Priscilla’s Journey into Southern Africa, © 2017, 447 pages, Thriller/Terrorism
ISBN: 978-0-578-19519-3 Paperback, $19.95 & ISBN: 978-1-7322406-3-6 EPUB/MOBI, $9.99
The bride pauses for an instant before walking down the aisle to marry a man she likes but does not love, and in that hesitant moment, a shot rings out, and then another. The groom falls. Blood stains the sanctuary.
Priscilla J. “PJ” Austin—a magnetic, up-and-coming, baby boomer—catches a glimpse of the shooter before everything blacks out for the bride. . .
Priscilla’s fortitude is sorely tried as she awakens, sometime later—sedated and confused—on the outskirts of Harare, Zimbabwe to face the adventure of her life. Along the way, there is mayhem, murder, mistaken identities, and a barbed reunion with Carlton Elliott Bernhardt—a swarthy, intrepid special operative, who may be her one true love.
Set in the mid1980s, MYSTERY IN HARARE is a stylish, fast-paced, character-driven thriller that unravels the secrets behind this carnage at a Midwestern American black church.
Mystery In Harare
“M.J. Simms-Maddox is an excellent writer. There is a Maqoma in [her].” THEMBA NGABA, Amava Heritage Publishing, Ltd., South Africa
“Politics and faith are prevalent throughout the novel, diversity, lots of symbolism … and all of the senses are used. I was particularly impressed with the relationship between the different people in Priscilla’s life, such as her support network, and how that reflects the larger scheme of things over the past thirty years and how all that reflects life today. Very descriptive, such as the scene at the reception at the governor’s mansion when Priscilla wears an outfit that is not typical of the other women. That shows her sense of self-worth and her humility.” KAREN K. ALEXANDER
“Dr. Simms-Maddox writes so well. I’m right there. She brings the animals and the people alive and makes the reader feel a strong sense of presence in each scene. Her writing enlightens readers. Priscilla’s strength grows with each encounter; so, too, does that of the other women in the story. I particularly like her use of the Book of Judges.” HELEN TURNER, Retired Director of the Reading Center, Livingstone College