I’m Detective Matthias Honeywell of the Erie Bureau of Police in northwestern Pennsylvania. I grew up in Oklahoma but have lived here for the last 22 years. I’ve been a cop all my adult life and a detective for the last four years.

Today started out normal, if any day in the life of a police detective could be considered normal. I live in a loft apartment above a neighborhood bar only a couple of blocks from the station, which allows me to walk to work. I left early, stopped at my favorite coffee shop for the only good cup of the day. The stuff in the break room will keep me alert but taste? I swear one of the guys throws an old sneaker in with the brew.

My next stop is the department’s newly remodeled gym. It has better equipment than the one I used to pay to join. I build up a sweat working out on the heavy bag and weights, then hit the shower. By then, it’s time to head upstairs to Major Crimes. My partner, Detective Cassie Malone, is already at her desk. No surprise. She gives me grief about being late. I’m not. But it’s just what she does. The truth is we work well together. We may come at a case from different directions, but we help put a lot of bad guys in jail. It works.

As I said, the day started out normal enough. We follow up on an armed robbery case we’re working. We spend a few hours working a missing persons case involving a pre-teen, at which point the missing kid walked into the room wondering what the fuss was about. His mother didn’t know whether to hug him or throttle him. Lucky for him, we were there so Mom abandoned the second option. At least until later.

Which is when “normal” goes out the window. Our lieutenant orders us to a home invasion call on South Shore Drive. I hate home invasions. And this is our second of the week.

To be continued in Where the Guilty Hide.

Where the Guilty Hide, A Detective Honeywell Mystery #1
Genre: Traditional, Police Procedural
Release: January 2023
Format: Digital and Print soon to come
Purchase Link

On the shore of Lake Erie, Pennsylvania, a body lays half hidden, the waves slowly moving it with the rising tide…

In the early morning mist, freelance photographer Emma Anderson takes pictures of the rocky coastline. She moved to Erie to escape a past that haunts her but the last thing she expects to capture is a dead body.

Erie City Police Detective Matthias Honeywell has been investigating a spate of home invasions but when one of the robbery victims turns up dead, his case evolves into homicide. Emma’s first encounter with Detective Honeywell leaves her shaken when he reminds her of her ex-fiancé-turned-stalker. Matthias misinterprets Emma’s anxiety and suspects she knows more than she’s letting on.

With the threat of another murder and no obvious leads, will Emma and Matthias overcome their mutual distrust and work together to capture a killer?

For fans of Ann Cleeves, Louise Penny and Elly Griffiths.

About the author
USA Today bestseller Annette Dashofy is the author of over a dozen novels including the five-time Agatha Award nominated Zoe Chambers mystery series about a paramedic-turned-coroner in rural Pennsylvania. Her standalone novel, Death By Equine is the 2021 winner of the Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award for excellence in thoroughbred racing literature. Where the Guilty Hide (One More Chapter/HarperCollins UK, January 20, 2023) is the first in her new Detective Honeywell series set on the shores of Lake Erie.

All comments are welcomed.