Introducing Cold Crossover, a chilling historical mystery by T.R. Kelly, the first in the Ernie Creekmore series.
Linnbert “Cheese” Oliver, hard-luck high school basketball hero in the Northwest town of North Fork, is missing on a late-night ferry. And retired teacher Ernie Creekmore, his father figure, friend and former coach, the news hits hard. Ernie’s suffered too much loss and pain in his life — his wife, a state basketball championship, a mysterious medical malady — and he just can’t accept the idea that “The Cheese” might have taken his own life.
Working with sheriff’s detective Harvey Johnston, Ernie uses his contacts in real estate and hoops to trace Cheese’s movements. Meanwhile, hints at possible foul play turn up in pieces of North Fork’s rough-and-tumble history in fishing, logging and railroading, and the past and the present violently collide in a series of heart-stopping moments that peel back layers of greed, secrets and twisted family ties that refuse to stay buried.
“Cold Crossover is a riveting mystery based on the drama of small-town high school basketball, complete with the missed shot no local will ever forget. Along the way, Tom Kelly takes the reader from the Northwest’s wild frontier days to its equally crazy present as a real-estate mecca. Kelly weaves the ferries, crabbers, and timber-men of his region into a timeless and page-turning tale.”
“Award-winning real estate writer Tom Kelly makes a terrific transition into fiction, offering a small-town hero as the center of a big-time story. Kelly clearly knows his territory, including the energy and emotions surrounding a state high-school basketball tournament. A successful merging of past and present, Cold Crossover catches some colorful characters along the way to its captivating climax.”
“A long-time coach goes on a search for the best player he ever had in a mystery that will keep you reading deep into the roots of its Pacific Northwest setting.”
“Cold Crossover is a riveting mystery based on drama of small-town basketball, complete with the missed shot no local will ever forget. Along the way, Kelly takes the reader from the Northwest wild frontier days to equal crazy present as a real estate mecca. Kelly weaves the ferries, crabbers and timbermen into a timeless and page-turning tale. ”