About Barking Mad -
My thoughts:
I was so pleasantly surprised by Barking Mad - I started the book a little apprehensive since it's so different to anything I've read before. Little did I know it would turn out the way it did!
I thought it was fabulously witty with hilarious characters. The protagonist Reginald Spiffington made me laugh throughout the whole story no matter was happening which at first I actually found to be strange - I felt weird laughing whilst there was a murder going on! Ridenhour managed to make things serious seem less serious than they are without taking anything away from the importance of the event. If that even makes sense!
What I loved most about Reginald was his reliance on his valet. Pelham is such a great character that brings out the best in Reginald. They both have something about them that makes them so likeable - they really do make the whole story. Pelham balances the serious stuff with Reginald's silliness.
There was also this 'who-done-it' element to the book that I thoroughly enjoyed. I went back and forth between characters thinking about who really did commit the murder until the very end which I've never done whilst reading a book.
It's quite rare to come across something so original. A mystery with a werewolf element thrown in - and it being funny to boot!
Overall I really enjoyed this read and I'm looking forward to more from the author. I most definitely recommend it to anyone to try out - I don't think you'll be disappointed!
About Jamieson Ridenhour -
Jamieson Ridenhour is the author of Barking Mad: A Reginald Spiffington Mystery, available from Typecast Publishing in June of 2011. He is the editor of the Valancourt edition of Sheridan Le Fanus 1872 lesbian vampire novella Carmilla, as well as creator of the award-winning short fairy-tale horror film Cornerboys.The South Carolina native now lives in Bismarck, ND, where he writes poetry about movie monsters and murder-mysteries with werewolves in them. He also plays wicked lead guitar with Bismarck-based rock and roll band Blind Mice, lectures on vampires and Charles Dickens (though not at the same time), and generally frolics on the plains. He lives with his wife Gwyn and their two children Ian and Eva.
Guest Post -
I’ve been asked to give the “funniest quotes” from Barking Mad. Since I wrote the book, I felt a little strange about deciding what were the funniest lines—who am I, anyway? So, I asked for help from readers. Their picks are below. I also added a couple of my own favorite quotes—I like them; you’ll have to decide if they’re funny. Here we go:
If there is a way in which Moony prefers to love, it is from afar. The last time he needed my “help,” it was to ghost-write love sonnets to Esmeralda Watchcase, the daughter of one of my father’s law colleagues. At the crucial moment, he collapsed under the weight of his own agitation and threw the sonnets in the Thames, completely oblivious to the nearly twenty-seven minutes of brow-beetling I had lavished upon them. Regarding the present circumstances, I suspected a woman was at the bottom of this well.
“Moony,” I declaimed, “I suspect there is a woman at the bottom of this well.”
“No, sir. I believe,” and here Pelham paused like an actor in a radio drama, “that you were attacked by a werewolf.”
“I say, Pelham, are you feeling alright?”
“Yes, sir. I am most well. I am being completely serious when I say––”
“Because when you said ‘werewolf’ just then I had a clear thought. ‘Reggie,’ said my thought, ‘Pelham’s going round the pipe.’ I don’t often have thoughts, Pelham, and I find it neighborly to agree with them when they do occur.”
“If you would be so kind, sir, as to let me finish.”
“Certainly, Pelham. Rant away, my good lunatic.”
“Thank you, sir. Before I worked for you, I was employed by a man named Coverdale. Mr. Coverdale was a member of an organization that spent its time dabbling in the dark arts.”
“What, like macramé?”
“No, sir. Though Mr. Coverdale was not unfamiliar with the craft of macramé, I do not mean that.”
“I say, Pelham, are you feeling alright?”
“Yes, sir. I am most well. I am being completely serious when I say––”
“Because when you said ‘werewolf’ just then I had a clear thought. ‘Reggie,’ said my thought, ‘Pelham’s going round the pipe.’ I don’t often have thoughts, Pelham, and I find it neighborly to agree with them when they do occur.”
“If you would be so kind, sir, as to let me finish.”
“Certainly, Pelham. Rant away, my good lunatic.”
“Thank you, sir. Before I worked for you, I was employed by a man named Coverdale. Mr. Coverdale was a member of an organization that spent its time dabbling in the dark arts.”
“What, like macramé?”
“No, sir. Though Mr. Coverdale was not unfamiliar with the craft of macramé, I do not mean that.”
“Yes, but you’ve read detective novels, Pelham. You know how the police are.”
“I regret to say I have not read many detective novels, sir. I find myself drawn to more edifying forms of literature.”
“Ah, well, that’s nothing to be ashamed of, Pelham. We’re all men below the surface.”
“I regret to say I have not read many detective novels, sir. I find myself drawn to more edifying forms of literature.”
“Ah, well, that’s nothing to be ashamed of, Pelham. We’re all men below the surface.”
She was pretty in a vacant sort of way, with colorless hair and watery blue eyes. She looked, to be perfectly frank, like an overcooked noodle.
*
Now, I can’t say for certain whether you’ve ever tried to explain to a police constable why you’re trying to get into a house at 6:30 a.m. while you are naked. I will say nudity is a deterrent to success in most conversations with members of a rural police force, and this was no exception. I felt extremely visible. Neither of us spoke for nearly fifteen seconds.
*
Now, I can’t say for certain whether you’ve ever tried to explain to a police constable why you’re trying to get into a house at 6:30 a.m. while you are naked. I will say nudity is a deterrent to success in most conversations with members of a rural police force, and this was no exception. I felt extremely visible. Neither of us spoke for nearly fifteen seconds.
Giveaway!
Jamie is offering a giveaway for all entries gathered during the Tour. A signed copy of Barking Mad, 4 unique signed character cards and a DVD.
Open US/Canada. See full contest rules here.
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