Mystery Archives - R.W. Wallace

Posted on March 17, 2022March 6, 2022 by R.W. Wallace — Leave a comment

Piercing the Veil: Book 4 of the Ghost Detective Series

The next book in the Ghost Detective series is finally here! Robert and Clothilde continue their search for justice, this time by… interviewing the ghosts of other past victims. Because why not?

All detectives search for clues and take testimonies when working a case. Ghost detectives are no different. And they have an advantage: They can depose other ghosts — the actual victims.

Robert and Clothilde’s current interviewee occupies a tiny cemetery in the depths of the Pyrenees. Alone since her burial over a decade ago, she willingly tells the detectives about the circumstances around her death.

Louise’s story sets Robert, Clothilde, and Captain Evian on the path to uncovering new facets of the conspiracy responsible for so many deaths — bringing them one step closer to justice.

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Posted on December 16, 2021April 1, 2022 by R.W. Wallace — Leave a comment

Unfinished Business: the First Ghost Detective Collection

The last publication of the year is Unfinished Business, a collection of the five first Ghost Detective short stories.

It contains Just Desserts, Lost Friends, Family Bonds, Common Ground, and Till Death.

When someone dies with unfinished business, their souls linger until they find closure.

A rather tall order when the ghost is stuck within the confines of the cemetery, with minimal means to affect the world of the living.

Robert and Clothilde know their way around the limitations, though. While waiting for their own release, they help the other ghosts deal with their unfinished business and find peace.

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Posted on November 28, 2021December 5, 2021 by R.W. Wallace — 1 Comment

Holiday Spectacular: The Case of the Disappearing Gingerbread City

I have the great pleasure to have a story in WMG Publishing’s Holiday Spectacular again this year. This time, it’s a mystery, albeit a weird one (which is why the editor, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, placed it in the A Weird Holiday Season anthology).

I’m allowed to share the story for free for one week after its appearance in the calendar, so here it is, for you enjoyment!

If you want to read all the stories of the calendar (and why wouldn’t you? 38 wonderful holiday stories!), you can still sign up right here. They’ll catch you up on all the stories that have already been published.

The inhabitants of Bergen, Norway take their gingerbread constructions very seriously, especially when it comes to their beloved pre-Christmas Gingerbread City. When calamity struck the sweet sculptures in 2009, a literal witch hunt spread throughout the country as they searched for the culprit.

Years later, police officer Ingelin receives a pre-dawn call, informing her somebody stole the train station, part of the docks, and the Eiffel Tower.

Fearing a repeat of 2009, Officer Ingelin knows she must solve the case before the media catches the story — even if it means treating the investigation like a serial killer manhunt.

Missed the Story?

There’s still time to sign up for the entire calendar (they have a catch-up sequence). Then the story will be available when the entire anthology comes out next summer!

Remember, if you want to try out one of my Ghost Detective stories, you can get the first one for free through my newsletter!

Posted on November 1, 2021November 3, 2021 by R.W. Wallace — Leave a comment

Halloween Spectacular: Free Ghost Detective story

I have the great pleasure of having a story in the 2021 Halloween Spectacular. The deal is you get one short story per day, right in your inbox, over a week around Halloween.

Heritage

On the Day of the Dead, families decorate the cemetery’s tombstones with chrysanthemums of all colors according to French tradition.

Even amid the rainbow of petals, one grave stands out. The last resting place of the young man who died six months ago. His mother brings him roses, while lamenting that her son’s “not there.”

As the resident ghosts, Robert and Clothilde can indeed confirm his absence in the afterlife — but it may not be for the usual reasons.

Missed the story?

I could only leave the story up for free for a few days, but not to worry, you can get the whole Halloween Spectacular anthology, starting November 4th.

Posted on October 14, 2021October 13, 2021 by R.W. Wallace — Leave a comment

A Thief in the Night

For this month’s release, we have another collection of short stories. As usual, some take place in France, some in Norway.

And they’re all a little weird. (Also, as usual, I think…)

What makes a mystery intriguing? Which element makes the investigators’ sixth sense rear up and say this crime will stand out in their memories forever?

Dozens of crabs pushing a man to jump from his balcony should do the trick. Or an island’s one of two inhabitants eating rat poison with his cereal. How about an octagonarian going after internet trolls? An experienced kayaker surprised by bad weather? Or a jail break creating unimaginable damage with a slight miscalculation.

All of the above are covered in A Thief in the Night. Contains the short stories Critters, Two’s Company, Gertrude and the Trojan Horse, Like Mother Like Daughter, and The Red Brick Haze.

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Posted on September 16, 2021April 1, 2022 by R.W. Wallace — Leave a comment

The Third Book in the Ghost Detective Series is Out

Robert and Clothilde keep looking for the people responsible for their death, and keep running into other ghosts who need their help.

In this third installement of the Ghost Detective series, they continue their search in the company of Captain Evian, while dealing with Constantine, the not-quite-stable ghost that haunts the pretty neighbor’s bedroom.

While it’s not the end of the series, like the other volumes, it has an end. Next month’s release will not be in this series, but there is more to come in the future!

Captain Emeline Evian reluctantly finds her neighbor’s guest bedroom a near-idyllic setting for speaking with the dead — even if the ghost she aims to help is, well, resistant.

On the other end of Evian’s Ouija board, Ghost Detective Robert and his rebellious friend Clothilde do their best to contain the unpredictable Constantine and help this old, worn soul find peace — all while investigating their own decades-old cold cases in an elusive search for justice.

Can the ghost detective finally settle his own unfinished business? Will Clothilde allow them to take a deep dive into her past?

Beneath the Surface is the third novel in the Ghost Detective series, following Robert and Clothilde in their ceaseless search for closure.

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Posted on August 19, 2021August 19, 2021 by R.W. Wallace — Leave a comment

The Search for Justice Continues

This month’s release is Unveiling the Past, book 2 of the Ghost Detective novel series. I’ve been working on these books for awhile now, and I’m so very happy they’re finally out in the world.

Feel free to let me know what you think!

Not everyone can attend their own funeral. Not consciously and calmly, anyway.

Even Robert, a long-time ghost and something of a pro when it comes to final rites, finds it disconcerting. In the company of his long-time friend and fellow ghost Clothilde, Robert watches as his mother accompanies his remains to the grave — thirty years after his demise.

But why does Clothilde’s frail old uncle do the same? Does he know about the link between Clothilde and Robert’s deaths?

A funeral won’t put the past to rest — only solving the mystery of their own murders can bring closure.

And Uncle Lucien seems to hold vital clues…

Unveiling the Past is the second novel in the Ghost Detective series, following Robert and Clothilde in their continued search for justice.

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Posted on July 15, 2021July 14, 2021 by R.W. Wallace — Leave a comment

First Book in a New Series!

This month, I’m releasing the first book of my new mystery series, the Ghost Detective novels! These books follow Clothilde and Robert, the main characters from my Ghost Detective short stories, as they find a way to get out of the cemetery and go after the people who killed them thirty years ago.

If you haven’t read any of the Ghost Detective stories yet, you can pick up the first one for free through my newsletter.

If you have read them, well, I hope you’re as curious as me about finding out what happened to these two back in the eighties. I first thought the story would be another short story, only to discover it was an entire series of novels… I’m having a blast writing them, and the next two volumes are ready to go live in August and September!

Another short story is published today: Common Ground. The ebook should be up for free on most retailers (if it isn’t, try Kobo). It’s another Ghost Detective story, and it’s kind of a prologue to Beyond the Grave. So feel free to start with that one!

The forever rebellious Clothilde’s gravestone only mentions her first name and date of death. A small bump in the ground next to her grave marks former police officer Robert’s last resting place.

And in thirty years, no visitors for either of them.

Confined within the cemetery borders and yearning for closure to move on, the two ghosts can’t go after the people who killed them.

Until Clothilde receives her very first visitor — and along with it, the means to escape the cemetery.

Beyond the Grave is the first novel in the Ghost Detective series, following Robert and Clothilde in their search for justice.

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Posted on June 17, 2021June 16, 2021 by R.W. Wallace — Leave a comment

Kicking Off With a Collection

At one point in the past year, I signed up for a publishing challenge. Publish one book per month for a year. I know, I know, it sounds kind of crazy.

But the thing is, I have a certain number of books that I had the intention of getting out there, but I just wasn’t getting around to it. So I figured this challenge could be the kick in the butt I needed.

I have short story collections coming up, a new Ghost Detective novel series, at least one romance novel… All twelve ducks aren’t lined up yet, but I’ll get there. And I hope you’ll come along for the ride!

June marks the start date. A collection of mystery short stories has the honor of coming first:

Deep Dark Secrets

We all keep secrets. Sometimes our own, sometimes others’. Sometimes we keep them consciously, sometimes our subconscious does the hard work for us.

But at some point, the truth will come out. It may get us in trouble, it may save us.

What is absolutely certain: it will bring change.

Deep Dark Secrets is a collection of five mystery short stories: Hidden Horrors, Out of Sight, Cold Blue Eternity, Sitting Duck, and Just Desserts.

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Posted on November 26, 2020November 26, 2020 by R.W. Wallace — Leave a comment

Cold Blue Eternity: A Mystery Short Story

Another short story is out! This one’s mostly mystery, set in the French Alps, but with a fantasy element.

Cold Blue Eternity

In a tiny village perched at the foot of a great glacier in the French Alps, a specific brand of crazy haunts its inhabitants.

An old lady bakes poisoned cookies. A man robs the bank every time he sets foot inside the doors. A woman tries to murder her husband whenever he cooks.

All manageable.

Until now.

Old legends. Repeating crimes. A melting glacier. Cold Blue Eternity takes the search for answers right into the belly of the beast.

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