If you want to meet Dee Wilbur, donย’t be surprised when ย“sheย” turns out to be ย“them.ย” Author Dee Wilbur is a persona established by the mystery-writing pair of Beatrice Dee Pipes and Dr. Charles Wilbur Yates, Jr. Their first Dee Wilbur novel, A Jealous God, is about a high-powered lawyer searching for answers after the death of her hideously deformed baby. The fast-paced mystery tackles issues of fate and free will, modern science and small-town society, all of which Pipes and Yates know well. They are both Texas natives; Pipes lives in Houston, and Yates in Richmond, which provides the backdrop for A Jealous God. Prior to becoming cowriters, both had written for scientific and technical publications, and Yates had been in radiology for 30 years, which explains the wealth of -scientific and medical detail in the plot of A Jealous God. The bookย’s title comes from the Bible. With the second commandment promising that the sins of the father will be punished in his children for generations, Dee Wilbur wants to know if we can make amends.

Sun., Aug. 19, 2 p.m.

This article appears in Aug 16-22, 2007.

Nicholas L. Hall is a husband and father who earns his keep playing a video game that controls the U.S. power grid. He also writes for the Houston Press about food, booze and music, in an attempt to keep...