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A PURR Before DYING: A Nick and Nora Mystery

Cozy Mystery 6th in Series

Setting - California

Beyond The Page (February 21, 2023) •

Number of Pages 256

More details to come

No one’s who they seem in the thrilling new Nick and Nora Mystery, and someone’s playing the part of a clever killer . . .
When a nighttime soap opera comes to town to film an episode, no one’s more excited than Nora Charles, who’s landed the contract for catering the shoot. But if she thought the show’s plotlines were full of drama and intrigue, that’s nothing compared to what she witnesses among the cast and crew, who are sneaking off for secret liaisons one minute and at each other’s throats the next. It’s all a titillating behind-the-scenes look for Nora—until she stumbles across the body of the show’s slain director.
It’s not long before the local authorities finger the brother of Nora’s good friend for the evil deed, and it’s up to Nora and her sidekick Nick to get him off the hook. As she begins to sort out the cast’s romantic entanglements and professional rivalries looking for a motive, she also discovers that the victim was involved in the mysterious death of the show’s previous director.
And then another member of the crew is found murdered, and Nora knows she’ll have to act fast to figure out who’s playing the part of the killer, before she’s cast in the role of the next victim . . .

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 Cat Rescue series from Crooked Lane and the Pet Shop series, originally published by Midnight Ink and rebranded last year as “Urban Tails Pet Shop Mysteries.” Book six in the Nick and Nora mysteries, A PURR BEFORE DYING, is released this February from Beyond the Page. There is also a new series, Tiffany Austin Food Blogger, coming out in April.

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

Blog Website Facebook Twitter: @RoccoBlogger

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A PURR BEFORE DYING

Mamie walked over to me and said in a confidential tone, “I hear Forbes took a shine to your cat.”

“Yes, he hired Nick to play a scene with Ardis Malone. I believe he wanted to try and shoot it today.”

Mamie consulted a sheet of paper on the clipboard she carried. “Yep, he’s got it down for the last one, six-thirty.”

“So late?” I cried. Mamie gave me a sharp look and I sighed. “Sorry – I wasn’t figuring on that. I thought it would be earlier – like right after lunch, maybe.”

“The schedule’s booked from right after lunch up to your cat’s shoot.” She made a little face. “You can ask Forbes to change it, but take it from me – His Highness doesn’t adapt to change too easily, unless he’s the one making it. But if it’s a real problem…”

I gave my head a quick shake. “No, not at all. Actually, it’ll give me time to go home, get changed, and decompress a bit. I still can’t quite wrap my head around the fact my cat is going to be on television.”

Mamie inclined her head toward Nick, who was sitting up by Chantal, licking his coat into an ebony sheen. “What about him?”

“Oh, Nick’s head is fully wrapped around the situation,” I laughed. “Maybe a bit too much so.”

Mamie grinned. “He’s a cute cat, all right. Got a personality. It’s easy to see why Forbes liked him – seeing as he has none of his own.” She glanced at her watch and gave a little cry. “I’d best get going. I’ve got an alteration to make on Emily Van Horn’s dress for this afternoon’s scene, and I don’t want to miss lunch. Trust me, your food is the highlight of everyone’s day.” With a broad wink and a wave, she sauntered out of the tent.

Chantal let out a low chuckle. “That one is a real piece of work. But I bet if you really want to get some inside gossip, she’s your gal.”

“She does seem to have her finger right on the pulse of everything going on here,” I agreed. “I wonder just how much she does know about Forbes?”

Leon Frink and Ardis Malone sauntered in, talking in low tones. Ardis looked up and saw me and immediately detached herself from Frink and walked right over. “You’re Nora Charles,” she said, extending a perfectly manicured hand. “I’m Ardis Malone.” Up close, I could see that she was somewhere in her twenties, and much prettier in person than onscreen. There was a decided coolness both in her gaze and her tone as she looked at me. “I understand you are the owner of my new co-star.”

I returned her frosty smile with an equally frigid one. “I’m Nick’s human. Cats don’t have owners.”

Upon hearing his name, Nick stopped licking his coat. His gaze settled on Ardis, and his tail went straight up. He got up and padded over to her, twining his furry body around her ankles. Ardis whole body went rigid. She glanced quickly at me. “He’s friendly, right? No biting?”

“Usually – unless there’s a gun pointed at my head. Bad joke,” I added quickly when I saw her startled expression.

“For goodness sakes, Ardis, he’s a cat, not a panther,” hissed Leon. “Just give him a pat on the head.”

Ardis reached down and tentatively stroked Nick’s head. The big ham nudged his head into her hand, then started to purr like a racecar. Ardis gave him a quick scratch behind his ear and then pulled her hand away as if she’d been stung. Nick swiveled his head around to look at her, his eyes widening as if to say, What’s your problem, human?

Leon Frink stepped forward and took Ardis arm. “Well, we’ll get out of your way now, Ms. Charles,” he said. “Ardis just wanted to get acquainted with her new co-star. We know you’ve got to start getting lunch ready.”

“It was nice to meet you, Ms. Malone,” I said. Ardis mumbled something that sounded like “Thanks” and then she and Frink hurried out of the tent. I looked at Nick. “So? How do you like your co-star?”

Nick rolled over on his back, exposing his privates and his white belly, and let out a large yawn.

I couldn’t help but laugh. “Yep, Nick, that just about says it all.”

I stepped inside the kitchen and saw Chantal frowning at the trays. “What’s the matter?”

“We are short a sandwich tray. One of the Ham and Swiss is missing.”

I did a quick count and saw my friend was right. “I hope it’s still in the van,” I murmured. I snatched up the keys and decided that the rear flap was nearer to where I’d parked. As I exited, I caught sight of Ardis Malone and Leon Frink, standing a bit to the left of the tent. They seemed to be deep in earnest conversation. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but their voices carried clearly to where I stood.

“It’s not fair,” Ardis was saying. “He mentioned the gazebo as a possibility for filming but…he knows it gets chilly out here when the sun goes down, and how susceptible I am to catching a cold – but does he care? Hell, no.” She let out a loud sneeze. “See! It’s starting already!”

Leon Frink laughed mirthlessly. “Maybe you’re just having a delayed reaction to touching that cat. Anyway, you still haven’t learned, have you? Anton Forbes cares about no one but himself. He’ll stop at nothing to get whatever he wants – trust me.”

“Oh, he’s ruthless all right. Anyone can see it – anyone but Emily. I can’t believe she fell for his phony charm. Why, if I had a hunk like Mark Emerson crazy over me, I wouldn’t look anywhere else.”

“Don’t blame her too much. Forbes is a master at getting what he wants. The man’s a menace. Then again, he is an expert at getting away with murder….literally.”

Ardis sniffed. “One day he’ll push someone too far. It’ll be no loss, I can tell you that-ah-choo!” She sneezed again. “Drat – do you think I might be allergic to cats?”

Their voices faded as they walked away. I stood for a moment, looking after them. One thing was pretty clear. There were an awful lot of people on this set who wouldn’t mind seeing something happen to Forbes.