BOOK CLUB FRIDAY--AN INTERVIEW WITH MYSTERY AUTHOR F.M. MEREDITH'S SERGEANT RYAN STRICKLAND

Today we sit down for a chat with Sergeant Ryan Strickland from author F.M. Meredith’s

Rocky Bluff P.D. series.

What was your life like before your author started pulling your strings?

As a police officer, I was pretty carefree, and didn’t make the best choices for my life—resulting in dire consequences for others. I was what they called a publicity hound, loved to get myself into the news. 

What’s the one trait you like most about yourself?

That I had the capacity to change—though I have to give most of the credit to my wife Barbara. Being married to her has made me see things in an entirely different way. 

What do you like least about yourself?

The fact that I’ve kept a huge secret for all these years, a secret that I’ll never tell anyone.

What is the strangest thing your author has had you do or had happen to you?

Becoming a father to a beautiful little girl with Down Syndrome. I had no idea I could love someone so much as my daughter Angel.

Do you argue with your author? If so, what do you argue about?

Though at times I’d like to have a bigger role in each book, when what happened to me was the major plot, it wasn’t at all pleasant.

What is your greatest fear?

My greatest fear is that something bad might happen to Angel. I don’t want anyone to make fun of her, either.

What makes you happy?

Though I love my police work, being with my wife and family is the best part of my life—something I never imagined could be true.

If you could rewrite a part of your story, what would it be? Why?

Definitely, I would like to change what happened in the first book, Final Respects, but if I did, I wouldn’t be in the life I am today.

Of the other characters in your book, which one bugs you the most? Why?

For a long time it was Gordon Butler, a go-by-the book cop and one who managed to get himself into all sorts of awkward, dangerous, and sometimes funny situations. He’s now married, and he’s matured a lot.

Of the other characters in your book, which one would you love to trade places with? Why?

I wouldn’t want to trade places with any of the characters. Right now I’m at the best place in my life I’ve ever been as a husband, father, being a sergeant on the RBPD, and my job as public information officer. 

Tell us a little something about your author. Where can readers find her website/blog?

F.M. Meredith (who is also Marilyn Meredith) has been writing the Rocky Bluff P.D. series and the Deputy Tempe Crabtree series for many years. She once lived in a small beach community like Rocky Bluff and that’s where she first became interested in writing about law enforcement. She’s also a member of two chapters of Sisters in Crime and on the board of the Public Safety Writers Association, and claims many of the law enforcement members as friends and research sources. Learn more about her at her website and blog.

What's next for you?

I have no idea what will be happening with Ryan Strickland in the months to come. Hopefully, I’ll be involved with an interesting case. Something unusual is always happening in Rocky Bluff.

Bones in the Attic

In a small town like Rocky Bluff, personal and professional often overlap, so Detective Doug Milligan is not surprised when his daughter Beth is the one who informs him a body has been discovered.

What is surprising is that the body is in a long-abandoned home that Beth and other students are turning into a haunted house as a fundraiser. The city granted permission for the project as long as it was limited to the downstairs for safety reasons. But one student, Mike Patterson, couldn't resist the temptation to look in the attic.

Detective Milligan stepped carefully a trunk and peered inside. Only a musty unpleasant smell emanated from the contents, not the noxious decomposition odor he'd expected. The skeleton crammed inside was still clothed in the remnants of what may have been pajamas.

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