MURDER IN PROVENCE – with a riveting second act in Paris.

It’s An American in Paris meets Wait Until Dark, wherein author Tracy Whiting serves up a refreshing international cozy mystery series with heroine Havilah Gaie at the helm—an American professor turned female sleuth-abroad who calls to mind “an academic version of Pam Grier’s characters: smart, quick on their feet, loyal with a keen sense of purpose.” There’s plenty of heart-racing intrigue, fistfuls of posh French culture—including elegant fashion and irresistible cuisine—and, not to worry, a dashing male love-interest—who happens to be a French agent.

A two-part cozy armchair adventure, but with a bit of action-adventure bite, Havilah’s travels and misadventures are sure to delight murder mystery fans who prefer their female sleuths brilliant, bold, and daring—and who like their French culture delicately authentic.

THE 13TH FELLOW

Against the panoramic backdrop of the Cassis cliffs of Provence, France, the beautiful people of poetry—poets, academics, and patrons of the arts—are assembling at a centennial honoring the founder of the Félibrige Foundation. Finding itself with a surplus of talent, the Foundation has awarded one more than its customary dozen fellowships, but even before the gathering can get underway, the unlucky 13th fellow has fetched up dead.

But what's the motive? Professional jealousy? Romantic rivalry? Or something to do with a dark secret about the Félibrige’s founder? Havilah’s at the center of the mystery, and so is Thierry Gasquet, a dashing French agent who doesn't care much for amateur detectives.

A specialist in several academic disciplines, fluent in several languages,honored for her academic achievements by the Ordre des Palmes Académiques, and equally appreciated for her accomplishments in filling out a bikini, Havilah is shocked by her colleague’s murder and determined to ferret out the truth. But she’ll have to stay a few steps ahead of Gasquet, who’s been assigned to protect her and avert an international scandal.

PARIS A GO-GO

When a right-wing media personality is fished out of the Seine, two extremist factions start shooting at each other. Havilah, aka La Belle Américaine, has become a darling of the Parisian media, cast in the role of the voice of the left-wing American intellectual. Both groups try to use her as a pawn in the power struggle, and, after two more killings occur in her very presence, she becomes a suspect as well as a target.

Protection is close at hand, however, in the person of her current romantic interest, Thierry Gasquet, the handsome and debonair French police agent who protected her as a key witness during a murder investigation three months earlier.

Luckily, just as things are reaching the boiling point, Havilah’s Aunt Neet swoops in for charming, light-hearted comic relief—as Havilah and Thierry, now unsure of whom to trust in his agency, work together to solve the mystery—and do a little asskicking.

Sassy, savvy Havilah Gaie will appeal to fans of Attica Locke and of African-American sleuths like Charlotte Justice, Talba Walllis, Tamara Hayle, and especially Frankie Bailey’s Professor Lizzie Stuart—not to mention fans of Pam Grier! Set in Paris and Venice with a surprise journey on the Orient Express, this perfect blend of cozy mystery and action-adventure thriller will also delight those who enjoy international locales.