Three Family History Mysteries
About this ebook
Reviews of the Series
Least Trodden Ground
Least Trodden Ground hits all the notes! It has every element I want in a cozy mystery and presents them so well that I ordered book 2 when I was only half way through reading this one. Intelligent, likeable characters with a good sense of humor and good hearts paired well with a strong plot that kept me reading from beginning to end non-stop!
The Unscheduled Murder Trip
Elaine Orr's new series has a couple of neat twists in it. No cupcake bakers or dog groomers here; instead, Digger's hobby interest is family genealogy. Of course, then there's bound to be skeletons in the closets. Add in a ghost and you've got the makings of a fun new cozy series. "Unscheduled Murder Trip" mixes an old mystery with some feisty present day descendants and a few contemporaries. A fun read!
Mountain Rails of Old
I recommend the Family History Series, which is Elaine's most ambitious: She's channeling a spirit in addition to her always interesting living characters. I love how she brings the town and all the characters to life (even the ghost!) It's fun to learn about this corner of Maryland, fun to play genealogy detective, and fun to figure out "whodunit"!
About the author
Elaine L. Orr has authored more than 30 works of fiction, including four mystery series. What makes her fiction different from other traditional mysteries? Some might say the dry humor (only a few say lame), but she thinks it is the empathy her characters show to others. Fiction doesn’t always have to be profound. But it can contain people whose paths we cross every day — whether we know it or not.
Her books include the thirteen-book Jolie Gentil cozy mystery series, which is set at the Jersey shore. Behind the Walls was short-listed for the 2014 Chanticleer Mystery and Mayhem Awards. New Lease on Death was published in 2023. “Reading any Jolie Gentil book is like spending time with cherished friends. That feeling grows as the series continues.” Phoning in a Murder will be out in June 2024.
The River's Edge series takes place among the cornfields of Southeastern Iowa, along the Des Moines River. A fired news reporter switches to landscaping, but still digs up trouble. Demise of a Devious Neighbor was a Chanticleer shortlister in 2017
The Western Maryland mountains, near Deep Creek Lake, host the five-book Family History Mystery Series. The Unscheduled Murder Trip received a B.R.A.G. Medallion in 2021..
Small-town Illinois is the setting for the Logland Series, which features Police Chief Elizabeth Friedman -- a police procedural with a cozy feel. Amid the mystery and laughs, Final Cycle, set during a Christmas season, shows why it’s important to assist those who are difficult to help.
Elaine also writes plays and novellas, including the one-act, Common Ground. Her novella, Biding Time, was one of five finalists in the National Press Club's first fiction contest, in 1993. Falling into Place is a novella about family strength as a World War II veteran rises to the toughest occasion. (It’s also Elaine’s favorite book.) In the Shadow of Light is the fictional story of Corozón and her family, who are separated at the U.S./Mexico border.
A member of Sisters in Crime and the Independent Book Publishers Association, Elaine grew up in Maryland and moved to the Midwest in 1994. She now lives in Springfield, Illinois.
