I'm pleased to welcome Andrew Higgins to Cozy Up With Kathy today. Andrew writes the Blaine and Meredith Mystery series. MURDER MOST NECESSARY is the first book in the series and was released earlier this year.
Kathy: In MURDER MOST NECESSARY Demelza Blaine inherits a cottage and moves to Killnakree leaving a cheating boyfriend and her job as a librarian. Have you ever started over?
AH: Yes, I have. I've made career changes before – clerical work, manual work, hospital work, teaching computers – and I've been through a divorce. Of all those changes though, divorce was the most complex. It affected everything. I think that's why Demelza's story resonated with me. That feeling of leaving something behind and wondering what's going to happen next – I knew that feeling. Though unlike Demelza, my fresh start didn't come with an inheritance and a sassy housekeeper!
Kathy: Although she only appears in the first chapter Clodagh Sutton was a force of nature! I wish we could have seen more of her. I don't have near her energy and joie de vivre and I'm more than a decade her junior. Do you have that zest for life?
AH: I'm 71 now, and honestly, each day the Good Lord gives me feels like a special blessing. Do I have Clodagh's zest? Maybe not her particular brand of chaos! But I do try to embrace life – writing these stories, creating characters who refuse to fade into the background, finding the humour in things. Clodagh represented something I admire: that refusal to diminish yourself just because you're getting older. She lived fully right up until... well, the end of the first chapter!
Kathy: On her first night in town Demelza joins her new friend and participates in a pub quiz. Do you enjoy pub quizzes? Do you have a particular subject that you're best at?
AH: Yes. I love pub quizzes and am a big quiz fan. I used to run some local history quizzes with my former students and am a firm favourite of most quiz shows such as the One Per Cent Club. I’ve also written two quiz books which are currently available through Amazon, ‘The Best Ever Food & Drink Quiz and Puzzle Book’ and ‘The Puzzle Cabinet: 330 Short Form Riddles & Logic Puzzles for the Whole Family.’
Kathy: Suzie the border collie is one of my favorite characters. I love all animals, although I don't have dogs anymore. I do have 5 cats. Do you have any pets?
AH: Not presently. Bridget my beautiful Tabby Cat died not so long ago from Cancer. She was 14 years old.
Kathy: Is Suzie based on a dog or dogs you know, or is she purely fictional?
AH: Suzie was real. She was my very own Border Collie. Suzie in the book is based upon the real Suzie – this girl here…….
I got her when she was just a pup and from day one she was never more than six feet away from me. We were inseparable and I absolutely adored her. She was the most intelligent, loyal companion I could have ever asked for—always knowing exactly what I was thinking, anticipating my every move. Her devotion was absolute, and the affection between us ran both ways. She had this remarkable cleverness about her, solving problems I didn't even realize dogs could solve, and she'd look at me with those eyes that seemed to reach into my very soul and understand everything I said or did. Sadly I lost her to a brain tumour when she too, like Bridget, was 14 years old.
Kathy: What first drew you to cozy mysteries?
AH: It's really the whole package – they offer something you won’t find in other mystery subgenres. There's no graphic violence or explicit content, which means you can focus entirely on the puzzle and the characters without being distracted or disturbed by gratuitous elements. I love the humour and whimsy that runs through good cozy mysteries – that gentle wit that makes you smile even while you're trying to solve a murder. But most of all, it's the sense of community and camaraderie that really appeals to me. In cozy mysteries, even when terrible things happen, there's this underlying warmth where neighbours help neighbours, where the local shopkeeper knows everyone's business, and where people genuinely care about each other. That's certainly what I've tried to create in ‘Murder Most Necessary’ and Killnakree with characters like Mabel the housekeeper and the staff at the Herald. It's that cozy feeling – like being wrapped in a warm blanket with a cup of tea while you're solving a puzzle. You feel safe even when the characters don't.
Kathy: Do you write in any other genres?
AH: For the moment, no, I'm focusing entirely on cozy mysteries, though I have written quiz and puzzle books in the past – with the two previously mentioned being available on Amazon – and I think there's definitely a connection there. Creating quizzes and solving puzzles requires the same kind of logical thinking that goes into plotting a mystery novel. You have to think backwards from the solution, plant clues at just the right moments, and create red herrings that mislead without being unfair to the reader. In ‘Murder Most Necessary’, the solution actually hinges on an event that took place twenty five years before, so my interest in quizzes definitely influenced that plot element. Both puzzles and mysteries are about giving people just enough information to work things out for themselves, but not so much that it becomes obvious. The satisfaction comes from that 'aha!' moment when all the pieces finally click into place.
Kathy: Tell us about your series.
AH: The series follows amateur sleuth Demelza Blaine and her adventures in the small Northern Irish town of Killnakree at the foot of the Mourne Mountains. If you're familiar with M.C. Beaton's Agatha Raisin series, Demelza has a similar energy and determination, but with a distinctly Irish temperament and outlook on life. Animals, especially dogs, feature very strongly throughout the series. In ‘Murder Most Necessary’, her relationship with Suzie, Mabel's pregnant Border Collie, becomes incredibly important to her. But what really sets Demelza apart is her ability to see things others miss – she notices the small details that don't quite fit, the connections that seem insignificant to everyone else. As a man, I've always believed that women are much more observant than men and quick to pick things up that just sail over most men’s heads, like who’s having an affair or who’s hiding something, and Demelza embodies that perfectly. Maybe it's because she's an outsider, or maybe it's just her nature, but she has this knack for spotting the one piece of the puzzle that everyone else has overlooked. Each book is set in Killnakree with recurring characters like her housekeeper Mabel and the staff at the local newspaper where she works and each story is self contained.
Kathy: Do you have a favourite character? If so, who and why?
AH: I actually have two favourites. First is Mabel, without a doubt. She's sassy, funny, smart, and wonderfully seasoned by life. She's experienced hard times and has that worldly wisdom that's so often lacking today – she takes absolutely no crap from anyone. There's something so satisfying about writing a character who can cut through nonsense with a single glance or a perfectly timed comment. My second favourite is Amelia, the IT guru and archivist at the Killnakree Herald. She has a photographic memory, she's a Krav Maga expert, and she's incredibly intelligent and capable. But what I love most about her is her complexity – she's someone who appears strong and self-sufficient on the surface, but like so many of us, she has her own vulnerabilities and fears about letting people get too close. She's the kind of character who feels very real to me.
Kathy: Did you have a specific inspiration for your series?
AH: Not one specific inspiration, but rather a combination of influences. I've always been drawn to the classic amateur sleuth mysteries – from Agatha Christie's Miss Marple to more contemporary authors like Richard Osman, Robert Thorogood, Richard Coles, Ellen Byron, Vicki Delany, and M.C. Beaton. I love that particular blend of humour, mystery, and community that defines the best cozy mysteries. But I wanted to create something distinctly my own – set in Northern Ireland with characters who felt authentic to that place and culture. The inspiration really came from wanting to add my own voice to a genre I've loved for years, bringing in elements like the strong animal connections and our particularly Irish way of looking at the world.
Kathy: What made you decide to publish your work?
AH: I've been a passionate reader since childhood and found great joy in so many of the books I’ve read. Part of me wanted to give some of that same joy back to other readers. After traditional publishers rejected my work, I chose self-publishing and uploaded my stories to Amazon, hoping that if I could create that magical experience of getting lost in a good story for even just one person, then it would all be worthwhile.
But there's also a more personal reason – I have a creative outlet I simply need to express. These stories and characters live in my head, and getting them down on paper and sharing them feels both natural and necessary. At its heart, I suppose it’s all about connection – connecting with readers who love the same kind of stories I do, and with that part of myself that needs to create.
Kathy: If you could have a dinner party and invite 4 authors, living or dead, in any genre, who would you invite?
AH: Agatha Christie, Richard Osman, Robert Thorogood and finally M.C. Beaton. Can you imagine the conversation around that table? Four brilliant minds who understand exactly how to craft a perfect mystery, blend humour with murder, and create characters that readers fall in love with. I'd probably spend the entire evening just listening and taking notes!
Kathy: What are you currently reading?
AH: ‘The Impossible Fortune’ by Richard Osman. In this story while the Thursday Murder Club members are preoccupied with a wedding and personal issues, Elizabeth meets a guest who fears for their life, launching the gang into an explosive investigation involving a villain seeking access to an uncrackable code. The case involves kidnapping and murder as they race to solve the puzzle before it's too late. Great read!
Kathy: Will you share any of your hobbies or interests with us?
AH: I'm an unrepentant dog lover, which definitely shows in my books with characters like Suzie and her daughter Jewel [who makes her debut in book two of the series – ‘Murder at Serenity Glade’ – a locked room murder mystery] playing such important roles in the stories. There's nothing quite like the unconditional love and loyalty of a good dog! I'm also a keen DIY enthusiast – I love tackling projects around the house, which sometimes gives me ideas for how my characters might solve problems or think creatively. I'm passionate about keeping fit and eating sensibly. There's something about physical exercise that helps clear my mind and often leads to those breakthrough moments when I'm stuck on a plot point. Plus, all the good food that my partner makes for me provides the fuel for long writing sessions!
Kathy: Name 4 items you always have in your fridge or pantry.
AH: Milk, Dromona butter, sliced chicken breast and eggs.
Kathy: Do you have plans for future books either in your current series or a new series?
AH: Absolutely! I'm currently working on my third draft of book three in the series, so Demelza's adventures in Killnakree are definitely continuing. Beyond that, we'll see where the characters take me – I find that sometimes they surprise you and lead the story in directions you hadn't originally planned. For now, I'm focused on building this series and really developing the relationships between Demelza, Gideon, Mabel, Amelia, and the rest of the Killnakree community. There are so many stories to tell in that little town!
Kathy: What's your favourite thing about being an author?
AH: It’s hard to choose just one thing, because writing is many things at once. I love the freedom to create — to build worlds, shape characters, and follow them into unexpected places. There’s a deep, puzzle-solving satisfaction in weaving a story together, especially in mysteries, and a quiet joy in sculpting a sentence until it feels just right. But more than anything, I treasure the connection it creates. Knowing that something born in my imagination can touch someone else — making them laugh, or cry or smile or reflect or feel seen — is what makes it all worthwhile. For me, that moment of connection, however fleeting, is the true magic of storytelling.
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Books by the Author:
Murder Most Necessary
Murder at Serenity Glade
The
Best Ever Food & Drink Quiz and Puzzle Book
The
Puzzle Cabinet
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Review
There's a distinct sense of place in the first Blaine and Meredith Mystery. Killnakree comes alive, not only with descriptions, but from the Irish phrasing and dialogue. I felt like I was really there, both in the small town and in bustling Belfast.
I really enjoyed the mystery and how Demelza's involvement changed as she was slowly accepted by the detectives and encouraged by the killer! The plotting was tight, the mystery compelling.
MURDER MOST NECESSARY brings together a wonderful community of characters in a compelling mystery that makes a fantastic start to a new series.
