Nancy J. Parra and the Dog Days of Summer
with Sparkle Abbey
Today we’re thrilled to welcome longtime friend and fellow author Nancy J. Parra aka Nancy Coco aka Nell Hampton to the blog. She’s a USA Today Bestselling Author and has over thrity-five published novels including five mystery series. And she’s also party to many of our conference adventures. Nancy take it away…
Hi, ya’ll, thank you for letting me visit. I can’t believe how quickly summer has flown by this year. We’re in the dog days of summer now, which are technically July 3rd until August 11th, although that date has changed with the changing of the calendars. It’s still the hottest time of the year for the northern hemisphere. Are you feeling it? It’s hot and muggy here and it’s so easy to get heat stroke if you’re not careful.
I’ve been wondering for a long time why we call the hottest days the dog days. I mean, doggies are cute and sweet and silly. Then why name the hottest days after them? So, I looked it up.
It’s a very old idea whose history tells the tale of cultural minds. The whole thing began when we looked up in the sky and observed the dog star rising. People associated it with drought, storms, heat, human ailments, and mood changes. One culture said the dog days “made women wanton and the men feeble.”
But for us, it’s simply the hottest time of our year.
Still, it would make for an interesting twist in a mystery, wouldn’t it?
Allie McMurphy from Three Fudges and a Baby doesn’t think so. She has enough twists on her hands. Especially with handling her best friend, Jenn Christensen’s erratic moods. In her last few weeks of pregnancy where all she wants to do is get the baby out, Jenn’s doula is arrested for the murder of her fiancé. Jenn has a meltdown. She’s tired of waddling, being unable to see her own feet and struggling to get up out of chairs. But she won’t have the baby without her doula and demands Allie as her best friend and the baby’s godmother to find the real killer. Perhaps the “dog days” could explain Jenn’s moods but nobody would dare tell her that. Besides it’s early May.
It’s a good thing Allie has her own cute pup who helps sniff out a killer before they all end up in the doghouse.
Tell me, how do you feel about the hottest days of the year? Are you someone who lives for them? Or are you ready to collect Halloween décor or start Christmas shopping?
Let me know your thoughts below and one lucky commenter will win a signed copy of Three Fudges and a Baby!
USA Today Bestselling Author, Nancy Coco AKA Nell Hampton AKA Nancy Parra is the author of over 35 published novels which include five mystery series: The Oregon Honey-comb Mystery Series (Kensington), The Candy-Coated Mysteries (Kensington), The Kensington Palace Mystery Series (Crooked Lane), The Wine Country Tours Mystery Series (Crooked Lane) The Gluten-free Baker’s Treat Mysteries (Berkley Prime Crime), and The Perfect Proposal Mysteries (Berkley Prime Crime). Her writing has been called witty and her protagonists plucky by reviewers around the world. Nancy is a member of Sisters in Crime and loves to hear from readers.
You can find her at:
Thanks for hanging out with The Stiletto Gang today, Nancy! We’ll be interested in everyone’s thoughts on the hottest days of the year. We’d have to say that we’ve had some challenging weather here lately and we’re definitely ready for some cooler days.
Wishing you and the rest of the gang a great rest of the summer!
Sparkle Abbey