Available Now!
Derby Rotten Scoundrels announces
a new anthology of crime stories celebrating Kentucky’s famed spirit:
Bourbon
distilled in murder and mayhem
What’s more Kentucky than that?
A Boston debutante joins the Appalachian Frontier Nursing Service and saves a wounded moonshiner
Two young malcontents burglarize the home of their bourbon-magnate employer, leading to a twist of fate
From historical adventure to gritty realism, these eighteen crime stories are fermented in the history and culture of Kentucky bourbon and distilled through the imagination of our authors. The book includes articles on Prohibition, moonshining, medicinal alcohol and profiles of distilleries and the booming Whiskey Row district in downtown Louisville.
Publication Date: June 22, 2020
Publisher: Mystery and Horror, LLC
Available at: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Mystery and Horror, LLC, and where all fine books are sold
Anthology Authors
Susan Bell was born in coastal California, then proceeded to travel the country in her role as daughter of a Naval officer. She learned to walk in the Mojave Desert, to swim in Virginia Beach, and to read in Washington State. She fell in love with Dr. Seuss and hasn’t stopped reading since. She combined her love of reading, writing and arithmetic and became a technical writer, working in the defense, aviation, and telecommunications industries. With deep roots in the Bluegrass State, she now calls Louisville home. Susan contributed Summer’s End, Maker’s Mark, Whiskey Row to the anthology.
Elaine Munsch grew up on the shores of Lake Erie, but has made Louisville, KY her home for several decades. An avid reader, bookselling seemed to be the ideal profession, which she has practiced for over forty years. She is the author of the Dash Hammond series: The Price of Being Neighborly, The Cost of Kindness and The Expense of Family. She can be reached at authormunsch@gmail.com. Elaine contributed The Long and the Shorter of It and Heaven Hill Distillery to the anthology.
Karen Quinn Block loves reading and writing about character flaws and the foibles of everyday life. An expat Canadian, Karen writes from her home in the mountains of North Carolina. Karen contributed the following to the anthology:
Just Desserts, Alltech Lexington Brewing, Bulleit Frontier Whiskey Experience, Evan Williams Bourbon Experience, Prohibition in America, Bourbanized Bread Pudding Recipe.
Lorena R. Peter (Lorena Reith, Jr.) writes novels and short stories with paranormal elements, under the name Lorena Reith, Jr. Her book, Gaff—Wisdom from the Sea, is an inspirational fiction. Thirty short stories involving Gaff and his friends were published in a regional newsletter. The Sylvia Series starts with a suspense, The Search for Sylvia, and includes several novels describing cases Sylvia solves with her new-found psychic abilities. Books are available through Amazon. Dr. Peter has a medical counseling practice in Louisville, KY. In other words, she is a psychologist who has developed her psychic connections! They do say to write what you know. Lorena contributed A Toast for Toofa, Independent Stave Company, and The Spirits of Buffalo Trace to the anthology.
Gwen Mayo is a native of Eastern Kentucky, transplanted to the Sunshine State. Her home state’s colorful past forms the backdrop for her Nessa Donnelly mysteries and informs the Three Snowbirds series she co-writes with Sarah E. Glenn. She is a graduate of the University of Kentucky, a member of the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and Sisters in Crime, including local chapters in her home state, online, and Florida. Her short stories have appeared in anthologies, webzines, and microfiction collections. Her novels can be purchased wherever books are sold. To learn more, visit her online at gwenmayo.com. Gwen contributed Special Label , Two Old Crows (with Sarah E. Glenn), and Past and Present Meet at Woodford Reserve to the anthology.
Sarah E. Glenn has a B.S. in Journalism, which is redundant in her case. Later, she did a stint as a graduate student in classical languages. While she didn’t get the degree, she’s great with crosswords. So far, her most interesting job was working the reports desk for the police department in Lexington, Kentucky, where she learned that criminals really are dumb. Sarah’s great-great aunt served as a nurse in WWI. A hundred years later, this would inspire Sarah and her partner in crime, Gwen Mayo, to write the Three Snowbirds series, featuring two retired WWI nurses and an inventor slightly younger than Moses. Learn more about Sarah and the Snowbirds series at http://www.sarahglenn.com/. Sarah contributed Hornswoggled, Two Old Crows (with Gwen Mayo), and Medicinal Alcohol to the anthology.
Milton C. Toby is an attorney and award-winning author of nonfiction books and articles about horse racing. He won the $10,000 Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award for the best book about Thoroughbred racing and an American Horse Publications editorial award with Dancer’s Image: The Forgotten Story of the 1968 Kentucky Derby and a second American Horse Publications award with Noor: A Champion Thoroughbred’s Unlikely Journey from California to Kentucky. His most recent book, Taking Shergar: Thoroughbred Racing’s Most Famous Cold Case, recounts the true story of an Epsom Derby winner stolen by the Irish Republican Army and held for ransom at the height of the Troubles. Toby is President of the American Society of Journalists and Authors. He contributed The Proof is in the Killing to the anthology.
Sheila Shumate, though born in Louisville, Kentucky, is a Hoosier who calls Clarksville, Indiana home. When not being a mom, she likes to read mystery thrillers, the more twists and turns the better. Her short story, The Bourbon Brotherhood, is her first venture into fiction writing.
Shirley Jump is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who writes romance and women’s fiction that has been called “brilliant” and “spellbinding” by reviewers and authors like Kristin Higgins. She’s published more than 60 books in 24 countries and lives in Florida, where the beaches provide the perfect retreat and inspiration (and procrastination excuse). You can visit Shirley’s website at www.ShirleyJump.com for author news and a booklist and follow her on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/shirleyjump.author for giveaways and at www.Facebook.com/EatingMyWords for deep discussions about important things like the best way to make a French omelette. Shirley contributed Take the Fall to the anthology.
Sandra Cerow Leonard. After many years of writing legal and bureaucratic documents, Sandra Leonard has considerable respect for creative authors who construct plots and characters in fiction. She served as president of the local mystery reading and writing group for more than 12 years. Sandra contributed the article What is Bourbon? to the anthology.
Tamera Shaw is a reporter and photographer based in Louisville, Kentucky. She works for the Henry County Local, a weekly newspaper in Northeast Kentucky. She happily shares her life with her husband, daughter, and sage cat Sophie, who grudgingly shares her home with the newest member of the family—Nieko, a strange and wonderful rescue kitten. Tamera contributed Moscow Blue to the anthology.
Heidi Walker writes published short stories and award-winning plays from her farm in Kentucky. She polished her work as a two-year playwright-in-residence in the New York Public Library’s Wertheim Scholars program. Heidi contributed Backdoor Bourbon and Glass Ceiling to the anthology.
Jo Tucker is a licensed civil engineer, consulting and teaching in the fields of geotechnical and environmental engineering. She is a long-time Kentucky resident, and now lives with her husband in Wisconsin. She is the author of several published technical papers, an unpublished mystery novel, and short stories. Jo contributed Make Mine Bourbon to the anthology.
Deborah Alvord is celebrating the 20th anniversary of her family’s move to the Bluegrass State and has finally managed the correct pronunciation of Louisville. But being from Marblehead, Massachusetts, she still returns there annually for baked haddock and the smell of the sea. Besides reading mysteries, Deborah still enjoys helping clients with tax returns and dreaming of writing a mystery with an accountant as the sleuth! Deborah contributed Dusty Hunts and 1792 Barton Distillery to the anthology.
Mike Bradford is a retired healthcare executive and pastor with the Christian Church. He is a native of Johnson City, Tennessee, and long-term resident of Kentucky. Bradford is a hobby novelist with three books in print and one short story in a murder mystery anthology. Mike and his wife, Julie (Garrett), currently reside in Bardstown, Kentucky, where he serves as pastor for Boston Christian Church. The Bradfords have two children, five grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Mike contributed All Bunged Up to the anthology.
Cheryl Stuck is a freelance writer with nonfiction articles in several regional publications. She writes copy, edits, and critiques work for individuals and businesses for web pages and autobiographies as well as fiction. Cheryl is a Louisville native, currently working on a novel, screenplay, and a play. Cheryl contributed a profile of Jim Beam Inc. to the anthology.
M. E. Gaskins is a registered dietitian/nutritionist and diabetes educator. Her mother made the best donuts on the planet, and introduced her to the heady smell of yeast, which she remembers every time she drives past a brewery. She enjoys writing poems, songs, short stories, and articles. “Hard Facts” was a fun research project for the foodie detective in her. M. E. contributed Hard Facts to the anthology.
The following authors contributed to the anthology. May their memory be a blessing.
Virginia ‘Din’ Dulworth
Debi Huff
Edmund August
Debby Schenk
Barbara Blackburn