Orillia: scene of the crime for Maureen Jennings' new Christine Morris mystery; Booksigning at Manticore on March 29

From THe Orillia Packet Newspaper

"The K Handshape" by Maureen Jennings, a 366-page trade paperback book was published on March 15.

The story takes place in Orillia and Jennings will be at Manticore Books in downtown Orillia on Saturday, March 29 from 1 to 3 p.m. for a book-signing session.

"It is a mystery story and the centre for forensic science is in Orillia at the OPP headquarters," said Jennings from her Toronto home. "The main character Christine Morris works there. She is a forensic profiler."

Jennings has changed the names of some of the local locations referred to in her book. She does this when the story involves a murder.

"It is a bit of a convention in crime writing because sometimes people go to the spot and it can be a bit difficult," she said. "I never use a real address. So, in this case, the Champlain Monument is real and the places are really there. I have just slightly changed the park name for the purposes of fiction."

The story:

A killer strikes in Orillia's Memorial Park (Couchiching Beach Park) in the award-winning author's new mystery novel "The K Handshape." (Casino Rama also plays a part in the story.)

Forensic profiler Christine Morris is awakened early on a cold November morning by a phone call from one of her colleagues, forensic psychiatrist Dr. Leo Forgach. His daughter, Deidre, is missing. Despite the fact that she and the doctor have never seen eye to eye, Christine agrees to help in the search for Deidre - only to discover her brutally strangled body in Lake Couchiching.

Heartbroken, Leo tells Christine that his daughter was deaf and had recently given birth to a child she had deliberately ensured would be deaf. As a militant supporter of deaf culture, Deirdre wanted a deaf child to make a political statement. Although some people supported her stand, many did not - including Deidre's own father. Christine must use her new skills as a forensic profiler to discover the killer.

The author is an annual visitor to Orillia where she stays with friends who have a home on Lake Couchiching.

Jennings is the author of the "Murdoch Mysteries," a historical series set in Victorian Toronto.

The first book, "Except the Dying," won the Certificate of Commendation from Heritage Toronto. An exciting new series, The Murdoch Mysteries, based on these novels, debuted on CITY TV across the country in January.

The first novel featuring Christine Morris, "Does Your Mother Know?" (Dundurn 2006), is currently in its second printing. A new series - "No Suspect" - based on the Christine Morris Mystery series is currently being developed by Shaftesbury Films.