Raising butterflies is peaceful and calm, until someone dies.
Majestic Monarch Butterfly Farm might flitter away forever. That is, unless Seneca James acquires the property next door. She and Winifred, her costume-wearing cat, have a fight on their hands. Their land sits next to a milkweed-covered field, essential for monarchs. If she’s unsuccessful in buying it, her precious, winged friends won’t survive. When people end up dead on her farmland, Seneca is suspected of murder.
What is it about the milkweed field that’s worth killing for? And who’s the murderer?
Ruth J. Hartman spends her days herding cats and her nights spinning mysterious tales. She, her husband, and their cats love to spend time curled up in their recliners watching old Cary Grant movies. Well, the cats sit in the people’s recliners. Not that the cats couldn’t get their own furniture. They just choose to shed on someone else’s.
Ruth, a left-handed, cat-herding, farmhouse-dwelling writer uses her sense of humor as she writes tales of lovable, klutzy women who seem to find trouble without even trying.
Ruth’s husband and best friend, Garry, reads her manuscripts, rolls his eyes at her weird story ideas, and loves her despite her insistence all of her books have at least one cat in them. See updates about her cozy mysteries at Ruthjhartman.com.
It might be a murder from decades ago, but it still has its claws in the present…and someone seems determined to drag Anna into it.
It’s way too soon to be returning to a haunted mansion, and Anna’s favorite cowboy ghost does his best to talk her out of it. But the opportunity to pick from the beautiful antiques left to her in a Crocker resident’s will is just too tempting for Anna and Pratt to pass up. So they’re going in…
They’re prepared to deal with a few cold spots. Maybe the occasional flickering light. But what Anna and the boys weren’t counting on was bumping up against the ghost of Josiah Bumgartner, a contemporary of Joss’ from the 1800s. And when Josiah claims the old woman who lived in the house hid his bones around the place, Anna agrees to help him find them. But something much darker is at work there. And, unfortunately for our happy little gang of antique hunters…Anna seems to have unwittingly stepped right into the middle of it.
Character Interview
Joss, welcome to Island Confidential. Can you tell our readers a little bit about yourself?
Howdy, darlin’! I’m Joss from the Yesterday’s paranormal historical mysteries. I died in the 1800s and got stuck in the building where Anna Yesterday has her store, Yesterday’s Antiques. I’m a ghost. Not one o’ them wrathy varmints. I’m Anna’s guardian spirit. It’s my job ta protect Miss Anna. It’s unsettlin’ how hard that is to do! Of all the characters in the book, living or dead, which is the one you get along with the best?
Miss Anna of course. She’s a right pretty gal and sweet as penny candy. But she’s just too trustin’ you ask me. She gives that varmint Pratt too much room to maneuver and it’s all I can do ta keep her safe from his o’re friendly ways. It sounds like you really admire Miss Anna. Is there anyone you don’t hold in such high esteem?
I mentioned the Puke right? Who?
That’s what I call a varmint from Missoura. Him and me are like oil and water…and he’s the oil. Black and odiferous. It’s unfortunate Miss Anna cottons to the varmint. Ah. You’re talking about Pratt.
I’m doin’ my best ta open her eyes but I ain’t had much success so far. No, it doesn’t sound like you have. So just between you and me: What do you really think of your author?
Miss Sam’s a hoot. She’s always puttin’ us in impossible spots and then sittin’ back ta watch us wriggle out of ’em. But the worst o’ all was when Sam stuck me in that savagerous critter and left me there for half a book. I’m still pickin’ fur from my teeth and I ain’t happy about it. That sounds like quite an adventure! What’s next for you?
After that last time in the haunted mansion, I told Miss Anna she needed ta take some time to get her chirk back. But then that old lady died and left her a house full o’ antiques. Now if ya don’t know nothin’ else about Miss Anna, know this. That gal’s got a hankerin’ for antiques. She can’t say no to t’em. So back we go to another mansion filled with spirits. Some of the critters ain’t happy we’re there. I reckon that’s because o’ the murder that happened there all those years ago. Then there’s Josiah Bumgartner, a hoister from back in my day. I’m tellin’ ya, nothin’ good’s gonna come from him bein’ involved. I’m gonna have my hands full keeping Miss Anna safe on this one.
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About the Author
Let’s face it, nobody really cares that Sam Cheever is a USA Today Bestselling Author. Nobody cares that she’s written a whole ton of fun and snappy books. Let’s face it, the most interesting thing about Sam is the fact that she’s a dogaholic. Yeah, there’s no Dogaholic’s Anonymous chapter that can help her. Believe me, she’s looked. So Sam deals with her problem the best way she knows how. She digs into the mountains of personal experiences (mostly involving dog poo) to write GREAT dog characters.
Oh, and there are some people in her books too. She’s also pretty good at those.
Want to ask Sam about her dogs…erm…books? You can connect with her at one of the following places. Just don’t ask her why she has 15 dogs. Nobody in the whole wide world can answer that.
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