Two people from Sophie Trace will be moving to the new series.
Suspense and intrigue guaranteed!
More details in the months to come.

Sophie Trace Trilogy Completed

I’m finished writing this trilogy and thought you might like to know a little about it. I chose East Tennessee (in the shadow of the Great Smoky Mountains) as the setting. For me, the most enjoyable aspect of starting a new series is picturing the setting. Once I've decided on the location, I visit the area and try to envision where I ant to place my fictitious town. My husband Paul and I drove through numerous towns in East Tennessee, and I put together a mental picture with a little of this and a little of that. And then we found a beautiful valley, which seemed the perfect setting in which to place my fictitious town of Sophie Trace! Here's a composite that’ll give you a glimpse of how I picture the area:

Town History and Origin of the name (fictional): This is background only and does not give away the story: The town of Sophie Trace was named after seven-year-old, Sophie Stanton, who immigrated to Tennessee from England in 1837 with her parents and several young families. Shortly after they arrived, Sophie went missing and was found unharmed and living with the Cherokee Indians. She had wandered away from the camp and was found by the tribe, which was enthralled with her blond curls and bright blue eyes. And since seven-year-old Sophie came to the Cherokee on the seventh day of the seventh month and had seven buttons on each of her dress sleeves, and white men came looking for her seven days later, the Indians accepted her sudden appearance as a sign from the Great Spirit that the white man and the red man would coexist in peace.

Unfortunately, it didn’t happen that way. Gold was discovered. And though the Stantons and those who had immigrated with them befriended the Cherokee, the very next year the U.S. Army began to finally enforce The Indian Removal Act of 1830, after which the Cherokee in this region reportedly disappeared into the Great Smoky Mountains.

The Stantons and other immigrants set up homesteads and eventually a town sprung up, which they named Sophie Trace, because it was built along the backwoods trail the searchers had followed to find the little girl.

Legend: (fiction): To this day, superstition abounds among the folks who live in this area that the angry spirits of the Cherokee, or "red shadows," still roam the countryside, seeking to drive off the descendents of those who settled their land. A number of unsolved crimes throughout the years have been blamed on the red shadows.

The first book is titled, The Real Enemy, and the plot will challenge even the sharpest of sleuths. It is based on Romans 12:21. "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."

The main character in the series is Brill Jessup, the first lady police chief in Sophie Trace, Tennessee. Brill (short for brilliant) is a nickname she picked up during her eighteen years on the Memphis police force. Brill may be a pro at solving cases, but she has a lot to learn about what it means to "Let go and let God." On the outside she's got things under control. But when she goes home and kicks off her shoes, her insecurities kick in. Her husband Kurt knows her better than anyone…and if she'd open her eyes, she’d see that he’s becoming a polished version of the man she married. But Brill’s not about to let him hurt her again—not ever. Kurt knows that. He blew it. But he also believes that every sin is redeemable, and good can come from even the stupidest mistake he ever made…if he turns it over to God.

The second book, The Last Word, is based on Romans 1:16. "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes…"

Police Chief Brill Jessup is being stalked by an ex-con she helped convict fifteen years earlier for second degree murder. Since being released from prison, he's attacked four people. Two are dead, including her former partner and one of her detectives. Law enforcement agencies in the region have joined forces to find him before he can make good on his courtroom threat to get even with everyone involved.

Meanwhile, Brill's 20-year-old daughter Vanessa comes home from college for the summer and reveals a shocking secret that turns her family's life upside down. Brill and her husband Kurt struggle to deal with the shattered hopes dreams they had for their daughter, and things get worse when Vanessa's psychology professor disappears without a trace and Brill finds out he's deceived Vanessa—and she could be in danger.

An FBI friend uses his vacation time to watch Brill's back, but the ex-con determined to kill her has been unstoppable each time he has gone after a target. Brill must face her own mortality and trust that God's plan for her life will unfold exactly as He has ordained.

The third book, The Right Call is based on 2 Peter 2:19b,”For a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him.” This is a story about choosing whom we will serve—and it’s serious business!

Ethan Langley is home from college for the summer, eager to renew his friendship with Vanessa Jessup and her infant son, Carter. Before Ethan is even settled, his world is rocked by a series of random shootings that leaves four people dead, including someone in his family.

While the Sophie Trace police are scrambling to find a connection between victims, Ethan learns shocking details of a high stakes poker game-turned-deadly, and who it was that masterminded the killings. Someone  powerful. Someone whose lackey warned him to keep his mouth shut.

Going to the police with what he knows could save an innocent person from doing life in prison—but it could be a death sentence for and Vanessa and Carter.