Helen DePrima
About
Helen DePrima grew up on horseback on her grandfather's farm near Louisville. After visiting a cattle ranch in Colorado as a teenager, she fell in love with the West and attended CU/Boulder hoping to find a home in the Rockies. Instead, she met a Jersey guy headed to vet school at CSU and ended up in New Hampshire -- life's funny that way. After four years as a Visiting Nurse in northern Colorado, Helen traded human patients for injured and orphaned wildlife from bats to beavers, hummingbirds to hawks brought to her husband's practice. Since retiring, she has pursued her lifelong dream of writing. Her first novel, The High Road Home, is set in Kentucky and Colorado followed by the Cameron's Pride trilogy about the lives of the Cameron family in southern Colorado. Now returning to her roots, Helen has published the first two novels in a new mystery series set in Kentucky's horse country. Please feel free to contact her with questions or comments about her books or just to chat: helen@helendeprima.com
Books
Buy at Amazon and Barnesandnoble.com
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Investigative journalist Jess Kennard's teenaged foster daughter stole a horse and disappeared with it into the Kentucky mountains. Or so it seemed. When the girl's bones turn up near the stable where she worked, Jess puts aside her grief to share her insider knowledge of the equine industry with longtime friend Louisville Metro Detective Joe Schuler. Unfortunately, Jess’s reputation for unearthing secrets soon makes her a target as they inch closer to identifying the killer.
Kirkus Reviews (Recommended review)
"Jess is the perfect protagonist for a mystery series: plucky, stubborn, and independent, with a hidden vulnerable side. Her long history with Joe makes the chemistry between them easy and exciting...The setting is the standout here; the author deftly takes readers to a place that feels lived-in and dangerous. A satisfying treat for horse and murder mystery lovers."
"OUR VERDICT: GET IT"
"You don't have to read the first Jess Kennard mystery to enjoy Odds but I definitely recommend it. This second crime novel starring strong and resourceful investigative journalist Jess Kennard is exciting, touching, complex and believable. Much like Jess herself. I enjoyed the authentic Kentucky setting and the interaction between characters real enough to be your neighbor, co-worker or friend. DePrima writes with authority and a sure touch. Recommended whether you enjoy hard-boiled, police procedural or cozy mysteries. The author hits the mark on all three. I'm eagerly awaiting the third in this excellent series."
Earlene Fowler, Agatha Award winning mystery writer
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Journalist Jess Kennard is eagerly awaiting her upcoming marriage to Det. Joe Schuler when he suffers life-threatening injuries from being forced off the highway during a snowstorm. A body is later discovered at the crash site and suspicion seems to focus on Joe, still in critical condition. Convinced he is innocent and at risk as a witness, Jess launches her own probe. Her investigation carries her deep into a criminal plot, fighting for her own and Joe's survival.
Kirkus Reviews (Recommended review)
“This is a complex tale, but the author never permits it to descend into convoluted tail-chasing, even as Joe's assault is revealed to be part of a larger, gruesomely dark conspiracy. The book is the best kind of hard-boiled crime drama—intelligently conceived, powerfully executed, and, for all its unpredictability, chillingly plausible. A thrilling crime story, captivatingly dramatic and psychologically astute.”
"OUR VERDICT: GET IT"
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Roberta Tolliver, unmarried and facing forty, has spent half her life doing right by her family. Finally, it's her turn to break loose with a solo road trip from Kentucky to Seattle, but her journey stalls in Colorado where she learns about hard choices and sacrifice, about loving and letting go. And where her true home lies.
Traveling horse trainer Shelby Doucette has no roots, no ties, no fixed address except her grandfather's old Lincoln Town Car. She's avoided emotional connections and eluded her past for the last fourteen years until she meets widower Jake Cameron. Jake has a way of sneaking past her defenses. of making her want to stop running, but taking a chance with Jake would mean facing her demons and heading into the storm.
After witnessing her father's death as a race car driver, Joanna Dace can't imagine getting close to anyone who risks his life for sport. She can write about such competitors, getting into their heads without letting them into her heart, until she meets bull rider Tom Cameron. Tom's quiet cowboy charm hides a darkness of his own; he and Jo must battle their pasts before they can consider a future together.
