Ever Read A Social Work Mystery Book?

Hello! My name is Margaret Fenton, and I write the “Little” social work mystery series. I am happy to be here and to talk about my writing. My books feature Claire Conover, a child welfare social worker at the fictional Jefferson County Department of Human Services in Birmingham, Alabama. She investigates crimes against children, or, in some cases, crimes adjacent to children.

The hardest part about writing this series is deciding what to put in it. Child abuse and
death is not something that most people feel comfortable reading about for entertainment, so details need to be carefully chosen so they don’t offend the reader. After all, I write mystery, not horror. I start each book with the crime and the villain, and then decide how Claire gets involved to solve the mystery. My main goal in starting this series was to paint a picture of what child welfare social workers really do all day. I used to work with them when I was the mental health consultant for the real-life Jefferson County, Alabama DHR. Nothing I write is based on any real case, for that would be completely unethical. However, I am a good example of “write what you know”, which is always a good place to start.

Social workers investigate all kinds of situations that affect children. This includes abuse
and neglect, of course, but also can include families who just need appropriate resources in the moment. The whole goal is to prevent the child or children from coming into State care. All of the social workers I met in my previous career were dedicated and talented people who devoted themselves to the safety and care of children. I tried to create a character who reflected those values.

I hope you’ll check out my series, which begins with Little Lamb Lost. Claire gets to
work one day and one of her young clients is dead. The police arrest the mother and are
convinced she is guilty, but Claire knows that is not true and is compelled to investigate. Little Girl Gone is next, when Claire meets a thirteen-year-old girl who is sleeping behind a grocery store. She is placed in foster care, then disappears. Her mother is later found dead and Claire must find out what happened. In book three, Little White Lies, there is a bombing at a mayoral candidate’s office and a man is killed. He has a young daughter who becomes Claire’s charge and she gets drawn into another mystery. And that leads us to Little Boy Blue, when Claire’s recent boyfriend is accused of child abuse by an ex-employee. Claire does what she does best, and sets out to prove his innocence.

Margaret Fenton writes the Little mystery series featuring child welfare social
worker Claire Conover, published by Aakenbaaken and Kent. She spent nearly ten
years as a child and family therapist for her county’s child welfare department
before focusing on writing. She has been a planning coordinator of Murder in the
Magic City in Birmingham, Alabama since its inception in February 2003
(mmcmysteryconference.com). Margaret lives in the Birmingham suburb of
Hoover with her husband, a retired software developer, three adorable Papillon
dogs, and lots and lots of books. Her website is margaretfenton.com and she loves
to hear from readers.

Books in Print:

Little Lamb Lost
Little Girl Gone
Little White Lies
Little Boy Blue