A missing family and a murdered scientist lead two reporters to a twisted conspiracy that spans decades in PLATFORM, my debut 74,000-word commercial mystery.

 

Los Angeles reporter Danny Kasho helps identify human remains found at a derelict chemical storage facility as members of a family that disappeared twenty years ago.

 

An outspoken environmental scientist dies in a single-vehicle crash in Malibu—a tragic accident that turns into a homicide investigation when reporter Ursula Ruda spots a bullet hole in the woman’s car. 

 

Colleagues from the local news scene whose working relationship is complicated by a recent fling, Danny’s and Ursula’s stories dovetail at a decommissioned oil platform that’s being turned into a niche hotel as a proof of concept for much larger ambitions. Sifting through layers of lies and cover-ups, Danny and Ursula unearth old secrets as they unravel new crimes—and threaten a billion-dollar development that has to succeed at any cost.

 

First in a series, PLATFORM will appeal to readers who enjoy mysteries with deadly family secrets like Stacy Willingham’s “A Flicker in the Dark” and Laurie King’s “Back to the Garden”, reporters as protagonists like “As the Wicked Watch” by Tamron Hall and “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” by Stieg Larsson, and the sardonic humor of Dennis Lehane’s Kenzie and Gennaro series.