Susan Bernhardt is an author living in Wisconsin. Like Kay
Driscoll in her cozy mystery, The Ginseng
Conspiracy, Susan is a retired public health nurse who volunteers at her
local free clinic. An avid reader of mysteries, she is a member of Sisters in
Crime, Inc. Her other published works include "October 31st",
"Midsummer", and "John and Madeline."
When not
writing, Susan loves to travel, bicycle, kayak, and create culinary magic in
her kitchen. She works in stained-glass, daydreams in her organic garden, stays
up late reading mysteries, and eats lots of chocolate.
Visit Susan on the web at the Susan Bernhardt Website.
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A Personal Challenge by Susan Bernhardt
I have been an avid reader of mysteries from the time I was
a young girl reading the Nancy Drew series. One of my favorite cozy mystery
authors is M.C. Beaton. She writes the Agatha Raisin and Hamish MacBeth series.
Several years ago while reading one of her novels, I thought I could do
this...I could write a cozy mystery. And that moment was my seed of
Inspiration. It was a personal challenge.
I came
up with the idea of writing about ginseng. Ninety-five percent of American
cultivated ginseng is grown in Wisconsin where I live. Living close to a
college, I decided that a professor who was researching the local ginseng crop,
would discover some alarming findings in the analysis of the ginseng samples
resulting in his murder.
I draw
from real life experiences so I decided that the protagonist would be Kay
Driscoll a newcomer to Sudbury Falls who volunteered at her local free clinic,
much like I was a newcomer to an insular town in northern Wisconsin and also
volunteered at the local free clinic.
When I
decided to indeed write this cozy mystery, I took several writing courses over
two years. I joined writing groups and wrote a manuscript that I revised five
times before enlisting my son, Peter and friend, Lorenzo to be co-editors of my
cozy mystery. I queried a number of agents and then decided to go directly to
publishing houses. I queried MuseItUp Publishing. They accepted my manuscript,
and the rest is history.
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Back of the Cover of The Ginseng Conspiracy:
On her way
to attend a Halloween Ball, Kay Driscoll, a newcomer to town, witnesses the
murder of a local professor. When the official coroner's report rules the cause
of death to be accidental and the community accepts the judgement, Kay decides
to uncover the truth for herself. Through her personal investigations, Kay
exposes a complex conspiracy, woven deep within the thriving local ginseng
industry, that involves some of the more prominent figures and families of
Sudbury Falls.
With her
new friends, the free-spirited herbalist Deirdre and the untamed modern woman
Elizabeth, Kay discusses new clues over tea and pastries at Sweet
Marissa's Patisserie, their crime-fighting headquarters. As Kay gets closer to
the heart of the conspiracy, additional murders happen in quick succession.
Before long, Kay learns that the villains are gunning for her, too. Phil, her
musically talented but preoccupied husband, determined to keep her safe,
withholds from her the one thing she needs most: the truth.
Buy Links for The Ginseng Conspiracy by Susan Bernhardt:
I had no idea ginseng was grown in Wisconsin. Did you? Do you have a crop, a product, a landmark, a famous person (besides you) in your area? Leave a comment here and tell us about it. Your comment will automatically enter you in the drawing to win Susan's cozy mystery.
