Susan Van Kirk is a local
author I can look up to for many reasons.
Her first mystery, Three
May Keep a Secret, was a delight to read. Her fictional small town of Endurance is based on Monmouth , Illinois .
I’ve driven through Monmouth many times over the years as it’s on Highway 34
and it was a nice place to stop for ice cream on the way home from Iowa .
Her fictional Endurance may
be quite a bit bigger than my fictional Bishop Hill, but it shares many similar
characteristics: a colorful cast of characters, everyone knows each other’s
business (past & present), the feeling of a shared heritage, and a
connection to the land.
Van Kirk’s protagonist is a
fifty-something Grace Kimball, a newly-retired English teacher weighing her
options for fulfillment in the next phase of her life. Will it be writing a
novel or picking something from the multiple suggestions of her friends. Fate
intervenes when the new editor of the local paper asks her to do a column of
book reviews. That she can and does say yes to. And then a notorious newspaper
reporter dies in a fire leaving a last unfinished story for Grace to tackle.
Completing the research for the story will solve a longstanding crime. Trying
to sort out the most likely suspect for present-day crimes will not be
easy—there are so many unworthy candidates.
Three May Keep a Secret is a classic cozy mystery with an interesting
beginning, a well-handled plot that keeps developing and building to the
satisfying denouement.
Bonus: there’s room for more
action in later books.
I can see why the Monmouth Public Library has a shelf
dedicated to local authors.
Thank you so much for both the reviews on Amazon and on GoodReads. I had no idea your blog post was here, and I am so impressed. I appreciate your kind words, and I'm glad you liked my mystery!
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