I love to read mysteries
and I especially enjoy reading a mystery series. Whenever possible, I
prefer to start with the first
book in the series because I like meeting the characters and getting to know
them from the beginning and then, following their lives in subsequent books,
watching them change and grow. Because it’s not just about the mystery for me. It’s also about the characters. So,
because I love character driven mysteries, that’s what I write.
Here’s a brief synopsis
of my first three Malone mysteries. The fourth, Mistaken Identity, will be published by Post Mortem Press in early
summer of this year.
It’s
estimated that there are at least twenty to thirty active serial killers in the
United States at any given time. There’s one on the loose on the west side of
Cincinnati.
It’s
the week of Halloween and Ann Malone Kern struggles with several issues. Her
primary concern is her marriage which, like her west side neighborhood, is in
jeopardy. Her husband is drinking heavily and his behavior toward her is
erratic. One minute, he’s the kind, loving man she married and, the next
minute, he’s cold and cruel.
Ann
dismisses a psychic’s warning that she is in danger. But, when she receives a
series of ominous biblical quotes, she grows nervous and suspicious of
everyone, including her own husband.
As
the bizarre and frightening events unfold, Ann discovers a handmade tombstone
marked with her name, pushing her close to the edge. Will she be the Westwood
Strangler’s next victim?
The
Westwood Strangler is dead. Or so everyone believes.
Ann Malone
Kern is busy preparing for her favorite holiday. She’s especially looking
forward to her sister’s annual Christmas visit. But, several things threaten to
ruin her festive mood.
The National Weather Service issues a severe
winter storm warning for the Cincinnati area, predicting blizzard conditions,
and Ann worries that her sister and her new boyfriend won’t be able to make the
drive from South Carolina.
Then, a
woman is found strangled in Ann’s neighborhood and everyone, including the
police, assumes it’s the work of a copycat killer. However, when two more women
are murdered in their homes, the police announce their conviction that the
Westwood Strangler is responsible.
When Ann
hears the news, the sense of safety and security she’s worked so hard to
recapture since her attack on Halloween night, shatters. If the intruder who
died in her apartment wasn’t the Westwood Strangler, who is? And, who will be
the next victim?
As Ann
Malone Kern starts her new business as an interior decorator, the temperatures
have risen, tulips and daffodils are in bloom and there’s a feeling of endless
possibilities in the air. She has no idea that her world is about to be turned
upside down.
When Janis
Riley, a woman for whom money is no object, contacts Ann to redecorate her
house, Ann is elated. But her initial visit with her first client leaves her
with mixed emotions. Why did Janis react so strangely to seeing a photo of
Ann’s six-year-old son, Davey?
But Ann
has bigger problems. Her husband, David, a recovering alcoholic, has lost both
his mother and his job and Ann worries that he’ll start drinking again. To add
to her concerns, their next-door-neighbor, Dorothy Baker, is severely depressed
but Ann’s efforts to help her are rebuffed.
Ann is
terrified when she wakes up the day before Easter to find Davey gone. Another
child, Kelly Kramer, has been missing since December. Where are the children?
And what, if anything, can Ann do to get her son back?
If I’ve piqued your
curiosity (and I hope I have), my books are available in paper and eBook
formats at:
And, if you enjoy reading
them, please consider writing reviews. Thank you!
