Title: Wings in the Dark
Author: Michael Murphy
Genre: Historical / Cozy Mystery
Witty and stylish in the
classic Dashiell Hammett tradition: in Michael Murphy's latest high-flying Jake
& Laura Mystery, their Hawaiian honeymoon is interrupted when their friend
Amelia Earhart is accused of murder.
Hawaii, 1935.
Mystery novelist Jake Donovan and actress Laura Wilson are in gorgeous sun-soaked
Hawaii, but their best laid plans for canoodling on the beach are interrupted
by a summons from famed aviatrix Amelia Earhart. It seems a local businessman
has been gunned down next to her plane. In just days, the famous pilot intends
to fly from Honolulu to Los Angeles, making aviation history over the Pacific.
But now, without Jake and Laura's help, Earhart's flight might never take off.
Trailing a killer, the newlyweds' sleuthing leads to a jealous pilot, a
cigar-chomping female officer of the "Royalist Militia" and a
notoriously disagreeable lieutenant colonel named Patton. With a sinister
killer lurking in the shadows, it's safe to say the honeymoon is over . . . and
the danger has just begun.
Although
the scheduled interview cut short the harrowing flight around the island, I
hardly looked forward to the meeting. I’d never liked reporters. My dislike for
the profession went back to my gumshoe days. They always managed to get in the
way of a case, often got the facts wrong, and never gave a detective credit for
solving a crime. Acknowledgment always went to the local cops.
Oh,
sure, some I tolerated because they valued truth and integrity. A few actually
became drinking buddies. I couldn’t imagine tossing back a few with the smug
son of a bitch sitting across from Laura and me on the deck of our Hawaiian
honeymoon cabana.
Actors,
agents, and studios placed a growing emphasis on press interviews, and studio
bosses didn’t like reading personal details of their actors’ lives without
having planted them.
Hunter
Conway, in his late twenties, seemed polite and businesslike at first. He
greeted us with a traditional aloha. Within minutes, however, he failed to
conceal his resentment over an assignment to interview two people he
characterized more than once as “a famous Hollywood couple.”
He
proceeded to talk about himself. He said his normal duty was the Honolulu Daily’s crime desk, but Amelia Earhart’s impending
quest to cross the Pacific had stretched the paper’s resources thin.
Perhaps
it was the way he avoided looking at me, but something about his story didn’t
ring true.
Unlike
me, Laura appeared to like the reporter’s company, but, after all, she’d
mastered the art of acting. I, on the other hand, could be a real chump around
people I didn’t respect.
Though
I’d assured Laura I’d speak only when the reporter asked me a question, I
didn’t keep that promise long. The second time he referred to us as “a famous
Hollywood couple,” I couldn’t let the crack go unchallenged. “Laura and I are
from New York, Mr. Conway. Queens, to be exact, not California.”
Laura’s
smile never wavered. Beneath the table she kicked my shin without so much as
wrinkling the tablecloth. I knew she wasn’t just trying to get the reporter to
write a flattering interview. She was also trying to keep me from coming across
as a real schmuck.
Conway
checked an entry in his notebook. “Yet you’re friends with William Powell and
other actors and, according to Louella Parsons, who can’t seem to say enough
good things about both of you, you attend your share of Hollywood parties.”
“You
say that as if those are bad things.”
“Just
trying to get the facts right.” The reporter flashed an arrogant smile. “Let’s
hear about your life in Queens, then, before your wife became a star.”
I
didn’t want to let the guy know we’d lived together before we were married.
Laura answered about our life in New York without mentioning our domestic
arrangements.
While
the interview went on, I gazed past our private cove surrounded by blooming red
hibiscus. The blue sky merged with the water. Down the beach, a handful of
surfers were catching a wave. Back in Queens, we’d been determined to make it
out of the neighborhood, but I had never expected to see Hawaii.
“The
readers will want to hear how you’re enjoying your Hawaiian honeymoon.”
I
bet they would.
Laura
took my hand, squeezing firmly, as if warning me not to say anything bawdy.
“We’ve enjoyed every minute from our ocean voyage to the first five days here.
We’ve been able to get out and explore the island and meet people. We
especially enjoy bike rides nearly every day, don’t we, darling?”
I
answered with a nod.
“Were
you married here or before you left the West Coast?”
Laura
flashed me a smile that could melt my belt buckle. “The ship’s captain married
us on board, beneath a full moon. The ceremony, the entire voyage, was like a
fairy tale.”
The
reporter studied me as if deciding whether I was capable of romance.
“I’m
a romantic guy.”
“Sure
you are.” Conway turned to a page in his notepad. “What’s been your biggest
accomplishment?”
“Mine?”
“Yes.
I mean, you’ve had two careers, a detective and a mystery writer.”
“My
biggest accomplishment . . . marrying Laura. She’s one special person. If you
write that, don’t make the words seem as sappy as they sound.”
For
the first time, he shot me a look of envy before smiling at Laura. “Of that I
have little doubt, Miss Wilson . . . I mean Mrs. Donovan.”
In
spite of my good intentions, I jumped in again, bracing myself for another kick
from Laura. “The marriage certificate says Donovan, but professionally she’ll
continue to be Laura Wilson.”
Conway
raised an eyebrow. “You both agreed to this?”
“Of
course. Wouldn’t you?”
“Probably
not.”
The
rest of the interview went well because I didn’t say another word.
Author Bio
Historical
mystery writer Michael Murphy, author of the Jake and Laura mystery
series
Links
Penguin Random House: Penguin Random House
Amazon: Amazon
Barnes and Noble: B&N
iBooks: iBooks
Google play: Google Play
Books a Million: Books a Million
Goodreads: Goodreads
Kobo: Kobo
Thanks for posting an excerpt of book three in my Jake and Laura series. Looking forward to next Tuesday's release.
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