Hello! I’m a practicing lawyer and author of crime novels and short stories set in Greater Portland, Maine.
I tapped into into my early career as a newspaper reporter for the Joe Gale mystery series. The protagonist, Joe Gale, is a contemporary newspaper reporter with old-school style who covers the Maine crime and courts beat.
While I continue to publish short stories, I am completing a new series featuring Neva Pierce, a criminal defense lawyer who takes on cases others won’t touch in the hometown to which she swore she’d never return.
Photo: Ali Rosa Photography
Buchanan’s prose is lean and assured, her characters are nuanced and fully fleshed, and her stories zip along with the relentless urgency of a lit fuse. – Chris Holm, author of The Killing Kind
The Joe Gale Mystery Series
The book that introduced Joe Gale to the world, Quick Pivot (2015).
A cunning thief skimmed a half a million dollars from the textile mill that was the beating heart of Riverside, Maine. A sharp-eyed accountant discovered the discrepancy, but was killed before he could report it. Decades later, reporter Joe Gale discovers the skeleton in a basement crawl space at the long-shuttered mill.
The second book in the Joe Gale series, Cover Story (2015).
Joe Gale is at his best when covering the crime beat for the Portland Daily Chronicle. In the dead of winter, he heads Downeast to cover the murder trial of a fisherman charged with burying a filleting knife in the chest of politically well-connected social worker.
Truth Beat, the third book in the series of Joe Gale Mysteries (2016).
A Maine newspaper reporter struggles with unreliable sources while covering two explosive stories—the apparent murder of a Catholic priest who stood up to his church during a child sexual abuse scandal and a spate of increasingly destructive bombings near the high school.
All three books in the Joe Gale series can be purchased through my publisher, Carina Press, or at any of the following ebook retailers: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Google Play, ibooks and Kobo.
The Neva Pierce Crime Series: Coming soon!
Neva Pierce is featured in a short story called Means, Motive, and Opportunity, where she is defending a particularly difficult client who’s accused of killing her fiancé. Old friend Joe Gale, the protagonist of my first three novels, also plays a key role in the plot.
Means, Motive, and Opportunity was included in the anthology Bloodroot: Best New England Crime Stories 2021. I am honored that this short story has also made the list of Other Distinguished Stories in Best American Mystery and Suspense 2022 (BAMS).
Reviews
“Truth Beat,” which tackles thorny social issues with rare grace, might be Buchanan’s finest work to date. Don’t miss it.
Chris Holm, author of the much praised thriller “The Killing Kind,” which is featured on many “Best of 2015” lists
“Equal parts courtroom thriller and small-town mystery, Brenda Buchanan’s second Joe Gale mystery is destined to win her legions of new fans. “Cover Story,” is a whip-smart page-turner of a read.”
Katrina Niidas Holm, October 7, 2015 review “Cover Story” in an October 7, 2015 review in Crimespree Magazine
“The brisk plotting and crisp dialog in “Quick Pivot” will suck you in immediately. This debut has action, heart, and twists in all the right places. Brenda Buchanan is a talent to watch!”
Steve Ulfelder, Edgar finalist, author of “Wolverine Bros. Freight & Storage“
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