Sooner than Gold

Sheriff Tilghman is back in this small-town Pennsylvania cozy historical mystery

It’s the summer of 1898. The nation, just coming out of an economic slump, has been at war with Spain since April. And Sylvester Tilghman, sheriff of Arahpot, Jordan County, Pennsylvania, has a murder victim with too many enemies. There’s Claude, who is found standing with a knife in his hand over the body. There’s Rachel, a surly teen who admits she intended to cause harm. Then there’s the band of gypsies who claim the victim is the goryo who stole one of their young women. If this isn’t enough to complicate Tilghman’s life, add in threats to his job, a run-in with a female horse thief; scary predictions by a gypsy fortuneteller, and the theft of Doc Mariner’s new motorcar, plus, plenty of good eating, church-going and socializing. And, before all is over, Sylvester solves the crime and even comes a little closer to his goal of finally marrying longtime girlfriend Lydia Longlow.

Early Readers Say... Welcome to Arahpot, Pennsylvania, where Sheriff Sylvester Tilghman keeps the peace in his little town. Aided by a cast of recurring characters as he strives to solve the murder of a truly despicable victim, you'll appreciate his wry humor and keen intelligence--when he isn't thinking of his stomach and the wonderful meals his lady friend Lydia fixes for him.

Sooner Than Gold is a fine follow-up to Fallen From Grace, the first 1900s Sheriff Tilghman mystery. --C.K. Crigger, author of Two Feet Below and Three Seconds to Thunder

"…another pure delight. There are good guys to cheer for, bad guys to hiss at, and a shady lady or two to divert your attention just when you think you've got everything figured out…!" — Wayne D. Dundee, award-winning author of Dismal River, Reckoning at Rainrock, and the Joe Hannibal mystery series