Boogie, Boots, & Cherry Pie — Janelle Meraz Hooper

Boogie, Boots, & Cherry Pie Janelle Meraz Hooper When the great guy that Lily meets at her company's St. Patrick's Day party takes her home he discovers she lives at The Zoo, an apartment building that caters to tenants who have exotic pets. Unfortunately, one of the pets is missing and when Mike drops her off the first thing he sees is a sign on the front door: Please Don't Let Out The Snake! While Lily is trying to figure out how Boogie, a big boa constrictor, is getting into her apartment, Mike, her new boyfriend, has his own problems. He's a jewelry designer who's in danger of defaulting on a contract because all of his workers live on a flood plain and the river is rising. When it finally floods, everyone disappears without a trace. Suddenly, Mike isn't worried about his business anymore. He's worried about his workers and their families. Are they okay? Where could they be? Filled with lively characters including: a Jamaican landlady, Reggae, whose traditional headdress holds her phone and assorted office supplies; her boyfriend Mingo who thinks he doesn't fit in; and Velma, a tenant who collects snakes -- big ones. Tension rises when Reggae and Lily begin to fear Boogie is stalking Boots, Reggae's pet iguana.