Pretty In Ink
by Karen E. Olson

Brett Kavanaugh is a tattoo artist and owner of one of Vegas’s hottest tattoo shops, The Painted Lady. And in her spare time, she does some sleuthing—because nothing needles her more than murder.

After Brett and company ink Sin City’s newest drag queen stars, they’re invited to opening night at the Strip’s glamorous Nylons and Tattoos show. An evening of glitter and dancing ends in disaster when a stranger with a queen of hearts tattoo fells Britney Brassieres with a wayward champagne cork.

Even though Britney recovers, she mysteriously dies soon after, and then another drag queen is found poisoned. Someone’s targeting Vegas’s fabulous femmes. And sharp-as-a-needle Brett must crack the case before the show’s over for good.

Other Books by Karen E. Olson

Ink Flamingos
A Tattoo Shop Mystery #4

Driven to Ink
A Tattoo Shop Mystery #3

The Missing Ink
A Tattoo Shop Mystery #1

Shot Girl
An Annie Seymour Mystery #4

Dead of the Day
An Annie Seymour Mystery #3

Sacred Cows

Karen E. Olson's Bio

Born in New Haven, Connecticut, I grew up in the city's suburbs. Early on, I developed a love of books and great pizza. I wrote my first "book" when I was 9.

I went to Roanoke College in southwestern Virginia to study literature. In addition to reading a lot of dead white male British writers, I worked on the school newspaper. Woodward and Bernstein had inspired me, and I still wanted to write fiction, but thought I could supplement that with a newspaper job.

I found a job as a reporter at a weekly newspaper in Old Saybrook, Connecticut. That was when I discovered my salary made me eligible for food stamps. I also realized I wouldn't be taking down any presidents, since my first story was an interview with the town's new dog warden and then I spent a lot of time at planning and zoning and school board meetings. I hopped from small paper to small paper, until finding out I could make a decent wage working nights as a copy editor.

Being a vampire wasn't so bad, and I started writing fiction in the middle of the night when I got home from work.

I had been reading a lot of Oprah-type books, in which women characters spent a lot of time being victims. I discovered that in mysteries, the women protagonists were smart and didn't allow themselves to be victimized. I decided that was the sort of protagonist I wanted to create.

Annie Seymour is a tough-talking, smart police reporter at the fictional New Haven Herald. She's not as cynical as she thinks she is, but she has strong ethics and a curiosity that's necessary to be a good journalist. I wanted her to live and work in New Haven, because it has such diverse neighborhoods, a gritty past and great restaurants.

Annie and I have a common bond in that we're both longtime journalists, but she's a much more fearless reporter than I ever was. She's also chosen to continue to be a reporter, whereas I discovered I really enjoyed editing and page design.

I left the newspaper business in 2006 after a 20-year career. I now edit a medical journal part-time at Yale. It was not an easy decision to make, but it's made life a lot more simple, and I have more time to devote to my fiction writing. Also, unlike Annie, I've settled down with my husband, a former journalist now political flack for a high-ranking elected state official, and our daughter.

I have to admit, however, we do both enjoy the thrill of a good story.