My name is Magnolia Louise O’Malley. The “Magnolia” came from my mother, whose Southern roots shot tendrils into my birth certificate. I’d like to say that “Louise” had an equally interesting genesis. The truth is, Pop just thought it sounded “middle name-ish.”

None of that really matters since everyone calls me Maggie. What matters is what I do. Or rather, what I’m not going to do.

I’ve been between careers. I started out as a pharmaceutical researcher, working at one of the nation’s most successful pharmaceuticals. It was a dream job. Right up until someone killed my friends then tried to kill me.

From there I worked in a lingerie shop, from which I was promptly fired. Now? I’m a pharmacy technician working at Petrosian’s Pillbox.

The plan: days at Petrosian’s, nights at the U to earn another degree that will allow me to become a pharmacist.

It’s the other side of the coin that led me to pharmaceuticals in the first place, a chance to help people from behind the counter rather than hidden away in a laboratory.

What I won’t do is get mixed up in any more mysteries. I’ve had enough of the drama. The suspicions. The injuries. The terrible images that play behind my eyelids every time I try to sleep.

Nope. I’m going to keep my head down and my nose out of everyone’s business. That’s the only way I’ll stay safe and keep out of trouble.

You can read more about Maggie in As Directed, the third book in the “Maggie O’Malley” traditional mystery series, released March 12, 2019.

In the shadow of a past fraught with danger and tainted by loss, former pharmaceutical researcher Maggie O’Malley is rebuilding her life, trading test tubes for pill bottles as she embarks on a new career at the corner drugstore.

But as she spreads her wings, things begin to go terribly wrong. A customer falls ill in the store. Followed by another. And then more.

The specter of poisoning arises, conjuring old grudges, past sins, buried secrets and new suspicions from which no one is immune.

As Maggie and her best friend Constantine begin to investigate, they discover that some of the deadliest doses come from the most unexpected places.

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About the author
Kathleen Valenti is the author of the Maggie O’Malley Mystery Series, which includes her Agatha- and Lefty-nominated debut novel, Protocol, and its acclaimed sequel, 39 Winks. When Kathleen isn’t writing page-turning mysteries that combine humor and suspense, she works as a nationally award-winning advertising copywriter. She lives in Oregon with her family where she pretends to enjoy running. Learn more at kathleenvalenti.com.

All comments are welcomed.