Showing results by author "P. Austin Heaton" in All Categories

In 1900, the San Diego Gaiety Theater burned to the ground killing a vaudeville promoter. Was it an accident or a murder? The SDPD ruled it an accident. Hesperia, the theater's resident ghost, saw the whole thing, but she's not talking. In 1920, a friend of Sadie Brown has received an anonymous note accusing him of murder and setting fire to the Gaiety Theater to cover it up. Sadie's quick to help her friend and is once again drawn into a murder mystery — this time with an assortment of retired, ego-driven vaudeville performers as suspects. And did I say they were quirky? Yes, you bet ...

A short read (very short - 21 pages) set in January 1921 in New York City. Join Sadie Brown, investigative reporter, and Roger Siebert, photographer, on their picture-perfect honeymoon. At least it started out as perfect. But, when a large steamer trunk mysteriously appears in their honeymoon suite, it's the beginning of a cozy mystery. The strange trunk and its even stranger owner draw the newlyweds into a scheme involving stolen goods, a ransom note, and blackmail.

It’s 1921, and Sadie Brown, aviatrix, reporter, and sometimes a crime investigator, has a very serious problem on her hands. Two police officers have arrived at Sadie’s home on an early sunny morning, and the news is dire. Her husband was a passenger in an auto accident and was taken to the hospital in a coma. The driver was a Frenchman. A man who left a dubious past in France after the Great War. Rushing to the hospital, Sadie finds out the driver had been shot, causing him to drive his Renault over a bluff in La Jolla. Now the police are concerned that Roger might have also been a ...

A fake psychic hiding from a killer in Southern California — what could possibly go wrong? The 2nd book in the Sadie Brown series is chock full of delightful, quirky characters. Take another crazy ride as Miss Sadie Brown becomes involved with a bizarre murder and a runaway killer. It's the summer of 1917 in the beautiful seaside community of Coronado, California. Sadie Brown, aviatrix, and newspaper columnist/reporter is investigating a simple case of a phony fortune teller which unexpectedly turns into a murder investigation. As Miss Brown and Deputy Sheriff Evan Greenway investigate, ...

I really loved this one! The characters have so much depth to them, and I found myself thinking about them even when I wasn't reading! So much going on too! Never boring! — Jackie Logue, Owner JML Copyediting Services. Reading your words, I was stunned at your personal rendition of the setting and situation, as if you had lived it in detail. — D. Hartley A character-driven story of redemption --- An episodic, historical novel filled with adventure, forbidden love, second chances, and the value of having a best friend. A Confederate soldier's journals are found hidden away, and they ...

What happens when everything you believe is true is turned upside down? A character-driven story of money, power, friendship, and second chances. In 1876, Dick Baker, a down-on-his-luck California gold miner, dreams of striking it rich. He doesn't want much, just to be the richest man in Calaveras County — and that his secret past stay buried on Mackinac Island. When he wins an abandoned goldmine while gambling in Chinatown, his life is turned upside down. Join the adventure that changes his life forever. Dick is about to learn a valuable lesson. True happiness is right in front of us if ...

Murder at the Expo is a BBNYA 2023 Indie Book Award semi-finalist. Sadie Brown is a strong female character, but she’s not your usual sleuth. Sticking her nose where it doesn’t belong, she’ll take the reader on a fun romp to discover clues to the killer’s identity. Sadie’s no dummy, but she’ll be as surprised as you when she comes face to face with the killer. When the body of Dr. Asa Wolf is found impeccably laid out in the Botanical Building at San Diego's 1915 Panama-California Exposition, the curious death scene arouses questions of murder. Sure, Wolf was a well-respected ...