Author of the Week: Owen Magruder
Viewers are in for a treat this week! This week Cozy Cat will be doing a number of exclusive posts on author Owen Magruder in honor of the promotion of his fourth John and Mary Braemhor Mystery!
Check in with us throughout the week for a Q & A with the author, excerpts from his new mystery, and to read some reviews about his previous novels.
Today we start with our typical author of the week post in order to introduce Owen and his novels!
The first John and Mary Braemhor novel is titled The Strange Case of Mr. Nobody. Set in Scotland, retired Scottish policeman John Braemhor finds himself solving the case of the murder of a headless and handless body. His investigation leads him to a B&B on Cape Breton Island.
Check out this excerpt from The Strange Case of Mr. Nobody:
"Now bring me up to what you have," Peter said as Rapherty came back. His tone was calmer now.
His first assistant had little more to offer than he had 45 minutes ago except that the body was found near Hadrian's Wall by a car park and was missing body parts. "They've cordoned off the area and are waiting for us to bring the proper lab facilities. There are only three of them on days and two at night. A bit tighter than we are."
The second novel titled The Case of The Hidden Dentures John Braemhor finds a set dentures in the wall behind a medicine cabinet while helping his son with house renovations. Then he discovers the original owner of the house has disappeared. Now he must find his way through secret codes, murder, smuggling, and attempted assassinations to solve this mystery.
Check out this excerpt:
"Mary was somewhat taken aback at John's easy acquiescence. Maybe it was the thought of seeing the children and grandchildren. Maybe he was tiring of the chase and would now settle down to a more normal retirement, instead of playing Dalmatian to every unsolved crime in the paper or on the telly. No, thought Mary, that was too much to hope, but hope she must."
In the third novel titled The Feud at Glencoe and Other Adventures John Braemhor is asked by an American couple-- the Maclains-- to help find their ancestors. His search leads to Glencoe where the head of Campbell clan resides, and where the MacDonald- Campbell feud started. Here he finds Sir Robert Campbell murdered. Now he must solve this murder mystery in which Robert Maclain has now become a prime suspect in.
Check out this excerpt:
"But John Braemhor was not to be confronted, not in his own home. Although he was but five feet ten inches, his frame was square and he tipped the scales at close to twelve stone. His auburn hair had yet to show even a sprinkle of gray around the temples and his hazel eyes were singularly disarming. In conversations, whether with old or new acquaintances, he always gave his full and focused attention. Fifty-eight years looked more like an over-athletic forty-five and the Americans left at eleven p.m with loud protests and threats to "notify the authorities." Mary had smiled a secret smile of pride."
The fourth book is titled Death at Beggar's Knob and Other Adventures. We will go more indepth about this novel later in the week, so don't forget to check back in!
Here are some interesting facts about Owen!
Owen Magruder is the nom de plume (What's his real name? Well we'll leave you to do a little detective work of your own) of a retired college professor.
Own has also written three professional books and a volume of remembrances of the American Civil War.
Owen and his wife wife have co-authored a brief biography of a little known abolitionist from upstate New York for the National Abolition Hall of Fame. From 1989 to 2005, the couple ran a small publishing house that specialized in original letters and journals from the American Civil War.
Magruder’s ancestral home is in the Scottish highlands, hence the Scottish link to his mystery novels, which provides a lot of his inspiration.
He currently resides in upstate New York.