Shaded Light, by J.A. Menzies (MurderWillOut Mysteries, ebook version 2013)

It’s the July long weekend, and there’s a house party at George and Ellen Brodie’s new mansion in an exclusive Toronto community. Expected guests: their son, his close friend, Ellen’s country cousin, both of George’s lawyer business partners and their wives.

But there are also unexpected guests, three to be exact: a black sheep nephew, an ex-wife, and a wallflower sister.

Add in two household staff to complete the picture.

At least one of the fourteen will die before the party’s over. Because at least one other among them a murderer.

Shaded Light reads like a contemporary Agatha Christie novel. Instead of Hercule Poirot, readers meet Detective-Inspector Paul Manziuk (man’s-hook) and rookie detective Jacqueline Ryan. He’s experienced, old-school and white, she’s young, female and black.

Manziuk’s under pressure to catch a serial killer who leaves no clues, and now he’s handed the Brodie case too. He doesn’t have time to find out if Ryan can do the job… or if she’s just a political appointment.

To solve the case, Manziuk and Ryan must pierce the suspects’ outer facades and untangle the secrets within. It’s fun to watch them learn to work together along the way.

Shaded Light is book one in the Manziuk and Ryan mystery series, originally published by St. Kitts Press in 2000. The newly-issued ebook includes the author’s original prologue, omitted from the print book. The prologue works well to set the tone, and I think it’s an improvement.

I read the print version years ago and was curious to read it again. The story holds up well to a second reading. As it happens, I only remembered a few details and none of them spoiled the ending. Even if I’d remembered whodunnit, it would have still been a good read to watch the case set up and the unfold.

J.A. Menzies is the pen name of N.J. Lindquist, a Canadian author, speaker and teacher who writes fiction and non-fiction for adults and young adults. She’s a founding director of The Word Guild, co-editor of the Hot Apple Cider anthologies, and she’s usually juggling two or three projects at a time. With such a diverse list of activities, you can see why she chose to use a pen name to minimize reader confusion. To learn more about the author, visit Canadian Mystery Author J.A. Menzies.

Shaded Light and its sequel, Glitter of Diamonds, are both available as ebooks, and J.A. Menzies is working on a third in the series. I look forward to spending more time with these two detectives.

Purchase links for Shaded Light: Amazon.ca, Amazon.com, Kobo, Ganxy.

[Review copy provided by the author. Amazon links are affiliate links for The Word Guild.]