Chet The Dog

Posts Tagged ‘Ruff vs. Fluff’

Back To School!

Haven’t had a chance to mention what a great time I had visiting 2 Newark NJ schools last week (Luis Munoz Marin and Rafael Hernandez), talking to 4th and 5th graders about Ruff vs. Fluff (first in the Queenie and Arthur series for middle-graders). Amazingly warm welcome, excellent questions (all of the kids had read at least part of the book – what writer could ask for more?), and very impressive teachers. Many thanks to the My Very Own Library organization for inviting me. “Where did you get the idea?” is a question that comes up over and over in one form or another. I wish it wouldn’t! The true answer – “Out of the blue” – isn’t helpful.

Deal of the Century (More)

Here’s the Buffalo News on Ruff vs. Fluff:

Spencer Quinn, author of the amusing Bowser and Birdie mystery series (narrated by Bowser the dog) ups his game in the laugh-out-loud first book of a new mystery series, alternating narrators between arch rivals Arthur the dog and Queenie the cat. As he did in Bowser and Birdie, Quinn – a pen name for mystery writer Peter Abrahams – shows a real flair for inventing a mystery scenario that allows his animal detectives to credibly unearth clues (say, chewing up a wallet, thus exposing a fake ID) to point their humans in the general direction of solving the crime.

While Arthur and Queenie intensely dislike each other, they adore 11-year-old twins Harmony and Bro and their divorced mom, who runs the struggling Blackberry Hill Inn near the Canadian border. A rude guest arrives shortly before Christmas (cat and dog both instantly dislike him), bearing an old map and a handgun and insisting on hiking a treacherous trail on nearby Mount Misty. When he fails to return, the incompetent local sheriff arrests the twins’ cousin, sending the family and their pets on a quest to find the real perpetrator. Harmony uses Queenie’s charms to cajole clues out of the cat-loving local librarian and an elderly nursing home resident. Arthur has his own role to play, which includes a stint in the local pound and some heroic tracking. The narration by scheming cat and clueless hound is hilariously spot on. Queenie observes: “There’s a quiet dignity about me that I’m sure goes unnoticed by nobody.” And here’s Arthur: “Yes, my growl for sure, low and rumbly. Grrr. Grrr. The party on the other end of that growl must have been shaking in his boots. I wondered who it could be.” Appealing characters, a vivid setting and a well-crafted plot inspired by booze-smuggling of the Prohibition years make this series launch a winner.

(for deal details see yesterday’s post)

Deal of the Century

For a limited time only – as they say – you – yes, you! – can get the e-book Ruff vs. Fluff, first in the Queenie and Arthur series, plus a sneak peek at Paws vs. Claws, for $1.99! These are middle-grade novels but available to adults with fake ID.

Paws vs. Claws starts with no cream for Queenie, a mini-disaster that balloons.

(Now until 8/31. The ebook deal is available on Amazon, B&N, iBooks (Apple), Google Play, and Kobo. The sneak peek is a PAWS VS. CLAWS excerpt at the end of the book.)

E-Book Deal!

For a limited time only – as they say – you can get the e-book Ruff vs. Fluff, first in the Queenie and Arthur series, plus a sneak peek at Paws vs. Claws, for $1.99! These are middle-grade novels but available to adults with fake ID. In Paws vs. Claws, we meet boy genius Maxie Millipat, learn the meaning of the Greek word mellontic, and take a trip to Catastrophe Falls. And solve the deadly mystery of a missing bowl of cream. (Now until 8/31. The ebook deal is available on Amazon, B&N, iBooks (Apple), Google Play, and Kobo. The sneak peek is a PAWS VS. CLAWS excerpt at the end of the book.)