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Susan Ritz grew up in Minnesota, but she left home to become a wandering scholar; she lived, studied, and worked as a social worker in Kenya, Japan, Singapore, and Indonesia in the 1970s. She worked as a human rights lobbyist in Washington, DC, during the Carter Administration before moving to Dachau, Germany, the setting for her memoir in progress, On the Edge of Dachau. For the past thirty years she has lived with her husband and three children in Montpelier, Vermont, where she has worked as a fund raiser, events coordinator, and philanthropic advisor for a wide range of nonprofit organizations, especially those promoting economic equality for women. Writing, however, has always been her passion, and after receiving an MFA in creative nonfiction from Goucher College, she began writing for local publications, teaching creative writing to adults and high school students, and working on her first novel, A Dream to Die For.
Susan Ritz has crafted an original and compelling murder mystery that will keep you up late turning pages as you're sucked into a world of dreams and dreamers, mystics and bartenders, artists and cops. With a wonderfully intriguing cast of characters and a richly atmospheric small-town setting complete with its own cult, A Dream to Die For is a tangled web of a book you won't want to tear yourself away from. -- Jennifer McMahon, New York Times Bestselling author of Burntown and The Invited What if the small town where you live turns out not to be the sweet place you thought it was? What if the people you thought were your friends aren't? Worse yet, what if your dreams are not your own? These are the questions that come to haunt Celeste (or Miss) Fortune, the reluctant yet dauntless heroine of Susan Ritz's spellbinding debut novel. --Kathryn Davis, author of Duplex and The Thin Place With intrigue and humor, Susan Ritz has created an arresting novel that strikes at a core fear: what if your dreams were not safe? This psychologically compelling mystery about the murder of a therapist-cum-cult leader proves Ritz a natural storyteller. . . . Ritz is masterful at leading readers through a small city's best and worst instincts with finesse and wit. Hold your own dreams close, but be sure to share A Dream to Die For, a most tangible tale of virtual reality that stays with you long after every secret is revealed. --Shelagh Shapiro, Vermont author and host of Write the Book podcast A small-town crime caper with plenty of action and a cast of quirky, unforgettable characters. Ritz's comic timing is flawless, and her rollicking plot is expertly balanced against a sobering premise: That last bastion of personal privacy--our own dreams--may no longer be secure. The idea has an alarming ring of plausibility, adding a shivery edge to this entertaining mystery. --Kathryn Guare, award-winning author of The Conor McBride suspense series Susan Ritz's A Dream to Die For is a deft debut mystery that will appeal to anyone who loves a good puzzle with a feminist twist. The heroine, Celeste, is torn between her male therapist and the man she has begun to love. When the therapist is murdered, many suspects emerge from the cult of his patients--as well as a technological twist that will surprise you. --Mary Fillmore, author of An Address in Amsterdam Susan Ritz's A Dream to Die For exposes our universal human need to identify 'us' and 'them, ' and the confusion that can come when group dogma no longer lines up with experience. Her dialogue rings true, and her lively small-town characters make sore subjects fun. Her mystery embodies crises we all face in a new world of techno fake news and resulting divisions. What's real? What truly matters? Who can you trust? There's nothing like a murder or two to clarify purpose, community, and one's deepest identity as a blood-pounding, passionate woman with a brain. --Rickey Gard Diamond, author of Screwnomics Ritz does a brilliant job of making us care about what happens to her characters and is a master of detail. Impossible to put down! --Michelle Cox, author of the Henrietta and Inspector Howard series A gripping Gothic whodunit featuring obscure clues muttered by a dying man, strange encounters in foggy cemeteries, car chases on lonely roads, and clairvoyant dreams. --Bernie Lambek, author of Uncivil Liberties Oh, what a wonderful book! It's everything I want in a mystery! A wild imagination that made me believe every word. --Abigail Thomas, author of A Three Dog Life . . . darkly comic. A fun crime tale with creepy cult elements. --Kirkus Reviews A perplexing crime, a rural setting, a cast of quirky characters, and a reluctant amateur sleuth are staples of the cozy mystery genre, and everything comes alive at the tip of Ritz's pen. Ritz keeps the tone light and amusing--there are powerful messages that ring through the story. --OnlineBookClub.org
