Memory of a Murder

Earl Staggs' protagonist Adam Kingston is a very believable character. He has a talent of psychic ability, but it isn't a perfect talent. Rather than create an infallible clairvoyant, Staggs wrote this character in a fashion that makes him credible and by extension, it makes his psychic talent credible. The other characters in this novel ring true as well. From the driven, single detective, the rookie detective, the dupe, the victim, the villian...all are believable characters with realistic motivations. Anyone can set up a straw boogeyman and then knock it down. Creating complex characters who can be understood (even if, as in the case of the villian(s), they are despised) is a clear sign of masterful writing. Highly recommended.

Widowed Adam Kingston is a man with many memories; unfortunately, some of them aren't his own. A tragic accident left him with psychic abilities. Retired from the FBI, he quickly found out that murder has no jurisdiction. He finds himself embroiled in cases, both as a consultant for the FBI and in his personal life, and often wonders why in the world he ever agreed to the interview in Newsweek?. Enter Charles `Chip' Weathers, a man with no memory of the past. He has a strange request for Adam, to find out if he is a young woman's killer. Adam sets out to help Chip find out about his past. But someone else seems to be interested in keeping Chip's memory a blank, permanently. After Chip is shot, Adam is more determined than ever to find out what his dark visions mean. Brenda McCort is a Homicide Detective with the Baltimore City Police Department. She's got a knack for solving John and Jane Doe cases and knows that cases are solved by good solid police work, not psychic mumbo-jumbo. So, when a call to her boss reveals that some psychic might have information on not only one, but two of the cases she's working on, she takes off for Ocean City with a not-so-open mind. Then Brenda McCort meets Adam Kingston and bullets and sparks fly. Brenda is determined to arrest Chip for murder and Adam is determined to keep Chip free long enough to recover his memories. Although Brenda would like to dismiss Adam's talents, she finds herself relying more and more on his visions as they try to stop the killer. . . before he strikes again. Earl Stagg's Memory of A Murder is a well-plotted puzzle. Its twists and turns are filled with non-stop action and compelling characters all the way to the surprise denouement. Adam Kingston is a likeable guy with a wall of memories that he can't bring himself to dismantle and Brenda McCort is a tough city cop who has seen it all, and then some. Together they make a memorable team - could there be more than just a working relationship in their future? So, grab a cup of coffee and a chocolate doughnut, sit back, and enjoy. Hopefully, your memory of a murder is as good as mine!

Earl Staggs has published many short stories and has piled up numerous writing awards, including a "Derringer Award" for best Short Mystery Story in 2002; was named finalist for the 2003 "Derringer Award"; and has received a "Pushcart Prize" nomination and the "Kathy Clarey Mystery Writer Memorial Award" for Best First Chapter. Staggs has served as FUTURES MYSTERY ANTHOLOGY MAGAZINE Managing Editor and as President of the SHORT MYSTERY FICTION SOCIETY. He is Mr. Short Story. Adam Kingston is a former FBI agent who has a strange gift after a nasty injury. He is a true clairvoyant, and his newfound fame also sets him up as a target for an old and particularly nasty enemy. Kingston is also recovering from the loss of his wife, with his good friends acting as cheerleaders. When a new string of murders erupts, he is once again caught in the law enforcement net. An amnesiac homeless man named Chip appears at his door asking him to use his expertise to untangle an old family murder that he thinks he may have committed. But before Adam can uncover any real clues, Chip is shot as they leave the front entrance of the Colonial Towers after a breakfast meeting: "Chip groaned and tried to turn over. Adam helped him. Now lying on his back, Chip's hands clutched tightly into his own stomach. Blood seeped through his fingers. His teeth were clenched, and his face contorted in pain. He muttered, 'I think I've been shot. Jesus Christ, Adam, somebody shot me.'" Earl Staggs has a way with juxtaposing completely creepy characters with the flawed but nice guy cops. Adam Kingston is a wounded good ex-agent trying to put his life back together after the death of his wife. But with his newfound paranormal gifts, trouble just keeps coming his way. A new love slips in, not unnoticed by Adam, and that fledgling relationship has to wait for the action to cool before it can bud. Staggs takes the reader through the same pain that Adam feels, enters the bad guy's head, and manages to bring us out the other side to redemption. This is a powerful story by a writer who has honed his chops, and it shows. The plot is engaging, the action is nonstop, and the ending is quietly satisfying. Shelley Glodowski Senior Reviewer

His long time friend Ellie "the worrier" Russell wakes up former FBI Agent Adam Kingston because she has not heard from her college age son Phil in two days. Using his psychic skills, Adam tells her that his godson is fine partying in Daytona; he will tell Phil Sr. the rest of the story about his son scoring. However, he also found hanging out with Junior and his pals a disheveled longhaired bearded man much older than the college students. Not long afterward, the odd looking man arrives at Adam's home asking for help. Chip Weathers suffers from amnesia but fears he may have killed someone in Baltimore sixteen years ago; the same time and place he suffered the memory laps that his doctor claims was caused by a shocking incident he needed to forget. Baltimore Detective Brenda McCort investigates the female found in a basement dead for sixteen years. She also has a present day homicide involving a murdered man "buried" in trash bags inside the trunk of a car. Her investigations lead her to Adam in nearby Ocean City where they team up to solve homicides that surprisingly tie together though years apart and hope to prevent more murders from occurring. This fast-paced who-done-it deftly switches viewpoints from Adam, Brenda, and the killer so that the reader gains a full picture; interestingly all three have suffered from ordeals in their past that still weighs heavily on their souls; they just cope differently as their motives are clear whether they try to solve homicide cases or kill. Fans of strong paranormal police procedural investigations will take immense pleasure from this strong character driven thriller. Harriet Klausner

In Ocean City, former FBI Agent Adam Kingston has made a bit of a name for himself since he left the bureau. Thanks to a rather freakish accident, he has the ability to touch objects connected to individuals and see what has happened to them elsewhere---a sort of remote viewing. Such talent comes in handy at times, especially when the mother of his godson asks Adam to check on him. Other than a brief image of a strange unkempt longhaired bearded man, Adam Kingston sees that everything is fine with Junior. Random images often drift into the viewing of the person he is concentrating on, so he isn't that concerned about the man. But then the vision of the strange man appears in the flesh on his doorstep seeking Adam's help. Suffering from amnesia, the man who gives his name as Chip Weathers, also believes he may have committed a murder. He has seen news reports of a body that was recently discovered buried in a basement in Baltimore. The woman died approximately sixteen years ago, which was about the same time as his amnesia. According to Chip, the doctors blame his amnesia on the shock of a tragic event. Chip believes he knew the woman and killed her and wants Adam to find out who she was and why he killed her. In Baltimore, Detective Brenda McCort has her hands full. Not only is she working the female body in the basement case, she now has another body to deal with. "This time, a man shot, wrapped in black plastic trashbags and left in the trunk of a car." (Chapter 2) He hasn't been dead long and won't be the last, as her cases will lead her to Ocean City and Adam's case. Not only will they have to solve a sixteen-year-old murder case, but stop a new wake of killings based on the past. Shifting in point of view from Adam, to Brenda, to a killer who enjoys the work way too much, this novel moves forward at a rapid pace. Both primary characters have suffered major traumas making the past a heavy and recurrent theme in the work. At the same time, both have survived and by being rich in such detail, become very real to the readers. So too is the killer who, unlike in many novels, is not a cold calculating unfeeling killing machine. While he may be a product that showcases the worst society has to offer, his motivations are clear and realistic and the killer becomes just as real for the reader. As in a few other offerings I have had the pleasure of reading from this publisher, this is a quality novel. The characters are real, the story complex and changing, and Mr. Staggs performs an excellent piece of literary deception that keeps readers guessing to the end. Fans of his numerous short stories will not be disappointed and neither will those new to his work. Kevin R. Tipple (c) 2005