Kemp speaks at Berne library on
Death of a Dutch Uncle
BERNE M.E. Kemp was raised in Massachusetts; her first American-born descendent was born in Salem around 1635, she said. Kemp wondered why there arent any major Puritan mysteries and set about writing one.
The characters from her latest book, Hetty Henry and Increase "Creasy" Cotton, she said, are cousins of Cotton Mather, the Puritan minister best known for his role in the Salem Witch Trials.
Mather, she said, was quite a modern person "the first modern person" prone to having nervous breakdowns, which was her excuse for creating her characters Hetty and Creasy.
Kemp is spending the summer in Berne as the guest of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Fuller. While in residence, she will speak at the Berne library to reading groups and book-club members.
This week, Kemp will speak twice at the library tonight (Thursday) at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 6 p.m. about her book, Death of a Dutch Uncle, which she describes as "a rollicking tale of old Dutch Albany County as seen through the eyes of two nosy Puritans."
Kemp summarizes the plot this way: "When the Patroon’s licentious nephew drops dead on Boston Common, wealthy widow Hetty Henry and young minister Increase "Creasy" Cotton uncover land fraud, kidnapping, and piracy on the High Hudson before they uncork a poisoner."
Kemp was inspired by local history and by artifacts from area museums to write the novel, second in the series from Hilliard and Harris, publishers.
Her first novel, Murder, Mather, and Mayhem, was a Book Pick of the Week on Northeast Public Radio. Her short story, "Murder in the Marsh," won first prize in the New England Writers’ Network mystery contest in 2006.
"I like mysteries, and I love history," Kemp said. She had written non-fiction textbooks for Cornell and articles for magazines and she really wanted to write fiction. In her writing, she combines both mystery and history.
Kemp is a member of the new Hudson Valley chapter of Sisters in Crime, a national organization to support women mystery writers. Kemp’s short story, "Murder New York Style," will be coming out in an anthology in November.
For more information, visit mekemp.com, or contact Kemp at 872-2341 or [email protected].
