- I've wanted to be mystery writer since I was a young girl. I grew up reading mysteries, graduating from Nancy Drew and the Three Investigators in grade school to Agatha Christie in junior high to just about anything with the mystery label as an adult. I prefer cozy mysteries, but any mystery is a good one!
- I've been a cake decorator for over 35 years. I learned when I was twelve and my mother signed me up to take lessons from a neighbor who had taken the Wilton course at J.C. Penney's. Though I've toyed with the idea of opening my own shop, I don't care for the business aspect of it... I just like to be creative!
- I didn't know much about or even care for wine until about five years ago. Till then, Beringer White Zin was the height of sophistication for me. My husband and I did a wine tour throughout the state of New Mexico, visiting over 40 wineries, and won a cruise from the New Mexico Wine Growers Association promo! The best part was getting to know the winery owners, the wine makers, the people who love wine and share their love of it with those of us who are essentially clueless!
- I have three other manuscripts that have been collecting dust through the years. My husband is encouraging me to clean them up, update them, edit them, and get them published. I guess I'll try to work that into my spare time!
- I love to cook. It's another creative activity I don't get to enjoy as much as I would like. My schedule is so busy that I sometimes have to think in terms of what's fast to prepare rather than take the time to make an elaborate meal.
- I have met Pope St. John Paul II in 1991 when my brother-in-law was ordained to the priesthood in Rome. I'm a lifelong devoted Catholic with priests and nuns in the family and that visit to Rome was a highlight in my life!
- I love road trips. I especially like not having a set schedule-nothing ruins a vacation for me like having to constantly consult my watch. Someday I hope to have some extended time (and funds!) for my husband and my son and me to take a long road trip throughout the West, stopping to see whatever strikes my fancy and really enjoy and immerse myself in new places.
- I'm an amateur photographer... but I've taken all the cover photos for my four mystery novels!
- I'm a child of the '70s and '80s when it comes to music, movies, and TV... not that I have much time for movies and TV, but I always have classic rock and country playing when I'm writing or doing just about anything!
- I write because I love it as much as reading. I would write even if I never got published again. I'm certainly not in it for the money!
"At the Crossroad:
A Black Horse Campground Mystery"
Trouble often comes in threes. It's no different at the Black Horse Campground.
Amy M Bennett
On his first day as detective with the Bonney Police Department, J.D. Wilder finds three cold case files on his desk-three women who have disappeared over a fifteen year period at five year intervals. It seems that no one has ever taken the cases seriously... or even properly investigated them.
Then J.D. receives a visit from two former colleagues who inform him that he's about to receive another visitor; a woman from his past who is in trouble and needs his help. Again. The timing couldn't be worse, since he's finally about to ask Corrie on a date, but then Corrie also has a visitor from her past show up... someone who's hoping for a second chance with her. In the meantime, Sheriff Rick Sutton has his hands full dodging his ex-wife, Meghan, who insists on discussing personal business with him... business that has to do with digging up a painful past.
When three bodies are discovered that prove the missing women were murdered, J.D.'s investigation reveals that all of their visitors have some connection to the victims. But which one of them killed three women... and is prepared to kill again?
When trouble comes to Bonney County, Corrie, Rick, and J.D. band together to protect each other and their community. But can they solve the mystery before the murderer strikes again?
Excerpt from Chapter 14
J.D. returned to the Black Horse more wide awake than he had been in days. Amato's words rang in his ears, while a voice in his head warned him that if he didn't get some rest, he was going to be completely useless when the time came to have his wits about him and his energy. Still, a night spent in mostly inactivity wasn't going to allow him to rest. He went into his cabin and changed into his running clothes. He needed to release some tension and energy if he was going to rest at all.
He slipped out of the cabin, casting a glance toward the campground store. It was almost six thirty a.m. and Corrie's apartment light was on but the store's lights were still out. He had missed the Friday night fish fry dinner, but he hoped to be back once she was open and be able to talk to her more. And get a decent breakfast.
He started out, following the path he'd taken a couple days earlier. The cool morning air was amazingly refreshing, helping clear his mind while invigorating and relaxing him at the same time. His breathing eased as his strides became more purposeful. He was near a breakthrough in the cold cases. He could feel it. Officer Amato had information that could help reveal the truth about what happened to the three women. After that... he'd have to wait and see.
He rounded the curve where he had seen the small cemetery the last time he had run this path and he slowed to a stop. He had pushed it to the back of his mind and had all but forgotten about it until this moment. Now was as good a time as any to pay his respects. His run had already accomplished its purpose. He knew he'd be able to sleep when he got to his cabin and he'd probably stroll back to the campground after this. He allowed himself a grin as he left the path, picking his way through the tall grass and brush to where the grave sites were.
Unlike most small cemeteries he'd encountered, there was no fence surrounding this one. In fact, there were only three wooden markers, crosses, all of them uniform but in different stages of weathering. He stopped when he got close enough to make out the lettering and suddenly the breath rushed out of him, leaving him feeling weak and dizzy with shock.
The first marker, the most faded, bore the name Carla Sandoval. The second, Rosalie Edwards. The third, the one with the least amount of weathering and the least faded lettering, read Benita Rojas.
Beside the one for Benita Rojas was an open grave. A plain wooden cross lay nearby. Both looked recent. Only a few days recent.
J.D. stumbled back, afraid that his eyes were playing tricks. He fumbled for his cell phone and let out an expletive when he realized he'd left it in his cabin when he changed his clothes. He reached the path and took off at a dead run back to the Black Horse Campground.
He'd been right; there had been more to the disappearances than what was common knowledge.
He hated it when he was right.
Author Bio
Amy Bennett's debut mystery novel, "End of the Road", started as a National Novel Writing Month project in 2009. It went on to win the 2012 Dark Oak Mystery Contest and launched the Black Horse Campground mystery series, followed by "No Lifeguard on Duty" and "No Vacancy", which have both been awarded the Catholic Writers Guild Seal of Approval. "At the Cross Road" is the fourth book in the series.
When not sitting at the laptop actively writing, she works full-time at Walmart of Alamogordo (not too far down the road from fictional Bonney County) as a cake decorator and part-time at Noisy Water Winery in Ruidoso (where you can find some of the best wines in the state of New Mexico, including Jo Mamma's White!) She lives with her husband and son in a small town halfway between Alamogordo and Ruidoso. Visit her website at www.amymbennettbooks.com and The Back Deck Blog at http://amymbennettbooks.blogspot.com