psychological thrillers – Ladies of Mystery

Our guest Laury A. Egan answered interview questions.

1. Why you write the genre you do?

Good question! Though my dominant genre is psychological suspense/crime fiction, I also have written and published literary titles, comedy, romance, and a few children’s stories. In other words, I write the book that comes to me rather than focus on specific genres. Psychological suspense is indeed a favorite, however, and was originally inspired by Patricia Highsmith’s books in which she usually features a sociopath and does so with gleeful enthusiasm. (It is my suspicion that she herself fell into this sociopathic category). I also find that “bad guys” make for fascinating studies and Fair Haven has its share and some “bad girls” as well.

2. How did you came up with the mystery/murder/premise in the book you are promoting?

Actually, this was my first novel, one I began when I bought my first computer in the mid-80s. I made some headway then, but life got in the way as it often does (actually a new romantic relationship and a house move), and I delayed work for a few years. When the relationship flamed out in spectacular fashion, I moved nearer my parents on the coast of New Jersey, and though still working full time as a book designer and photographer, I picked up Fair Haven and finished a first draft. But once again life intruded so the manuscript was shelved into the closet. Finally, I began another novel, Jenny Kidd, inspired by Highsmith and set in Venice, and thus began a series of new books until my new and delightful publisher, Andrew May of Spectrum Books in London, began accepting my manuscripts at a furious pace, publishing four books in thirteen months. Once he cleared my desk and closets, I looked around and saw Fair Haven, but oh, my, it was a mess! Plot errors, amateur formatting, and tons of mistakes. It took me forever to whip this complicated, yet intriguing, novel into shape…which hopefully I did!

3. How you came up with the main character in your book or series?

The cast of Fair Haven is generously large, but probably the most significant character is the forensic photographer, Chris Clarke, a handsome woman who is involved with Kate, a primary suspect in the murder. Because of my own background as a professional photographer, it was an easy task to handle the details of Chris’ work. She also lives by the river in the neighboring town of Fair Haven, and owns a sailboat, which I also did in my younger days. Chris has an obstreperous beagle who rules the house—Cagney is modeled on my own dog. He often steals the show in the novel, so hound and dog lovers should enjoy his escapades.

4. Any interesting research you did for the book?

Originally, I thought the local police force would oversee the murder investigation, which was one of the huge errors I committed during the first stages of writing. In fact, though they do some coordination, interviews, etc., the Monmouth County’s Major Crimes Bureau and the prosecutor’s office are in charge of everything, including gathering forensic evidence. I interviewed a former Fair Haven policeman as well as a retired director of the county’s Economic Crime Unit, both of whom set me straight on a number of misconceptions. In addition, after a few glasses of wine, a friend, a financial analyst, grinned and answered my question about how a broker would commit fraud, cheerfully providing details about the Cayman Islands, offshore accounts, and the like.

5. A post on your process of writing a mystery book.

As mentioned above, this book took a long and arduous journey from its inception to its submission to my publisher. Quite honestly, I never thought the manuscript was good enough to publish, but there was something charming about the plot and its characters that kept drawing me in. I also loved the irony of a murder in the quiet, serene village of Fair Haven. After hundreds of hours of revision, I hope this murder mystery will be an enjoyable read, one that harkens to some British series such as Midsomer Murders in that the residents of small towns are the focus even more than the crime. Despite this, have fun figuring out “who done it!”

Fair Haven: A picturesque riverside town. A safe, friendly place. And then, one summer afternoon in 1994, Sally Ann Shaffer is electrocuted in her hot tub. Who did it? One of her many lovers? Her husband? A thief? A jealous colleague at her tennis club? The town is suddenly embroiled in suspicion, interpersonal conflict, blackmail, fraud, and murder.

“When is a murder mystery more than a who-done-it? Answer: When it is written by Laury Egan. This wonderful mystery kept me en-tranced, as her characters drug me around the town of Fair Haven and through their inter-woven lives. In an ever more complex web of intrigue, jealousy, hatred and lust the plot was revealed. Though its difficult to write a review of a murder mystery without giving away too much, I couldn’t figure it out, even with some well-placed clues, until the end and then I was amazed by the reveal. You will be too.”

—CA Farlow, author of The Paris Contagion

Amazon: https://geni.us/fairhaven Published by Enigma Books, an imprint of Spectrum Books, London

Laury A. Egan is the author of fifteen novels, a story collection (with a new collection, Contrary: Stories and a Play, due May 2025), and four volumes of poetry. Her psychological suspense/crime fiction novels are: Jack & I, The Psychologist’s Shadow, Doublecrossed, The Ungodly Hour, A Bittersweet Tale, and Jenny Kidd (a revised edition will be released October 18, 2025). Ninety of her stories and poems have appeared in literary journals and anthologies. She is a reviewer for The New York Journal of Books, a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University, and a 2024 recipient of a New Jersey State Council on the Arts Individual Artist Award in prose. Website: www.lauryaegan.com

LauryA.Egan@EganLaury

https://www.facebook.com/laury.egan/

https://www.instagram.com/laurya.egan/

https://bsky.app/profile/lauryaegan.bsky.social

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Laury+A.+Egan

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4090464.Laury_A_Egan

https://www.linkedin.com/in/laury-a-egan-09096b3/ http://www.lauryaeganblog.wordpress.com/

A big thank you to Liz for getting a post for me in time to fill in for Heather Haven, who asked me to find someone to fill her Thursday this month.

Why I write psychological suspense:

During my teen years, my favorite way to spend the weekend involved sitting in the eerie darkness of a movie theater, sharing a bucket of popcorn with friends, waiting to be scared—not by zombies, dinosaurs, or tornados but by the nanny who wasn’t as kind as she appeared, the handsome husband leading a double life, or the woman posing as an author’s biggest fan who will ultimately hold him hostage.

That fear, the feeling of goosebumps sprouting, hair rising on the back of my neck, was such an enthralling sensation, almost like those chilling moments when a roller coaster inches up that steep incline, I couldn’t get enough.

Since the afternoons when my mom read to me as a child, I’d always wanted to write a book. While my first was a memoir, when I turned to fiction, I longed to try to evoke the same tension and anxiety I fell in love with in the fourth grade while reading Lois Duncan’s Ransom and, later, in other novels by authors like Megan Abbott and Patricia Highsmith, and, of course, in those frightening films.

I’ve now written several thrillers and while I’m in the thick of plotting each story, I worry that it won’t come together in the end. (Another source of fear!) That said, I love the way the process can feel akin to putting together a puzzle. You’re working toward a complete picture, your brain turning around the pieces until they lock into place. When they do and you can surprise yourself—and, hopefully, your readers—it’s magical.

Reading and writing thrillers, suspense, and mystery also gives you a healthy sense of wariness. When you’re dialed into the possibility of darkness lurking around every corner, it keeps you on guard. One morning when I was in my twenties and walking through a parking lot, a man approached me and asked if I wanted to see the puppies he had in his van. I almost said, “Are you kidding? I’ve seen Silence of the Lambs three times! There’s no way I’m getting near your van!”

Writers have rich imaginations, which is both a blessing and a curse. I joke that once you start writing thrillers, suspense, or mysteries, that becomes the lens through which you view the world. Last fall, I attended a short writing retreat. Beyond my window lay a field, a dense fog muting the colors of the autumn landscape. My gaze shifted to a pair of dogs sniffing around but always returning to the same patch. Were bodies buried out there? I couldn’t help but muse.

I often wonder if romance writers are similarly afflicted. When they see a couple, do they create an elaborate backstory for them? A meet-cute? A conflict involving a former love interest that leads to a break-up and eventually a happily-ever-after? Is all this imagining an occupational hazard? Either way, it’s often a delightful escape from reality.

Writing thrillers has also been a wonderful way to work through pent up feelings of frustration and even revenge fantasies. Murder a busybody neighbor? No problem. Put snarky dialogue in the mouth of your protagonist as she outwits a villain? Done. Leave all your animosity on the page.

Though I love writing personal essays and humor pieces, suspense is a genre I always return to for the chance to bask in the unsettling appeal of impending doom.

You Shouldn’t Have Done That

Jane Whitaker and Ivy Chapman have been best friends for twenty years – ever since their sons Cal and Brad attended the same preschool.

But their close bond is severely tested when their now adult sons go skiing together in Wyoming and only one returns.

Where is Cal Whitaker and why didn’t Brad Chapman report him missing? With growing fears for Cal’s safety, his family begins to suspect Brad knows a lot more than he’s saying.

Friendship turns to suspicion and then to open hostility when Cal’s sister Emerson posts an online appeal that ignites a vicious crusade against Brad.

As decades-old loyalties crumble, Jane and Ivy find themselves on opposite sides of a deadly divide. How far will each mother go to protect her family? And what happens when saving one son means destroying the other?

Buy link: https://www.amazon.com/Shouldnt-Have-Done-That-psychological-ebook/dp/B0F1DPWT5D/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0

Liz Alterman is the author of the memoir, Sad Sacked, the young adult thriller, He’ll Be Waiting, the suspense novels The Perfect Neighborhood, The House on Cold Creek Lane, and You Shouldn’t Have Done That, as well as the forthcoming romcom Claire Casey’s Had Enough. Her work has been published by The New York Times, The Washington Post, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, and other outlets. Follow her on Instagram or subscribe to her Substack where she shares the ups and downs of the writing life (and cat photos).