Gallows Hill

Murder in Salem? In this day and age? First day back on the job, introverted police detective Andrew Lennox and his partner discover the body of a hanged man on Gallows Hill who turns out to be the lost heir of the Musgraves, an old family with a twisted history and who deny all knowledge of the victim. Solving the case takes Lennox through the colorful byways of modern Salem, a city still haunted by its own dark history of Puritan hysteria and witch-hunting zealots. He must deal with Halloween tourists, self-styled witches, college students, tarot readers, local politicians, retired cops and recent immigrants. Lennox discovers that everyone in Salem keeps secrets, and some will kill to keep them. “Rory O'Brien is an astonishing conjurer with words. Out of his deep historical knowledge, his perceptiveness about everyday existence, and his vivid imagination, he has brought to life in all its unique glory the legend-haunted city of Salem, Massachusetts. Detective Andrew Lennox is an utterly believable hero whose clever exploits provide subtle frissons.” – Paul Di Filippo, co-author of Families Are Murder. “What could be more ideal than a murder mystery set in Salem, written by an expert on the dark secrets of New England? What could be better than a police procedural at the very epicenter of our Trick or Treat tradition? Anyone seeking a delightful whodunit will eat this book up like a bag of Halloween candy.” – Walter Greatshell, author of Terminal Island

Rory O'Brien grew up in New England, surrounded by books, history, and the long shadows of Poe, Hawthorne, and Lovecraft. He spent months haunting the streets of Salem, speaking with tourists, townies, witches, cops, and business owners. He spent a ridiculous amount of money in kitschy tourist attractions, read every guidebook he could get his hands on, and took every walking tour in town ... all in the name of "research." His short fiction has appeared in The Storyteller and The Helix magazines, and Stone Cold: Best New England Crime Stories 2013. Gallows Hill is his first novel. He currently lives in Salem with his patient, long-suffering wife, their beagle, and a black cat.