by James P. Maywar

The year is 1919. It has been six years since Toby and Mary Sharpe, Sylvia Pointe, John Gressley, and Bill Boyd worked together to solve a murder and expose an international kidnapping ring. During those six years, each of them experienced significant events in their personal lives. Sylvia Pointe no longer works for the Port Huron police department thus creating a marriage opportunity for herself and John Gressley. Bill Boyd is now in charge of the Port Huron Star (italics) newspaper. Toby and Mary Sharpe are dealing with the emotional stress caused by the death of their youngest child.

As they deal with these changes, their lives are directly affected by the surge in racial violence occurring throughout the U.S. Bill Boyd, Sylvia Pointe, and Mary Sharpe find themselves threatened by members of the Whitecaps of America, an organization promoting racial hatred.

Meanwhile, a young black man living in Port Huron, Michigan, is beaten to death. As community anxiety intensifies, Detective John Gressley and Patrolman Toby Sharpe are given the responsibility of solving the murder before tensions explode into racial conflict.

Fallen Oaks combines an exciting fictional story with rich historical detail. It is the second novel in the Blue Water Historical Mystery series.