Publisher description

Discusses the history of execution, the process from sentencing to execution, moral issues involved in the death penalty, arguments for and against it, and the shrinking number of countries with it.

Four of the author's five children were murdered in a single night, then her oldest child died of cancer. She tells her incredible story then charts the path of healing for broken hearts. She explains the stages of grief and the importance of recognizing individual differences in the process.

It’s harvest time in the village of Kurland St. Mary as Lucy and Robert prepare to wed—but a murderer has taken an unseasonable vow of vengeance . . . As Miss Lucy Harrington, daughter of the village rector, and Major Sir Robert Kurland plan their nuptials, the major is beginning to wonder if he’ll ever hear wedding bells. He’s seen complex military campaigns that involved less strategy, and he’s finding Lucy’s meddling family maddening. When the body of Ezekiel Thurrock, the church verger, is discovered crushed by a gargoyle that has fallen from the bell tower, the wedding is delayed. But the evidence suggests this was no accident, and Lucy wonders if bad blood at the village fair had anything to do with the man’s mysterious demise, since there was much bitterness over Ezekiel’s prizewinning vegetables. As Lucy and Robert uncover long-standing village feuds, the town’s dark secrets begin to take their toll and the couple soon finds they too are in grave danger . . .

The 1893 World's Columbian Exposition provides a vibrant backdrop for this exciting new mystery. Emily Cabot is one of the first women graduate students at the University of Chicago, eager to prove herself in the new field of sociology. While she is busy exploring the Exposition with her family and friends, her colleague, Dr. Stephen Chapman, is accused of murder. Emily sets out to search for the truth behind the crime, but is thwarted by the thieves, corrupt politicians, and gamblers who are ever-present in Chicago. A lynching that occurred in the dead man's past leads Emily to seek the assistance of the black activist Ida B. Wells. Rich with historical details that bring turn-of-the-century Chicago to life, this novel will appeal equally to history buffs and mystery fans. Reissue of Allium Press edition

With pitch perfect prose, Death at the Fair is full of intelligent plot twists that will keep readers on the edge of their seats to the final page. Set during the Worldâs Columbian Exposition in Chicago, an implacable murderer sets out to claim vengeanceâor so it seems. It is 1893 and all eyes are on the Windy City where Emily Cabot, a graduate student at the University of Chicago, is touring with her family and friends. When one of those friends is found dead, all fingers point to Dr. Stephen Chapman, one-time fiancé of the dead manâs wifeâs. Believing firmly in Dr. Chapmanâs innocence, Emily begins to uncover evidence to the contrary with the help of Ida B. Wells, the famous anti-lynching crusader. Together the women must deal with thieves, gamblers, and dogmatists to uncover a truth, which is far more alarming and insidious than any reader will have imagined.

It's 1971, and the Naval Investigate Service, or "NIS" as it's better known, is nothing like the NCIS of present-day television. There are no cell phones, desktop computers, DNA, or the Internet. All the Navy and civilian personnel working for this specialized unit have to rely on are their minds. Logic, investigative skills, and experience hitting the streets are all they have to get the information they need. The work is often dangerous, and sometimes, good old-fashioned luck is the real key to sending the criminals to the brig for good. At NIS headquarters in Washington D.C., Lieutenant Commander Marcus Colt has made a name for himself handling the country's most unusual cases. Despite his occasional short temper and hint of sarcasm coloring his attitude, Colt is intelligent and driven to succeed. And while his behavior sometimes complicates situations, as the top internal affairs investigator, this decorated officer is the one top Navy brass go to when no one else can handle the mission. One such assignment is the latest in a long line of challenges to cross Colt's desk. A series of informational leaks within the NIS agency have led to the executions of at least four, confidential informants on the Norfolk Naval Base, and the threat of more victims is imminent. Armed with his uncanny, investigative skills and deceptively youthful looks, Colt goes undercover as a junior enlisted man in Norfolk, Virginia and works to stop the leak at its source. To accomplish this difficult task, he must build close relationships with personnel in his NIS unit, invade their privacy, and dig up their life secrets-all while keeping his true identity and mission hidden. As straightforward as his investigative job is, nothing with this assignment is what it seems. And when the case takes unexpected twists and turns, Colt finds himself questioning everything he knows. The loss of an old flame, evading assassins, an unexpected meeting with a high-ranking officer's daughter, and overcoming his own personal guilt from a past Vietnam mission that nearly cost him everything all add complexity to his assignment. But friends, both new and old, along with his fellow agents at the NIS, aid Colt in his mission as he works to solve the case. He has the skills and the team, but time is quickly running out. With danger and uncertainty surrounding him, it will take everything Marcus Colt has to stop the leak before someone else dies-especially when that next someone could be him.