Twist Phelan
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Twist Phelan [1] is the critically-acclaimed author of the Pinnacle Peak mystery series, published by Poisoned Pen Press [2].
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[edit] Biography
Twist received her bachelor and law degrees from Stanford University. Success as a plaintiff’s trial lawyer suing corporate scoundrels allowed her to retire in her early thirties. In addition to writing crime fiction, Twist is a world traveler and endurance sports enthusiast. She has competed in Ironman triathlons, skate-skied in Scandinavia, team-roped in the American West, paddled surf ski and outrigger canoe in Australia, rock-climbed in South America, and bicycled from the Pacific to the Atlantic Coast in less than four weeks.
[edit] The Pinnacle Peak Mystery Series
A different sport figures in each of Twist’s legal-themed mysteries, which are set in the fictional town of Pinnacle Peak, Arizona and feature the attorney/adventure athlete Hannah Dain.
[edit] Heir Apparent
Heir Apparent was first published in 2002, with a revised second edition released in 2007.
Joe McGuinness, lawyer and team roper, has landed a job with one of Pinnacle Peak’s top firms. But then his boss is killed, putting Joe’s legal career in jeopardy. Soon much more is at stake when two more bodies turn up, and Joe must untangle a web of secrets to exonerate a friend and find out who is using murder to claim the rights of heir apparent.
[edit] Family Claims
Family Claims (2004) introduces lawyer-athlete Hannah Dain. The book won Best Mystery, Colorado Gold Writing Contest, and was a Finalist for the Calavera Award.
Hannah is on the verge of leaving her family’s law firm when a real estate deal she’s put together suddenly goes bad. Career on the line, Hannah investigates—despite a disapproving father and antagonistic older sister. Although she exonerates the firm, a car bomb and two murders thwart the police's identification of the culprit behind the scheme. Working on a new deal, assisted by Cooper (the firm's computer consultant and her former lover), Hannah uncovers a greater threat too close to home. Only by exposing family secrets can she save her reputation, her law firm, and her life.
[edit] Spurred Ambition
Spurred Ambition (2006), in which Hannah takes up rock climbing, was named a “Notable Pick” by Book Sense.
As Hannah heads for the cliffs of Pinnacle Peak to climb, she winds up in the middle of a violent anti-Indian protest. She escapes, but makes an enemy. A recent family revelation sends her on a hunt for a missing person, an attraction to a co-worker jeopardizes Hannah’s romantic relationship, and she becomes enmeshed in a kidnapping tied to a securities fraud. Murder ups the ante, compelling Hannah to unravel the scheme and the mystery of her past.
[edit] False Fortune
False Fortune (2007) finds Hannah kayaking, and in deep water.
The chance rescue of a drowning woman leads to Hannah’s appointment as lead trial counsel in her sister Shelby’s case, a new friend pulls her into a treasure hunt, and a recently-discovered family member unexpectedly shows up at Hannah’s door and threatens her relationship with Shelby. Only by taking a gutsy chance can Hannah expose the conspiracy and unite both halves of her family.
 Heir Apparent (Second Edition, 2007) |
 Family Claims (2004) |
 Spurred Ambition (2006) |
 False Fortune (2007) |
[edit] Other Writings
Twist has published short stories and contributed essays to anthologies, journals, and magazines, including:
- “A Trader's Lot” in Wall Street Noir (Akashic Books, 2007) tracks a commodity futures trader’s dizzy ride on Fortune’s roller coaster.
- “Crime Wave” (CrimeSpree Magazine, 2007) takes an ironic look at the idea of crime being in the eye of the beholder.
- “Floored” (Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, 2008), set in the natural gas pit of the New York Mercantile Exchange, follows a female broker's introduction to the realities of the male-dominated trading floor, where morality and economics collide.
- “Strange Bedfellows” in Politics Noir (Verso, 2008) is an ironic/darkly funny tale in which characters’ actions circle back so each gets what s/he deserves.
Twist’s essay on one of her literary influences, Margaret Maron, appears in the collection Mystery Muses: 100 Classics That Inspire Today's Mystery Writers.
