MYSTERY AUTHOR

Cool. Cunning. Charming

Fans of strong-willed women adore Kat and Lizzie. Humorous, tenacious, and quirky — but, oh so different. Kat, young with decorum. Lizzie, old and sassy. Persistent, clean and wholesome, off-center characters. Compelling mysteries with thought-provoking plots. A synthesis of instincts, intelligence, and curiosity propel these intriguing characters as they fight injustice.

Current Titles  •  About Judith Mehl

facebook goodreads amazon linked in amazon


The Herbal Sleuth Series with Lizzie Ort    Where the elixir of herbs endows life . . . or administers death.

The Way Out

Retirement plans go awry for Lizzie Ort when she hunts a missing teenager and stumbles on a murder in an abandoned warehouse. To solve the mystery she must comb the murky world of the homeless and addicted. With her sister, Delia, she rallies the medical establishment, social workers, law enforcement, and natural medicine to tackle opioid addiction and recovery solutions. Surprising volunteers aid her search to find the killer before witnesses die. This book is a mystery with witty, fun characters weaving their way through a serious problem. The Way Out follows the inimitable Lizzie Ort tackling crime. Yet, it’s bigger than the characters. It’s a plea to open our eyes and delve into recovery solutions for, and prevention of, opioid drug addiction before the epidemic worsens. And it’s a warning to hurry—time is running out in the hourglass.

Read an excerpt
Print edition from Amazon, $12.99 or the Kindle edition, $2.99

Fountain of Death

A fountain of youth discovery leads to murder at a Florida herbal conference. There’s no shortage of suspects, including Lizzie Ort, who springs into action to protect friends, and find justice for the victim. Her concealed expertise resurfaces, as with wit, and mumblings to God and herself, Lizzie pursues leads, and follows her instincts. She struggles with the shift from the high-powered pistols of her past to a higher ethical power as she hunts the murderer. Quirky characters strut around the conference and beach, blithely unaware there’s a killer out there, or ready to fight their neighbor from fear. Did the killer steal the victim’s controversial formula for a telomere lengthener—that elusive herbal solution to old age? Was it one of the hundreds of conference exhibitors or attendees . . . or someone else?

Read an excerpt, see discussion questions
Print edition from Amazon, $12.99 or the Kindle edition, $2.99.

The Handwriting Series with Kat Everitt    Handwriting might clear you ... or make you a prime suspect.

Formula for Murder

Kat Everitt, a seasoned amateur sleuth, uses handwriting analysis to narrow the field of suspects and unmask the killer in a campus murder. Scribbled notes become clues; a new twist to crime solving that reveals weaknesses and secrets through knowledge of handwriting and personalities. A tip at the beginning of each chapter provides readers insight into their own writing, and puzzle pieces to solve the crime. Kat zips through the investigation on stiletto heals, and shuffles clues of human failings to pinpoint the killer, seeking an end to increasingly dire threats to all. And then there’s the mysterious stranger thrust into the fray. Was his arrival the night of the murder coincidental? Or something more sinister?

Read an excerpt, see what readers say
Order print edition from Amazon, $14.99 or the Kindle edition, $2.99.

Game, Set, Murder

Kat Everitt pinpoints a killer through handwriting analysis at a satellite tennis tournament. Suspects abound, despite the friendly atmosphere on this university campus in the Pocono Mountains. The killer fears discovery and attacks Kat to deter her from pursuit. The journey, fraught with tension, takes the readers through the foibles of university life and tennis mania. Tips begin each chapter to serve as personality clues on each suspect. Handwriting analysis identifies hundreds of qualities such as coping ability, work drive, and reliability. Taken as a whole, these characteristics form a mosaic that a certified analyst, such as Kat, can use to draw significant conclusions. This technique is one of many methods Kat uses to unmask a killer, as she does in this second in the series.

Read an excerpt, see what readers say
Order print edition from Amazon, $14.99 or the Kindle edition, $.99.

Murder Most Floral

When a killer attacks the Bittersweet Herb Shop, sleuth Kat Everitt teams up with herbalists to thwart the floral bouquet killer. A bouquet of flowers graces each victim’s home, with a handwritten note, a hidden meaning, and a possible deadly weapon. Seeking help from her friends, and her husband’s security agency, Kat struggles to pinpoint the killer by analyzing the written clues, while the gardening experts decipher the sinister meanings behind the flowers. When Nick backs Kat up, we meet new characters, like Lance, the pretty boy, and Art, the security operative/valet, and an Irish mechanic. They all join with the local police to tie together the deaths of the women from the shop and farm to prevent a friend’s murder, and expose the killer of the other two.

Read an excerpt, see what readers say
Order print edition from Amazon ($14.99)
or the Kindle edition, $2.99

Short Stories Appearing in Anthologies

A Readable Feast

This collection of food-related stories from the multiple award-winning Bethlehem Writers Group has all the ingredients to satisfy your reading palate. Our menu includes appetizing stories from light-fare and sides of fantasy to sweet romance and savory bites of mystery. Judith Mehl’s “Twenty-one Greens” offers an herbal mystery. Jeff Baird's "The Pickle Promenade" provides an amuse bouche. Try a spicy entree prepared by Diane Sismour in "Bump and Run." On the sweeter side, there's Sally Paradysz's "Our Town is Different" or the bittersweet "Breakfast for One" by Geoffrey Mehl. Other delectable tales from Courtney Annicchiarico, Terrie Daugherty, Bernadette De Courcey, Marianne H. Donley, Headley Hauser, Ralph Hieb, Emily P. W. Murphy, E. L. Ryan, Paul Weidknecht, Carol L. Wright, Tracy Falenwolfe, and C. A. Rowland.

Read an excerpt

Once Upon a Time

This anthology is designed to grow with your child. First, stories such as "GG and Teddy and the Dream Willow" by Will Wright, "The Princess of Booray" by Emily P. W. Murphy, and "A Nutty Adventure" by Judith Mehl, will enchant those who enjoy being read to. "A Harmonious Secret" by Josie Myers, "Bird Boy" by Russell Uhler, and "Bring-Your-Monster-to-School Day" by Kidd Wadsworth, allow young readers to immerse themselves in the fantasy and adventure of reading on their own. Finally, for older kids, such stories as "Book Worm" by Christopher D. Ochs and "Coot" by Anne Hamilton complete the collection with the tween or early teen in mind. Includes "Stick to the Bypathings," by Eleanor Ingbretson. Charming illustrations from Agy Wilson enhance each story.

Read an excerpt