Altadena Author Publishes E-Book Mystery Novel

A year ago Sue Redman, a long-time Altadena resident, gave up finding a publisher for her completed murder mystery novel that takes place in a fictional Altadena neighborhood based on the Meadows.

This week, Redman's book is available at Amazon.com for sale as an e-book, a new way for authors to distribute their work without the difficulty of finding a publisher.

I dropped it over a year ago," Redman said. "But I didn't realize that I could publish it so easily.  I tried to market it to lots of agents...since I didn't know anybody nobody read it."

Redman is not the only author taking advantage of the opportunities that the Kindle e-book publishing system is offering: Des Zamorano, another Altadena aspiring author, recently through the site.

Redman's novel, called the Bones of Sunset Ridge, is about a woman who is hiding out in a hilly Altadena neighborhood under an assumed name.

The neighborhood has recently been the site of a murder, and a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy is snooping around looking for a college student hiding in the neighborhood who may be involved.

The two characters become involved on trying to unravel what is going on in the neighborhood together, Redman said.

Redman's daughter, Pollyanna helped her develop the plot and edit the book and is listed as a co-author.

In addition, her son Peter did the photography, editing and design for the book's cover.

Redman is a long-time Altadena resident and used to run the Altadena Chronicle weekly newspaper in the 1970s.  That paper went on to be bought out and later turned into the Pasadena Weekly.

She has been a teacher, social worker, and costume designer and has raised six kids.

The Bones of Sunset Ridge can be downloaded at the Kindle site for $3.99 and readers can also download a portion of the novel as a sample for free.