Author Weaves Classic Whodunit with Surprise Character: God

LONGWOOD, FL (PRWEB) February 4, 2006

Funny thing about Elsa Michaels Mercy: Every time she goes on vacation bodies start stacking up. But what else would you expect from a homespun sleuth worth her weight in mystery novels? For real-world novelist Lori Sandys Lapierre, classic “whodunits” are food for the soul and the inspiration behind her first mystery, Duty-Free Murder, in which protagonist Elsa and her husband board a cruise ship bound for the Caribbean, but encounter death and danger instead. Yet, unlike many of her mystery-writing brethren, Lapierre delivers a good story sans the sex and swearing.

“As Christians, we need to be aware of our world, and out in it” says Lapierre, author of Duty-Free Murder ($19.99, paperback, 1-5978-1509-8). “This book gives mystery lovers a fun and exciting whodunit without the typical sex and swearing, and it gently points non-believers to the Lord.” Beyond the enjoyment of a good read, Lapierre hopes readers catch a desire to travel and see the world, as well as broaden their cultural experiences through the characters, times, and places she writes about in her novels. A stickler on research, Lapierre has actually traveled to the places described in Duty-Free Murder, using authentic descriptions of sights, sounds—even smells—indigenous to those locales.

Duty-Free Murder, the first in a series that follows sleuth/author Elsa Michaels Mercy in her meanderings, casts a spell early in the first chapter and holds readers to the very last page. Setting out on what she thinks will be a relaxing second honeymoon with her husband, Elsa is instead pursued by overzealous fans, spied on by other passengers, threatened, and embroiled in jewelry heists and murder. The moral in all this mayhem? ”A simple vacation can be dangerous,” says Lapierre, with a proverbial gleam in her eye.

Lori Sandys Lapierre was born and raised in Ohio, where she currently resides with her husband, Joe, and their four crazy cats. An avid mystery reader and new gardener, she is also a proficient public speaker, singer, and songwriter. This is her first novel.

Xulon Press is the world’s largest Christian publisher, with more than 2,500 titles published to date. Retailers may order Duty-Free Murder through Ingram Book Company and/or Spring Arbor Book Distributors.

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