A Small Case of Murder
A Joshua Thornton Mystery
by Lauren Carr
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Pub Date Apr 26 2011 | Archive Date Sep 01 2012
CreateSpace | Acorn Book Services
Description
INDEPENDENT PUBLISHER BOOK AWARDS FINALIST!
A Small Case of Murder Spins a Big Case of Mystery
A Small Case of Murder is set in the quaint, small town of Chester, West Virginia, where everyone knows everyone, and there is never a secret that someone doesn't know. In such a small intimate town, how many disappearances can be left unquestioned?
Following the death of his wife, Joshua Thornton, A Small Case of Murder's protagonist, leaves a promising career in the United States Navy's JAG division to move across country with his five children into his ancestral home. While clearing out the attic the children find a letter written to their grandmother postmarked 34 years ago, on the date of her and her husband's untimely deaths.
In the letter Lulu Jefferson wrote "...Remember that dead body we found in the Bosley barn?...I saw him today...I went to talk to the reverend and there was his picture on the wall." What dead body? His interest piqued, Joshua asks about Lulu and finds that in 1970 she died of a drug overdose, the same day that she penned the letter implicating the pastor in an unreported murder. There is much more to this story than a 34 year old letter, it's a 34 year old mystery!
Today a double homicide has the whole town under a microscope. The state attorney general appoints Joshua special prosecutor to solve the crimes. In a small town where gossip flies as swiftly as a spring breeze it is impossible to know who to trust. Asking simple questions about events long ago could prove to be deadly for Joshua and his family.
About the Author
Lauren Carr fell in love with mysteries when her mother read Perry Mason to her at bedtime. The first installment in the Joshua Thornton mysteries, A Small Case of Murder was a finalist for the Independent Publisher Book Award. A Reunion to Die For was released in hardback in June 2007. Both of these books are in re-release.
Lauren is also the author of the Mac Faraday Mysteries, which takes place in Deep Creek Lake, Maryland. The first two books in her series, It's Murder, My Son and Old Loves Die Hard have been getting rave reviews from readers and reviewers. The next book in this series, Shades of Murder, will be released in spring 2012. This will be Lauren's fifth mystery.
The president of Acorn Book Services, Lauren is also a publisher, consultant, editor, cover and layout designer, and marketing agent for independent authors.
Lauren is a popular speaker who has made appearances at schools, youth groups, and on author panels at conventions. She also passes on what she has learned in her years of writing and publishing by conducting workshops and teaching in community education classes.
She lives with her husband, son, and two dogs on a mountain in Harpers Ferry, WV.
Visit Lauren's websites and blog at:
E-Mail: writerlaurencarr@comcast.net
Website: http://acornbookservices.com/
http://mysterylady.net/
Blog: http://fromthewritersstudio.blogspot.com/
Advance Praise
A Small Case of Murder is a GRAND case of murder. Following a style, reminiscent of that of Lisa Scottoline, and David Rosenfelt, Lauren Carr in her debut novel A Small Case of Murder, delivers a powerful and strong detective- legal thriller that has all the makings of a Hollywood movie." Reviewer: New Mystery Reader
"Carr weaves an extraordinary story that is gripping and crafted at the highest level to entertain the reader with its touch familial centerpiece amidst evil and chaos." Reviewer: Midwest Book Reviews
"A Small Case of Murder" indeed! Bodies fall with frightening regularity in this extremely fast paced mystery thriller. Like all mystery stories, the book ends with a smashing denouement loaded with shocking revelations that has you thinking about the clues you missed along the way. What struck me full across the face, other than that this book is a cracking great mystery novel, are the "Peyton Place" qualities to the story. You've got a town, Chester, West Virginia, full of people living double lives. Dreadful debaucheries permeate the village, making me wonder exactly what it is in the water supply that would spawn such a cast of deviant characters. Even the heroes in the story boast an assortment of flaws. Tad MacMillan, for example, is a recovering alcoholic whose relationships with women in the area are shady even in the best of lights. Jan Martin, who runs the town drugstore, has an ugly temper and a recklessness that nearly results in criminal charges for not keeping track of her narcotics supply. Joshua Thornton, although he adores his kids, has a tough time reconciling his love for a case with becoming an effective single father. Carr seems to have a fondness for flawed personalities, a love that makes the book all the more realistic.
"A Small Case of Murder" indeed! Bodies fall with frightening regularity in this extremely fast paced mystery thriller. Like all mystery stories, the book ends with a smashing denouement loaded with shocking revelations that has you thinking about the clues you missed along the way. What struck me full across the face, other than that this book is a cracking great mystery novel, are the "Peyton Place" qualities to the story. You've got a town, Chester, West Virginia, full of people living double lives. Dreadful debaucheries permeate the village, making me wonder exactly what it is in the water supply that would spawn such a cast of deviant characters. Even the heroes in the story boast an assortment of flaws. Tad MacMillan, for example, is a recovering alcoholic whose relationships with women in the area are shady even in the best of lights. Jan Martin, who runs the town drugstore, has an ugly temper and a recklessness that nearly results in criminal charges for not keeping track of her narcotics supply. Joshua Thornton, although he adores his kids, has a tough time reconciling his love for a case with becoming an effective single father. Carr seems to have a fondness for flawed personalities, a love that makes the book all the more realistic. Reviewer: Jeffrey Leach, Amazon top Reviewer
Available Editions
| EDITION | Paperback |
| ISBN | 9781453818688 |
| PRICE | $15.50 (USD) |
| PAGES | 324 |
