An Eye for Murder

"An Eye For Murder is a masterful blend of politics, history, and suspense…"—Publishers Weekly


 “Complicated… fascinating… Hellmann has a beautifully tuned ear… which makes many of her scenes seriously funny …—Chicago Tribune


“Hellmann owes a debt to fellow Chicagoans Sara Paretsky (complex plotting) and Barbara D’Amato (excellent research) – but she’s the brash young thing making this formula new again! —Aunt Agatha’s


 “A brilliant debut mystery… not only has she (Hellmann)  created a wonderful character …but also she has given us a truly scary plot, a masterful blend of politics, history, and suspense.” -- Clues Unlimited


AN EYE FOR MURDER opens in 1944 Prague with a seemingly trivial exchange of intelligence. Decades later, in contemporary Chicago, the consequences emerge when documentary filmmaker Ellie Foreman gets a letter prompted by the success of one of her shows. The landlady of Ben Sinclair, an elderly man who died has found Ellie's name among his effects. Ellie, though puzzled, is curious. Before long, Mrs. Fleishman, too, dies. Then Ben's things are stolen from Ellie's suburban home, frightening the single mom but setting her curiosity and her investigative instincts ablaze. Although she's stretching to make ends meet by producing a campaign video a former steel company CEO running for the Illinois Senate, Ellie turns to her father, a retired lawyer with deep roots inChicago's Jewish community, for insights into the mystery of Ben Sinclair. From the political  present of the North Shore to the buried memories of the city’s ethnic neighborhoods, the components of Ben's story eventually merge into an explosive climax.