter the little girl, the family is thrust into affairs that include intrigue, humor, and mystery. Join the family as they ride with wild horses and search for a notorious Wild West bandit's undiscovered stolen treasure.

Black Cat joins forces with Murphy, his Maine Coon rival and compatriot, and Cedric, the resident barn rat, in an attempt to prevent another murder and capture the miscreant.

Sprinkled generously with Black Cat and Angel’s humorous relationship and interactions, this is another story that will delight Black Cat’s fans, cat lovers, or readers who enjoy light mysteries and humor.

About Elaine Faber

Elaine Faber lives in Elk Grove with her husband and cat. She is a member of Capitol Crimes, NCPA, and Elk Grove Writers Guild. She volunteers at the American Cancer Society Discovery Shop. Elaine has published 12 cozy mystery novels and an anthology of cat stories. Her books include a WWII historical fiction series, a series of cozy cat mysteries, and two paranormal mystery-adventures.

Author Links: Website: Facebook Goodreads 

 Purchase Link - Amazon