Year of MY Utah Writers: THE CHRISTOPHER KILLERS by Alane Ferguson

The Christopher Killer by Alane Ferguson introduces Cammie Mahoney, daughter of a county coroner and aspiring forensic scientist. I picked this novel up at a Scholastic Books Warehouse sale for several reasons:

• It’s written by Alane Ferguson who has Utah connections and is a mighty fine writer.
• It was an Edgar Award nominee – VERY prestigious!
• It fills a growing niche for mystery/horror novels for young adult readers.
• It was very INexpensive, and so I bought 2 copies and plan to give one away.

Once upon a time I wanted to write mysteries because I grew up with Nancy Drew, but I could NOT think of a logical way to create a believable teen sleuth into murder and mayhem. Alane TOTALLY pulls that off. Cammie lives in a small Colorado town that has a small budget; consequently, her dad needs her help.

Cammie is interested and interesting; she’s bright and intuitive; and she’s gutsy to the point of insolence. (All Nancy Drew attributes, btw.) Enter other interesting secondary characters, including Mawmaw, Cammie’s Irish gramma; the mysterious new deputy Justin Crowley; the grungy loner Adam; and her AWOL mother Hannah.

I enjoyed the pacing, the cliff hangers, and the well-researched forensic details. This is just one novel in Alane’s Forensic Mystery series and a great recommendation for young readers who LOVE murder and mayhem.