Mystery & Suspense Authors

Meet these Mystery & Suspense Authors

at the CAPA Booth
in the Connecticut Building

Frances Gilbert "Where Is She Now?"

Trumbull, CT

Rosemary wants only to feel the calm promised in the hymns of her childhood, she wants to 'lay down her burden and enter in.' Cradling her green pocket book wrapped in an old green shawl, she wanders through her daily life with her husband Brian, her traumatized self, and her alter ego, the bossy and competent Anna. Something has happened in the past, centering on her baby, but Rosemary can't quite remember what it was. And where is the baby now?

As she oscillates between rational and delusional spells she seeks validation and support from the inanimate objects around her, the cups on the shelf, the knobs on the bedposts, the books in the bookcase, and the houses lining the streets. In her conversations with them we see a Rosemary who is not quite as deranged as she seems, and a Brian, not quite as supportive as he would like to have you believe.

The book is set in a fictional amalgam of two small English towns.

Rosemary Harris "Pushing Up Daisies"

Stamford, CT

Thirtyish former television exec Paula Holliday relocates from New York City to sleepy Springfield, CT, determined to turn her passion for gardening into a new, less stressful career.

When an eccentric spinster dies, her landmark property is left to the local Historical Society, and Paula sees the garden’s restoration as a way to get her fledgling business off the ground. She’s prepared for everything, but not for the mummified baby she digs up her first day on the job. After a cursory investigation, the local police decide it’s an old secret, not a recent crime, so they drop the matter, but . . . Paula’s not so sure.

Casual snooping turns serious when someone is impaled on a garden tool and one of Paula’s helpers is arrested for the crime. Aided by the still-hot aging rocker who owns the local greasy spoon, a Shakespeare-quoting massage therapist, and a handsome Mexican laborer with a few secrets of his own, Paula unearths more dirt the suburban town has kept buried.

Rounding out the cast, and among the suspects, a randy Congressman and his gin-swigging mother, an amoral newspaper reporter, an octogenarian ladies’ man, childhood sweethearts reunited after 50 years, and a tattooed lady you wouldn’t want to mess with.

Jerry Labriola, MD

"The Strange Death of Napoleon Bonaparte"

Naugatuck, CT

American historian and international treasure hunter, Paul D’Arneau, fired from his lofty university position, is commissioned by the Parisian Gens de Vérité to determine if Napoleon was murdered. If so, how and by whom? Excursions to the islands of Elba and St. Helena reveal more than Paul bargained for. What takes him to a French monastery? To Volterraio Castle? How does the Mob know of his every move? Where do arsenic and DNA fit in? Or the mysterious Lady Beckett? Despite deadly skirmishes and long odds for success, what convinces him to press on?

The Strange Death of Napoleon Bonaparte is that rare suspense novel that entertains, enlightens and provokes, with a story line bolstered by slices of authentic history––and by a fair share of forensics, too. Even before reaching its stunning climax, the reader cannot help but wonder about what other things may have been lost or distorted in the sweep of that history.

Carole Shmurak "Deadmistress"

Farmington, CT

Sabena Lazlo, the headmistress of a posh private school for girls has been found brutally murdered in her office. When professor and educational consultant Susan Lombardi learns that her close friend John has been accused of the crime, she wastes no time setting out to clear his name. While doing so she uncovers some troubling secrets about the school’s faculty and staff, and it soon becomes clear that John is definitely not the only one with a motive for murdering the “deadmistress.”

Deadmistress is the first book in a series featuring Dr. Susan Lombardi, a 40ish professor of education at Metropolitan State University, in Albion, Connecticut. Deadmistress is a lighthearted, traditional mystery with a murder in a close-knit community in which almost everyone has a motive for wanting the demise of the victim. Its heroine is part of a long tradition of academic sleuths.

Terry Finello - "Absolute Vengeance"

Burlington, CT

Prominent real estate broker and investment councilor, David Portsmith, is found dead in the hotel room where he has just made love to his mistress, Elaine Morris. Feeling honor-bound to conceal her affair with the victim and protect his reputation, Elaine must now investigate the murder, without jeopardizing her career or her relationship with John 'Clay' Claymore. Conspiracy, intrigue and deception surround the ever-growing list of suspects.

If you are a fan of crime drama, detective stories and exceptional mysteries, where the plot twists and the characters captivate, then ABSOLUTE VENGEANCE is one book you won’t want to put down.