Title
Gone Crazy, Rory Naysmith Mysteries, Book 3
Author
Terry Korth Fischer
Genre
Mystery, Cozy Crime
Publisher
The Wild Rose Press
Book Blurb
A formal declaration of love scares the bejesus out of small-town Detective Rory Naysmith. As Valentine’s Day approaches, he evaluates his relationship with bookkeeper Esther Mullins, and decides to take her on a romantic date that ends with a poet’s murder. Assigned to the case, Rory pushes his private life aside. Things gets tricky after Esther is appointed Executrix for the estate—then rumors start that place a priceless item among the poet’s many possessions. The race is on to unearth the treasure and solve the murder, but it leaves Rory wondering if Esther will live long enough to become his Valentine—or end up as the murderer’s next victim.
Excerpt
The overhead lights dimmed, and Adeline read a poem about open space and shooting stars that ended in glowing horizons. Rory was impressed with her melodic voice but thought poetry ought to rhyme. Less along the lines: “By the shores of Gitche Gumme / By the shining Big-Sea-Water”, and more “high-diddle diddle, the cat in the fiddle.”
Where was Esther? Should he check on her?
Yost finished and introduced Lillie Anderson. The professor mounted the stage with encouragement from the crowd, then confidently crossed the stage to join Adeline at the podium where she accepted the accolades with grace. Her tuxedo clad figure was a stark contrast to Adeline’s simple long skirt and flowing tunic top. In Rory’s mind the long coarse hair falling past Lillie’s shoulders was ubiquitous in academia, her suit a blatant statement against the role women played in a male dominated world. He recalled the menace in her voice as she accosted Phoebe Sheehan in the bar. Professor Anderson would make a formidable enemy.
As the spotlight highlighted the poet, Adeline Yost explained the structure for the piece Lillie had selected to read. “From her chapbook, Wildfire Lies, Professor Anderson will read a villanelle.”
Villanelle? It sounded as menacing as her accusations in the bar. Rory listened but continued to be more concerned by Esther’s absence.
“The villanelle,” Yost explained, “is a most difficult poetic form. Many artists avoid them, as it can be quite intimidating. The form has nineteen lines, adheres to a particular structure, and offers a rhyme scheme.”
Good. A rhyming poem. Right up my alley.
Adeline stepped from the spotlight, allowing Anderson to step to the microphone. She looked out over the room and waited for a silence to settle over the audience. When all was quiet, she took reading glasses from where they were tucked into her cummerbund, put them on, situated her printed page on the podium, and began.
Rory wasn’t impressed, but what did he know? Anderson had a stage presence and a flair for the dramatic. And Adeline had set the tone by announcing the piece’s excellence. It was as Anderson raised her voice in the required repeated first stanza line that he saw Esther step into the room. Moving deftly through the tables with a large mug between her hands, she threaded her way to the front tables where Phoebe sat and drew the audience’s attention as she advanced. So intent was Esther in keeping the sloshing contents within the mug that she didn’t notice the disturbance she created.
Her advance, however, didn’t escape Anderson’s notice. The professor’s reading glasses slid down her nose and she glared over the rims. Clearly flustered, she said to George Martin. “Mr. President, are you going to allow this interruption? Must I ignore this blatant attempt by Phoebe Sheehan to undermine my poetry reading?”
Red-faced, Mr. Martin stood and stammered, “I a...assure you. Th…this is not the conduct expected from our members.” His focus on Phoebe, he demanded, “Miss Sheehan, are you quite finished?”
Phoebe, taking a gulp from the mug, froze. From Rory’s position at the back, he watched her rise. Once on her feet, she swayed and put a hand on Esther’s shoulder, and steadied herself. Esther took the mug from her hand.
“George...” Phoebe croaked, drifting to the left before righting herself. “George...” She fell forward and collapsed into a heap before the stage.
The audience gasped. A black clad waiter appeared from nowhere and rushed to the crumpled poet. He bent over her for a moment then announced, “Call an ambulance.”
George Martin took over the microphone. “Is there a doctor in the house?”
Wide-eyed, Esther met Rory’s gaze.
The detective nodded. Then reached for the light switch and flipped on the overhead lights.
Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub)
Amazon: https://amzn.to/4aq2VcC
Indie Bound: https://bookshop.org/p/books/gone-crazy-terry-korth-fischer/21506890?ean=9781509255979&ref=&source=IndieBound&title=
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Author Biography
Terry Korth Fischer is the author of the Rory Naysmith Mysteries, a cozy-crime series featuring a seasoned city detective relocated to small-town Nebraska. Transplanted from the Midwest, Terry lives in Houston, Texas, yet her heart often wanders to the country's heartland, where she spent a memorable—ordinary but charmed—childhood.
Social Media Links
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