title: Murder Among Us: A Kate Austen Mystery
author:  Jonnie Jacobs 
description: Kate Austen, in her third appearance (after Murder Among Friends, 1995), seems almost too good-hearted to be an effective sleuth. But, as is quickly clear in this busy and intriguing tale, the well-mannered, compassionate high-school art teacher also possesses a steely determination. A serial killer is terrorizing Kate's tranquil San Francisco suburb. First, a young coed is found murdered in a city park, the killer leaving a distinctively grisly trademark. Then Julie, a talented and troubled student of Kate's, is killed in the same bizarre manner. Kate is in a unique position to aid the overwhelmed police, since she can tap into an array of high-school students who, although wary, still offer some insightful comments into Julie's tragic past (she is an orphan whose prominent mother died in a boating accident). Suspects abound. A secret, older lover? Her guardian, who seems to be dipping into her trust fund? Kate works smoothly with her significant other, police lieutenant Michael Stone, but it's her own dogged perseverance, fueled by a sense of guilt (she feels she failed Julie in some way), that compels her to investigate Julie's past?with ramifications that are particularly hazardous for herself. This fine mystery is buoyed by rich characterizations, a gripping plot and some scene-stealing performances by Anna, Kate's unpredictable and articulate six-year-old. <BR>Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
zlib_text: THE MURDERESS
  Jennifer Wells
  Start Reading
  About this Book
  About the Author
  Table of Contents
  www.ariafiction.com
  
  About The Murderess
  1931
   
  Fifteen year old Kate witnesses her mother Millicent push a stranger
  from a station platform into the path of an oncoming train. There was
  no warning, seemingly no reason, and absolutely no remorse.
  1940
   
  Exactly nine years later, Kate returns to the station and notices a
  tramp laying flowers on the exact spot that the murder was
  committed; the identity of the victim, still remains unknown.
  With a country torn apart by war and her family estate and name in
  tatters, Kate has nothing to lose as she attempts to uncover family
  
  secrets that date back to the Great War and solve a mystery that
  blights her family name.
  
  Contents
  Welcome Page
  About The Murderess
  Prologue
  Chapter 1
  Chapter 2
  Chapter 3
  Chapter 4
  Chapter 5
  Chapter 6
  Chapter 7
  Chapter 8
  Chapter 9
  Chapter 10
  Chapter 11
  Chapter 12
  Chapter 13
  Chapter 14
  Chapter 15
  Chapter 16
  Chapter 17
  Chapter