Kathryn Wall's SC Lowcountry

Kathryn Wall retired with her husband to Hilton Head, after living and working in the northeast and mid-western US. She set her Bay Tanner mysteries in the South Carolina lowcountry. The first novel in the series, In for a Penny, was self-published. A regional publisher reprinted it and published a second. Then, a St. Martin’s Press editor visiting relatives in nearby Beaufort discovered the novels and offered Kathy a contract. Since that time, eleven more Bay Tanner books have appeared. Kathy’s website features a photo gallery of places her protagonist might encounter, including an artist’s rendering of Bay’s ancestral home.

An Upstate Excursion

I thoroughly enjoyed speaking to the Upstate Sisters in Crime chapter about writing short stories. The presentation took place at the Runway Cafe, next to the Greenville airport.

Runway Cafe

A number of the members wrote short stories, so we had an interactive session, trading lots of good information. While in Greenville, I had the opportunity to visit Fiction Addiction, an independent bookstore on the Eastside, and meet the owner Jill Hendrix.

Fiction Addiction

I dined at Mary’s at Falls Cottage and Passerelle (the French word for “footbridge”), a casual bistro in Falls Park. The downtown area was vibrant with young folks and families.

Yet Another Vicarious Beach Vacation with Linda Lovely

Linda Lovely, an author from the Upstate South Carolina, has a series featuring Marley Clark, a retired military intelligence officer working security for a Sea Island community. In Dear Killer, Marley must find out who left Stew naked in a Jacuzzi full of vegetables. The 52-year-old Marley gets to mix work with attraction when hunky forty-something Deputy Braden Mann is assigned to the case. No Wake Zone is the second in the series. Both are available in audio format. With Neighbors Like These is due out later this year. Linda also writes the “Smart Women, Dumb Luck” romantic thriller series.

Another Vicarious Beach Vacation with Kendel Lynn

Another vicarious beach vacation series is Kendel Lynn's Elliott Lisbon mysteries. Elli is director of the nonprofit Ballentyne Foundation located on Sea Pine Island, which closely resembles Hilton Head, SC.

While handling the Ballentyne's events, Elli's also a PI-in-training, tackling discreet inquiries for board members that lead her into delightfully funny trouble.

The first novel, Board Stiff, was nominated for an Agatha Award, and the second, Whack Job, had Elli seeking an elusive Faberge egg. For a change of locale, check out the prequel novella in Other People Baggage, where Elli travels to Texas to accept ownership of a town.