Murder on Oak Street
A South Shore Mystery
by I. M. Foster
Publication Date: November 4th, 2022
Publisher: independently published
Pages: 503
Genre: Historical Mystery
New York, 1904. After two years as a coroner’s physician for the city of New York, Daniel O’Halleran is more frustrated than ever. What’s the point when the authorities consistently brush aside his findings for the sake of expediency? So when his fiancée leaves him standing at the altar on their wedding day, he takes it as a sign that it's time to move on and eagerly accepts an offer to assist the local coroner in the small Long Island village of Patchogue.
Though the coroner advises him that life on Long Island is far more subdued than that of the city, Daniel hasn’t been there a month when the pretty librarian, Kathleen Brissedon, asks him to look into a two-year-old murder case that took place in the city. Oddly enough, the case she’s referring to was the first one he ever worked on, and the verdict never sat right with him.
Eager for the chance to investigate it anew, Daniel agrees to look into it in his spare time, but when a fresh murder occurs in his own backyard, he can’t shake his gut feeling that the two cases are connected. Can he discover the link before another life is taken, or will murder shake the peaceful South Shore village once again?
Welcome to The Coffee Pot Book Club, Inez!
Before we begin, please introduce yourself.
Hi all! My name is Inez Foster and, I’m a historian and librarian, who loves history, reading, writing, research, and digging around in my roots, genealogically speaking. I write historical mysteries under the pen name I. M. Foster, as well as historical and time travel romances under the pen name Andrea Matthews.
Could you tell us a little about your book and what inspired you to set your story during this period in time?
Murder on Oak Street is a historical mystery set in 1904. Frustrated by events in the city, our hero, Dr. Daniel O’Halleran, accepts a position working with a local coroner in the small Long Island village of Patchogue. When a murder occurs in the village, Daniel has a gut feeling it’s tied to a murder he’d investigated in New York City two years before. He was never happy with the ultimate verdict on that murder, so when librarian, Kathleen Brissedon, asks him to revisit that case for reasons of her own, he’s more than happy to oblige.
Having visited the village on many occasions, I was aware that the Patchogue-Medford Library had an extensive collection of material dating from the early twentieth century, and since I already loved the period, it seemed like the obvious choice for my novel. Being a transitional period, between the rigid etiquette of the Victorian age and the reckless abandon of the Roaring Twenties, it offered a happy medium between both eras and was far enough in the past to retain that romantic glow the distant past always seems to achieve. It reminded me of the early days of summer, when the freshness of spring remains, even as you look forward to the summer of fun spread out before you.
When researching this era, did you stumble upon any unexpected surprises?
Yes, there were only about three murders along the South Shore of Long Island in an eight year period from about 1900 to 1908. In fact, in all the United States, there weren’t more than three hundred. Daniel O’Halleran, however, will be facing a few more, if the series goes the way I hope.
Why do you think this period in history fascinates readers?
I think because it’s far enough in the past to have occurred before they were born, and yet not so far as to be unrelatable. While they didn’t have all the modern conveniences of today’s world, modernization was beginning. Steam heating, electricity, telephones, and automobiles were all coming on the scene. Wilbur and Orville had taken to the skies. And on the forensic scene, fingerprints were being evaluated as a valuable source in detection.
It's also far enough in the past to have a romantic air to it. Distance and time have a way of doing that. It was a period of innocence, or at least that’s how it’s perceived today. A new century had dawned, and with it, optimism for the future. The rigorous formality of the Victorian era was fading away, and yet, the reckless abandon of the Roaring Twenties hadn’t yet taken hold. Teddy was in the White House, peace ruled the country, and the future looked bright.
What do you think is the most challenging aspect of combining historical fiction with murder mysteries?
The first thing is maintaining a balance between the two genres. And the second is making sure your research fits the period you’re writing in. Not only do events and inventions have to be period appropriate, but so do character demeanor and speech. There’s nothing worse than hearing a character shout, “Awesome” in 1904. It tends to yank the reader right out of the world you’ve worked so hard to create. Then again, depending on the period, you can’t make it so historically authentic that the reader has no idea what anyone is talking about. Writing a novel placed during the early middle ages in old English would not be a good idea. Have you read Beowolf? It’s all about balance.
Does one of the main characters hold a special place in your heart? If so, why?
Absolutely. It’s Daniel. His back story tugged at my heartstrings and made him into the man he turned out to be.
What are you currently working on?
I just finished up The Ring of Eagna, Book 4 in the Cross of Ciarán series, which is a romance written under the pen name Andrea Matthews. It was released in June 2023.
And then, I plan to start writing Book 2 in the South Shore Mystery series, published under the pen name, I. M. Foster, which will be entitled Murder on West Main. I hope to have that ready for release sometime this fall.
Thank you for joining us, Inez. We wish you all the best with your novels.
This title is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.
I. M. Foster
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I. M. Foster is the pen name author Inez Foster uses to write her South Shore Mystery series, set on Edwardian Long Island. Inez also writes historical romances under the pseudonym Andrea Matthews, and has so far published two series in that genre: the Thunder on the Moor series, a time-travel romance set on the 16th century Anglo-Scottish Borders, and the Cross of Ciaran series, which follows the adventures of a fifth century Celt who finds himself in love with a twentieth century archaeologist.
Inez is a historian and librarian, who love to read and write and search around for her roots, genealogically speaking. She has a BA in History and an MLS in Library Science and enjoys the research almost as much as she does writing the story. In fact, many of her ideas come to her while doing casual research or digging into her family history. Inez is a member of the Long Island Romance Writers, the Historical Novel Society, and Sisters in Crime.
