Spindrift

by Phyllis A. Whitney

New York Times A New Year’s Eve suicide in a Newport mansion could be hiding a sinister family conspiracy.   Was it fear of scandal, threat of disgrace, or loss of his job that drove Rhode Island newspaper magnate Adam Keene to take his own life? His daughter, Christy, refuses to accept her father’s death as a suicide. When she returns to her mother-in-law Theodora’s stately Newport mansion, Christy is determined to find out who killed her father—and why.   But once behind the walls of Spindrift, Christy finds that the sprawling estate is more than just a tomb of tragic memories and closely guarded secrets. Christy’s husband and son are slowly falling under the influence of the ruthless and domineering Theo. For Christy, the matriarch’s endgame is as unknowable as it is terrifying. Now, as Christy searches for the truth of the past in the dark shadows of Spindrift, she will become trapped in a web of lies only another murder could conceal.   A recipient of the Agatha Award for Lifetime Achievement, Phyllis A. Whitney is the Edgar Award–winning “queen of the American gothics” (The New York Times).  This ebook features an illustrated biography of Phyllis A. Whitney including rare images from the author’s estate.  

Genres: Mystery, Gothic, Fiction, Romance, Gothic Romance, Romantic Suspense, Suspense

367 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1975

About the author

Phyllis Ayame Whitney (1903 – 2008) was an American mystery writer. Rare for her genre, she wrote mysteries for both the juvenile and the adult markets, many of which feature exotic locations. A review in The New York Times once dubbed her "The Queen of the American Gothics".

She was born in Japan to American parents and spent her early years in Asia. Whitney wrote more than seventy novels. In 1961, her book The Mystery of the Haunted Pool won an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for Best Juvenile novel, and she duplicated the honor in 1964, for The Mystery of the Hidden Hand. In 1988, the MWA gave her a Grand Master Award for lifetime achievement. Whitney died of pneumonia on February 8, 2008, aged 104.