Filomena Buscarsela Books In Order
- 23 Shades Of Black (1997)
- Soft Money (1999)
- The Glass Factory (2000)
- Red House (2001)
- Blood Lake (2002)
Novels
- The Fifth Servant (2010)
Omnibus
- The Crime Cafe 9 Book Set (2016)
Collections
- Flat Rate (1997)
Anthologies edited
- Jewish Noir (2015)
- Jewish Noir 2 (2022)
Filomena Buscarsela Book Covers
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K j a Wishnia Books Overview
23 Shades Of Black
NYPD cop Filomena Buscarsela has pretty much seen it all in her five years on the force. But after she recognizes the victim of a fatal toxic leak, which occurs outside her jurisdiction, her instincts tell her that something is not what it seems to be. From her run-down Bronx apartment to the way-out clubs of the Lower East Side, Filomena’s investigation leads her to suspect that a group of high-powered corporate executives has turned to murder as a way to protect its bottom line.
Soft Money
Mystery fiction’s exciting new voice and refreshing new hero*ine return in the sequel to 23 Shades of Black. When 23 Shades of Black was self published in trade paperback last year, the mystery world was abuzz with curiosity about this new writer who came from nowhere to be nominated for the genre’s two most prestigious awards, the Edgar and the Anthony. Signet re published k.j.a. Wishnia’s novel in mass market, setting the stage for his second book in the series, Soft Money. A lot has changed in our Latina hero*ine’s life: Filomena Buscarsela has dumped her deadbeat man, but kept her two year old daughter, and left the NYPD for less dangerous work in a non profit company. But she’s drawn back into the fray when a rookie cop needs her help solving a bodega murder in the Bronx, and when her big money Manhattan employer turns out to be riddled with corruption. Once again, the street smart Filomena cannot rest until she straightens a few people out. ‘Packed with enough mayhem and atmosphere for two novels!’ Booklist
The Glass Factory
When tough talking urban crime fighter Filomena Buscarsela learns about a fetid glass factory located in a poor New York neighborhood, her cop instincts kick in…
.
Red House
First she was a beat cop, then she was unemployed. Now, in Red House, K.j.a. Wishnia’s dynamic Filomena Buscarsela has apprenticed herself to a New York City P.I. firm to put in the three years necessary to get her own P.I. license, something she needs to earn enough money to support herself and her daughter. Trouble is, she often agrees to take on sticky neighborhood cases pro bono rather than handle the big bucks clients her bosses would prefer. While helping out her more ‘senior’ colleagues with her own superior investigative techniques bred from years on the beat, Fil agrees to look into the disappearance of a young illegal immigrant. Then, witnessing the arrest of a neighbor on mari*juana possession charges that nearly turns into a shootout with the police, Fil is roped into finding out what went wrong. Trying to balance charity cases like these with bread and butter paying cases, not to mention single motherhood, Fil is quickly in over her head dodging bullish cops, left wing zealots, and corrupt landlords in their working class Queens neighborhood. All in all, it’s a heady NY mix that mystery fans will applaud for its originality and suspense. K. j. a. Wishnia’s mastery of the chaos of New York and the intense drama borne out of daily life in the melting pot of Queens makes for thrilling reading.
Blood Lake
When Filomena Buscarsela takes her teen aged daughter to see their extended family in Ecuador, it’s more than a homecoming. Filomena hasn’t been back in years, and the trip brings back memories of her previous life there as a revolutionary. Strangest of all, people keep asking her if her lover who died in a hail of police gunfire in front of her very eyes is alive. And then a priest is murdered, a man who years ago saved her life and helped her escape to America. It’s an election year, and the dirty hand of politics seems to be everywhere, perhaps even in this senseless death. Filomena’s investigation promises to lead her back to the very people she escaped, all those years ago. All in all, Wishnia provides a compelling look at the provenance of one of mystery fiction’s most dynamic hero*ines.
The Fifth Servant
In 1592, Prague is a relatively safe refuge for Jews who live within the gated walls of its ghetto. But the peace is threatened when a young Christian girl is found with her throat slashed in a Jewish shop on the eve of Passover. Charged with blood libel, the shopkeeper and his family are arrested, and all that stands in the way of a rabid Christian mob is a clever Talmudic scholar, newly arrived from Poland, named Benyamin Ben Akiva. Granted just three days to bring the true killer to justice hampered by rabbinic law, with no allies or connections, and only his wits, knowledge, and faith to guide him Benyamin sets off on a desperate search for answers. Following a twisting trail from the streets to the shul, from the forbidden back rooms of a ghetto brothel to the emperor Rudolf II’s lavish palace, he will dare the impossible and commit the unthinkable to save the Jews of Prague…
and himself.
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