Best Branson-Ozark Fiction, Mysteries of the Ozarks, Vol I, Skyward Publishing.

Stories full of intrigue, wit, and rich imagination juxtaposed against the gentle, small-town charm and character of the Ozarks.

(PRWEB) August 15, 2004 -- If you love thrills and chills, you don't want to miss the opportunity to explore the boundaries of your imagination. Readers of Mysteries of the Ozarks, Vol I. (Skyward Publishing, 2004) will enjoy captivating tales from the honor of writers: Jory's Sherman's "Avenging Angel"(Spur Award winner from Western Writers of America), "DeSoto's Legacy, a story combining historical facts, Dusty Richards (author of over forty novels), C. J. Winters, "Missing Pete McGuire."

Stories vary in length and style. In J. Masterson's "Truth or Dare," high school friends relive their football glory days. Larry Wood, in "Double Cross My Heart and Hope to Live," sets his tale during the guerrilla war that was waging in southern Missouri in 1864.

Frank Watson's "Where the Yellow Flowers Grow," shows readers how young love, old love, and a love of gardening are intertwined. In "The Shape of a Heart,"( Donna Volkenannt) the police have good reason for deciding that the Widow killed her three hired hands. In another story, Vicki Cox writes a chilling tale set in the early 1800s. Elizabeth's husband showed her how to operate his pepperbox pistol, not knowing that she would have to use it. And, be forewarned, some strange and ghostly tales, based on Ozark legends and lore, are red hot and deadly. An example is "The Monster at Peter Bottom Cave", by Shirleen Sando.

Though some stories are harrowing, many richly combine suspense, comedy, with a few tidbits of wacky humor. In "Solitude" (Stephen D. Rogers) someone at the writers' retreat believed that the manuscript of a potential best-selling novel was worth killing for. In "Song of the Devil" (Kay Hively), Professor Collier gave the folks of Beulah more than the ability to sing in harmony.

In "Morning Coffee" (Betty Craker Henderson) combines murder and a warm cup of coffee, "Where's Mindy?" (Velda Brotherton) explores a cold, wet, and windy night when a ghostly Mindy knocked on Anna's door and then disappeared, for good. In "The College Dorm Secret" (Carolyn Gray Thornton), Alice has to let her secret out, but she doesn't care. She loves Tom too much. In Jane Hale's "Luck Stiff," Lucky and Teeka show the Bachelors Four how grave the funeral business really is with a you-can-take-it-with-you insurance policy.

Integrated pest management seems to be an alibi for murder in "Bobbing for Death," (Edward Downie), and anyone familiar with Ellen Gray Massey's masterful work will see the artist's brush strokes on the writer's canvas in "Life-Giving Oxygen," a story that makes readers wonder if evil can enter nightmares that kill.

Bored with the "killing" at the reenactment of the Civil War battle at Pea Ridge, Arkansas, the main character wanders over the grounds. Her friend, Henry, says that her curiosity will get her into trouble. But not this time, or does it? Find out in "The Man Who Cried David." (Radine Trees Nehring). And, in Ruth Ellen Massey's "Artificial Insemination with Shipped Semen in an Unusual Specie," readers will journey back to dragons and much more.

Mysteries of the Ozarks is a special, but ongoing project of Ozark Writers Inc. and under the hand of Editor Ellen Gray Massey, popular Ozark writers submitted stories, and nineteen were selected for the anthology. Each story, unique in form, style, and approach offers solutions as delightfully elaborate as anything out of the puzzle-loving popular mystery magazines.

ISBN: 1-881554-36-8
Softcover, 259 pages
Retail Price: $14.95
New 2004 release