The Hazards of the Hysterical Society

Stacks of Suspicion

Lily Jane McKenzie adores her job at the Bountyfield Public Library. Even when her kid sister Mandy gets on her last nerve.

But Mandy’s worst efforts fall far short of the dreaded quarterly meetings of the Boun County Historical Society.

When they turn up one member short, no one suspects murder.

Will Lily Jane and Mandy discover the weapon before they fall victim to the same crime?  

Originally appeared as “The Dangers of Tinkering with History” in Mystery, Crime, and Mayhem: Library Cases

An excerpt from The Hazards of the Hysterical Society

A Gruesome Specimen in Special Collections


The table was piled with books, magazines, newspapers, and highlighters, as if a herd of high school kids were pushing hard on the deadline for a research paper. All that was missing was the computers or tablets.


A black leather appointment book, manila folders, sticky notes, a rectangular magnifying glass, two of the annoying click-top blue pens all the historical society members insisted on, and two packs of yellow legal notepads shifted the scenario toward an older demographic choosing to ignore the digital age.


The overhead lighting was buzzy old fluorescents, with a harsh glare that usually gave Lily Jane an instant headache.


Today, though, her more immediate concern was her pounding heart and the queasy roil in her stomach.


Because crumpled on the tan carpet, halfway under the table, was the unmoving body of Mr. Rodney Frizell.