Thea Kozak Mystery

Tragically widowed, Thea Kozak is tall, brave, and trying to rebuild her life. Then her little sister is murdered in a picturesque Maine town. The police have no leads. Her grieving parents are eager to put everything behind them, and Thea--"little mother" to her adopted sister--refuses to back down. Not when she can do one more thing for Carrie: find the killer and get justice for her little sister. But the truth behind Carrie and her adoption proves ugly, and her killer steadfastly believes family secrets must be kept silent.

After surviving her husband's tragic death, then solving her sister's murder, Thea Kozak thought her amateur detective days were over, until she met a woman who had it all, and then some. Helene Streeter, the perfect wife, mother, and consummate professional, is brutally murdered, leaving friends and family with more questions than answers. Helene's daughter--Thea's old college roommate--begs for her help. Thea agrees, and is drawn into a web of deceit and madness as the lies surrounding Helene unravel, releasing the twisted monsters she kept hidden behind her oh-so-perfect façade.

Smart and funny, Thea Kozak is carving out a career for herself while trying to win her critical mother's approval. Home for Easter, Thea's mother introduces her to Julie Bass, a young widow whose husband died in a horrific accident at the local auto racetrack. Julie is the woman Thea's mother wants her to be--married to a suitable man and producing adorable children. While resisting her mother's insistence that she use her own experience of losing a husband to help Julie, Thea brings her amateur detective skills to bear when the racetrack "accident" proves to be murder and Julie is arrested. Bypassing the authorities, Thea searches for the real killer, confronting crooked rednecks, corrupt bankers, and barreling through a web of lies. But this time, she may not be able to save herself... or Julie.

When a student is found drowned in the campus pond of a prestigious New England boarding school, Thea Kozak is called in for crisis management. Cooperation abounds until Thea discovers that the young victim was pregnant and the death may not have been an accident. Then administration and students turn tight-lipped. When Thea digs deeper, she unearths a host of nasty secrets beneath the school's genteel facade. Now everyone wants her gone, everyone except the killer who has a very different fate in mind for Thea Kozak.

In Hawaii to help run a conference, Thea Kozak is determined to find time to relax--until the conference chairwoman is found dead. While struggling to keep the conference from descending into chaos, Thea discovers more motives and suspects than she can handle. Throw in hostile local cops, the victim's suspicious husband, and Thea's hopes for trading her business suit for a bikini and some sun are dashed. But with help from an observant little girl, a too-observant pathologist, and a dear friend, Thea just may come out of this alive.

Thea Kozak's sometimes rocky relationship with Maine state police detective Andre Lemieux has flourished. Now, on the day of their wedding, Thea receives awful news: Andre has been taken hostage by a militant militia group. Their terms: release one of their members from jail. The State of Maine isn't interested in co-operating. Neither is the prisoner. Taking the situation in-hand, Thea goes undercover in the town where she suspects Andre is hidden, and comes face-to-face with the most terrifying and ruthless adversaries of her life.

The headmaster at New England's St. Matthews School is determined to hold tight to alumni funding, no matter the cost. St. Matthews student Shondra Jones--a tightly coiled bundle of rage and resentment--is being stalked and no one will help. But word is getting out, and parents are getting worried. Called in by the administration to help Shondra, crisis specialist Thea Kozak quickly realizes much is being swept beneath the elite school's genteel veneer; including Shondra's stalker--the grandson of a generous donor. Spoiled by money and bailouts, he knows he's protected, and immune to consequences, no matter what he does next, maybe even murder.

Arriving to view what will hopefully be her dream home, Thea Kozak finds her real estate agent, Ginger Stevens, tied to a chair, surrounded by fiery space heaters. Just before the woman dies, she utters the indistinct words: Bobby. So long. Safe. Sorry. Then a stranger, claiming to be Ginger's boyfriend, corners Thea, demanding a package that Ginger gave to her, a package Thea never received. Determined to get justice for Ginger, Thea begins her own investigation. Ginger's colleagues know little about her, her apartment has been professionally sanitized, Ginger Stevens is the name of a child who died many years ago, and the Maine police have no idea who real-estate agent Ginger Stevens really is. But Thea is sure the two men following her know Ginger's true identity, and will stop at nothing to keep her from uncovering the truth behind the woman's dying words.

When a Mysterious Birth and Murder Occur at a Posh New England Prep School, Thea Kozak Finds Answers in SCHOOLED IN DEATH by Kate Flora-Massachusetts, North of Boston, Present Day-For school campus crisis counselor, Thea Kozak, Mondays are the worst day of the week. So when the phone rings early in the morning, she expects bad news. What she doesn't expect is the pain-laden voice of the headmaster of the highly respected Simmons School pouring forth his dire situation. A sophomore student had given birth to a pre-mature infant, then abandoned the child claiming it was not hers because she'd never had sex. With the baby in NICU, the teenaged mother facing criminal charges and parents demanding answers, it's Thea's job to restore calm and order while gathering the facts of what actually happened. Then Heidi, the alleged mother, disappears and the body of a stranger is discovered in the campus woods, murdered. Pregnant herself, Thea now races the clock fearing the young girl will be the next victim while every discovered clue points to an impossible fact: Heidi's assertion may actually be true.

A Secretive Neighbor's Disappearance Raises Questions in Death Comes Knocking, a Thea Kozak Murder Mystery from Kate Flora. --Maine, Present Day-- Happy to finally be settling into her new home, a heavily pregnant Thea Kozak is rushing to get the baby's room finished when she's surprised by a visit from her new neighbor, Jessica, who is equally pregnant. Thrilled to meet another new mother in the neighborhood, Thea and Jessica bond over their mutual condition. But after many cups of herbal tea and cookies, Thea is puzzled by Jessica's unwillingness to talk about her past. A week later, Thea arrives at Jessica's house for a planned shopping trip to discover Jessica is gone, leaving only a trash bag of women's clothing at the end of the driveway. Returning home, there's a disturbing voice mail from Jessica: "Please, Thea. Don't worry about me. If anyone comes looking for me, you don't know me. You've never seen me. Don't tell them anything." Thea's resolve to avoid getting drawn into any more potentially dangerous adventures crumbles as she sets out to learn who Jessica is and who-or what-she's running from. Publisher's Note: Kate Flora is known for taking readers on a near breathless experience with a surprise at every turn. Fans of Janet Evanovich, Michael Connelly as well as Faith Martin and Chris Collett will not want to miss this series. THE THEA KOZAK MYSTERY SERIES, in order Chosen for Death Death in a Funhouse Mirror Death at the Wheel An Educated Death Death in Paradise Liberty or Death Stalking Death Death Warmed Over Schooled in Death Death Comes Knocking Death Sends a Message

A Newborn, a Baby Carriage, and an Ice Cream Cone Leads to a Lingering Mystery in DEATH SENDS A MESSAGE by Kate Flora -Freeport, Maine, Present Day- Independent school consultant Thea Kozak is adjusting to motherhood and enjoying maternity leave, having just purchased a hat for her newborn son, when a hysterical woman gains her attention. The woman, also a new mother, claims her baby has just been kidnapped. Determined not to get involved, Thea flags down a police officer and hands off the problem. She returns home to her husband Andre, intending to enjoy their precious weeks of parental leave. But Thea's kindness soon brings trouble to her doorstep when a police officer asks questions about her relationship with Addison Shirley, the mother of the kidnapped child, who claimed Thea was a friend before she disappeared. The couple's hopes for a peaceful respite are quickly replaced with a break-in, a stalker, and a private school crisis involving star athletes and sexual assault that only Thea can handle. Thea and Andre wrestle with the lingering mystery and competing priorities while reexamining their future…if they live to face it. Publisher's Note: Kate Flora is known for taking readers on a near breathless experience with a surprise at every turn. Fans of Sara Paretsky, Laura Lippman, Sue Grafton, and Julia Spencer-Fleming will not want to miss this series. "If you like your heroines smart, brave, tough, and exuberantly aware of the possibilities of the human heart, look no further than Thea Kozak." ~S.J. Rozan "...a terrific, in-your-face, stand-up gal...Stephanie Plum and Thea Kozak have a lot to say to each other." ~Janet Evanovich "Kate Flora does what all the great writers do: she takes you inside unfamiliar territory and makes you feel right at home; you climb in and are along for the whole ride." ~Michael Connelly "I'll follow Thea Kozak anywhere. She is simply one of the most refreshing and original heroines in mystery fiction today. And Kate Flora is the rare, graceful writer who pays close attention to how long it takes the body and the heart to heal." ~Laura Lippman THE THEA KOZAK MYSTERY SERIES, in order Chosen for Death Death in a Funhouse Mirror Death at the Wheel An Educated Death Death in Paradise Liberty or Death Stalking Death Death Warmed Over Schooled in Death Death Comes Knocking Death Sends a Message About the Author Maine native Kate Flora's fascination with people's criminal tendencies began in the Maine attorney general's office. Deadbeat dads, people who hurt their kids, and employers' discrimination aroused her curiosity about human behavior. The author of twenty-four books and many short stories, Flora's been a finalist for the Edgar, Agatha, Anthony, and Derringer awards. She won the Public Safety Writers Association award for nonfiction and twice won the Maine Literary Award for crime fiction. Her most recent Thea Kozak mystery is Death Sends a Message; her most recent Joe Burgess is A World of Deceit. Her crime story collection is Careful What You Wish For: Stories of revenge, retribution, and the world made right. Flora is a founding member of the New England Crime Bake and the Maine Crime Wave and runs the blog Maine Crime Writers. Flora's nonfiction focuses on aspects of the public safety officers' experience. She divides her time between Massachusetts and Maine, where she gardens and cooks and watches the clouds when she's not imagining her character's dark deeds. She occasionally swims in the shark-filled sea. She's been married for decades to an excellent man. Her sons edit films and hang out in research labs.

Book 1: Chosen for Death. When Thea Kozak's little sister is, murdered in a picturesque Maine town, the police have no leads, and her grieving parents are eager to put everything behind them. Thea, "little mother" to her adopted sister, Carrie, refuses to back down. Not when, she can do one more thing for Carrie, find the killer and get justice for her little sister. Book 2: Death in a Funhouse Mirror. Thea Kozak thought her amateur detective days were over until she met a woman who had it all, and then some. Helene Streeter, the perfect wife, mother, and consummate professional is brutally, murdered, leaving friends and family with more questions than answers. Helene's daughter, Thea's old college roommate-begs for her help, plunging Thea into a web of deceit and madness. Book 3: Death at the Wheel. Thea's mother introduces her to Julie Bass, a young widow whose husband died in a horrific accident at the local auto racetrack. Julie is the woman Thea's mother wants her to be-married to a suitable man and producing adorable children. Thea brings her amateur detective skills to bear when the racetrack "accident" proves to be murder and Julie is arrested.