Hacksaw

About the Book

"Weird clients are nothing to new to Houston PI Eva Baum. "HACKSAW" is the tale of how she might be forced onto the trail of a brutal serial killer whose case has turned cold. Eva is close to taking it out of that file and not everyone is excited about her snooping about, not even the law itself - but Eva is determined to discover the truth anyway, not for money, but because she must know. A riveting read from first page to last, "Hacksaw" is highly recommended to community library collections dedicated to suspenseful fiction. br> Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI)

Houston PI Eva Baum knows how to find people, even if they don't want to be found.

Her newest client is Shade, a mentally ill, homeless artist, and he wants Eva to tackle a bizarre case. His ex-wife, Julie, may hold the key to revealing the identity of a vicious serial killer-known as Hacksaw-who tortured and mutilated underage prostitutes years ago and was never caught. When Shade asks Eva to find Julie, her new mission could turn this very cold case hot again.

Eva isn't the only one searching for Julie. A vicious Seattle mobster, a couple of unscrupulous federal officers, and possibly even the Hacksaw Murderer are keeping close tabs on Eva's progress. Eva is looking for Julie, the truth, perhaps even some justice and redemption, but all she can see at the end of this complicated trail is terror, blood, and death. What she cannot see coming is ultimate, devastating betrayal.

"HACKSAW has everything I want in a private eye novel: a brain-teasing mystery, heart-squeezing suspense, vicious villains and a detective truly worthy of this great story! Don't even open this book unless you're prepared to be up all night."
Austin S. Camacho, author of the Hannibal Jones mystery series

About the Author

Mark Phillips grew up in central Illinois reading the classics – especially Greek mythology, James Bond novels and lots and lots of Batman comics. He is a graduate of both the University of Illinois (BA – Philosophy) and Northwestern University (MA – Philosophy). Mark currently teaches pre-calculus, political philosophy and the theory of knowledge at Bellaire High School in Houston, Texas. Mark has been a member of Houston Scriptwriters for three years. Charlotte Phillips hails from Allentown, Pennsylvania. In addition to Pennsylvania, she lived in Florida and California before settling Texas. Her degrees are from Florida Tech (BS-Marine Biology) and Houston Baptist University (MS-Management, Computing, and Systems). Charlotte is a member of Houston Scriptwriters, Sisters in Crime and the local chapter – Final Twist. They have both always written. Charlotte started by inventing stories to entertain her youngest brother, but really got the bug when a sixth grade teacher gathered the best of the classes’ work for the year into a book called Miscellaneous. She’s written for various school publications and even tutored fellow students in English and Creative Writing. Hacksaw is the first work Charlotte submitted for publication. Mark, who has been writing stories and political tracts for as long as he can remember, was a bit more precocious. He submitted his first stories to a magazine editor when he was twelve years old. That editor’s kind and encouraging response fueled the fire that was already burning. The authors met nine years ago, but didn’t discover that they shared a passion for writing until Charlotte signed up for a creative writing class at Rice University and Mark jumped at the opportunity to join her. Collaborating on a series of books became their personal dream. Hacksaw is the first published result.