A day in my life? You’re asking me? What a change. Everything’s usually about Gordon, my husband. I’m Angie Mead, now Angie Mead-Hepler. I live in Mapleton, which is a small town in Colorado. Don’t bother looking; you’ll never find it on a map. I’m part owner of a diner, Daily Bread. I don’t mean to brag, but I’m well known for my cinnamon rolls. And no, I don’t give out the recipe.

Normally, I get up at 4:30 a.m. to make sure the rolls will be ready for the breakfast crowd, and then spend the day cooking and taking care of all the aspects of running a diner. Except now I’m remodeling Daily Bread, so it’s closed, which means I don’t have to get up early, and I have plenty of time to play investigator. More time than I want, because the contractor is dragging his feet. Setback after setback. He came highly recommended, but now I’m not sure he’s as good as he’s supposed to be. I know delays are normal with construction, but his seem way outside the usual. Is he responsible for the delays, or is it one of his subs? I could ask Gordon to use his law enforcement databases to help, but he’s one hundred percent ‘by the book’ so if there’s no crime, it doesn’t fall into his Chief Stuff duties. Besides, right now, Mapleton is—shall I say, recovering—from the recent mayoral and town council elections. The mayoral loser didn’t take things well, and there are questions about whether one of the newly elected councilmen has his own agenda and wants to control how Mapleton is run. Since the mayor and the town council control the budget, which pays Gordon’s salary, he’s more concerned with following those issues.

So, what am I investigating, you ask? During the remodel, I found an old trunk hidden behind a wall. I’ve been busy trying to figure out who wrote the journal that was inside. Only a first name—Lucille—and no dates, but it’s probably been there for over a hundred years. What’s piqued my interest is that Lucille mentions a mysterious Johnny, and I’m using what detective skills I’ve picked up to try to figure out who he was. It seems so … romantic. Along the way, I’ve learned a lot about Colorado history. Bet you didn’t know why Doc Holliday moved to Colorado after the OK Corral shootout.

Excuse me. I just got a text. Oh, this might be important. It’s from someone who wants to meet me at Daily Bread. Says it’s about an installation. Could this finally get things back on schedule?

DEADLY AMBITIONS
Series Name: A Mapleton Mystery, Book 15
Genre: Police Procedural Cozy Blend Mystery
Release: January 2026
Format: Print, Digital, Audio
Purchase Link

Politics, secrets, and danger—trouble never stays buried.

Peace in Mapleton doesn’t last. Police Chief Gordon Hepler is already juggling a bitter ex-mayoral candidate who refuses to accept election results and a new council member determined to cut police department’s funding.

Meanwhile, Angie’s long-delayed diner remodel uncovers an old journal, sparking her curiosity about the girl who wrote it. But as she digs for answers, is she uncovering more than she bargained for?

Now Gordon must untangle political maneuvering, personal grudges, and hidden agendas before danger closes in on the people he loves most.

DEADLY AMBITIONS delivers small-town intrigue, political tension, and page-turning suspense rooted in both history and today’s ambitions.

About the author
Although she had no aspirations of becoming a writer until well after receiving her AARP card, Terry Odell is now the author of over thirty novels, novellas, and short stories. She writes both mysteries and romantic suspense, but calls them all “Mysteries With Relationships.” Her books include the Mapleton Mystery series, the Blackthorne, Inc. Covert Ops series, the Pine Hills Police series, and the Triple-D Ranch series. A Los Angeles native, she moved to Florida where she spent thirty years in the heat and humidity, and is now enjoying life with her husband and rescue dog in the cooler and dryer climate of the Colorado Rockies, where she can watch the wildlife from her windows.