Darlene Franklin Books In Order

Publication Order of Dressed for Death Mystery Books

Publication Order of Newport, Rhode Island Books

Publication Order of Green Mountain Brides Books

Publication Order of Holidays of the Heart Books

Publication Order of Brides of Texas Books

Publication Order of Love Everlasting Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Short Stories/Novellas

Publication Order of Short Story Collections

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of Love's Sporting Chance Books

Publication Order of Runaway Bride Books

Publication Order of Christmas Traditions Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

Award winning writer and speaker Darlene Franklin lives in Oklahoma, cowboy country, and she enjoys writing about American West. The state of Oklahoma has the honor of being home to her son, his wife, and the four gorgeous kids they have.

She loves needlework, reality television, music, and reading. Talia, who is a Lynx point Siamese kitty cat, claims Darlene as her person.

Her first novel, “Romanian Rhapsody”, was published in the year 2005. It took her fourteen years to get a book published, and it would be two years after this first book came out that someone gave her another contract. Besides stand alone novels, she writes the “Holidays of the Heart” series and “Dressed for Death Mystery” series.

She feels like life and God kept on pushing her toward writing until she finally started to embrace it. She felt like God called on her to be a music missionary in Mexico during summer camp. She wrote stories, and worked as society editor at a tiny newspaper, and occasionally wrote poems.

Darlene was born in New Hampshire during the baby boom and a lot of her time was spent in New England while she was growing up. When she was nine years old, they had settled in the state of Maine, and feels that this state is always going to be home to her. She was the only child of her single mother, and grew up being doted on by three women.

When she went to Northeastern Bible College in New Jersey, she left Maine for good and got her Bachelor’s degree in Church Music. After she graduated, she went and followed her old roommate and her husband to Ft. worth for the Southwestern Baptist Seminary. Her life plan was wrecked when she was told she did not play piano well enough and was kicked out of a Master of Music program.

She got married to a man from Oklahoma, and they moved back to this state, from Texas. She would have a son and a daughter with him. Franklin would leave him, once she found out that he had abused their two kids. She enjoyed Colorado as much as she hoped she would, and felt like she found her second home.

Writing was something she was pushed to, sometimes it was a lifeline, as she was going through the divorce and abuse. This while she took care of her kids, one of which had troubles with the law.

After her daughter killed herself, after suffering from Borderline Personality Disorder, Franklin moved to be closer to her son and family.

“Gunfight At Grace Gulch” is the first novel in the “Dressed for Death Mystery” series, which was released in the year 2008. The Graces and the Gaynors have been feuding for over a century now, and it started during the Oklahoma land run of 1891. Penn Hardy (an editor for the newspaper) is killed while a reenactment of the most famous gunfight in Grace Gulch, Oklahoma’s history was taking place.

Cici Wilde, who owns a vintage clothing store, feels like she should investigate after the police start suspect those close to her. She quickly finds that her talent at sleuthing is equal to her flare to wear period clothing.

Audie Howe, the theater director, never thought the reenactment would end in an actual murder. He cares too much for the Magda Grace Mallory Theater’s future, as well as Cici Wilde to allow her to face danger by herself. Audie and Cici make a dangerous gamble to catch the killer. They also lay their lives on the line.

“A String of Murders” is the second novel in the “Dressed for Death Mystery” series, which was released in the year 2009. Cici’s fiance, Audie, calls her up and has disturbing news for her. Her store got broken into, and to make things worse, someone killed the intruder. The victim has a threatening email in one hand, and a string of pearls in the other hand. The note says that the writer knows what they are doing, and to meet at Cici’s store on Saturday night, 8:30.

With the body being found, there have been quite a few ugly emails being sent throughout the Grace Gulch community that gets intensely personal. The killer drew their victim to Cici’s store, specifically. Why is that? The answer has to do with the pearls, which were a gift from Magda Grace Mallory, an art patron. She loaned them for Audie to use during an upcoming production of Arsenic and Old Lace.

All evidence is pointing to members of the tight knit theater community. Could it be Magda’s ne’er do well son, Gene Mallory? Or maybe Magda’s lawyer, Lauren Packer? Maybe it was Peppi Lambert, who was a newcomer to Grace Gulch as well as one of Cici’s good friends? Possibly Suzanne Jay, who was a theater diva that had a shady past, did it. Another murder is committed and the same string of pearls is at the scene. Cici fights through some baffling clues, in order to track down the killer, before he is able to strike again.

“Paint Me a Murder” is the third novel in the “Dressed for Death Mystery” series, which was released in the year 2015. It has been two years since the last murder happened in Grace Gulch. Life for the three Wilde sisters has settled down. The town celebrates the MGM Center for the Arts opening by having a clue-driven scavenger hunt. Cici is expecting her first child to come in six weeks time. Newcomers join the community, one of which is Gilda Howe, Cici’s mother-in-law.

Cici’s peace gets shattered when someone’s art studio is burnt down with a body inside of it. A missing artist is the prime suspect due to the public breakup that he had with the victim.

There is a secret that makes Cici be a sleuth one last time. There are legends of buried treasure and drug rumors mix together with jealousy, all while Cici investigates the murder and arson. Right when she starts to get close to figuring things out, there is another person that goes missing. It is her little sister. Is she going to find her in time?