Morgan’s Landing by Linda Griffin is a Spring Into Books Festival pick #policeprocedural #mystery #giveaway
- N. N. Light
- Apr 3
- 6 min read
Title: Morgan’s Landing
Author: Linda Griffin
Genre: Police Procedural
Book Blurb:
In the small Maryland town of Morgan’s Landing, fourteen-year-old Julie Morgan is living in comfort with her wealthy family. She disappears on her way to school after a spat with her twin sister. Detective Jim Brady, married and the father of two, has been on the Morgan’s Landing police force for twelve years. He identifies a few suspects in the girl’s disappearance—Is it the fired school janitor, a paroled sex offender, Julie's computer teacher...or his own teenage son? Jim can’t believe his son could be involved, but his wife is convinced the boy is hiding something. He needs to find Julie before the worst happens--and keep the peace at home.
Excerpt:
Julie had spoken sharply to Heather, which was unusual. The twins usually got along well enough, better than most sisters.
“So go on without me,” Heather replied sulkily, plopping back on her bed.
Julie was a few minutes older and could be bossy when she was in an impatient mood, as she was now. She stood frowning in Heather’s doorway and then stalked down the hall.
Heather would not be late to school. She had plenty of time. She didn’t rush to put on her knee-highs and her pretty new sandals. Julie’s quick footsteps descended the stairs, and the front door slammed as she left the house.
The more modest Cape Cod a quarter mile along the road was set further back from the sea than the Morgan house, but it had a lovely view too. The Brady family had lived on the peninsula for only a single generation, both Jim and Frances having arrived with their families as young children, when the new plastic pipe industry started up, attracting workers from the mainland.
Young Colin Brady, fourteen and restless, gave the ocean a quick glance from his second-floor bedroom, but he was more interested in the figure of a girl marching up the street in the direction of the high school. She was one of the Morgan twins, but at that distance he couldn’t be sure which one. She wore her blonde hair in a ponytail today, a style he found particularly attractive. He didn’t linger at the window for long before he clattered down the stairs in his chunky sneakers.
“Colin!” his mother called from the kitchen. He barely paused at the foot of the stairs to gather up his backpack and his light windbreaker. Frances came to the door and took in his haste with a knowing glance. “Aren’t you going to eat breakfast?” she asked.
“No time,” he said.
“The eggs are almost ready,” she protested.
“No time,” he repeated and dashed for the door. He wanted to catch up with the Morgan girl before she started up the hill.
Frances returned to the kitchen and scowled at the frying pan. “Something is wrong with that boy,” she said.
“There’s nothing wrong with him,” Jim said mildly. “He’s just being a boy. I was the same way at his age.”
“You were not,” Frances countered. “I knew you then. You were perfectly reasonable, and you ate breakfast every morning. Something is wrong with him.”
He didn’t argue with her. He folded the newspaper beside his plate and picked up his fork as she served the scrambled eggs and crisp, sweet bacon strips. “You make a good breakfast,” he said. “If I was fourteen, though, I might have other things on my mind.”
Frances shook her head. “He is not normal,” she insisted.
Jim would have reasoned with her, but baby Sarah cried in the next room, and she hurried out to tend to her. They had been delighted to finally have a little girl after years of disappointment, but an infant was a lot of extra work.
****
Heather was taking a math test when Mr. Scarlett, the vice principal, called her out in the hall to ask if she knew where Julie was. He was unusually stern.
“She has Phys Ed this period,” Heather said. Shouldn’t he know that?
“She’s not in class,” Mr. Scarlett said. “She wasn’t in Computer Applications first period, either. Your mother says she didn’t stay home sick.”
“No, she left before I did,” Heather said. She was mystified, and as the situation sank in, she experienced the first shudder of real fear. Julie liked school, and she would never cut classes. Their parents would kill them if they even thought of such a thing. They were not overly strict, but they were firm in their expectations that their daughters would always do the right thing.
She dug her cell phone, silenced during class, out of her purse, and dialed her sister’s number. It rang four times and went to voicemail. “It’s me,” she said. “Where are you? Call when you get this.”
****
“Julie Morgan is missing.” Jim Brady took the call at 10:30. He had been with the Morgan’s Landing Police Department for twelve years, and this was only his second missing person case. The first had involved a three-year-old boy who had wandered away and been found within the hour. He still remembered the emotions associated with that hour: the overwhelming anguish of the boy’s mother, the sharp desire to make sure his own son was safe. This time Colin was in school, and Jim resisted the urge to call Frances—of course the baby was safe with her.
A child-snatcher wasn’t randomly taking children. With a girl Julie’s age, three scenarios were likely. She might be a runaway—she had quarreled with her sister. He hoped that was the case, but he doubted it. In a big city, in the absence of suspicious circumstances, the police would have presumed so and done nothing for at least twenty-four hours. She might be held for ransom—the Morgans had more money than anybody else in town. Or she might have been kidnapped for sexual purposes, a possibility nobody wanted to contemplate—and nobody could ignore. Or of course she might have met with an accident on the way to school—been hit by a car or mugged for her state-of-the-art Smartphone. Jim made routine calls to the hospital and morgue and then grimly set out to find out who might have seen her last, beginning with the businesses along her usual route to school.
Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):
What’s your favorite thing about springtime?
April showers bring May flowers! (And of course Mayflowers bring Pilgrims.) I love rain and live where we never have enough, so spring rains are always welcome. I love the profusion of blooms that follow, especially the purple flowered jacarandas that peak in May.
Why is your featured book a must-read this spring?
It’s the best way to answer the burning question, Where is Julie Morgan? You could instead wade through the reviews hoping for a spoiler, but I think getting to know Jim and Colin and the other characters would be more fun. Bookstagrammer Simone said “Gripping and suspenseful, this book was a super fast read, short chapters and very intriguing. It kept me so invested and I couldn’t put it down. I loved the writing style, and the characters. I highly recommend!”
Giveaway –
One lucky reader will win a $100 Amazon gift card.
Open internationally.
Runs April 1 – 30, 2025
Drawing will be held on May 1, 2025.
Author Biography:
I knew I wanted to be a “book maker” as soon as I learned to read, and I wrote my first story, “Judy and the Fairies,” at the age of six. My passion for the printed word also led me to a career with the San Diego Public Library. I retired to spend more time on my writing and have had stories of every length from short shorts to novellas published in numerous literary journals. Morgan’s Landing is my tenth novel published by the Wild Rose Press. In addition to the three R’s—reading, writing, and research—I enjoy travel, movies, Scrabble, and visiting museums and art galleries.
Social Media Links:
Website: https://www.lindagriffinauthor.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LindaGriffinA
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lindagriffinauthor
