Murder at First Baptist
by Weston P. Hatfield
In the summer of 1933, peace in the sleepy hamlet of Huntsville, North Carolina is shattered when the body of the beautiful new organist is found floating face down in the baptismal pool of the First Baptist Church. Isaiah Harrison, loyal church sexton and pillar of the black community, is the first to find her; it proves to be a discovery that would have been better made in the presence of another, preferably white, witness.
As the police search for clues to the killer’s identity, pressure mounts for them to charge Isaiah with the murder. The case captures the attention of the nation, and exposes passions and prejudices that have long simmered beneath the surface of life in this quiet town.
Part mystery, part courtroom drama, part love story, Murder at First Baptist presents a thoughtful, nuanced and unforgettable portrait of a Depression-ridden, deeply segregated Southern town struggling to make sense of the events that have overtaken it. With wit and sympathy, Weston Hatfield populates Huntsville with a colorful cast of suspects and sinners, and explores the racial, religious and economic divisions that threaten to rock the community to its very foundation.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Weston P. Hatfield, a native North Carolinian, was born in Hickory and practices law in Winston-Salem. A graduate of Wake Forest University and Harvard Law School, he served as an officer in the European Theatre in World War II, landing at Normandy Beach in 1944. He is the author of a book on real estate, and his non-fiction articles have appeared in numerous publications including The New Yorker. Murder at First Baptist is his first novel. Mr. Hatfield and his wife divide their time between Winston-Salem, North Carolina and Washington, D.C.
(2006, hardcover, 300 pages)
In the summer of 1933, peace in the sleepy hamlet of Huntsville, North Carolina is shattered when the body of the beautiful new organist is found floating face down in the baptismal pool of the First Baptist Church. Isaiah Harrison, loyal church sexton and pillar of the black community, is the first to find her; it proves to be a discovery that would have been better made in the presence of another, preferably white, witness.
As the police search for clues to the killer’s identity, pressure mounts for them to charge Isaiah with the murder. The case captures the attention of the nation, and exposes passions and prejudices that have long simmered beneath the surface of life in this quiet town.
Part mystery, part courtroom drama, part love story, Murder at First Baptist presents a thoughtful, nuanced and unforgettable portrait of a Depression-ridden, deeply segregated Southern town struggling to make sense of the events that have overtaken it. With wit and sympathy, Weston Hatfield populates Huntsville with a colorful cast of suspects and sinners, and explores the racial, religious and economic divisions that threaten to rock the community to its very foundation.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Weston P. Hatfield, a native North Carolinian, was born in Hickory and practices law in Winston-Salem. A graduate of Wake Forest University and Harvard Law School, he served as an officer in the European Theatre in World War II, landing at Normandy Beach in 1944. He is the author of a book on real estate, and his non-fiction articles have appeared in numerous publications including The New Yorker. Murder at First Baptist is his first novel. Mr. Hatfield and his wife divide their time between Winston-Salem, North Carolina and Washington, D.C.
(2006, hardcover, 300 pages)
