How the theft of Lady GaGa’s dogs inspired a novel - Shoreham

Sniff Them Out, Brownlow! comes from Hobart Books (£9.99) and will be launched at Shoreham Wordfest on October 15.

Shoreham-based Judy explained: “I had already started to read up on pet detectives and found their work fascinating. Some work with sniffer dogs to track missing pets, others use drones and social media. I thought as I’m someone who loves animals that it might be fun to write a novel about a pet detective and her dog. I decided to make them investigate a celebrity dognapping in Sussex and took it from there.

“In my previous work as a playwright it’s been hard to get many animals in my work, but keeping pets and watching wildlife are among my chief interests. My 2019 play Confidence at Southwark Playhouse did feature a hamster called Hamish in the cast. He had his own social media accounts during the run and later came to live with me in Shoreham.

“I hope the book will appeal to fellow animal lovers and anyone who likes a book with lots of Sussex locations. It’s a light-hearted cosy crime novel with a mystery to be solved by a dog-loving sleuth so if you love dogs or mystery novels, it might be for you.

“It’s my third crime novel after Out Of The Frying Pan (Hobart Books) and What Maisie Didn’t Know (Wrecking Ball Press). I switched to novel writing in the first lockdown as I’d previously written mainly for the stage and found I really enjoyed it.

“I first wrote a short story about the pet detectives Sophie Gorrage and her rescue dog Brownlow to test the waters and it was great fun. It was accepted the same week for anthology of Cosy Crime called The Cosy Nostra and that gave me the impetus to think about a full-length adventure for my crime-solving duo.

“I want people to escape into the book. It’s quirky, warm hearted but with lots of tension, suspense and jeopardy. I love writing thrillers but I want to give people a few laughs along the way and cheer them up, particularly in worrying times such as this. The book looks at issues like abandoned pets, which is becoming an increasing problem in the cost of living crisis.

“Unlike many traditional cosy crime novels, my heroine isn’t well off or glamorous and the action takes place across the south, not just in pretty villages. The people she encounters aren’t vicars, lords or ladies but include a 30-something rap artist, a home makeover guru and a local rural crime officer.

“There is a sequel in the pipeline and I’ve received an Eric Ambler Award from the Society Of Authors to write it.

"Called Brownlow Checks In, this mystery is set at an upmarket cat hotel. I’ve had lots of fun researching non-alcoholic wine for cats and TV shows aimed at felines, both of which amazingly exist. That’s the thing with these books. I come up with an idea, think it might be far fetched, but then I look online and things are far, far more bizarre or amazing than I’d imagined. So everything is researched and realistic, however eccentric it seems.”