Cathy Carter is visiting Ascroft, eh? to tell us about The Case of the Cat Crazy Lady, the first novel in the Buttercup Bend mystery series.

Welcome, Cathy. Let’s get started, shall we?

Tell us about the novel that you live inside. Is it part of a series? If so, please tell us about the series too.

The Case of the Cat Crazy Lady is the first of the Buttercup Bend cozy mystery series. It’s the first one in which I help solve a crime. I’m reluctant at first because I’m somewhat shy, but my more aggressive friend, Nancy, brings out the amateur sleuth in me. Together, we help investigate the murder of Maggie Broom, Buttercup Bends “Cat Crazy Lady” who just happened to leave my pet business a substantial amount in her will and much more than she’s left her brother and sister, both of whom the sheriff suspects could have killed her.

Does the writer control what happens in the story or do you get a say too?

I get a say, as do my co-characters. Sometimes we lead Debbie in a totally different direction and kill off people she hadn’t planned to murder.

How did you evolve as the main character?

 I was in the right place at the right time. While on assignment for Pauline, the town’s newspaper publisher, my grandmother’s friend, and the sheriff’s girlfriend, I witnessed her discovery of Maggie’s body. Pauline also happened to be Maggie’s neighbor, and one of the suspects in her murder because she had an ongoing battle with Maggie about her outdoor cats that destroyed the plants in her garden.

Do you have any other characters you like sharing the story with? If so, why are you partial to them?

I enjoy sharing the story most with my friend, Nancy Meyers, who also works on the Buttercup Bugle. In addition, I like sharing it with the three handsome Buttercup Bend men; Steve, my gardener; Michael, my vet; and Brian, the deputy sheriff. Of course, I love sharing the story with my Siamese cat, Oliver, and my grandmother, Florence and brother Doug and his wife, Becky.

What’s the place like where you find yourself in this story?

Buttercup Bend is a lovely small town in the Catskills, especially in the spring when my story takes place. All the town residents keep beautiful gardens. As a photographer for the paper, it’s a perfect place to take pictures.

Is there anything else you’d like to tell readers about you and the book?

Just that I think they’ll really enjoy it, and I hope they’re stumped by the killer, as I was. Also, if they haven’t read Debbie’s other series, The Cobble Cove cozy mysteries, I would recommend they check them out.

Thank you for answering my questions, Cathy, and good luck to you and your author, Debbie De Louise, with The Case of the Cat Crazy Lady, the first book in the Buttercup Bend mystery series.

Readers can learn more about Cathy and her author, Debbie De Louise by visiting the author’s website and her Facebook, Goodreads, Bookbub, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn and Debbie’s Character Chat pages. You can also follow her on Twitter.

The novel is available at the following online retailers:

Amazon – B&N – Kobo

The Universal purchase link is: https://books2read.com/u/bOzPdN

About Debbie De Louise: Debbie is an award-winning author and a reference librarian at a public library on Long Island. She is a member of Sisters-in-Crime, International Thriller Writers, the Long Island Authors Group, and the Cat Writers’ Association. Her novels include the five books and four stories of the Cobble Cove cozy mystery series, a comedy novella, When Jack Trumps Ace, a paranormal romance, Cloudy Rainbow, and the standalone mysteries; Reason to Die, Sea Scope, and Memory Makers. Debbie has also written a time-travel novel, Time’s Relative, and a non-fiction cat book, Pet Posts: The Cat Chats, written from the points of view of four of her cats and has also published articles in online and print pet magazines including Catster.com. Her latest book, Meows and Purrs, is a poetry collection of cat poems that includes photos and notes about her cats.

Debbie’s stories and poetry appear in the Red Penguin Collections, What Lies Beyond, ‘Tis the Season, Stand Out, Volumes I and II, Until Dawn, Treat or Trick, and Pets on the Prowl. Her poems are also featured in the Nassau County Voices In Verse 2020 anthology and the 2020 and 2021 Bards Annual. She lives on Long Island with her husband, daughter, and two cats.