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Back The Sorority Murder Save as PDF
Chapters (61)
  1. Cover
  2. Praise
  3. Dedication
  4. One
  5. Two
  6. Three
  7. Four
  8. Five
  9. From the Missing Journal of Candace Swain
  10. Six
  11. Seven
  12. Eight
  13. Nine
  14. Ten
  15. Eleven
  16. Twelve
  17. From the Missing Journal of Candace Swain
  18. Thirteen
  19. Fourteen
  20. Fifteen
  21. From the Missing Journal of Candace Swain
  22. Sixteen
  23. Seventeen
  24. Eighteen
  25. Nineteen
  26. Twenty
  27. Twenty-One
  28. From the Missing Journal of Candace Swain
  29. Twenty-Two
  30. Twenty-Three
  31. Twenty-Four
  32. Twenty-Five
  33. Twenty-Six
  34. Twenty-Seven
  35. Twenty-Eight
  36. Twenty-Nine
  37. Thirty
  38. Thirty-One
  39. Thirty-Two
  40. Thirty-Three
  41. Thirty-Four
  42. From the Missing Journal of Candace Swain
  43. Thirty-Five
  44. Thirty-Six
  45. Thirty-Seven
  46. Thirty-Eight
  47. From the Journal of Candace Swain
  48. Thirty-Nine
  49. Forty
  50. Forty-One
  51. Forty-Two
  52. Forty-Three
  53. Forty-Four
  54. Forty-Five
  55. Forty-Six
  56. Forty-Seven
  57. Letter Found in the Journal of Candace Swain
  58. Forty-Eight
  59. Acknowledgments
  60. Booklist
  61. Excerpt

“The Swain family and the Overton family know what happened to their daughters, but they may not be at peace. Yet, this is all that we can do. Sometimes, it has to be enough.”

Lucas caught Lizzy’s eye. She nodded to him, and he nodded back. “I’m going to end with one final thought. In her journal, Candace quoted Martin Luther King Jr. He said, ‘It’s always the right time to do the right thing.’ Candace died by that motto, but she didn’t die in vain.”

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments

Sixteen years ago, my first book was released into the world. Now, forty books later, I feel so blessed that I can continue to do what I love—write stories that entertain.

My early books I wrote without much thought about research—largely because when I asked questions, people would look at me oddly (i.e., How can I disable a car? What poison will immobilize a person but not kill them?) Everything I learned then I learned from books.

Over time, I’ve been lucky to find people who can answer questions and don’t think I’m plotting a real-life murder. It started with friends and neighbors, and now I’m comfortable reaching out to people I don’t know. I still do most of my research by reading, such as the history of Flagstaff, a memoir about growing up on the Navajo reservation, and my well-used Writer’s Digest Book of Poisons. But I still had questions that couldn’t be found in a book or on the internet.

So a special shout-out to Dr. Luis Fernandez, the chair of the Criminology and Criminal Justice Department at Northern Arizona University. He answered numerous questions about their program, the capstone project all seniors are required to complete and general questions about the university. I’m sure I got some things wrong, and I took a few liberties for story purposes, but his information was invaluable in helping me create a plausible background for my character Lucas Vega.

I also reached out to the NAU Police Department, and Officer Tanner Carson, community relations officer, was gracious enough to answer questions about security, how they approach missing-persons cases and the general role of campus police. Again, some liberties needed to be taken, but I tried to get the details right!

Finally, fellow author Martin Roy Hill bailed me out for some much-needed medical information that I needed immediately. I can’t tell you how grateful I am to him and other experts at the Crime Scene Writers loop. They are always there to help me not look bad. Thank you!