On this cold winter day those of us who are not snowbirds are bundled up in warm jackets, scarfs, hats and gloves.

The month of February commemorates African American History and Achievements. It is our tradition in the “I love a mystery” Book Club to use this month to celebrate a Black mystery writer. This year's pick was Attica Locke's “Heaven My Home.”

Attica Locke is a fiction author and writer/producer for television and film. Her popular “Bluebird, Bluebird” took both the Anthony and CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger Awards. She has received or been nominated for 20 other awards. “Bluebird, Bluebird,” “Heaven My Home,” and “Guide Me Home” are part of a series.

S.A. Cosby is an author of Southern based stand alone crime thrillers. His most notable are “Blacktop Wasteland” and “Razorback Tears.” His latest is “King of Ashes.” Cosby has received several awards for his writing including the Anthony Award.

Walter Mosley was the first African American to receive the National Book Foundation Medal (Lifetime Achievement) in 2020. He is best known for his series featuring hard-boiled detective, Easy Rawlings, a Black private investigator in the suburbs of Los Angeles. Mosley has more than 20 awards to his credit. Check out his latest novel “Gray Dawn.”

Colson Whitehead is a graduate of Harvard University. His “Nickel Boys” won him his second Pulitzer Prize for fiction. His writings include non-fiction, essays, and short stories. Look for his new “Harlem Trilogy” being published this year.

Lauren Ling Brown is new to this genre. She has a BA from Princeton University and an MFA from USC. She is both a writer and film editor based in Los Angeles. Her debut novel “Society of Lies” was a Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick in October of 2024.

Happy reading mystery lovers!