Jonathan Stride is the sleuth in the “Jonathan Stride” series. One of the best ways to learn about a person is by asking questions. So, let’s get to know Jonathan.
What is your full name?
My name is Jonathan Stride. My parents didn’t believe in middle names. They always said two names were plenty for a Minnesotan.
How old are you?
I passed the half-century mark a couple of years ago. Hard to believe.
What is your profession?
I’m the lieutenant in charge of the Detective Bureau in the Duluth Police Department.
Do you have a significant other?
I was married for a long time to a woman named Cindy. She passed away from cancer nearly a decade ago. I’ve since re-married.
What is their name and profession?
Serena Stride — formerly Dial — is my wife. She’s a cop like me, originally from Las Vegas. I met her during an investigation that had its roots down there.
Do you have any children?
I have no kids — but Serena and I now share our home with a teenager named Cat Mateo.
Do you have any siblings?
No siblings.
Are your parents nearby?
My parents are both deceased.
Who is your best friend?
My best friend for most of my life was a doctor named Steve Garske. He just passed away.
Do you have any pets?
No pets.
What town do you live in?
The frozen north of Duluth, Minnesota.
Would you say you live in a small town or a big city?
That’s actually a good question. I tell people that Duluth is really a small town dressed up like a big city.
Type of dwelling and do you own or rent?
Serena and I own a little cottage on Lake Superior in an area called The Point — a finger of land that juts out between the lake and the harbor.
What is your favorite spot in your home?
Our back porch looking toward the dunes.
Favorite meal and dessert?
A couple of times a week, you’ll find me at Sammy’s Pizza downtown. Best pizza in the world. Serena and I don’t usually eat dessert.
Do you have any hobbies?
I struggle with hobbies. The fact is, I like to work. People tell me I need hobbies. We’ll see.
What is your favorite vacation spot?
If I take time off, which doesn’t happen very often, I’m most likely to go camping on the North Shore.
What music do you listen to?
I’ve always been a country music fan — Sara Evans in particular. Serena thinks I have a little bit of a crush on her, and she may be right about that.
Do you have a favorite book?
One of these days, I’ll find time to read. Most days, I pick up a book, and then the phone rings.
What is your idea of a really fun time?
Sitting by the lake with my wife and watching the waves roll in.
If you were to write a memoir, what would you call it?
I really can’t see myself writing a memoir. My work is about other people, and my private life is my private life.
Amateur or professional sleuth and whom do you work with?
I’m a cop. There’s no such thing as an amateur sleuth. That only happens in books.
What does a typical day look like when you are on a case?
I get to the office before dawn most days. I like that first hour of darkness when I can drink coffee and be by myself. Once the sun comes up, then I’m usually all over town. The last place a detective should be is at his desk.
Funeral for a Friend is the tenth book in the “Jonathan Stride” police procedural, released September 22, 2020.
You’re safe, Stride. I found the body at the Deeps. I buried him.
Jonathan Stride’s best friend, Steve Garske, makes a shocking deathbed confession: he protected Stride by covering up a murder. Hours later, the police dig up Steve’s yard and find a body with a bullet hole in its skull.
Stride is pretty sure he knows who it is. Seven years ago, an out-of-town reporter disappeared while investigating anonymous allegations of rape against a prominent politician. Back then, the police believed that the reporter drowned at a dangerous swimming hole called the Deeps but the discovery of the body changes everything. Now Stride’s partner, Maggie Bei, is forced to ask Stride an uncomfortable question: Did you kill him?
Stride is obviously hiding things. He was the last person to see the reporter alive. And he admits lying to Maggie about that meeting, but won’t tell her why. With suspicion in the murder pointing at him, Stride finds himself off the case and on leave from the Duluth Police.
His only ally in clearing his name is his wife, Serena, who retraces the reporter’s investigation into the explosive allegations. The clues all point to a hot Duluth summer years earlier that everyone in town would prefer to forget.
Someone was willing to kill rather than let those long-ago secrets come out, and the suspect with the strongest motive is Stride.
Purchase Link
# # # # # # # # # # #
About the author
Brian Freeman (bfreemanbooks.com) is a New York Times bestselling author of more than twenty psychological thrillers. His latest in the Jonathan Stride series, Funeral for a Friend, was released September 22. Brian’s stand-alone novel Spilled Blood won the award for Best Hardcover Novel in the ITW Thriller Awards, and he has also taken over the Jason Bourne series for the Robert Ludlum estate.
All comments are welcomed.