A day in my life was disrupted by three things—my elderly neighbor, a voice in my head and a cat. Who knew they would throw me into a wild ride involving an investigation into what really happened to Ramona, a woman I tutored for her GED?

Let’s start with my neighbor. Mrs. Wilkens is eighty-something and lives upstairs from me. On this day, she swept into my apartment while I was languishing on the couch binge watching reruns of NCIS. Normally I spend most of my summer teaching recalcitrant fifth graders that no one else wants to teach for the Minneapolis school system. This year they cut the summer school budget and instead of a day full of raucous ten-year-olds, I found myself deep into season five of the series. That is, until Mrs. Wilkens burst through the doorway demanding that we do something about Ramona, her sort of step niece who was missing.

Then comes item number two—the voice in my head. I’m pretty certain I’m not crazy, but Charlee, my dead twin shows up from time to time to goad me into things I don’t want to do. Charlee and I are identical twins. I was born first—Elizabeth Catherine Johnson and she was my junior, Charlotte Lee. But Charlee died when I was four. My mother told me at the time that Charlee would always be with me in my heart. She didn’t mention that she’d also be with me in my head. On this day, Charlee popped up and said, Help Mrs. Wilkens. You know it’s the right thing.

With a long sigh, I drove Mrs. Wilkens over to Ramona’s rundown apartment building in a rundown part of town. The area was filled with flashing lights and emergency vehicles. Ramona had been found dead of a possible overdose.

This is the part where the cat comes in. Goldie is Ramona’s rescue cat, a scrappy animal with a torn ear from her life on the streets. Unfortunately, Goldie needed a home and Mrs. Wilkens and Charlee conspired to have her live with me. I long ago vowed never to have a pet after I lost Foskie the classroom gerbil in the heating ducts of our house one holiday vacation. But Charlee insisted. Take the cat. She can help you.

(Funny how animals can grow on you if they stay out of the heating system.)

Between Mrs. Wilkens, Charlee and Goldie my summer was about to take a journey that would send me into an investigation into Ramona’s murder, with Goldie as the only witness.

The Death of Goldie’s Mistress, A Liza and Mrs. Wilkens Mystery Book #1
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Release: March 2024
Format: Print, Digital
Purchase Link

Liza Johnson, at loose ends on summer break from teaching fifth grade, is drawn into intrigue when her 84-year-old neighbor, Mrs. Wilkens, insists that Ramona, Liza’s former GED student, has been murdered. Everyone assumes Ramona, a recovering addict, died of an accidental or intentional overdose, but Mrs. Wilkens is out to prove them wrong. Liza is urged to act when the voice in her head of her twin sister Charlee, who died at age four, tells her, Help Mrs. Wilkens. Spurred by the irrepressible Mrs. Wilkens and Charlee, Liza finds herself embroiled in an investigation involving a failing church, a very ill pastor’s wife, and a secret within the walls of the parish house. Adding to the intrigue, she becomes the begrudging caretaker of Goldie, Ramona’s cat-the only witness to her death.

About the author
Linda Norlander is the author of two mystery series. A Cabin by the Lake mystery series is set in Northern Minnesota. Death of a Dream Catcher, the fifth in the series, will be published in May 2024. The first book in the Liza and Mrs. Wilkens Mysteries, Death of Goldie’s Mistress was published in March. A new mystery, And The Lake Will Take Them is scheduled for release in March 2025. She is also the author of the award-winning short humor, short stories, and several books on end-of-life care. She can be found at lindanorlander.com. Norlander lives in Tacoma, Washington with her spouse.