Suspense Magazine May 2015

Suspense, Mystery, Horror and Thriller Fiction

JUNE 2015

HOT DAYS COOL SUMMER READS

From Across the Pond:

WILLIAM SHAW

PATRICK KENDRICK C. J. BOX NELSON DEMILLE

A Look Inside

INGRID THOFT’S “BRUTALITY” &

NELSON DEMILLE’S “RADIANT ANGEL”

& Meet Debut Authors CHRISTINE CARBO NEAL GRIFFIN SIMON GERVAIS

“A THOUGHT-PROVOKING TALE THAT WILL SURELY STAND WITH THE YEAR’S BEST THRILLERS.” —DAVID BALDACCI

A battle to the death— and only one will be left standing. “The Assassins hooks you on page one, pulls you into the story on page two, and doesn’t let you go until the very last paragraph. This is a classic last-man-standing story of deceit and betrayal with enough new twists and turns to keep you up way past your bedtime.” —NELSON DEMILLE “A furiously wild ride from Maryland to Marrakesh to Baghdad with rich vibrant characters and a surprise twist that will hit you between the eyes. I loved it!” —CATHERINE COULTER “A master class in suspense, where plot twists abound and danger is always closer than you think!” —LISA GARDNER “The Assassins is another masterwork of international suspense from Gayle Lynds, which starts with a killer premise—six ex-Cold War assassins pitted against each other—and ends with a violent and stunning surprise.” —DOUGLAS PRESTON

• gaylelynds.com • AVAILABLE WHEREVER BOOKS ARE SOLD.

From the Editor CREDITS

John Raab President & Chairman Shannon Raab Creative Director Romaine Reeves CFO Amy Lignor Editor Jim Thomsen Copy Editor

Contributors

Mark P. Sadler Susan Santangelo DJ Weaver CK Webb Kiki Howell Kaye George Weldon Burge Ashley Wintters Scott Pearson D.P. Lyle M.D. Kathleen Heady Stephen Brayton Brian Blocker Andrew MacRae Val Conrad Melissa Dalton Elliott Capon J.M. LeDuc Holly Price Kari Wainwright David Ingram Jodi Hanson Susan May Jenny Hilborne Anthony J. Franze Kristin Centorcelli Jerry Zavada S.L. Menear Leslie Borghini Mary Lignor Julie Whiteley Sara Guisti Jeff Ayers Elise Cooper

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SuspenseMagazine.com

Sometimes when I sit and write the “Letter from the Editor,” it depends on my mood as to what comes out on the page. If I’m happy, I tend to write in a more humorous style. If I’m on edge, I will write something a bit more serious to bring me back from the proverbial ledge. However, if I’m a little angry, well…then all bets are off. This is one of those times. I’m not really sure beyond this one sentence what is going to come out next, so here we go on a suspenseful journey… Someone asked me for help with their book. I agreed because, quite simply, I love to help people and want to set them on the right path. This wasn’t a work of fiction, but regardless of the genre there are some things that you need to make sure you have included in order to see a polished work. I spent a good amount of time reading through it, giving many different pointers and advice, only to recently find out that they didn’t take any of that advice and published the book on their own. Well…what do you know? The book has been out for over a month and they haven’t sold one single copy. I was shocked, since the book was written not by an expert in the field, but by someone who thinks they know their subject matter. Mistake number one. This is to all authors out there currently thinking about doing this. I ask them this question: “You are writing in a genre that is already inundated and plastered with experts, big companies and huge industry names, so…why should I buy your book?” The ones I have already asked this question of didn’t really have an answer to give me, and I replied, “See? That is why you don’t sell anything.” Not to mention, I said that at the very least they will need to market themselves heavily before the book comes out, at least two to three hours a day, finding places where their target audience is talking about only that particular subject matter. I said, “If you are not willing to put in the tough—at times, grueling—work of marketing, you won’t sell anything.” I don’t know how many times I have to say it, but just in case, I will say it yet again. Writing the book is the EASY part; marketing it and getting people excited to buy it is the TOUGH part. That is where you need to spend a lot of research. I think it’s great that Amazon has given us a platform to publish our own books without the need of an agent or publisher; however, what we now have in the marketplace is a bunch of books that, well…frankly, stink. I went through this person’s book and did a first edit. There was no way the book was close to being ready to publish. But instead of putting in the hours to make it right, they uploaded the work, put their picture on their newly formed Author Page (wearing a look of composure with an air of brilliance, of course), and assumed that was enough to sell it. Wake up, authors! If you don’t have beta readers (that means readers you don’t know and will actually give you the brutal truth), or go through a professional edit job then, yes, your success rate will be very, very low. I want everyone who writes a book to be very successful so they will keep on writing and producing thoughtful, entertaining, and incredible works for the public. This person already had a second and third book in mind, but will probably quit because the first book didn’t sell. This is not easy; writing is very hard work. Like the old saying goes: If it were easy, everyone would do it. Don’t take the easy path. That path leads to the dark side. Taking the time to put the effort into making sure you have covered all your bases, marketed your book before and after release, have beta readers on hand, and have had the work professionally edited, is the only path that will lead to eventual success. John Raab CEO/Publisher Suspense Magazine ■ “Reviews within this magazine are the opinions of the individual reviewers and are provided solely for the purpose of assisting readers in determining another's thoughts on the book under discussion and shall not be interpreted as professional advice or the opinion of any other than the individual reviewer. The following reviewers who may appear in this magazine are also individual clients of Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine: Mark P. Sadler, Ashley Dawn (Wintters), DJ Weaver, CK Webb, Elliott Capon, J.M. LeDuc, S.L. Menear, Leslie Borghini, Susan Santangelo, and Amy Lignor.”

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CONTENT SUSPENSE MAGAZINE June 2015 / Vol. 065

International Thriller Writers: Reader’s Corner By Steve P. Vincent . . . . . . . . . 3

Excerpt: “Brutality” By Ingrid Thoft. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Forensic Files: Corpse Decay By D.P. Lyle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Take a Journey With Debut Author Christine Carbo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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In the Garden By Jill Hand. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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The Black Bird & the Chicago Kid By Thomas B. Sawyer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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The Face at the Window By Samuel Poots. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Inside the Pages: Suspense Magazine Book Reviews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Suspense Magazine Movie Reviews. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Featured Artist: Angeles Ruiz. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Ripped From the Headlines: Meet Debut Author Neal Griffin . . . . . . . . . . .

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Copy Editor’s Corner: Editor, Heal Thyself By Jim Thomsen. . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Adds a Personal Touch: Meet Debut Author Simon Gervais . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Across the Pond with William Shaw By Chris Simms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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At the End of my Rope By Nancy Sweetland. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Excerpt: “Radiant Angel” By Nelson DeMille . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Antiques and Curiosities By A.R. Alan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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INTERNATIONAL THRILLER WRITERS

READER'S Corner

Recommendations by Steve P. Vincent Press Photo Credit: Provided by Author

Every time I finish writing a book, like I just have, I make a concerted effort to smash the ‘to read’ pile that has built up next to my bed and on my Kindle while I’ve been hard at work. Unfortunately, my attempts are usually for nothing, because I find another bunch of great books to read. Here are a few I’m looking forward to reading in the next few months.

“AURORA: EDEN”

Amanda Bridgeman, September 10: Not strictly a thriller, but definitely thrilling…in space! Amanda Bridgeman is a fellow Aussie writer who’s crafted a wonderful and chilling series centered on two great main characters and one particularly nasty villain. Her books are epic in size, scope, and impact.

“MAKE ME”

Lee Child, August 27: Take all my money, Mr. Child, and be quick about it! I tend to drift in and out of the Jack Reacher series, but when I lock on I’ll gorge two or three at once. Looking forward to the 20th lap on this circuit. It should be as nail-biting as ever.

“WHAT LIES BEHIND”

J.T. Ellison, May 26: Yeah, yeah, it’s already out. But I haven’t bought it or read it yet, so I’m listing it. The latest Samantha Owens thriller sounds like a cracking read, and it’ll find itself sneaking its way up the pile, I’m sure. It’ll probably also give me nightmares.

“RADIANT ANGEL” Nelson DeMille, May 26: Yep, another that’s already out. This one I have actually purchased! Not many authors can write espionage like DeMille. I’ve waited for this one for two or three years, since I was blown away by “The Panther.” Joel Corey is a kick ass dude. “THE CARTEL”

Don Winslow, June 25: I loved “The Power of the Dog” and I’m hoping Winslow’s newest effort hits the same high notes. If the cover is anything to go by, it should. ■

Steve P. Vincent is the author of the Jack Emery political thrillers: “Fireplay,” “The Foundation” and the recently published “State of Emergency.” If you’re a fan of suspense-packed political thrillers, you can’t go wrong with this series. You can pick them up as ebooks from any retailer (www.momentumbooks.com.au/authors/steve-p-vincent).


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SPECIAL PREVIEW FROM INGRID THOFT

BRUTALITY

By Ingrid Thoft Press Photo Credit: Doug Berrett

CHAPTER 1 “I CAN’T BELIEVE HALEY IS MISSING THIS,” Fina Ludlow said, crumpled in a ball in a snowbank.

“You all right, buddy?” she asked her youngest nephew, Chandler, as he burrowed out from underneath her. “That was awesome! Let’s go again!” He grabbed her hand as she struggled to her feet. A chunk of snow had wormed its way up her parka and into the small of her back. Fina looped the rope attached to the toboggan around her free wrist and struggled to fish the snow out. Some had already melted and was making a cold, wet trail down her butt. She was having fun, moving into the hot and cold sweaty phase that marked any good sledding excursion. At the top of the hill, her brothers Scotty and Matthew were prepping for another run. Scotty had his middle son tucked between his legs. Matthew was lying chest down on the sled, head first. Scotty’s eldest son was lying on top of him in the same position. “You’re going to allow that?” Fina asked Scotty. “Patty would not approve.” Scotty’s wife had married into the Ludlow family, thereby rendering her the rare voice of reason. Patty had opted to stay home with their niece, Haley. “She won’t know,” Scotty said. “Not until you call her from the ER,” Fina commented. “Did you guys bring any business cards? There must be a market for sledding-related lawsuits.” Her brothers grinned. “Don’t spoil our fun,” Matthew said, pushing off, his nephew clinging to his back like a tortoise’s shell. It was the rare day that the Ludlows had a couple of free hours together, when the demands of the family firm, Ludlow and Associates, didn’t take priority. Winter had been a bitch so far, dumping snow and caking ice on every surface, prompting the governor to close down government offices and delay court business for days. Fina’s father, Carl, had grumbled about the loss of billable hours, but his children and grandchildren were happy to have a brief reprieve from the daily grind. Fina sat down behind Chandler and shoved off the icy surface and over the crest of the hill. Their ride was fast and bumpy, the boy hollering all the way down. As they approached the bottom of the hill, Fina tipped to the side; rather than let

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Suspense Magazine June 2015 / Vol. 065

the ride peter out, they rolled over and off the sled in a dramatic wipeout. Chandler was elated. Fina was cleaning snow out of her boot laces when her phone rang from the inner pocket of her parka. If she were in a different line of work she might ignore the call, but as a private investigator, she never knew who might be on the other end of the line. Fina had to welcome every potential job and every potential lead, even if nine times out of ten it was a telemarketer trying to sell her aluminum siding. “Fina Ludlow,” she said, wiping at her runny nose. She listened to the caller for a few moments before hanging up. The reprieve was over.

ALTHOUGH MOST OF FINA’S CASES CAME THROUGH LUDLOW AND ASSOCIATES, she didn’t have a dedicated space at the firm. She used conference rooms and empty offices on the premises as needed, but she preferred to meet clients—especially potential clients—on their own turf or at least a turf of their choosing. She learned a lot about people from their environments and how they interacted with them. That’s why she was happy to meet her caller from the day before at Mass General Hospital, despite her general dislike of hospitals. At the ICU reception desk, she encountered an administrator who could have blocked for the Patriots, so advanced were her skills. “Who are you here to see?” She peered at Fina. “Liz Barone.” That wasn’t strictly the truth, but, oh well. “Are you family?” “I’m her cousin.” The receptionist printed out an ID badge, which Fina affixed to her jacket. She gave Fina a stern lecture that cell phone use was not allowed and pointed her to a small waiting room. The space overlooked an inner courtyard, and although the windows promised natural light, it was nearly impossible to see the sky given the size of the building. Across the courtyard, hallways and rooms were brightly illuminated, offering a montage of hospital life. Fina took off her coat, stuffing her gloves and scarf into her pockets before taking a seat in a straight-backed chair. A woman of about forty was lying on a sofa wrapped in a thin blanket. She appeared to be sleeping, but every couple of minutes, she would toss and turn on the unforgiving couch. A Japanese family occupied the chairs opposite Fina. They were deep in conversation, their voices low but insistent. Rather than contemplate the personal disasters that had brought her roommates to this place, Fina scanned the landscape across the way. In one room, a man sat up in bed, eating off a tray, his eyes trained on the TV mounted on the wall. A woman sat in a chair next to him, flipping through a magazine. Another room held half a dozen people, their smiling faces amongst a sea of flowers and balloons. Fina pondered the vista offered by the waiting room. It seemed cruel to force devastated family members to gaze upon others’ more mundane, joyful recoveries. Fifteen minutes later, Fina was thoroughly engrossed in a CNN story about national tortilla chip day when a woman entered the room. She was dressed in street clothes rather than medical attire. “Ms. Ludlow?” Fina stood and offered her hand. “Yes. Are you Mrs. Barone?” “Call me Bobbi.” Her handshake was firm, but her skin felt dry. “There’s a meeting room that we can use.” Fina followed her down the hallway, trying not to stare at the occupants of the glass fronted rooms. In some cases, it was difficult to even see the patients amidst the medical equipment. Machines and endless tubes and cords snaked around the beds that seemed as large and as complicated as luxury sedans. Each room boasted a dedicated nursing station right outside its door. The level of care and attention was extraordinary. If you had to be in critical condition, this was the place to do it. In the hallway, a uniformed Boston Police officer sat on a chair, flipping through the Herald. Bobbi led her to a small nondescript room with a round table and four chairs. There was a poster on the wall about patients’ rights and another extolling the virtues of hand washing, but little attempt had been made to decorate or warm up the space. If you were sitting in this room meeting with doctors, the life of your loved one was in serious peril. No one was going to pretend otherwise. “Do you want some coffee? Water?” Bobbi asked. “No, thank you, but can I get you something?” Fina sat down across from her. “I should have offered to bring in some food. I know that hospital food can get old fast.” “I haven’t felt like eating. This is the most successful diet I’ve ever been on.” She gave a wan smile. Bobbi Barone looked to be in her sixties with short, dark brown hair, and a complexion that was more olive than fair. She was very attractive, with smooth skin and lovely teeth. Her face was round, but not chubby, and her features were delicate. Fina guessed she was about SuspenseMagazine.com

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SPECIAL PREVIEW FROM INGRID THOFT

five feet five inches and carried a bit of extra weight evenly throughout her body. A modest diamond ring and wedding band encircled her left ring finger. “Is Liz’s husband going to join us?” Fina asked. “He’s getting some coffee, but we can start without him.” Bobbi squeezed her hands together as if trying to warm them. The ICU was chilly, which brought to Fina’s mind a morgue. “So what can I do for you?” Fina asked, pulling a notebook out of her bag. She had a tablet computer with her, but she still liked pen and paper when conducting interviews. Bobbi took a deep breath. “I don’t know if you’ve been reading the papers, but my daughter was attacked a couple of days ago.” “I did see that.” Fina had only glanced at the item in Friday’s paper, but had gone back and read all the coverage after Bobbi called her. Liz Barone, a thirty-eight year old married mother of two, was attacked in her home in Hyde Park. She’d suffered a major head injury, and her prognosis was uncertain. “How is she?” “She’s in bad shape. She suffered a subdural hematoma,” Bobbi gestured toward her head, “and there’s a lot of bleeding in the brain.” “Is there anything they can do?” “They’re considering surgery to relieve the pressure, but we’ll have to see.” “I’m so sorry,” Fina said. “What can I do for you?” “Well,” Bobbi said. “I want to know who did it.” “Of course.” Fina paused. “I assume the police are investigating?” Bobbi nodded. “Which division is handling the case?” Fina asked. “Major Crimes.” Fina felt a mixture of relief and dread. Lieutenant Marcy Pitney was the head of major crimes and Fina’s sometime nemesis. Detective Cristian Menendez was also a member of the unit. He was Fina’s good friend and sometime date. “Lieutenant Pitney?” Fina asked. “Yes. Do you know her?” Bobbi looked searchingly at Fina. The woman was desperate for a shred of hope. “I do, and she’s an excellent detective, as are her colleagues. I’m not sure what I can do for you that they can’t.” “I don’t mean to question their skills, but there are only so many hours in the day, and they have so many cases. I want someone who’s focused only on Liz.” Fina had heard this before. Clients generally trusted the police, but they couldn’t accept their limited resources in terms of manpower. Like most things, if you were willing to throw money at a problem you got more—though not necessarily better—results. “Okay. Well, tell me about your daughter.” “She’s married with two kids and works in a lab at New England University.” “Has anything unusual happened in her life recently? Has anyone threatened her or has she been engaged in any conflict you can think of?” Bobbi shook her head. “The only thing that’s different is the lawsuit, but I can’t imagine that has anything to do with it.” “What lawsuit?” Fina asked just as the door swung open. A man in faded jeans and a black pullover sweater walked in and dropped down into a chair. He rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. “This is Liz’s husband,” Bobbi said. “Jamie Gottlieb.” Fina extended her hand. “Sorry to meet under such difficult circumstances.” “I was just telling Fina about the lawsuit,” Bobbi explained. Jamie made a gesture indicating she should continue. Fina listened and studied him at the same time. She’d done some preliminary research on Jamie in preparation for the meeting. He was a project manager at a local interactive firm, but most of the information Fina found online was related to his band. Jamie was the guitarist for the group, which had enjoyed modest success in the 90’s, but seemed largely inactive these days. They were called Wells Missionary, a name that made no sense to Fina, but was probably an ironic reference to art and the capitalist machinery. Jamie was trim with longish brown hair that dipped down toward his eyes. He wasn’t traditionally handsome, but with his square jaw and hazel eyes, he looked slightly tortured, which for some reason was often a draw to the opposite sex. Sitting across from him, Fina could imagine he attracted the ladies when armed with a guitar. “Liz was working with an attorney,” Bobbi continued. “She was going to sue New England University.” “Why?” Fina asked. Jamie studied his fingernails.

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“She played soccer there when she was a student, and she’s developed health problems. She thinks they’re related to her time on the team.” “What kind of problems?” Fina thought she knew what was coming next, but she wanted to hear it from Bobbi. “Cognitive health issues. MCI to be exact.” MCI was mild cognitive impairment, the diagnosis most often given to athletes who suffered sports-related concussions. It was the affliction that so many NFL players were contending with, and although mild was part of the name, the impairment could be devastating. “I’m familiar with MCI. What sort of symptoms was she experiencing?” “I don’t see how this is relevant,” Jamie interjected. He bared his teeth in a look between a smile and a grimace. “This has nothing to do with her current situation.” “We don’t know that, Jamie,” his mother-in-law insisted. “This is a waste of time, Bobbi. No offense,” he said to Fina. “None taken. What do you think happened?” “I have no idea, but the world is full of crazy people. Liz didn’t have any enemies. This had to have been random. She probably opened the door to the wrong person.” “That doesn’t make any sense, Jamie,” Bobbi said. “I know you want to do whatever you can, but I don’t see how hiring her,” he gestured at Fina, “is going to help.” “I don’t expect you to pay for it,” Bobbi said, a touch of irritation creeping into her voice. “That’s not what I meant,” Jamie said. Fina knew that some people didn’t like the idea of an investigator snooping into their lives while some people were more private than others. Then there was the group that actually had something to hide. Fina wondered which category Jamie occupied. “I want to get back to Liz,” he said and rose from his seat. “Do what you think is best,” he said to his mother-in-law before leaving the room. The two women sat in silence for a moment. “I’m sorry,” Bobbi said. “We’re under a lot of stress, and clearly, he doesn’t want to hire you.” “Why is that, do you think?” Fina asked. Bobbi tipped her head back and studied the ceiling. “Jamie tends to take the path of least resistance in life. Right now he doesn’t have the energy or the emotional resources to do more than sit by Liz’s bedside.” “But you do? You still want me to investigate?” She met Fina’s gaze. “Absolutely. She’s my child. I’d do anything for her.” “What about Liz’s father? Is he in the picture?” “My husband died five years ago. Thank God for small favors; this would have killed him.” Fina stashed her notebook in her bag and pulled out her business card. “Do you have an email address?” Bobbi nodded. “I’ll send you my rate information, and I’ll get started as soon as you say the word,” Fina said. Bobbi folded her hand around the card, as if it were a talisman. “I’ll want to speak with you again—and Jamie. I’ll try not to irritate him too much.” “Good luck with that,” Bobbi murmured. “I’ll also need the contact info for the attorney Liz was working with. He’ll be a good place to start.” “He’s in Natick. Thatcher Kinney.” She laced her hands together. “You don’t think I’m wrong about the lawsuit being an issue?” Fina stood. “I don’t know, but it represents a change in your daughter’s routine and contacts. It would be foolish to dismiss it without taking a closer look.” “Thank you,” Bobbi stood and gave Fina a hug. It wasn’t the usual way her meetings ended, but this was an unusual circumstance. Bobbi Barone needed a hug, and Fina was happy to oblige. “Hang in there,” Fina said, after pulling away. “I am. By a thread.” In the hallway, Fina headed for the exit, and Bobbi went in the opposite direction, presumably toward her daughter’s room. Fina hit the button that unsealed the hermetically sealed unit and took a deep breath once the doors closed behind her. That medical purgatory gave her the creeps. ■ From “Brutality” by Ingrid Thoft, published on June 23, 2015 by G.P. Putnam’s Sons, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. Copyright (2015) by Ingrid Thoft


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Forensic Files

Q&A: WILL A DECAYING CORPSE ACTUALLY PRODUCE ALCOHOL?

By D.P. Lyle, MD Press Photo Credit: Provided by Author

Q: Is it possible or likely for blood-alcohol levels to increase or decrease in a decomposing body, and if so, during what stages of decomposition?

A:

Alcohol is usually consumed in the decay process but may actually be produced and this might cloud any toxicological examinations on the corpse—make it look as if the victim consumed more alcohol than he actually did. I must point out that alcohol is not commonly produced but it does happen in rare cases. The alcohol is a byproduct of the action of some types of bacteria that are involved in the decay process. This means that alcohol can only appear during active decay. What is that time period? A little about putrefaction: The decomposition of the human body involves two distinct processes: autolysis and putrefaction. Autolysis is basically a process of self-digestion. After death, the enzymes within the body’s cells begin the chemical breakdown of the cells and tissues. As with most chemical reactions the process is hastened by heat and slowed by cold. Putrefaction is the bacterially mediated destruction of the body’s tissues. It is this decay that might cause some alcohol formation. Not always, but sometimes. The responsible bacteria mostly come for the intestinal tract of the deceased, though environmental bacteria and yeasts contribute in many situations. Bacteria thrive in warm, moist environments and become sluggish in colder climes. Freezing will stop their activities completely. A frozen body will not undergo putrefaction until it thaws. Under normal temperate conditions, putrefaction follows a known sequence. During the first twenty-four hours, the abdomen takes on a greenish discoloration which spreads to the neck, shoulders, and head. Bloating follows. This is due to the accumulation of gas, a byproduct of the action of bacteria, within the body’s cavities and skin. This swelling begins in the face where the features swell and the eyes and tongue protrude. The skin will then begin to “marble.” This is a web-like pattern of the blood vessels over the face, chest, abdomen, and extremities. This pattern is green-black in color and is due to the reaction of the blood’s hemoglobin with hydrogen sulfide. As gasses continue to accumulate, the abdomen swells and the skin begins to blister. Soon, skin and hair slippage occur and the fingernails begin to slough off. By this stage, the body has taken on a greenish-black color. The fluids of decomposition (purge fluid) will begin to drain from nose and mouth. This may look like bleeding from trauma, but is due to extensive breakdown of the body’s tissues. The rate at which this process occurs is almost never “normal” because conditions surrounding the body are almost never “normal.” Both environmental and internal body conditions alter this process greatly. Obesity, excess clothing, a hot and humid environment, and the presence of sepsis may speed this process so that twenty-four hours make it seem as if five or six days have passed. Sepsis is particularly destructive to the body. Not only would the body temperature be higher at

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death, but also the septic process would have spread bacteria throughout the body. In this case, the decay process would begin quickly and in a widespread fashion. A septic body that is dead for only a few hours may appear as if it has been dead for several days. As opposed to the above situations, a thin, unclothed corpse lying on a cold surface with a cool breeze would follow a much slower decomposition process. Very cold climes may slow the process so much that even after several months, the body appears as if it has been dead only a day or two. Freezing will protect the body from putrefaction if the body is frozen before the process begins. Once putrefaction sets in, even freezing the body may not prevent its eventual decay. If frozen quickly enough, the body may be preserved for years. So, whether a particular corpse actually produces alcohol or not is totally unpredictable. How long it takes depends upon the conditions the corpse is exposed to. In a corpse in an enclosed garage in Houston in August, this process will be very rapid and the corpse will be severely decayed after forty-eight hours. If parked in a snow bank in Minnesota in February, the decay process might not even begin until April or May when the spring thaw occurs. The appearance of any alcohol would coincide with the time frame of the bacterial activity. So how does the ME get around this possibility? How can he determine the actual alcohol level that was present prior to the decay process kicking in? He can’t with any absolute accuracy, but he does have a tool that will help him make a best guess. He can extract the vitreous humor, the jelly-like fluid that fills the eyeballs. The alcohol level within this fluid matches that of the blood with about a two-hour delay. That is, the level within the vitreous at any given time reflects the blood alcohol level that was present approximately two hours earlier. And the vitreous is slow to decay so it might be intact even though the corpse is severely decayed. By measuring the vitreous level, the ME will know the blood-alcohol level two hours prior to death and he can then estimate the bloodalcohol level at the time of death. ■ D. P. Lyle is the Macavity and Benjamin Franklin Silver Award winning and Edgar, Agatha, Anthony, Scribe, and USA Best Book Award nominated author of many non-fiction books as well as numerous works of fiction, including the Samantha Cody thriller series; the Dub Walker thriller series, and the Royal Pains media tie-in novels. To learn more about D.P., check out his websites at http://www.dplylemd.com, http:// writersforensicsblog.wordpress.com, or Crime and Science Radio at http://crimeandscienceradio.com.


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Take a Journey With...

CHRISTINE CARBO

Interview by Suspense Magazine Press Photo Credit: Provided by Author

Christine Carbo is a debut author that places her characters in a stunning locale. Her first book, “The Wild Inside” (June 2015/ Atria Books), is a haunting crime novel set in Glacier National Park, where one man finds himself on a collision course with the dark heart of the wild, and the even darker heart of human nature. From her background in aviation and travel to her love of writing, Christine is a fresh, creative mind that has offered up a thrilling read, and has started on a path that promises even more incredible stories in the future for all the crime fiction lovers out there. Suspense Magazine (S. MAG.): As a debut author, what has been the most exciting thing for you when it came to your writing being “discovered” so to speak?

Christine Carbo (C.C.): Putting one’s creative work out to the world can make one feel very vulnerable, and I always sensed that if and when I was signed, that it would be the boost of confidence that would be the most important and exciting for me. It turns out that is true to a large degree and, in fact, I was over the moon when my agent was selling “The Wild Inside” because I had offers from two major publishers, which was more than I ever imagined. But ultimately, as cliché as this may sound, the most exciting thing for me has been getting that first real reader—the reader not needed for edits or feedback or reviews, but the reader who simply writes a letter to you because they feel inspired to do so. Mine came from someone who received one of my galleys in a random give-away, and she

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“I was able to write about the place I love the most: the evocative and commanding Glacier Park.” loved the story. The level of satisfaction and excitement to finally have that first real reader provide unsolicited comments was well worth all the hardships an aspiring author goes through to get that first work out there! S. MAG.: You received your private pilot’s license and went on to attend Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, AZ. How and when did it come about that you turned your focus to writing? C.C.: I was raised in a family with two aviation buffs: my father who flies as a hobby, and one of my older brothers who is a pilot for United Airlines. I earned my private pilot’s license and spent some time at Embry-Riddle, but realized that it was the humanities classes that I was enjoying more than the aeronautics and business aviation classes. I remember spending more time writing a paper on a Doris Lessing short story in one of my classes, than studying for a meteorology exam the next day. So although I enjoyed flying, I switched gears and pursued a degree in the humanities, ending up with a degree in Communication Arts with a Radio/TV emphasis, and later, a Master’s degree in Linguistics. Somewhere along the way I gave into my true passion: writing. My grandmother wrote and published seven novels, most of them YA, so I have that in my family history. S. MAG.: How has your extensive travel background helped with putting together the plot of “The Wild Inside?” C.C. I think the more global perspective one gains from traveling and seeing other people and places is always helpful for any type of writing, but I can’t say anything in particular helped me with the plot of “The Wild Inside.” So much of it came from my experience of living close to the stunning, and sometimes haunting, Glacier Park, and the research I did to understand how local law enforcement deals with land shared by a particular county and the federal government. S. MAG.: Have you been a fan of the suspense genre for a long time? If so, are there any specific writers you follow? C.C.: I came to crime fiction after reading a Dennis Lehane mystery in my early thirties. I remember being taken with his ability to write poignantly while still propelling the story forward through the ‘whodunit’ aspect. It was then I realized I was going to love crime fiction, and since then, I have. Most of my spare reading is in the genre. Although there is no one in particular that I am following at this point, I can say that some of my favorites, besides Lehane, have been Tana French, Tom Franklin, Donna Tartt, Daniel Woodrell, Mo Hayder, Michael Connolly, and William Kent Krueger. My tastes vary, but I do admit I possess a love of the lyrical and lean towards the darker side. S. MAG: What comes next? Are there other genres you wish to explore in the future? C.C.: I have already written and turned in the second novel to my editor and will soon be in the process of revising it, while simultaneously doing events for “The Wild Inside” and beginning work on a third novel. The second book will also feature Glacier National Park, and in some ways, readers will feel like it is a series, since Glacier–practically its own character–continues on, even though both novels can stand alone.


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S. MAG.: Highlighting the National Park—the beauty and splendor of the location, and the tight-knit community— do you find this setting more exciting than the big city life? C.C.: I don’t necessarily find it more exciting. In fact, when I originally set out to write a crime thriller, I was concerned that when it came to “writing what you know,” I didn’t live in a dynamic, bustling city that exposed me to enough interesting criminal elements to pull off crime fiction. But, when I really began to pay attention to the area I live in and love, I began to see that it was full of interesting contrasts in terms of economic and environmental issues. And as far as crime goes, well…there’s plenty of that no matter where you go, and my neck of the woods has no shortage. The rural setting turned out to be a perfect match for my characters. Not only was I able to use the natural conflict of communities plagued by unemployment and sometimes drugs, and of small towns nestled within the wonders and dangers the wilderness has to offer, I was able to write about the place I love the most: the evocative and commanding, Glacier Park. It became almost a living, breathing character, and in my protagonist’s mind, the park became his antagonist. In some ways, Glacier Park, both glorious and savage, is the “star” of the book. S. MAG.: Are you a sit-down-and-write author, or a think it through/map it out before beginning, author? C.C.: It can certainly be tricky for me, and sometimes I think I should enroll in acting classes to better help me find tools for getting into the minds of certain characters. But, at some point in the process, you begin to relinquish some control and let a creative energy or ‘muse’ channel through you. For me, this part happens when I find my stride, and has less to do with whether I outline or write from the seat of my pants and more to do with sitting my butt down to get it done. E.L. Doctorow claimed that: “Writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” I find this an apt metaphor for my process. I am not a highly organized person, and do not produce clean and detailed outlines, but I do like to brainstorm a bit before beginning so that when I forge ahead, I have some idea of which direction I’m going in. S. MAG.: What is the best advice you’ve received thus far in your burgeoning career? C.C.: One time I told my sixteen-year-old son that I wondered if I would be able to pull off crime fiction since I’d never worked in the field, nor have I read a ton of it growing up. He said, “Mom, isn’t that what most people in all jobs, in all endeavors, do when they begin something they’re still new at? Don’t they just prepare themselves as much as they can, then dive in and do their best?” It was such a simple answer, and it made me feel much better about being a rookie in the crime fiction realm with still much to learn. S. MAG: Where do you see yourself in ten years? C.C.: I’m just getting started, and would love to continue writing in the crime fiction genre for years to come. The genre seems to allow for many different directions for authors to take. It’s wonderful that authors like Tess Gerritsen have written medical thrillers, romantic suspense, detective novels and stand-alone thrillers, such as “Gravity.” I find it refreshing that there are many ways to write suspense and that there aren’t as many rules as we sometimes think. S. MAG.: If you could have lunch with one author, who would it be, and why? C.C.: Oh my, tough question! There are so many to choose from, and even selecting between fiction and non-fiction writers would be tough. There are those who are fascinated with human sin and fallibility, like Nabokov, or even Nathaniel Hawthorne. I was always struck by how dark and disturbed some of Hawthorne’s characters were and how he was interested in motive and deep, psychological complexities. I bet his curiosity would lead him to write intriguing crime fiction if he were alive today. But lunch…? Maybe Steven King or JK Rowling would be more fun! To learn more about Christine Carbo, please visit: www.ChristineCarbo.com. ■

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In the Garden Kayleigh always came back. I told that to the two cops; the big, friendly one with the gap-toothed smile, his blond hair shaved to a stubble, and the older, black one with acne scars on his cheeks who constantly chewed spearmint gum and didn’t say much. Sure, we sometimes fought like cats and dogs and she’d storm off, proclaiming that she was “done with my lazy ass for good this time,” but she always came back. “I know how that is, son. Women love drama even more than they love shopping,” the friendly one said, smiling his gap-toothed grin. He pushed the can of soda that I’d asked for toward me across the metal table in the little room. It was good and cold, the sides of the can beaded with drops of condensation. I popped the top and took a long drink. The room had a mirror on one wall that I knew from watching crime shows wasn’t a mirror at all but a piece of one-way glass, behind which someone (or more than one someone) was probably observing me. The big cop asked me to go over it again for him and Sargent Woodhouse, if I didn’t mind, beginning with: “When was the last time you saw her?” So I went over it again. The fight we’d had that Friday night was over something utterly ridiculous. Our fights were frequently over trivial things, like who neglected to refill the water in the Keurig, or who left the banana peel on the kitchen sink. This one fight erupted over the burning issue of which way the toilet paper should go in the wall holder in the bathroom of our cramped little apartment: facing out, toward the toilet and the person seated; or inward, toward the wall. I insisted that it should go facing out. Kayleigh had taken the opposing position in the “Great Toilet Paper Debate of 2015.” The argument had rapidly become heated and accusations flew. She called me a “lazy piece of shit who needed to get a real job.” I called her a “controlling bitch who wouldn’t be happy until I was chained to a desk, like her dad.” I believe I

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By Jill Hand

may also have informed her that it was at times like these that she reminded me of her mother, a dreadful harridan who chain-smoked Kools and had an uncanny resemblance to Hermann Göring, both in appearance and in temperament. The fight culminated in Kayleigh hurling the roll of toilet paper at the bathroom wall, where it rebounded and splashed into the toilet. Grabbing her backpack, she exited the premises. That was eight days ago. I hadn’t seen her since. This was the third time the cops had asked me to come down to the station and go over her disappearance. I was getting tired of telling the same story over and over. “Where do you think she went?” asked the black cop, Woodhouse, exhaling spearmint fumes in my direction. I said, I didn’t know. When she hadn’t come home by Sunday night, I called around to all her friends asking if they’d seen her. They hadn’t. Next, I called the restaurant where she worked part-time and asked if anyone there had seen her. No one had. Reluctantly, I then called her parents’ house. Her mother answered the phone and said Kayleigh hadn’t been there. She seemed pleased when I told her we’d had an argument. “I’ll certainly tell her to call you if she turns up here,” she said sweetly, leaving no doubt in my mind that she intended to do nothing of the sort. “She didn’t take her car. It’s still parked in front of your building,” the friendly cop observed. His name was Van Horn, I now remembered, the same as my eighth-grade homeroom teacher. He asked if I thought she might have gotten a ride from someone. Kayleigh wasn’t in the habit of accepting rides from strangers, but she may have gone off with someone she knew, possibly someone from school. She was in her senior year of college, studying to become a special education teacher. It was where we’d met. I’d dropped out when I became bored by my political science classes and disenchanted with the idea of


furthering my education with another boring, grueling, and expensive four years of law school. While trying to decide what to do next, I helped my Uncle Pete, who went around to estate sales, looking for valuable antiques that were being offered for sale at bargain basement prices by the unwitting relatives of the deceased. He’d poke through a cluster of odds and ends laid out on a picnic table in somebody’s garage and come up with a dusty china figurine of a grinning monkey wearing a sailor hat. He’d say, “My sister’s little girl would like this. How much do you want for it?” The person running the sale would hesitantly ask for ten dollars, which Pete would bargain down to five, all the while knowing full well that the funnylooking monkey was eighteenth-century Meissen porcelain that would sell for about three thousand dollars in one of the fancy antiques stores in the city. Uncle Pete was what was called a “picker”—a middleman who sold what he bought at a fat profit to antiques dealers, who subsequently sold what they bought from him at an even fatter profit. I was learning a lot from Uncle Pete. I thought that maybe someday I’d start an antiques business of my own. Kayleigh thought that was a terrible idea. She hated my uncle, whom she disdainfully called “Picker Pete,” and begrudged the time I spent with him. My lack of what she called a “real” job was a major source of friction between us. “What happened after she left?” Van Horn asked. I’d already told them that I watched TV and went to bed, but I told them again that I watched an episode of a reality show called Carnies, about a feuding, dissolute family of carnival workers. In that Friday’s episode, Jayde tries to make funnel cakes for the first time and breaks the funnel cake fryer. Then she and her brother, the one they call Full Moon because he’s always dropping his pants and mooning people, go out to a bar where a guy hits on Jayde and he and Full Moon get into a fight. “I watch that show,” Van Horn said. “I like the one they call Uncle Daddy. He’s a real piece of work.” He turned to Woodhouse. “Do you ever watch Carnies, Al?” Woodhouse shook his head. Van Horn asked what happened the next morning. I said I got up early, 6 a.m., and went to meet Uncle Pete. We took his van and went to a diner for breakfast, then started hitting yard sales, getting there early just as people were setting up. We went to six or seven yard sales, and three estate sales that were advertised in the local paper. We unloaded the stuff Pete bought at one of his storage lockers (he rented several) and then returned to his house at around five. It might have been closer to six, I wasn’t sure. He counted off two hundred dollars from the thick roll of bills wrapped in a rubber band that he carries in his hip pocket, paid me, and I took off for home. Uncle Pete lives out in the country. As I drove home, my


car started acting up. It did that sometimes. The thermostat would gradually creep into the red and the car would start bucking and sputtering. When that happened, I’d pull over and wait until the engine cooled down before continuing on my way. I meant to get it looked at, but I hadn’t gotten around to it. The place where I pulled over was on a narrow county lane overhung with large, old trees so that it was almost like driving through a leafy green tunnel. A disused canal ran along one side, the water brown and stagnant. There was no other traffic and it started to rain lightly. The sound of rain pattering on the car roof made me sleepy. I hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before, having awakened several times thinking I’d heard Kayleigh come in. I pushed the seat back, closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep. I awoke to the sound of someone tapping on my window. It was a woman who looked to be a few years older than me, her red hair tied up in a bright blue bandana, like the woman flexing her arm on the familiar World War II poster that reads: “We Can Do It!” Rosie the Riveter, I think she’s called. I have a thing for redheads. Kayleigh’s hair is sort of a brownish-auburn, but this woman’s hair was fiery red. She had big blue eyes and a cute smattering of freckles across the bridge of her nose. Her denim overalls were caked with mud. Her hands and arms were muddy, too. She smiled brightly at me as I blinked drowsily at her, still half asleep. I rolled down the window. “I saw you parked out here. Do you need help?” she asked. I told her my car was acting up. “Do you want to come in and use my phone to call a tow truck or something? I live right over there,” she said, pointing. The roof of a house was visible behind a high privet hedge to our right. It was getting dark. There were no streetlights and no sign of any other houses. I told her it wouldn’t be necessary; the engine just needed to cool down. “It’s not very comfortable sitting out here. Why don’t you come in and I’ll make us some ice tea or something. I was working in the garden and I’m pretty thirsty. I could use some company.” The way she said it made me think there might be more than a glass of ice tea to the offer. She was pretty, and I was single (at least, temporarily) so why not take her up on her invitation and see what developed? I said I’d love a cold drink. “Great! I’ve got some brandy and there’s ginger ale in the fridge. If you want, I can make horse’s necks.” I said that sounded fine. I got out of the car and followed her through an opening in the hedge, up a flagstone walk that cut through a well-tended lawn with flowerbeds planted with rose bushes to the front door of a cottage that had wooden fish-scale shingles painted a buttery yellow. She opened the

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door and ushered me into the living room. “I’d shake hands, but I’m all muddy,” she said smiling. “I’m Milly, short for Mildred, by the way. And would you believe it? My last name is Pierce, isn’t that a riot?” I must have looked confused because she added, “Like in the movie? With Joan Crawford?” Aha! The wire-hangar lady. I told her my name was Sam Hurley. She said to have a seat on the divan while she freshened up; she’d only be a minute. I looked around while I waited. She had some nice antiques, including a Biedermeier bookcase and matching desk that Uncle Pete would love to get his hands on. She returned about ten minutes later bearing two tall glasses containing an amber liquid in which ice cubes clinked. Spirals of lemon peel were draped over the rims. Truth be told, I’d been hoping she’d be naked, or at the very least wearing only a robe, but she had on a blue and white striped cotton sundress that set off her tan nicely. It had a wide skirt that came down to her calves, which could best be described as shapely. Her hair was down over her shoulders in loose waves and she wore dark red lipstick. She looked absolutely gorgeous, and I told her so. “Why, thank you, kind sir,” she said, handing me a glass and raising hers in a toast. “Here’s to new friends.” “To new friends,” I echoed, and took a drink. It tasted good. I asked her, “What’s this called?” “I told you, it’s a horse’s neck. Haven’t you ever had one before?” I said I hadn’t and drained my glass. I was thirstier than I’d realized. “Let me get you another,” she said, and went out of the room, presumably to the kitchen. In the approximately ten hours that I spent in her house I saw only two rooms: the living room and the bedroom. She returned with another drink and then another. After that, I lost count. “You slept with her,” Woodhouse said. He didn’t seem judgmental; he was just stating a fact. Just the facts, ma’am, I thought, suppressing a grin. Now that I thought of it, the solemn Woodhouse reminded me of Joe Friday in Dragnet, as portrayed by the late, great Jack Webb. He even looked a little like a darker version of Jack Webb. I wondered if anyone had ever told him that. I admitted that I’d slept with Milly Pierce. Kayleigh and I weren’t engaged, although we were officially in a relationship according to our Facebook status, which I suppose is 21st century America’s version of the medieval custom of handfasting. What can I say about my night with Milly? It was magical and wonderful. Unlike a lot of redheads, her only freckles were the ones scattered across the bridge of her nose and a few cinnamon-colored ones on her tanned shoulders. She was long and lean and lovely, and we took our time savoring

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each another. At one point, she lightly touched my chest and asked where I’d gotten the scratches. I hadn’t noticed them before. I suppose they came from helping Uncle Pete load an unwieldy neoclassical Second Empire sideboard into his van. (A sideboard that he assured the lady who was selling her dead grandmother’s possessions came from Sears.) “I’ll kiss them and make them all better,” said Milly, bending down from where she sat astride me and doing exactly that. I awoke the next morning in the front seat of my car. The sun was coming up and I had a rotten headache. I dimly remembered Milly walking me to the car and giving me a lingering kiss. “Goodbye, lover. Drive safely,” she said. Did I feel guilty? A little, but Kayleigh didn’t need to know about this. And she had been pretty mean to me. It served her right that I’d spent the night in another woman’s bed. Van Horn spoke up. “What do you say we drive you out there so we can talk to her in order to verify your whereabouts that night? Would that be okay with you, Sam?” I said it would be okay, although I’d rather Kayleigh didn’t find out about it when she came back from wherever she’d taken herself off to. Van Horn nodded his head and gave me a wink. “Gotcha. We won’t tell her. We just need to cover all the bases, you know?” I agreed, although I didn’t see how talking to Milly would help find Kayleigh, who was probably off sulking somewhere, hoping to throw a scare into me. I was looking forward to seeing Milly again, even if it was in the company of the police. Who knows, if Kayleigh decided to call it quits, maybe Milly and I could become a steady thing. Feeling hopeful, I accompanied Woodhouse and Van Horn to a patrol car and we set out toward her place. Van Horn drove and Woodhouse sat in the passenger seat. I was in the back, behind a screen of wire mesh. “How do you like riding back there, Sam?” Van Horn asked, studying me in the rearview mirror when we were stopped at a traffic light. “Do you feel like a bad guy?” “I ain’t talking, copper,” I sneered, doing my best James Cagney imitation. Van Horne and Woodhouse laughed. “Look out, we got us a badass on our hands,” Woodhouse remarked. We found the road where Milly lived without too much trouble. It looked different in the bright daylight. The big trees still formed a tunnel overhead and the canal ran along on the left, but now there were joggers and bicyclists on the towpath. The last time I was here there hadn’t been a soul around. There were more houses than I’d noticed before. I watched for the privet hedge in front of Milly’s house and almost missed it. It was a lot thicker and higher than I remembered. “Over here is where I parked,” I told the two cops. Van


Horne pulled the patrol car over to the shoulder. “This is it, huh? Let’s go in and talk to the lady,” he said. Woodhouse opened the door and let me out. He stretched, looking around. He said, “Looks like it’s for sale.” There was a FOR SALE sign next to the road. I was fairly certain it hadn’t been there before. We walked through a gap in the hedge and what I saw made me stop dead in my tracks. It was Milly’s house all right, but the yellow fish scale shingles were gone, replaced by grey vinyl siding. The windows were bare, the lawn was neglected and the house had a deserted look. There was something else that Woodhouse spotted at once: a pile of dirt covering what was unmistakably a freshly dug hole about six feet long. It’s a grave, I thought wonderingly. “Get him in the car,” Woodhouse barked. “Come with me, Mister Hurley,” Van Horne said, taking me firmly by the arm. I was no longer Sam; I had become Mister Hurley. That didn’t bode well. I didn’t understand what was happening. Was that really a grave? Had somebody killed Milly and buried her in her garden? Did the cops think I did it? They surely couldn’t think that, could they? It turned out that’s not what they thought. It was a grave, but Milly wasn’t in it: Kayleigh was. Her backpack was in there, too, containing her cell phone on which there were several increasingly frenzied voicemails from me asking where she was and when she was coming home. The police found a shovel caked with dirt in the trunk of my car. The dirt matched the dirt in the grave. Don’t ask me how they could tell. I guess they have ways of determining things like that. They also found bits of skin under Kayleigh’s fingernails that came from me. They said she’d clawed at my chest when I strangled her. I told them it wasn’t true. I’d never hurt Kayleigh, but they didn’t believe me. Uncle Pete got me a lawyer, a buddy of a friend of his. I took two polygraph tests, both of which indicated that I had no memory of killing Kayleigh. The polygraphs weren’t admissible in court, but that didn’t matter because I didn’t have a trial. My lawyer worked it so a judge found me incompetent to stand trial on the grounds of insanity. That’s about it. I’m in a prison for the mentally ill. My lawyer said my stay here is “indeterminate,” which I take to mean that I’ll probably be here for the rest of my life. I have a private cell, since my fellow inmates don’t take kindly to guys who refuse to acknowledge that they murdered their girlfriends. (It appears it’s perfectly acceptable to kill one’s girlfriend, the reasoning being that she brought it on herself, but it’s not okay to deny having any knowledge of it.) I don’t mind. I’m not lonely. Kayleigh comes to visit whenever the C.O.s aren’t around. I told her she shouldn’t be missing her


classes, but she says it’s okay; she wants to be with me. “I forgive you for squeezing my neck so hard,” she told me the first time she came. She seated herself next to me on the thin mattress of my bunk and gave me a hug. “I forgive you for sleeping with that woman, too,” she added. I said I was sorry we’d fought. I didn’t remember squeezing her neck. “You did,” she said, staring up at me with serious hazel eyes. “It was really scary but it doesn’t hurt anymore.” I said I was glad. I asked, “You want to hear something weird, about Milly?” Kayleigh frowned and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. She didn’t like me talking about Milly, but I went on. “She killed her husband back in 1949, buried him in the garden, probably right around where they found you.” My lawyer told me all about it. He even brought me copies of the old newspaper articles that described Milly’s late husband as a decorated war hero who had returned home, blind and minus his right arm as a result of being blown up by a Japanese landmine on some island in the South Pacific. According to the testimony at her trial, Milly got tired of caring for him and hit him over the head with a heavy vase, cracking his skull. She then dragged him out to the garden and buried him. Unfortunately for the late second lieutenant Roy Pierce, he was still alive when his wife tumbled him into his hastily dug grave. He managed to claw himself out part way with his remaining hand before finally succumbing to his head injury. The milkman discovered him the next morning. The news stories featured pictures of Milly in the courtroom, looking downcast and dressed sedately in a black dress with a white lace collar. Even in the old black and white photos you could tell she was something to look at. Her lawyer painted a picture of her husband being a mean-tempered alcoholic who’d attacked her, causing her to whack him over the head in self-defense, but the jury didn’t buy it. She was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to forty years in the Scarborough Women’s Reformatory. She died there in 1976 of pancreatic cancer. “Humpf. She doesn’t sound very nice,” Kayleigh said. “If she died in 1976, how come you saw her?” I said I had no idea. I didn’t believe in ghosts. Maybe I’d somehow stepped back into 1949 when I was parked there on the side of the road outside her house. She was awfully muddy, and she said she’d been working in the garden. Maybe she’d just finished burying her husband. “I don’t believe in ghosts either,” Kayleigh said firmly. She rose and kissed me. “I’ve got to go. Somebody’s coming.” I could hear jingling keys. It must be a C.O. coming to check on me. I turned to tell Kayleigh goodbye, but she was gone. That was okay, though. …Kayleigh always came back. ■

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The Black Bird

& The Chicago Kid

By Thomas B. Sawyer Press Photo Credit: Wylie Sawyer unny how stuff can sneak up on you. I was a youth when I first read Dashiell Hammett’s “The Maltese Falcon,” and therefore didn’t really understand its significant place in American literature. Nor did I have any notion of how deeply and pervasively it would affect my life and my professional career. Only now, upon reflection, have I become fully aware of this last. On one level, I simply enjoyed the hell out of the book. But some things about the story grabbed me in a special way—not least Hammett’s account of the Black Bird’s history, part fact, part fiction, that greatly heightened the romance of the fictional story—the possibility that the McGuffin everyone in the book was pursuing still existed somewhere in the real world. The mixing of a dollop (or maybe more?) of fact with fiction. Exciting stuff for a thirteen-year-old, growing up in Chicago’s not-very-exciting South Side. How much was real, and how much was Hammett’s creation? That question, plus Hammett’s vivid cast of characters and his terse, unembellished style, hooked me enough that I reread the novel. Over and over, at yearly or semi-yearly intervals. By age 20, I had read it at least eight times. And discovered something new each time. It never disappointed. Along the way, I read a lot of other books, including Hammett’s competition in the mystery genre, both old and new. And it gradually hit me that in many ways, Falcon differed from virtually all the mystery and detective fiction that had gone before—dramatically breaking the patterns set by Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes) and Agatha Christie (Miss Marple & Hercule Poirot, among others). It also became apparent that most of the mystery fiction written since was largely derivative-if-not-downright-imitative of “The Maltese Falcon,” with very little even close to equaling it. Of course there has been, and continues to be, some terrific writing done in the genre, but for me, while Raymond Chandler’s wonderful, literate Philip Marlowe novels came nearest, along with some newer contributions by Elmore Leonard and Donald Westlake, Falcon has never been surpassed. One of the ways Hammett’s paradigm novel was so singular was that, while it contained a murder mystery—Who killed Sam Spade’s partner, Miles Archer? (three murders, actually, the others being those of Captain Jacoby of the SS La Paloma, and tough guy Floyd Thursby)—it was surprisingly, for its time—and even today, a detective story that was not about clues or suspects. Another difference was that the tale took the reader on such a fascinating, entertaining journey through rascaland-double-cross country that one almost forgot the murder mystery part of it. In the end, Hammett delivered satisfying closure in the matter of Archer’s killer (and Jacoby’s and Thursby’s), but in truth we almost didn’t care, the rest of it being so thoroughly gripping, introducing us to such a variety of wonderful, skewed characters—especially his enigmatic hero, private eye Sam Spade, and the lying, seductive Brigid O’Shaughnessy, who was to

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BARBARA PETTY

A man plunges to his death, setting in motion a string of events that rips open the long-hidden secrets of the town’s most prominent family… The man is George Prentice, and the woman the police suspect of murdering him is his wife, Daphne. But Daphne has Alzheimer’s and has not been arrested. Daphne Daphne’s daughter, Thea Browne, is a trained investigative reporter, who is furious that the police haven’t bothered to look any further for a culprit other than her mother. She suspects her stepfather made enemies when meddling in local politics and, according to one of his cronies, George wrote a memoir threatening to “blow the lid off this town.” As Thea follows her own investigation, she discovers a widening circle of suspects, some much closer to home than she expected. Even her best friend from childhood, Annie Biggs, seems to be keeping a deep dark secret that she refuses to share with Thea. More murders push Thea to the point where protecting her mother forces her to put her own life on the line to track down a diabolical killer. FIRST IN A NEW SERIES: THEA BROWNE MYSTERY become the model female antagonist of novels and films noir for decades. The superb, classic movie version of The Maltese Falcon (Scr. & Dir. John Huston) is, by the way, almost scene-for-scene and word-for-word, Hammett’s book. When I was invited to write for the Murder, She Wrote TV series (Cr. William Link & Richard Levinson and Peter Fischer) before it went on the air, I was immediately thrilled by the prospect of writing for one of the world’s truly great actresses, Angela Lansbury. I asked Peter what kind of stories he planned to do. His response, delivered with a shrug: “I dunno—sort of, you know, Agatha Christie puzzle mysteries.” I pointed out to Peter that as a boy I had read a few Christies, plus a couple of locked-room mysteries by others, wherein the suspects were invariably gathered at the end in “the drawing room” or its equivalent, and they had bored the hell out of me. “I won’t write that kind of stuff.” “Okay—so what will you write?” “I’ll write “The Maltese Falcon.” ” Peter’s reply, without missing a beat, was, “That’ll be fine.” The cool thing—he knew exactly what I meant. And that’s what I wrote for the next twelve years, coming to realize that that approach was probably my signal contribution to the series—in effect a weekly play about a bunch of fascinating characters in conflict—in which a murder invariably happened. Without my becoming conscious of it for decades, Dashiell Hammett and “The Maltese Falcon” have profoundly influenced all of my writing, both pre-Murder, She Wrote, and since. Has my storytelling been shaped by other writers, other books? Of course. But I love having come to a fuller understanding of and appreciation for The Black Bird’s place in my life. It has always been for me, and still is, the Gold Standard. ■ Novelist, screenwriter, playwright, Thomas B. Sawyer was Showrunner/Head Writer of the classic CBS series, Murder, She Wrote, for which he wrote 24 episodes. He’s written TV movies, 9 network TV pilots, 100 episodes, on staff of 15 series. Edgar and Emmynominated, Tom wrote-directed-produced the cult feature Gosh Alice Goodbody. Co-librettist/lyricist of Jack, an opera about JFK, he’s taught writing at UCLA, now online at Screenwriters University, publishes Storybase software, and authored bestselling “Fiction Writing Demystified.” Tom’s latest thriller novel, “Cross Purposes,” (Suspense Publishing) is the first in a new series. Learn more at www. ThomasBSawyer.com. Suspense Publishing author Thomas B. Sawyer (CROSS PURPOSES) will be hosting a panel at THRILLERFEST 2015 in Manhattan on July 11, titled BERETTAS, BOMBS, OR BALLOONS? Choose Your Weapons. Tom’s fellow-panelists will include bestselling authors Bruce DeSilva, Brandt Dodson, John Gilstrap, Chris Grall, Leo J. Maloney and Keith Raffel.


19

The FACE at the

H

WINDOW

e always heard it before he saw it. The panting. The desperate, unceasing panting at the bathroom window. These days, he tried his best to ignore it. Tried not to look. If he pretended it wasn’t there, then it wouldn’t be. If he pretended it wasn’t there—got on with normal life and never turned to face the window, then it wouldn’t be. He’d be like everyone else, ignorant of its presence. Except it was there, and every night he would turn and look into the mad, rabid eyes, the wild grin, the hairless pale skin framed by hair the color of grave dirt. The face at the window. Its eyes never left him. It never looked anywhere else. And still it kept panting. Panting like a sick dog through teeth like marble headstones. It was a second floor window. He had checked the outside wall during the day; it was smooth red brick. There was no way someone could climb up there. The only handhold was the lip of the windowsill, itself. Yet that never seemed to stop it. It was back again that evening. He could hear the panting as he poured himself the first drink of the night. No matter where he was in the house, he could always hear it. Though it never turned up at any other window, he would always hear it. He dropped an ice cube into the glass and turned up the volume on the TV. It didn’t do anything to drown out the panting but it did, at least, give him something else to focus on. He stared at the flickering screen. The Lord of the Rings. Fantasy. As far away as possible. When he was a child he had had dreams of going off on a grand adventure like that, of stepping out the front door, pack in hand, and setting off across the world. He would see the pyramids, the Great Wall, America—all the glories that were out there—far away from here, and where the face could not follow. Reality put a stop to those dreams. Reality and alcohol. Wouldn’t have mattered anyway. The face always followed, no matter where he moved. He’d moved to countless houses, had gone all over the country and even changed continents on one occasion. He’d tried hotels, hostels, top-floor apartments. Yet every evening, as night came in, it would show up at the window. He remembered trying to tell people about it when he was a child. He had been diagnosed with night terrors, as he woke each night screaming. He would lie down in bed and see its eyes burned on the inside of his eyelids. They never

20

By Samuel Poots looked at anything else. The doctors were deaf, though. They didn’t hear the panting and they didn’t hear him when he said that the face had been there long before the night terrors had begun. ___ t seemed particularly loud that evening. He needed another drink. He got up from his chair, ignoring the battle between good and evil on the television, and reached for the decanter of alcohol. His hand knocked a framed photo and it fell to the carpeted floor with a thunk. He looked at it for a moment, lying face down, before going back over to the chair. They had left him, after all. They hadn’t seen it either. He could remember the fight even now. “There’s nothing there!” she had shouted, waving at the curtained bathroom window. He hadn’t said anything. He’d been too drunk at the time. “We can’t stay here anymore,” she had said. He could remember tears standing out on her cheeks. “I can’t have you…scaring the children anymore. Your drinking and your bogeyman, it has to stop!” She had said something else, but he couldn’t make out what it was. The panting had grown louder in his ears and he had begun fumbling for the hip flask he carried. Her eyes flew to the flask as he produced it and she let out a scream of pure rage. The flask was snatched and flung against the wall. Amber liquid dripping down onto porcelain tiles. “There’s nothing there!” She grabbed the curtains in one handful and tore them away from the window. But…the face was there. Its eyes were on him, ignoring her entirely. He fled. He fled and hid and didn’t come out until the sun of the next day had appeared in the bedroom window. By the time he emerged, they had gone. He had looked down at the Winnie the Pooh bed sheets and felt a gulf open up inside him. This…thing had haunted him his entire life. It had made his life a living hell. No one else could see it. No one else saw the horror of the face. Only him. ___ hat night, he sat in the bathroom and waited for night to fall. The curtain still lay on the floor, and he could see the sky darkening through the window. He waited for hours as the last rays of light faded. Only when the sky was completely black and the first stars had begun to appear did he hear that familiar panting. A pale hand came up first, its

I

T


black-nailed fingers gripping the windowsill. Then the face came into view, its eyes already on him. That was one of the worst things about it, he thought. It never looked for him, never searched the room. It was always looking right at him. The two looked at each other for a long time. Then he reached over and picked up the long handle of the broom. At one end he had taped the kitchen cleaver. He pushed the latch up on the window and swung it open. He thrust the make-shift halberd out the window, aiming right between the thing’s eyes. It dropped out of sight before he could make contact. The broom was yanked from his grip with such force that it left burns on the palms of his hands. He rushed forward and slammed the window closed, just as the face reappeared. It seemed unchanged, although the grin looked a bit wider to him. He slumped down against the bathroom wall, weighed down by utter defeat. He had tried to turn his life around then. He had started making an effort to go back to work. He had attended AA meetings and managed to clear all the drink out of his house. He even tried to contest for the custody of his children, though without much hope. But he never dared look at the face again, fitting heavier curtains and never looking in the window’s direction, even in daylight. It hadn’t lasted though. Eventually, the relentless panting, the unending reminder of its presence, had driven him back to the bottle. He never saw his children anymore. She had taken them far away. He’d learned a lot at AA, really he had. But he’d never learned the most important lesson, the serenity to accept what he couldn’t change. ___ he film had finished. So had the scotch. He’d meant to go out and buy more. He’d never sleep now, was nowhere near drunk enough. Hadn’t had enough to drown out its presence. He considered turning on another movie, but couldn’t really face the idea of staring at the screen anymore. Probably should try and sleep. Had work tomorrow. He’d managed to keep this job, at least. He stood at the foot of the stairs. The landing light was off, the darkness yawning above him. Each step up the stairs was like walking into an open gullet, the empty dark ready to swallow him whole, finally tired of taking fragments out of him bite by bite. His hand trailed against the wall until it encountered the light switch. Empty darkness fled, replaced by empty light that stung his eyes. The bedroom was the last door on the landing. Before that was the kids’ bedroom. His eyes skipped over it quickly. Then he found where the dark had fled to. Opposite that door was an opening, a patch of black where the landing light didn’t reach. He was sure he’d closed the bathroom door. He stood there, foot still on the stair. He could go back downstairs. Go back to the chair and his escapist films. He didn’t have to walk past that doorway. Didn’t have to walk past the face. Anger flared like cold, electric light. The face controlled him. It controlled him more than alcohol ever had. He had

T


blocked it out as best he could, defied it, shouted and tried to fight it. It had never laid a finger on him, yet it still managed to take, to corrupt, to spoil everything of value, to pervade his very existence. His hand shook as he reached for the light switch. A pair of yellow curtains, black mold beginning to speckle their floral design, hung opposite the door. Reaching out, he took them in both hands. He pulled. The cloth tore and fell, the curtain rail clattering loudly as it came away from the wall. He hadn’t expected that; the noise startled him and for a moment the fear grew stronger than the anger. Then…he looked into the eyes. It was watching him as it always did, eyes wide, skin pale, its mouth stretched into a death rictus grin. The sight of it dropped ice down his spine. The breath froze in his lungs and he had to fight down the urge to look away, to run back to his bed and his bottle. With arms like lead weights, he unlatched the window. The face’s eyes never left him, but he saw its hand reach up and push flat against the glass pane. The window swung in, letting in a cold blast of night air. For the first time he could remember, it looked away from him. Its eyes darted around the room. Then they returned to him and it began climbing in through the open portal. It was like watching a stop-motion nightmare. It pushed one lank arm in first, squeezing its shoulders through after. It oozed into the room, its limbs unnaturally long. Yet every motion was precisely controlled. Then it was there, crouching on the bathroom rug, grinning up at him as its chest heaved. “No one believes me,” he whispered. The face cocked its head to the left like a bird of prey. “You. You have always been there,” he said, pointing a quivering finger. “Always. You never let me have what I wanted from life. Nothing was mine. Well, now I’m letting you have what you want.” He threw his arms wide. “Here I am. Come and get me.” The creature didn’t move. “What are you waiting for? You have been at the window long enough, now you’re in. Come on!” Still nothing. Its panting grew louder in his ears, an interminable heaving that would not stop. “Why?” he said as his voice became a wail. “Why aren’t you killing me? Why?” He slumped down to the ground, back sliding down the wall. He looked up to find the eyes just inches from his own. It was crouching over him, balanced on all fours, its face pressed up close to his. He could feel its breath, a cold clammy sensation with no smell at all. Then its chest shook. A wheezing, wrenching laugh bubbled up. The noise filled the room, filled his world. He felt himself draining away, leaving nothing but cold despair. “Please,” he whispered. The face wheezed its rattling laugh. Outside…the sky began to lighten. ■

21

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Suspense Magazine Book Reviews

INSIDE THE PAGES

THE CORPSE IN THE CACTUS By Lonni Lees

Police Detective Maggie Reardon is alone again. Just when she thought she might have found Mr. Right her captain called her in and put the kibosh on the whole kit-and-caboodle. Rocco was, after all, a witness in the murder of the proprietor of the Mosaic Gallery, the case that she just solved. Sure, she has blown her chance at romance, but Reardon was delighted to find out that Rocco was willing to place a hiatus on their budding romance until the case went to trial. Buoyed with the notion that someone was willing to wait for her, she set out on the next grisly discovery, the body of a man found in the javelina pit at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. Always determined to send waves through the department, the newly minted female detective in the Tucson Police Department challenged the findings of the senior officer on duty, who wrote off the body as an accidental fall. When her leads show they had a victim with no identification, multiple state tag numbers in his trunk and no witnesses, she has her work cut out for her. By the time she puts together the unidentified body with an apparent runaway, skulking in a cheap south-side motel, she is able to help solve not just a missing persons case but prove the cold-blooded killing of the corpse in the cactus. Lees’ fact-filled little novellas, featuring Detective Maggie Reardon, are fast becoming a favorite read of mystery fans in the Old Pueblo as she features Tucson, Arizona. Reviewed by Mark P. Sadler, author of “Blood on His Hands” published by Suspense Publishing an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■


PIRANHA

By Clive Cussler and Boyd Morrison “Piranha” is the latest book released in Clive Cussler’s Oregon Files. This time Cussler changed course and brought in author Boyd Morrison to take the co-authoring reins. Morrison is known for his Tyler Locke series and his writing fits perfectly into the Cussler setting. Morrison brings a fresh, high-adrenaline approach to a series that started to show signs of wear and tear. Morrison’s writing is nothing short of an intense octane afterburner and this is what fans will experience from the very first page of “Piranha.” The book starts off in 1902, when a volcano erupts, wiping out a city of thirty thousand people on the island of Martinique. Also caught in the blast was a ship carrying a German scientist on the verge of an incredible breakthrough. Now, more than a century later, the crew of the Oregon, led by Juan Cabrillo, faces the challenge of dealing with the legacy the scientist left behind. Racing against time and an enemy that was able to finish the scientist’s work, the Oregon now needs to stop an attack from a villain who seems to be able to anticipate their every move, armed with a weapon of unequaled power. Not since Cussler’s first writing companion, Paul Kemprecos, with the NUMA Files, has an author been able to keep up the same level of action and adventure seen in Cussler’s earlier work, until now. Fans will be excited to see the new direction Cussler and Morrison have taken the series. “Piranha” will take readers to the edge; at a pace so fast, you may find yourself needing oxygen. Reviewed by John Raab ■

CHARLIE MARTZ AND OTHER STORIES: THE UNPUBLISHED STORIES

By Elmore Leonard The fifteen short stories in this anthology were written long ago by Elmore Leonard during the early years of his writing career and cover a wide range of subjects and locations. No matter whether the characters inhabited stories about the Old West, vacationers in Torremolinos, mobsters in Detroit, revolutionaries in Malaysia, mid-western businessmen in an Arizona resort, a movie crew on location in Syria, Texans involved in the Civil War, a bull fighter turned migrant worker, and others, Leonard’s characters resonated true and stayed with me long after I finished reading about them. The author brilliantly portrayed humanity in all its forms and gave me deep insight into the souls of his characters. Best of all, every story had a surprise ending. After having read the first five, I learned to expect a twist in each story, but I still couldn’t guess what it would be. I thought I had the endings figured out, but he fooled me every time, and I loved it. Elmore Leonard was a unique author and a treasure to the literary world and readers everywhere. This collection of his unpublished short stories is sure to please his fans as much as it pleased me. Reviewed by S.L. Menear, author of “Deadstick Dawn” published by Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

THE MISSING AND THE DEAD

By Stuart MacBride Everyone’s favorite DI, Logan McRae, is on a case against a serial killer. Something goes horribly wrong, however, after Logan decides that the importance of saving a life over that of following police procedure brings him swift and heavy punishment. Sent to the rural area of Aberdeenshire on the North Sea Coast, Logan is put in charge of a small local police force. While his days are spent chasing cows and small-time drug dealers, the Inspector still holds tight to his reputation of being a maverick, but the quiet time is driving him a bit mad. He renovates the house that he lives in which is very close to the police station; it is also the perfect place to tend to his significant other, Samantha, who is wheelchair bound due to an accident she suffered in a former case. McRae tries his best to keep himself busy with updating the home, and basically settling in for a long wait before he will be called back into the city. But his quiet life is about to end, as a little girl’s body washes up on the shore. The Major Investigation Team from Aberdeen appears to take over the case and McRae is ordered not to interfere. But as luck would have it, his former boss arrives in town and drags him into the investigation, tricking him into helping her solve the murder so she can look good to her own boss. Her bosses are after her to solve the case and she is determined to get McRae back on her team; therefore, two birds, one stone. As always with this character, this is a real page-turner. There are many wacko’s in the woods of Aberdeenshire so there are many, many things to watch out for as readers stay on the heels of DI Logan McRae. This is yet another Stuart MacBride outing that will leave readers begging for the next to arrive as soon as possible. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

23

A VISION IN VELVET By Juliet Blackwell

This is the author’s sixth Witchcraft Mystery featuring Lily Ivory, a witch and owner of Aunt Cora’s Closet, a vintage clothing store located on Haight St. in San Francisco. Lily comes upon an antique trunk in Sebastian’s Antiques, and she can almost feel the remnants of the spirits that once wore the old clothing packed inside. The trunk is actually calling her name for some unknown reason, and even though the clothes are in bad shape, she wants the trunk and its contents in her possession. She does attain the trunk and takes it back to the store, where she and her helpers go through it. At the very bottom she discovers a gold velvet cape, and when Lily puts it on, she has a horrific vision of a woman being burned at the stake. It seems the cape is capable of taking its wearer back in time. It has unknown powers, and some eerie things begin to happen because of it. Lily is not overly upset, considering her own powers, until she finds Sebastian Crowley, owner of Sebastian’s Antiques, shot to death in Golden Gate Park. Lily is then pulled into a murder mystery that is connected to the cape somehow, and as she hunts for answers the worst thing that could happen, does. Her familiar, Oscar (a potbellied pig) disappears. Lily gets help from her friends and her new love, Sailor, a physic; but with danger growing all around them, Lily and her cohorts must find answers fast…and also save Oscar before it’s too late. There are other books in this series, yet this one is a true homerun. The author uses her obvious extensive knowledge about antiques and the paranormal for this plot. And although a standalone, readers should definitely meet Lily from her very beginnings; a lonely witch that has grown into a strong woman with many friends to help her on her journey. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

24

ENGAGED IN MURDER

By Nancy J. Parra Pepper Pomeroy is presently an out of work event planner. Her sister’s boyfriend, Warren, asks Pepper to help him plan the perfect way to propose to her sister. She can handle this one little thing, right? Warren plans to propose to Pepper’s sister, Felicity, on a swank private jet and then take her away on a romantic vacation. All he needs is for Pepper to decorate the jet. All goes so well that boyfriend, Warren, suggests to Pepper that she should go into business for herself and not have to count on a boss for a paycheck. This sounds like a definite plan, but before she can get going on her new venture, Pepper finds what she thinks is an inebriated guy in the ladies room of the jet hangar. Turns out, however, the guy with the bad GPS is not just drunk, he’s dead. Pepper is wondering if Warren knew about the corpse and really doesn’t want Felicity to marry the man if he’s a murderer. Pepper doesn’t mention the dead guy until the couple are off on a romantic getaway, but Warren becomes suspect number one. Pepper is on the hunt to solve the murder and, of course, while investigating she puts herself in danger more than once. However, she does take Warren’s advice. With her parents help, she starts her own business that takes off immediately. She is getting calls from men who want to use her talents to make a memory with their girlfriends. So between setting up “nights to remember” for others, Pepper must also either stop her sister from making a mistake or prove Warren’s innocence. This is a good book to start if you are in the mood for a great mystery. Pepper is certainly enjoyable and, thankfully, this is just the first in a new series, Perfect Proposals, so readers will definitely get more Pepper in the future. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

WHISPERS IN THE DARK

By Chace J. Jackson Chace J. Jackson takes us on a ride into the paranormal in this new YA thriller, “Whispers in the Dark.” Adrian Ramirez has just landed the job of a lifetime as a teacher at the prestigious Finely Academy in rural Newnan, Georgia. Adrian and his girlfriend, Lea, have moved back to his hometown and are living in the old, musty home that he grew up in. A home left to him by his late grandmother. Lea is not happy living in the large, empty home, and she swears that she hears footsteps and voices, yet she can find no one or nothing. Adrian shrugs it off as the ‘settling of the old home.’ As he starts his new job, it is anything but ideal. On his first day, he meets his students, all who appear to be typical teenagers—except for two: a set of identical female twins. Both of whom are a bit Goth in appearance, and both who change the dynamic of the class. What follows is a gripping novel of the supernatural and paranormal. Terrifying instances begin to occur that seem to have no explanation, yet always seem to involve one or both of the twins. With “Whispers in the Wind,” Jackson not only weaves a story that will keep you up late into the night, but more importantly, he reminds us that our pasts will always resurface and come back to haunt us. Reviewed by J.M. LeDuc, author of “Sin,” published by Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

THE PRESIDENT'S SHADOW

By Brad Meltzer In this latest book, Meltzer writes the next in the Culper Ring series featuring Beecher White, an archivist working at the United States National Archives. Beecher is privy to a strange event taking place on the grounds of the White House; a severed arm has been discovered buried in the Rose Garden. Beecher decides to investigate and soon comes to find that the President, himself, may be in someone’s sights. Even worse, in the closed fist of the severed hand is a message…for Beecher. This message may just unveil the truth about the death of his own father. A secret that could affect the nation. While working at the National Archives by day, Beecher is keeping a secret 24/7. He belongs to the Culper Ring, a 200-year-old secret society that was begun by George Washington during the American Revolution. The current President now needs the Culper Ring’s help to find out who buried an actual arm beside the White House…and who that arm belongs to. This is quite a mystery, considering whoever did this heinous crime got past the best security in the country, and perhaps the world. The investigation in the Rose Garden will bring Beecher back to an incident on Devil’s Island, a place in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean that held the country’s greatest secrets. Among them, his father’s tale of death. This is book three in the series, and this amazing author has given readers another cool story that ranks right up there with books one and two: “The Inner Circle” and “The Fifth Assassin.” Featured character, Beecher, has grown so much since he first came on to the literary scene. His shadow has expanded, and suspense and history buffs will be thrilled with this exciting, fast-paced, and extremely well-written narrative. It’s never nice to push an author so soon, but here’s one fan that will be waiting impatiently for Beecher to show his face again. (Go, Meltzer, Go!) Reviewed by Amy Lignor, author of “The Charlatan’s Crown,” published by Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■


ROBERT B. PARKER'S KICKBACK

By Ace Atkins You can always tell if you’re reading a great Spencer novel because you start to read with a Boston accent. So it is with “Robert Parker’s Kickback” written in impeccable style by Ace Atkins Atkins and Parker take us on an incredible trip down the road of greed and corruption beginning in the blue-collar town of Blackburn, MA, extending into Mob-infested Boston and all the way down to the wealthy Gulf Coast of Florida. Atkins uses the backdrop of adolescent crime and tough love to introduce us to a judge who doesn’t believe in second chances. A judge who may or may not be playing by the book. He is sentencing teenage boys to a “private prison” on Fortune Island, a former refuse dump that sits off the shore of Massachusetts. The only thing crueler and more corrupt than the judge are the people who are running Fortune Island. The mother of one of the boys wrongly sentenced by Judge Scali reaches out to Spencer for help. A sucker for a sob story and the truth, Spencer agrees to look into the matter. Robert B. Parker is smiling down on this brilliant Spencer adventure. It’s full of everything we’ve come to expect from the Boston Private Investigator—action, smart-mouthed sarcasm, the assistance of Hawk and most of all, justice. In “Kickback,” we realize that law and justice don’t always coincide, but in the end, with Spencer’s assistance, justice will win out. Reviewed by J.M. LeDuc, author of “Sin,” published by Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

INDEPENDENCE DAY

By Ben Coes A nuclear bomb has been sold by the Russian mob to renegade hacker, Cloud, who is out to avenge his parents’ death at the hands of the CIA two generations ago. The bomb is spirited out of Russia on an old freighter and sets course for America to arrive on the Fourth of July to set off its own explosive light display on American soil, aiming to kill hundreds of thousands. With all seven American agents taken out in the field of combat on Russian soil by Cloud, who has infiltrated the CIA databanks giving him an inside track on every move the American government makes, it is left to washed-up Secret Agent Dewey Andreas to handle the task even though the agency wants him in a clinic in Sedona, Arizona to be treated for PTSD. Operating blind, in the field of play, with only three days left to discover the whereabouts of the missing bomb, Andreas sets the wheels in motion to locate Cloud by kidnapping his fiancée, the famous ballet dancer, Katya Basaeyev, and torturing her until Cloud confesses, if he can find him. Working hand-in-hand with the young and powerful head of the Russian mob, Alexi Malnikov, the two strange bedfellows flush out the terrorist and race to save America from a fate worse than what was served up on 9/11. Coes keeps us guessing up until the last second as to whether or not they are successful. A novel you will have a hard time putting down once you are engrossed in the chase. Reviewed by Mark P. Sadler, author of “Blood on His Hands” published by Suspense Publishing an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

SOMEONE IS WATCHING By Joy Fielding

Bailey Carpenter is a woman living a privileged life in Miami, Florida. She also happens to work as an investigator for a law firm. She and her brother, Heath, an actor, are heirs to their father’s Wall Street fortune. However, things are not always as lovely as they seem; in fact, they are being sued by their five half-siblings who were left out of Dad’s Will. Bailey would much rather have her parents back than the money, but that can’t happen. She’s also in love with her married boss, which is definitely not a good idea. On a stakeout one night, looking for a Deadbeat Dad, Bailey is attacked by a masked man. She can only recall the feel of his gloves and the glance she gets at his black Nike sneakers. His voice had whispered in her ear: “Tell me you love me,” which was the most frightening part of it all. The horror won’t go away. Bailey, on leave from work, has begun having panic attacks, losing weight, and suffering from dreams of her attacker. It’s a good thing her half-sister, Claire, who is a nurse, comes to her rescue, bringing along her daughter, Jade, who is somewhat of a delinquent that practices lock picking in Bailey’s apartment. Claire is part of the lawsuit, but doesn’t seem to have any ulterior motives. She recommends Bailey see a therapist, especially since Bailey has started observing a neighbor who has become violent against some company. She can’t seem to stop his escalating behavior, but since no one else has seen the man, she’s not believed by anyone, including Claire. As Bailey can’t convince anyone of this person’s habits, she hatches a plan with her niece to catch him unaware and prove to everyone that she’s not gone around the bend. This is an excellent book by an excellent wordsmith. Joy Fielding only offers page-turners, and she has struck gold again. Readers and fans will be absolutely thrilled! Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■


HIGH STAKES By John McEvoy

“High Stakes” is the fifth mystery featuring Jack Doyle, a man who has had a very colorful past. First a boxer, then an advertising representative and publicity man, Jack is now a person who finds himself tied up in the very action-packed and slightly dark world of horseracing. Retired racehorses are being donated to vet schools for research purposes. Jack is asked by a couple of FBI agents who he has worked with in the past, to look into the fact that there is someone out there who is “mercy killing” horses that are being used for experimentation. With Jack’s knowledge about racing, he is the perfect person to use his contacts to find the killer. Multiple paths of suspense crop up, with Jack delving into the very real fact that the lives of thoroughbreds that have found acclaim and victory are being ended in a very non-victorious fashion. While Jack investigates, he also comes across the fact that he is in a killer’s path. A contract has been taken out to end Jack’s life, paid for by a wealthy man who sits in jail courtesy of Jack’s work. The man is behind bars for insurance fraud involving the killing of racehorses, and he wants Jack to pay. A millionaire computer genius is intimidating an old couple into selling their horse, and last, but certainly not least, Jack travels to Ireland more than once to check on a bookmaker friend who, according to his wife, has suffered more than his share of near fatal accidents. All of these stories interweave to create a highly action-packed and intriguing story. Professional horseracing is portrayed with great accuracy, telling about the life of the trainers, exercise boys and girls, and others who hang out at the track. Managing to keep himself alive through all of these plots, the reader can definitely look forward to more Jack Doyle stories in the future! Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

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FILLET OF MURDER By Linda Reilly

This new cozy is the first in a brand new series titled, Deep Fried Mysteries by Linda Reilly, featuring Talia Marby. Talia has returned to her hometown in the Berkshires of New England and taken a part time job with Bea Lambert at Lambert’s Fish & Chips. The restaurant is located in a cute little shopping plaza that was designed to look like an old English village. The two women hit it off from the very start, forming a very loving mother/ daughter relationship. One of the other store’s owners at the plaza, Phil Turnbull, is trying to get all the owners to sign a petition banning the opening of a comic book store: after all, it’s gauche, to say the least. Bea doesn’t want to sign it and, after a blow-up, she shows Turnbull the door. She then tells Talia to: “Fire up the deep fryer…” because she’s going “to boil Phil Turnbull in oil.” A silly threat she will live to regret. Talia decides to talk to Phil herself, and the next morning she finds him in his office…lying on the floor with a knife sticking out of his neck. Bea is immediately looked at for the murder, especially seeing as there are fish scales on the weapon. But as time goes on, it seems that Phil had many enemies who truly wanted to see him gone. There are a great group of shop owners in this plaza; Suzi Sato, who runs a bath and body store; Jill Follansbee, who owns a tea shop; Jim Jepson, who has a pottery store, and many unforgettable others. Not to mention, just as you finish this incredible mystery, the author offers up a couple of recipes that everyone will want to try out: one for “Bea’s Coleslaw” and another for “Talia’s DeepFried Pickle Spears with Honey Mustard Sauce.” In other words, mystery lovers get a great meal with incredibly tasty leftovers. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

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THE BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTERS By Nicole Baart

At the start of this novel, Adrienne (Adri) Vogt and Harper Penny are two women who are most definitely thick as thieves. During their college days they were always together and their friendship was amazingly strong. But after an accident occurs, their lives are changed dramatically for the next five years. To begin, the narration is a back and forth between the two girls. Adri is very much a country bumpkin, very quiet; your regular wallflower. Harper is a wild child but very intelligent, and not at all like Adri. But opposites attract, and these two become sisterly. Adri always admired Harper, while Harper loved Adri’s life. They liked each other for the things that they each lacked, as if feeding off one another to have that full, perfect life. Harper became jealous of Adri’s family and home life and Adri just wished that she had the ability to be a free spirit like her friend. And then, of course…there was a man. David was the man they both truly loved, and when he died in an accident, the two girls were torn apart. Adri went to Africa where she worked as a nurse, attempting to find something good in such a nightmare. Harper just seemed to walk away from life, choosing the hard, painful road to travel. But five years later, the girl’s lives have changed. Coming home to attend a funeral memorial, they are reminded of the past. The familiar place they congregate is Piperhall, the Galloway estate. Here is where David’s presence is felt, memories become entangled, and a friendship attempts to find a way to heal and reinvent itself. From lies and secrets to truths and romance, the flashbacks are plentiful, and readers will see the mystery within as they try to work out if David’s death was actually an “accident.” A bit less suspenseful and more emotional, but the tale woven is a nice one. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

DAY OF THE DRAGONKING: THE LAST AMERICAN WIZARD

By Terry Irving What if this world is just “magic” and somehow it is replaced by a stronger magic? In “The Last American Wizard,” the world Steve Rowan has known ceases to exist. He can no longer rely on anything he thought was real and his life, as well as everyone else’s, is now being controlled by a deck of tarot cards. A deck in which he plays ‘The Fool.’ The epicenter of this magical change? Washington D.C., of course. Steve Rowen has witnessed an airliner crash in front of his home, but he appears to be the only one who can see it. He soon finds himself to be ‘The Fool’ from a deck of Tarot cards. He meets up with Ace, a SEAL, who in this new world is the Ace of Swords. Each person they encounter has taken on the persona of another card. As they fight their way through the deck, they come to realize that computers and the Tarot cards now control the fate of the world. Everyone they encounter wants one thing, the death of The Fool. Steve is attacked by Illuminati, Masons, elves, gnomes, and too many mythical creatures to mention. Steve and Ace are abetted by a smartphone named ‘Smart Money’ and the voice in the phone, Barnaby. Ultimately, it will be up to the brains of the “Fool” to secure the cutter of Washington D.C. Terry Irving has written a science fiction/fantasy thriller that will have you laughing one moment and racing through adrenaline-pumping action the next. “The Last American Wizard” will twist you in knots while expanding your imagination. You will never look at magic the same again. Reviewed by J.M. LeDuc, author of “Sin,” published by Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

DANTE'S POISON

By Lynne Raimondo Dr. Mark Angelotti is a psychiatrist. Blind, he has just enrolled in a drug trial that might be able to restore his sight. Unfortunately by doing this, he walks directly into a case that Chicago legal eagles are wickedly fighting for and/or against. Attorney Jane Barrett has just defended the manufacturer of a powerful antipsychotic drug, Lucitrol, against product liability claims. Jane has become an expert on the drug. So, when her very good friend and lover, investigative journalist Rory Gallagher, collapses from a fatal dose of Lucitrol, it suddenly becomes the job of Hallie Sanchez, Jane’s oldest friend, to defend Jane on murder charges. Hallie is having some doubts about Jane’s innocence and recruits Mark Angelotti to help her discredit the testimony of a witness. Jane and Mark succeed in getting Barrett released, but not without some very serious outcomes. Mark starts to investigate the killing of Rory Gallagher and his connections to the drug when Jane is charged with the murder, but as he follows the clues, he finds himself the victim of an attack, while Hallie is put into a coma by the same villains. The drug company has many, many secrets and many, many shady sales reps, and when Mark starts to uncover the secrets, true powerhouses come out of the woodwork to stop him. This storyline is a very unusual one that looks into the seedy side of prescription meds and medical ethics. This is an interesting tale of a blind psychiatrist, and a sociopathic mind that will go to the ends of the earth to avenge the past. Plot changes galore will keep readers on their toes, and the author has produced characters that have very strong backstories. One that you will remember is Mark Angelotti, who you would think would be in an extreme bout of depression, but instead is truly inspiring as he moves forward instead of letting life drift away. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■


THE FALL

By John Lescroart The newest John Lescroart mystery focuses on Attorney Rebecca Hardy, daughter of Attorney Dismas Hardy, who’s working in her father’s law firm and taking on her very first case. San Francisco attorneys are taking it on the chin lately when it comes to homicide cases that involve African-American victims. To make things worse, City Supervisor Liam Goodman is acting like Big Brother, on the heels of the entire legal system. In the middle of this mayhem, a young girl named Anlya Paulson falls from an overpass and lands on the hood of a car passing on the street below. Whether accident, suicide or murder, is anyone’s guess. Inspectors Eric Waverly and Ken Yamashiro work the case, and get a break when Greg Treadway, a schoolteacher and Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) for Anlya’s twin brother, tells the police that he had dinner with Anlya only a few hours before she died. But the police find some odd things in Greg’s statement that just don’t ring true. The SFPD send Greg to jail on a murder charge. Rebecca, who just met Greg only a few minutes before he gave the cops his statement, agrees to represent him. There is plenty of circumstantial evidence against Greg and, even though Rebecca is ‘green’ in the courtroom, she makes several of the prosecution’s witnesses look downright foolish. There are a few extra characters who make things difficult for both sides and could very well have been in on the demise of Anlya: Royce Utlee, a pimp who works with Anlya’s friend; Honor Wilson, who manages a stable of ladies of the night; Leon Copes, a former live-in boyfriend of Anlya’s mother; and, Richard Salazar, a killer who escaped from trial in California and then went on to kill in another state. This story is packed with action, suspense, and a plot that will leave you speechless. The ending is superb, and John Lescroart should be commended for writing yet another great novel. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MENUS

By Julie Hyzy Executive Chef Olivia (Ollie) Paras has a lot to deal with in “All the President’s Menus,” the eighth in Julie Hyzy’s White House Chef mystery series. Due to a government sequester, lavish dinners for visiting heads of state and other entertaining at the White House are on hold, and Ollie’s kitchen staff has been trimmed, as well. However, plans are still on for the president to host an intimate dinner at Blair House for the first female presidential candidate from Saardisca. Ollie is determined that the dinner will be a success despite her small staff, but her stress level ratchets up to high when four of Saardisca’s leading chefs are invited to become a temporary part of the White House kitchen to help with the dinner. They are generally a surly bunch of men, all of whom speak fluent English. Each of them resents taking orders from a woman, and are not shy about showing it. Things go from bad to worse when White House pastry chef Marcel collapses while leading the chefs on a kitchen tour—and later confides to Ollie that he’s sure he was drugged. Then one of the visiting chiefs collapses and dies. Coincidence? Ollie doesn’t believe it. Rather, she’s convinced that one of the remaining three visiting chefs is responsible, and fears that more deaths may follow. Is the U.S. President a target? The visiting Saardiscan presidential candidate? But how to figure out what, if anything, the chefs are up to is difficult, especially because they lapse into their native language so often. “All the President’s Menus” is another delightful tale from a real pro. And a sneak peek at life behind the scenes at the White House. Yummy! Reviewed by Susan Santangelo, author of “Funerals Can Be Murder,” published by Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

CORRUPTED MEMORY

By Ray Daniel Told in first person by Aloysius Tucker, a computer hacker from Boston, this story begins and ends with a baseball game, but what happens in between will challenge all that Tucker has held dear in his life. A man is killed right in front of Tucker’s home, and the dead man bears a striking resemblance to Tucker’s dad; even his ID says he is John Tucker. The problem is, John Tucker is dead...so who is this man? Well, it turns out Tucker has a half brother he never knew existed and his death will open up a can of worms that will expose his father’s hidden life and uncover a plethora of family secrets and crimes that will lead to cover ups and double crosses, putting Tucker’s life in serious danger in the process. While I was focused on the government secrets, the shootings, kidnappings, fires, and Tucker’s reaction to all the dark secrets he discovers about his father, it occurred to me that he also discovered a few things about his mother he didn’t know. And while she was a difficult character to understand and hard for him to deal with, in the end he rediscovers the maternal side of his family he had subconsciously ignored most of his life, and as they say, it’s better late than never. This is a fast-paced crime thriller with an engaging narrator, quirky characters, and explosive secrets. This combination of action, suspense, mystery, and family drama kept the story interesting and held my attention from beginning to end. There is a little something in this one for all mystery and suspense lovers. 4 stars. Reviewed by Julie Whiteley ■


A WOMAN UNKNOWN By Frances Brody

“A Woman Unknown” is set in England in the 1920s, that poignant “between the wars” period that is the setting for so many excellent novels, and this is no exception. Kate Shackleton is a private investigator whose husband was lost in the “Great War,” as World War I was called. Kate struggles to find her place in the male dominated field of criminal investigations, working with the police when she can, and on her own, with the help of her assistant Mr. Sykes, a former policeman. Kate has been hired by Cyril Fitzpatrick, a low-level employee of a newspaper in the city of Leeds, who wants to know where his wife really goes when she claims she is visiting her sick mother. She discovers that Deirdre Fitzpatrick is telling the truth about her mother, but also discovers that Deirdre is leading a secret life. She is working with a shady lawyer to provide grounds for divorce for men who wish to appear to be caught in adultery to satisfy the legal requirements of the time. When banker, Everett Runcie, is found murdered in a hotel room, suspicion initially falls on his American wife, Philippa, who is divorcing him, but soon turns to a mystery woman who was seen with Runcie the previous night. Kate Shackleton skirts the edges of the official police investigation as she tries to find Deirdre Fitzpatrick, and look for Everett Runcie’s murderer at the same time. Brody has chosen a fascinating period of British history and created characters whose difficulties are unique to the period, such as the husband who must pretend to commit adultery to provide grounds for a divorce that they both want. Kate Shackleton is a character who navigates her fictional world and evokes the realities of a bygone era. The suspenseful story never lets up until the unexpected conclusion. Reviewed by Kathleen Heady, author of “Hotel Saint Clare” ■

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A WEE MURDER IN MY SHOP By Fran Stewart

Yet another new series that will have cozy mystery lovers screaming for more. Margaret “Peggy” Winn lives in Hamelin, Vermont—a small town in New England that reminds one of a lovely village that might be found in Scotland. Peggy certainly believes that, considering she is the owner of “Scotshop,” a store that sells only Scottish items. Peggy has given up on her boyfriend and is on her way to Scotland to buy some new merchandise for her store. But what she gets is not what she originally went for. By purchasing and wearing an old tartan shawl, Peggy finds that a six-hundred-year-old ghost named Dirk, is now a part of her life. Dirk is a great guy who loves to follow Peggy around in the 21st Century, and has the time of his life studying all the changes that have occurred in the last six hundred years. Peggy is trying to carry on with her life, putting her exboyfriend’s betrayal in the back of her mind, and learning to live with a ghost. However, her plan becomes a might harder as she finds the ex’s dead body on the floor of her shop and her cousin accused of his murder. This is when the fun begins, as Dirk brings about all his knowledge to aid Peggy in solving the first “Scotshop Mystery” by clearing her cousin’s name and finding the real killer. The author has truly thrown herself into making the town of Hamelin as Scottish as possible, even making sure that kilts are being worn. Dirk is a great character, as everything about the present time is a big surprise to him. And when Peggy tries to explain, it looks like she’s talking to air; after all, he’s a ghost. This is a great story and readers will definitely look forward to seeing Dirk again and watching the fun relationship grow between Peggy and her Scottish spirit. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

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DOWN DON'T BOTHER ME

By Jason Miller Set in Southern Illinois, readers find themselves in coal mining country where the body of a reporter, Dwayne May, is found deep in the Knight Hawk mine. A mini-recorder is tied around his neck and a note pad stuffed down his throat. May’s photographer, Guy Allen Beckett, is missing, and it’s thought that they were in the mine on the trail of a hot new story…right before tragedy struck. Turns out that Beckett is the son-in-law of the mine owner, Matthew Luster, and this crime cannot be ignored. Matthew turns to Slim, who is a miner with the reputation of finding lost people, and asks Slim to find Beckett. Luster wants all the answers and does not want police or press looking over his shoulder while he gets them. At first, Slim turns down the owner’s plea, but when he’s offered a better job that comes with a pension and security for the rest of his life, he accepts. Slim is a single father without many options and he needs to take care of his daughter. But, as the old saying goes, “When you make a deal with the Devil, you’ll definitely get burned.” Slim must find out if Beckett ended up as a victim buried someplace else, or the killer of his friend. He also needs to know exactly what motive there was to kill Dwayne May in the first place. Slim is led into a real mess as he looks for answers in the underworld of Little Egypt, Illinois—a place that houses all types of inhumanity. He has to look for clues in the underbelly of this area, attempting to avoid meth dealing gangs, and worse, in order to get out alive. Readers will be shown some hard times that miners have to go through, along with some descriptions of the process of mining. The author has picked a perfect place to write about when wanting to create a story of killings and betrayal. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

HUNGER

By Jeremiah Knight In “Hunger,” Jeremiah Knight has written a stark look at GMO engineering. ExoGen Laboratories and its leading scientist, Dr. Ella Masse, have discovered a genetic godsend. Through their GMO project, they have found the elusive genetic secret that will allow crops to grow in almost any conditions. They are about to eradicate world hunger. In their rush to save humankind, protocol was broken and they rushed to market. A rush that has dire consequences. Eight years later, the ExoGen crops have taken over the world. They have grown wild and covered almost the Earth’s entire surface. And the code implanted has mutated and developed a hunger of its own that is not satisfied with the earth’s nutrients. A hunger that develops an intelligence, as well as a thirst for meat. Any meat . . . including humans. The only mode of survival is to live in an encapsulated biodome where one must grow their own ExoGen-free crops and remain hidden. Ella and her daughter, Anne, have escaped from ExoGen headquarters in San Francisco and are trying to make their way to a second lab in Boston, where Ella hopes to reverse the genetic code and stop the slaughter. In order to do so, they need the help of Ella’s old friend, Peter Crane. Ella explains that the ExoGen crops not only pass their “genes” along to other plants, but to every species which consumes them, causing a rapid type of de-evolution. She is humanity’s only chance. Peter and his son, Jakob, join Ella and Anne on a trip that is more suicide than adventure. They must not only avoid and battle the genetically changing world around them, but also those who will do everything in their power to make sure Ella does not reach her destination. Jeremiah Knight has written the beginning of an epic sojourn into the good and evil of science, and more importantly, of Man. “Hunger,” the first book of the Hunger Trilogy, is a must read for all! Reviewed by J.M. LeDuc, author of “Sin,” published by Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

SHARK SKIN SUITE

By Tim Dorsey Featured player, Serge Storms, is a bit of a psycho killer who has very creative ways of offing or punishing people who really need to be gotten rid of or punished. Serge has a reputation in Florida for doing just that and doing it very well, which is why others call upon him. Looking out for the underdog, he knows everything about the history of Florida and has a style for public relations. In this tale, Serge and friend, Coleman, go after a group of investors (AKA: con artists) who are taking people’s houses away from them by whatever underhanded way they can. Serge and Colman team up with Attorney Brook Campanella, who has a yen for Serge, and the three of them set out to bring some justice to the world or at least to their little corner of it; and if Serge has to pretend to be a lawyer, so be it! Of course, Serge doesn’t have a law degree but it makes no difference in this case. He is determined to fix this little glitch in his hometown. Serge and Coleman get involved in a class-action fraud case, looking out for evidence (or, making it up if need be) and, also looking for the bad guys who sometimes end up dying in creative ways. There are other books by Tim Dorsey out there about Serge, but this is a definite standalone novel. Mr. Dorsey takes the usual insanity of his lead character and gives the readers some “can you believe this?” incidents that really make people both shy away and absolutely root for Serge at the same time. You will have a hard time figuring out what will happen next, but the plot, as always, is full of humor and truly great writing. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■


THE WOLF AND THE LAMB

By Frederick Ramsay This is Frederick Ramsay’s third Jerusalem mystery that begins at the time of Jesus’s arrest. Pontius Pilate, the Emperor’s prefect, has been accused and arrested for murdering Aurelius Decimus, a rival of his. All evidence is against Pilate as he was nabbed red-handed, covered in blood at the scene of the crime, with his own dagger sticking out of Decimus’s body. As Pilate states he was framed and doesn’t believe he’ll get justice from the Romans, he calls on Rabban Gamaliel, the chief Rabbi of the Sanhedrin, the ruling body of Israel at the time, for help. Gamaliel has to accept the case even though he hates Pilate. Though these two men are mortal enemies, Pilate insists that Gamaliel prove his innocence. Trying to find their way through the crowds visiting for Passover, Gamaliel and his friend, Loukas, visit various places looking for clues to the killing. Gamaliel heads the investigation perfectly, looking for facts, consulting with learned, trustworthy people until there is no doubt about what Pilate’s future will be. As most will know who Pilate is, the story goes on with the events already stated to the masses. For those who have not read Aesop’s ‘Tale of the Wolf and the Lamb,’ the premise is that the two creatures meet with the wolf telling the lamb that he wanted to eat him and the many excuses that the lamb came up with to stay alive. The wolf feasts on the animal, with Aesop’s moral being: The tyrant will always find an excuse for his cruelty. Which explains Pilate to a ‘T.’ The cast of characters is, of course, well known, but the intricacies of the investigation described are extremely interesting. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

YOU CAN TRUST ME

By Sophie McKenzie What a twisted road we walk, and Sophie McKenzie knows just how to lay the bricks of a path that will have you wondering, gasping for air, thinking, and basically having a thrilling time. Livy Jackson is a woman about to attend a dinner party that she really doesn’t want to go to. But her friend, Julia, who is one of those “it’s all about me” people, expects Livy to come. What Livy doesn’t expect when she arrives is that the dinner party is canceled, seeing as that Julia is lying dead in the apartment. Cops rule this a suicide but Livy thinks differently. After all, this was her best friend in the world and she knows that Julia was an in-your-face, loud, free, and celebratory person who would never take her own life. Problem is, Livy believes this so much that she decides to do a little personal investigation of her own. Kara was Livy’s sister, a sibling that was murdered eighteen years previously. Livy wonders if there could be a connection with the two untimely deaths, and clues start popping up that prove she’s right. Trouble is, this is not a stranger—if the clues are to be believed, Livy feels that the killer of both women is someone extremely close to her…and may want to take her out next. This author has created some truly emotional and complex characters for her list of suspects. The worst for Livy would be Will, her own husband. But there are others that extend from Julia’s own boyfriend to Will’s boss. Which means no one can be trusted. Sophie McKenzie is the writer of “Close My Eyes,” which summed up what it means to ride an emotional roller-coaster. With this, she has followed-up with an equally dark, riveting tale that will leave the fan needing a nap after they’re through reading, because of the perfect symmetry of heart-racing and heart-wrenching scenes that don’t stop. Reviewed by Amy Lignor, author of “The Charlatan’s Crown,” published by Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

ONE FOOT IN THE GRAPE

By Carlene O’Neil This is a first in a new series called, Cypress Cove mysteries, and will take readers on a journey that allows them a little taste (no pun intended) of the wine industry. Penny Lively has lost her job as a photojournalist and come home to Cypress Cove to take over ownership of a winery that she inherited from her Aunt Monique. Penny’s winery manager, Connor, and her niece, Hayley, have been running the winery and it’s in good shape. But a few months after Penny arrives, the owner of the neighboring winery, Antonia Martinelli, comes to visit. She is sure that someone is trying to sabotage her winery and its good reputation, and she even thinks it might be a member of her own family who’s doing it. Antonia has always been a good neighbor to Penny’s aunt, so Penny decides to help her out. That night, Penny, Hayley, and Connor head to the Martinelli’s for a Wine Growers Association meeting, where Penny sees the oldest of the Martinelli children, Francesca. She learns that Francesca is upset because her mother gave her brother control of the winery. The mother is satisfied that her son is doing a good job, and as Francesca is a lawyer and can’t spend as much time at the winery, she’s satisfied with her decision. Penny is elected V.P. of the Association at the meeting, which puts Francesca into an even worse mood. And as the members are leaving, Penny hears a scream from the fermentation building, where she finds Todd Ryan’s body—a worker at Martinelli’s—in the wine crusher. There are more suspects than can be imagined, and Penny finds herself on quite a hunt to discover who has committed murder. This looks like a good series, with just the right amount of mystery to keep the reader coming back for more. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■


WICKED STITCH By Amanda Lee

The fantastically named business, The Seven-Year Stitch, is located in the small town of Tallulah Falls. Marcy Singer, the owner, has many great attributes—one of the biggest being Angus, a beautiful Irish Wolfhound that is always there to greet customers and help his beloved owner when mysteries pop up out of the blue…which they always do. This time around, the Renaissance Faire will be held in town, and Marcy is so looking forward to it; embroidering shirts and holding classes that teach the styles of that time period. Unfortunately, Marcy finds out that her booth will be placed smack dab in the middle of her two archenemies, Clara and Nellie. For Marcy’s old foes, it’s their greatest opportunity so far to finally put Marcy in her place and get rid of her, making sure The Seven-Year Stitch is put out of business finally. On the day of the Faire’s opening, as she puts her booth in order, Marcy decides to give it one more college try to bury the hatchet. Not a good metaphor, seeing as that when Marcy goes into Clara’s booth she finds the woman dead. Now she’ll probably be suspect number one, so she has to find the real killers with the help of her boyfriend, Detective Ted Nash. The characters in Tallulah Falls are a whole lot of fun (especially Angus). This is a very well written cozy, with the perfect combination of location, plot, people, and background that make a great mystery. This is number eight in the Embroidery Mystery series, and all of them have been exceptional. As soon as this is read, readers will be looking for the next chapter in Marcy’s life. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

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WRITTEN IN THE BLOOD By Stephen Lloyd Jones

This book is a thrilling sequel to the unforgettable tale, “The String Diaries.” In the first story, events were told that surrounded the ‘shapeshifters’ and the attempts made to wipe them out and/or send them underground. It seems that the shifters live very long lives, but their number were gradually wasting away; always in danger, they often don’t agree with each other which makes matters even worse for their kind. A monster named Jakab is the hunter. A mother and daughter, Leah and Hannah, are most definitely on his radar. And soul stealers were introduced whose job it is to kill… and leave sheer evil in their wake. Now, author Jones, takes readers to three separate places: 1878, Budapest; 1929, New York; and present day. Leah is now a young woman. Her world is still threatened, and she is still being hunted by the monster. The group that Leah and her mother have always belonged to are called, “Long Lives,” yet there are a scant few still among the living. The one goal Leah has is to save as many as possible so that their group does not meet with ultimate extinction. It is fifteen years later, after the events that took Hannah and Leah to their first confrontation with Jakab. This sequel keeps the suspense of the hunt, as well as the damage and disagreements that the shapeshifters are bringing on themselves. The action expands as the author moves to the ending, taking the reader from the U.S. to Switzerland, London, Hungary, and Germany throughout various time periods. The author is extremely good at tying the storylines together, but reading the first book and meeting all the characters will make this tale even better. Although both are extremely good books, it is essential to have the background story when it comes to this monster and the incredible history of the author’s characters. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

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TAIL GAIT: A MRS. MURPHY MYSTERY

By Rita Mae Brown & Sneaky Pie Brown Readers have been waiting patiently for this new collaboration between beloved author, Rita Mae Brown, and her equally intelligent and beloved cat, Sneaky Pie. Reason being, this team knows how to dazzle mystery buffs with tales featuring Mary Minor (“Harry”) Haristeen, and her cat, Mrs. Murphy. Spring is closing in fast on Crozet, Virginia as Harry, and her husband, Fair, attend a dinner party with the town’s citizens, which include Greg ‘Ginger’ McConnell and other members of the University of Virginia’s 1959 award-winning football team. This is a dinner to welcome the springtime and try to get over the winter. Unfortunately, this get-together brings out a story from the distant past that will put all their lives in danger. The very next day while on the golf course, Professor McConnell is found murdered. He was shot in broad daylight by someone who was not seen, and no one can seem to come up with a motive or a suspect. However, Harry and her helpful pets (AKA: felines, Mrs. Murphy and Pewter; and canine, Tucker) start nosing around. Before long, a homeless veteran who used to be a UVA football player confesses to the crime. Thing is, no one believes him, and very soon Harry’s fabulous animals find another body. In the midst of questions about Ginger’s death, information comes into play regarding soldiers during the Revolutionary War, starting with the year 1777, when the war was just about over and some of the prisoners were quartered near Crozet, Virginia. It seems that the professor was trying to unravel an old mystery that may have been the reason for his unwanted death. As Harry and friends search for answers, stumbling across an old prison’s past, they get closer to identifying the murderer. And the animals continue to watch out for the humans they love. Yet again, the ‘Brown’ writing team of author and feline ‘Rock It!’ Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

WHAT LIES BEHIND

By J.T. Ellison Another fast-paced thriller from Ellison! This novel involves the FBI and medical research gone awry. The story is centered in Washington D.C. One night, two drunk coeds in Georgetown decide to pay a surprise booty call to an old boyfriend, but encounter a basement apartment full of blood and two bodies instead. The sirens accompanying the emergency vehicles to the scene awaken Dr. Samantha Owens who lives nearby. Sam, who used to be involved with crimes like these as a medical examiner, is now out of that business, but helps the FBI when asked. Her pal, Detective Darren Fletcher, asks her now to look at the scene. What appears at first glance to be a murder/suicide gives her pause. Something is out of kilter. When she finds out who the victims were, she knows that a lot is out of kilter. Tommy, one of the victims, was working on a mysterious project. If his data has fallen into the wrong hands, the situation could be very serious. Join Sam Owens in her fourth case as she races to figure out who the players are, what the stakes are, and how to stop a catastrophe. Reviewed by Kaye George, author of “Eine Kleine Murder” ■

THE WRONG MAN

By Kate White This newest book by bestselling author Kate White is sure to become this summer’s prominent “beach read.” Featured player, Kit Finn, is an interior decorator from Manhattan on a business trip at a resort called, Islamorada, on the Florida Keys. She has finished her business and only has one day left, so she decides to have a good time. Kit runs into a good looking man, Matt Healy, at a small island gift shop where they make a date to have dinner together, and a lovely evening is had. Heading back to New York, not expecting to see or hear from Matt again, Kit receives an unexpected call on her taxi ride to the airport: Matt asks her to have dinner at his apartment in New York later in the week. On the night of their reunion, Kit goes to Matt’s apartment, but the door is answered by a stranger who says that he is Matt Healy. Kit apologizes, thinking she wrote down the directions wrong, but the man convinces her that she has been played. That the man she met stole his wallet and is now using his identity. He asks Kit to come to his firm and talk to the security department to give a description. That’s where the fun begins. Kit decides to look for a reason why the man she met in Florida used a name not his own and why he wanted her to go to Matt Healy’s apartment knowing that the real Matt would be there. Her hunt for answers brings her and her coworkers into some dangerous situations, with Kit not quite sure who can be trusted in this odd and intriguing plot. A great novel that builds to a superb ending, Kate White has scored an A+ once again. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■


WHITE CROCODILE

By K.T. Medina “White Crocodile” is a debut thriller by K.T. Medina, which is a very powerful story that is a bit different from the norm. Tess Hardy is an ex-Army combat engineer and not the type of woman who will put up with a lot. She has an ex-husband, Luke, who is now working in Cambodia for a firm called the Mine Clearance Trust. Luke calls her one day sounding extremely frightened; she hears later that he has been killed while clearing a mine. The data doesn’t sit well with Tess who decides to go to Cambodia and try to find out how he died. A short time after arriving, Tess witnesses another “accident” at the White Crocodile minefield that results in a serious injury. It seems in Cambodia, people put a white cloth containing a picture of a crocodile outside their houses when someone dies or is hurt, and the White Crocodile minefield has become a deadly place to work and live. Tess learns that because the land is so filled with mines, the locals cannot farm the land safely, with many people being injured or losing their lives. Soon, she realizes that all is not what it seems, and begins to believe that clearing minefields and asking leading questions might just lead to her own demise. And as Tess investigates Luke’s death and the accident even further, she uncovers the fact that many young women have also disappeared, with one turning up dead as far away as Manchester, England. This book is sometimes difficult to read, seeing as that many horrible issues arise, but the narrative is so interesting that readers will quickly find themselves immersed in Tess’s discoveries. For a debut, the novel is very well written; the Technicolor scenes truly have the damaged characters come across as very real people living lives of sheer pain, fear, and poverty. This is an unforgettable tale. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

BAGMEN

By William Lashner This novel comes in at number eight in this author’s Attorney Victor Carl series, and many readers will say, in this case, eight is definitely not enough. Victor is a lawyer who’s down on his luck and hanging around the courthouse trying to scare up a new client, or any client for that matter, when he bumps into an old law school friend. This friend tells him of a profitable offer. Her employer needs a bagman (a person who follows along with a candidate running for office carrying a bag full of money that helps ‘grease the wheels’). The man running is Senator DeMathis, who is campaigning for the job yet again. To Victor it sounds like a bit of a dream job: it even comes with his own expense account that he’ll be able to use to buy a new tuxedo and some overpriced shoes he’s seen—the outfit that will make him a solid citizen once again. Everything is going along fine until…a woman is found dead in an alley. Unfortunately, it’s a woman that Victor had given a huge envelope of money to in exchange for her silence about the senator. Knowing that one, Detective McDeiss, is now watching him, Victor continues to quickly make the senator’s followers very happy with the contents of his brown bag of money. As Victor gets deeper into the political arena though, he starts to notice secrets that bother him and bring back some of the integrity he used to have before becoming a bagman. But will the integrity be enough to allow himself to hold his chin up once again? This book was so enjoyable; the quick-witted Victor is able to pull the reader in. Very memorable characters are introduced, for example: The Order of the Sazerac, very hard drinking and chain-smoking bagmen who invite Victor to party and then stick him with the check. Entertaining and suspenseful to boot, this character just keeps getting better with each new creation. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

VIRTUE FALLS

By Christina Dodd Virtue Falls is a tiny town located on the coast of Washington State. It is also the hometown of geologist, Elizabeth Banner. It was Elizabeth’s scientist father, Charles, that was convicted of murdering and mutilating her mother with a pair of scissors when Elizabeth was only four. This traumatic part of Elizabeth’s past took her into herself and she did not speak for a year. Although she was in the house at the time of the crime, she does not remember what happened. But after twenty-three years of suffering much abuse in prison, Charles has been released into a care facility in Virtue Falls, now suffering from Alzheimer’s. Elizabeth has come to Virtue Falls to try and bury the past, if possible, and also to study an area that is full of geological finds. In the middle of the day, the ground begins to roll and an earthquake reading ‘8’ on the Richter scale rocks the town. Devastation is everywhere. Elizabeth rushes without a thought or concern for her own safety to the cliffs to watch for and get footage of the tsunami which will certainly come through. Although a true tragedy of Mother Nature has struck, Elizabeth wants to get on tape what will be a once-in-a-lifetime event. Meanwhile, Virtue Falls is without power, water or food; the town is disappearing under the weight of the aftershocks. But as the tale surges forward, the aftershocks of Elizabeth’s own life are far worse. Secrets are unveiled and a killer who is firmly attached to the geologist’s past rises once again. This is an amazing story of people and their personalities, faults and all. Beginning with a story of horror in San Francisco that seems to be completely unconnected to the town in Washington, a plot that is perfectly intriguing comes together to scare and surprise the reader. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■


THE HARVEST MAN By Alex Grecian

The thrill of Jack the Ripper has never died. In fact, it has grown stronger over the years; everyone in the world wants to solve what Scotland Yard never could. Alex Grecian unleashed Jack and scared all of London in, “The Devil’s Workshop.” But this time out, the Ripper is not only still at large but he has found a buddy, or some stiff competition. Walter Day is an inspector who earned an injury that has kept him sitting at his desk, which is not what Day is good at. He is one of those men who can sense things and solve crimes, but with the job being awful and his personal life being even worse, Day seems to be headed straight down the tubes. The only thing that could turn the man’s incredible mind back on is a diabolical criminal. “The Harvest Man” takes on that role and, unlike the Ripper, this guy’s obsession is to hack peoples’ faces off their skulls. Nevil Hammersmith is the ex-Sergeant who eats, sleeps, and breathes the Ripper. He got kicked out of Scotland Yard, yet his obsession continues, especially when the bodies of prostitutes once again crop up. He continues to hunt down the most notorious killer ever seen…or is he? The new bloke just may earn the right to call himself the worst, and may also prove smart enough to never be found—just like dear, old Jack. Simply put, this author is brilliant. From the darkness of the plot and the evil that flows through every page, this book is also energized with characters who have very real emotions. You stand behind Walter Day and want to see him rise up to a challenge that is too much for his co-workers. And you will argue between whether you want the Ripper to stay a mystery, or if Nevil should finally have his day. Another intelligent, unforgettable novel by Alex Grecian. Reviewed by Amy Lignor, author of “The Charlatan’s Crown,” published by Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

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VENGEANCE IS MINE

By Reavis Z. Wortham This is the newest in the Red River Mystery series, and author Wortham is still going strong when it comes to his characters and crimes in Center Springs, Texas. For a small Texas town in the middle of nowhere where nothing should be happening, there is a lot going on. For instance: a pack of dogs are killing domestic animals; a local is found in his truck with a bullet in his head; a bank has been robbed by a man and a woman; a child has eaten lye and traffic is blocking the road to the hospital; one of the local cops is up to no good; and, the town is soon to play host to mobsters. Center Springs is about to become a town that will never be called “small” again. It’s the fall of 1967, and a new couple comes to town. They look pretty normal; harmless, in fact. They met up with newlyweds in Las Vegas who basically told them what an absolutely wonderful place Center Springs is to live. But with their presence, comes a whole lot of crime that will need to be stopped. People will turn to constables Ned and Cody Parker, along with John Washington, a sheriff ’s deputy, who are not getting along with the county sheriff right now, for help. And when Top Parker, thirteen-years old, has another one of his crazy dreams, the town goes from bad to worse. Everyone’s in trouble and the cases rise in number. For a little town where kids roam, doors don’t need to be locked, and neighbors look out for each other, Center Springs has more dishonesty, adultery, and high numbers of the criminal element than you would ever believe. Readers will not be able to put this book down. As one plot seems to be solved, another mystery appears. Fast-paced, with characters that are beyond imaginative and fun, this author’s Red River Mysteries never cease to entertain. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

THE DEVIL'S GAME

By Sean Chercover “The Devil’s Game” picks up where “The Trinity Game” left off. After the murder of his uncle, Daniel Bryne, previously a Roman Catholic priest, has decided to join the clandestine organization known as the Fleur-de-Lis Foundation. His main purpose is to try to discover what or who is causing The Trinity Phenomenon, more broadly named, Anomalous Information Transfer or AIT. AIT seemingly allows people to predict the future or know information they would never have been able to know otherwise. It was this “information transfer” that allowed his uncle, a televangelist and charlatan, to predict future happenings and why he was murdered by another organization known as The Council. As a priest, Daniel investigated his uncle hoping to uncover his latest charade. But what if it wasn’t a charade and his uncle really could predict the future, and what if there were more people like him: people across the world who suffered from AIT? What would happen to the world’s economy if people could be used to predict future events? All this seemed impossible to Daniel until he meets Dr. Kara Singh. Kara was once a well-respected physician who had been suffering from hearing voices she swore were being beamed into her head. Because of her condition, she lost everything. But, what if everyone was wrong? What if AIT was real and could be manipulated? Daniel and Kara, with help from the foundation, go about trying to discover the trigger to this menacing force. Chercover has written a thriller that will leave you rethinking everything you thought you knew about secret societies and clandestine organizations. “The Devil’s Game” will have you wondering if the next disease outbreak is natural or a plan to manipulate society. But mostly, it will leave you wondering who the good guys are or if there are any good guys at all. Chercover has rewritten the definition of secret societies, and “The Devil’s Game” is a must read for all! Reviewed by J.M. LeDuc, author of “Sin,” published by Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

SUSPENDERED SENTENCE

By Laura Bradford This is the fourth, wonderfully titled book, in the Amish Mystery series by Laura Bradford, and they just keep getting better and better. In the town of Heavenly, PA, lives Claire Weatherly, owner of Heavenly Treasures. Claire lives among the Amish and English families in the town and loves the quiet life of the residents. Claire is not Amish, but most of her suppliers and friends are. She is able to help Police Officer Jakob Fisher, aiding him in his communication with the Amish. Jakob is a shunned, former Amish man, who has become very close to Claire and appreciates her aid. When the community comes together for a barn raising there is a bit of a crisis when human skeletal remains are found. Believed to be those of an Amish teen who ran away many years ago, Jakob is determined to understand and solve this very cold case. Jakob is sure that the bones are those of Sadie Lehman, a girl who never returned home from Rumspringa, which is the time in a young Amish person’s life where they are able to live among the English in order to decide whether they want to stay or go back home. With Claire’s help, they find out about a young bride who was best friends with Sadie at the time of the disappearance, and had a journal that she wrote in. Reading the journal helps Claire better understand the events that led up to the girl’s death, and allows her to put together the timeline of what may have happened. This very well written book touches the reader’s heart. The emotions run rampant in these characters, and dealing with the negative and positive when it came to making decisions for their futures. This book is highly recommended to any reader interested in the Amish way of life, cozy mysteries, or those who just want a good book to enjoy on a lazy afternoon. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■


THE DISMANTLING By Brian DeLeeuw

With a truly eerie overtone, “The Dismantling” is an interesting book where readers will certainly look at the narrative and feel more than creepy. To begin, Simon Worth, who is a medical school dropout, has descended to a world of sleaze that will make him a rich man. He is associated with Health Solutions, a company that brokers deals for organ transplants. The company is run by Peter DaSilva, who is great at altering medical records, laundering money, and letting Simon deal with all the dirty work. All is going like a house afire when a former football player arrives on the scene and tries to arrange a liver transplant for an ex-athlete who has been drinking for years and abusing his liver. Simon finds a well-matched donor in Maria Campos, a young lady who is broke and wants to start a new life. For her, the $150,000 for donating seventy percent of her liver will give her a fresh start. But as easy as it seems, nothing is perfect. And several days after the transplant is completed at a hospital that is recommended by Health Solutions, the recipient commits suicide and the hospital starts an investigation into how he attained his new liver. Maria wants to keep her money. After all, she has done her part, and she tells Simon that DaSilva may be planning to kill him to shut him up about this whole scam. She says that Simon might need to kill DaSilva before DaSilva can get to him, so it’s anyone’s guess as to who will come out the victor. This is a novel that is sparse yet complex, telling of folks who will do anything to make a buck. Delving into a very real business, the author shows how citizens can get swindled by people who “claim” to be in the medical business, and is definitely one tale readers will not forget very quickly. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

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SECRETS OF STATE By Matthew Palmer

A very intense thriller that will bring readers to the edge of a deadly conflict between the countries of India and Pakistan. Sam Trainor used to be the best South Asia expert working in the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research, but he has now decided to work outside the government’s walls. Doing the same ‘sort’ of work, Sam is now an employee with Argus Systems, collecting twice the pay and receiving far more freedom than the government would ever allow. Soon Sam begins to see the negative differences between working in the public sector and the private. One issue comes along with some intel Sam discovers that could have a hand in maintaining or destroying the very fragile balance being held between India and Pakistan. But the more Sam looks into the information, the more dangerous things become. The Intel speaks of a project that has the sole purpose of driving India and Pakistan into nuclear war. While looking into the source, Sam realizes that this so-called ‘bomb’ is a chance to keep India and Pakistan busy attempting to slice each other’s throats, while others work on something far more sinister under the radar. And Sam’s new bosses may be right in the middle of it all. Making matters even more interesting is the fact that Sam is secretly having an affair with a married woman who works for the India Embassy in Washington, and his new employer is sending him to India to check out the fact that there is a small nuclear bomb out there just waiting to be dropped. Given the nature of the problem, that a bomb could be set off anywhere anytime, is making all kinds of people extremely nervous. After a fantastic read like this one, let’s just hope author Matthew Palmer has his sequel at least half done. Because it will be really hard to wait for the next one. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

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THE FIXER

By Joseph Finder As each part of ex-investigative reporter, Rick Hoffman’s, life goes to the dogs (he’s lost his job, girlfriend, and apartment), his next option seems to be moving back into his childhood home and…fixing it up. When Rick decides to start renovations, he makes a huge discovery. In the walls of the old, falling down house, Rick finds a fortune—$3.4 million in cash which is quite enough money for Rick to have the life he wants. Trouble is, he also wants to know where the money came from. Rick’s father is now in a nursing home and not doing very well, so Rick starts to look into his father’s history. A former lawyer, he is now suffering from dementia, unable to speak or communicate which is more than unfortunate when Rick finds that dear old dad was knee-deep into a lot of mysteries, and made many enemies over time that are desperate enough to return in order to take the ‘found’ money off Rick’s hands. Finding a safe place for his new treasure to stay while the dark past starts to creep out from the corners of literally everywhere, Rick moves out of the house. As he follows the trail, he first suffers a beating from bad guys who want him to quit looking for trouble. It seems that the more Rick investigates, the further he opens a door on strip clubs, the job of a true money man, and the inner-workings of an activist lawyer working pro bono for civil liberties causes. Cover-up after cover-up comes to light, leaving Rick a marked man. So many surprises, this book is a definite page-turner and a whole lot of fun to read. A thriller that will keep you up late to find out what will happen next. 5 Stars for this one! Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

PICKED TO DIE

By Sheila Connolly Its early fall—harvest time—in the small Massachusetts town of Granford. Newbie orchard owner, Meg Corey, is focused on bringing in her apple crop with the help of her sometimes bossy, but always helpful orchard manager, Bree Stewart, and a team of experienced Caribbean migrant workers. Time is of the essence, because winter in New England comes quickly with freezing temperatures, short days, and long nights. And if apple harvesting under a time crunch isn’t enough to occupy Meg, she’s also recently become engaged to local contractor, Seth Chapin, so planning their wedding is an additional item on her To Do list. Wanting to become more involved in the local happenings in her adopted town, as well as show an interest in her new fiancé’s work, Meg takes a quick break from apple picking when the Granford Historical Society hires Seth to oversee the adding of another level to its headquarters. The method chosen is ingenious—rather than build up and destroy the original profile of the building, Seth and his crew are charged with digging out under the existing building and adding an additional story underneath. All is going well on the first morning of the dig until one of the project volunteers, a local high school student, discovers a skeleton under the building. And in a true example of history repeating itself, a young man who’s related to one of Meg’s apple pickers is found dead behind the local feed store a few days later. It’s up to Meg to uncover the truth about the young man’s death if she wants to keep harmony among her workers and see justice done. “Picked to Die” is the latest in prolific author Sheila Connolly’s entertaining Orchard Mystery series. Pick it up to read—you’ll be glad you did! Reviewed by Susan Santangelo, author of “Funerals Can Be Murder,” published by Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

THE BREAKING POINT

By Jefferson Bass This is another exciting mystery featuring Dr. Bill Brockton and the Body Farm. If you haven’t read about this character yet, NOW is the time. Ten years ago, Dr. Brockton created the “Body Farm” which was the first research facility dedicated to the science of forensics. Dr. Brockton is the go-to guy for anything that has to do with any case, especially high-profile ones. The University of Tennessee’s anthropology program is the most prominent in the world, and the doctor’s skills are always in demand. In this story, the FBI wants to hire him to identify the remains of millionaire, Richard Janus, who was killed in a plane crash on his way to a weekend in Las Vegas. Dr. Brockton does his job, which is to identify the body, and believes that his job is done. But it seems not everyone takes his word for it. To make matters more complicated, an undocumented Mexican trying to cross over into the U.S. was being stalked by a mountain lion and killed by the plane crash, just before the mountain lion could pounce. Another unidentified body makes things even more confusing. But the strangeness doesn’t stop there. Brockton begins to receive messages from a serial killer who tried to murder him and his family a decade ago. It is just one calamity after another in Brockton’s personal and professional lives, when he also receives bad news from his wife, Kathleen. He doesn’t know if he’ll be able to go on or if he’s reached the end of the line—his ‘breaking point’—as the terrible things that he has to deal with increase. Readers will be educated on Janus: The God of Two Faces in this particular story. One of Ancient Rome’s most powerful deities. Add this touch of Modern Wisdom to an already intriguing and fast-paced story, and the dual writing team of Jefferson Bass end up giving fans one of the best books of 2015! Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■


THE ULTIMATUM

By Dick Wolf This the third incredible book by Dick Wolf featuring Detective Jeremy Fisk. And in this very intense and thrilling ride, a sniper is using a rifle carried by a drone that is randomly killing off NYC’s citizens. The sniper has promised to kill one person per day until a person that is leaking police intelligence materials is released from custody. To begin, a person who worked in the system, Merritt Verlyn, has classified documents pertaining to the NYPD Intelligence Division and has forwarded them to WikiLeaks. Verlyn is now sitting in jail courtesy of the cops. The information leaked reveals that the Police Intelligence Division is collecting information about law-abiding Muslims living in the city. To make matters worse, the information includes the unlisted home addresses of Intelligence Officers, including Fisk, which his enemies in the Mexican Cartel are salivating over. In fact, they have already sent a hit squad to the detective’s home. Luckily, Fisk gets away by the skin of his teeth, but finds out that his enemies also have his Social Security number and have cleaned out his bank account. Enter a mysterious person identifying himself as the “Yodeler.” This is the unknown sniper calling for Verlyn’s release, and making his threat more than real. Detective Fisk is on the case and he teams up with Chay Maryland, the reporter from the Times who is covering the story, who is also being stalked by an undercover officer out to fulfill their own scheme. In magnificent Dick Wolf fashion (creator of Law & Order), there are shadows and corruption around every corner. There are many situations and characters in this novel, and the readers will love it. The chase scenes are unforgettable, and the use of drones show that lethal edge that is coming closer and closer to reality. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

DOGHOUSE

By L.A. Kornetsky Ginny isn’t a licensed investigator but that doesn’t stop her from investigating and helping those she can. With her friend, Teddy, a bar manager, they are investigating a dog fighting ring. They got brought in by a friend of a friend who needs their help, and quickly. Gin and Teddy’s animals help them in the investigation and bring out some good points. While they search, the two don’t put themselves in unnecessarily risky situations, but instead understand what they are doing is dangerous and take precautions. You can’t foresee every situation and as they investigate that becomes clear. The outlook of the animals interspersed throughout the story does give a nice twist. The mystery slowly unfolds into answers and the duo, plus their furry friends, find that things aren’t as they seem. I really enjoyed this cozy mystery. Though it is the third in a series, I had no problems getting into it and having fun. Reviewed by Ashley Dawn, author of “Shadows of Pain” published by Suspense Publishing an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

LOVE IS RED

By Sophie Jaff For anyone who likes the truly sick and horrific side of life, this is your book. We have a serial killer in NYC called “Sickle Man”—although considering the work he does, the ‘le’ could be dropped. Women are being murdered in ways that make Jack the Ripper look like the perfect man to bring home to Mother. Killing women in ways that he feels are artistic, he’s basically practicing for when he gets the only one he really wants. He certainly has desires that must be fed, but with each kill, even though he can give himself a pat on the back because the cops are (as always) clueless, his desires fall flat because he has a goal set that he has not yet achieved. Although he does have an apartment loaded with trophies. Katherine Emerson is the character for readers to cling to. Katherine has a gift, and the gift involves visions that are not exactly hearts, flowers, and sunshine. Her love life is getting as confusing as the conversations in her own head. Not only does she have one man to choose from, but two. David and Sael have entered her world at basically the same juncture. Sael has a family name that can be found in museums on ancient manuscripts; David is one who thinks the other guy is nauseating and has no trouble telling him so. Katherine has her own thoughts and desires, and her very own obsession with the “Sickle Man.” Readers of horror will be drawn to this tale. This is not Dr. Lecter, however: hardcore fear is the basic ingredient of this blood-soaked serial killer and not in-depth intelligence, even though he tries with the dry sarcasm. It captures the attention, but the plot focuses on predator versus prey using the ingrained recipe of lust and evil, which makes the ending expected. Reviewed by Amy Lignor, author of “The Charlatan’s Crown,” published by Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■


FETA ATTRACTION By Susannah Hardy

The Bonaparte House is a lovely Greek restaurant located in upstate New York. The building, which is a historic home and restaurant, is owned by the Nikolopatos family. Georgie, wife of Spiro, runs and manages the restaurant. There is also Sophie, Spiro’s mother and matriarch of the family, who is a real hoot. Spiro has gone on one of his usual mini-vacations, leaving Georgie behind to run the place. Georgie is used to being left alone and doesn’t think anything of it, until he is gone far longer than normal and she begins to worry. To make her life even more interesting, she will have to deal with a reality TV program called Ghost Squad, who is coming in to investigate paranormal activities happening in the house—invited there by Spiro, who has yet to show his face. Georgie is about to take a boat ride with a friend when the two find the body of a rival restaurant owner, Domenic DiTomasso, floating in the water. Georgie turns out to be suspect number one in the man’s death, and goes on the hunt to find her missing husband, along with the killer of Domenic who has ruined her life. There are twists galore in this first book in a new mystery series, titled: A Greek to Me. Georgie and Sophie are wonderful characters, along with the marriage of Georgie and Spiro, which will turn out to be a big surprise. Readers will be on the edge of their seats as there is never a dull moment. And they will be looking for the next book to arrive soon in order to spend more time with this unforgettable family. Add to that the fact that the author was kind enough to offer up some fantastic recipes that will make your taste buds soar, and you will picture yourself on a Greek island with nothing but time, books, and food, glorious food. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

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THE READAHOLICS AND THE FALCON FIASCO By Laura DiSilverio

This is the first book in a new series by Laura DiSilverio, and from the looks of it, this is a series that readers will delve right into. A few good friends have decided to start a reading group. They meet at each other’s houses to discuss mystery books because when they first began they held meetings at the local library and made so much noise that they decided to go to private homes instead. Talk about voicing opinions a bit loudly, aye? The group calls themselves “The Readaholics,” and their latest selection is, “The Maltese Falcon.” The group consists of AmyFaye, and her best friend, Brooke; Lola, who owns a greenhouse/flower shop; Kerry, the mayor of the town called, yes, Heaven; Maud, the oldest of the group; and, Ivy, the victim of the crime. To begin, Amy-Faye is on her way to Ivy’s house for a meeting and when she arrives, Ivy is not answering her door. Amy-Faye sees her on the floor of the house and breaks in. Ivy is taken to the hospital but does not recover, and according to the police her death is ruled a suicide. AmyFaye does not believe this verdict and she works with the other members of the club to solve the mystery of Ivy’s death. Amy-Faye and friends find that there were a plentiful number of suspects and motives for murder, eventually getting the police to agree. As the story moves along, the crew discovers that Ivy was the bearer of some pretty dark secrets that she shouldn’t have known about, which is what may have triggered her early demise. The premise and the characters in this book are extremely well written. Readers will find it difficult to come up with the reason for the murder as there are many red herrings in the plotline that are added perfectly to the mix. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

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THE EUTHANIST

By Alex Dolan Rarely have I picked up a book that drew me so quickly into the tension of a story. As mating tarantulas scamper across the road in front of her rental car, “Kali,” in her role as the euthanist, arrives at the home of Leland Moon. Leland is dying of a painful lung disease, and Kali (not her real name) is there to assist his transition to whatever is next. But Leland is not who he says he is either. And he is not terminally ill, or ill at all. He is a federal agent who offers Kali a bargain. To win back her freedom after he handcuffs her to the bed, she must euthanize a woman she has never met—his sister. Kali believes in what she does, and even refuses to take payment for her services. But to assist the suicide of someone she does not know is beyond her deeply held beliefs. Author Dolan writes in a relentless and literate style, and does not shy away from the unpleasant and difficult situations in life. He wants the reader to be frightened and maybe disturbed, but he also wants us to think. He touches on one of the most sensitive issues of our time and society: Can we choose how to die, and should we? No matter what your personal beliefs about assisted suicide or existence after death, this novel will draw you in, and the questions it poses will stay with you long after you have reached the last page. Dolan delves into a life situation that few of us are comfortable talking about, and who is to say what we might do if faced with a painful terminal illness in ourselves or a loved one. “The Euthanist” is not necessarily an easy book to read, but it’s beautifully written and thought-provoking. Reviewed by Kathleen Heady, author of “Hotel Saint Clare” ■

SEVEN WONDERS

By Ben Mezrich Jack Grady is determined to find out why his brother Jeremy was murdered. The two of them weren’t close but that doesn’t deter Jack from his quest. He teams up with Sloane Costa, a beautiful botanist, and together they follow the clues. The spear used in the murder was the first clue, and as they discover more, they go all over the world finding clues and getting in and out of sticky situations. The evidence links the Seven Wonders of the World and leads to a conspiracy and an ancient secret. Jack and Sloane have a connection and grow closer as they trot across the globe trying to solve Jeremy’s murder and the mystery around it. Their big problem is that someone, or maybe several people, wants the mystery to remain just that. I enjoyed the global travel and the history throughout this book. The author penned an easy, enjoyable read. Reviewed by Ashley Dawn, author of “Shadows of Pain” published by Suspense Publishing an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

ALLURE OF DECEIT

By Susan Froetschel This is a mystery that evokes many emotions, from suspense to pain to fear. Readers are taken into a world where many NGOs (non-governmental organizations) operating outside the country of Afghanistan, are all competing with each other for contracts within that nation, with some tossing money around and making promises they have no intentions of keeping. A thirty-year-old inventor, extremely bright and rich, and his wife, are killed in a terrorist attack. The two left behind a will directing a new foundation to be organized, giving a fortune toward charities in developing countries of the world. In Afghanistan, international charities vie for the attention of this new foundation, bringing in the stories of two women living in the village of Laashekoh: a young mother wrongly imprisoned for her role in aiding a child-trafficking ring; and an older, educated woman who is providing healthcare, including abortions. The villagers of Laashekoh don’t want Western charity and are surprised that they are regarded as recipients. As far as they’re concerned, they are able to take care of themselves and see no need for people to come in and stick their noses into village business. When a group of orphanage workers goes missing from the village there is an immediate problem, as the villagers are accused of getting rid of them. Both sides want to discover the truth about the disappearances, and charity workers and beneficiaries are questioned. The fear rises when the answers come to pass, as a story with shadows galore comes to life. This is a very well written book, reminding one of the old saying, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” Although many innocent people run charities and are all about doing good things, there are those who fall into a far different category. And the acceptance of help and support is not as easy as one might think. This is a good read that causes people to truly think while enjoying a suspenseful tale. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■


THE LADY FROM ZAGREB

By Philip Kerr This brand new Bernie Gunther novel is a definite page-turner. For those who don’t know, Bernie Gunther was once a police detective in Germany, and was called back into police work in 1938, right before WWII. He is now a captain in the Nazi SD; the SS’s very much feared intelligence service. But Bernie is not a Nazi lover. When he entered the service, he was assigned to General Reinhard Heydrich before the Nazi was assassinated in May of 1942. Since that happened, he was sent to Berlin and is in the process of being pulled into a plan thought up by Joseph Goebbels, Hitler’s Minister of Truth and Propaganda. Bernie will have to convince a beautiful film star, Dalia Dresner, to come back to Berlin moviemaking. Before she will consent, she demands that Goebbels find out what happened to her estranged father who was a priest in Yugoslavia. Bernie was always very good at his job, tracking down criminals, and his good works have followed him into this special assignment for Goebbels. Bernie sets out to find this priest, even though he would love to refuse this assignment, but no one turns down Hitler’s minions. Bernie is sent into some of the worst fighting in Croatia looking for Dalia’s father, and into places that are under siege as Communists and Royalists kill each other and any other person that gets in their way. When he thinks that he has a line on Dalia’s father, the rug is pulled out from under him and he’s sent back to Berlin. Along the way…there is even romance. Bernie finds himself falling for Dalia, which may not be the worst thing that could happen. But in wartime, a happy ending is rare. This story is a good one, as are all the Bernie Gunther tales that have come before it. Whether a suspense buff, history or war—this is one book that will keep you thrilled the whole way through. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

THE TAPESTRY

By Nancy Bilyeau In the court of Henry VIII, Anne of Cleves has just become Henry’s fourth wife. Joanna was a novice in the Dominican priory at Dartford, hoping to devote herself to a religious life, when the king ordered the dissolution and destruction of all monasteries and convents, and she was cast out to find her own way in the world. A talented weaver of tapestries, Joanna receives a summons to join the court of the king. When a second summons arrives, Joanna has no choice but to obey, and is accompanied to London by her friends, Master Gwynn, and his wife, Agatha, a former nun. Joanna almost immediately feels the danger of being part of a court rife with intrigue and ruthless ambition. Her friend, Catherine Howard, is one of the queen’s ladies-in-waiting, but it soon becomes clear that Catherine’s family has more lofty goals for the young girl’s future. As Joanna navigates life at court, she has no choice but to follow the king’s orders and take on duties as Mistress of Tapestries, a daunting job for a woman not out of her twenties. Besides her encounters with the formidable Thomas Cromwell, advisor to King Henry, Joanna realizes that she has been followed on several occasions, and that her own life may be in danger. “The Tapestry” is the third in author Nancy Bilyeau’s series set in Tudor England. Her attention to detail and historical accuracy serve to make it much more than a novel to pass the time. Protagonist, Joanna, travels to Henry’s court at Hampton Court, back to her home in Dartford, and even to Germany as she searches for the truth. As a former nun, she is now free to marry, but not to a former priest, oddly enough. How she sorts out her relationships with friends and potential husbands increases the appeal of this book and brings this troubled period in English history to dazzling life. Reviewed by Kathleen Heady, author of “Hotel Saint Clare” ■

LET ME DIE IN HIS FOOTSTEPS

By Lori Roy “Let Me Die in His Footsteps” by Lori Roy is a compelling tale of two women shrouded in mystery and dark family secrets. The story begins from daughter Annie’s perspective in 1952, as she prepares to ascend into womanhood, which occurs in backwater Kentucky at the tender age of fifteen and a half. Tradition involves looking down a well at midnight on that special day to see the face of her future husband. Annie inherited “the knowing” from her mother, and it may enable her to see far more than other girls when she peers into the well. Annie’s mother’s story begins in 1936, in a poor farming community where superstition runs as deep as the fear of women with black eye color, like Annie and her mother. A lifelong feud between two families begins when Annie’s mother is the suspected force behind a terrible crime and an innocent man’s execution on the gallows. Lori Roy tells the parallel stories of mother and daughter in alternating chapters, which deepened the mystery and kept me longing for answers. Eventually, the two storylines merge and expose unexpected secrets that surprised and haunted me long after I turned the last page. The Edgar award-winning author wove her characters into my heart and made them unforgettable. “Let Me Die in His Footsteps” is an unusual book I couldn’t put down because I had to know what really happened in the mother’s past and what would happen to Annie. Reviewed by S.L. Menear, author of “Deadstick Dawn” published by Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■


PLEASANTVILLE By Attica Locke

“Pleasantville” is Attica Locke’s third book featuring Attorney Jay Porter, and readers of this author will be extremely pleased to find out just what Jay is up to these days. Pleasantville sounds like the perfect place to live—hearts, flowers, and happy days. But there are many issues in this small town in Texas that are less than pleasant. This was a planned community housing retired Army men, doctors, and lawyers, who settled there in the years following WWII. It is 1996, in Houston, Texas, now home to Attorney Porter after the death of his wife, where he is struggling to raise his two children alone. Unfortunately, he’s still waiting for the money that he should have received after winning a huge case against an oil company. The opening of the story begins on election night, 1996, when a teenage girl, a campaign worker, disappears from Pleasantville. Her body is found, and the crime brings comparisons to two other unsolved murders. The nephew of a prominent candidate for Mayor, Neal Hathorne, is arrested for the murder and Jay agrees to represent him as a favor to Neal’s family, even though he doesn’t have all that much criminal defense experience. Neal is the grandson of Pleasantville’s powerhouse, Sam Hathorne, who is facing a run-off mayoral election against the District Attorney whose office just happens to be prosecuting Neal. Jay soon finds himself caught up in a nightmare of political corruption and family secrets that will eventually bring the bad guys racing after him and his children. This novel is very complex, with many characters and subplots to keep track of. In other words, it has everything: a case several years old in appeal; a new case waiting to be settled; a recent murder; and, an election campaign. Who could ask for anything more? Filled with intrigue, this is the sequel to “Black Water Rising,” but is definitely a standalone book that resonates with one and all. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

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ANY OTHER NAME By Craig Johnson

Many readers will only recognize the name Sheriff Walt Longmire as a character on Cable’s A&E. If so, they are missing the really well written books featuring Longmire by Craig Johnson. This is the newest mystery in the series about this sheriff from Wyoming, and they just keep getting better and better. In this installment, Longmire is about to become a grandfather, and should be at his daughter’s side anticipating the birth of the baby. But, being the sheriff, he is with his former boss, Lucian Connally, retired sheriff of the county. Walt is a little bit out of his jurisdiction, but is a friend and has asked him for help. According to Lucian, a man by the name of Gerald Holman was an investigator for the Campbell County Sheriff ’s Department, and looking into cold cases. Gerald Holman committed suicide but his widow doesn’t believe he killed himself, so Lucian and Longmire are looking into it. According to Lucian, when Longmire starts investigating he will not quit, so it is no surprise when Longmire uncovers something that Holman was checking out: three cold cases involving missing women. Walt and company follow the trail of these three women from a casino in Deadwood and a lodge in South Dakota as they discover secrets that just might take more lives very, very soon. The story goes on with all the basics that fill Craig Johnson’s mysteries. Longmire has many characters around him; from Lucian to Henry Standing Bear to Sheriff Vic Moretti. The good guys remain good as a criminal must be stopped, all while Longmire must field calls from his pregnant daughter. It remains true that Longmire is a terrific hero, along with his little band of friends. Anyone who meets up with this lawman on page or screen will not forget the meeting, and the fascinating stories are filled with that old-time, rugged, suspense that is far too sparse in the industry. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

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BYE, BYE LOVE

By K.J. Larsen Cat DeLuca, Private Investigator, stumbles over a body while running in a neighborhood park. But when she calls the police, she’s hit over the head by a man wearing a Rolex, and when the police arrive…the body is gone. Cat is a different breed of PI. She sometimes finds it hard to stay within the limits of the law. Her “Pants on Fire Detective Agency” is not only awesomely named, but has a history of ending up in little scrapes with the law. Cat and her loyal dog, a beagle named Inga, have been in the business of catching liars and cheaters for a while now, and that morning they were just having a little run when they fell across the body wearing a face that had been shot beyond recognition. Looking into the victim’s wallet, Cat identified the victim as Bernie Love, a number’s runner for the Provenza crime family, and is not overly surprised that he was killed. To Cat, it’s not a stretch that the man who hit her wearing the Rolex was most definitely Bernie’s killer, and the reason for the death was mob-related. Police Captain Bob, however, is not overjoyed to know that Cat is again hip-deep in trouble and at the center of a murder. He has a hard time believing her story, which he knows will mean that Cat will head out on her own investigation…which she most definitely does. Along with Inga, her assistant, Cleo, and her large Italian family, Cat goes on the hunt to try to clear her name, stay away from police anger, and keep herself from being the next victim of a syndicate that doesn’t care who their next victim is. This is a really fun read that is written by three siblings; K.J. Larsen, is also known as Kari, Julianne, and Kristen Larsen. They have been churning out Cat DeLuca mysteries, and continue to provide fast plots, great characters, and a huge amount of humor. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

LORDS OF THE SITH

By Paul Kemp Author Paul Kemp is no stranger to the Star Wars universe, having penned several books in the past. Now he comes out with “Lords of the Sith,” a story set between Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith and Episode IV A New Hope. For years there has been a void, with missing details regarding some of the adventures of Darth Vader and the Emperor. This book fills some of that void, now that Anakin Skywalker is dead and the legend that will be Darth Vader is just beginning. The Emperor is looking to take over the planet, Ryloth, by any means necessary. He and his newest apprentice, Darth Vader, will embark on a personal mission to ensure the success of the Emperor’s goal. The relationship between the Emperor and Vader grows stronger when, during the mission, an ambush occurs forcing the most powerful figures to fight their way out, using only their trusty lightsabers and the dark side of the force to help them stay alive. Fans will agree that “Lords of the Sith” is the perfect book to include within the Star Wars universe. Kemp packs the pages with emotionally-charged action that reads as far more than just another “chapter” in the overall series. Readers will long for another Paul Kemp book, since this should be considered the best novel in this new era of everyone’s favorite sci-fi realm. (Sorry Star Trek fans, but it’s true.) Reviewed by John Raab ■

EENY MEENY

By M.J. Arlidge This book, without a doubt, is a definite thrill that will set suspense lovers in their chairs for as long as it takes them to read it from cover to cover. From the very first line that makes the skin crawl, a plot is laid out with two hostages and one bullet between them. Who will live…and who will die? Two young people wake up together, extremely confused. They have no idea how they ended up this way or what’s about to happen. No food or water is in sight, only two things can be found in the room: a gun with a single bullet in the chamber, and a mobile phone with only enough power to send a very short message. Their captor has set the scene, and will watch and wait until one of them is dead. The recipient of the phone call (not yet knowing whether that person becomes the killer or the victim), listens to the voice say: “Do you want to live? On the floor you will find a gun with one bullet for your companion…or yourself. That is the price of freedom. You must kill to live.” Detective Inspector Helen Grace knows that she and her team are after a predator that’s into some very strange little games, such as pitting one person against another to see which will be able to call up the passion required to kill. Unlike the ‘norm’ serial killer, this one is unique. They don’t particularly do the “dirty” work, but they do have the power to drive their own captives to murder. The survivors of these games have to endure the fact that they are turned into literal monsters. The action takes place in the city of Southampton, England; a location of darkness that truly fits the evil that seems to resonate from the pages. This is a look inside the mind of an ‘out-of-the-box’ killer, and the ending will be one you’ll never forget. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■


DESPERATE MEASURES

By Sandra Orchard In this, the third book in Sandra Orchard’s amazing Port Aster series, we meet up with old friends, Detective Tom Parker, and Kate Adams, an herbal research scientist. This is the one that all fans have been panting for, as it will tie up all the loose ends from the first two titles, and with the mystery beginning as chapter one takes off like a shot, readers will be lost right away. Detective Parker and Kate are connected in a working and a romantic relationship that is moving along nicely. They always seem to be together, but there remains an undercurrent of secrets between the two. Kate is researching a plant called the amendoso and has finally discovered that the plant is an herbal medication that treats depression. Kate, and her former scientist partner, Daisy Leacock, were on the brink of a breakthrough concerning this remedy when Daisy was found dead. After Daisy’s death, Kate is more determined than ever to finish the work they began together. Kate will do anything she has to in order to solve the killing of her friend and will risk anything to find the truth behind the murder, even if it means putting her romance with Detective Parker on the line. But now… someone is after the plant, and if she chooses to continue to hide her quest and work alone, it may just be the end of her. This author has done a beautiful job bringing three books together and not letting the research of the plant ever detract from the story. It is a perfect balance between research, science, and a mystery that holds a great deal of action. This is the perfect end to the Port Aster trilogy. And this series goes out as having given readers everything they hope for from a series: hero and heroine, lots of excitement, and a need for this author to create a brand new series ASAP. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

THE SILVER CORD

By Alison Caiola In this, the second of her Lily Lockwood series, Caiola has presented us with enough backstory from the initial offering, “The Seeds of a Daisy,” to make the follow-up novel very much a standalone. We catch up with actress, Lily, as she is being presented with her first Tony Award. Her fame brings her back into the arms of her former actor flame, Jamie Fleming, with whom she has parented her daughter, Daisy Rose. Her soulmate and past lover, physician Robbie Rosen, has been off in Africa on a medical mission and not been in close contact for a long while, and while Lily knows Jamie is really nothing more than a flame, she has gotten lonely. Reality is brought back with a jolt when Robbie’s family receives a ransom note after it is discovered that he and two other physicians have been kidnapped by Al-Shabaab, a faction of Al Qaeda. The bodies of the others have been located. Lily agrees to fund a mission to rescue him at all costs, including putting her own life on the line by flying to Somalia, while the former CIA agent running the show plans the operation. Caiola takes us on a journey through the viewpoint of Robbie, showing how he is being beaten by his captors and forced to harvest AIDS infested organs to donate to American donors as an act of terrorism. Not knowing help is on the way, Robbie is planning his suicide rather than help the terrorists. When two CIA wanted terrorists are seen by drone at the site of the rescue, the government steps in and deploys the SEALS, but will the cavalry arrive in time to rescue Robbie and reunite Lily with her true love? Reviewed by Mark P. Sadler, author of “Blood on His Hands” published by Suspense Publishing an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST

By Chris Marie Green This cozy is the second in a series based on the life of “Jensen Murphy, Ghost for Hire.” Yes, the main protagonist just happens to have the gift of being dead. Jensen Murphy was an ordinary California girl who was murdered in the woods by a serial killer back in the 1980’s. She’s back now, however, pulled out of her wretched “time loop” where she was reliving her death by a psychic named, Amanda Lee. Jensen, along with other ghostly friends, and Amanda, combine to put their many interesting talents to good use by helping catch bad guys and solve mysteries. And this particular installment is a whole lot of suspense as the ghostly parade deals with a case that involves a woman and her hotheaded boyfriend who has a very short fuse; a man who is close to taking his girlfriend’s life. How the ghostly parade gets involved is quite simple. Heidi has concern for her friend Nichelle, who is dating a so-called loose cannon, Tim. Heidi has asked Amanda Lee for help in trying to convince Nichelle to leave Tim before he does something stupid, but Nichelle is sure that she can handle his rages. First step, Jensen needs to understand if Tim is really dangerous or simply a loud mouth, as she and her friends use everything possible from the afterlife to discover how to handle this problem. It’s difficult to understand why Nichelle is staying with him and readers will find that Tim is able to make everyone uneasy as it gets harder and harder to figure out what he’s capable of. This book will bring readers into Amanda’s life/Jensen’s afterlife, through humor and emotion. Readers will know that they are in the middle of a very touching story that will bring out their own feelings about helping abused women so they can get better, get away, and live happier lives. This is a very readable cozy. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■


FATAL TRAUMA

By Richard L. Mabry, M.D. At the beginning of this book, Dr. Mark Baker, an ER doctor, hears a loud voice behind him issuing the order: “Nobody Move.” Turning, he focuses on a man pushing a wheelchair into the Emergency Room, brandishing a gun. The man in the chair is bleeding, and the man pushing it from behind is screaming for the doctor to take care of the patient while he holds the weapon to the nurse’s head. No one seems to know who the person is, but the doctor and ER nurse go through the motions to buy time for the police to get there, since they both already know that the patient in the wheelchair has succumbed to his wounds. Police Officer Ed Purvis comes through the door and shoots the man holding the ER crew at gunpoint but, unfortunately, Officer Purvis also gets shot and is rushed to the OR. Yet another casualty from a moment in time that cannot be taken back. After a great deal of questioning, Dr. Mark Baker and Nurse Kelly Atkinson are allowed to leave. They are told by the police the next day that the two victims were part of the Zeta Drug Cartel that has moved into Texas from Mexico. The two are told that this is a gang that always seeks revenge when one of their number is killed, and now that Mark and Kelly did not save them, they have become automatic targets of the cartel. They learn later that two members of the OR staff were also murdered, so Mark and Kelly must team up in order to try and stay alive. The author of this book, Dr. Richard L. Mabry, is a retired physician and writer of medical suspense, and doing an excellent job. This is yet another pageturner where the reader is brought in immediately. Extremely wellwritten, this plot has just the right amount of trauma, fear, and thrills to make it impossible to put down. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

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PLAGUED BY QUILT By Molly MacRae

This is the fourth Haunted Yarn Shop mystery, and readers will be very pleased to have Kath and her needlework buddies, TGIF, back in their lives. Yarn shop owner, Kath Rutledge, is volunteering at a historic farm located in Blue Plum, TN. She’s helping the local high school program, Hands on History, yet her volunteering turns to a bit of madness when a long ago murder is uncovered on the property. Kath needs immediate help from Geneva, the familiar ghost who haunts Kath’s shop. Geneva is not the only ‘person’ in Kath’s life. Her needlework group, Thank Goodness It’s Fiber (AKA: TGIF), is also on hand. The group is asked to teach a workshop at the Holston Homeplace Living History Farm, but the crazy quilt lesson they are planning to teach is no match for the antics of the assistant director, Philip Bell. Philip is going on about history, in his usual histrionic fashion, as he leads an archaeological dig of the farm’s old dumpsite. It is then that one of the students uncovers the human bones. When the whole skeleton is excavated, Kath comes across a strange connection, and believes the body is somehow connected to Geneva. It is engaging that in this novel, Geneva’s background and “real story” come to life as the oldtime skeletons that crop up are investigated. This special ghost that has appeared in all the books is finally set in the spotlight, with a story that all readers will find extremely intriguing. As far as the mystery goes, it is a true whodunit until the very end, which is always a big plus from this writer, who has a way of making sure that no reader is ever disappointed. Although standalone, it is far more fun when beginning with book one and learning to love Kath, the TGIF crew, and Geneva, who always adds the edge-of-your-seat flair to this excellent series. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

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BONE TO BE WILD

By Carolyn Haines In the beginning of this great cozy, Sarah Booth Delaney needs something to do. Her fiancé, Graf Milieu, has suddenly broken off their engagement and gone home to Los Angeles, leaving her alone and more than a bit angry and confused. As fate would have it, an old boyfriend, a guitarist by the name of Scott Hampton, has asked her to track down the person who has threatened him and his band. Scott is about to open up a new blues club and it’s obvious that someone out there does not want that to happen. The authorities are not too upset…until the bartender at the club is killed. As Sarah is trying to forget Graf, she and her partner are hauled into an investigation bringing in a couple more of her old flames. But danger signs begin to pop up for them as well, just like anyone else who will be involved in the new blues club soon to open. Sarah had decided that she would not let a little thing like a break-up stop her from having a ball at the Halloween Ball. She is in need of a little relaxation, but after the bartender is murdered, she finds just what she needed all along. Her passion is to investigate the murder; throw herself headfirst into the case and not stop until she uncovers who did this and why it happened. The authorities are going slowly, but Scott and Sarah soon work to untangle the mystery, and readers are offered up a full plate of twists and turns that will keep ‘older’ lovers of this series intrigued and new readers thrilled. Yet another treasure that Carolyn Haines set in the south with blues history that’s a whole lot of fun to learn. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

TACONIC MURDA

By Uriel E. Gribetz Detective Sam Free, and his partner, Frank Cortez, have worked their way up from narcotics to homicide. Cortez was preparing for an early retirement, fueled by monies he had absconded with from crime scenes he’d worked over the years—him, and many other cops in the Fort Apache section of the South Bronx precinct. Free had always stayed away from the temptation of the extra income, and often caught hell from his workmates for his lifestyle; just a small apartment shared with his wife and son in the inner city. When raiding a suspected murderer’s home, a gun, suspected of being used at a recent triple murder, is seized in the garbage can in the alley behind the house. Free is being pressured into fibbing on the stand by up and coming DA, Celeste Santiago; she wants him to tell jurors that the evidence was found on the suspect’s property. But when Free refuses, he is ostracized by the people he has to work with. So one day he takes a ride up the Taconic Highway to a nearby town out in the country, where there is a chance to work for the local sheriff and get out from under the constant stress of his job. The prices of homes here are too much for his budget; however, an opportunity is dropped at his feet when, in a random traffic altercation, he has a run-in with a local ‘made man’ and finds his rent collections in a large, black plastic bag—enough to buy the house and move his family out to the country. Deciding to take the plunge, just this one time, Free unknowingly sets in motion circumstances that will find him charged for murder, and being pursued by his former colleagues with only revenge on their minds. Gribetz, a New York lawyer, drawing on his work experiences, knocks his debut police procedural out of the park. Reviewed by Mark P. Sadler, author of “Blood on His Hands” published by Suspense Publishing an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

DEATH WITH ALL THE TRIMMINGS

By Lucy Burdette The fifth Key West Food Critic mystery, offers even more mayhem in the beauty of Key West, as well as more recipes that will make the palette sing. Although there is no ‘snow white covering’ during Christmas in Key West, there is definitely murder. And this Christmas, Hayley Snow, the food critic for a local magazine called Key Zest, has gotten herself involved with yet another local mystery, much to the dismay of her friends, family and, most of all, the local police. Haley’s newest assignment is to cover the opening night of Bistro on the Bight, a new restaurant owned by Chef Edel Waugh, who made a huge name for herself back in New York City running a restaurant with her husband. Edel is newly divorced, however, and has moved from the Big Apple to Key West to begin again. She is certain she can run a restaurant, be her own chef, and be an overnight success all at the same time. Edel does ask Hayley for help; she wants her to try to find out who is attempting to wreck her chances at having a great opening night. Little things keep happening; there’s too much salt in the sauce, too much peanut oil found in the dressing… But then things get far worse, when the shed behind the restaurant is burned down and a body is found inside. The characters are very enjoyable, especially Hayley, and the investigation will keep readers intrigued. One of the best things continues in this series which is the delicious recipes found in the back of the book. From “Lucy’s Scarlett O’Hara Cupcakes” to “Janet Snow’s Spaghetti Bolognese” the writer offers not only a fun Christmas jaunt through Key West, but also a menu that leaves readers panting for more. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■


DONE IN ONE

By Grant Jerkins and Jan Thomas In a majority of the police forces in this country, there is a SWAT (Special Weapons and Tactics) team included within the building. This particular branch includes a sniper, who is probably a guy that you all know and admire, who goes about his day job normally, only pulling out the ‘special talent’ when it’s called for. This man is a kidnapped hostage’s last hope for staying alive; not to mention, a criminal’s silent nightmare. In this story, Jake Denton is that SWAT sniper. He saves his bullet casings as depressing reminders of his kills and these casings are beginning to mount up. Jake’s wife and department psychiatrist are beginning to see just how much these kills are affecting his mental health. Lee Staley is the man who was Jake’s partner and teacher at one time; on permanent psychiatric leave, he becomes a suspect in a series of killings that take place in Northern California. It seems that a shooter has been killing cops, and the strain gets to Jake. Lee was a sniper that retired after he missed his last shot and couldn’t seem to get beyond it. Jake doesn’t believe that Lee is the culprit, but knows that they have both been taught to kill, and how easy it would be to cross the line to become a murderer for hire. As this novel unfolds, readers will liken this story to American Sniper, the movie that talks about military snipers who are deployed, usually for thirty months, but the police sniper is on duty for some thirty-plus years, truly a big difference. Snipers have that one bullet that equals one kill, and if the job is not “Done in One” even more nightmares can occur. The team of mystery writer, Jerkins and Jan Thomas, who has worked as a paramedic, is intriguing. And the fact that Jan’s husband is a retired police sniper makes the book all the more realistic. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

THE DEAD ASSASSIN

By Vaughn Entwistle A truly nasty murder is discovered that has Scotland Yard completely baffled. It is the year 1895, and when this murder case shows up so does one, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, to investigate. And Doyle subsequently finds himself up against a case that is far different from any other he has worked on. Scotland Yard’s Detective Blenkinsop calls Conan Doyle and Oscar Wilde to the home of the Secretary for War Lord Montague Howell. Howell has been found dead in his parlor, dressed in his evening clothes, with his killer lying just a few feet away…shot dead. It seems that Lord Howell was the victim of a revolutionary plot threatening the royal family, and Queen Victoria, herself, has asked Doyle to look into it. A constable recognizes the assassin as Charlie Higginbotham, a petty thief and pickpocket but nothing as substantial as a murderer. Something even more difficult to explain? It seems to be a complete impossibility that he is the killer, seeing as how he was hung at Newgate Prison just two weeks ago. Doyle and the crew are flummoxed, to say the least, as other murders are committed by someone who is already dead. As the killings continue, a strange group of madmen appear. Doyle is soon left wondering if someone actually has the ability to bring a body back to life—bodies of executed criminals—and program them to murder. On the cover of this truly amazing and excellent read are the words: “The Paranormal Casebooks of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.” Paranormal is the magic word here, and the writing is outstanding. Best advice that can be given: Do not miss this one! Reviewed by Amy Lignor, author of “The Charlatan’s Crown,” published by Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine ■

FINDING SKY

By Susan O’Brien Nicki Valentine is a widow with two pre-school-aged children. She is a very good mom, but would like to have an identity all her own. So (why not?) she decides to become a private investigator. Nicki is taking P.I. classes while her kids are in pre-school. Her mother, and her friend, Kenna, are helping with babysitting duties. Kenna and her husband are awaiting the birth of a baby that they are planning to adopt. The teenage mother of the baby, Beth, wants to give the baby up for adoption but her parents want to keep it. Worse yet, the baby’s father doesn’t want the baby to be born at all, and he has threatened Beth. Now…she has gone missing. Kenna seems to think that she is just hiding until after the baby is born, but she asks Nicki to help her locate Beth. The police have been called in on the case but have had no luck finding her, so Nicki attempts to track the girl down by getting advice from her P.I. class instructor—a man who is seriously good looking and adds an extra bit of spice to her life. But Beth is more important at the moment, and seeing as that a baby is going to be born, Nicki must learn her new craft as quickly as possible to make sure that everything and everyone turns out all right. Living in suburbia with babysitters, a minivan stacked with all sorts of stuff, and her woman’s intuition, Nicki has her first taste of what private investigation will be like. This book is a very cleverly written introduction to a brand new series that takes a fun shot at motherhood and PI’s in training. Fast-paced with a terrific story line, I have a feeling readers will be waiting impatiently for the next installment. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■


LIFE OR DEATH By Michael Robotham

The criminals in this actionpacked novel have what you would call “money problems.” So what should they do? Steal some, of course. When this gang robs an armored truck and takes away $7 million, the robbery leaves four people dead, one robber shot but captured alive, and one gang member who gets away and is never seen again. But he’s not the only one; the $7 million payday can’t be found either. Audie Palmer was the survivor who didn’t get away. Captured, he had to fight for his life every day of the ten years he was incarcerated as everyone (inmate or not) wanted a piece of the action. Moss Webster, a convicted killer, has seen the boy stabbed, strangled, beaten and burned, by guards and inmates alike, trying to make Audie give up the information of what became of the money, and where Carl, Audie’s brother, disappeared to. As Audie’s release date nears, the attacks get worse. But on the morning of his discharge from prison, he disappears. Special Agent Desiree Furness of the FBI is on the odd case that makes absolutely no sense. After all, what moron after serving ten years would plan and execute an escape when it’s time for him to get out? Let’s just say, Audie has his reasons. And on the other side of the very same coin sit some very unsavory mobsters who pledge to arrange a little vacation for Moss Webster— promising his freedom if he finds Audie before the FBI can track him down. While reading this terrific, non-stop thriller, both the present and the decade-old robbery are explored. A masterful piece of fiction, Audie’s journey is sheer perfection for the person who absolutely dotes on suspense and is always looking for that next thrill ride that never ends. This story leaves you breathless from beginning to end. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and CoOwner of The Write Companion ■

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NIGHT WORK By Steve Hamilton

Joe Trumbull is a Juvenile Probation Officer in Kingston, New York. He’s a nice guy who has been through a very hard time in the past. Two years ago, his fiancée was killed just a few days before their wedding. It is two years later and he’s finally decided to go on a date for the first time since the tragedy happened. Joe wants to get his life back, and is going to take the plunge by going on a blind date with Marlene Frost, a lovely woman who he hits it off with pretty well, even spending some time at her place after their date. Leaving around one a.m., Joe looks forward to a second date. Somehow, for some sick, fateful reason, his evening with Marlene begins a brand new nightmare for Joe that draws him back to his past. But the worst is yet to come. Sadly, Marlene is found murdered; her body left near the railroad tracks. Joe does everything he can to help until two other women who are associated with Joe are also found dead, and Joe ends up being accused of murdering them all. Not only them, however, Joe also finds himself accused of killing his former fiancée, Laurel, whose case has remained open all this time. Joe certainly knows he hasn’t killed anyone, and won’t stop looking until he finds the psycho who apparently hates him enough to want to destroy any chance Joe will ever have for a life. This is a very interesting story with good characters and a great plot line. At times, you may want to smack Joe for his naïveté, but you will stick with him and enjoy the mystery, while having a few laughs at the humor found throughout the tale. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

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MURDER AT HONEYCHURCH HALL

By Hannah Dennison This book is the first in a brand new series by Hannah Dennison, which means the extremely entertaining world of “Honeychurch Hall” is just beginning. Set in the quiet, peaceful Devon countryside of England, an old house sits in need of a lot of repairs, holds some secrets, some stuffed animals and, lo and behold, a murder. Kat Stanford has given up her job as the host of Fakes & Treasures, a British TV show, and is hoping to open an antique business with her newly widowed mother, Iris. Kat finds that her mother has moved from London to a carriage house located on an estate in Devon called, Honeychurch Hall. She also learns about this move via a telephone call informing Kat that Iris has broken her hand. Kat offers to help, and sets out to visit her mom to check on her. The family that owns the Hall are struggling to keep the estate together so they do not have to sell it to developers. But what Iris’s part is in all this, is a puzzle to Kat. She soon discovers that she doesn’t know her mother as well as she thought, and the idea of opening an antique shop may have to be put aside for the time being. But as Kat becomes more ingrained in the estate, she realizes that Devon is anything but boring and out-of-theway. Honeychurch Hall is clandestine in its own way, and Iris has purchased the carriage house at the Hall with some very interesting folks in the area, including; lords, ladies, butlers, and cooks that all seem to have something they’re hiding. And when the bodies begin to pile up, it’s Kat who has to figure out the truth behind the veil of secrecy that hangs over Honeychurch Hall. This is the perfect read for an afternoon where mystery and fun is all you’re looking for. It will be interesting to see how this already great series continues. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

PALACE OF TREASON

By Jason Matthews This is the sequel to the truly thrilling, “Red Sparrow.” In this installment, Captain Dominika Egorova of the Russian Intelligence Service (SVR), is now one of the CIA’s highest placed moles working in the Kremlin. Dominika is also in love with her CIA handler, Nate Nash, which makes her even more than just a little crazy as she has to keep their relationship a secret while the Kremlin biggies are constantly checking up on everyone. The villains in the group are really villains, especially Alexei Zyuganov, who is a psychopath and torturer of the highest order, along with his student, Eva Buchina, who is right up there with him when it comes to sick. When it seems that a promotion is coming, due to being a true ‘patriot of the state,’ by the time the person is in they realize that they’ve sold their heart and soul to the party, and Dominika makes it clear that she is out for revenge. She has been taken in by the CIA to start a new mission called Project Diva, featuring Dominika as the show’s leading lady. She heads back to Russia to infiltrate the SVR and gain the trust of the men in charge. As she is working her way inside, Nate and his crew are working on a mission in Washington to mess with a plan of Iran’s to get nuclear weapons capability in only a year’s time. Dominika is a smart cookie and is able to keep her head on straight while getting the job done. Nate is the perfect foil for Dominika, and the relationship they share is just as thrilling as the missions they head. This is a great book written by author Jason Matthews, who just happens to be a former CIA operative and certainly knows the background and intricacies of what he’s talking about. First rate writing with an unforgettable storyline, this one is not to be missed. Reviewed by Mary Lignor, Professional Librarian and Co-Owner of The Write Companion ■

POSITIVE

By David Wellington Not a zombie fan? Me neither. I enjoy The Walking Dead, but then, it isn’t really about the zombies. It’s about people surviving in a post-apocalyptic world. The zombie killings are for the fun of it, right? So I wasn’t thinking: Yay, David Wellington’s “Positive” is the book for me. It has zombies in the blurb. However, it was the book for me. Wellington has cleverly put a new spin on an overstuffed genre. There’s heart in “Positive,” solid characters, and a storyline that doesn’t dawdle along examining all the minutiae which bogs down some of these post-apocalyptic stories. “Positive” drops us into Manhattan, where society is almost normal now that the zombie apocalypse is in its second generation of survivors. This younger generation knows nothing except struggle. Within Manhattan, they are safe, although this zombie virus can gestate for up to twenty-one years. If you’re unfortunate enough to be born to someone who suddenly turns zombie, like our protagonist, Finn, whose mother goes zombie, you are tattooed with a positive sign and segregated from the population until the incubation period expires at age twenty-one. Finn is meant to be delivered to a camp in another state to wait out his time, but his transport is ambushed. He’s left alone to survive in the treacherous territory outside Manhattan. In order to stay alive, he joins with scavengers and various characters who’ve adapted to the constant threat of death. It’s a road trip of epic adventure and drama, and Finn realizes zombies are not the worst enemies he faces. Wellington tells a great story in the ilk of “The Passage,” “The Road,” and even Stephen King’s “The Stand.” For all the zombie snobs, you might find you enjoy the genre when in the hands of a talented writer. I’m not a zombie fan, but am now firmly a David Wellington fan. Reviewed by Susan May www.susanmaywriter.com ■


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Movies INSIDE OUT 2015

Genre – Animation/Comedy/Drama (PG) Disney’s Pixar has gone where most parents fear to tread; they’ve taken us into the brain of a child bordering on teenage-hood. Yikes! Despite Inside Out being an animated fantasy, they’ve done their homework. You can almost hear the filmmakers brainstorming the idea: emotions control us. Director/screenwriter Pete Docter, has brought us some of the greatest animated films to date, including; Up, Monsters Inc., and Toy Story, and he doesn’t miss the mark here either. Inside Out has some refreshingly original ideas, exploring the concept that if emotions and memory were run as an organization, how would everything work? We first meet Joy (Amy Poehler) who arrives inside the control room of baby girl, Riley (Kaitlyn Dias), just moments after her birth. She is soon joined by Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black) and Disgust (Mindy Kaling). Talk about picking the perfect voices to match the emotion. They run Riley’s reactions to life in a democratic manner, with Joy mostly running the show, meaning, for the most part, Riley has a happy disposition. That is…until Riley’s family moves from the Midwest to San Francisco. It’s a difficult transition for the whole family, and Riley remains positive, even rallying the family, until Joy and Sadness are accidentally sucked into the vault of long term memories. Without Joy in control, the rest of the emotions make poor decisions and Riley’s life spirals out of control. Joy and Sadness must find their way back to the control room by navigating through Riley’s subconscious, travelling through the Dream Factory, hitching a ride on the Train of Thought, navigating the maze of long-term memories, and even teaming up with Riley’s childhood imaginary friend Bing Bong (Richard Kind). The voice actors do a wonderful job, the animation is colorful and imaginative, and despite its complex themes, children will still easily relate. Another finely scripted, beautifully imagined film from Docter, who clearly has the ability to tap into his inner child. This time, literally. Reviewed by Susan May www.susanmaywriter.com ■

JURASSIC WORLD 2015

Genre – Action/Adventure/Sci-Fi (PG-13) In 1993, Steven Spielberg realized Michael Crichton’s imaginative novel “Jurassic Park” on the big screen, employing CGI technology that had us slobbering over our movie tickets and standing in extremely long lines just to see the film. In the lead up to it’s release, countless news features, with accompanying video, on the amazing imagery from the upcoming film played on our small screens endlessly. Even last year the re-released Jurassic Park, re-engineered in 3D, was just as entertaining, withstanding the test of time. Twenty-two years later, with our advances in technology, you would imagine a rebooted Jurassic Park would be edge-of-the-seat thrilling and fantastic entertainment. Seems scriptwriting has not evolved at the same pace as technology. You can’t dress up a poor script in CGI. Second-time director Colin Trevorrow (Safety Not Guaranteed), seems unable to bring his characters any further than clichés of the originals. Introducing (or let’s say re-introducing), the billionaire park owner (Irrfan Khan) who hasn’t got a clue—how did he get to be so rich, when he’s so dopey? The manager of the park (Bryce Dallas Howard) who won’t shut down the place no matter what—for the love of Jimmy Choo shoes, how does she run through the jungle and from a T-Rex while wearing high heels most couldn’t even walk in? The bad guy (Vincent D’Onofrio) who wants to use the dinosaurs for military purposes—Really? Oh, so original. Hero (Chris Pratt)—who nobody listens to, even though he makes the most sense—who can wrangle raptors and is all about the people eating, dangerous animals. The two kids—there always has to be two kids—whose mother allows them to go to an island for the weekend to visit their aunt—alone!—who she hasn’t seen for six years, and she knows is self-centered and unreliable. Not bringing anything new to the franchise, it’s almost a parody of the original. If you can get past all the dumbness, it does have some saving graces. There’s no swearing and the posters are awesome. There are a few cool nods to the original, and we get to see what happened to the old park and hotel. Kids from around ten to fourteen will probably love it. If you are a fan of the Transformer style film where giant, long-winded, over-thetop battles matter more than solid character and plot development, then you will enjoy. If you are not in these categories, might I suggest a night at home with popcorn and the original Jurassic Park (or you could even read the book). At least that way, you won’t be left wondering how Bryce Dallas Howard managed to sprint in heels. My vote is they’re some new shoes Nike is testing out. Reviewed by Susan May www.susanmaywriter.com ■

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Featured Artist

ANGELES RUIZ LEARNING LIFE LESSONS

Interview by Suspense Magazine


ALIVE 45

THUNDERSTORM

W

e happily bring to you our June featured artist Angeles Ruiz, who is known as La Boheme on DeviantArt. Angeles is from Spain and happily defines herself with a known phrase from her country: “student of everything and teacher of nothing.” Angeles has tried her hand at several majors over ten years at University, studying law, psychology, social education and more. She left the classroom environment when she realized she was unhappy with dedicating so many hours to things that she found herself uninterested in. Angeles believes in doing things with passion or feels it’s better not to do them at all. After leaving the classroom, she jumped around until she decided to take a few courses on makeup artistry. It was through working with fashion photographers that she learned about Photoshop. She found that tool that would allow her to express her feelings, and as a self-taught artist, she’s constantly striving to learn. Rewarded by her direction, Angeles has also been featured in art exhibits. She continues to work to capture emotion from viewers and finds herself the happiest when someone says, “this has made me tremble,” or “this has made me dream.” Suspense Magazine (S. MAG.): Where did your love of art itself come from? A teacher, a parent, a friend, etc.?

I LOVE YOU MY ANGEL I WILL LOVE YOU FOREVER

Angeles Ruiz (A.R.): My love of art itself comes from my parents. They taught me to appreciate the beauty of art in all its forms (performing arts, music, dance, museums, architecture, etc). S. MAG.: How would you describe your process? Do you work on one piece at a time or do you have several projects in various stages? A.R.: I become obsessed with single pieces, once I start working on one, and I work solely on that until it’s finished. I depend on my inspiration completely. Though Picasso said, “Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working,” I do recognize that I cannot force myself to work. If I want to finalize a job to my satisfaction, I need to express an emotion and have an idea on how to do it. S. MAG.: If you had to choose just one piece of your work to showcase, which would it be and why? A.R.: I would choose Alive without hesitation. The idea that we can create characters and new worlds and give them life, or try to, is something that I love. The barrier separating reality from fantasy is not clear. I think there is real magic in the creation of art.

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S. MAG.: Do you have an emotional connection to your pieces? A.R.: Yes, with each and every one of them, I have an emotional connection. For me, it’s always a means of expressing emotions, fears, fantasies, dreams, and even views on social issues or life in general. S. MAG.: What memorable responses have you had to your work? A.R.: I’m really impressed when I’m able to touch the hearts of people. I remember a comment where someone told me that the scene had brought her many fond memories of life years ago, and she was moved. The fact that someone stops to observe and “feel” makes me very happy and touches me deeply. S. MAG.: Who is your favorite artist? A.R.: I know many wonderful artists and I really love the work of many of them, but my favorite artist is Kurtzan (http://kurtzan. deviantart.com). He’s a real artist and the passion that he invents in his work is clearly visible. He’s able to create impressive sceneries full of details and new worlds full of life. If you care to observe, it’s even easy to imagine the sounds in each of his pieces. And his dark images are just brilliant. A Strange Encounter is, to me, the best dark work that I have ever seen (http://kurtzan. deviantart.com/art/A-Strange-Encounter-440742906). I’ve paused to view it more than a hundred times and the atmosphere is chilling—really amazing. S. MAG.: If you could write a message to future aspiring artists and place it in a time capsule for them to read years from now, what would you write? A.R.: I would write: “Well, I’m not here anymore, and you can see that life is short, so try to live your dream and if you feel happy doing artwork, just do it!” S. MAG.: Describe a day in your life. A.R.: All of my days are similar; I have a simple life with not much to tell. I try to enjoy every day with people I love and my pets. I try to fulfill my duties as best as I can and I like going to bed every night with a clear conscience and wake up every morning giving thanks for the good things I have in my life with a smile. S. MAG.: Finish this sentence: If I wasn’t an artist, I would be ___________. A.R.: A literature teacher! There are many books from sixteenth- to eighteenth centuries that I want to read, and I love poetry. S. MAG.: Tell us something about your home country/home town that we wouldn’t find in a travel brochure. A.R.: Oh, Spain is a country with so much history. There are hundreds of castles, palaces, medieval villages, historic museums, and impressive cathedrals that you can see, but if you don’t want to spend the whole day visiting places, you’ll also find a lot of sun, music, and parties. We’ve got good wine, wonderful food, beautiful beaches and very friendly and welcoming people. We thank Angeles for spending time with us. You can find out more about this talented artist at http://la--boheme.deviantart.com. ■


47

RIPPED FROM THE

HEADLINES MEET NEAL GRIFFIN


Debut author, Neal Griffin, has worked as a patrol cop, field training officer, member of SWAT, Hostage Negotiator, Narcotics Investigator, Gang Enforcement Specialist, and Supervisor of a Homicide Unit. He has been named as Officer of the Year on two occasions during his career and he currently holds the rank of Detective Lieutenant. Neal holds a Bachelor’s Degree from California State University, San Marcos and is a graduate of the prestigious FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia. The son of a Philosophy Professor, Neal was taught early on to question authority. It is a trait that has not always made him popular with his bosses, but one he has put to use as an author. In his first novel, “Benefit of the Doubt,” Neal has created police characters who challenge the status quo. Cops who are good at what they do in spite of the fact they may not be as dutiful and obedient as most chiefs would like. Neal also pulls no punches in creating cops who have no business wearing a badge or a gun. In his book, Neal has tackled one of the most controversial topics in law enforcement: false conviction born of police malfeasance. We were able to interview Neal about the book and you can check out that interview below. But first let’s take a quick peek inside “Benefit of the Doubt.” Convicted killer Harlan Lee is out of prison and determined to exact revenge against the system that locked him away for seventeen years. Halfway across the country, Police Sergeant Ben Sawyer is fired after committing an act of abusive force so outrageous, he’s America’s new poster boy for police brutality. “Benefit of the Doubt” is the story of these two men and the bloody road that leads to their inevitable confrontation. Suspense Magazine (S. MAG.): Give us the inside look into “Benefit of the Doubt” that’s not on the back cover. Neal Griffin (N.G.): The story is incredibly current. Even though the book has been working its way through the editorial process for the past year, “Benefit of the Doubt,” has that ‘ripped from the headlines’ feeling. Ben Sawyer’s cell phone captured fall from grace and Tia Suarez’ exposure, and use of clandestine government surveillance assets are just two examples. A few weeks before the book was released, my editor sent me a clipping of an actual incident of police misconduct that was uncanny to say the least; one could go so far to say eerily familiar. It even occurred in the Midwest! I


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think “Benefit of the Doubt” will strike the reader as relevant to current affairs. S. MAG.: When creating a character, are there certain things you make sure they all have? N.G.: Staying Power. As a writer, I want to create characters that stay in the mind of the reader long after the book has gone on the shelf. So, if somehow a character came to life and stopped you on the street, it would be like seeing an old friend or, in the case of a few others, like confronting your worst enemy. I think the characters in “Benefit of the Doubt” have that sort of impact. Ben Sawyer is a cop who comes off as a bit cocky at first, but he’s pretty good at what he does so maybe that’s okay. In the case of Tia Suarez, she’s one of the best cops I’ve ever been around and I know readers will be drawn to her moxie. And Harlan Lee? He’s the sort of crook that has always intrigued me. Smart, organized and focused. Harlan has an agenda and he’s not the least bit concerned with society’s ‘silly little rules’ that govern moral behavior. So for me, a good character—no, check that—a great character is developed with such depth that they stay in the head of a reader long after the book goes on the shelf. S. MAG.: Plot vs. Character driven stories: which side do you fall on? N.G.: I don’t think you can compromise in either area, but I do start with characters. Strong multi-dimensional characters drive plot. S. MAG.: In “Benefit of the Doubt” did you have a character that surprised you by having a larger voice than you thought they would? N.G.: From the start, “Benefit of the Doubt” was all about Ben Sawyer. His fall from grace as well as his road to redemption. Then, as I started to venture out with beta-readers and agents, everyone started commenting on the character of Tia Suarez. Even Tess Gerritsen, who sampled just a bit, said “Oh, I like Tia.” I found the character Tia Suarez to be just like the Tia’s I’ve known in real life; she refused to be

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ignored. At one point, I’d say she nearly takes over the story. Her character came out so strong that in the sequel to “Benefit of the Doubt,” Tia Suarez is the lead protagonist and I know everyone is going to love her. S. MAG.: Was there a certain author or book that turned the light on in your head to make you want to write in this genre? N.G.: I grew up on Wambaugh and that had a lot to do with my becoming a cop, but becoming a writer was a different story. I remember picking up a book titled, “A World of Thieves,” from a discount pile. I bought it for $2.00. I read it in two days and since that time I’ve read everything ever written by James Carlos Blake. He is a master of literary crime fiction. I call his style “irreverent Americana.” His plots are true to life but absolutely uncompromising in their realistic portrayal of crime fighting in the late 19th and early 20th century. He was once quoted as saying, “violence is the most elemental truth of life.” I think you’ll see more than a little of that sentiment in “Benefit of the Doubt.” S. MAG.: Being a new author, what have you learned along the way regarding the whole publishing/marketing process? N.G.: So many things, but probably most important, trust the experts and be patient. That was hard for me because I’m not by nature a patient guy. My agent, Jill Marr, worked with me for a year before we took the manuscript to market. She knew we would only get one shot to catch the eye of a publisher and she wanted the manuscript to make the strongest possible impression. My editor, Melissa Singer with Tor/Forge, has been in the business for thirty years and she taught me a great deal along the way about how you roll out a crime novel. You can’t rush it. And obviously both Jill and Melissa knew how to get it done, because two weeks after release, “Benefit of the Doubt” hit #8 on the L.A. Times bestseller list. Having professionals like Jill and Melissa in my corner throughout the entire process has made all the difference. S. MAG.: Even though you are a Packer Fan (Suspense Magazine is all Viking Country, I guess I’ll ask another question), what one piece of advice did you receive early that has stuck with you? N.G.: Great segue! Even though Viking fans have had no real cause for excitement in thirty years, they don’t give up! It’s the same in publishing. If you want to write and eventually publish, you just have to stay with it. You can’t stop trying to improve on your skills. I’m not sure there is another endeavor that has more rejection built into it than publishing a novel. It’s a rite of passage that everyone has to endure. You simply can’t give up; and, you can’t stop learning throughout the process. There will be nuggets of knowledge along the way; experts willing to


share a tidbit here and there. And you must have thick skin. I remember when bestselling author Andrew Gross read a few pages from an early manuscript. His advice was unvarnished but incredibly helpful. S. MAG.: Normally with your military background we would have expected you to write a military thriller, why did you not take that path? N.G.: I guess I fell into that pattern of writing what I know, and there is nothing I know better than police work. I loved my years in the marines, but that seems like a lifetime ago. (Probably because it was.) I think the stories I can write with the most authenticity are always going to be cop stories. After twenty-six years, I’ve got plenty of material. S. MAG.: Why did you choose Police Sgt. Ben Sawyer to be the character that would lead your book. Who is he? N.G.: Ben is a great cop, until the moment he’s not. He’s the cop you want at 2:00 AM, when you’re home, asleep with your family and you hear the glass break downstairs. You stir awake to realize not only is someone in your house but now they’re coming up your stairs. And, if you’re the type of person who never really thought you’d need a gun, all you’re going to have is a phone. So you’ll dial 911 and Ben Sawyer is the cop you want. But the day comes when the stars align against Ben. On a hot summer day in deep east Oakland when he is taking a wanna-be cop killer into custody, he snaps. In a big way. Now, branded as the poster boy for police brutality, Ben has to try and recover not only some sort of a career, but his life and family. Ben is flawed but you can’t help but pull for him. You want him to find his way back to being the cop, husband and father he once was. His journey is the story of “Benefit of the Doubt.” S. MAG.: What can fans expect to see from you in the future? N.G.: The sequel to “Benefit of the Doubt,” is complete and features Tia Suarez as the lead character. The book is titled “A Voice From the Field” and will be released by Forge in the spring of 2016. Now I’m working on another thriller featuring both Ben Sawyer and Tia Suarez, along with some new characters, both heroic and scandalous. And, I would also like to write a standalone book that is set in Southern California where I’ve spent my career as a cop. I already have some ideas in mind. But for sure, more to come! We would like to thank Neal for taking the time to talk with us. For more information on Neal please visit his website at www.nealgriffin.com. ■


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COPY EDITOR’S CORNER

Editor, Heal Thyself By Jim Thomsen

LAST MONTH I TALKED ABOUT TAKING SOME TIME OFF TO WRITE MY OWN NOVEL. How’s that going, you ask?

Welllllllllll…good and not so good. The story behind the story is its own three-act tale. Act I: I got off to a blazing start, shoring up some holes in an extended synopsis I wrote before I arrived at a friend’s guest cottage in north-central Florida. I remain convinced as much now as then that my plot and structure are solid. And then I roared out of the gate with more than 33,000 words in the first nine days. But… well, in the trade, a first draft is known as a “vomit draft,” and, well, my vomit draft was particularly odiferous and runny. For those who think that editing novels for a living means that I’d have a firm grasp of what to do—and what not to do—as a writer, well…that might be logical, but we’re talking about writing here. In letting the story “flow” for this first draft, and not getting caught up in the nearly irresistible need to edit as I went, I made many of the mistakes I routinely red-flag in the work of my clients. I may have learned craft, but my bad impulses still wield wicked power over my streamed consciousness. Staying in flow is one thing but, to coin an indelicate metaphor, if there’s enough fecal matter in your flow, things will get plugged up and backed up.

IT TOOK A WEEK AWAY TO COME BACK WITH EYES FRESH ENOUGH TO SPOT MY SCREW-UPS: 1. From almost the beginning, I put the story on “pause” to explain things. The background of every

character. The history of the setting. What everything and everybody looks like. What people feel. I had to check myself by recalling a note I wrote to a client who had the same problem: “Would you want to watch a movie that froze the action ten seconds and followed with ten minutes of voice-over narration?” Well, no, I wouldn’t. Highlight, delete, lather, rinse, repeat. And then I recalled another piece of advice I gave to another similarly afflicted client: “If your story depends to an extreme degree on the events that precede it, then your story is probably starting in the wrong place.” Yep, that’s just what happened. I spent a few hours soul-searching the question: “Where does my story really begin?” And eventually I found it, by turning backstory into front story.

2.

My dialogue and descriptions were too “on the nose.” I preach show-don’t-tell with the fervor of a tentrevival preacher, and here I was using adverbs and writing things like “Her eyes were cornflower blue.” I was

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describing action in linear fashion, and it felt like I was writing the instructions to IKEA furniture assembly: “He swung his fist. I ducked and rolled at his legs. He jumped but a beat too late, and tumbled onto the pavement. I leaped to my feet….” Ugh! Who is this person using my fingers to type these horrible words? This was a tougher problem to get around for me, because I not only wanted to fix my words but fix the thinking that created them. During that one-week timeout, I contracted with an online literary site to write an appreciation of crime author Peter Abrahams, and read one Abrahams novel a day. Abrahams, it turns out, is a master at writing “off the nose.” Almost every exchange of dialogue involves one person speaking cryptically and another person trying, and usually failing, to get more information. And in his action scenes, he has a way of delivering critical information right behind the beat, sly but pleasurable rabbit punches. An example from Abrahams’s 2006 suspense thriller, “End of Story”: I feel his hard muzzle at the back of my head. Am I expecting company? No. That explains my overreaction and I don’t even recognize Ferdie till he’s down. Course he has backup—procedure is how they get control of the wild boys—and they work me over for a bit, completely understandable, no problem. Then Ferdie’s back in the picture, a little different with missing teeth. One of them’s in my hand; I’ve been clinging to it during the working-me-over part for some reason. Ferdie asks the big question, the one about where the money is. I can only laugh. Man, that’s neat. So when I came back to my manuscript, I revisited my on-the-nose description of a street-hustler character. In my vomit draft, I wrote four or five blah sentences about his body size and his aquiline face and his gelslicked hair. Yawn. Instead, I thought about Abrahams’s technique, and my fingers typed this: “Romeo Hendershot looked like the sort of guy who was genetically engineered to wear track suits and carry bricks of cash in black canvas bags.” My fingers hovered for a moment, quivering, itchy to describe him. Then I realized I just had.

3. Let the reader do most of the heavy lifting. That relates directly to #2, in which I was over-anticipating

what my reader might be. But here’s the thing: If I paint a complete picture of what Romeo Hendershot looks like to me, what’s left for the reader to do? How can they participate in the story? If I give them less to engage with, then doesn’t it stand to reason that they’d eventually disengage? So: tease them with what you’re not telling them.

4. Take it easy on the figurative language. There are a million similes and metaphors out there, especially

in crime fiction, and it’s tough to find ones that a) work on their own; and b) don’t sound like knockoff Raymond Chandler. Instinctively, I want to compare everything to something, and rationally, I know for the most part that it’s not necessary. Case in point: I was describing a narrows between two bodies of water, and I wrote: “The water churned and turned like the agitation cycle of a washing machine in slow motion.” Man, that’s just awful. In my second pass, I just wrote: “The water churned and turned as the two inlets sprawled into one another.” Why would I want readers thinking about something else when I’m trying to get them to think about what’s actually happening? ■ Jim Thomsen is on hiatus as the copy editor of Suspense Magazine. He can be found on Facebook, on Twitter at @jimthomsen, and by email at [email protected].


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SI M ON GERVAI S ADDS A PERSONAL TOUCH Interview by Jeff Ayers for Suspense Magazine Press Photo Credit: Provided by Author

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ould you go against everything you stand for to avenge your family? That intriguing question propels Simon Gervais’s first thriller featuring federal agent Mike Walton in “The Thin Black Line.” Gervais utilizes his background working for various federal agencies and security in his native country of Canada to create a tantalizing and insightful read. Gervais chatted with Suspense Magazine. Suspense Magazine (S. MAG.): What made you decide you wanted to write fiction? Simon Gervais (S.G.): From 2004 to 2008, I was assigned to one of the counterterrorism units of my organization. Plane rides were frequent and often very long, especially the ones to the Middle East. I read a lot to help pass the time. It wasn’t rare for me to go through a whole book before the plane touched down on the other side of the Atlantic. After a while, I started to be frustrated at how unrealistic some of these books were. The tactics and techniques employed by the protagonists weren’t correct, weren’t realistic. I talked to a few colleagues of mine who were reading the same big-name authors that I was and I could feel they were irritated, too. This is when I realized that I could do better, that I could use my experience and training to write a novel that would connect not only with these big-name authors’ fans but also to my military and law enforcement colleagues. S. MAG.: What sparked the idea for “The Thin Black Line”? S.G.: The idea that sparked it all came to me on a transatlantic flight. The night prior to my flight back home, I had dinner with colleagues from one of the British intelligence services and they were fuming about a busted raid they had conducted the week before. Red tape and bureaucracy had caused them to miss the terrorist they were looking for by less than an hour. They were frustrated, to say the least. The next day, while eating stale airline food, I said to myself: “Wouldn’t it be nice to have an organization that would have no red tape, no bureaucracy, in which agents were free to do whatever they needed to do to apprehend criminals or terrorists without fear of being burned by some politically-correct careerists?” And my answer to my own question was: “Yes, it would.” That’s how I came up with the idea for the IMSI (International Market Stabilization Institute). IMSI is a privately funded organization operating outside the official channels whose mission is to protect the financial markets. S. MAG.: Who’s Mike Walton? S.G.: Mike Walton is a federal agent specialized in counterterrorism and protective operations. He’s a real straight arrow. Happily married, he has one daughter and his wife is expecting another one. He thinks he has everything figured out. But when terrorism hits too close to home, he loses it completely, quits his job and joins the IMSI in an attempt to regain control over his life.

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His father is a former ambassador who was kidnapped two years prior by Sheik Al-Assad, the same terrorist mastermind behind the most recent attacks to hit the country. With the IMSI resources backing him, and with the help of his wife, Mike will gradually become a hunter-killer who wants payback for what he believes was wrongfully taken away from him. I’d say he’s a mix between Ludlum’s Jason Bourne and Vince Flynn’s Mitch Rapp. S. MAG.: How personal is this novel? S.G.: My main protagonist and I share a similar background. Like Mike Walton, I’m a former infantry officer and exfederal agent. I served in some of the most secretive units of my organization and was deployed numerous times overseas. Even though I worked on many international drug cases, my expertise resides in counterterrorism and protective operations. I protected the families of three different Canadian prime ministers and served on the protective details of Barack Obama and Queen Elizabeth II while they were visiting Canada. At the time of my retirement in September 2014, I was assigned to the protection detail of the Israeli ambassador to Canada. One more thing that Mike Walton and I have in common is that I met my wife while we were both serving in the military. Even though “The Thin Black Line” is fiction, I used my training and experience to write a thriller that is as close to reality as you’ll ever read. I know inside out the subjects I’m writing about and I think this is why the readers are connecting so well with the book. S. MAG.: What is your writing process? S.G.: When I started writing “The Thin Black Line,” I had a 50-page outline. I thought I knew exactly where I was going. But it didn’t last. After a week or so, I was going in another direction and never looked at my outline again. I usually write five to six hours a day, four to five days a week. I write from my home office but sometimes go to my wife’s practice. For some reason, I’m more productive


when I’m not at home… S. MAG.: Tell your ThrillerFest story. S.G.: ThrillerFest kind of changed my life. I know it’s a bit much, but it’s true. This is where I met my agent, Eric Myers of the Dystel & Goderich agency. We met during PitchFest and we connected right away. Looking at my name tag, Eric asked me if I spoke French. I told him I did and that this was the language we used at home. Eric then told me that not only did he speak French, but that he actually studied at l’Université Paris-Sorbonne. We chatted a little longer about Paris as my wife and I had just come back from a long weekend in the French capital with our two kids. When it was time to pitch him my book, I started to talk about my background as a federal agent. Eric interrupted me to ask if I was speaking about my novel’s main protagonist or if it was really my background. At the end of my pitch, I could see he was really interested. As a matter of fact, later that night, while I was having dinner with a few friends, Eric sent me an email to let me know he had already visited my website and read the first few chapters of my book. He wanted to meet with me the next day. Even though I had over thirteen agents who had requested my manuscript at PitchFest, I had a gut feeling that Eric Myers was the one. We met at the Grand Hyatt lobby bar the next day to discuss the book and my expectations. By the end of the meeting, we had a deal. And I had an agent. I was told later that week that I had broken the record for the fastest agent deal in ThrillerFest history. S. MAG.: What elements of security would people find surprising? S.G.: The complexity of the threats facing the people we protect. There are so many things going on in our heads while we walk next to our protectees that it would drive most people crazy. But that’s the fun part. There is also a lot of downtime and the work isn’t as glamorous as it appears on television.

S. MAG.: Did you see this book as the first in a series? S.G.: Absolutely! “The Thin Black Line” is indeed the first in the series. Book #2 “A Red Dotted Line” will come out in March 2016. My intention is to write a new book out every ten months or so. S. MAG.: Why did you decide to publish with a smaller press instead of the “big houses”? S.G.: During the first submission round, we came close to a deal with one of the major houses. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out in the end. My agent told me he still had other “big-five publishers” to submit to but was wondering if I’d be okay if he sent my manuscript to smaller publishing houses. I didn’t. In fact, I had one in mind: The Story Plant. A friend of mine, international bestselling author Ethan Cross, was published by them. The publisher of The Story Plant is Lou Aronica. Lou is well known in the publishing world as he used to be the Publisher of the Berkley Publishing Group and Senior Vice-President of Avon Books. The Story Plant may be a small publisher but about 33% of the books they publish end up being on the bestselling list, including many reaching the #1 spot. So when The Story Plant offered me a two-book deal, I jumped at it. So far, I’m not regretting my decision. The sales team at The Story Plant is absolutely amazing and the marketing folks are doing a great job promoting “The Thin Black Line.” When the book came out, it was the #1 Spy Thriller in Canada and the #1 on the Canadian Fiction list. We’re now focusing our efforts in the United States and the book is presently #68 on the Amazon bestselling list for Political Thrillers. We would like to thank Simon for taking the time to talk with us. For more information on Simon please visit his website at www.simongervaisbooks. com. ■

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PATRICK KENDRICK Breaking Boundaries


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ATRICK KENDRICK IS AN AUTHOR WHO CERTAINLY HAS SEEN THE DARKER REALITIES LIFE HAS TO OFFER. Being in the fire service and paramedic fields, he has born witness to life’s most frightening moments. His catharsis, however, is one that engages, captivates and entertains readers, offering up amazing works that cannot be forgotten. Variety is something Patrick Kendrick knows all about. From meeting a serial killer to driving his 1958 Chevy Apache down the beach in Florida to chasing after his kids, this is one man who knows nothing of the word “boring.” Suspense Magazine (S. MAG.): The tales you create usually lie on the “darker” side of the suspense genre. When did you first focus on that particular realm of fiction? Patrick Kendrick (P.K.): My “side job” from when I worked in the fire service was working as a freelance journalist. That eventually brought me to meet an imprisoned serial killer. Digging into his story and reading his “journals,” with detailed descriptions of his murders, gave me an insight into the mind of a real killer that few other authors get. I spent years researching his story and then dealing with him in court for years after that until, he, too, was finally murdered in jail. I read a lot of thrillers and mysteries and when I began to write my first book, I knew I wanted to write in those genres. But, after my experiences with a real killer, I found it difficult to write following a formula that, in some ways, I thought, trivialized murder. There is no more heinous act than to take a life and I try to capture that darkness within my writing, though I know that realism can be a turn off to the average reader. S. MAG.: Fire service, paramedics; you have received meritorious accolades for your work within some truly difficult jobs. These particular careers can bring horrific sights along with them. Do your past experiences ‘crop up’ in your books? If so, can it be an aid, in a way, to be able to get it out on paper? P.K.: Yes, you’re right about those horrific sights and I have used some of my own experiences in my work. In fact, when I first began to get published, it was because I wrote about those experiences from the fire service. Editors couldn’t get enough of them and I wrote for numerous newspapers locally, in Florida, and national magazines, before I turned to fiction. I used a great


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“I think I saw so many terrible things that by fictionalizing them, writing has acted as a cathartic release for me.” many of those experiences in my last book, “Extended Family,” where the protagonist was a state fire marshal. Specifically, there is a scene where a pawn shop owner is doused with gasoline and set afire; I actually went to that call when I was just eight months on the job and it changed my life dramatically. The event began my affliction with insomnia that I still battle today. Witnessing shootings, stabbings, sexual assaults, victims burned to death, you name it; I think I saw so many terrible things that by fictionalizing them, writing has acted as a cathartic release for me. S. MAG.: What turned your focus to writing? Was it always something you had a craving to do? P.K.: I had a great English teacher in my junior year of high school. (Of course, it helped that she was gorgeous and I had a terrible crush on her). She gave us an assignment to do a short story that had to be five pages long. My tale turned out to be 35 pages, and my teacher loved it. She read the whole thing in front of the class and I was mortified because there were some pretty adult scenes in the story. But the class enjoyed it, too. So, I got the writing bug then, but I never thought I was smart enough to be a writer. I was doing a lot of art, thought of myself as an artist, but English was tough for me. There was so much to learn, so many rules: how to write dialogue, how to plot, set scenes, describe sights, sounds, smells. There were clauses, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, and on and on. It was overwhelming but I couldn’t put it down. S. MAG.: Are there any specific mentors who have helped you along the path? And those you like to read and enjoy? P.K.: I studied Fine Art in college but I always chose literature classes when I had to choose electives. I was taking a class in popular genres—specifically, successful mystery books. The professor was friends with John D. MacDonald, who I read extensively back then, and he came to do a lecture at the university. I managed to stay in touch with him for a few years after that. He was prolific, wrote some 85 books, most of which ended up on the NY Times bestseller list. I loved his Travis McGee books, but McDonald had a dark side, too. I think most people are surprised to learn he wrote “Cape Fear,” though it was originally titled “The Executioners.” S. MAG: You excel so beautifully at what you’ve chosen, genre-wise, are there other genres you wish to explore in the future? P.K.: I am exploring other genres. Some would say I change genres every book and I could not argue with that. My first book, “Papa’s Problem,” was a historical mystery. “Extended Family” was a dark thriller that bordered on horror. My newest book, “Acoustic Shadows,” is a crime thriller that begins with a school shooting, but (spoiler alert) everything is not what it seems. And I am very excited about my next book, “The Savants,” which is my first YA, with sci-fi as well as spiritual elements. After that, I’ll be doing my first suspense novel with ghosts, so I suppose it will be classified as horror. I’d like to get a series going and I’m hoping “Acoustic Shadows” will turn into one, but for now I am totally satisfied exploring various genres. I never get bored!

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S. MAG.: Earning awards from the Beverly Hills Film Festival, Hollywood Film Festival, and more, could you speak a bit about that aspect of your work? P.K.: I got involved with Hollywood before I had my first book published. In fact, it was because of Hollywood that I got my first book published. I had written “Papa’s Problem” as a manuscript 15 years ago, but I wanted to learn how to write screenplays, so I went to a class in L.A. Part of the class included admittance to the Hollywood Film Festival. They had a writing competition and I wanted to enter it but did not have a screenplay. The organizers said they would accept any form of work as long as it was completed. I gave them “Papa’s Problem,” and it won the “Discovery Opus Magnum Award.” The prize was getting to work with a professional editor who helped me hone the manuscript until it was good enough to publish. I was also invited back to attend the Hollywood Film Festival where I was able to meet a number of celebrities. I loved it, though I knew my heart was really into writing books. When I finally completed a screenplay, I submitted it to the Beverly Hills Film Festival and it was accepted as an official entry and nominated for an award. The screenplay was “The Savants” and I’ve since rewritten that story as a novel that will be published later this year. Hollywood and the publishing world, in spite of what many may believe, are two very separate entities. S. MAG.: What gives you that next idea; can it hit out of nowhere, on the street, something you hear or read about? P.K.: I like to put my characters in those dark places to see what comes out the other side. I enjoy writing incongruent situations, placing characters in situations in which they may not, necessarily, be comfortable or able to adapt. It creates a level of suspense that we’ve all felt at one time or another and, I hope, takes the reader to an uncomfortable place that makes them forget they’re reading and begin to experience what the characters are going through. My ideas often come from real life events, so I never run out of ideas. But making them into full-length novels…that’s the challenge. S. MAG.: Is there a particular sport/activity that you truly love doing when taking a break—something to clear out that mind for a while? P.K.: I love to snow ski and scuba dive but those are activities that take a lot of planning and preparation. For day to day activities, I enjoy cycling, time at the gym, yoga and, of course, trying to keep up with my kids. A few times a week, I take my 1958 Chevy Apache out and drive by the beach to listen to music and think about the next story. Maybe meet some old fire department pals for a “Happy Hour.” S. MAG: Can you speak about the next project coming up that readers need to keep an eye out for? P.K.: “Acoustic Shadows” is out this month; first as an e-book, then a physical book in July. “The Savants” is still in the editing process but will be out this year, too, and I am very excited about finally doing a book that young people can read. S. MAG.: If you could have lunch with one author, who would it be, and why? P.K.: That’s as tough as having to choose your “top ten” favorite books of all time! But, because I attend many literary conferences and festivals, I have had the opportunity to meet many of the authors I admire and have befriended some of them. I have not met, and would enjoy meeting Stephen King, whom I admire greatly as someone who transcends the genre. So many people think of him strictly as a horror writer, but he has done so many other things. I recently read “Mr. Mercedes” and it was a wonderfully crafted detective novel. I also recently read his book, “On Writing,” and wish I would’ve read it ten years ago. His insights on the craft seem so simple but they are essential to success in this business. I feel I could learn a lot from him. To learn more about Patrick, please visit: www.talesofpatrickkendrick.com. ■


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FROM ACROSS THE POND With WILLIAM SHAW By Chris Simms Press Photo Credit: Provided by Author

I’m delighted to bring readers of Suspense Magazine a feature from the UK’s Crime Readers’ Association. In it, an author from over here will write about crime writing from a UK perspective.

LESSONS FROM INVESTIGATIONS INTO MURDERS I was never an investigative journalist—not in any proper sense—but on several occasions I wrote about investigations into murders. They taught me a few stark lessons which have stayed with me, and that, I hope, have crept into my crime books in some way. The one that really stayed with me is that when someone is murdered, the ripples of grief, bewilderment and fury are almost too hard for most people to bear. In turn, they create their own catastrophes. Violence distorts reality. It is incredibly easy to obliterate the normal safe world of civil society. In 1997-98, I worked in Los Angeles, writing about young African American men who lived in the South Central ghetto; I don’t know what it’s like now, but at the time it was a long, slowly unfolding calamity. In the years following the LA riots, the neighborhood sped downhill. Violence and drug crime were endemic. With a huge proportion of fathers incarcerated, teenage boys struggled to avoid getting caught up in gang culture. I’d met the rapper Tupac Shakur on a couple of occasions, an intense, erudite young man who hadn’t known his father and who had been raised by his Black Panther mother. But in his 20s he became engulfed by a need to prove himself as a man; to affiliate himself with ever harder, more macho society. “Right now,” he told me once, “I know I’m not going to live forever. Nobody is. But I know about it. I know I’m going to die in violence.” It wasn’t clairvoyance. Even though he’d been raised in New York and Baltimore, when he moved to Los Angeles, Tupac affiliated himself with one of the most notoriously hardcore Compton Gangs, the Piru Bloods. He, himself, had been born out of the violence of the 60s civil rights movement. His mother was a Black Panther heroine who’d had her dreams crushed, becoming a struggling single parent who’d turned to drugs. In a bizarre effort to prove himself to the world, Tupac had taken to hanging around with some of the most thuggish men Los Angeles had to offer. In fact, the recording studio he was talking to me in was effectively a modern take on a medieval fortress, guarded by a double layer of locked doors with heavily armed men in what was effectively the keep. Rumors of brutal beatings at the studio, carried out by henchmen of Tupac’s gang-affiliated label boss Suge Knight, were starting to circulate. This was a violent and paranoid environment. At root, the problem was gang violence. Tupac’s death, a few months after our last meeting, was almost certainly that. He was assassinated on a visit to Las Vegas, following a scuffle with a young man called Orlando Anderson, who was rumored to be affiliated with a rival gang, the South Side Crips; their territory lay just a short walk to the southeast of the Pirus’. A full scale gang war broke out in Compton, Los Angeles, in the next days. Three people were killed. There were rumors that Pirus were offering $10,000 for every South Side Crip killed. But the police never found who killed Tupac.

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Suspicion immediately fell on the young Crip affiliate, Orlando Anderson, but police were unable to conclusively prove a link. Orlando denied it, vehemently. Yet in books and articles he became known as the man who killed Tupac. As a result he, too, knew his days were numbered. And eighteen months later Orlando was killed in a gunfight in a petrol station not far from where he lived in Compton. This seemed to seal his reputation as a gang banger and a killer. But when I started interviewing Orlando’s friends, family and attorney, a totally different picture emerged. Orlando had been a successful student—not the typical path for a gang member. I got to know his brother, an actor, who consistently and very plausibly countered each of the rumors that had flown about his brother with a plausible, simple explanation. According to his griefstricken brother, all of Orlando’s reputation as a gang member had derived from the kind of paranoid rumor that circulated constantly in South Central in those dark days. He was killed because people assumed he was a killer, Orlando’s brother insisted. I remember calling his brother to tell him the news that the prosecution now claimed they had forensic and eyewitness evidence that Orlando had indeed fired the first shot in the gunfight in which he’d died. The brother was distraught. “That’s impossible.” As I spoke to him on the phone he began to cry; he believed that the whole world had conspired to make his brother look guilty, and now that Orlando was dead he couldn’t even argue back. The only thing I began to know for sure was that in such fearful, rumordriven places where murder happens is that the truth becomes harder and harder to mine. The force of fear undermines the few facts there are. In the time I spent there I got to know dozens of people who had had close friends and loved ones murdered. The worst of it was that in almost every case these friends and lovers never really knew what happened to the victim. You could see it eating away at them. Violence creates a fog. It distorts the truth. It corrodes. In Britain we live in a very peaceable society. It’s not like that here. But there are still corners of our world that remind me of what I saw happening in Los Angeles. I’ve heard the same story over and over from young people: this sense they are living in a different world ruled by that fear. Ten years ago, I was writing about the murder of a clever young musician called Leon Forbes. Police and family were baffled by his shooting. There was no plausible motive other than possible jealousy over Leon’s success. But as I spoke to a couple of his friends, they began to confess how very scared they had been in the days after Leon’s killing. Because they didn’t understand why it had happened to Leon, they couldn’t find a reason why the same wouldn’t happen to them. So, they admitted, they had bought kevlar jackets to protect themselves. And they hinted that other friends— not them, obviously, they said—had started to carry knives, and some had even thought about carrying guns. Incredibly, even Leon’s mother, a probation officer, admitted to me it had at some point crossed her mind: “Why don’t I get a gun to protect myself?” Instead, she became a brave and vociferous campaigner against guns—but she acknowledged the power of fear to make her do things that she would normally consider unthinkable. One of the reasons why we enjoy crime writing and TV so much is that, for most of us, our lives in modern Britain are so safe. We need to peek behind that curtain. Earlier this year I was watching the actor Ashley Walters play a Detective Inspector in Silent Witness; the irony was that a decade ago, he was one of the young men I’d spoken to. At the height of his fame as a rapper in So Solid Crew, he had had guns held to his head by jealous rivals, so he’d got himself a modified replica pistol and ended up in juvenile detention. Stupid? Yes, he knew that now. We almost certainly live in the safest society there has ever been, but that reality is fragile. It can so easily be destroyed. ■ Before creating crime fiction, William Shaw worked as a journalist, during which time he wrote “Westsiders: Stories of the Boys in the Hood.” In it, he chronicles the attempts of a group of Los Angelenos to become successful hip-hop artists. Find out more at www. williamshaw.com. Chris Simms is the editor of Case Files, the Crime Readers’ Association’s online magazine. You can subscribe to Case Files for free at www.thecra.co.uk. Along with nominations for the Crime Writer’s Association Daggers (for his novels and short stories) and the Theakston’s Crime Novel of the Year award, Chris was selected by Waterstone’s as one of their ‘25 Authors For The Future’. He continues to feverishly scribble away in a small hut behind his house. Discover more at www.chrissimms.info or at www.facebook.com/AuthorChrisSimms.


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AT THE END OF MY ROPE

By Nancy Sweetland

MY NAME’S JAKE. Just Jake. You’d think the Big Guy would have at least given me a surname? But, no. All ego,

that’s what he is, and a real pain to all of us in the troupe. At least I think so. Have, ever since he picked me up in that bad production in Cleveland. But that’s another story. Take a look at the character hanging around next to me here; that’s Marta. Gypsy blood, I’d say, from the paint on her, and the dark tangled hair, and all. She gets most of the fun parts, flirty-like. Good costumes, too, made to show off ample cleavage that seems to be pretty interesting to the men in the audience, though I’m sure they’d never have anything to do with a woman like her in real life. Flopped over there on the couch is Blue-Eyed Billy. He’s a straight guy, kinda cute but not smart. Plays everything real sober down the line. The kind of looks you want to root for, pure All-American Boy. Just the right touch of blond hair falling carelessly over his forehead—you know the type. “Butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth,” as the saying goes. And then there’s Ma, or Aunt Nora (interchangeable, depending on which wig she’s wearing for the day). Ma can play the heavy, or the sweet, old lady; or, as Aunt Nora, the next-door nosy one. Once in a while she even gets a musical part, but that’s not the greatest since somebody behind the scenes actually does the singing and she just mouths the words. So far, she’s not been brought back for an encore. None of these others have surnames, either, though I’ve never heard them complain about it. When we all came on, the Big Guy dubbed us whatever he wanted to—just one name, never even with a title. I wouldn’t mind being called “Mister” Jake once in a while, or having the others get a little respect when it’s due. Probably gives him a feeling of superiority. He likes being in control, able to pull strings and make things happen. It isn’t like we have a choice. Every day, every play challenges me to keep my cool, but yesterday was the final straw. I made up my mind to do something about my situation. The part I was given once again made me the buffoon, the guy who just doesn’t have a clue, always bumbling around, knocking things over, doing whatever I’m told and somehow just barely finishing up with all my body parts intact. Well, I’m smarter than that and I deserve better. Not that the Big Guy knows or even thinks to find out. I could be a hero, a detective, a doctor, lawyer, Indian chief. If he’d let me, just once. Take the time I was cast as a cowboy in a western called, “Laredo Lode.” Kind of a dumb name, when I think about it, because there wasn’t anything about gold in it. But now there was a chance to be a hero, shoot the bad guys, get the girl, ride off into the sunset. You know, Gene Autry type. But what part did I get? I was the goof that fell off my horse while it was still in the corral and Billy, blond-haired, blue-eyed Billy, rode off with Marta while I was dusting off my britches. Oh, there’s more. In the love story where I climbed the lattice up to the fair maiden’s second-story window to serenade her, what happened? You guessed it. The lattice let go and I landed on my rump in the rose bushes. Did I complain? Sure. But did the Big Guy hear me? Here’s the story that drove the final nail into the coffin lid. (Pun intended, you’ll see why). Aunt Nora (blonde beehive

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wig today, this play must be set back in the fifties), was going to be real foresighted, pick out the casket for her own funeral. She had it all figured out, wanted to pay in advance, have the whole thing taken care of “so nobody else has to worry about making a decision at a sad time like that,” she said, hanging her head to show just how sad it would be. Sad time, huh! I’d be glad to see her go. ‘Course I couldn’t say so—that wasn’t how things were supposed to play out. “Keep your mouth shut, Jake, and do as you’re told and we’ll get along just fine.” That’s the Big Guy’s attitude, always. But I keep remembering pretty Adele, the cheerleadertype redhead whose neck was broken when the Big Guy had a hissy-fit one night after a poor performance and threw her against the wall. She lay there looking for all the world like a broken doll. I don’t know what happened to her after that, she was just gone. Back to the story. Billy, Marta and I, were to go along with Aunt Nora to the funeral home, just to make sure everything was done right. “I don’t want any questions raised at the time of my demise then,” says Aunt Nora. “Just so you all know what I want and agree to carry it out. Is that clear?” Billy nods, his carefully studied blond bangs falling just right over his forehead. “Sure thing, Aunt Nora. It’s your funeral.” Funny, I’d heard that said a hundred times and this was the first where it had a literal meaning. Got a few laughs from the audience.

I FORGOT TO TELL YOU,

the Big Guy writes all the scripts. Hollywood, he ain’t. But you play with what’s dealt you, as they say at the poker table. Marta flaps her arms and tosses her tresses, almost, but not quite, flopping her bosoms out of her blouse. My line is, “I think this is just crazy. It’s not like you ever really die, Aunt Nora. You just stop. All the world’s a stage. Your part just gets written out.” That got a few titters from savvy people in the theater. I didn’t say anything then. My part was to keep quiet (like always) until we got to Carson’s Casket Emporium—and how dumb is that for a name on a business? I thought an emporium was just a big junk store. Which this turned out to be, by the way. Those caskets weren’t the Rolls Royce’s of the funeral industry. So the Big Guy finally gives me a line. “Okay, Carson,” I say, like I’m the one gonna make the decision. (Best line I’ve had for a while. Tried to make it sound like John Wayne in True Grit). “Flip open those lids and show us your best.” Then the four of us follow Carson—a tall, skinny, weaseltype character—through his casket warehouse. I’m not kidding, there must have been two hundred photographs of coffins pasted up like wallpaper all around the room, showing different models to choose for your final resting pleasure.


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Everything from cheap pine to shiny platinum lookalikes. Carson stops here and there, pointing out the best features of this wood, this satin, that hardware. He stops about halfway down one of the rows. “Now this one,” he says, flinging open the lid on a deep mahogany box with a flourish, and stepping back so we can all crowd up close, “is not our top of the line, but it’s waterproof. Of course, if you pay a little more you’ll get a better product and won’t feel the damp on your face when it rains.” He grins as though he’s made a damn joke. Then he goes on about how, of course, they’ll all last longer in the poured cement vaults he certainly recommends. “Then there’s no question of damp. Not ever.” “Good,” says Aunt Nora, bobbing her beehive. “I like that. But I don’t like the color.” I’m thinking this is supposed to be a comedy, but who could tell? I don’t want to, but the Big Guy makes me mosey over to the next box—a shiny lavender with brilliant silver clasps. It was pretty fancy, cream-colored satin inside, and all. I say, “Take a look at this one, Aunt Nora. So what if it gets damp? You’re dead.” She shook all over, like this was really happening, like the thought of being dead was just hitting her. “That’s easy for you to say, Jake. You’ll still be hanging around.” She’s quick with the repartee, and the audience picked up on that retort. I like it better when she plays Ma. Ma doesn’t come off with those good lines that make me look dumb. Anyhow, we keep moving through the Carson’s Casket Emporium, all of us, especially Nora, checking out this one, that one. She finds one she likes, asks us, “Do you like this color? Think I’ll look good in this one? Jake, you try it out.” I’m thinking, not on your life. But suddenly, I’m sailing through the air and find myself sinking into plush, peach-colored satin in a casket big enough for a linebacker in the NFL. “Ah, don’t he look good!” chortles Bill, nodding like people do when they don’t know what to say at a funeral. Marta giggles, her bosoms straining against her blouse. “Trying it on for size, Jake? It’s a little big. I don’t think peach is your color. Ha. Ha.” I hate this kind of stuff. But I have no choice. I lie there and take it, while Carson haggles with Nora about price and whatever else goes with the casket. Flowers, a room, a preacher or somebody to say a few words. You know. There’s more to the story, including some other laughs at my expense before I was allowed out of the box and we left. By that time I was damn tired of being the buffoon once again. But this time I felt different. I was determined to do something about it. But how? I thought about it all the way through the rest of the stupid play. I thought about it after the audience left and the five of us were back in the dressing room. The Big Guy put Bill and Marta down for the night. He tossed Aunt Nora’s wig back on the fake head on the counter, and she was also down. She really looks bad bald, but who’s to see? Everyone else but the Big Guy had left the building and the whole place was dark and deserted. Just as I expected, he intended to put me down last. He usually makes some comment about what he’s got planned for me next, and it’s never anything I’d have a part of, if I had my say. “Hang on there, Jake,” he said, carelessly tossing me up on a wall shelf with a bunch of props and weights while he messes around taking the lid off a garbage can below me. When I saw what had happened to my strings, I almost laughed. Here was my how! This was going to be great! “I got a swell idea for you in our next play,” said the Big Guy. “See, pretend this is a manhole without a cover. You’re walking Marta home after a date, see? And you’re busy looking into her eyes, kinda moonstruck, like, and oops! You fall right into the manhole!” He nearly doubles up, laughing. “See? What a surprise! The audience will love it!” But I wouldn’t. His head was right below me when he reached up for me, not noticing my strings were wound around the rope of a heavy curtain weight. He pulled me down. My strings dragged the weight off the shelf and tangled with the weight rope, wrapping tight around the Big Guy’s neck on the way down before he even knew what happened. Oh, he thrashed around a lot and we got pretty tangled up. Messed up the dressing room, overturned the chairs. Bill and Marta and Ma saw what happened but I didn’t worry about them. I knew they wouldn’t talk. They’d just sit around with their blank, painted-on expressions. Puppets without a puppeteer. It was perfect. Couldn’t have worked out better if I’d really done it myself. Worst part was I couldn’t get untangled, had to stay wrapped around his neck until the janitor came through and called nine-one-one. Too late. “Jesus!” The cop on the case stood back to take in the mess we’d made of the dressing room. “I’ve never seen a garroting like this. Who ever heard of a puppet making a kill? I swear, it’s almost like it had a grudge against the guy.” He left the crime scene shaking his head. The four of us were sold to another showman, one with a little more smarts, and things are just fine now. I don’t have to play the buffoon any longer. ■

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“ENDANGERED" A PARENT'S WORST NIGHTMARE? Interview by Elise Cooper for Suspense Magazine Press Photo Credit: Michael Smith

“Endangered,” the latest Joe Pickett novel by C. J. Box is the best yet of the series. There are all the right ingredients: a realistic plot, well developed characters, a vivid setting, clear prose and ratcheting tension. Box merges vivid descriptions of Wyoming’s landscape, western culture, and the personal drama regarding Pickett’s family into a thrilling, action packed novel. Elise Cooper (E.C.): In the beginning of the book, there are some very potent scenes regarding April. You refer to it as ‘a parent’s worst nightmare.” Please Explain. C. J. Box (C.J.B.): This is the first time in the series where one of Joe’s daughters is severely injured in a very violent way. I wanted parents to understand the tension Joe must go through when receiving the phone call. I know what my reaction would be. E.C.: There are a number of sub-plots in the book. One deals with Joe’s stepdaughter having a brain injury. Did you do any research on this issue? C.J.B.: Like Gabby Giffords, April had a medically induced coma. I had a doctor give me their opinion on how to write these scenes. People are put in a coma until the brain swelling goes down. Sometimes they fully recover and other times they could have brain damage. Readers will find out what happens by the end of the book. E.C.: You refer to things “getting western” including a discussion of rodeos. Are rodeos a favorite sport of yours? C.J.B.: I have been involved with the Cheyenne Frontier Days rodeo for twenty-five years. It’s the largest outdoor rodeo. I got to know rodeos, rodeo riders, and their code. I wanted to work into my plot a rodeo since I first started the series. Some of the scenes were based on the rodeo champion Ty Murray when he was almost arrested for bull dogging elk. Since my book has a western atmosphere, I put in rodeos because they are to Western states what Nascar is to Southern states. E.C.: Another of your plots involves the endangered species, the sage grouse bird. Did you want to make a point about endangered species? C.J.B.: It is a big deal for Wyoming because if the bird is declared an endangered species there will be an impact on the state’s economy. It is very much on the mind of those who live in the Western states. The largest population of the species exists in Wyoming. If the declaration comes down it will put a grinding halt to energy, including private lands. All the parts of the book discussing the federal pressure and the states versus the feds are true. I hope readers understand the controversy of the studies regarding this bird, since it is not a black and white issue. The decline in their population can be attributed to the energy development, hunting,

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and the impact on their territory while other studies say the decline is due to cyclical history. It appears that any decision is based on political and not scientific or biological reasons. E.C.: You have written in the past about states rights versus the federal government. Please explain. C.J.B.: This controversy fuels many of my Pickett novels. Think about how much of the western states lands are controlled by the federal government. For example, 50% of Wyoming is federal land so this state really does not have autonomy. There is a movement going on that has started in Utah where the state legislatures are demanding the federal government sell their land back. E.C.: There are a number of quotes in this book about the dangers of big government. Is that your feeling? C.J.B.: I’ve met some government employees with the attitude that they can do anything and never have to worry about losing their job. They start to think of themselves as officials instead of what they truly are, servants of the people. This attitude runs amuck now. I wanted to show how a bad egg, maybe someone with a chip on their shoulder, who works for the federal government can make life hell for someone else. E.C.: The Cates Family is very dysfunctional led by the mother, Brenda. She is logical in a psychotic kind of way. Do you agree? C.J.B.: I think she makes the novel sing because she is such an unorthodox bad person. She is manipulative and off her rocker in a pragmatic way. There is some deranged logic to what she says. She has her reasons for what she does, which makes her a terrifying character. E.C.: Can you give a heads up about the next Joe Pickett book? C.J.B.: It is tentatively called “Off the Grid.” It will be centered on Nate. The book starts off with Nate hiding out, off the grid. He is found by a clandestine federal agency, which guarantees the charges against him will be dropped if he helps them out with this one off-the-books controversial assignment. I try to make each Joe Pickett book focus on a different character. “Endangered” has a lot about Joe and his family while the next book will concentrate on Nate. E.C.: Can you describe Nate? C.J.B.: Nate has his own sense of justice. He is willing to do some things Joe would not do. His feelings on right and wrong are based on the Falconer’s code and the mindset that goes with it. So far I think he makes the right choices. E.C.: What about the book coming out this summer? C.J.B.: It is called “Badlands,” a sequel to “The Highway.” It takes place in the North Dakota oil fields where Teddy Roosevelt had his ranch. It is based on a true story of how gangs fight each other to control the drug trade in that area. To learn more about C. J., check out his website at www.cjbox.net. ■


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CHAPTER ONE It was late afternoon, a Wednesday in September, and Colonel Vasily Petrov of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service sat in his New York office and stared at the red envelope on his mahogany desk. On the envelope’s flap was a wax seal, also red. The envelope had arrived from Moscow an hour before on the Aeroflot flight that carried the daily diplomatic pouch to the Russian Federation Mission to the United Nations on East 67th Street. Handwritten on the front of the envelope was his code number, 013575, and beneath that the identification number of the message: 82343. A cipher clerk stood patiently in front of Colonel Petrov’s desk, then cleared his throat. “Sir?” Petrov picked up a pen and signed the logbook, acknowledging receipt of the envelope and also receipt of a sealed satchel from Moscow that the clerk had placed on his desk. The clerk retrieved the logbook, then gave Petrov another sealed envelope, saluted, and left. Petrov sliced open the red envelope and flattened the sheet of paper on his blotter. The communication from Moscow was typed on flash paper, encoded in four-letter groupings that appeared to be


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SPECIAL PREVIEW FROM NELSON DEMILLE

Radiant Angel

meaningless. Eye charts, they were called. Petrov opened the second envelope that the cipher clerk had given him and laid the printed paper next to his encrypted message. On the cipher paper was the daily one-time-only code that would decipher his message. If this message had been sent electronically, the cipher office on the tenth floor would have seen it and decoded it. And this message was not for their eyes. More importantly, electronic messages were routinely intercepted by the American National Security Agency, whose deciphering capabilities were a worry. Thus the message came in the diplomatic pouch, in a red envelope, which meant it was not for the diplomats; it was for the Foreign Intelligence Service—the SVR—which operated out of the Russian U.N. Mission. This was, in fact, a message for Colonel Petrov’s eyes only, and it was of critical importance. And Petrov knew it said one of two things: the operation was on, or the operation was off. He picked up his pen and began to decipher. It was a short communication, though like many such brief messages, the brevity was in inverse proportion to its importance. It took him only a few minutes to decipher the communication, and when he was done he put down his pen and looked at the words. Greetings: You will commence Operation Zero on Sunday. He read it again. Like all men from the beginning of time who await their orders and their fates, he was relieved that the wait was over, and he felt a mixture of calm and confidence, along with a sense of anxiety. It was not death that he feared; it was failure and disgrace—a fate far worse than death. He took a deep breath and thought of his father, a former KGB general who had been awarded the Order of Lenin and who had been named a Hero of the Soviet Union. On the day that Colonel Petrov boarded the Aeroflot flight for New York, his father had seen him off at the airport and said to him, “The future of Russia has been placed in your hands, Vasily. The history of this century will be rewritten by you. Come home in glory. Or do not come home.” Petrov looked back at the paper. The next two lines were written in a cryptic style to further obscure the meaning of his orders in the unlikely event this message was seen by someone else. He read: Happiness will be at planned time and place. The third line read: The fish is swimming, the horse waits, and the bird will fly. The final line advised: No further communication to or from you after Sunday. Good luck. The message was not signed, nor did it ask for a reply. Or even an assurance that he was ready at his end. In fact, after a year of planning, there was nothing more to say. The time had come. Petrov fed both sheets of paper into his cross-cut shredder, then stood and drew the large ballistic nylon satchel toward him. He broke the seal and unlocked the satchel with the key he had brought with him from Moscow. Petrov opened the satchel and saw three 9mm Makarov pistols. He checked that they were the PB model, developed for the KGB with an integral silencer. He also counted ten extra magazines of ammunition, which, he thought, should be sufficient for the number of people to be killed. At the bottom of the satchel were two objects wrapped in blue gift paper that he knew were the two MP5 submachine guns he had requested and also about twenty extra magazines. And finally, there was an aluminum box—a tool kit, made for only one purpose. He closed the satchel, then locked it. Petrov went to his window and stared down into the street. He hadn’t liked New York City when he’d first arrived four months before. It was too hot and there were too many Africans, Asians, Arabs, and Jews in this city. But now, in September, the weather had cooled. As for the chernokozhii—the blackasses—they didn’t seem to bother him as much. What still bothered him, however, was being followed every minute of every day. The American security services knew who he was, of course, and they gave him little opportunity to do his job outside of his office. Well, they could follow him all they wanted. On Sunday he would lose them and they would not even know they had lost him. And then he could do his job. Operation Zero. He was officially assigned to the United Nations for two years, and he could have tolerated that. But in fact, his posting was coming to an end on Monday. As was the City of New York. ■ From the book “RADIANT ANGEL” by Nelson DeMille. Copyright © 2015 by Nelson DeMille. Reprinted by permission of Grand Central Publishing. All rights reserved.

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Nelson DeMille

Throws a Fastball Down the Middle With “Radiant Angel”

Interview by Elise Cooper for Suspense Magazine Press Photo Credit: Sandy DeMille

“Radiant Angel” by Nelson DeMille is the seventh novel in the John Corey series. Mr. DeMille has been writing political thrillers for approximately thirty-five years, but like a fine wine he has gotten better with age. With this new novel he has pivoted from the antagonists of Arab terrorists to the new dangers, or a newly resurgent Russia. John Corey has left the Anti-Terrorist Task Force and returned home to New York City, taking a job with the Diplomatic Surveillance Group. Corey must follow Vasily Petrov, a colonel in the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service, who poses as a diplomat with the Russian U.N. Mission. After he mysteriously disappears from a Russian oligarch’s party in Southampton, it’s up to Corey to track him down before he endangers America. Elise Cooper (E.C.): This book seems out of character with its length. Agree? Nelson DeMille (N.D.): I purposely made it short. I could have put more about the ex-Soviet Union and the re-emergence of Russia. But I just wanted to get into the action. I decided to throw a fastball down the middle. E.C.: What inspired you for this plot? N.D.: A number of things. I regret not writing more on the Cold War. I did write “The Talbot Odyssey” and “The Charm School,” but by the time the paperback of “The Charm School” came out the Soviet Union was imploding. I also was tired of writing about Arab terrorists, which is why I gave John Corey a new job. Finally, I thought the events of this book could happen. In the real world, the Russians are being aggressive in their area of influence in Europe and, to some extent, in Asia, but also they’re hacking into our computers. I took resurgent Russia to an extreme. E.C.: Why the Long Island setting? N.D.: A lot of my books are set on Long Island because it’s diverse culturally, ethnically, socioeconomically and geographically.


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“I understand the readers are comfortable with the books and the characters. But after awhile the author gets bored and it shows within the books.” For a small land area there’s a lot going on here. I’ve written four books about Long Island and I could write another five or six. I’ve yet to set a book specifically in the Hamptons, but that’s something I’m thinking about. E.C.: You had three women protagonists in this story. Can you explain? N.D.: I got tired of Kate. I might have broken the rules of series characters, but I think it worked, the implication of her having an affair. I had to make John’s new partner a female to make it interesting. Tess, a State Department official, is a viable character. But the one who definitely knows how to handle John is detective Beth Penrose. Kate will not be a part of the next book, but Beth will be John’s lady. It was time to bring her back, which I did in this novel. I think readers will enjoy Beth’s line to John, “All my friends call me Detective Penrose. Why don’t you do the same?” But a little later when she wanted to find out what was happening she reminded John that he used to confide in her and he responded, “I also used to call you Beth.” She concurred and told him to “please call me Beth,” and to see her before he leaves. E.C.: What do you want readers to get out of this book? N.D.: This quote from the book emphasizes the point, “the Cold War was back and no one was paying attention.” The Russian story is still unfolding. It is a huge country. Let’s not forget that during the Cold War they were our military equivalent and that can happen again. E.C.: Rumor has it you are thinking of shelving John for the next book. True? N.D.: The setting will be in Cuba and Florida. I am hoping to travel to Cuba sometime this fall. This stand-alone book will probably be released a year from October. I am not sure in which direction the plot will go. There are a number of possibilities including having the protagonists searching for millions of dollars of treasure buried by the Batista government; finding six nuclear warheads left behind by the 1962 Russian pullout; and/or finding a convicted police killer, the Black Liberation Army militant. The main character, Mac, is a US veteran who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan. After being severely wounded he decides to start a fishing and tour boat business. Because of his expertise a Cuban exile group hires him. The leading lady is a “hot” Cuban female fluent in Spanish. Having a character in the heart of darkness allows for a lot of adventure and suspense. I will definitely weave the backstory of the Cuban Missile Crisis into the plot. E.C.: Are you writing about a new setting and character to get out of your comfort zone? N.D.: I understand the readers are comfortable with the books and the characters. But after awhile the author gets bored and it shows within the books. The problem with a long running series is how much of the backstory must be told. Old readers might be bored and new readers don’t know the background. Authors have to ponder where to begin, what to tell, and if people really remember the first book’s details, something that fades from my mind. With this next book, I am definitely excited about the Cuban plot. It is such a part of our history and is so close geographically I think Americans can relate. To learn more about Nelson and keep informed about his upcoming releases, go to www.nelsondemille.net. ■

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Antiques and Curiosities

M

ain Street in Nyack, New York was quaint and rather historic looking. The buildings lining the seven blocks were a mix of old gingerbread-trimmed Victorians and three story flatfaced buildings, all of which boasted handmade crafted items or antiques. More interesting than the area, or I should say intriguing, was why I felt so compelled after waking up this morning to take a bus ride from Manhattan to Rockland County to visit this small town. I disliked antiques. My apartment is furnished in ultra-modern, yet here I was peering into windows of musty shops as though I were being drawn there by an invisible force. It was midway down the second street where I noticed the store with the tattered lace-covered window. I stopped before it and peered inside, but couldn’t make anything out. On the wall above the window there was a sign that read: Antiques and Curiosities. On the paintflaked door was a small, hand-printed sign with the scrawled words: Come In. I hesitated for a few moments, staring at the door, wondering why I was in this particular town, and why I had stopped at this particular shop. A bell tinkled when I opened the door and entered the dimly lit room. The smell of dying flowers, or was it incense, wafted in the hot, stuffy space. The center of the room was filled with old Victorian furniture that was covered in dust and spider webs. The old, woodframed sofas needed reupholstering; the marble-topped tables were covered with knick-knacks, none of which appealed to me. Lined up on both sides of the room were china closets, their shelves filled with old crystal stemware, vases, chipped antique dolls, and items I knew nothing about. Yet here I was,


standing in the large cluttered room, staring at stuff that I didn’t like or even care about. “Can I be of help,” a man asked, stepping out from behind a curtain on the far side of the room. He was tall and lean, dressed in a gray suit, and had a shock of gray hair that covered one eye. But it was his face that drew in my breath. It was ashen and wrinkled, like an unripe, dehydrated apple. “Just looking,” I finally said. He nodded and just stood there, hands clasped before him.

I

wanted to walk out, but for some unknown reason I didn’t. Instead, I took two steps to my left and looked down at a table. Sitting on top of the cherry wood was a small easel holding a miniature painting. I lifted the painting and held it in the palm of my hand. The colors looked fresh and vibrant, not dull and crinkled with age. The scene was of a forest, tall trees with beams of sunlight streaming down from above. I brought the painting up closer to get a better look. On the far left, at the bottom, there was a figure of a young woman huddled beside a tree, her arms wrapped about it, her head lifted as though she were looking up at the beams of light. A moment later my heart skipped a beat, and my fingers curled around the edges of the picture so I wouldn’t drop it. The woman’s head had turned, and she was now staring at me with pleading, blue eyes. I set the picture back on the table, straightened, and tried to compose myself. This was an illusion, I told myself, trembling. It’s the flickering light from the antique fixtures, or the haphazard rays coming through the lace curtains. It’s not real.

By A.R. Alan My fingers shook when I picked the picture up again. She was still staring at me, but now her arm was outstretched as if she were somehow trying to reach me. “How much do you want for this picture?” I asked the man who hadn’t moved from where he stood. “One twenty-five.” “Excuse me?” “One hundred and twenty-five dollars,” he said in a hushed tone. “I’ll give you a hundred. It’s only a small painting, and it’s not signed.” I looked down at the painting and saw glistening tears trickling down the woman’s face. “All right. Cash only.” “I put the painting back on the table and rummaged through my purse. “I only have ninety-five in cash. I’ll have to give you my Visa card.” He shook his head. “That’ll do. Leave the bills on the table.” “Thank you,” I said. I placed the bills on the table, picked up the painting, and left the store as quickly as I could. I was so unnerved, that I didn’t release my breath until I was out in the street and the shop’s door tinkled when it closed behind me. I hesitated before walking away, then looked down at the painting again so I could examine what I’d bought in the sunlight. I couldn’t believe my eyes. It had to have been the lighting in the store. Once again, the woman’s head was facing the beams of light streaming through the trees. There were no pleading eyes, no glistening tears running down her cheeks, and her arms were once again wound around the painted tree. When I turned back to the store, I almost collapsed. There were no lace curtains on the window, and the sign on the door now read: Vacant. ■

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