Out Now from Poisoned Pen Press
Excerpt >> Read Chapter 1 of Secrets (pdf)

Ramsay follows his solid debut, Artscape (2004), with an even better sophomore effort, in which Picketsville, Va., sheriff Ike Schwartz looks into the murder of church organist Waldo Templeton at the struggling Stonewall Jackson Memorial Episcopal Church. The little congregation's vicar, Blake Fisher, recently appointed by outside authority, is at odds with its entrenched cadre led by the church secretary, Millicent Bass. Millicent is determined not to let Blake have the upper hand even though he's nominally her boss. The normal tensions that might be expected by such an appointment are exacerbated not only by Waldo's murder but by other circumstances that Ramsay skillfully limns as he explores the conflicts and the growths (healthy and malignant) that evolve from it. Schwartz proves as adept at navigating the philosophical/religious waters as he is at handling the more conventional aspects of crime solving. The result is both a thought-provoking examination of serious pastoral issues and a thoroughly entertaining mystery that succeeds on all levels without recourse to bombast or carnage. -- Publishers Weekly (Aug. 2005)

Secrets is a marvelously plotted traditional mystery, set in the hamlet of Picketsville, Virginia and populated with vivid characters you grow to care about in the course of this tightly written novel. Leavened with humor and peppered throughout with thought-provoking pastoral issues, Frederick Ramsay writes with grace, clarity, and economy. You’ll be hearing more about Sheriff Ike Schwartz, the Rev. Blake Fisher, and the other inhabitants of Picketsville. It’s Mitford with murder, and Ramsay’s fresh storytelling voice merits a widening readership.
-- Julia Spencer-Fleming

With regional police procedurals like this one, Frederick Ramsay will not remain a secret to readers.
-- Harriet Klausner (Full Review–pdf)

After a scandal forces Reverend Blake Fisher to move from his prosperous Philadelphia congregation to the dying Picketsville Episcopal Church he despairs of being sentenced to live out the rest of his career in a podunk town whose members refuse to accept him.  When the seedy church organist turns up dead in his church Blake again finds himself under suspicion, especially once it’s discovered that Waldo Templeton had a talent for blackmail.  It’s up to Sheriff Ike Schwartz, a former CIA agent, and his quirky deputies to determine just who was willing to kill to protect his/her secrets.

In this sequel to Artscape Ike shares the spotlight with Blake, a wrongly accused vicar who has to contend with the animosity of his church as well as someone who seems determined to sabotage him.  Both men are having their own difficulties with the women in their lives as Ike continues his relationship with the outspoken, knee-jerk liberal Ruth Harris, the college president who both frustrates and intrigues him.  At the same time Blake finds himself drawn to the new organist who may be scared of by his past before they can plan a future.  Ramsay takes some shots at the academia and at liberals when Ike is forced to participate in a very humorous and entertaining faculty dinner full of pretentious, stuffed-shirt professors.  Although this is an Ike Schwartz mystery Blake Fisher emerges as an engaging new character strong enough to hold a novel of his own.  Ramsay once again has created an original and entertaining mystery full of small-town charm and big-city crime.  This is a series with great promise and should not be missed.
Aloha,
-- Cindy Chow on Dorothy L

Warning - the back of the book description doesn't do justice to the story within. An up and coming young star of the Philadelphia diocese was on his way to being a bishop when he was maligned and cast out of the assistant rectorship at his prestigious mainline church. The Reverend Doctor Randolph Blake Fisher, Jr., now the Vicar of the Stonewall Jackson Memorial Episcopal Church, is still in a pickle. One of the parishioners in the hidebound Appalachian mission is using a gun instead of prayer to ease their soul. The main characters in this story: the priest, the sheriff and the church secretary; are well drawn and connected to the story.

Mr. Ramsay executes a clever turn of phrase and creates intelligent, insightful dialogue. The sheriff and the priest are both personable guys with the ability to express themselves philosophically in language that is neither pedantic or preachy. 

Secrets gave me what I look forward to in a mystery. I didn't know who did it until the last telephone call was made, and I kept turning the pages the entire time.
-- Beth Ellen McKenzie (Full Review– pdf)
myshelf.com

The church secretary finds organist Waldo Templeton dead near the organ, shot twice with a small caliber weapon.  Ramsay's title sums up the action perfectly - since the reader will find that layer upon layer of secrets have been concealed in the small community.

A malicious gossip works out her own life of frustration by hurting others. A sensitive group of church files is missing.  Married couples deceive each other.  An Episcopal priest new to the community has arrived fleeing the disastrous fall-out from a previous assignment.  Ike Schwartz, the local sheriff, is startled when the FBI appears, protecting secrets of its own and striving to take over the investigation.  Hiding in plain sight, the killer finds motivation in the protection of yet another set of secrets.

Ramsay makes impressive use of the tension and apprehension implicit in the interlocking webs of unknown facts and motivations.  As the action unfolds, will the reader discover that revenge and hostility rule the day?  Or will good sense and compassion gain the upper hand?
-- Woodstock (Full Review - pdf)

I thoroughly enjoyed Secrets.  Don't know how I missed the first one, but I will rectify that ASAP. I especially enjoyed what wasn't there - the profanity and sex.  (Some books should come with an "R" or "X" rating on them!)  It was so refreshing not to be bombarded with all that. When my kids are ready for adult books, I will absolutely recommend you.  If I get my act together, I will also write a review for our church, so others will know that there a great author who can write entertaining, and clean mysteries. Thanks, Annette Lem