Book 1
Last Dance
Book 2
One Last Goodbye
Book 3
The Last to Remember
Book 4
Until Our Last Embrace
Book 5
For The Last Time
Book 6
Dreams Don't Last
Book 7
Last Fires Burning
Book 8
Glory's Last Victim
Book 9
Last Rites
Oct. 2004
Book 10
Last One Down
February 2005
Book 11
Before the Last Lap
August 2005
Book 12
The First Shall Be Last
June 2007
All books are available at Avalon Books
Before the Last Lap
Morning on Diamond Lake (Photo by Joyce and Jim Lavene)
Short Notes...
This time the mystery for Sheriff Sharyn Howard and her Diamond Springs deputies hits a little bit closer to home. After a speeding boat flies up over the pier and onto the street, the sheriff’s department investigates. They become personally involved when the pocketbook of Sharyn’s assistant, Trudy Robinson, is found on the boat—along with a lot of blood. Trudy has been missing for days, and things don’t look promising.
While combing the crime scene at the boat a dead body washes up beside the pier. Upon discovering that the dead man was the head mechanic for a local racecar driver, Sharyn’s investigation turns to the speedway. Could legendary driver Duke Beatty be the one behind it all? Sharyn has her suspicions.
Trudy is found unharmed at the speedway at the same time that Duke is shot and killed, and it appears that she may be the murderer. Trudy’s husband, Ed, one of Sharyn’s deputies who also happened to be on the scene at the time, tries to protect his wife by claiming that he is guilty of shooting Duke.
Now Sharyn must prove that Ed is innocent while also trying to find the real culprit.
Book Details:
Thomas Bouregy and Co.
Book 11--Avalon Books
ISBN-0-8034-9728-8
Read more on the story in the excerpt below...
The cover design and illustration of "Before The Last Lap" by Tess Anson
Sheriff Sharyn Howard fact...
Sharyn is an avid chicken fan. Her apartment is full of chicken collectables.
Sources...
From Booklist . . .
After a speedboat flies out of a local lake and crashes into a car, Montgomery County, North Carolina, sheriff Sharyn Howard learns her missing assistant's purse was found on board, covered with blood. Although the case is outside her jurisdiction, Howard and her team investigate and find her dazed assistant, Trudy, at the scene when race-car driver Duke Beatty is shot dead. When it looks as if Trudy will be accused of the crime, her husband, one of Sharyn's deputies, quickly confesses to the murder and is arrested. Sharyn believes neither Trudy nor her husband to be guilty, but her efforts to clear them run afoul of a long-term FBI investigation. Likable characters, fast pacing, and an intriguing subplot about Sharyn's attempts to learn the truth behind her father's death make for an enjoyable read. Give this little-known series to fans of Margaret Maron's Deborah Knott novels.
Sue O'Brien
Excerpt
from "Before The Last Lap"...
Sharyn and Ed got out of her Jeep at the Stag-Inn-Doe. If possible, the nightclub was more rundown than ever before. The sunlight was harsh on the old wood façade. It stood right on the county line, making it difficult to prosecute the current owner, legendary racecar driver Duke Beatty. But the place had been an eyesore and a problem to law enforcement in both counties for almost fifty years.
The problem was everyone; senators, judges, even foreign diplomats, visited the place. Every graduating high school class of Diamond Springs had a goodbye party there before heading to the beach. Despite drug deals and fights, the Stag-Inn-Doe managed to sail on. Nothing seemed to bother the rustic, ramshackle hut.
“It looks quiet.” It was one of the few times Sharyn had seen the parking lot empty and the dismal shack quiet.
Ed grabbed his riot stick. “Let’s shake things up.”
“We’re not going to find Trudy by knocking Duke in the head.” She put her hand on his arm. “I know you’re upset. If you can’t handle it, you can wait out here. If we’re lucky enough to find something we can arrest Duke on and close this place, I’m not going to lose a conviction because you were careless.”
“If he’s hurt Trudy, I’ll kill him and you won’t have to worry about it.”
His normally carefree blue eyes were sincere enough. She believed him. She wished she’d brought Ernie with her. But he was so friendly with Duke, even looked up to him, she didn’t want that either. Terry Bartlett, the new man, had only been with the Diamond Springs police department a few weeks before he made the move to the sheriff’s office earlier that year. She was afraid he didn’t have the experience to handle the case. Ed was going to have to do. He was too well trained to let this get the better of him.
“We don’t know for sure what’s happened,” she reminded him. “Right now, this is all speculation. We’re not in the movies, Ed. We have to take this one step at a time. I can’t believe I have to say this to you. You have more experience than I do.”
“Then don’t say it.” He walked past her and kicked open the door to the building. It stayed upright, swinging by a bolt. He looked back at her, his face rough with three days growth of beard and a deep anger boiling in his soul. “Coming, Sheriff?”
