By Kathy Brown.
You may know Karen Perry, of Killingworth, because she is the mother of four very active boys in Killingworth. You may know Karen because she was on the RSD #17 Board of Education for four years, serving as the Board Chair for two of those. You may know Karen as a lawyer, or as a math teacher. Now you can get to know her as an author.
Karen Perry, who writes under the name K. A. Perry, has lived in Killingworth for 20 years with her husband and children. The Green Beach File is her first novel.
On breaks during college, Karen worked in an independent bookstore, “I thought of writing mysteries then,” she explained. “That it would be really great to have a spot on the shelf in the mystery book section.”
The Green Beach File is a mystery in the style of Philip R. Craig or Nevada Barr. It’s not quite a cozy mystery in that the lead character, though she trips over a dead body, is more cerebral than the typical heroine of a cozy mystery, though there is a little romance, as well as a few eccentricities in the heroine and her family. The heroine, Jenn Bowdoin, is a naturalist, as well as a lawyer well versed in environmental law, just like the author. “I practiced environmental law for over a decade with a large firm in Hartford,” explained Karen. Not only is she a former Chair of the Environmental section of the Connecticut Bar Association, but she has also served in each of its officer positions.
Readers in our area may notice that the fictitious town of Mayfield has a few similarities to Madison. But the characters and the issues portrayed are pure fiction. “I have no idea what gave me the idea for the book,” said Karen, “but [I] have always had a pretty active imagination.”
After practicing law for years, and after the birth of her third son, Karen stayed home for a few years, then decided to go back to school to obtain her teaching certification for math through the Alternate Route to Certification. She has been teaching part time for three years, and she opened her own law firm in 2018 in Killingworth because the town was lacking a local one. Mostly, Karen practices real estate law, as well as trusts and estates, and an occasional environmental case.
Karen told H-KNow.com that it took her “a couple of years to write the book, and a couple of years to re-write it.” With two part-time jobs and a family to take care of, it can be difficult to find quiet time to write. “I often write when everyone else is sleeping,” explained Karen. “Smack in the middle of the night, or in the early morning.”
Of the main character, Karen says, “She is a naturalist. . . She notices the nature in every scene almost more than the people she interacts with, and it is nature itself which drives the plot towards its climax. Many Americans have been rediscovering nature during the pandemic. Maybe besides an entertaining read, it will help folks recognize the restorative role nature plays in each of our own lives.”
Will we see a sequel? Maybe. “I sure hope Jenn will keep tripping over dead bodies,” said Karen. “I am working on a sequel, and I hope you will like how she gets drawn into the next mystery.”
Check out The Green Beach File on Amazon.com or your favorite local independent bookseller.
Photos courtesy of Karen Perry.
