Encore to Murder

by Bill Stackhouse

Overview

Even with a left leg shattered by a drug dealer's bullet and a medical retirement from the Detroit Police Force, former homicide captain Ed McAvoy feels he's too young to be put out to pasture. Accepting the job as Police Chief of Peekamoose Heights, in New York's Catskills, he figures it will be sort of like running a country club. After all, how much crime can there be in a quiet, little village?

McAvoy soon discovers that his skills as a homicide detective will not atrophy from lack of use in Peekamoose Heights. Murder, as it turns out, is an equal-opportunity crime that not only resides in large bustling cities like Detroit, but in sleepy Catskill villages like Peekamoose Heights as well.

In Encore to Murder, the suspenseful prequel to Stream of Death, a former fashion model runs her car off a cliff at the Ashokan Pass on the outskirts of Peekamoose Heights in New York's Catskills--or has it been made to look that way? What McAvoy suspects and what he can prove are two different things. But the retired big-city homicide detective, and now newly-hired village Chief of Police, has a few tricks up his sleeve that may lead him to that proof.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940013307216
Publisher:	Bill Stackhouse
Publication date:	10/23/2011
Series:	The Ed McAvoy Mystery Series , #3
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	265
File size:	611 KB

About the Author

Born in Cleveland, Ohio, and raised in Detroit, Michigan, Mystery writer, playwright, and part-time actor Bill Stackhouse has a Bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering from General Motors Institute in Flint, Michigan, and a Masters Degree from Wayne State University in Detroit.

At Ford Motor Company and later, as Director of Quality Assurance & Training at a large automotive parts supplier, Bill became involved in the development of instructional manuals and training films. In the throes of a mid-life crisis, he decided to pursue the most enjoyable aspect of his job on a full-time basis—writing.

Bill's scriptwriting credits include training films and promotional videos for NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, to name a few. He has also written numerous radio and TV commercials.


Branching out from technical writing into the arts, four of Bill's seven stage plays (The Best Laid Plans, The Early Bird, To Serve and Protect, and A Tradition of Service) have won contests—a local, a statewide, a regional, and a national.


In addition to playwriting, Bill has directed many productions for various community theatres. For a very brief time, he even had a theatre company of his own.

After filling his gas tank at a truck stop on I-65, Bill entered the station and slipped on the wet floor. While in a dazed state, he thought he heard the ghost of John Barrymore say, "If you offer it, they will come." Thinking that the late, great actor was referring to theatre, Bill promptly formed Road Show with the Vagabond Players and set out to tour six mid-size cities in Northern Alabama and Southern Tennessee.

Following an initial 5-play season, with meager attendance and a debt of many, many dollars, RSVP folded. Only then did Bill realize that the voice he had heard was not that of John Barrymore's ghost, but of Bubba Barrymore, the fry-cook at the truck stop. Bubba, of course, had not been talking about theatre, but about tractor pulls and monster truck rallies.

Bill is retired in Florida where he continues to write mystery novels and stage plays (when it's raining and he can't play golf).

Only rarely does he wake up anymore in the middle of the night, haunted by the sound of one hand clapping.

Editorial Reviews

"... an intriguing story that keeps the pages turning and the reader guessing. ... This is a great read from an author who has the ability to make us feel good even as we are reading about the death of a gorgeous model and businesswoman."

Midwest Book Review - Shelley Gladowski

"... a story full of mystery, suspense, and with a cast of characters that keep the story moving fast. ... I recommend that you go out and purchase Encore to Murder, get comfortable in a cozy chair, and just sit back and enjoy."

All About Murder - Sue Hartigan

"Encore to Murder isn't quite a cozy, but it's close. ... The characterizations of small mountain towns rings true, and if you like puzzlers, you really should enjoy this read, curled up safely in front of your own fireplace. I did!"

Books 'n' Bytes - Vicki Ball

"Stackhouse delivers when it comes to plotting, characterization and setting. ... [His] novels are a refreshing change from the explicit violence and language that abound in most of the new suspense novels."

Myshelf.Com - Beverly J. Rowe

"... this is an enjoyable read and a great introduction to the Ed McAvoy series. Stackhouse draws on his playwriting background to create a fun, flowing mystery with a twist at the end that will surprise readers and appeal to lovers of both classic mysteries and police procedurals."

The No Name Cafe Book Review Corner - Cynthia Chow