Kris Nelscott: 22 books

Called “an outstanding series” by Booklist and “triumphant” by the Chicago Tribune, Kris Nelscott’s Smokey Dalton mysteries boast numerous awards, including finalists for the Edgar and Shamus awards. The Oregonian says: “The Nelscott series setting, in the turbulent late ’60s,...

Imagine paying a fine for walking across town. Or hiding an illegal marriage. Or losing your life for playing the harp. Strange crimes, dangerous activities, some from the not-so-distant past, return to life in Hidden in Crime. See why Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine says Fiction River’s crime volumes...

Years ago, Lurleen helped the NAACP investigate lynchings. She stopped when she met her husband, but never forgot the work…or the caution it required. After his death, Lurleen finds herself struggling to find purpose. She travels to New York without a plan. But what she finds there might...

When a disturbing postcard arrives at his Atlanta office, Emerson knows he must report it to the NAACP. The postcard, sent by the mysterious Lureen from Abbotts Creek, Arkansas, depicts yet another lynching. Emerson agrees to travel to Abbotts Creek to investigate, but he knows doing so poses great...

Berkeley, May, 1969—When former Army nurse Captain June “Eagle” Eagleton returned from Vietnam, she thought she left the war zone behind. But when the familiar sound of a helicopter wakes Eagle from sleep, she realizes she has awoken in a very different kind of war zone: one filled with tear...

UC Berkeley, January, 1969—In the midst of turbulent student protests on campus, a cherished building suddenly bursts into flames. Pammy Griffin, an alum who owns a women’s gym nearby, heads over to check out the fire and walks straight into a troubling mystery. Who wants Berkeley to burn? Hippies?...

Laws change from culture to culture, decade to decade. Strange laws make criminals of ordinary citizens. Like the Massachusetts woman whose brother asks her for help, slave hunters at his heels. Or the little Irish girl who needs to protect a priest from a different kind of hunter. Or the Native American...

Fiction River readers make the call in this latest volume of Fiction River Presents. From a reluctant warrior fighting a battle in her own backyard, to a man coming to terms with the racial inequality of his youth, to a romance blooming out of adversity, Readers’ Choice offers up favorite stories...