Mystery / Thriller
Date Published: 01-08-2024
Publisher: First Legacy Publishing
Sometimes, the most dangerous thing . . . is the truth.
For disgraced cable news producer Hannah Hawthorne, covering the shooting of a pretty NYU sophomore is a chance for redemption. When the story snowballs into a media circus, Hannah’s reporting fans the sensationalistic flames and earns her acclaim. The tragic murder, seemingly the result of random urban gun violence, prompts protests and vigils that further magnify the story.
Meanwhile, Paulo Richardson, a reporter for an online neighborhood newspaper, is following the other murder in Washington Square Park that same night – a Latino teen. He discovers an unexpected connection that is political dynamite. When Hannah and Paulo team up, they uncover disturbing facts, leading them to question everything they thought they knew and leading them to the man who may be the killer.
When the story is ready to explode, the truth may be hotter than anyone can handle. Breaking the next scoop could ruin Paulo’s paper and wreck Hannah’s career – and it could get them both killed.
1.
Tell us about your current release.
The Other Murder follows two journalists and two
homicide detectives who are investigating two murders that happen minutes apart
in Washington Square Park. Each pair of protagonists have information that the
other lacks. The reader also has information from a fifth character (no
spoilers) unknown to either the cops or the reporters, at least for a while. In
the end, even knowing all the facts from all the perspectives, the reader will
have to decide what they think really happened and who they believe.
I wanted to write a story featuring reporters
rather than only cops. I also wanted to show the difference between print
journalism and broadcast news. I chose a plot taken from real-life events and
created fiction that is grounded in reality and gives readers a peek behind the
curtain of the news media.
My main goal in The Other Murder is to force readers to think
critically about how media reporting about events colors their perceptions and
to consider when they should permit later-revealed facts to change their mind.
Truth is not always a certainty, even when you think you know all the facts. I
hope I have achieved that, along with spinning an entertaining mystery.
2.
When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
I’ve been a writer my whole professional career as a lawyer. The stories I
tell as a lawyer have to be based on facts, but they are still fundamentally
creating a compelling and believable narrative. I wrote my first fiction story
in college, and wrote my first novel after I got laid off from my first legal
job. But I always knew that there would be writing in my future.
3.
Have
you published any previous books?
The Other Murder is my ninth novel. I
have also published two short stories and a novella. Five of my novels are part
of the Mike Stoneman Thriller Series, which I began in 2018 with Righteous
Assassin. Book #5 in that series, Perilous Gambit, came out in 2022.
I then published another stand-alone mystery called Dead Winner in 2023.
4.
What can we expect to see from you in the future, any books
on the backburner?
Next up for me is Double
Takedown, book #6 in the Mike Stoneman Thriller series, which will be
published in the fall of 2024. I expect to write a total of ten books in the
series.
5.
What
do you like to do when you’re not writing?
Aside from working my
day job as a lawyer, I am an avid tournament poker player and enjoy watching
baseball (the Mets are my team) – and spending quality time with my wife,
Sharon.
6.
Did you learn anything from writing your book? What was it?
For this
book, I researched the operation of a cable news network and consulted with a
few experts in order to get the details and the terminology correct. I knew the
print journalist world already, but merging them together with the police
procedural story was a challenge and was fun for me.
7.
Some writers have something playing in the
background, do you and what?
For me, the background
while I’m writing is generally the television – often a baseball game or hockey
game (yes, my wife likes sports). I seldom write in isolation, so there’s
usually something else going on.
8.
Tell us a little about yourself. Perhaps something
not many people know about?
Normally I’m explaining
to my lawyer colleagues that the unusual thing about me is that I’m a mystery
writer on the side. For mystery readers, you might be interested to know that
in 2017-18 I was the chairperson of the Labor & Employment Law section of
the Association of Corporate Counsel. The L&E section consists of over 7000
in-house lawyers. I led the ACC section, oversaw our educational programs and
publications and even wrote an article for the ACC magazine on a radical plan
for improving how companies run their employee evaluation programs. Yeah, I’m a
law nerd (and proud of it).
9.
What do you hope your writing brings to your readers?
My fondest hope is that
readers relate to my characters and care about what happens to them. For The
Other Murder, I also hope that my story makes people think and re-evaluate
how they perceive the news they see on television. Like the tagline of the book
says, “Sometimes, the most dangerous thing . . . is the truth.”
About the Author
Kevin G. Chapman is an attorney specializing in labor and employment law and an independent author. His Mike Stoneman Thriller series, includes Lethal Voyage, Winner of the Kindle Book Award, and Fatal Infraction, the #1 Police Procedural of the year (Chanticleer Book Review CLUE Award). Kevin’s latest is a stand-alone mystery/suspense/romance called Dead Winner, which recently won the CLUE Award as the #1 Suspense/Thriller of the year. Kevin has also written a serious political drama, A Legacy of One (2016) and is currently working on two new mystery/thrillers due out in 2022 and 2023. Kevin is a resident of Central New Jersey and is a graduate of Columbia College and Boston University School of Law. Readers can contact Kevin via his website at www.KevinGChapman.com.
Contact Links
Twitter: @KGChapman
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