Feline Groovy

THE CAT TRAP, the latest outing for Emma Boylan, KT McCaffrey’s intrepid journo-cum-private eye, arrives on February 29, featuring (a) a recently separated Emma (boo), (b) messy allegations of rape against her new partner (boo-er), and (c) a very groovy cover (hurrah!). Quoth the blurb elves:

Investigative reporter, Emma Boylan, has split from her husband and moved in with Detective Inspector Jim Connolly. All is bliss until Connolly’s ex-wife, Iseult, accuses him of aggravated rape. Iseult, with the help of her friends, fabricates ‘compelling evidence’ against Connolly. Her scheme becomes unstuck, however, when her plan is hi-jacked by someone outside her circle and used for a far more sinister purpose. And when Iseult’s corpse is found, her friends go to the authorities with their concocted evidence against Connolly. Only Emma Boylan appears to be on his side but her motives are questioned when it transpires that she and the detective are lovers. When two more victims meet unnatural deaths, and Emma is attacked, she must protect herself while attempting to resolve the mystery, of who has framed Connolly and killed his ex-wife.

It’s early days, we know, but we’re already seeing THE CAT TRAP as a contender for Cover of the Year …

What KT Did Next # 349: The Canvas Wrecking Years

Not content with crafting the Emma Boylan series of novels with consummate ease (the latest, The Cat Trap, is released by Robert Hale on October 30), KT McCaffrey (right, in full-on ‘moody self-portrait’ mode) is something of a dabbler in the dark art of canvas wrecking. His brand spanking new interweb page thingy carries the usual news ‘n’ updates, but also a selection of his visual work. KT? What have the innocent little canvases ever done to you, huh?

“When I write, I try to create images in words, but when I paint I take the more direct route. I find that the two art forms provide me with the perfect combination to stimulate the creative juices – if I need a break from writing, I move to the easel; when the layers of paint need time to dry, I return to the keyboard. My wife Mary has a more profound take on my two disciplines, she says – it keeps me from underneath her feet in the house. Nothing like feeling grounded.”

And there you have it. Check it out, folks – the oil portrait of Ken Bruen as Sam Spade is worth the price of admission alone. Especially as there’s no admission price.