DEADLY FALL

Paula Savard's life has stalled. Her lukewarm love life, job as an insurance adjuster and grownup children are more frustrating than exciting. However, she gets more than she asked for when her once best friend, Callie, is murdered while jogging to Paula's inner-city Calgary home. The police suggest Callie was coming to Paula for help, which is news to Paula since they hadn't seen each other in ages. Soon, Paula's suspicions zero in on Callie's new husband, Sam.

An ill-considered investigation turns personal for Paula when she begins to get close to Sam, but is Sam's interest a front to trick Paula? Lies begin accumulating. Suddenly, Paula's not sure who she should protect and who she should fear. As the truth reveals itself, Paula hatches a plan to draw the killer out. The plan's success would not only allow her to solve the murder, but also give her life a fresh start.

Susan Calder is a member of the Mystery Writers INK and the Writer's Guild of Alberta. She has a degree in Urban Studies from Concordia University. Susan's poems and short stories can be found in The Prairie Journal, Alberta Views, Avenue, and the Silver Boomers Anthology. She teaches writing at the Alexandra Writers' Centre Society in Calgary, where she lives. Deadly Fall is her first novel and the first in the Paula Savard mystery series.