Janet Finsilver Books In Order

Publication Order of A Kelly Jackson Mystery Books

Janet Finsilver is a popular author of cozy mystery fiction whose “Kelly Jackson mystery” series has made it into the USA Today bestselling books. Prior to becoming an author, Finsilver worked for many years as a workshop presenter, program administrator, and teacher. She has Master’s Degree in Education having majored in English. Born in the country, Finsilver always had the tomboy in her and rode Western style since she was four years old. She was a member of the National Ski Patrol though she has asserted that she had the most fun when she traveled to San Ignacio Lagoon to play with whales. She published her first novel “Murder at Redwood Cove” in 2015 to much popularity and critical acclaim. After attaining much success with her debut she went on to write several more titles in the still ongoing series. Janet currently lives in San Francisco Bay with her husband and two dogs a Coonhound/Boxer mix named Ellie and a Rhodesian ridgeback known as Kylie. When she is not writing she loves to ski, cook, ride horses, and, cook and of course read a lot of books.

Janet Finsilver’s Kelly Jackson mysteries are set in Redwood Cove, a small town on the North California coast. The novels have a fast paced but well-plotted story line with well developed, caring, and relatable cast. Each novel in the series introduces the reader to a new aspect of the small town and its huge cast of residents including the dogs, the Sentinels, and a cast of supporting characters. The lead in the series is Kelly Jackson who has been transferred to Redwood Cove where she takes up a managerial position. Kelly Jackson is a big-hearted, independent, smart, and likable character who thought that she would hate the small town only to find that she loves the job, the tourist community, and the people she comes to call colleagues. Her boss at the Redwood Cove Bed and Breakfast is Michael Corrigan, a man who lives for the community in which he does business and takes great care of his employees. Kelly is also a member of the Sentinels, a crime fighting group that she finds herself joining a few days after coming to Redwood Cove and stumbling into her first murder case.

The Silver Sentinels of the Kelly Jackson Mystery series are a group of five senior citizens who fight crime in Redwood Cove. The team includes the vintage gold Mercedes driving Herbert Winthrop that goes by “The Professor”, Rudy and Ivan the Doblinsky brothers, Mary Rutledge who is always munching on something, and the Plumber Gertie. Their hair color ranges from the metallic gray of the Professor to Rudy’s white crown. The five had come together after the police had seemingly failed to stem the tide of pickpockets that had invaded their small town threatening the tourist business. Despite their age they are excellent investigators that have brought many criminals to justice, while also solving many of the ills ailing their community. In addition to the Sentinels are dogs with special abilities that are featured in each novel. The first novel “Murder at Redwood Cove” introduces a cancer sniffing dog named Fred. Jill and Jack who are termite and bedbug sniffing beagles that are introduced in the second novel with the bowlegged Chihuahua with hearing assistance training named Princess making his debut in the third title.

“Murder at Redwood Cove” is the enchanting first cozy mystery of the Kelly Jackson series of novels by Janet Finsilver. Kelly Jackson works for Resorts International as an Executive Administrator. She has just been transferred to the remote Redwood Cove B&B, a small hotel in the tourist friendly Mendocino County of California. Her predecessor had been a man named Bob Phillips that reportedly fell and died after slipping on the hiking trails high up on the cliffs overlooking the town. His wife had been so shocked by the news that she had gone into cardiac arrest and was now recuperating in the small ICU unit in town. Meanwhile, the Inn has to prepare for a couple of important festivals that include the Chocolate Festival and Taste of Wine. Michael Corrigan who is in charge of Redwood Cove needs someone of Kelly’s experience to ensure everything runs smoothly, before he can find a replacement for the dead innkeeper. Kelly is welcomed to the inn by Daniel Stevens the handyman alongside Allie his daughter, and Cook/Housekeeper Helen Rogers who tags along his hound Fred and Tommy her rambunctious son. Soon after she starts her new job she runs into the Silver Sentinels, a group of elderly women and men having their weekly meeting in the conference room at the inn. Everyone in the town believes that there is something sinister about the experienced, and lovable hiker slipping and falling to death on trails he knew so well, except for Bill Stanton the Deputy Sheriff. The Silver Sentinels have taken up the case and are determined to prove that what happened to the innkeeper was not an accident.

“Murder at the Mansion” the second novel in the series continues the tale of Kelly Jackson Redwood Cove’s temporary innkeeper. She has been promoted to manager and gets to work with some of the friendliest of people, their dogs, and some cheeky though very helpful children. She is now part of the in group of the Silver Sentinels, the elderly sleuths popular in town for eliminating crime and vice. Meanwhile, Michael Corrigan her boss makes the decision to sell the Redwood Heights Resort and asks Kelly to go meet the manager and take an inventory of the furnishings and antiques. For some reason the resort had recently been the target of jewelry thieves who had broken into the rooms to steal from guests. Kelly arrives to find that one of the guests had declared that she was pushed down the stairs and that she would sue the resort. Things get thick when Kelly goes to her room to reason with her and offer her sympathies only to find that she just died. It gets more bizarre when the police try to contact her next of kin and discover that she appears nowhere on any records. It would seem that she had been using an alias which raises more questions than answers. And in the midst of the investigations Kelly and the Silver Sentinels discover a secret compartment door and not long after an attempt is made on her life.

One Response to “Janet Finsilver”

1. Jodie endicott: 2 years ago

   Hi. I would like to know if there is going to be anymore books in the redwood cove mystery series.

   Reply