By Pam Gamble
Do you ever go into a new place and wonder what the best way to “kill someone off” would be, depending on the surroundings? Could you throw them through a plate glass window or run over them with a carriage? Could you hide the body in the manure pile behind the barn? Carolyn McSparren thinks just these kinds of things! Her latest book, The Cart Before the Corpse, delves into the world of Mossy Creek, an imaginary town in North Georgia where multiple authors have staged their stories.
Famous Combined Driving Event competitor and horse trainer Hiram Lackland is killed when a heavy carriage wheel falls on him. Or at least that’s what the local officials say. Of course, we find out that it’s really a murder. Carolyn’s “mystery maven” Peggy Caldwell and Hiram’s daughter Merry Abbott must solve the murder – a “who done it?” Is it the alcoholic ex-Amish stable hand, one of Hiram’s many (and often married) lovers, or the rich and mysterious group that wants to buy Hiram’s land?
Carolyn’s light hearted style of writing will keep you guessing and laughing until the end. Even though all of the main characters are fictious, many of the horse situations are based on true stories with just the names changed. Horsey mysteries aren’t complete without the horses playing some pivotal part in the resolution of the action, and The Cart Before the Corpse delivers an all-ages appropriate story.
Carolyn started out writing Harlequin Super Romances, which are half romance and half mystery novels. Carolyn jokes about her romantic life, “I have to look at my marriage certificate to remember my own anniversary.” She always preferred the mystery part of the books to the romantic part.
After writing a collection of humorous veterinarian stories called, All God’s Creatures for Belle Books, Carolyn started her Mossy Creek stories. Her next Mossy Creek book is finished; One Hoof in the Grave is scheduled to be out in the Fall 2011. Carolyn is also currently working on a new book called Driven to Kill, which will feature the Paint draft breed, Gypsy Vanner.
Carolyn is a member of a local mystery writers group called Malice in Memphis, which is putting together an anthology of short stories to be out before the holidays. Carolyn’s contribution is a short story called, “A Cinderella Murder,” which is about a commercial carriage driver who, during one of her historical tours, sees something that she shouldn’t have. Carolyn enjoyed visiting the carriage barn in downtown Memphis so much that she hopes to set a full length mystery there.
Carolyn lives on her twelve acre property near Piperton, TN, which she named, “Farther Off Farm,” with her husband George and multiple cats and horses. Carolyn hitched her Shire-Thoroughbred cross to her Meadowbrook cart to show me around her property. She also has a Clydesdale-Thoroughbred cross in training with Cranesfield Farm. She is a member of the Nashoba Carriage Association and Delta Dressage. She has written 16 books and countless short stories, which are in print in Japan, Russia, Poland, France, and Germany as well as the United States. For more information, visit www.CarolynMcSparren.com.
Do you ever go into a new place and wonder what the best way to “kill someone off” would be, depending on the surroundings? Could you throw them through a plate glass window or run over them with a carriage? Could you hide the body in the manure pile behind the barn? Carolyn McSparren thinks just these kinds of things! Her latest book, The Cart Before the Corpse, delves into the world of Mossy Creek, an imaginary town in North Georgia where multiple authors have staged their stories.
Famous Combined Driving Event competitor and horse trainer Hiram Lackland is killed when a heavy carriage wheel falls on him. Or at least that’s what the local officials say. Of course, we find out that it’s really a murder. Carolyn’s “mystery maven” Peggy Caldwell and Hiram’s daughter Merry Abbott must solve the murder – a “who done it?” Is it the alcoholic ex-Amish stable hand, one of Hiram’s many (and often married) lovers, or the rich and mysterious group that wants to buy Hiram’s land?
Carolyn’s light hearted style of writing will keep you guessing and laughing until the end. Even though all of the main characters are fictious, many of the horse situations are based on true stories with just the names changed. Horsey mysteries aren’t complete without the horses playing some pivotal part in the resolution of the action, and The Cart Before the Corpse delivers an all-ages appropriate story.
Carolyn started out writing Harlequin Super Romances, which are half romance and half mystery novels. Carolyn jokes about her romantic life, “I have to look at my marriage certificate to remember my own anniversary.” She always preferred the mystery part of the books to the romantic part.
After writing a collection of humorous veterinarian stories called, All God’s Creatures for Belle Books, Carolyn started her Mossy Creek stories. Her next Mossy Creek book is finished; One Hoof in the Grave is scheduled to be out in the Fall 2011. Carolyn is also currently working on a new book called Driven to Kill, which will feature the Paint draft breed, Gypsy Vanner.
Carolyn is a member of a local mystery writers group called Malice in Memphis, which is putting together an anthology of short stories to be out before the holidays. Carolyn’s contribution is a short story called, “A Cinderella Murder,” which is about a commercial carriage driver who, during one of her historical tours, sees something that she shouldn’t have. Carolyn enjoyed visiting the carriage barn in downtown Memphis so much that she hopes to set a full length mystery there.
Carolyn lives on her twelve acre property near Piperton, TN, which she named, “Farther Off Farm,” with her husband George and multiple cats and horses. Carolyn hitched her Shire-Thoroughbred cross to her Meadowbrook cart to show me around her property. She also has a Clydesdale-Thoroughbred cross in training with Cranesfield Farm. She is a member of the Nashoba Carriage Association and Delta Dressage. She has written 16 books and countless short stories, which are in print in Japan, Russia, Poland, France, and Germany as well as the United States. For more information, visit www.CarolynMcSparren.com.
