Patty G. Henderson's Brenda Strange ignites

October 29, 9:25 AMTampa Books ExaminerJulianne Draper

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cover art

pic. is part of the author's collection

The Burning of Her Sin by Tampa author Patty G. Henderson is a mystery (or more correctly, paranormal mystery, I guess), and concerns attorney Brenda Strange, who finds herself in the midst of chaos one fine day, when a disgruntled ex-client walks into her firm, guns drawn and starts shooting. Brenda nearly dies but comes back from her encounter with the Afterlife with the disturbing ability to communicate with the other side. As she sets about healing, mentally, and physically, she and her lover Tina move to Tampa, Florida where they purchase a decaying old mansion, with a wild history of its own. Falling completely in love with the old mansion, Brenda doesn't know what to make of its history, and even less, what she's to do with the ghosts that come calling, demanding justice. Will she be able to set their souls to rest? Will she find the truth of the murders here? Will she lose Tina in the process? You'll have to read to find out.

Patty G. Henderson's work is very well-done, (if, here in her first mystery it was, a little rough around the edges), but the ghosts are well-done, and the story very creepy at times--the house alone reminded me of something on the order of Anne Rice's The Witching Hour. I even found myself dreaming about parts of this tale, which is usually, to me, the mark of an intriguing, well-done novel.

That said, I think you can guess, I really enjoyed The Burning of Her Sin, and think you will too. This is the first in the Brenda Strange series, and Patty is due to release a new Brenda Strange title in early December. She's also published some acclaimed vampire tales, so clearly her delightfully creepy work would be perfect reading for this haunting season. :) Do check her work out. I'm sure you will be pleasantly surprised.

You can find this novel at Amazon, at Barnes and Noble (and I think at the local Borders, as well).   For more on Patty see our Q and A with her.