Ground Truth

Pittsburgh Murder Mystery #1

by Rebecca A. Miles

Kate Chambers knows that cold cases are almost always a lost cause. So when two skeletons are discovered in Pittsburgh and Kate believes that she has insider information about the crime, she joins Chief Detective Stefan Jablonsky in his investigation. She's determined to find justice for the family.

It doesn't take long to identify the victims: two siblings who had gone missing twenty years ago. As Kate digs into the neighborhood and Jablonsky starts chasing down leads, the list of suspects grows.

With the cold case reopened and witnesses dying soon after coming forward, it's clear that someone has a lot to lose. Kate and Jablonsky must work together to unravel the mysteries and make sure that whoever killed the siblings doesn't get away with murder a second time.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction

278 pages, Paperback

Published May 24, 2022

About the author

Rebecca A. Miles is the best selling author of the Pittsburgh Murder Mystery trilogy, "Ground Truth," "Broken Glass," "Locked Box." Across these three novels she explores the themes of love and loss, two states she considers to be universal in human experience.

Rebecca's fourth novel, "La Quinceañera," is her most psychological and personal. She explores the deep attachment between Marisol, a math teacher, and her beloved immigrant grandmother.
In this work Marisol grows and changes in her family relationships and with the men in her life.
Publication is August 2026.

"Holiday Mysteries and Enchantments" is a delightful and sometimes morally tantalizing collection of short stories based in the major American holidays. It is a wonderful choice for lively discussion in book clubs.

Rebecca holds a Doctorate in Psychology from Duquesne University where she was briefly an Assistant Professor. Her work at the University of Pittsburgh's cancer center and her private practice focused on the medically ill patient and the physicians and nurses that treated them.

Reviews

[Marcia Mccracken · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a Pittsburgher, I was excited to read this book set in my hometown. It was pretty good, but could have been excellent with better editing. There were typos, occasional missing words, and occasional gaps between words. On one occasion, someone left the room and in the next sentence his mother told him to make himself scarce. There were repeated references to the protagonist being an amateur sleuth and getting involved in previous cases - why? I stopped and looked to see if this was a later book in a series (it's the first). I found this annoying. It's almost as if the author is setting up a chance to write prequels. There are 2 later books in the series which I'll probably read at some point, but I really hope someone did a better job of editing them.

[Victoria · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this ebook as part of a giveaway. Overall, great book. There was never a dull or slow moment. Miles hits the ground running from the start! I got confused with keeping the characters straight and some of the minor characters were stereotypical, such as Thomas the arrogant, rich guy, which is the only reason why it’s 4 stars instead of 5. I would love to read book #2 in this series.

[Robyn Arner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good local mystery

I really enjoyed this murder mystery based in Pittsburgh, PA. I enjoyed reading about settings from 20 some years ago up to present day. The author developed the characters. I almost DNF this book though when she called a Pittsburgh stable "catsup".

[Julie Swartzentruber · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 for inexcusably-deficient editing, rounded up for all the Pittsburgh connections!