Dial M for Meow by Ruth J. Hartman

 Dial M for Meow

Dial M for Meow (Bookshop Kitties Mysteries) by Ruth J. Hartman

About Dial M for Meow

 

Dial M for Meow (Bookshop Kitties Mysteries) 

Cozy Mystery 

1st In Series 

Setting - Green Meadow, Indiana 

Gemma Halliday Publishing (January 10, 2023) 

Number of Pages 153 

 

When children’s book author, Christy Bailey, receives a call from her aunt Betty to help out at her bookshop, she drops everything to go. Christy packs up her two cats—Milton and Pearl, the stars of her children's mystery books—and leaves busy Philadelphia for tiny Green Meadow, Indiana. The timing of the call is perfect, as Christy’s letch of an ex-boyfriend has just cleaned out her savings, leaving Christy with a pile of unpaid bills and a desire to start over. And what better place to do that than a charming small town in Middle America?

But when Christy reaches her aunt's bookshop, instead of small town hospitality she finds a dead body! Even worse, her aunt is passed out in the corner, hands covered in blood. The dead woman is an old frenemy of her Aunt Betty, and while Christy knows her aunt is innocent, the local detective isn't so sure. With Milton and Pearl prowling for clues, Christy is determined to find the real killer and clear her aunt's name... before her story ends in tragedy!

About Ruth J. Hartman

 

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. 

Author Links

Facebook   https://www.facebook.com/ruth.j.hartman 

Website https://www.ruthjhartman.com 

Twitter https://twitter.com/ruthjhartman 

GoodReads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3312900.Ruth_J_Hartman 

My Thoughts

Christy Bailey arrives in Green Meadow, Indiana with her two cats, Milton and Pearl.  Christy creates children’s mysteries starring her two wily furbabies.  Christy’s ex-boyfriend decimated her savings and racked up debt on her credit cards which is why she is looking for a fresh start.  Christy’s Aunt Betty invited her to live with her and help in Words to Read By.  Christy along with her two furry companions go to enter the bookstore only to find it closed.  She hurries up the stairs to the apartment above the bookshop to find a woman dead in Aunt Betty’s reading chair.  Aunt Betty is unconscious on the floor with blood on her hands.  When Aunt Betty rouses, she cannot recall what happened.   It seems someone knocked her unconscious with one of her bookends which left Aunt Betty with a goose egg.  Christy knows her Aunt Betty would not harm a soul.  The only way to clear her aunt is to don her sleuthing cap and pinpoint the killer. 

Dial M for Meow by Ruth J. Hartman is the debut of Bookshop Kitties Mysteries.  I found the story easy to read.  I like that Christy is an author of children’s mysteries.  Aunt Betty is a sweetie.  Milton and Pearl are adorable.  The cats seem to have taken on the attributes of Christy’s fictional sleuthing felines.  The mystery is straightforward.  There are a couple of suspects and a red herring.  There are clues to help readers solve the crime.  I like how Milton and Pearl helped Christy solve the crime.  I can tell the author has cats.  She captured their behavior and attitudes. There are several grumpy, rude characters.  I could have done with fewer grumpy Guses.  There is repetition of case details. I enjoyed the humor in the story.  The cat’s antics were amusing.  Dial M for Meow takes readers to the Midwest where there is a mysterious murder, clever kitties, a beloved bookstore, a childhood companion, a kindhearted relative, and a sleuthing

Dial M for Meow is available to purchase from Amazon.   You can find Ruth J. Hartman's other novels here.  The author is giving away four (4) ebook copies of Dial M for Meow.  You can click here to enter or use the Rafflecopter form below.  Leave a comment for an extra entry.  Good Luck!  Thank you for stopping by today.  I will return tomorrow with my thoughts on Critical Threat by Lynette Eason.  It is the third book in the Extreme Measures series.  I hope that you day is filled with joy.  Take care and Happy Reading!

Kris

The Avid Reader 

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Tour Participants

 January 10 – Cozy Up WIth Kathy – REVIEW, AUTHOR INTERVIEW 

January 10 – The Avid Reader – REVIEW 

January 10 – Maureen's Musings – SPOTLIGHT 

January 10 – Bootsie’s Book Nook. – SPOTLIGHT 

January 11 – Elza Reads – REVIEW

January 11 – The Plain-Spoken Pen – REVIEW

 January 11 – Mochas, Mysteries and Meows – REVIEW, CHARACTER INTERVIEW 

January 11 – Brooke Blogs – SPOTLIGHT 

January 11 – Sapphyria's Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT 

January 12 – Christy's Cozy Corners – REVIEW 

January 12 – Hearts & Scribbles – SPOTLIGHT 

January 12 – Sneaky the Library Cat’s blog – CHARACTER INTERVIEW 

January 12 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – REVIEW 

January 12 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – REVIEW 

January 13 – Guatemala Paula Loves to Read – REVIEW 

January 13 – Literary Gold – AUTHOR INTERVIEW

January 13 – I'm Into Books – SPOTLIGHT

January 13 – View from the Birdhouse – REVIEW

January 14 – Celticlady's Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

January 14 – Socrates Book Reviews – REVIEW

January 14 – #BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee Blog – SPOTLIGHT

January 14 – The Book Decoder - REVIEW 

January 15 – Nadaness In Motion – REVIEW

January 15 – Lady Hawkeye – SPOTLIGHT

January 15 – FUONLYKNEW - SPOTIGHT

January 15 – Cassidy's Bookshelves - REVIEW 

January 16 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW

January 16 – Mystery Thrillers and Romantic Suspense Reviews - SPOTLIGHT 

January 16 – StoreyBook Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

January 16 – My Reading Journeys - REVIEW

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