Many of us seek out inspirational stories at Christmastime. If you’re looking to curl up with a warm cup of cheer and a good murder mystery, the great folks over at Mystery Lovers Bookstore have compiled an excellent list of holiday-themed mysteries.
While not a Christmas-themed tale, I hope my latest thriller, The Blue Hallelujah, becomes a special book in your library or in that of someone you love. A departure from my well-known Frank Pavlicek mystery series, it’s the story of an elderly, dying detective, his long dead wife, and their granddaughter who goes missing.
The word hallelujah stems, of course, from the Old Testament in the Bible, where it is used mostly in the Book of Psalms. It means literally “Praise God,” from the Hebrew word hallel, which is a joyous praise in song, and the shortened form of “jah” or Yah”, to signify the Old Testament name for the creator YHWH.
But not everyone can praise the same way, especially those whose call to duty includes daily confrontation with the darkest side of humanity.
Focusing on an aged detective as the lead character for a fast-paced crime thriller may seem like an odd choice. But The Blue Hallelujah was a story I knew I had to write. Choosing such a protagonist makes for drama that goes beyond pure suspense, deep into memory and old secrets, even touching the supernatural.
Many people reach out to the elderly at Christmas, whether it be relatives or others in their neighborhood or communities, but you don’t have to be old to enjoy this book. The Blue Hallelujah is both a novel of suspense and a love story. It’s about a love that endures for the ages.
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