Constable Molly Smith

In the small Canadian town of Trafalgar, young constable Molly Smith throws herself into solving the murder case of a highly unpopular newcomer to town, hoping to win the approval of her hard-edged supervisor, Sergeant John Winters, newly arrived from the city, bringing along his own set of personal problems.

In the bucolic mountain town of Trafalgar, British Columbia, a young woman is found dead of a heroin overdose, her baby lying at her side. While this should be an open-and-shut drug case, restraint marks on the victim suggest that the death might not have been completely accidental. Constable Molly Smith and Sergeant John Winters know little more than the dead woman's name. Who was she? Was this just a drug deal gone wrong, or is there something more sinister at play? Does her orphaned baby boy hold the key to solving his mother's murder? Meanwhile, a controversial resort development is ripping apart their close-knit community. Has the disagreement pushed a member of this quiet community to murder?

Siblings Wendy and Jason Wyatt-Yarmouth and their friends are in British Columbia, enjoying a two-week vacation. Tragedy strikes the group of privileged students when two of them crash through the ice into the frozen river. It's Christmas Eve and the snowstorm of the decade has settled over the peaceful Canadian mountain town of Trafalgar, British Columbia. Constables Smith and Evans have a busy shift, attending fender-benders, tumbling pedestrians, and Christmas-tree fires. At the stroke of midnight, they arrive at the scene of a car accident: a vehicle has gone off the snowy road into the icy river. It seems to be an accident. But when the autopsy reveals a shocking secret, Constable Molly Smith and Sergeant John Winters are plunged into the world of sexual predators, recreational drugs, privilege, and high living. Meanwhile Charlie Bassing is out of jail and looking for revenge, a handsome Mountie is giving Molly the eye, and her mother, Lucky, is cheerfully interfering in the investigation.

As the mountain town of Trafalgar, British Columbia, shakes off a long, hard winter, famous photographer Rudolph Steiner arrives to do a feature on mountain tourism. Steiner is accompanied by his assistant and sexy young wife, but he has another reason for the visit: to reconnect with the woman who left him twenty‑five years ago to marry another man. Twenty‑five years ago she was young, beautiful, naïve, and an internationally known supermodel. Today Eliza Winters is no longer young, and definitely not naïve, but still beautiful and married to Trafalgar city police sergeant John Winters. When Steiner is found dead in his luxury hotel room, shot once in the back of the head, suspicion falls upon Eliza. John Winters is forced into the most difficult decision of his life: loyalty to his job or to his wife. As the Royal Canadian Mounted Police dig into the secrets of both Steiner and Eliza, John Winters slowly comes to realize that he doesn't know the woman to whom he has been married for twenty‑five years as well as he thought he did. Unable to help the sergeant, Constable Molly Smith has her own troubles: a series of breaking-and-enterings has the peaceful town in an uproar, her overprotective Mountie boyfriend is fighting with her colleagues, and a vengeful stalker is watching her every move. When tragedy strikes at the heart of her own family, Molly can't even turn to her mother, Lucky, for help. A Poisoned Pen Press Mystery

Fifteen years ago, a young girl by the name of Moonlight Smith went to the house of her best friend, Nicky Nowak, for a sleepover. Moonlight joined the family for breakfast the following morning and was then picked up by her mother. Shortly after, Mr. Nowak went for a walk. He was never seen again. Autumn has arrived on the mountains above Trafalgar, British Columbia, Canada, and the promise of winter is in the air. Constable Molly Smith is sitting by the fireplace with Adam Tocek of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police when Tocek and his dog, Norman, are called to a wilderness camping ground to join the search for a little boy who sneaked away from his family looking for bears. The child is found, dirty, terrified, and weeping but unharmed. Then the inquisitive Norman digs up something else: human bones. The ID isn't positive, but it is enough to have Sergeant John Winters of the Trafalgar City Police pulling old boxes from the basement to reopen the Brian Nowak investigation. He finds a family shattered beyond recognition by Brian's disappearance. Mrs. Nowak is an empty shell of a woman, dressed in pajamas, never leaving the house. Her son, Kyle, haunts the streets of Trafalgar at night and spends his days creating beautiful but highly troubling art. Nicky Nowak lives in Vancouver and has grown up to be gorgeous, charming, elegant. Yet behind that façade lies a woman whose heart has closed so tightly against human relationships that she comes to Trafalgar trailing in her wake a terrifying threat to another innocent family. As the investigation into the life and disappearance of Brian Nowak grows, old secrets are brought to light and new ones struggle to remain hidden. Among the Departed is more than a mystery novel: it is also a story of love—love new and old, long concealed, life affirming, and fatal. A Poisoned Pen Press Mystery

It's the end of March, and Trafalgar, British Columbia, is preparing for the last influx of skiers for the season. Schools are closed for a week, with teachers, parents, and students preparing to relax at home or head out on vacation. But for Cathy Lindsay, the week of relaxation doesn't work out as planned when she is gunned down by a sniper on the hiking trail high above town, her small dog the only witness. Cathy Lindsay-a middle-aged, middle-class, small town resident, high school English teacher, and married mother of two-is an unlikely candidate for a murderous ambush. As Sergeant John Winters begins his investigation, he finds himself frustrated at every turn. Why would anyone want to kill Cathy? She was a respected teacher in an apparently solid marriage and living a quiet life. Winters, with the help of young Constable Molly Smith, digs deep into the Lindsays' marriage and friendships, searching for a suspect and motive, but one thought continually arises in his mind: Is it possible this was a random killing or a case of mistaken identity? If so, who did it? And who in this small, close-knit community might be next? Meanwhile, on the double-black-diamond runs of the Blue Sky resort, Molly Smith meets a handsome, charming man, one who's as good a skier as she is, and she realizes it's time to make some serious decisions about the direction of her life-both personal and professional.

They're an unlikely couple: Lucky Smith, passionate environmentalist and old-time hippie, and Paul Keller, chief constable of Trafalgar, British Columbia. Their weekend getaway to a Scottish-inspired castle in the Rocky Mountains is a chance to explore their fledgling late-in-life relationship and indulge themselves at the famous Banff Springs Hotel.Trouble interferes when Lucky, strong willed and sometimes too stubborn for her own good, stands up to two bullies in the local coffee shop. To his horror, Paul recognizes one of the young men as his estranged son, Matt.In the early hours of the following morning, a frantic Matt calls his father for help. Lucky and Paul arrive to find a body on the apartment floor, but Matt has gone.Matt Keller is an experienced wilderness adventurer. All signs indicate that he has escaped into the backcountry. To Sergeant Eddie Blechta of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, running is all the proof of guilt he needs. Paul Keller can do nothing but watch the investigation from a distance, terrified that Blechta is right.Lucky's daughter, Constable Molly Smith of the Trafalgar City Police, abandons her chaotic Thanksgiving kitchen to offer her mom support. She has no intention of meddling in the police investigation, but she is as good in the wilderness as Matt, and when his sad, shy girlfriend asks for her help, Molly finds herself not only interfering but putting herself on the wrong side of Edward Blechta.