While participating as a panelist in the fourth annual Mystery Fest in Key West, Fla., this summer, local author Renee Kumor released her latest volume in the popular River Bend Chronicles titled “Deadly Politics.” A book signing and visit-the-author event is scheduled in Tryon on Saturday, Oct. 21, at 3 p.m. at The Tryon Bottle, a wine-and-beer boutique bar, 10 N. Trade Street. The event is hosted by The Book Shelf, Tryon’s indie bookstore. Refreshments will be served. Wine and beer will be available for purchase.

Kumor’s ongoing saga of murder, mystery, mayhem, and, frequently, passionate alliances, are described in the trade as “cozy mysteries,” also referred to as “cozies.” This is a subgenre of crime fiction in which sex and violence are downplayed or treated humorously, and the crime and detection take place in a small, socially intimate community. They are described as “gentle” crime novels.

However, in Kumor’s “Deadly Politics,” life in the fictional small town community of River Bend is anything but gentle. A detective has been shot, three children are found abandoned, and one local politician is killed in a deadly car bombing. Detective Dusty Reid, chief investigator of the James County/River Bend Joint Investigation Unit, works to protect three small children from child traffickers while hunting a bomber. Detective Teniquia LaMont struggles with the aftermath of a bullet wound that has taken away her ability to have children. Lynn Powers, Dusty’s wife and executive director of River Bend Philanthropies, witnesses the death of a local county commissioner in a car bombing and has difficulty with flashbacks and nightmares.

“Deadly Politics,” Kumor’s tenth volume in the River Bend Chronicles, uses the nonprofit world as a backdrop for her murder mysteries. This creates an unusual scenario, but one she can easily explain.

“Over the years, much of my volunteer time has been spent in the nonprofit community,” she explained.  “I believe that nonprofit organizations are the force that keeps life civilized in a small town. The local domestic violence shelter, the arts council, Boys and Girls Clubs, Habitat for Humanity, or American Red Cross … all these and more have significant, positive influence across the American landscape. The River Bend Chronicles weave a mix of nonprofit service, family relationships, a little lust, and murder on the side.”

“Deadly Politics” and all her books are published by Absolutely Amazing eBooks, and are available through The Tryon Book Shelf and other bookstores, and online at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other outlets in both hard copy and e-book versions. Visit www.reneekumor.com for more information.

Kumor has lived most of her life in small towns, including Hendersonville, her home of nearly 40 years where she and her husband raised their four children. Thus, River Bend, the imaginary town where her stories unfold, is the quintessential small-town backdrop for her newest book and, indeed, the entire series in the River Bend Chronicles.

– submitted by Mary Jo Padgett