Margaret Maron

Margaret Maron grew up on a farm outside Raleigh, North Carolina but also lived in New York City for many years. Her dual residency gives her the experience to write convincingly of the adventures of Deborah Knott, District Judge of Colleton County, NC and NYPD Lt. Sigrid Harald. The Knott series evolved when Maron returned to her North Carolina roots with her artist-husband, Joe. The first in the series, Bootlegger's Daughter swept the mystery awards-an Edgar, Agatha, Anthony, and Macavity.

As opposite as can be, the emotional and impulsive Knott is the product of a large, loving family with eleven brothers; while Harald is a stoic loner and daughter of a Pulitzer-Prize winning photojournalist and a police officer who died in the line of duty when she was a toddler.

Maron explains her path as a writer:

From the time I was a little girl and first realized there was a connection between ordinary people and the printed page, I have wanted to write. I was born and bred in North Carolina, dropped out of college to marry a naval officer I met while working in the Pentagon, then lived in Italy and New York for the next few years until we returned to my family's homeplace. We had a son, life was full, yet all the time, I kept promising myself that I was going to be a writer 'someday.'

Eventually, with the passing years, I realized that if I didn't get down to it, the dream would never happen on its own. Poetry was my first love and continues to enchant me, but when I began writing seriously, short stories seemed to be my natural form. For the first twelve years of my professional life, it never occurred to me that I could write books. I was totally intimidated by the long form. But circumstances prevailed. The short story market dried up in the late '70s and I backed into the novel by doubling a short story three separate times until I finally had enough pages to call it a book.

For more information on the author and news of upcoming books and appearances check out her website: www.margaretmaron.com.

Judge Deborah Knott Series:

Bootlegger's Daughter (1992) Fic/Mar ***
In this first novel in the series, Deborah Knott runs for district court judge and becomes immersed in an old unsolved murder. As the youngest child and only daughter of an ex-bootlegger, her family relations both help and hinder her political ambitions.

Southern Discomfort (1993) Fic/Mar ***
Working on a house for a homeless family, Knott is attacked. When the assailant is found murdered, her brother is a suspect and Knott's investigative skills kick in.

Shooting at Loons (1994) Fic/Mar ***
Traveling to the Carolina coast for a judicial appointment, Knott finds murder and falls for a game warden lurking nearby.

Up Jumps the Devil (1996) Fic/Maron
Developers snatching up farmland in Knott's beloved Colleton County and a skeleton from her past emerge when an old friend and a redneck clan are accused of murder.

Killer Market (1997) Fic/Maron ***
A working visit to High Point, NC that is hosting the International Home Furnishings Market leads Knott to discover a corpse in a showroom.

Home Fires (1998) Fic/Maron ***
Campaigning for re-election, Judge Knott visits an African-American church that is later torched. Knott investigates the arson, and related murder, while forging new connections.

Storm Track (2000) Fic/Maron **, ***
Against the backdrop of a raging hurricane, Knott looks into the murder of Lynn Bullock, a local nurse and notoriously cheating wife, found strangled with her own black lingerie in the Orchid Motel.

Uncommon Clay (2001) Fic/Maron **, ***
Maron interweaves the beauty and history of Carolina pottery in this mystery involving a long-time potter family facing extinction.

Slow Dollar (2002) Fic/Maron
When the carnival comes to town and a concessionaire is murdered, Knott uncovers an unexpected connection to her own family.

Bloody Kin (1985) Fic/Mar
The title is a prequel to the Deborah Knott series with some similarities in setting and characters.

Lt. Sigrid Harald Series:

One Coffee With (1982) Fic/Mar
Death of a Butterfly (1984) Fic/Mar
Death in Blue Folders (1985) Fic/Mar
The Right Jack (1987) *
Corpus Christmas (1989) Fic/Mar
Fugitive Colors (1995) Fic/Maron
Baby Doll Games (1995) *
Past Imperfect (1991) *
Shoveling Smoke: selected mystery stories (1997) Fic/Maron

* Please request at the Information Services Desk.
** Also available as CD audio book
*** Also available as cassette audio book