I’ve always been the black sheep of the family, you know, living on the edge and doing my best to get some well-deserved attention. Let me tell you, it wasn’t easy because my older sister, Lucy, seemed perfectly in tune with what Mom and Dad wanted in a daughter.

I suppose what happened is that as the youngest kid, I got lost in the shuffle of everyone’s busy lives. Lucy teasingly called me little Frannie foo-foo. I’d get upset and cause trouble, of course. That’s how I learned that when I acted out, I finally got noticed.

That set the pattern for my life and I learned to do exactly the opposite of what Lucy did. She was inquisitive, bright, and well accomplished. After high school, she went on to college and became a teacher, then taught at Moose Creek Elementary School. She married a real nice guy, had one son, and became a pillar of the community.

I was bored, ornery, and got in trouble. A lot. I became a teen mother and got hitched to my high school sweetheart, Dan Lightfoot. After the two of us barely graduated high school, we took our infant daughter and headed for California. Well, that was a mistake. The guy made my life miserable. After our divorce, I moved back to the small town of Moose Creek, Wyoming, with my teenage daughter, Eva, in tow. It sounded good: Hometown. Family. A fresh future.

Lucy and I buried the hatchet and laughed off our troubled early years. We opened The Saucy Lucy Café in the old Victorian home we inherited from our parents. These days we serve the townspeople hearty, home-cooked meals. I’m having a blast researching recipes for new soups, stews, breads, and muffins. It’s amazing how you can throw a bunch of ingredients into a crockpot and come up with a delicious meal!

Not too long ago, Lucy encouraged me to start dating again. For the record, I wasn’t too keen on the idea, but I finally relented and accompanied her friend Henry Whitehead to the carnival. The next morning, to my utter shock, I found him stabbed to death, a broken jar of Saucy Lucy Café huckleberry jam leaking purple goo beside him.

Man, it was enough for me to manage my own messed up life and try to help my daughter through her teenage angst. Now this!

Lucy’s husband, Sheriff Otis Parnell, is immediately on the job, doing his best to solve the murder mystery. Since our little burg doesn’t typically have to deal with homicide, he requested support from the Westonville Police Department. Westonville, a larger neighboring city, sent Detective Gabe Stevenson to lend a hand. The tall, athletically built man is very professional, I discovered. And he’s very handsome, which makes his presence in town quite a bonus.

But I digress. After some serious research, my sister and I have developed theories about who may have murdered poor Henry. However, Gabe and Otis have urged us not to get involved. Hah! How could we not get wrapped up in this, especially now that the police have begun to suspect me of Henry’s murder?

I have to clear my good name. Or at least die trying. Hopefully, it doesn’t come to that…

Huckleberry Homicide, A Fran Lightfoot Mystery Book 1
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Release: October 2024
Format: Print, Digital
Purchase Link

When life gets crazy for Fran Lightfoot, she moves home to the small town of Moose Creek, Wyoming, teenage daughter in tow. It sounds good: Hometown. Family. A fresh future.

Fran and her sister Lucy open a small business, The Saucy Lucy Café, in an old Victorian home they have inherited. The soups, stews, breads, and muffins they serve offer townspeople hearty, home-cooked meals.

While rebuilding her life, Fran begins dating Henry Whitehead. However, after their first outing, she finds him stabbed to death. The incident upsets everyone in Moose Creek, especially when people realize a murderer now walks the streets.

Detective Gabe Stevenson is called in from a larger, neighboring city to assist Moose Creek’s Sheriff Otis Parnell with the investigation. Fran and Lucy develop theories about who the culprit may be, however, Gabe and Otis urge the sisters not to get involved.

At first, the police suspect Fran of Henry’s murder, although she insists that she had nothing to do with it. When someone begins to threaten Fran’s life, she and Lucy are determined to help law enforcement bring the murderer to justice.

Even if it means putting themselves in harm’s way.

Meet the author
Born in Portland, Oregon, Cindy has lived all over the United States and lived five years in Misawa, Japan. She has visited Canada, the Philippines, Samoa, Hawaii, both the western and eastern Caribbean and New Zealand. From baby alligators to glow worms, Cindy has seen a variety of life’s wonders.

Currently, she lives in Cheyenne, Wyoming, where Cheyenne Frontier Days is held each year. CFD’s well-known rodeo is often referred to as the “Daddy of ‘em all.” Over the years, she has won or placed in various writing contests. She has also written for and edited numerous newsletters. Her non-fiction magazine articles have been featured in “True West” and “Wild West.” She was a book critic for Storyteller Alley and is a freelance editor. Although retired from Laramie County School District 1’s Community Relations office, she still contributes articles for the district’s annual magazine, “Elevate,” which has a circulation of approximately 47,000 readers. Learn more about Cindy and her writing on her website at cindykeenreynders.com and find her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.