Kin & Curses: A Small Town, Amateur Sleuth Cozy Mystery

by Laurie Alberswerth

In 1866, Silas Olsen's family suffered more plagues than Job.
They also had it coming.

The history of Hatchet Bend, Missouri, left scars deeper than the surrounding farm fields. One man’s desperate attempt at atoning for family sins seemed like a good idea.

What’s that proverb about the best intentions and where they lead?

When a fellow genealogist calls for backup on this sticky project, Jude and Audie can’t say no. But now Sam lies dead at the bottom of a staircase, and the Wests are dragged into a ring of strangers and secrets.

Are they trapped with a murderer too?

With a fortune up for grabs and a motley crew of suspects staking a claim, the Wests will have trouble enough meeting a 150-year-old deadline. Add vanishing valuables, baffling accidents, and a group of fallen angels polishing rusty halos, and it’s no wonder Sam needed help.

If they don’t take the case, will they ever learn the truth about their friend’s terrible end? But if they pick up where he left off, how can they hope not to be the next victims of the Olsen curse?

349 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 1, 2024

About the author

Laurie Alberswerth is a writer, photographer, senior edu-tainer, and degreed mechanical engineer who enjoys confusing both her left- and right-brain hemispheres. A native of St. Louis and an in-law to farm life, she brings Missouri settings to her readers through the Jude and Audie West Mystery series. Where the Wests tackle clients' genealogy roadblocks (and avoid digging their own graves), Laurie has camped with her hubby in their little blue tent. Her own family tree proves that life is lived in the dash between dates on the tombstone.

Join a band of cozy mystery lovers at https://www.LaurieAlberswerth.com, and get a FREE peek at Jude and Audie’s research as they begin BONES & BLOODLINES!