With an audio book version of THE RED HAND well underway – look for it in possibly March – I’ve turned my attention to the untitled fifth book in the Frank Nagler Mystery series.
I have written a few scenes, tested out new characters and settings, but it all lacked a unifying theme. There has been a long story arc through the first four books. My goal is to close out that story arc and allow Frank to move on to other crimes fighting stuff. A friend suggested he solve crimes while on vacation (Thanks, G.), sort of Frank saves the world, 
one vacation spot at a time.
But watching the PBS series, “Finding Your Roots,” I had a thought.
So, that show, and some research I’ve been doing for a talk I’ll be giving on March 3 at 7 p.m. at the Hackettstown Historical Society, at the American Legion, 494 Willow Grove Rd., got me thinking.
This is the framework: Frank’s great friend Leonard, the bookstore owner, finds in a load of old books, a volume on the labor history of the region’s iron business, including a nasty worker’s strike.
Two characters emerge in the history: Frank’s grandfather, a miner, and the father of the old Ironton Mayor Howard Newton.
Next, Frank’s companion, Lauren Fox, is being courted by a mystery financier to run for mayor. The catch that for his support he is asking for some favors.
And last, Frank reluctantly agrees to look at an old cold case after one of his police academy students drops a file about her father on his desk.
How does all that fit together.
Guess we’ll find out.
Oh, and I think that reporter Jimmy Dawson is writing book.
The multiple-award winning Frank Nagler Mysteries are: THE SWAMPS OF JERSEY; A GAME CALLED DEAD; THE WEIGHT OF LIVING; and THE RED HAND.
Kirkus Reviews called Frank Nagler “One of modern fiction’s expertly drawn detectives” (Full review: THE RED HAND.)
Available at:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1944653198/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_H1ZgDbQJB259V
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-red-hand-michael-stephen-daigle/1132368097
Also, Kobo.com and Walmart.com.
Audiobook: Audible.com and ibooks.
