Motive for Murder
In Motive for Murder, rookie detective Hana Brown’s traumatic past puts her front and center of the Fairfax County Police Department’s media push-and gets her assigned to the gruesome murder of an Asian woman. At first the death is considered a routine gang killing. By the time the FCPD realized the victim is the first in a series of Chinese American women being murdered by someone who signs their notes “Jack the Ripper,” it’s too late to replace Hana.
An FBI agent chosen as her deputy-despite his protests-endorses the belief that the culprit is a serial killer. But everything changes when Hana finds herself attracted to an intrepid news reporter who has advanced a competing theory: that political intrigue is the true motive behind the murders.
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Ray Collins grew up in the Midwest. An Army combat veteran, he attended Yale and Princeton, earning an MPA, a mid-career fellowship, and a PhD in public affairs. He was a nonresident fellow at Yale's Zigler Center for Child Development and Social Policy. He was a Japanese language and East Asia specialist with the Department of State and later worked in the poverty program. He's written publications focused on Head Start, child care, and policy toward children and families. Recently, he's written on white supremacy's resurgence and the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol. He currently lives with his wife, Betty Ann, in Vienna, Virginia, and enjoys spending time with family (four children plus offspring), working out at the Fairfax County rec center, and looking forward to future trips to Hawaii.