Hippie Haven Homicide

By Sally Carpenter

Description:

Book 2 of the Psychedelic Spy mystery series.
Get ready to flip your wig over another groovy 1967 retro-cozy with actress and amateur spy Noelle McNabb. Spy agency SIAMSE turns Noelle's pet, Ceebee into an "acoustic kitty" to listen in on an enemy agent known only as Old Scratch. Meanwhile, a counterculture religious sect led by the Wise One infiltrates the staid town of Yuletide, Indiana. When one of the sect member makes premature departure to the Spirit in the Sky, Noelle investigates, but finds herself in deep water--literally. With her undercover disguises, Noelle knows to sock it to 'em, but she can't solve the secrets of a certain family member. A fab story of saints, sinners and spies.

Book Takeaway:

Our protagonist is challenged to love unusual people that others see as enemies, and to open herself to new challenges as an amateur spy.

Why the author wrote this book:

The book is set in 1967, a time when New Age and Eastern philosophies entered the American mainstream culture. Some people eagerly adopted the new ideas; some were tolerant and others were repulsed. I wanted to explore the conflict between counterculture and mainstream religions. Plus there's a fun spy caper as well and a role for the protagonist's pet cat based on the CIA's real-life "acoustic kitty" project of implanting microphones in a cat as a way to eavesdrop on spy conversations.