Mystery
Published: Presale, August 1 / Release Date: September 12
Publisher: Tirgearr Pubishing Company
Something evil has taken root in Ashland, Oregon. And with it, an uneasy feeling sweeps down on Detective Winston Radhauser. If someone doesn’t intervene, that evil will continue to multiply until the unthinkable happens.
While on vacation with his wife and their newborn son, Detective Radhauser receives a call from Captain Murphy--a high school kid has been branded with a homophobic slur and is hospitalized in Ashland, a small town known for, and proud of, its diversity. And this is only the beginning. White supremacy, homophobia and racism are one thing. But murder is something else.
Radhauser will do whatever it takes to find the perpetrators and restore his town’s sense of safety. With such hostile opposition, can he succeed and will justice be done?
Interview with Susan Clayton-Goldner
Can you tell us a
little bit about the characters in River
of Shame?
In my novel, River of Shame,
the characters were selected to help with the book’s themes of racism,
homophobia, opium addiction and white supremacy. Hunter Greer, the victim, is a
bi-racial boy, up for Valedictorian of his high school class. Hunter is an
extremely likeable character. Beloved by almost everyone—especially Detective Winston
Radhauser’s 4-year-old daughter, Lizzie. This is a particularly difficult case
for Detective Radhauser, wounded by the death of his first wife and their
13-year-old son, because Hunter works in Radhauser’s barn—helping them shovel
stalls and stack hay while his wife, Gracie, recovers for the cesarean birth of
their infant son.
Can you tell us a little bit about your next books or what you
have planned for the future?
In my next book, He
Was After All Her Father, I intend to take a break from my detective series
and write a stand-alone family drama. It
is a father/daughter story of understanding, forgiveness and ultimately love. After
that, I plan to return to write the 6th book in the Winston Radhauser
series.
How long would you say it takes you to write a book?
I am, much to my own surprise, currently writing two novels
a year. I’ve found that the process speeds up if you plot and do a step sheet
ahead of time. When I sit down to write, I know exactly what the characters
want and how hard they’ll fight to get what they want. If you orchestrate the
characters to be opposite in their desires—conflict abounds.
What is your favorite childhood book?
I had two favorites: A
Child’s Garden of Verses (poems by Robert Louis Stevenson) and Black Beauty. (Anna Sewell)
If you could spend the day with one of the characters from To Kill a Mockingbird who would it be?
Please tell us why you chose this particular character, where you would go and
what you would do.
I would like to spend a day with Atticus Finch, a man I
admire for his conviction and the way he fought hard in a battle he knew he
couldn’t win. I was moved to tears by that book—but mostly by that particular
character. He was, indeed, a great man. I would go to the courthouse with him
and cheer him on—even though he’d lose the case. Perhaps Atticus and I could
time travel into a future where the chances of a victory are so much
greater—maybe, in part, because of him.
What was the hardest scene from River of Shame to write?
There were several scenes in this book that were hard for me
to write. The white supremacy meeting was probably the most difficult because
of the way I had to crawl into the heads of people who think so differently
than I do. I had to make my detective Radhauser go under cover and pretend he
was of like mind. And I had to write dialogue that almost made me physical ill.
What made you want to become a writer?
I don’t think I decided to become a writer. I believe I was
born to be a writer. I don’t remember a time, after I learned the basics, when
I wasn’t writing. I kept diaries and journals as a child.
My father won a typewriter in a poker game when I was very
small and I taught myself to type (from the records that came with the
typewriter). I wrote a little newsletter and distributed it to the neighbors.
(As if they’d be interested in the ramblings of a 7-year-old)
Just for fun
(a Favorite song: To many to choose just one
(b Favorite book: To Kill A Mockingbird
(c Favorite movie: The African Queen
(d Favorite tv show: This is Us
(e Favorite Food: Pizza
(f Favorite drink: White Wine
(g Favorite website: Amazon
Thanks so much for
visiting with us today!
About the Author
Susan Clayton-Goldner was born in New Castle, Delaware and grew up with four brothers along the banks of the Delaware River. She has been writing poems and short stories since she could hold a pencil and was so in love with writing that she became a creative writing major in college.
Prior to an early retirement which enabled her to write full time, Susan worked as the Director of Corporate Relations for University Medical Center in Tucson, Arizona. It was there she met her husband, Andreas, one of the deans in the University of Arizona's Medical School. About five years after their marriage, they left Tucson to pursue their dreams in 1991--purchasing a 35-acres horse ranch in the Williams Valley in Oregon. They spent a decade there. Andy rode, trained and bred Arabian horses and coached a high school equestrian team, while Susan got serious about her writing career.
Through the writing process, Susan has learned that she must be obsessed with the reinvention of self, of finding a way back to something lost, and the process of forgiveness and redemption. These are the recurrent themes in her work.
After spending 3 years in Nashville, Susan and Andy now share a quiet life in Grants Pass, Oregon, with her growing list of fictional characters, and more books than one person could count. When she isn't writing, Susan enjoys making quilts and stained-glass windows. She says it is a lot like writing--telling stories with fabric and glass.
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