After writing half a dozen true-crime books, Houstonian Kathryn Casey decided to step into fiction with Singularity. The novel follows Texas Ranger Sarah Armstrong, a criminal profiler out to solve the bizarre double murder of a millionaire businessman and his mistress. Killed in a swank Galveston beach house, the two are discovered in a grotesque sexual pose. Complicating matters is the fact that Armstrong is newly widowed and neither she nor her daughter are handling the loss well. As Armstrong closes in on her suspect, he turns the tables on her and makes her family his new target.

The novel has been receiving high praise from critics, who especially like the complex and multilayered lead character. A strong, confident woman who has a sense of humor as well as a sense of duty, Armstrong is a rare find. ย“The truth is: I love these characters, so theyย’re great to spend time with,ย” says Casey via her blog. ย“Itย’s amazing how fiction is such a different experience. With true crime, I interview somewhere around 100 people for each book and work so hard to stay accurate. If I canย’t find it out, I canย’t make it up. With fiction, itย’s all in my imagination, and Iย’m in charge. At least, I think I am. Once in a while it feels more like the characters take over.ย”

Casey also has a true crime title being released later this summer, A Descent into Hell, The True Story of an Altar Boy, A Cheerleader and a Twisted Texas Murder, based on Austinย’s Colton Pitonyak case. She reads from Singularity today at 6:30 p.m. Murder by the Book, 2342 Bissonnet. For information, call 713-524-8597 or visit www.murderbooks.com. Free.

Tue., July 8, 6:30 p.m., 2008

This article appears in Jul 3-9, 2008.