Let me introduce you to two of my
favorite (fictional) people:
Lizzie Stuart
Lizabeth Stuart was born in Drucilla, Kentucky. She was raised by her grandparents, Hester Rose and Walter Lee. She has never known her mother, Rebecca, who was seventeen when Lizzie was born and left Drucilla a few days later. The identity of Lizzie's father was a secret that Hester Rose took with her to her grave.
As for her career - Lizzie has a Ph.D. in Criminal Justice from the University at Albany. Her area of research and writing is crime history. She is also very interested in crime and popular culture. When the series begins, she is teaching at a university in Kentucky and is an unmarried woman in her late thirties.
Lizzie is a fan of film noir. She has seen Double Indemnity more times then she can count. Also on her list, any Alfred Hitchcock film, High Noon, Sound of Music (she actually knows the words to the songs), and a long list of really bad B-movies that she still stays up to watch on the late, late show. Lizzie loves chocolate, and consumes what she considers too much of it as she is working on her historical mystery about a murder in 19th century Kentucky (that seems likely to be published). One of these days, she just might write a historical romance - her favorite reading when she wants to relax.
Lately, she has been brushing up on her chess game because John Quinn is giving her serious competition. John Quinn - well, John Quinn is subject about which Lizzie would prefer to speak for herself.
Incidentally, until recently, Lizzie would have said that her life was a bit dull. She doesn't have that problem anymore.
John Quinn
Lizzie calls him "Quinn," so let's stick with that. Quinn was an Army brat. His father was career military, an officer. His mother was not the kind of woman who was well-suited to that life. They divorced when Quinn was a child. His mother later remarried. Quinn lived with his father, and eventually attended West Point. He served in the military police, and then later was a detective on the Philadelphia police force.
His recent past has been unsettled. Meeting Lizzie Stuart has added another disturbing element to his life. Although he has managed to make the adjustment more quickly than she has, he has spent a fair amount of time thinking about their relationship. Such thought requires a cup of good - as opposed to Lizzie's downright horrible - strong coffee.
Even more recently, he has had another addition to his life. But George, the yellow Lab, is more easily controlled than Lizzie. Not that Quinn is the kind of man who wants to control a woman, but he wouldn't mind if she would occasionally just say "yes, of course, you're absolutely right."
Read a Letter From Quinn...
Here are a few of Lizzie and Quinn's favorite websites:
First Lizzie's
For the film noir lover - http://www.filmsite.org/filmnoir.html
Chess - http://www.chesscorner.com
...And now Quinn's
West Point - http://www.usma.edu/
Military Police (Army) - http://www.wood.army.mil/usamps/default.htm
Philadelphia police - http://www.phila.gov/
Coffee lovers! - http://www.coffee.com/
Dog lovers! - http://www.uwsp.edu/psych/dog/lib-puppy.htm
And don't miss more of Author Frankie Bailey's favorite links and some great recipes
from a good friend and a great cook!