Part of Series
Denver's newest detective. A garden's deadly secrets. On a lovely June night in 1924, amateur detective Annalee Spain is mingling bravely at a high-class political fundraiser in the lush backyard garden of famed political fixer Cooper Coates, one of the wealthiest men in Denver's Black neighborhood of Five Points. When Coates’s young daughter discovers a pretty stranger dead in her father’s garden shed, Annalee is thrust onto the baffling new case just as she’s reeling from another recent discovery―a handwritten letter, found buried in her own garden, that reveals the identity of her mother. Not ready to face the truth about her hidden past, Annalee throws herself into solving the mystery of the young woman’s demise. With the help of her pastor boyfriend Jack Blake, her orphaned buddy Eddie, and her trustworthy church friends, Annalee follows the clues to three seemingly disconnected settings―a traveling carnival set up downtown, a Black civic club, and a prestigious white seminary on the outskirts of Denver. Intriguing advice also comes from a famous, real-life Denver visitor. But is Annalee on the right track or just running in circles, fleeing from conflicts racing in her heart? In a taut, heart-gripping narrative driven by secrets, romance, and lies, Annalee must unravel a case with higher stakes than she imagined―one where answers about a lovely woman's death point to truths and tensions still throbbing today.
Author
A writer of faith by day and mystery by night, Patricia Raybon is a Christy Award-winning Colorado author and novelist who writes daring and exciting books and novels at the intersection of faith and race. After a notable career in newspaper journalism and journalism education, Patricia turned to fiction with release of a 1920s mystery series about a prim, poor but clever Black female theologian—a fan of Sherlock Holmes—who solves murder and crime in Colorado’s dangerous Klan era. The series' acclaimed debut, "All That Is Secret: An Annalee Spain Mystery," won the 2022 Christy Award for First Novel and was a Parade Magazine Fall 2021 "Mysteries We Love" selection, a Masterpiece on PBS "Best Mystery Books of 2021" pick "As Recommended by Bestselling Authors," and Stephen Curry's March 2022 personal choice for his Literati Book Club. "Double the Lies," the second installment in the Annalee Spain Mysteries, finds amateur detective Annalee racing the clock to solve the murder of a barnstorming White stunt pilot before she is framed by Colorado's ruthless Klan for the crime—and before his dashing twin falls head over heels for the Black theologian, tempting her recently promised heart. "It's something special," says Steph Curry about the Annalee story. Best-selling authors agree. "Brava, Patricia. It is captivating." (Jerry B. Jenkins) "Readers will be hooked from the first line of this page-turning mystery...Captivating." (Julie Cantrell) "A good mystery." (Rhys Bowen) "Fast-paced and intriguing." (Manuel Ramos) "Engrossing and thrilling....This intrepid sleuth would give Sherlock Holmes a run for his money." (Sophfronia Scott). For a deep dive into Patricia's compelling world of faith and fiction, connect with her daring and insightful books—and receive a free download of her "Busy Person's Guide to Hearing God" — at patriciaraybon.com
