Silent Winter Solstice (A Beth and Evie Mystery)

Nothing speaks of murder and mystery more than a body discovered and then gone missing. Library assistant Beth Williams faces a special conundrum when this happens to her in Silent Winter Solstice, a cozy historical mystery set in a small town in Northwestern Minnesota in the late 1960s.

It is a few days before Christmas when Beth makes her discovery. Apollo 8 is on course for the moon, and anything seems possible. Beth has just broken up with Ernie, after realizing she doesn’t want to be a doctor’s wife after all, and is now living independently from her parents for the first time.

As the Apollo 8 landing creates attention and excitement, Beth struggles with her own special conundrums, which nicely juxtaposes with the cozy family atmosphere that Bonnie Oldre cultivates: “Soon, her mind wandered from the picture on the TV screen to wonder about Crystal. Had she been imagining things? Was she still alive, out there, somewhere? Beth didn’t believe it but, if she was, would she go back to living with Allen in that sleazy whorehouse? The poor girl…Beth tuned back in as the voice of one of the astronauts described the moon as “foreboding…stark…unappetizing.” He sounds homesick for Earth, she thought. I bet he wonders if he’ll ever get home again. She glanced around her, appreciating the cozy family scene. As the half-hour program neared its end, the three astronauts took turns reading from the book of Genesis in the Bible. Beth leaned over and tapped her father’s foot to wake him. He wouldn’t want to miss this.”

This atmospheric detail is part of what makes Silent Winter Solstice especially appealing. Under the snowy layers of a December family setting lays the threat of a murder and a perp who enters Beth’s life to track her movements and alter her perceptions.

As she and best friend Evie Hanson pursue the truth, books, libraries, and small town and family interests alike converge on the holidays to introduce a special flavor of murder and mystery to everyone’s lives.

-Midwest Book Review

An atmospheric and immersive tale that provides plenty of mystery, suspense and danger…

Set in 1968 in Davison City in North Minnesota, Oldre’s debut installment in the A Beth and Evie Mystery series is atmospheric and intricate, with a well-crafted cast of cool characters and an authentic feel. Trying to begin afresh after her breakup, 30-year-old Beth Williams is back in her hometown, successfully juggling a job as a Library Assistant and graduate school. But when she finds the body of a young girl that disappears later, it’s just the beginning of a complicated cat-and-mouse game between Beth, with her best friend Evie Hanson at her side and the killer. Oldre is at ease mixing usual genre tropes to produce a fast-paced mystery. The pacing never sags as she takes readers down a winding road of unseen twists and turns. Both Beth and Evie are engaging: Oldre gives them enough gut and intelligence to make them an endearing pair of amateur sleuths that readers wouldn’t help but root for. A thoroughly engrossing tale, packed with abundant twists, shocking revelations, and high-stake dangers.

-A Prairie’s Book Review

About the Author

From an early age, I loved books. One of my prized childhood possessions was my library card. I remember hours spent at the library, happily turning pages with fingers wrinkled by summer hours playing in the adjacent city swimming pool. While reading, I was transported to a whole new world of adventure and information. I was interested in everything. Some of my favorites included the Hardy Boys and Sherlock Holmes stories, and later, Agatha Christie’s novels. A poem published in my high-school student anthology was my first publishing credit. It sparked a life-long passion for writing. After earning a degree in English Literature from the University of Minnesota, my first publishing-related job was copy-editing church bulletins in the morning and delivering them in the afternoon! I also volunteered as a writer and editor for our neighborhood newspaper and even sold a couple of short stories. But, practical concerns sent me to graduate school. I earned an MLIS and spent the next couple of decades working as a librarian. The desire to write never diminished and ultimately propelled me into taking writing classes at the Loft Literary Center and the University of Minnesota. A life-long resident of Minnesota, my husband and I have two grown sons and a tribe of grandchildren. We, and our pet cat, Chocolate, live in Minneapolis Minnesota.