Question 1

Book Life PRIZE

Accepted Answer

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Title: The Preacher's First Murder
Author: K.P. Gresham
Genre: Fiction/Mystery/Thriller
Audience: Adult
Word Count: 53,766
Assessment:
 
Plot: Gresham’s novel offers dynamic plot development with a strong conceptual foundation: a string of mysterious murders take place in a seemingly-innocuous Southern town, where people pretend to love each other but secretly bottle up hate, rage, and secrets.

Prose: Gresham’s prose is free-flowing and clean of technical errors. The dialogue authentically reflects the story’s small-town, southern vibe, and the author infuses an otherwise somber story with humor.

Originality: Gresham’s novel enhances a classic murder mystery, with dimension and character complexity. A protagonist struggles to maintain his new identity as a pastor, falters, and ultimately reveals his strengths and desires as a former undercover police officer and modern man.

Character Development: The story's cast introduces several mysteriously-linked characters, any of whom could have had intent and motive to commit the murders at hand. As outsiders, both Pastor Matt Hayden and Angie O’Day convincingly gravitate towards each other, despite the consequences to both of their well-known reputations.

Report Submitted: September 20, 2018

Question 2

Book Life PRIZE

Accepted Answer

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Title: Three Days at Wrigley Field
Author: K.P. Gresham
Genre: Fiction/Mystery/Thriller
Audience: Adult
Word Count: 75,231
 
Assessment:

Plot: This novel is expertly plotted and engaging. The author does a fantastic job keeping readers on the edge of their seats, including those who may not baseball fans.
Prose: Gresham seamlessly uses multiple points of view, combining each story into a perfect timeline replete with well-placed mini-cliffhangers.

Originality: The combination of love, passion, illness, and the business of baseball makes this an original tale that will appeal to readers of all stripes.

Character Development: Each character—both primary and secondary—in this story stands out as a clear individual. Readers will strongly relate to each character, including the antagonists.

Blurb: This is a fast-paced story of love, hardship, fear, trust, and shady business decisions. It's also a love letter to baseball and a powerful page-turner.

Score:
• Plot/Idea: 10
• Originality: 9
• Prose: 10
• Character/Execution: 9
• Overall: 9.50

Report Submitted: September 17, 2018

Question 3

Murder in the Second Pew Amazon Review

Accepted Answer

Sharon Lippincott, Chilehead Adventurer
5.0 out of 5 stars
Splendid mixture of steam and suspense
January 4, 2019
Format: Kindle Edition Verified Purchase

Reading K.P. Gresham's Matt Hayden series is as addictive as chocolate. I recently read The Pastor's First Murder. No way did I want that story to end, so I immediately opened Murder in the Second Pew. The second story continues the spine-tingling suspense, clear up to the unexpected twist at the end. I don't know which is more compelling, that suspense or the electric tension between pastor Matt Hayden and Angie O'Dell, and stunning Angie O'Day, the owner of the Fire and Ice House tavern.
 
Murder in the Second Pew builds on mysterious relationships outlined in the first volume of the series, drilling down to disclose layers of the secrets that fuel town feuds. Some are resolved, while new ones emerge. Gresham is a master of character development. I feel like I could walk into Angie's Fire and Ice House and know everyone there. I especially love Pastor Matt with his common sense theology and view of life. His insight and terse summary of the difference between Republicans and Democrats rated a "WOW!" next to a highlight. I'll be quoting that line often. Pithy wisdom is a powerful spice in this mixture of steam and suspense.
 
Now I can't wait for the third volume. I highly recommend all titles in this series for anyone who enjoys a great mystery. Fans of Susan Wittig Albert's China Bayles Herbal Mystery series should especially appreciate the Matt Hayden series which is set in a nearby small Central Texas community.

Question 4

Murder in the Second Pew REVIEW by Midwest Book Review

Accepted Answer

K.P. Gresham
Paperback ISBN: 9780006700269, $14.99
E-Book ISBN: 9780996700276, $ 4.99
Website/ordering Link: www.kpgresham.com
 
Murder in the Second Pew is a Pastor Matt Hayden mystery that follows the retired cop/newfound pastor's cases; because sometimes a cop just can't let go of his true profession, even when his participation in a Witness Protection program leads him to take spiritual vows.
 
No prior familiarity with Pastor Hayden's first appearance (in The Preacher's First Murder) is required in order to readily absorb the background and perspective of this unusual investigator. From the very first sentence, Pastor Hayden's personality and experience are clear: "Hearing the gunshots, Pastor Matt Hayden hit the floor behind his office desk with the reflexes of the cop he'd once been. My God. Have they found me? He slanted a glance at the two women?the matrons of the Altar Guild, no less?staring at him from their chairs across from his desk, mouths agape."
 
The second strength of Murder in the Second Pew is K.P. Gresham's ability to inject powerful descriptive language into her story line, whether with character dialogue or setting: "She'll wrap herself around you like a sweet-potato vine, then slap you into next Wednesday when you get interested," Zach said angrily, but when Chelsea returned with the iced tea, his look turned lecherous."
 
Character's psyches, places, and dialogue are firmly rooted in a story that swirls around Matt's attempts to both solve crime and keep his real identity a secret, even though his methods and approaches are anything but those of a man of the cloth, leading to his real background coming under unwanted scrutiny: "We both know you've been somethin' other than a preacher in the past. The way you put together the murders last January, the questions you asked, the methodology you followed - it's clear you've been trained in keepin' the law." Matt knew that witness protection policy would dictate that he deny it, but he remained silent."
 
As religious questions, political issues, and dead bodies task Matt with impossible puzzles and attempts to keep his secrets, readers are treated to Texas atmosphere and an investigation that holds unexpected consequences for all involved.
 
Murder in the Second Pew's ability to attract newcomers and prior fans of Pastor Matt Hayden alike with its unique blend of religious, psychological, and investigative perspectives makes it one of the best new mystery series on the market. Well-done and involving, the story offers many satisfying twists right up to the conclusion, which paves the way for more.

Question 5

Three Days at Wrigley Field Review

Accepted Answer

Three Days at Wrigley Field
K.P. Gresham
Epiphany’s Flame L.L.C, Publisher
0996700226          
$16.99 Print/$4.99 ebook 
 
Rachel Caravetti is a statuesque female baseball player with a strong arm and a penchant for winning. She loves teammate Kevin, a pitcher whose time has passed and whose position is up for grabs. When Rachel's upward trajectory collides with Kevin's slump and a team owner's interest in hiring her against tradition and odds, trouble brews on Wrigley Field.

Adversity comes from unlikely places—not just the threatened romance between Rachel and Kevin; but from the Cubs manager and the granddaughter of the team owner who would hire her.

If this were a romance story or a baseball account alone, it would be much more singular; but the characters examine, question, confront, and rebel against the forces that change their lives, and this element of self-examination accompanies the politics, confrontations, and even murder that runs through Three Days at Wrigley Field's baseball focus: "For the last hour he’d been sitting in this pew, examining and reexamining his life, trying to make sense of what had passed and make peace with what would never be."

The element of surprise, combined with psychological inspections, crafts a more detailed story line than anticipated from a baseball romance/thriller, and will please readers who may have anticipated a sports focus alone.

Another strength to Three Days at Wrigley Field lies in its ability to portray underlying special interests, influences, and concerns; from Rachel's choices (which stem from wanting to prove her femininity despite her sports prowess) to Leah's commitment to using her political savvy to try to get Rachel to fail ("She’d been taught by her parents from early on that favors were part of the game. The politics of money was every bit as important as the amount.").

As motivations, managers, and muscle collides on the field, readers are treated to inside perceptions of the world of professional baseball as Rachel looks for a way in even as other characters seek ways out.

Intrigue builds and combines with game descriptions to create a satisfying buildup of egos, politics, and confrontations that will delight baseball fans; especially those with special interest in the Chicago Cubs.

Issues of women's barriers, rights, and struggles for recognition combine with this sports focus to create a well-rounded story filled with delightful twists and the struggles of a woman who strives to be recognized as a major athlete by giving the game (and her relationship) a real shot at success.

Question 6

Donovan's Literary Services

Accepted Answer

The Preacher's First Murder
K.P. Gresham
Paperback ISBN: 978-0-9967002-0-7   $14.99
E-book ISBN: 978-0-9967002-1-4        $ 4.99
http://a.co/d/5BqW8JF

The Preacher's First Murder is the first book in the Pastor Matt Hayden series, and is the alter ego of a policeman forced to enter the Witness Protection Program to revise his identity and save his family. In his newfound identity as a Texas pastor newly out of seminary school, Matt anticipates a semi-retired pastoral life. The goal is to stay out of trouble; but he seems destined for the fast track as the small town he relocates to faces a murder and a controlling daughter's grip.

Forced to blend the dual personas of a quiet pastor and the investigative prowess of his alter ego, Matt receives heart-wrenching lessons in crime, small-town politics and personalities ("Elsbeth wanted her son to use the service as a campaign stop."), and theological challenges ("Every one of those sermons had followed the gospel for the day to the letter. Every one of them would have made his seminary instructors proud. They’d been theologically truthful. Scripturally sound. And, very possibly, blatantly boring."). 
Because The Preacher's First Murder is firmly rooted in Matt's new identity, it offers an intriguing contrast between his investigative skills and his theological dilemmas, which at times clash in the arena of bigger picture thinking and small town interactions.

From violent threats during bar brawls where the residents handle their own problems without police intervention to changing times, duties, and approaches in Wilks, generational ties and history come to light as Matt toes a delicate line between a pastor's spiritual world and a policeman's gritty scuffle with death and murder.

This dichotomy challenges perceptions of home, safety, good and bad memories, and present-day issues often cleverly defied by those not quite in socially accepted circles: "She could stand living in a town where people thought she was something she wasn’t. She’d done that all of her life and snubbed her nose at them all. Heck, she’d even named her bowling team “The Hellraisers” so that the Lutheran Church would be forced to put a bad word in their bulletin every time the church team played hers...She couldn’t stand living in a town where someone had hated enough to kill her mamma. She wasn’t sure she could live with that fact without becoming an animal herself."

As Matt's probe of close-held small-town secrets endangers his newfound persona and his perception of his revised role in life, events circle around not just his choices but upon individuals challenged by not just the murder, but the town's evolving new identity. A possibility of romance imparts an additional spicy flavor to the plot.

Readers seeking a murder mystery that works on many levels, from investigative skills to different levels of interrogation and suspicion, will relish Matt's special dilemmas as he faces an overwhelming weight of responsibility as events unfold to reveal a deadly twist.

Does the truth really set you free, or does it introduce more complications? Murder mystery fans who look for more than a simple 'whodunnit' plot will find The Preacher's First Murder takes a convoluted, satisfyingly complex path as it follows Matt's conundrums, possibilities, choices, and the difficult task of settling into not just a new town, but a new identity challenged by past and present events and future promises.

K.P. Gresham

Professional Character Assassin

Book Reviews