"A Bad Day for Pretty"

Sophie Littlefield's first novel, A Bad Day for Sorry, was an Edgar Award Finalist and is shortlisted for an Anthony, Barry, and Macavity Award. It won an RT Book Award for Best First Mystery and has been named to lists of the year's best mystery debuts by the Chicago Sun-Times and South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

She applied the Page 69 Test to her new novel, A Bad Day for Pretty, and reported the following:

In the wrong house, this sort of dog seemed to invite abuse. Much like some women – the sweet, naïve ones – when they got together with a man whose evil streak was of the vicious woman-hurting sort, it seemed like they couldn’t do anything to prevent the meanness heaped on them.

In this scene, Stella’s reluctantly adopting a stray dog who I modeled after our old beagle (Stella’s namesake actually; Stella the dog died last Valentine’s day at the ripe old age of fifteen.).

You’ve heard of alpha dogs? Well, this dog was a zeta dog. She didn’t possess one ounce of aggression or dominance. When confronted with another dog – it could be a five-pound toy poodle – our dog would roll over and expose her stomach in a show of vulnerability.

Unfortunately, I believe there is something about this trait – in pets or in women – that invites mistreatment. Bullies are attracted to the weak, to the easy targets. Abusive men do not pick out feisty partners. Sometimes, gentle souls are crushed by cruel treatment, but sometimes they can thrive with loving attention; Roxy – Stella’s dog – is such an example. She quickly becomes a beloved member of Stella’s household.

Learn more about the book and author at Sophie Littlefield's website and blog.

The Page 69 Test: A Bad Day for Sorry.

Visit the complete list of books in the Page 69 Test Series.

--Marshal Zeringue