13-year-old Quilted Secrets member Abigail Pustovoytenko rebels against her homeschooling and enrolls herself in a high school where the local gangs are under pressure from mysterious forces and engaging in ever more violent acts. PI Rachel Lyons tries to keep her safe.
Picking up the threads of the Quilted Mystery series, Ripping Abigail delves into the seamy side of Southern California gang culture. Bright, creative, 13-year-old Quilted Secrets member Abigail Pustovoytenko rebels against her homeschooling and enrolls herself in a high school where the local gangs are under pressure from mysterious forces and engaging in ever more violent acts. As Abigail draws unwanted attention by speaking up for the victims of the escalating gang activity, retired librarian-turned private investigator Rachel Lyons has her hands full trying to keep the principled teenager safe while seeking to uncover the forces behind this eruption of gang violence.
Excerpt
My name is Rachel Lyons and my husband Matthew and I are private investigators working our second careers in and around San Diego, Cleveland and Imperial Counties in California. Our business is called LIRI which stands for Lyons Investigations and Research, Incorporated. LIRI is currently housed in our home, and Matt and I are the principal owners. We have two full-time apprentices helping us with the growing security and investigative needs of the area. After three years, things are running smoothly.
Matt takes care of all the dangerous stuff in our private investigating business since he’s a retired Marine, and he manages the two male apprentices currently associated with LIRI. I mainly do the research as I’m a retired librarian.
At least Matt used to handle all the scary stuff. Last month I started redefining my job description, kind of by accident, as I found my way into a lot of bad trouble. But I’m convinced that was an aberration.
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