Connection by Charlotte novelist Mark de Castrique. The Sandburg
Connection (Category: Mystery. Hardcover, ISBN: 978-1-59058-941-0,
$24.95, 298 pages/Trade Paper, ISBN: 978-1-59058-943-4, 298 pages,
$14.95/Large Print Trade Paper, ISBN: 978-1-59058-942-7, $22.95, 420
pages) will be available wherever fine books are sold on October 4,
2011.
In a pre-publication Starred review, Publishers Weekly (July 29, 2011)
calls The Sandburg Connection "Stellar… a marvelous blend of history
and mystery. This strong regional mystery should resonate with a much
wider audience."
Novelist Mark de Castrique has earned high praise from a variety of
critics. The Chicago Tribune wrote, "As important and as impressive as
the author's narrative skills are the subtle ways he captures the
geography— both physical and human—of a unique part of the American
South." In a starred review, Library Journal added, "De Castrique's
unassuming but commanding prose style is comparable to James Lee Burke
and Margaret Maron." The Sandburg Connection is Mark de Castrique's
tenth book.
It was only routine. A simple assignment for private investigator Sam
Blackman and his partner Nakayla Robertson: follow a history
professor who's suing a spinal surgeon for malpractice and catch her
in physical activities that undercut her claim.
When professor Janice Wainwright visits Connemara, Carl Sandburg's
home in Flat Rock, North Carolina, and climbs the arduous trail to the
top of Glassy Mountain, Sam believes he has the evidence to wrap up
the case—until he finds the woman semiconscious and bleeding on the
mountain's granite outcropping. Her final words: "It's the Sandburg
verses. The Sandburg verses."
Having discovered the dying woman, Sam becomes the first suspect. And
now the routine case is personal. An autopsy reveals painkillers in
Janice Wainwright's blood and solid proof of the surgeon's errors. Sam
is haunted with questions: Why would this suffering woman endure the
climb to the mountaintop? Did she stumble and fall? Or was her death
not an accident—but murder?
A break-in at the Wainwright farmhouse and the theft of Sandburg
volumes convince Sam someone is seeking information worth killing for.
But what in Pulitzer-Prize-winner Carl Sandburg's literary collection
could have lead to multiple murders?
And who will be the next target?
A native of North Carolina, Mark writes mysteries primarily set in the
Appalachian mountains. He is an award-winning film and video producer
whose work has been broadcast on PBS, HBO, and network-affiliate
stations. Mark de Castrique is the author of the Sam Blackman mystery
series, the Buryin' Barry series, and two mysteries for young adults.
He lives in Charlotte, North Carolina. Visit Mark de Castrique online
at: www.markdecastrique.com. For a video preview of The Sandburg
Connection and a tour of Connemara, please visit: www.markdecastrique.com/the_sandburg_connection.html
Founded in 1997, Poisoned Pen Press is an independent publisher
specializing in high quality mystery works. Based in Scottsdale,
Arizona, Poisoned Pen Press is the second largest publisher of
hardcover mysteries in the United States. Titles from Poisoned Pen
Press are distributed by Ingram Publisher Services, and are available
through such wholesalers as Ingram, Baker & Taylor, and Brodart, and
directly from the publisher. Visit Poisoned Pen Press on the web at: www.poisonedpenpress.com
.
