The First Two Pages: Called to Justice by Edith Maxwell

In April 2015, B.K. Stevens debuted the blog series “The First Two Pages,” hosting craft essays by short story writers and novelists analyzing the openings of their own work. The series continued until just after her death in August 2017, and the full archive of those essays can be found at Bonnie’s website. In November 2017, the blog series relocated to my website, and the archive of this second stage of the series can be found here.

Edith Maxwell has become a regular finalist for the Agatha Awards for her fine mysteries featuring Quaker midwife Rose Carroll—both in the historical mystery category and for her short stories featuring the amateur sleuth. The next book in the series is already out—Turning the Tide, released in April—but here Maxwell looks at the opening to her previous book in the series, Called to Justice, a finalist for this year’s Agathas as well.

Beyond the Quaker Midwife Mysteries, Edith writes several other series and serves as president of Sisters in Crime New England. She also blogs extensively—at Wicked Cozy Authors, at Killer Characters, and at Under Cover of Midnight. Find out more at her website here.

Please use the arrows and controls at the bottom of the embedded PDF to navigate through the essay. You can also download the essay here to read off-line.

Maxwell Called to Justice