SMFS Member Publishing News: A Scarlet Death: An Angela Richman, Death Investigator Mystery by Elaine Viets

Today is publication day for A Scarlet Death: An Angela Richman, Death Investigator Mystery by SMFS list member Elaine Viets. This is the eighth novel in the series that began with Brain Storm. Published by Severn House, the read is available from the publisher, Amazon, and other vendors.

 

Publisher Description:

Angela’s new case is full of dark secrets and scandal, but shocking events closer to home prove to be her biggest challenge yet . . .

Nobody in Choutaeu Forest expected one of their most prominent citizens, socialite Selwyn Skipton, to be found dead in such salacious circumstances: strangled on satin bedsheets, a red letter A brutally stapled to his chest, in his private apartment above the Chouteau Forest Chocolate Shoppe.

Selwyn was a good man. He gave to charity, supported local causes, and was married to his wife for more than twenty years. What did he do to deserve such a terrible end?

As Death Investigator Angela Richman investigates, she uncovers Selwyn’s dark secret, but also faces an unexpected, chilling conundrum closer to home . . .

Genre: Police Procedural

SMFS Member Publishing News: The Dead Of Night: An Angela Richman, Death Investigator Mystery by Elaine Viets

Today is publication day for The Dead Of Night: An Angela Richman, Death Investigator Mystery by SMFS list member Elaine Viets. This is the seventh novel in the series that began with Brain Storm. Published by Severn House, the read is available in print and digital formats, and is available from the publisher, Amazon, and other vendors.

Synopsis:

When Angela Richman finds two dead bodies in a cursed crypt on Halloween, she is drawn into a spine-tingling mystery. Has a Chouteau Forest legend turned deadly, or is a dangerous killer on the loose?

Everyone in Chouteau Forest knows the legend of the Cursed Crypt. It's claimed that the restless spirit of a professor nicknamed Mean Gene Cortini, buried in Chouteau Forest University's crypt, has been causing death and destruction in the Forest for almost two centuries.

Local residents are used to disease and natural disasters striking every seven years. But not murder. When Trey Lawson outbids the wealthy Du Pres family at the university's annual Howl-o-ween Benefit Auction, he wins the chance to spend the night in the crypt with his fianc�e, Lydia. Angela Richman, Death Investigator, finds their mutilated bodies there the following morning.

As Angela investigates, she learns that Trey was threatening the established hierarchy of Chouteau Forest. Has the legend taken a deadly turn, or are Trey and Lydia victims of a vicious power struggle?

SMFS Member Award News: Elaine Viets is a Finalist for a Royal Palm Literary Award

SMFS list member Elaine Viet’s short story, We Are the People Our Parents Warned Us About, which appeared in The Great Filling Station Holdup: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Jimmy Buffett (editor Josh Pachter) is a finalist for a Royal Palm Literary Award. The winners will be announced tonight at the awards banquet during Florida WritersCon 2022. Video announcement of the finalists can be found on the website of the Florida Writers Association.

SMFS Member Publishing News: Late for His Own Funeral: Angela Richman, Death Investigator Mystery by Elaine Viets

Today is publication day for Late for His Own Funeral: Angela Richman, Death Investigator Mystery by Elaine Viets. This is the sixth novel in the series that began with Brain Storm. Published by Severn House, the read is available in print and digital formats, and is available from the publisher, Amazon, and other vendors.

 

Publisher Synopsis:

Death Investigator Angela Richman suspects foul play when a disgraced resident of Chouteau Forest survives one car crash only to then be involved in another.

Until his Porsche careened off the road killing him instantly and not leaving much of him behind, Sterling Chaney was an influential member of Chouteau Forest - home of the one percenters. As the eulogies at his funeral commence, an unexpected guest interrupts . . . Sterling.

The story attracts widespread media coverage. Sterling's the man who showed up late for his own funeral. He revels in the spotlight, until it's revealed he earned his fortune via sordid means and exploiting the women who worked for him. It leaves him vilified and shunned by Chouteau society. Then there's another fatal crash.

This time, Death Investigator Angela Richman is tasked with confirming that Sterling has perished. But her investigation reveals more questions than answers. Were both crashes merely accidents, or was someone doubly determined to kill Sterling?

Member Honors: Macavity Award Nominations

 Mystery Readers International have announced the nominations for the Macavity Awards and Short Mystery Fiction Society members have taken over the entire Short Story category.

• Barb Goffman: “Dear Emily Etiquette” (Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, Sept/Oct 2020)
• Art Taylor: “The Boy Detective & The Summer of ‘74” (Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, Jan/Feb 2020)
• Gabriel Valjan: “Elysian Fields” (California Schemin’: The 2020 Bouchercon Anthology, edited by Art Taylor; Wildside Press)
• Elaine Viets: “Dog Eat Dog” (The Beat of Black Wings: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Joni Mitchell, edited by Josh Pachter; Untreed Reads Publishing)
• James W. Ziskin: “The Twenty-Five Year Engagement” (In League with Sherlock Holmes : Stories Inspired by the Sherlock Holmes Canon, edited by Laurie R. King; Pegasus Crime)