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The Cat, The Mill and The Murder by Leann Sweeney
We don’t make much of anything in this country anymore—China seems to have taken over in that department–and though I never think about “themes” while I am writing a book, there always ends up being one hidden between the lines. In The Cat, the Mill and the Murder
The inspiration for this book began when I saw an abandoned textile mill for the first time in the town where I now live. These old buildings are like discovering dinosaur bones—except they aren’t buried. They lie unattended across the South, begging to be used again. Bricks lie scattered, old smoke stacks rise but with no purpose, stone staircases lead to nowhere. I was sad when I saw the Greenwood Mill, but I saw a story.
The Cat, the Mill and the Murder
~Leann
About The Author
Leann Sweeney was born and raised in Niagara Falls and educated at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Lemoyne College in Syracuse, New York. She also has a degree in behavioral science from the University of Houston and has worked in psychiatry. A former registered nurse, she has been writing in the mystery genre for many years, and also writes the Yellow Rose Mystery series.
Find out more on her webpage here. She also blogs at The Cozy Chicks on Sundays!
Find her on:
The Cat, the Mill and the Murder:
A Cats in Trouble Mystery
5th in Series
Cozy Mystery
Obsidian (May 7, 2013)
Published by The Penguin Group
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0451415417
E-Book File Size: 534 KB
ASIN: B009UZ9ZRK
In this fifth installment of the Cats in Trouble series Jillian has volunteered to help relocate a clowder of feral cats from on old mill so the city can help investors revamp the space. She was quite surprised to also find a woman living in the mill. Jeannie went missing from Mercy 10 years ago shortly after her daughter disappeared.
Jeannie has no plans to evacuate the mill where she lives with her cat Boots. She tells Jillian, it is a “holy place” and she must protect it from “creepers”. When Jeanie is hurt and forced to leave the mill to go to the hospital Jillian learns there are more surprises in the old mill. Secrets that have been buried for years start to see the light of day.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Leann’s love of felines shines brightly in her stories and each one is better than the last. This one features the Lorraine Stanley Textile Mill. Cozy loves will recognize this homage to two special ladies.
This story takes us to the “other side of the tracks” to the Mill Village. A little trip back in history but even in 2013 there is still the division of classes even as one of mighty rich have fallen on hard times. They still have the hoity-toity attitude.
We also learn about feral cats in a very entertaining way. Shawn explains the difference between the cats we love to cuddle and the cats we just can’t.
In addition to the wonderful character of Jeannie, our favorites from the past return. Jillian and Tom’s romance is evolving even with Lydia still trying her best to keep them apart. I laughed out loud as she was kept out of crime scene and she begged Tom for his help while doing her best to ignore that Jillian was even in the room.
But the characters that capture my heart have four paws, Merlot, Syrah, Chablis and now Boots add the special touch to this story. I love how much Jillian loves her kitties and even has an app on her phone to check on them. I also love the way most of the residents of Mercy are pet lovers and believe in humane treatment of all animals. In fact this book was part of Penguin’s Read Humane Campaign. All through the month of May you can purchase special copies of six different books and Penguin will donate $25000 to the Humane Society of the U.S. to fight animal cruelty.
Another “catavating” cozy from Leann Sweeney! and may I add another New York Times Bestseller! Kudos my friend!!
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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
ten years ago, although I’d spent summers on an island in Newfoundland, I had only been to Maine one time. I had never killed anyone. And I would never be confused with a domestic goddess, much less the type of person who could successfully run a quaint inn. But one May evening, as I sat in my Austin ranch with two small children and no hope of escape to cooler climes in sight, I started imagining what life would be like… if.
but if you are like me you have been waiting for this installment you will devour this story. Karen MacInerney has exceeded my expectations. I can’t wait to return to Cranberry Island again soon.
I spent the summer writing on my screened porch with 
The view of my back yard, where my daughter was married a few years earlier, was the inspiration for Izzy’s wedding in
(now in paperback) was written in the Pleasant Street Tea Co. (which is in Gloucester, a REAL town on Cape Ann, just down an ocean road from the fictitious Sea Harbor). The shop, which has deep, comfortable couches and an amazing prosciutto and pesto panini sandwich, is where Nell, Izzy, Birdie and Cass—the Seaside Knitters—would hang out with me, leading me forward, as together we faced a ghost in Birdie’s closet, dealt with an unexpected turn in Cass Halloran’s life, and solved the mystery of a colorful old fisherman’s murder.
I retreated to Nancy’s deck—a most necessary move since my son and his family (including 3 children under 4) were living with my husband, me, two dogs, and our cat. The porch, filled with toys, no longer held its former serenity. But Nancy’s deck definitely did. As I looked out over the duck ponds and jogging trails, 
however, the answer is completely different. Because…well…I honestly have no idea where the idea came from. None whatsoever. I don’t remember getting the idea. I don’t remember figuring out who the victim was going to be and I don’t remember how I figured out the killer’s identity. I don’t remember anything about setting up the murder and I don’t remember learning the why of it all.
was released April 2. Check out my review after Christina’s post and be sure to enter the giveaway.
, Annie Dillard writes about how the books she read as a girl led her away from the Midwest that had nourished her and that she loved with its “big hardwood trees outside the windows, and the terrible Midwest summers, and the terrible Midwest winters.” She says that the Midwest lovingly wills its children to “stay and find a place among its familiar possibilities.” In the end, though, she sorrowfully left it, “having grown strong and restless” in the very act of opposing that will. The theme in 
—I deliberately incorporated a California town, Glendale, that has for me a Midwestern flavor. The Midwest is where I learned to see and appreciate the world. That its beauties are often subtle, softened by rolling hills and dense layers of green, has made me a careful observer, alert to fine detail. That drama in the Midwest is often understated, cloaked by polite cheerfulness, gives me a keen understanding of the complexity of people’s motives and behavior.
, Nick Carroway finds himself unable to fully enter into the excesses of the east coast, but because he has the perspective of a Midwesterner, which in his case might boil down to a clear sense of who he is, he’s able to clearly perceive and tell the story of Gatsby, Daisy and Tom (other Midwesterners who lose their way). For me, too, the Midwest is the grounding place, the essence of home.
grew up in rural Wisconsin. She has lived in Washington D.C., New York City, England and New Hampshire, and now lives in Pasadena, California. To capture the atmosphere of the central California coast for 
the first book in the soup shop series, I was terribly anxious to complete the project. I was convinced that somehow, some way, huge hunks of the story line of the next book in the series, 
were plunking themselves down in my overworked gray cells. The plot and story were forming in my head. I was fearful I might lose what was coming through, like a dream that evaporates like a whiff of smoke upon wakening.
the kitchen counters were covered with pots of pineapple tops as I tested the best way to sprout the top of the pineapple. This also meant that every time I found myself at the grocery store, I was picking up a new pineapple to work with. And as a consequence, my husband and I ate scores of pineapples that year.
the third and latest book in the White House Gardener Mystery series (and this year’s release), I wanted to do another kitchen-to-garden section at the end of the book. Instead of pineapples, I had the brilliant idea to include instructions on how to grow the tops of carrots and the bottoms of onions. Of course, I couldn’t include the instructions until I tested and determined the best ways to grow the carrots and onions.
April 2012), and (Book 3 — 
the non-fiction title THE 
(Alpha, 2009), co-author of 
(Fairwinds Press, 2010), currently in its fourth printing, the 
The Country Almanac of Home Remedies: Time-Tested & Almost Forgotten Wisdom for Treating Hundreds of Common Ailments, Aches & Pains Quickly and Naturally
(Fairwinds, 2011). Chrystle’s magazine articles featuring natural remedies have appeared in many national publications including Natural Health, Vegetarian Times, Better Homes & Gardens and Remedy. Visit 
while I enjoy the nice healthy smoothie. I am sure the author will have a wonderful mystery to solve too!
she goes to the small town in Tennessee after a bad break-up with her boyfriend and an injury that has put her off the job. She doesn’t realize how raw her recruits are or how different being a volunteer firefighter is, but she learns.
