POINT OF GRAVES
A New England History Mystery
MAN FOUND DEAD IN CEMETERY
Museum caretaker Levi Woodbury’s solitary lifestyle is shattered when reporter Claire Caswell enlists her ex-lover to unravel a mysterious death in a historic New England seaport. Could the dead man and his missing “manifesto” connect to growing fears that an ancient cemetery lies beneath the site of the city’s next high-rise parking garage? Set in historic Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
SEE MY NEW "Point of Graves" website
READERS REACT TO POINT OF GRAVES
"From history to mystery, Robinson is a master at celebrating while dissecting his New Hampshire hometown. His debut novel is a page-turner."
- Alice K. Boatwright, Seattle, WA author of the Ellie Kent mysteries
"Wherever you live, you'll enjoy discovering New Hampshire's only seaport in Point of Graves, a mystery by one of the area's best-known contemporary historians.... Robinson knows where all the bodies are buried."
-- Tom Holowach, Honolulu, HI theater manager and scriptwriter
"What a ride--a fast-paced whodunit with a historical twist. J. Dennis Robinson brings the impact of colonial slavery to modern times in a can't-put-it-down cliffhanger. Using actual events and historical facts, his fictional account hits all the right notes: a love story, a murder mystery, and characters that come to life."
--Jack Santos, Newburyport, MA technology expert
"Entertaining, informative, thought-provoking. I was hooked from the first chapter."
-- Lu Valena, Boston, MA executive director, Bait/Switch Magazine
"They say write what you know, and Robinson knows a LOT about Portsmouth history. You could do a walking tour from this mystery. The author weaves history, folklore, and actual places into a fictional story that seems as factual and plausible as the real world with enough twists and well-written prose to enthrall any reader."
—Don Smith-Weiss, Nashua, NH actor, playwright, house restorer
"Robinson is a gifted storyteller whose characters are divinely flawed, but grow to become our neighbors and friends. The story is lovingly mired with the humanity of our limitations and the courage to persevere."
-- Judith Pitchforth, Arundel, ME HS literacy specialist and reading teacher
"Another J. Dennis Robinson book I could not put down. I found myself wowed again by his research of local history, this time interwoven with fictional crime and love stories."
--Kathleen Soldati, Portsmouth, NH nonprofit manager
"An interesting read from start to finish by Portsmouth's foremost historian."
-- Jim Splaine, Portsmouth, NH Assistant Mayor
"More than one skeleton is unearthed and then laid to rest as historian J. Dennis Robinson weaves a murder mystery from Portsmouth, NH fact and fiction that only an insider could dig up. Fascinating characters combine with local lore and locations to shape a present-day plot that will keep you guessing—and up much later than you'd planned."
-- Bill Paarlberg, Eliot, ME illustrator and artist
FICTION/ MYSTERY/Amateur Sleuth
358 Pages/ Harbortown Press
Available in paperback and ebook from Amazon.com
Museum caretaker Levi Woodbury’s solitary lifestyle is shattered when reporter Claire Caswell enlists her ex-lover to unravel a mysterious death in a historic New England seaport. Could the dead man and his missing “manifesto” connect to growing fears that an ancient cemetery lies beneath the site of the city’s next high-rise parking garage? Set in historic Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
SEE MY NEW "Point of Graves" website
READERS REACT TO POINT OF GRAVES
"From history to mystery, Robinson is a master at celebrating while dissecting his New Hampshire hometown. His debut novel is a page-turner."
- Alice K. Boatwright, Seattle, WA author of the Ellie Kent mysteries
"Wherever you live, you'll enjoy discovering New Hampshire's only seaport in Point of Graves, a mystery by one of the area's best-known contemporary historians.... Robinson knows where all the bodies are buried."
-- Tom Holowach, Honolulu, HI theater manager and scriptwriter
"What a ride--a fast-paced whodunit with a historical twist. J. Dennis Robinson brings the impact of colonial slavery to modern times in a can't-put-it-down cliffhanger. Using actual events and historical facts, his fictional account hits all the right notes: a love story, a murder mystery, and characters that come to life."
--Jack Santos, Newburyport, MA technology expert
"Entertaining, informative, thought-provoking. I was hooked from the first chapter."
-- Lu Valena, Boston, MA executive director, Bait/Switch Magazine
"They say write what you know, and Robinson knows a LOT about Portsmouth history. You could do a walking tour from this mystery. The author weaves history, folklore, and actual places into a fictional story that seems as factual and plausible as the real world with enough twists and well-written prose to enthrall any reader."
—Don Smith-Weiss, Nashua, NH actor, playwright, house restorer
"Robinson is a gifted storyteller whose characters are divinely flawed, but grow to become our neighbors and friends. The story is lovingly mired with the humanity of our limitations and the courage to persevere."
-- Judith Pitchforth, Arundel, ME HS literacy specialist and reading teacher
"Another J. Dennis Robinson book I could not put down. I found myself wowed again by his research of local history, this time interwoven with fictional crime and love stories."
--Kathleen Soldati, Portsmouth, NH nonprofit manager
"An interesting read from start to finish by Portsmouth's foremost historian."
-- Jim Splaine, Portsmouth, NH Assistant Mayor
"More than one skeleton is unearthed and then laid to rest as historian J. Dennis Robinson weaves a murder mystery from Portsmouth, NH fact and fiction that only an insider could dig up. Fascinating characters combine with local lore and locations to shape a present-day plot that will keep you guessing—and up much later than you'd planned."
-- Bill Paarlberg, Eliot, ME illustrator and artist
FICTION/ MYSTERY/Amateur Sleuth
358 Pages/ Harbortown Press
Available in paperback and ebook from Amazon.com
AUTHOR NOTES
This one is a total change of pace. After a dozen nonfiction history books and almost 3,000 published articles, it was time to break the bonds of reality and create a little alternate world. But readers will quickly discover that my imagined version of my home town looks amazingly similar to the real deal. The goal here is to have fun with the print on demand (pod) and ebook market.
I imagine POINT OF GRAVES as the first in a trilogy of lively mysteries set in the historic museums and sites of Portsmouth, NH, a place I know extremely well. This work began as a challenge. Sitting around the Warwick Club with Rod Philbrick, the most successful author I know, I said, "Hey, I bet I could write a fiction book too. It can't be that hard." It was and it wasn't. Ten years, ten drafts, and three titles later, you can judge for yourself.
having read too many formulaic mysteries, I wanted to create a whole team of memorable, lovable, believable characters. I wanted a plot that didn't die out and disappoint at the end. I didn't want gore or embarrassing sex scenes, or characters who swear like troopers. There's plenty of that out there. My goal is to entertain in a heartfelt story that is rich with true-to-life details about local history. I created Harbortown Press to launch a new more indie projects. I asked Rob Squire to shoot the cover photo and hired Grace Peirce to turn my manuscript into its book form. You'll decide if I succeeded.
And since this is my first truly indie project, if you like POINT OF GRAVES, please add a rating on Amazon and spread the word on other websites and social media.
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