Are you ready for something a little different?

We already know that an animal angle is popular in a crime novel. For example, there are the Alsatians Maggie in Robert Crais’s Suspect, and Rex in Pork Pie Pandemonium by Steve Higgs. Now, Sheffield-based author Philip Swan has come up with a whole cast of animal characters to populate his Zoodunnit Murder Mysteries.

There are two so far – Waarter Catastrophe and Mercy – and it won’t surprise you to discover that they’re set in a zoo. The animals can all talk and when a crime occurs, Mounty the moose and Charlton the zebra are the local detectives

They’re a wonderful feat of the imagination from an author who works full time, is raising a family and is completely passionate about crime fiction. Phil is an active member of Sheffield Authors, attends Harrogate and has even been on a writers retreat in Wales hosted by Clare Mackintosh and CL Taylor.

While travelling for work, he writes, and Zoodunnit is what he’s come up with. We wanted to find out more about the inspiration behind this very different series of cosies, so we asked him to join us here on Crime Fiction Lover…

What are crime fiction lovers going to love about the Zoodunnit Murder Mysteries?

The Zoodunnit murder mysteries are a completely the new genre. 

My books are aimed at adults, and they are humorous murder mysteries. Warning: you may look at animals and your pets differently after reading my books. 

My books are set in a fictitious zoo. All the characters including the detectives and the killer (spoiler alert) are zoo animals.

Who are Mountie and Charlton, what inspired them and how have you developed them as characters?

Mountie is a moose. He is loosely based on Inspector Morse. He has some similar traits and interests that Morse had.

Charlton is loosely based on Lewis. As Lewis was from Newcastle I have made Charlton a zebra. 

I have really enjoyed developing the relationship of these characters and bonding them into being great friends and gradually being able to wind each other up.  

There is also a love interest as Charlton’s mum fancies Mountie, which unfortunately is not reciprocated.

What are they up against in book one, Waarter Catastrophe?

In Waarter Catastrophe, a young teenage lion called Barnsley was murdered at the launch night of his venture at the zoo. His celebrity father Oscar wanted the murder investigated.

A moose called Mountie and a zebra called Charlton rise to the challenge to successfully investigate the murder of Barnsley, with suspects including:

Oscar: A famous lion overseeing all zoo animals and activities. He has a wife named Poppy and is Barnsley’s father.

Aussie: A large orangutan who runs the zoo café/bar, is an IT expert, and leads the local Hells Angels gang.

Lemming: A gorilla skilled in electrical and mechanical tasks.

Crocket: A flamboyant flamingo who was running the fashion show and had a grudge against Barnsley for scheduling his event at the same time.

Rowena: An Indian elephant with Contact Centre Syndrome.

Day of the Jackals: A famous rock band of jackals, with Edgar as their wild albino vocalist.

And then they’re back in Mercy?

Yes. Here, Hearts River Zoo has just held its annual Flaming Stork Music festival. As the festival was finishing a young baboon called Roger’s dead body was discovered and it looked like he had been stabbed to death. Also, the word MERCY was written in the ground next to his body.

Roger had a dark secret and was he murdered because of it? Looks like this is another murder case requiring the investigative skills of Mountie and Charlton to help to try and solve it.

Tell us about the zoo setting and how you came up with it?

The books are set in the grounds of a big hall in the countryside. Whilst the zoo is normal during the day the enclosures transform into luxury pads when the zoo shuts, and the visitors and staff leave. 

I used to love watching the Hair Bear Bunch cartoon where, when the zoo shuts, all the walls changed to make the enclosures like homes. This idea has been replicated in my books.

Also, I love going to the Yorkshire Wildlife Park and its smallish size, location and selection of animals is where I picture the setting to be.

What made you decide to write about talking animals?

I think my book originally started off with humans, and I’m not sure when I had the lightbulb moment that it would be better having the characters as animals. 

Whilst my books cover the animals interacting with humans and how animals deal with our strange-to-them human world, I deliberately keep humans in the background and ensure that the animals are the main characters.

At the moment, the talking animals is a gimmick that helps me to hook potential readers. I have a range of animal characters whose traits I hope readers will recognise, helping bond with my characters. In Mercy I have developed a lot of the characters from my first book whilst introducing some newer ones that I hope my readers will enjoy as well. 

There are some pretty dark crimes too, but also some humour. How have you managed the balance and what overall tone have you been aiming for?

My books are cosy crime novels that I hope will make you laugh and also there are some messages that make you think more about our relationships with animals.

I do like to write and enjoy the time I spend writing. I try to make sure that what I have written makes me laugh and keeps a smile on my face. 

Writing is my guilty pleasure, and I love being able to escape the real world for hours whilst writing.

How have readers responded to the books so far?

The Zoodunnit Murder Mysteries have been called a new genre, and this has its positives and negatives from a marketing perspective.

I mainly sell my books locally and I have had some very good feedback even from people who don’t normally read crime. I even had it as our work book club summer read last year.

I have just done a local market stand, and I have been asking people, “Are you interested in a crime book with a difference?” This has worked well in piquing the public interest. The new covers and new book have then helped me to sell them my books.

What crime books and/or authors have inspired you most, and why? What are you reading at the moment?

Obviously, I have read the Morse series. I used to also read Agatha Christie and Ruth Rendell. 

I also like reading quirky authors like Douglas Adams, Antti Tuomainen, Jasper Fforde and Jonas Jonasson.

At the moment I’m reading Abir Mukherjee’s Sam Wyndham and Seran Banerjee series set in Calcutta. It’s another great series where the two main characters from different backgrounds develop a friendship.

What’s next for Mountie and Charlton, and what’s next for Philip Swan?

I have a full story line for book three, which I have now started writing. It will be called Lottery. Alice the zebra has a £136 million winning lottery ticket and the animals have six months to find a human to cash the ticket in and give them all the money. You know it’s not going to be simple.   

I also have a rough story line for book four, which may be set in Paris.  

I still have my driverless car blog. 

I also spent two weeks in the Black Isle of Scotland a couple of years ago and I have a rough plan for a book set there where a person with a tattoo gun seeks revenge. This will be a human-based story!

You can grab your own copies of Waarter Catastrophe and Mercy using our Amazon buttons below.