Book Spotlight: Where's the Quetzel?

Do you like birds? How about books with empty-nesters as the main characters? well, Jen Dodrill has some stories for you! Read on to find out why she chose to use a quetzel in her latest cozy mystery.

I often get told – “You must love birds!” since my cozy mystery series is about a woman who starts a birding group. But really, I don’t know much about them. My dad and stepmom were avid birders, and I got the idea for the series when I stayed with them a few years ago.
What I do know about is being an empty nester. That’s why the series is the Empty Nesters Cozy Mystery series. I wanted to write about women in my age group—women of a “certain age”—who were going through the same stages of life I was.
Now I may be a bit older than the main character, Peg, but her mother-in-law Hazel and I are definitely the same age group. I just had more kids than Peg and was older when my last was born. None of that matters though, because being an empty nester is challenging, regardless of age. You raise those kids for years, then they leave, fly, take off.
​Just like birds.

​My dad was on hospice when I stayed with him, and my sister and I would see birds in his backyard, which bordered on a protected area. We’d describe them to him, and he’d be able to tell us all about them. It amazed me. True birders know their feathered friends by looks and bird calls. It’s quite the skill.
A skill I have never mastered. I know robins, hummingbirds (in general), and doves because they come to my front yard. Since I’m from Florida, I know seagulls and pelicans. I’m studying up on egrets for my third book in the series.
The first book I wrote, Birds Alive!, is about a rufous hummingbird. The funny thing is my dad’s name was Rufus. I didn’t plan it like that; I know God had a hand in it! When I proposed the series to my publisher, I already had the titles picked out, so I knew book two would be titled Where’s the Quetzal? I don’t know why I picked that. It just sounded fun.
My dad loved quetzals. They’re beautifully colored birds from Central and South America. Dad loved the Spanish language and traveled several times in those areas.
My book features a resplendent quetzal, one of the six species of quetzals. They live in Central America and southern Mexico and have these gorgeous plumes. Resplendent quetzals are near threatened, which means they’re vulnerable to endangerment because of deforestation and climate change.
The quetzal was considered sacred to several Mesoamerican civilizations. At one time, killing a quetzal was considered a crime, so their feathers (plumes) were plucked and the bird was set free. The feathers were used as a form of currency in ancient Mayan culture.
But more than anything, I like quetzals because my dad did. Funny how those things don’t change. He and my mom instilled a love of books and reading in all three of us kids. Dad’s sense of travel and adventure skipped a generation (at least with me) and landed with my kids and nephews. What I did get from my dad is a love for the written word. He specialized in nonfiction, education-type books, and writing about his many experiences as a birder. He passed before I finished my first book, but I’m sure he’s tickled iridescent green, gold, blue, red, and white—the colors of the resplendent quetzal tail—over my accomplishment.

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Where’s the Quetzal? 
 
Peg Howard has planned the perfect baby shower for her oldest daughter. But the return of Estelle and Roger Keaton disrupts her peace, reigniting old mysteries.
A chance discovery of a centuries-old shipwreck sets off a chain of events, thrusting Peg and her friends into a perilous game of deception. As they unravel the mysteries surrounding a rare quetzal bird, they uncover a plot that threatens their very lives.
With Detective Marcus Sharp and her mother-in-law Hazel by her side, Peg races against time to solve the mystery. But as she digs deeper, she realizes that some truths are better left buried.
In a tale full of twists and turns, Peg confronts her deepest fears, facing an adversary more cunning and unexpected than anyone anticipated. Join Peg and her friends on a journey through intrigue and peril, where bonds of friendship and family may be their only salvation. Will they uncover the truth before it’s too late, or will the past come back to haunt them all?

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Jen Dodrill is living out her dreams on the pages of her books, bringing readers compelling stories of inspiration and hope for good times and bad. As a mother of five, she cherishes the time she has now to tell her stories in between her honored role as Grandma, her passion for reading, and her adoration of all things coffee. 
Her first book, Birds Alive! An Empty-nesters Cozy Mystery was released in 2024. Book #2 in the series, Where’s the Quetzal, came out in February 2025. Book #3, No Egrets, will be published in 2026.
For more information about Jen, her books, and more, check out her blog: https://jendodrillwrites.com/.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jendodrillwrites/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JenDodrillWrites
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Jen-Dodrill/author/B0CSDW3CHR
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/47887511.Jen_Dodrill
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/jen-dodrill
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