The Perfect Tree — I follow my dad’s trek through the woods, his black work boots trampling fallen leaves and snapping twigs on our mission to find the perfect tree. His hand-saw, with the orange handle, rests on his shoulder and I look around to see the birds and squirrels scatter in his wake, chattering in…

“Ready for the 1950s and lots of laughs? It’s not Mrs. Maisel in the Big Apple. It’s Sydney Lockhart on Bathhouse Row in Hot Springs.” Murder at the Arlington A Sydney Lockhart Mystery Chapter Five I wanted nothing more than to close the drawer, crawl into bed, and pull the covers over this crazy day. Ellison James’ clothes would be…

“Life can change instantly, like when you meet a handsome guy or become a murder suspect. Both happened to me in five minutes.” Murder at the Arlington A Sydney Lockhart Mystery Chapter Four “I knew that room was bad luck,” I heard my mother shout from the kitchen. …

It’s 1952, and reporter Sydney Lockhart checks into the luxury Arlington Hotel in Hot Springs, Arkansas and right into a hornet’s nest of crime. Murder at the Arlington: A Sydney Lockhart Mystery: Chapter Two Chapter Two: My car coughed up a plume of black smoke and died just as I turned into a parking…

It’s steaming up in Hot Springs. Sydney Lockhart’s tracking a killer, or is the killer tracking her? Join Sydney on her first hotel murder case. Murder at the Arlington: A Sydney Lockhart Mystery Murder at the Arlington has just been reissued. The first 5 chapters are free. Check out chapter one. Here’s what Sydney…

I have two questions for you to think about: How would you feel if someone called you a bird brain? Have you ever known a child or adolescent who was severely misunderstood?

Chapter One Red Newsome had warned me not to enter his joint unescorted. He’d said he wouldn’t stop me, but he couldn’t be held responsible for my white ass if things got nasty. I tucked my unruly hair under a shabby fedora. I’d picked up the hat at Goodwill, along…

On the Same Wavelength as St. Teresa of Avila When Catholics prepare for the sacrament of Confirmation, we get to choose a patron saint. I chose St. Teresa because I liked the name. It sounded much better than St. Hildegard, St. Agatha, or St. Philomena. I wanted a pretty name. Hildegard sounded harsh. Agatha sounded dowdy. Philomena, although melodic…

August 26 Jenny (1982–1997) Jenny’s Tail I saw your tail in the pre-dawn. A swish of white cloud arching from a full moon, reaching up to the North Star. There were no other stars about and I knew it was you, saying good morning on that dreary Monday when I awoke not looking forward to the…