The Mourning of Amalie — Diane Mechem Kinser

The Mourning of Amalie is a murder mystery solved by the ghost of the murdered woman and her much-alive great niece. It offers a charming glimpse into 1915 McArthur, Ohio, a quaint logging town, and into two fascinating women and a man who, by all rights, shouldn’t be allies, let alone friends. Jessie White, a first-generation black housewife and Mariah Soloman, a middle-class white schoolteacher, unite when both receive “visits” from Amalie. Septuagenarian Jack Carey witnessed the crime in 1865 and doesn’t know it until Mariah drags him into her “investigation.” This unorthodox team solves the crime in a manner which will keep you turning pages. Historically accurate, the novel blends captivating fictional characters with true issues, which include the dangers of coal mining and the horrors of racial prejudice.