But two murders in a month on the same strip of Worth Avenue in Palm Beach is enough to whip Samantha Armstrong into a frenzy.
When Samantha relaxes into her new role as a dog mom, finds a circle of friends in her new hometown, and sees her new dog bakery Canine Confections barking up business, she’s thrilled that things are going so well … until she hears a bloodcurdling scream from the pastry shop two doors down and runs over to find a dead body on the floor.
Suddenly Samantha finds herself in a race against time to find not only the thief who is stealing from the upscale shops, but a murderer, too. Samantha’s Lab-Mix Sweet Pea wags her tail through all of the clues, suspects and shenanigans. Both Samantha and Sweet Pea are aided in their amateur investigation by the other shopkeepers on the elegant Worth Avenue, and Samantha finds the suspect list growing at every turn.
To make matters worse, Samantha’s old boyfriend arrives in town, and mysterious people start showing up at the Sophisticated Pet and New Age stores nearby. Samantha soon finds that things are not what they seem, and she must figure out what’s going on—or become the next dead body on a bakery floor.
Includes an original recipe from the world-famous Three Dog Bakery!
LKBR: Thank you for joining us today, Amy.
AH: Thank
you so much for having me! It’s so exciting to be here with you!
LKBR:
Please tell us a bit about your new book.
AH: Well,
it’s the 2nd in my Canine Confections series and it’s called Paws
for Alarm. The first in the series is Paws for Concern. The location in the
book is the sunny, splashy Worth Avenue in Palm Beach and rather than a human
bakery, the book has a DOG bakery. I figure you can’t go wrong with dogs and
pastry.
LKBR: How
many hours a week do you work in order to meet your deadline(s)?
AH: Ummm…
depends on the week. I like to work for 8-12 at a time once I’m in the flow,
then take breaks where I don’t write at all for a day or even weeks.
LKBR: Are
you working on any new projects?
AH: Yup
yup yup! Always! Book 3 in the Canine Confections series is going to be Paws of
Death and is due to release probably this summer, and I’m also in the middle of
writing a psychological suspense. I LOVE psychological suspense. The twisty
aspects of them, as with the cozy mysteries, are fun.
LKBR: How
many books do you put out annually (if more than one)?
AH: I’m
new-ish to writing so, so far I put out Book 1 in Canine Confections last fall
and now I’ll have at least 2 more this year from that series, and this isn’t
including what happens with my suspense.
LKBR: What
is your brainstorming process like? Do you have a certain order you use when
starting a new story? Such as, main character development, do you already have
a murder in mind, the location it takes place?
AH: I
like to have the main problem in mind for the character and work outward like
that. Except in the cozy mystery, now that my characters and location are set
up, I just add new characters and some new locations to keep things fresh.
LKBR:
Where’s the strangest place inspiration has hit?
AH: It
happens almost constantly so that’s hard to say. I would have to think of my
most recent locations and with the Covid that should be easy enough to answer
the many (not) locations I’ve been. I guess the most interesting to people
reading this (though not to me, because singing in public is very normal and
consistent), I’d have to say inspiration happens in the middle of singing a
song and watching the audience.
LKBR:
What publishing decisions are made by you, and what are made by the publisher?
Such as, cover design, paperback/hardcover, publishing date, pricing, and so
on.
AH: All of them. Yup, all of that responsibility is on my shoulders, I can’t blame anyone. (Darn.)
LKBR:
Multiple questions here. Have you ever thought about giving up on writing? If
yes, why? What kept you going? What would you see yourself doing instead? If
no, YAY! J
AH: Ummm,
have I ever thought of giving up writing like in the past hour? Or like EVER?
Yes, that thought crosses my mind when the hard work overshadows the joy. Then
I know it’s time to take a break and go hiking in nature with my dogs or look
into my husband’s eyes over a scrumptious gorgeous meal or something. Quality time
with loved ones is key.
LKBR: If
you could make one request of a reader, what would that be?
AH: Love
my book, give me 5 star ratings all over Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Goodreads,
share and post all over their social media, tell every single reader friend
about my books…oh wait, one thing? “Snuggle with your dog the next time you
cozy up to read.”
LKBR:
Thank you for joining us here today, Amy!
AH:
Thanks so much for having me and for asking such cool, interesting questions!
Books 1 and 2 in the CANINE CONFECTIONS MYSTERY SERIES are now available:
PAWS FOR CONCERN - Book 1
PAWS FOR ALARM - Book 2
PAWS OF DEATH - Book 3 - Coming soon
what a cool interview. so much fun to get to know authors better. thanks for sharing.
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