“Whoever this killer was, he was smart and kept his emotions in check, no matter how anger boiled underneath. Nick wondered if the killer’s only release was in the grotesque nature of Allun’s murder. But deep down, he was certain that there was more to it than that. The killer positioned the body to send a message to someone; perhaps even to strike back at someone. That led Nick to believe that this may not be an isolated incident. This may not be the last he heard of this killer.”
Mystic resident Timothy Lassiter’s most recently published book, The Devil You Know, continues the story of his first published book, Three Degrees of Separation. In this sequel, Lassiter’s main character, Detective Nicholas Grenier, is back in a new position as lead detective for the New London Police Department, piecing together clues as he faces a new killer.
“After closing his previous case, Grenier is forced to face the fact that both police officer and killer run in his veins,” according to a press release from Lassiter’s publisher AuthorHouse. “He is called upon to help another police department investigate the brutal murder of a local priest. However, when he finds himself investigating another gruesome murder just days later with numerous similarities, he begins to believe the same killer is responsible for both cases. As he follows a path from one dead body to the next, he discovers that to solve this case, he must first put himself in the shoes of the victim and the mind of the killer.”
“The Devil You Know is the sequel in this continuous story about this detective,” Lassiter said. “It takes place here in Connecticut. The police department I use is the New London Police Department and a lot of people like that and I like that.”
Lassiter added that most mystery novels take place in Los Angeles or New York and he wanted to create something a little more local.
“This is just a continuing series about the growth of this detective, as a detective and as a person, as he moves through life.”
Born in Tennessee with a father in the Navy, Lassiter said he moved frequently during his earlier years. He said he likes to say he grew up in Norwich, where his father settled and retired; Lassiter has lived in Mystic for about three years.
“I’ve always liked writing,” he said. “I won this poetry contest in third grade and I won five bucks…I’ve kind of enjoyed writing and reading ever since.”
It was when he was in the Navy for about five years, working in medicine, that he found his niche in writing mysteries.
“When I was in the Navy, a lot of times, the only thing you have time to do is read...so I did a lot of reading, a lot of mystery reading,” Lassiter explained.
When injured and honorably discharged, he told himself he would try writing a novel. Though his first manuscript didn’t go anywhere, Lassiter said he knew the experience would help prepare him for future manuscripts he would write and get published.
He describes The Devil You Know as suspenseful, full of action, and mysterious. Though he enjoyed writing Three Degrees of Separation, giving the character and the story an introduction, he admitted that it was in The Devil You Know where he wanted to start.
“It’s in his career,” Lassiter explained, referring to Grenier. “It kind of shows his struggles as a detective and a human being…I’m currently writing the third ‘Grenier’ book. Then I’m going to move on…There’s a person in the first book and another person in the second book who will then branch off and have their own series.”
Still in the field of medicine as a nurse and in school to become a physician’s assistant, Lassiter hopes to make writing his second job.
“I’m definitely going to stay in the medical field, but I would love for [writing] to be my second job…It’s sort of a hobby because it’s very cathartic for me,” he continued. “I can just come home and write...It completes everything for me.”
In reference to both books—which took about a year to write and six months to edit—Lassiter said he’s the first to tell people that he’s not looking to write the next great American novel and continues to encourage people to pick up a book to create their own world.
“You don’t need to watch a screen to tell it’s a certain actor who plays the part,” he said. “You make your own person in your head and you can read and get days’ worth of good, imaginative carefree fun.”
Lassiter hopes people find the book “a good read,” and the first advice he would give to any writer would be not to quit.
“Don’t do that,” he stated. “Just do it because you never know who’s going to like it, and even the public doesn’t know if they’re going to like it…Everyone has a story to tell, at least one, if not more. I love hearing people saying they want to write….give it a try…write about what you know.”
The Devil You Know is now available online at about every major book store, such as Bordersstores.com, Amazon.com, and Barnesandnoble.com, and at local stores like Bank Square Books.
For more information, contact Timothy Lassiter via e-mail at timlass@comcast.net or visit www.lassiterbooks.com.