Death by Association:
A DIY Diva Mystery
by Paula Darnell
About the Book
DIY Diva Laurel McMillan learns that the high walls and guarded gates of Hawkeye Haven can’t protect her community. When Laurel takes her pampered, chocolate Labrador retriever, Bear, for an early morning walk, she finds her friend, security guard Bessie, bleeding and unconscious at her guardhouse post. If the attack on Bessie isn’t enough to set the residents’ nerves on edge, the murder of Victor Eberhart, the unpopular president of the powerful homeowners’ association, certainly does the trick. Despite teaching DIY classes and writing project instructions for her latest book, DIY for Dog Lovers, Laurel manages to squeeze in time for some DIY detective work. But as she gets closer to the truth, Victor’s killer would like nothing better than for the DIY Diva to take a dive.
Dog Treat Recipe from Death by Association
In Death by Association, a DIY Diva Mystery, Laurel McMillan, the main character and amateur sleuth, has a lovable chocolate Labrador retriever named Bear.
Like most Labs, Bear loves his snacks. Since Laurel's not the whiz in the kitchen that she is with her DIY craft projects, she asks for contributions of dog treat recipes from her friends when she's writing her next book, DIY for Dog Lovers.
Bessie’s Dog-Bone Treats
Bessie always had one of these dog-bone treats waiting for Bear every morning when Laurel took him for a walk. Now that Bessie’s retired from her job as a security guard at Hawkeye Haven, she still makes Bear a care package of treats every once in a while.
Notes: You’ll need a cookie cutter in the shape of a dog-bone for these treats. Bessie uses a 3 1/4-inch cookie cutter, but you can use another size, if you prefer. Since these treats contain a lot of fiber, monitor the number of treats your dog consumes!
Ingredients
Two 6 oz. jars sweet potatoes (baby food)
1 T olive oil
½ t cinnamon
¼ C milled flax seed
2 C oat flour
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine the sweet potatoes and olive oil in a mixing bowl. Sprinkle the cinnamon over the mixture and stir in. Add flax seed and stir. Add oat flour, ½ cup at a time, and mix well. Chill the dough for at least one hour. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roll the dough to 1/8 inch thickness between two pieces of parchment paper. Cut out dog-bone shapes with your cookie cutter and place them on the on the parchment-paper-lined cookie sheet. If you like, you can poke a little hole in the center for decoration, but that's optional. Bake at 400 degrees for about 12 minutes or until the treats are done. Cool on parchment paper or a wire rack. Store the treats in the freezer. This recipe makes about thirty-two 3 ¼-inch dog-bone treats.
Author's note: While I was writing Death by Association, I came up with this recipe, and my dog Rocky taste tested the treats, so they have his seal of approval. Rocky's a big black Labrador retriever who really loves his snacks. Snacktime is his favorite part of the day.
(Recipe excerpt from Death by Association by Paula Darnell, published by Cozy Cat Press)
About the Author
An instructor at five colleges over the years, Paula Darnell most often taught the dreaded first-year English composition classes, but she’s also been happy to teach some fun classes, such as fashion design, sewing, and jewelry making. Paula has a Bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Iowa, Iowa City, and a Master’s degree in English from the University of Nevada, Reno.
Like Laurel, the main character in Death by Association, Paula enjoys all kinds of arts and crafts. Some of her memorable projects include making a hat and a cape to wear to Royal Ascot, sewing wedding gowns for both her daughters, exhibiting her textile and mixed-media artwork in juried art shows, and having one of her jewelry projects accepted for inclusion in Leather Jewelry, published by Lark Books. She sells some of her jewelry and hair accessories in her Etsy shop: www.etsy.com/shop/PaulaDJewelry.
Paula’s interest in DIY craft projects and fashion led to her writing hundreds of articles for print and online national publications.
Living in a guard-gated community governed by a homeowners’ association gave Paula the idea for the setting of Death by Association. She finds that residing in an HOA community can be both a blessing and a curse. A Happy-New-Year greeting from her community association called on residents to “start the new year by reviewing your Rules and Regulations booklet,” something unlikely to top anyone’s list of New Year’s resolutions.
Paula lives in Las Vegas, Nevada, with her husband Gary and their 110-pound dog Rocky, whose favorite pastime is lurking in the kitchen, hoping for a handout
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