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The City That Barks and Roars - Book Tour and Giveaway

8/8/2020

99 Comments

 
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The City That Barks and Roars
by J.T. Bird
Genre: Mystery Fiction 

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Animals rule the world

They hit cafes for breakfast then nine to five at the office, and fritter away evenings at jazz clubs. 

But paradise is still a distant dream, for there are devils amongst the angels.

Lucas Panda is missing; clues on the riverbank suggest he was probably kidnapped. Enter Frank. Who else you gonna call? Hard-boiled penguin and the finest detective in town. And meet his new partner, Detective Chico Monkey - yeah, the wisecrackin' kid with all the snappy suits. But the stakes have been raised; three more creatures are missing and the citizens of Noah's Kingdom are faced with possible extinction. Can the grouchy bird and plucky young ape save the city from doom? Or, will evil prevail and escape the claws of justice?

 'Animal noir' peppered with plenty of humour; this thrilling debut novel from award-winning comedian JT Bird is an intriguing blend of Jungle Book and Chinatown (Zootopia for grown-ups?! Watership Down with Fedoras!?) - perfect for fans of animal fiction, or mysteries, adventure and crime. A gripping yarn, packed with weird and wonderful creatures, for youngsters and adults alike (or anyone who's crying out for anthropomorphic detectives!!)



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​Bells chime above the door as the monkey dives inside to escape the relentless downpour. He shakes a few drops off the soaking wet suit and dries his eyes with a sleeve. It’s a pit of chaos: animals queuing for breakfast, trying to eat breakfast, and serving breakfast, all within an inappropriate amount of space. A pack of sailor seagulls are babbling loudly at their table beside the doorway - typical noisy gulls.
Squidged behind a table in the corner and facing foggy windows, sits a hard-boiled penguin devouring a plate full of scrambled eggs and mackerel. He’s a ‘King’ penguin, so shorter than an ‘Emperor’ but stout with a sharp beak and orange fur at the back of his neck which closely resembles a collar. Meet Frank - the only bird in town wearing a beige crumpled rain mac and chocolate colored fedora (the hat of choice for any true detective). His coat looks a shade too big and the hat’s tilted too far back, but he’s never been one for fashion.
Chico takes a seat opposite Frank, but the penguin barely flinches, such is the desire to finish his breakfast as swiftly as possible. Vote Spots – the monkey can’t help but notice the bold wilting poster of current mayor, George Leopard, overlooking their greasy table.
‘Ahem’. Chico tries to catch his attention. Frank licks the plate clean, before taking a long sip of pitch-black coffee. As the cup returns to the table, he finally sets eyes on his latest partner, and breaks the awkward silence.
‘You must be the chimp? Hot shot from West Bay. They tell me your good,’ he says, tapping the table with a cheap knife and fork. ‘I thought you’d be taller.’ By the sound of his voice you’d think he owned a pizza parlour, as opposed to being the city’s most experienced sleuth.

​

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J T Bird is an award-winning stand-up comedian from North London, where he lives with his wife and child. His humble abode sits neatly between the former homes of HG Wells and Robert Louis Stevenson...so there's no pressure to write something utterly successful and wonderful.
​
Bird was actually 'The Chosen One' that prophets foresaw would rescue the world from all the powers of darkness - however, he opted for a career as a clown and author instead...

Another little known fact - his father was sent from the future to protect him from an android assassin, and his mother's possessed by a demon - but hey, we all have family issues right?!



Website * Facebook * Twitter * Bookbub * Amazon * Goodreads

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Adults and Animal Fiction

"Some people talk to animals. Not many listen though. That's the problem."
- A.A. Mile, Winnie the Pooh

‘Anyone from eight to eighty-eight.’ That was the response from Richard Adams when asked who was suited to read Watership Down. It was initially rejected by numerous publishers who felt that adults didn’t want to read about animals, and that the plot was too tricky for children. Thankfully – and rightly so- he was not to be deterred.
Agents jump for joy whenever they clasp another tale about werewolves, witches, or brash dystopian heroines – yet scoff and scowl at the mention of talkative mammals. That has certainly been the case for me anyhow. I’m a stand-up comedian who was trapped in lockdown, and I decided to tackle my bucket list – starting with a debut novel. There was never any doubt which tale I’d tell. When I was eight years old I wrote a story about a crime solving penguin, but despite doing all the illustrations with my selection of half eaten crayons, and sketching a bar code on the back of my stapled pages – it was sadly never published. Alas, nearly thirty years later I scratched that itch and finally completed my manuscript. Finally, I could unveil my semi-aquatic sleuth.
Naively, I assumed the trickiest part was over. I’d written the book, a full book, sixty thousand bleedin’ words; surely now the literary fairies just took it away and brought me back a cheque?!
Nope.
Being a stand-up comedian, I have developed quite a thick skin, but it’s tough receiving wave after wave of emails, each rejecting your precious ideas. Every agent to walk the land seemed to be of the same opinion: only children want to read about animals. And much like Adams, I refuse to believe that’s the case. Just because the bookshelves aren’t bursting with animal fiction, doesn’t mean that people wouldn’t care to read it – and remember that once upon a time, publishers were rejecting books about the school days of wizards.
For as far back as I can remember, I’ve enjoyed stories that introduced me to talking creatures (or anthropomorphic animals if you prefer). I’m a thirty-six-year-old bearded man now – yet the allure of Aslan the lion, Shere Khan, or Woundwort hasn’t waned for me in the slightest. The idea that apes could rule the world still plays on my mind. Toad of toad hall still makes me smile. I’d still like to walk through the looking glass. In fact, I believe that deep down every adult still harbours that desire to hear the thoughts of their pets. I mean, who isn’t curious what the cat has to say? Who hasn’t dreamed their dog would banter as well as bark? Wouldn’t life be fab if the hamster could sing?
I’m also a huge fan of film noir, so my novel takes place in 1952. Yes, there are similarities with your Raymond Chandler novels or classic movies like Chinatown, LA Confidential etc, but of course in my story – the main detective is a king penguin named Frank, and his partner is a red howler monkey called Chico. The setting for my yarn could quite easily be confused with fifties Los Angeles, yet I’ve swapped it for a metropolis called Noah’s Kingdom. Ok, I just loved the idea of a penguin that wore a fedora!! There are no spells, dragons, or teenage relationship issues, so it’s a bit different than what you’re used to – and it’s not targeted at a particular age group, but don’t be put off by the grumpy agents. Watership Down to date has sold around fifty million copies, so there is certainly someone out there who’s curious what the animals are whispering.


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a Rafflecopter giveaway
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99 Comments
Michele Soyer
8/8/2020 06:25:14 am

New genre for me.. very interesting.. willing to give it a read!

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JT Bird link
8/8/2020 07:57:27 am

Thanks Michael. Let me know what you think, if you do give it a read :D

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Wendy Jensen
8/8/2020 09:38:42 am

I love the book cover.

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Jimmy Bird
8/8/2020 11:34:38 am

Thank you Wendy :D

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Kelly D
8/8/2020 09:41:02 am

I like the cover, it is cute.

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Jimmy Bird
8/8/2020 11:34:58 am

Thank you Kelly :D

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Rita Wray
8/8/2020 09:50:06 am

Sounds like a great book.

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Jimmy Bird
8/8/2020 11:35:16 am

Thank you Rita :D

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Susan Smith
8/8/2020 10:42:24 am

Sounds great, I like the cover.

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Jimmy Bird
8/8/2020 11:35:34 am

Thank you Susan :D

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Shirley Ann Speakman
8/8/2020 11:02:47 am

The cover great and the story is intriguing to say the least!

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Jimmy Bird
8/8/2020 11:35:56 am

Thank you Shirley :D

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Victoria Alexander
8/8/2020 11:36:03 am

Sounds like an interesting book, thanks for sharing!

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Booklover8
8/8/2020 12:25:00 pm

I like this cover. Sounds interesting

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wendy hutton
8/8/2020 03:26:17 pm

love your cover very original

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Sherry
8/8/2020 06:22:06 pm

I really like the cover and think the book sounds good.

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Calvin
8/8/2020 08:31:38 pm

Really unique theme, brave of you to persevere through all you rejections. I liked the movie called life of pi, might be your type of movie too :)

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Del
8/8/2020 11:28:35 pm

The cover looks great!

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Clem
8/9/2020 12:15:11 am

Cool cover art.

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Heather Mahley
8/9/2020 12:58:44 am

Cover looks wonderful

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Judy Thomas
8/9/2020 05:39:53 am

It sounds awesome, loved the excerpt.

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Jimmy Bird
8/9/2020 06:55:56 am

Thank you Judy :D

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Julie Murphy
8/9/2020 05:42:14 am

I like the cover. It's unique.

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Jimmy Bird
8/9/2020 06:56:14 am

Thanks Julie :D

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molli taylor
8/9/2020 10:15:45 am

this looks like a great read!

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shannon zeidan
8/9/2020 10:16:23 am

I love this cover! Looking forward to reading this.

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Jimmy Bird
8/9/2020 10:47:33 am

Thanks Shannon -let me know what you think :D

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Stephanie Liske
8/9/2020 12:26:58 pm

I like the cover.

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Lisa
8/9/2020 12:35:32 pm

The cover is great!

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Mya Murphy
8/9/2020 02:20:18 pm

Interesting cover.. Definitely is eye-catching!!

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Ginger Hafer
8/9/2020 02:28:09 pm

Interesting cover. Sounds like a very unique story.

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Victoria Scott
8/9/2020 02:55:38 pm

Very cool cover! Sounds great too!

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Chrystal D
8/9/2020 03:07:15 pm

That's a very unique cover, I like it!

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Beyond Comps
8/9/2020 03:31:28 pm

Great cover!

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Shirley O
8/9/2020 04:10:06 pm

Sounds like an interesting read. Fun book cover!

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beth shepherd
8/9/2020 04:14:02 pm

This looks like a great read. Great cover and blurb. Thank you

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Jimmy Bird
8/10/2020 08:03:08 am

Thank you Beth. Much appreciated :D

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Terri Quick
8/9/2020 07:48:21 pm

Cool cover

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Renata
8/9/2020 09:58:13 pm

Wow , i like cover

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Jimmy Bird
8/10/2020 08:02:44 am

Thank you Renata :D

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Betty Curran
8/9/2020 11:38:57 pm

As a huge fan of Watership Down as well as cozy mysteries by Rita Mae Brown involving conversations between animals I know I would thoroughly enjoy this book. Congratulations on being published.

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Jimmy Bird
8/10/2020 08:02:23 am

Thank you Betty - much appreciated. Love to hear your thoughts if you get round to reading it :D

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Sandy Klocinski
8/10/2020 11:46:01 am

Awesome genre! Sounds fascinating. Thank you for the opportunity to win

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Cynthia C
8/10/2020 01:59:44 pm

This sounds very different and interesting. Thanks for sharing the excerpt.

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Jimmy Bird
8/11/2020 04:06:40 am

Thank you Cynthia :D

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Emily Gibb
8/10/2020 09:20:33 pm

This is so awesome! GREAT COVER!

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Jimmy Bird
8/11/2020 04:06:19 am

Thank you Emily. Hope you enjoy it :D

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Ann Fantom
8/11/2020 06:47:54 am

I like the cover. It has nice artwork

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Debbie P
8/11/2020 12:36:45 pm

This sounds like a really good read. Cool cover!

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Jimmy Bird
8/12/2020 02:24:51 pm

Thanks Debbie- let me know what you think, if you manage to have a read :D

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brittany doerfler
8/12/2020 12:14:13 am

I really love the cover, so mysterious!

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Jeanna Massman
8/12/2020 05:16:26 am

The cover is so cool! It sets the tone for the book.

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Jimmy Bird
8/12/2020 02:25:32 pm

Thanks Jeanna - much appreciated :D

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DebP
8/12/2020 06:34:19 am

Animal noir looks like a fresh spin on the genre. It certainly interests me, and I can see it as a good basis for a movie.

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Jimmy Bird
8/12/2020 02:26:31 pm

Thanks Deb - I wouldnt say no to a movie version ;D
Anybody got Spielbergs number...?!

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MARCY MEYER
8/13/2020 01:32:32 pm

Clever, eye-catching cover.

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Serge B
8/14/2020 07:43:21 pm

Nice cover--thanks for the update on your family too!

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bn100
8/14/2020 10:41:28 pm

cool

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Julie Lundstrom
8/15/2020 03:14:08 pm

I like the cover of this book.

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Robin Abrams
8/16/2020 10:11:03 am

I love this book cover it looks great

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Debbi Wellenstein
8/17/2020 04:54:20 pm

Super cover! Thanks for the opportunity!

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Laura b Rubenstein
8/17/2020 06:00:23 pm

This is a really cool cover

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Francine Anchondo
8/20/2020 02:36:00 pm

I like the cover

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Sarah L
8/22/2020 12:43:24 am

Looks like an interesting book.
Thanks for the contest. 

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Mary Cloud
8/23/2020 08:21:48 pm

Cool cover - thanks for sharing

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Brandi Dawn
8/24/2020 04:30:00 pm

I really like the cover!

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Jimmy Bird
8/27/2020 08:36:43 am

Thank you Brandi. Enjoy :D

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Karin
8/28/2020 06:08:38 am

Interesting concept for a story

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Carol
8/28/2020 10:47:41 am

I am always interested in learning about new books to possibly read.

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Paula
8/28/2020 07:01:41 pm

The cover art seems appropriate for the book. Good job.

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joy f
8/28/2020 11:34:27 pm

Sounds good.

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Megan Allen
8/30/2020 01:58:22 pm

I love the cover!! Very original!

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Jeanette Jackson
8/31/2020 07:10:26 pm

I like the cover. It's different.

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Rita Pacchiana
9/1/2020 03:24:54 pm

Sounds interesting love the cover !!

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Alex
9/1/2020 05:28:12 pm

Love the cover, book sounds very interesting!

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Anne Higgins
9/1/2020 08:49:38 pm

Great cover - looks like a great book for a different take on the past = LOVE your excerpt which drew me in to want more from the beginning. Thanks for sharing your talents.

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Nancy
9/2/2020 01:37:28 pm

Yes. I have two questions for the author: When you were a child, what authors were your very favorites? Dd you have any book series that you especially enjoyed?

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Jimmy Bird
9/6/2020 10:56:43 am

My favourites growning up were all the books set in Narnia, I loved Northern Lights, Roald Dahl, Enid Blyton, and ofcourse Watership Down from Richard Adam's :D

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Robert Young
9/2/2020 11:45:57 pm

The cover catches your attention with the bright yellow color

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Carrie Conley
9/3/2020 02:43:20 pm

The cover is nice...

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Daniel M
9/4/2020 06:10:27 pm

like the cover

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Heather Kaufman
9/5/2020 12:08:01 pm

The cover is silly & fun.

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Karen A.
9/5/2020 04:56:31 pm

Cool cover and the book sounds good.

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Max Morais Dos Santos
9/6/2020 09:04:30 am

Fun, fun and fun

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Erin Madigan
9/6/2020 02:54:10 pm

I really like the cover!

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latisha depoortere
9/6/2020 03:16:42 pm

Thank you for sharing love the cover!

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Dave gibb
9/7/2020 01:42:05 pm

looks good

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Deb Pelletier
9/7/2020 11:24:30 pm

The book cover is cool and crazy , :)

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Maria
9/8/2020 08:26:58 am

WOW this looks amazing, love the cover and the title

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Elizabeth Sul-Celline
9/8/2020 12:02:13 pm

I love the colors and design of this book! It looks so whimsical!

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Hesper Fry
9/8/2020 07:11:27 pm

The book cover looks really good!

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Bill Hoff
9/8/2020 07:15:50 pm

Looking forward to reading this

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Tiffany S
9/8/2020 08:23:27 pm

I think the book cover looks really good.

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Sand
9/8/2020 09:20:25 pm

Looks like a great cover!

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avm
9/8/2020 09:32:00 pm

very unique

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Stacey A Smith
9/8/2020 09:40:42 pm

love the cover and the name of the book! have 9 cat's right now that think they rule my world.

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Laurie Nykaza
9/8/2020 10:10:23 pm

Love the cover great graphics. Like to read it too.

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Juana Esparza
9/8/2020 10:40:14 pm

I liked the excerpt, and the book cover.

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Jerry Marquardt
9/8/2020 11:04:58 pm

I would like to honor your great and outstanding reviews on The City That Barks and Roars. Keep up the great work in the future and thanks for the chance to win.

Reply



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