Title: Right Place, Wrong Time
Author: F.J. Donohue
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Book Blurb:
A sudden death in an assisted living facility. Detective Elton Hendricks doesn't like what he sees. But who stands to gain from the old lady's death? If Hendricks cannot solve this mystery, nobody in the Edgewood Gardens Home will ever feel safe again. A resident is instrumental in solving the murder using a program he has developed to help the high school manage their team activities. This is the third story in the Upstate Mystery series, featuring a home town police department and a cast of local characters
Excerpt:
He met up with Janet for coffee later in the afternoon. They talked about the Edsel, Bill and Maggie's investigation and, of course, their kids. They grow up but they’re still your kids. They walked back to their rooms in the west wing. Janet’s room came first. They chatted near her door and agreed to meet up for dinner at 6 that evening. Brian’s room was four rooms down from Janet. He headed there to catch up on some emails before dinner. He wasn’t in his room 20 minutes when there was a commotion in the hall. He looked out and could see it was coming from Janet’s room. He ran down to her room to find Carol, the day nurse, standing next to Janet’s bed.
“I’m so sorry Brian,” she said, “Janet is dead! Pauline from next door stopped by and found her.”
“How can that be? I was with her less than twenty minutes ago!”
“I can’t say at this point. We’ll need to call the coroner. I need to find Linda, our day manager, to report this.”
“You go find her; I’ll stay here with Janet.”
Brian sat by Janet trying to process what had happened. So quick, just a matter of a few minutes. She was happy and did not complain of any pain when he left her. Heart attack? Stroke? What happened? As he sat there, he started to become aware of the surroundings. Janet was lying on the bed with her shoes on. She would never do that and, in fact, always used a comfortable recliner for resting. Rob had bought it for her birthday. She was on her back with her arms at her sides, almost like she had been posed. Nobody rests on a bed like that. He did not notice any stress on her face. But there was redness about her left wrist and some abrasions. George’s watch was gone! It was always with her. He looked about but did not see it on her night table or dresser. She was wearing slacks and a blouse. The blouse was wrinkled and it was not like that when he left her earlier.
Carol the RN and Linda the day manger came back and could see that Brian was having trouble coming to terms with the scene. He explained his misgivings.
Linda said, “The coroner will be here shortly, let’s see what he thinks about this. I looked in Janet’s file and she had pre-arrangements with Nichols Funeral Home. I need to first call her son in Albany. I’m not sure what to tell him at this point. Let me just say that his mom died. We don’t know enough to draw any conclusions. I don’t want to scare him with conjecture.”
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Why is your featured book a must-read?
One expects assisted living centers to be safe places. When the death of loved resident proves to be murder, it’s all hands-on deck to find the killer.
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Author Biography:
I’m a retired International Sales Director, having worked in the commercial and military flight simulation industry for over 30 years. I lived in Brussels (Belgium) and Bonn (Germany) for eight years and met my British wife in Brussels. Before my career in the flight simulation industry, I was an Armaments and Electronics Maintenance Officer in the USAF during the Viet Nam conflict. We have three children and seven grandchildren.
Since retirement, I continue to chase an ever-elusive golf game.
Home is a small town in central New York State where the novellas are set.
I'm a volunteer mediator and Lemon Law arbitrator and this occasionally appears in the stories. An underlying theme in my novellas is people helping people. In spite of the difficulties and crime that may surround us, there is always hope in friendship and good neighbors