lcrwpres Author, Marketing

N. N. Light’s Book Heaven Features Member:

Assume Nothing by Barbara-Helene Smith is a Summertime Books Event pick perfect for readers who enjoy mystery and short stories

ASSUME NOTHING is a collection of short mysteries about four ordinary women, who find themselves in extraordinary situations, while looking for the truth.

N. N. Light’s Book Heaven

Jun 24, 2026

Title: Assume Nothing

Author: Barbara-Helene Smith

Genre: Mystery, Short Stories

Book Blurb:

Do you like short, fast-moving mysteries with a unique protagonist?

ASSUME NOTHING is a collection of short mysteries about four ordinary women, who find themselves in extraordinary situations, while looking for the truth. Each story can be read in a couple of hours while on a beach, an airplane, by the pool, next to a fire on a cold afternoon or sitting in a comfy chair with a steaming cup of coffee, tea or glass of your favorite wine.

Search for Justice – Kelly Williams hasn’t seen her eight-year-old son since her husband gained custody after their divorce three years ago. Determined to find Tommy, Kelly enrolls in a class designed to locate missing persons. There she meets Roger Ross, who offers to help, but his trust falters when Kelly reveals a secret past. Will Roger follow his instincts or the evidence that never lies?

Vanished – If Holly Hall had a life most women would envy, why did she leave her husband? When Bill discovers Holly and half the money in their joint account are missing, he hires a private investigator to find her. The pursuing cat and mouse game reveals both Holly and Bill have been living different lives.

Family Matters – Lucinda Lawrence inherits a fortune from a total stranger. While attempting to uncover her benefactor’s identity, half-siblings begin to surface and then are mysteriously murdered. The evidence mounts against Lucinda, making her the prime suspect.

Fakes, Frauds and Forgeries – When Paige Jenkins learns her grandmother’s Santini portrait is a forgery, she initiates her own search to discover the truth. After identifying two more fake paintings, she contacts Byron Cruise, an insurance investigator, whose company insured the paintings. In her quest for answers, Paige repeatedly finds herself in the wrong place at the wrong time, and unwittingly becomes involved in robbery, kidnapping and murder.

Excerpt from Search for Justice:

Kelly drove to Tommy’s school and stared at the empty playground, not sure what to do. I could go into the building, identify myself as Tommy’s mother and take him home with me. But that would be kidnapping. Mom always said, ‘Two wrongs don’t make a right’. Besides, Tommy thinks I’m dead. It would be a shock to suddenly appeared.

She waited across the street and watched as different groups of children came out to play in the yard. When she spotted Tommy’s blue-and-white striped shirt, she left the car and hid behind a palm tree. Her heart ached. She wanted to climb the fence and hug him, but resisted the urge. I found him, she thought jubilantly. I know where he is. He’s safe and happy.

She walked to the car after Tommy’s class went inside the school. A sudden wave of panic flowed over her. Maybe I shouldn’t leave. What if Buddy takes Tommy away again?

Assume Nothing by BarbaraHelene Smith is available as an e-book and paperback at Amazon.com.

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Assume-Nothing-Four-Short-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B07NJ755YP

lcrwpres Favorite Author

Louise Penny – One of My Favorite Authors

Louise Penny is one of my favorite authors. I just finished reading, The Black Wolf,  her twentieth book. Her novels have been translated into over 23 languages, sold millions of copies worldwide, and repeatedly reached number 1 on the New York Times Best Seller list. She has also earned prestigious awards including multiple Agatha and Anthony Awards, and was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada and an Officer of the National Order of Quebec in 2017.

Penny is a Canadian crime-fiction author, best known for her Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Sûreté du Québec series. She was born on July 1, 1958, in Toronto, Canada, and has a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Ryerson Polytechnical Institute. After graduating at age 21, she embarked on an 18-year career as a radio host and journalist with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). She left the CBC in 1996 to take up writing. She started a historical novel but had difficulty finishing it and eventually switched to writing mysteries.

Besides her wonderful writing, there are two features I like about her books:

  1. The intricately constructed plots often reflect current events, and explore universal themes as love, friendship, loss, and redemption.
  • Her characters are unique and familiar.

Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, head of the Homicide Department of the Sûreté du Québec, inspired by Penny’s husband, Michael Whitehead, is not the typical world-weary and troubled detective, but compassionate and kind. Gamache and his team, including his second-in-command, Jean-Guy Beauvoir, investigate conspiracies and murders by unconventional means.

I suggest you start by reading her first novel, Still Life, in which she introduces the characters living in the Village of Three Pines. In Three Pines, based on her town of Knowlton, Quebec, Canada, you’ll meet an assortment of memorable residents: an artist (Clara Morrow), a psychologist-turned-bookstore-owner (Myrna Landers), a cantankerous poet (Ruth Zardo) and her pet duck (Rosa), and a gay couple who own the local bistro and bed-and-breakfast (Gabri Dubeau and Olivier Brulé). Gamache lives in Three Pines with his wife, Reine-Marie, but when the crimes are set in more distant locations, the quaint village of Three Pines and its residents are central elements of the novels.

There are many memorable quotations in her books. One I particularly like is: “Life is choice. All day, every day. Who we talk to, where we sit, what we say, how we say it. And our lives become defined by our choices.” Louise Penny

I hope you enjoy reading her books as much as I do.

BarbaraHelene Smith,

Author of The Connie Murphy Mysteries