Cozy Cat is proud to start its Author of the Week blog posts! Each week we will be posting all about an author and his or her's accomplishments and publications, so don't forget to check back each week!

To start us off is author Jacob M. Appel:

Appel's first, and currently, only book with Cozy Cat is Wedding Wipeout, a mystery in which detective Rabbi Jacob Kappelmacher attempts to solve the murder of poor old Florence, who is found dead in her bed the morning after her wedding.

Check out this Excerpt from Wedding Wipeout:

"The Eisenstein sisters never married. For forty-three years, they lived together in the same old house in Pine Valley. Each year, they paid a visit to Abercrombie and checked if there had been any change in the status of the will, but there never was. I believe it was more a matter of habit than hope. The trust funds themselves were pretty generous, after all, and the sisters were already well into their sixties when I joined the firm"

"I can't help but notice your use of the past tense," Rabbie Kappelmacher interjected. "And since you've just place a newspaper clipping on my desk, might I venture to guess that one-- or possibly both-- of them has recently left this world? That's an obituary you have there, isn't it?"

Want to find out who killed Florence and why? Buy it here on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1939816149/?tag=cocapr-20

Appel is more than just a Cozy Cat mystery writer, however. He's been publishing and winning awards for his writing for years:

Won the Dundee International Book Award in 2012 for his novel The Man Who Wouldn't Stand Up
Won the Hudson Prize in 2012 for his short story collection Scouting For The Reaper
Has been published in more than 200 literary journals
Has won the New Millennium Writings contest 4 times
Won the Writer's Digest grand prize 2 times
Has won the William Faulkner- William Wisdom competition for both fiction and creative nonfiction

While Appel is clearly a dedicated writer, he has also spent time dedicating himself to other fields of study:

Has a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts from Brown University
Has an M.Phil from Columbia
Has a Master of Sciences in bioethics from Alden March Bioethics Institute of Albany Medical College
Has an M.D from Columbia University's College of Physicians and Surgeons
Has a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing from New York University
Has a Master of Fine Art in play-writing from Queens College
Has a Master of Public Health from Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Has A Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School

Appel is currently living in New York City practicing psychiatry

Want to find out even more about Appel? Check out his website: http://www.jacobmappel.com/

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Author of the Week: Jacob M. Appel