Willa Goodheart, honest and hard-working white collar worker finds herself connected to a police investigation for a serial killer; and she hasn't a clue why - that is, until she begins digging.
Willa Goodheart, down to earth and friendly, undertakes a new position at work — a promising opportunity. However, upon coming home she discovers she is a person of interest connecting her to a string of murders in the bay area. Willa, true to her last name and who would never hurt a soul, is sucked into a series of mysterious events — a whirlwind progressively dampening her good prospects. She does the only thing she can do. She dives into matters attempting to connect the dots and clear her name.
Willa Goodheart is a mystery tale set in the San Francisco of 1995. Willa, her family, her co-workers and neighbors hammer out their lives to a frantic beat. The Goodheart family has a few skeletons in their closet; and who doesn’t — secrets abounding in every corner. It’s a shadowy world, enigmas wrapped in fog and phantoms riding the wind. And in the thick of it, Willa Goodheart tries to stay the course to push towards an unlikely finish line. Crooked business folk, old Chinese fortune tellers, ritualistic cults, drag queens and dead grandfathers line the hills of San Francisco, where the California Street cable car sings its clarion bell song. Will they get clear of the wheels in time? Come, make a list and learn.Willa Goodheart, honest and bright young white collar woker
Professional Reviews Another Amazing Edward Patteson Novel
San Francisco-1995
Willa Goodheart has just started a better position at work. She has her hands full at home-two brothers, an elderly father who grows roses and has a feud with the neighbors about the fertilizer he uses on them, and a grandmother. Her mother is in a healthcare facility due to a mental state.
Willa comes home to find she is thought to somehow be connected to a series of murders in the area and the police want to question her! She has no reason why, but the two policemen are adamant.
More murders ensue, and Willa keeps seeing a mysterious courier on a bike. Is he the murderer? She and the brother of one of the policemen try to sort things out...There’s also a mystery of an old society that keeps popping up around her family.
Willa is plucky, fearless, and a wonderful character who will stop at nothing to clear herself and will fight to unfold who is trying to involve herself in these murders!
As an added treat, Mr. Patterson has characters in this book that are very much a part of my favorite series of his, The Jade Owl Series. It’s wonderful to ‘see’ old friends again who will have a delightful adventure in The Jade Owl Series!
Willa Goodheart is a wonderfully written book by a master storyteller. An excellent read!
Ellen George, author of a Children’s Book, Flutterby, numerous poetry and book reviews, and is currently working on her full length novel.
Edward C. Patterson, also author of The Jade Owl, went into an entirely different path when he wrote Willa Goodheart. In fact, when I first started reading, I thought it was going to be chick lit, as we first meet Willa at her place of business where she has just been promoted to be an assistant to the assistant to the Marketing Director of Fidelity Fiscus, a collection firm.
Thing was that Willa didn't have a job description for her new job, but soon found... She would be doing what her boss was supposed to... You know, back when bosses were mean and you wanted to murder them...or they tried to get closer to you? Well, Willa got the latter attention the second day she was in her new position, and quickly moved to leave his office!
But soon, bits and pieces start to happen that pulled Willa into a murder investigation! And the twists and turns moved faster and faster... as Willa wondered whether she had a stalker, when she kept seeing a guy on a bike like a messenger would ride... While she was handling travel arrangements for her boss's boss, while she would leave the office and then come back wrinkled and her hair messed... Meanwhile on the floor where she used to work as a collector, one of her friends had been moved into a small room, but was threatening suing them for age discrimination...or, better yet, starting to tell all the secrets that he knew after working so many years...
Willa seems to be a key player in all that is happening, but she can't figure out why... An envelope is found with the name of the dead man... Then she starts getting calls at her volunteer location... And, to top it off, one of the officers on the case has taken an interest in her and arranged an evening time when he promised to share information with her about the case, and he proceeds to drink too much and told her much more than she should have known!
The author has thus far provided the reader with the background, characters involved; and, then chooses to create Part II when Willa and her new lover, take on the amateur detective role. But that wasn't enough for this author, he throws in a mysterious bicycle messenger who she begins to call her stalker, but actually is something far more "scifi--the spooky kind..." and, of course, romance of both the good and bad kind!
So we now start looking at those who have been murdered--yes more than 3...but then we get the explanation that this seems not to be a serial killer, at least according to the detectives on the case, who, for better or worse, soon learn that Willa Goodheart is smack in the middle of all of this, and so do not totally shut her out of the investigation. I fell in love with the book as Part II begins... Because he added a playlist beginning with pointing out it was the age of Aquarius, of free love, flower children and those who were gay began to come out, even if it was within tightly controlled meeting places...
So, during the evening when Willa met with Detective Schultz, he took her to the restaurant which was owned by his brother. The evening ended with Larry and Willa, recognizing an immediate attraction. And Willa taking the initiative, realizing it had been a decade since she even dated! You'll have fun as these two people ultimately come together and decide to solve the mystery... Larry had even stolen his brother's badge one night when he was so drunk that Larry had to drive him home... Now, he was quite willing to flash that badge as they started through their own deep investigation! Let's go along with them, shall we?
“My tiny hands barely reach the octave. I can manage Chopin, but Rachmaninoff would be an Olympic hurdle.” The author didn't specific a specific composition for this author...so I chose one of my favorites!
In the getting to know each other phase, Larry found that Willa was a pianist, but learned early that her small hands presented a problem in octaves...but since she really wasn't that passionate about playing, she slowly moved toward getting a job--which really got her into this entire mess...
Willa was pulled in because she picked up an envelope that had the name of the latest victim. Willa and her friend Jose spent their lunchtime talking about either the cruel boss or Jose's lover. He was openly gay, so Willa really wasn't surprised when he was there at The Painted Lips... Willa was astonished with Larry's being a restaurateur that he was able to get in many places and, indeed, knew exactly the person they would need to talk to. Along the way, I was picking up the many clues that the author provided and was fairly certain I knew how the plot would proceed...but that doesn't mean all readers will notice...So, before we go on, I highly recommend this book for plot, characters, genre/jumping and a fantastic playlist! Now, if you readers who don't dwell on the music that accompanies scenes, you can always just skip listening, OK? 'Cause I'm just having fun...!
Willa comes from a musical family, but only her brother is a professional who plays the oboe... Visit their home and it will be the sound in the background on most visits... I've liked Dvorak for many years, but also enjoyed compositions in the minor key, which this particular piece is... So what happened? Well a brilliant member of the local symphony was one of those killed... By the way, the search for the weapon used, which turned out to be the key "tell" for its being done by the same person, was the only way, at first, that the police detectives knew it was a singular villain...
Finding a symphony program which had been for a children's summer concert wasn't exactly significant, except for where that program had been found! After a full day of intense investigations by Willa and Larry, Willa went straight home...to bed...to dream... The total dream scene was fantastic! See more on my blog:
'Willa Goodheart' is an excellent mystery that has as many twists and turns as a roller coaster! Willa has started a new position at the company that she works for that basically has her doing the job of her immediate supervisor. On top of that, she is the main caregiver of her father, as her mother is in a nursing home, and her two brothers. Her plate is pretty full, but all of a sudden she is burdened with the suspicion of being involved somehow in a murder investigation. Willa becomes involved with one of the detective's brother and they begin their own investigation, which takes them to an old Chinese lady thats a fortune teller, stories about her own grandfather and a secret society and drag queens. The final outcome is quite a surprise!
I highly recommend you check out 'Willa Goodheart'. It's a wonderful mystery with a lot of drama, crime, family matters and humor. The added feud with the neighbors about the smell of the fertilizer that the dad used for his roses was very entertaining.
Once again, Edward C. Patterson, has given his readers a great
book that is an easy read. I could hardly put it down, waiting for the next twist. This is a definite five star book!
Thing was that Willa didn't have a job description for her new job, but soon found... She would be doing what her boss was supposed to... You know, back when bosses were mean and you wanted to murder them...or they tried to get closer to you? Well, Willa got the latter attention the second day she was in her new position, and quickly moved to leave his office!
But soon, bits and pieces start to happen that pulled Willa into a murder investigation! And the twists and turns moved faster and faster... as Willa wondered whether she had a stalker, when she kept seeing a guy on a bike like a messenger would ride... While she was handling travel arrangements for her boss's boss, while she would leave the office and then come back wrinkled and her hair messed... Meanwhile on the floor where she used to work as a collector, one of her friends had been moved into a small room, but was threatening suing them for age discrimination...or, better yet, starting to tell all the secrets that he knew after working so many years...
Willa seems to be a key player in all that is happening, but she can't figure out why... An envelope is found with the name of the dead man... Then she starts getting calls at her volunteer location... And, to top it off, one of the officers on the case has taken an interest in her and arranged an evening time when he promised to share information with her about the case, and he proceeds to drink too much and told her much more than she should have known!
The author has thus far provided the reader with the background, characters involved; and, then chooses to create Part II when Willa and her new lover, take on the amateur detective role. But that wasn't enough for this author, he throws in a mysterious bicycle messenger who she begins to call her stalker, but actually is something far more "scifi--the spooky kind..." and, of course, romance of both the good and bad kind!
So we now start looking at those who have been murdered--yes more than 3...but then we get the explanation that this seems not to be a serial killer, at least according to the detectives on the case, who, for better or worse, soon learn that Willa Goodheart is smack in the middle of all of this, and so do not totally shut her out of the investigation. I fell in love with the book as Part II begins... Because he added a playlist beginning with pointing out it was the age of Aquarius, of free love, flower children and those who were gay began to come out, even if it was within tightly controlled meeting places...
So, during the evening when Willa met with Detective Schultz, he took her to the restaurant which was owned by his brother. The evening ended with Larry and Willa, recognizing an immediate attraction. And Willa taking the initiative, realizing it had been a decade since she even dated! You'll have fun as these two people ultimately come together and decide to solve the mystery... Larry had even stolen his brother's badge one night when he was so drunk that Larry had to drive him home... Now, he was quite willing to flash that badge as they started through their own deep investigation! Let's go along with them, shall we?
“My tiny hands barely reach the octave. I can manage Chopin, but Rachmaninoff would be an Olympic hurdle.” The author didn't specific a specific composition for this author...so I chose one of my favorites!
In the getting to know each other phase, Larry found that Willa was a pianist, but learned early that her small hands presented a problem in octaves...but since she really wasn't that passionate about playing, she slowly moved toward getting a job--which really got her into this entire mess...
Willa was pulled in because she picked up an envelope that had the name of the latest victim. Willa and her friend Jose spent their lunchtime talking about either the cruel boss or Jose's lover. He was openly gay, so Willa really wasn't surprised when he was there at The Painted Lips... Willa was astonished with Larry's being a restaurateur that he was able to get in many places and, indeed, knew exactly the person they would need to talk to. Along the way, I was picking up the many clues that the author provided and was fairly certain I knew how the plot would proceed...but that doesn't mean all readers will notice...So, before we go on, I highly recommend this book for plot, characters, genre/jumping and a fantastic playlist! Now, if you readers who don't dwell on the music that accompanies scenes, you can always just skip listening, OK? 'Cause I'm just having fun...!
Willa comes from a musical family, but only her brother is a professional who plays the oboe... Visit their home and it will be the sound in the background on most visits... I've liked Dvorak for many years, but also enjoyed compositions in the minor key, which this particular piece is... So what happened? Well a brilliant member of the local symphony was one of those killed... By the way, the search for the weapon used, which turned out to be the key "tell" for its being done by the same person, was the only way, at first, that the police detectives knew it was a singular villain...
Finding a symphony program which had been for a children's summer concert wasn't exactly significant, except for where that program had been found! After a full day of intense investigations by Willa and Larry, Willa went straight home...to bed...to dream... The total dream scene was fantastic! See more on my blog:
https://gabixlerreviews-bookreadersheaven.blogspot.com/2024/01/willa-goodheart-by-edward-c-patterson.html
I highly recommend you check out 'Willa Goodheart'. It's a wonderful mystery with a lot of drama, crime, family matters and humor. The added feud with the neighbors about the smell of the fertilizer that the dad used for his roses was very entertaining.
Once again, Edward C. Patterson, has given his readers a great
book that is an easy read. I could hardly put it down, waiting for the next twist. This is a definite five star book!