When serial philanderer Rex Midland is murdered, the obvious suspect is Harold Pafton, the husband of one of Midland’s lovers, who was at the scene on the day of the murder. Defense attorney Mark Bellows convinces Pat Pirard, Santa Cruz Law Librarian, newly turned private investigator, to help with jury selection. She’s reluctant, partly because Bellows is a little skivvy and her new husband is not fond of him, and partly because she can’t help someone who might be guilty.

So she meets the accused, finds him worthy, and does her best to pick a jury favorable to his plight. The trouble is, as she listens to the case unfold in the courtroom, she begins to wonder if she’s been fooled by the smooth-talking lawyer. Is Pafton really guilty after all? Has she helped a murderer walk free?

She launches her own investigation and follows an unexpected trail.

I love a good courtroom drama, and What Lucy Heard delivers. In addition, you get some solid PI action with interesting surprises. I can feel the research in this book, and I learned a couple of things about jury selection and courtroom procedure.  

What Lucy Heard is a nicely paced, clearly written, noir-ish PI tale with a competent woman running the show. Loved it! What Lucy Heard is the 6^th in the series. Though I sensed backstory that must have happened in previous books, I was never lost or even bemused. This book stands solidly on its own, but I bet the others in the series are just as much fun.

Pat Pirard, Santa Cruz Law Librarian newly turned private investigator, is asked to help with jury selection. She has one condition before she agrees: she must meet the suspect and believe he’s innocent. The accused’s story about how his fingerprints got on the murder weapon and why he was at the murder scene seems so outlandish that he convinces contrarian Pat he must be telling the truth. But as she listens to testimony during the trial she fears she’s been duped and is helping a killer get away with murder. Pat’s life turns into a race to solve the crime before the jury reaches a verdict.

Once Upon a Tarot Card

✨ In which Auntie Sorchia reads each book like a tarot spread. Discover the archetypes, the transformations, and the magic inside the story.

⚖️ Justice

As you would expect in a courtroom drama, Justice is doing the heavy lifting in the story.

• Jury selection, courtroom testimony, verdicts, and the fear of freeing the guilty are literally Justice terrain.
• Pat’s moral line in the sand—she will not help someone she believes is guilty—is pure Justice ethics.
• The noir edge comes from the card’s shadow side: truth delayed, scales tipped by charm, money, or clever lawyering.

Justice here is not abstract. It’s urgent, procedural, and fragile.

🌙 The High Priestess

The High Priestess belongs to Pat Pirard herself.

• A law librarian turned PI who listens, observes, and senses when something feels wrong embodies the High Priestess perfectly.
• The title What Lucy Heard echoes the Priestess’s realm: testimony, intuition, and the power of what is spoken versus what is withheld.
• Her growing doubt—has she been fooled?—reflects the Priestess’s tension between insight and deception.

She doesn’t rush in with a gun; she listens, reads, watches, and waits.

Justice + The High Priestess tell a noir-flavored story about the uneasy balance between law and intuition. One demands evidence and procedure. The other listens for truth in silence, tone, and contradiction. Together, they capture a mystery where the right verdict depends on hearing what the court may overlook.

Breaking News

I’m jonesing for reviews for my Zoraida Grey series and as such, the whole series has been available on NetGalley. Right now, the last of the trilogy, Zoraida Grey and the Pictish Runes, is up on NetGalley.

If you want to read the first book for free, here’s a link to a free copy.

And, yes, I’m working on a new book. It’s too soon to say when it will be out, but I’m excited about the story, and this one is moving pretty quickly, so maybe by spring. The working title is Claws in the Will, so make of that as you may.