Susan Boyd writes character-driven cozy mysteries with amateur sleuths and professional detectives who have personal connections to the victims
Secrets of the Charles by Susan Boyd
First-place winner of the Royal Palm Literary Awards.
How do three women solve a murder when the witnesses and suspects are most likely dead themselves? Drawn by flashing police lights, a teenage Jack O’Shea stands among the on-lookers as the Boston police dredge his mother’s body from the Charles River. More than fifty years later, his high school sweetheart Kate, daughter Lilith, and granddaughter Alexa team with two police detectives to uncover the truth. Following the few clues left in a dusty evidence box and Kate’s recollection of her life with Jack, they discover the secrets, lies and dreams intertwining the victim’s family with her lover and his wife.
Secrets Hide Lies by Susan Boyd
After a near-fatal accident, Becky Reynolds is left with a fractured memory and face. Living with foster parents and renamed Angie, she is haunted by nightmares and flashbacks of a life she doesn’t know. Never losing hope of finding Becky, her grandmother looks to the only people she knows who can help.
Kate, Lilith and Alexa reprise their roles as amateur sleuths. Working with the police detective who reluctantly closed Becky’s case, the team uncovers the truth behind her disappearance. They pursue clues from Northern Virginia to the Georgia mountains. Will they find Becky before the person who wants her to remain lost — permanently?
Grey to Black by Susan Boyd
Winner of the Royal Palm Literary Awards
While Private Investigator Sam Trooper (Troop) mourns the death of his partner, Vaughn Bradbury, his instincts as a former Boston Police detective tell him that the death was not accidental. Evidence mounts to establish foul play as Troop works with Boston Police detective Ryan Brady to track down Vaughn’s killer.
Behind the scenes, is a trio of women — Kate Gallagher, Alexa Callahan and Vaughn’s widow, Jennifer. They discover clues to assist Troop and Ryan in the hunt that weaves a path that intertwines the lives of an ex-con to pillars of Boston’s high-society. When a key person of interest disappears, Troop uncovers secrets underlying adultery … and Vaughn’s death.
Fatal Secrets
Alexa Callahan is missing. Her employer, Private Investigator Sam Trooper (Troop), takes up the search. Her boyfriend, Boston Police Detective Ryan Brady, is tied up with a double homicide investigation. The cases collide with the discovery of Alexa’s necklace at the murder scene. To avoid a conflict of interest, Ryan must remain focused on the homicide, while leaving the hunt for Alexa to Troop. Alexa’s mother, Lilith, and Nana Kate pitch in to broaden the scope of the search.
While evidence mounts, a letter hand delivered to Alexa’s residence identifies a possible motive for the murders. The message points the team to a past suicide. As they comb through clues, the letter leaves them with a lingering question: Was the past death a suicide or another murder?
Secret Vows by Susan Boyd
Private Investigator Sam Trooper is fingered in murder. After the police refuse his help, Troop goes rogue to catch a killer from his past.
The killer leaves his victims laid out in wedding dresses, with marriage certificates that name Troop as the groom. With a stake in the case, Troop offers his assistance to Boston Police Detective Ryan Brady. Ryan turns down the offer, convinced that Troop’s interference would jeopardize the case. Undeterred, Troop continues his search on the sly. The friction between Troop and Ryan intensifies as their separate investigations crisscross.
Adding to the tension is amateur sleuth Kate Gallagher, who uses her connections with Ryan’s boss to nose into the case. The ante is upped when the killer targets his next victim, who has personal ties to Troop, Ryan, and Kate.
Susan Boyd
Susan Boyd made her career with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). A graduate of West Virginia University, she has moved frequently up and down the East coast, including eight transfers during her ATF career — from Florida to Massachusetts and points in between.
Susan’s first novel, Secrets of the Charles, was a first-place winner of the Royal Palm Literary Awards. Her third novel, Grey To Black, won two Royal Palm Literary Awards. Several of Susan’s award-winning short stories have been published. She resides in central Florida.
Susan’s Blog
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