Crime fiction, animal issues, and rock & roll. What more do you need?
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Drumroll, please...
The final cover for my debut pet noir, Dogs Don't Lie (coming in April), which Beth Kanell, co-owner of Kingdom Books, Waterford, VT, calls, "a tightly plotted and interesting mystery, with a strong underlying flavor of 'Nancy Drew grown up.'"
(and, while you should wait and get it from an indie, yeah, you can also pre-order it here.)
Oh, my, that IS nice! Congratulations! I always hate to see a blah cover on a book I know I'm going to want to read. It makes it hard to "sell" the book to others. Sometimes I have wished for nothing more than a solid color cover with the title rather than the misleading images. This looks good!
Thank you, both! It has all the right elements - woman, cat somehow connected, and jazzy type too. Plus, it's significantly different from my other books. Am already talking to publisher about subsequent books (Bast willing) following same idea but with a different color overlay - "Cats Can't Shoot" in orange?
I also like the cover A LOT, especially the symmetry between cat and woman. And the cat is such a beauty! But the publication date is still SO long away. How am I supposed to survive the long wait??? Clea, don't you need one more proof-reader? If yes, let me know!
I'm Clea Simon, the author of three nonfiction books and four mystery series. The Theda Krakow books are Mew is for Murder, Cattery Row, Cries and Whiskers,and Probable Claws, all published by Poisoned Pen Press. My Dulcie Schwartz series, featuring Dulcie and the ghost of her late, great cat Mr Grey (from Severn House) are: Shades of Grey, Grey Matters, Grey Zone, Grey Expectations, True Grey, Grey Dawn, Grey Howl, Stages of Grey, and Code Grey. More books are in the works! My Pru Marlowe pet noir series began with Dogs Don't Lie,Cats Can't Shoot, Parrots Prove Deadly,Panthers Play for Keeps,Kittens Can Kill, and (March 2016) When Bunnies Go Bad. And my new darker series, featuring Blackie and Care, debuted in 2016 with Ninth Lifeand continued with As Dark As My Fur. Look for a third Blackie & Care, Cross My Path, in 2018. My Boston rock noir, World Enough, will be out in the US on Nov. 1. More info as I have it, friends!
"Simon’s best known for her cat mysteries like hardboiled (or should I say tough mouser?) The Ninth Life but she is equally adept evoking the gritty past of the sleazy rock clubs of our youth." – Do Some Damage on World Enough
"I consider Clea Simon to be an absolutely brilliant writer, regardless of what genre she writes in. Writing in a cat’s voice is an art form, and few writers manage to do it well. In this series, Simon takes this art into a new realm. The way she sets scenes from Blackie’s point of view, and the way she describes how he takes in the world around him, reflects not just a thorough understanding of feline behavior, but also a connection to the feline soul that I have rarely seen in other cat books. The best writers paint pictures with their words. In As Dark As My Fur, Clea Simon paints a sweeping emotional cityscape that will stay with you long after you put the book down." – The Conscious Cat
"This intriguing series launch from Simon, best known for her cozy Dulcie Schwartz mysteries (Into the Grey, etc.), introduces Boston journalist Tara Winton, who back in the 1980s covered local punk rock bands … Vibrant descriptions of Boston’s former music scene … readers with a taste for noir are sure to want to see more of the edgy Tara. " –Publishers Weekly on World Enough
"Mystery, music, nightclubs, animals in danger: on a certain level, it’s an unlikely combination, yet, somehow, it works very well. And why? That special blend, I think: passion, heart, understanding and voice, voice, voice. Simon’s is as strong and clear as the passion she brings to the stories she tells." – January Magazineon Probable Claws
"With panache and perception, Simon delivers another best-in-show entry." – Richmond Times-Dispatch
"Music journalist Theda Krakow once again proves a feisty and determined sleuth in Simon's lively fourth cat-themed mystery. ... Well-drawn characters, a plot with many strings to unravel and plenty of appealing cats make this another winner for Simon." – Publishers Weekly
"As usual, Theda uses her investigative-journalist skills to save herself and help the cats of Cambridge, all while keeping in touch with the rock-music scene and negotiating an increasingly serious relationship with boyfriend Bill." – Booklist
"Clea Simon does an excellent job creating believable characters in Probable Claws. Theda and the rest of the cast of characters could each be someone the reader already knows in everyday life, or might bump into tomorrow." – Mystery Scene Magazine
"Once again, Clea Simon skillfully brings together the various aspects of Theda Krakow's complicated life. ... Readers who appreciate complicated characters, and intricate plots, will appreciate Simon's latest crime novel, Probable Claws." – Lesa's Book Critiques
4 comments:
That's a great cover, Clea!
Oh, my, that IS nice! Congratulations! I always hate to see a blah cover on a book I know I'm going to want to read. It makes it hard to "sell" the book to others. Sometimes I have wished for nothing more than a solid color cover with the title rather than the misleading images. This looks good!
Thank you, both! It has all the right elements - woman, cat somehow connected, and jazzy type too. Plus, it's significantly different from my other books. Am already talking to publisher about subsequent books (Bast willing) following same idea but with a different color overlay - "Cats Can't Shoot" in orange?
I also like the cover A LOT, especially the symmetry between cat and woman. And the cat is such a beauty! But the publication date is still SO long away. How am I supposed to survive the long wait??? Clea, don't you need one more proof-reader? If yes, let me know!
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