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WORK TITLE: The Darkness Knows
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: http://cherylhonigford.com/
CITY: Chicago
STATE: IL
COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY:
RESEARCHER NOTES:
LC control no.: n 2015055491
LCCN Permalink: https://lccn.loc.gov/n2015055491
HEADING: Honigford, Cheryl
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008 150914n| azannaabn |n aaa
010 __ |a n 2015055491
040 __ |a DLC |b eng |e rda |c DLC
053 _0 |a PS3608.O4945
100 1_ |a Honigford, Cheryl
670 __ |a The darkness knows, 2016: |b ECIP t.p. (Cheryl Honigford) data view (1st novel; she lives in northern Illinois with her family; received her degree in journalism from Ohio State University; she works as a designer/trainer for Abbott Laboratories)
PERSONAL
Born in Ohio.
EDUCATION:Ohio State University, B.A.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer. Abbott Laboratories, designer and trainer.
AWARDS:Overall winner of the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense (Unpublished Category), for The Darkness Knows.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
Novelist Cheryl Honigford was born and raised in Ohio. She has enjoyed writing stories since she was a child. She earned a degree in journalism from Ohio State University. She works as a designer and trainer for Abbott Laboratories and lives in the suburbs of Chicago with her family.
In 2016 Honigford published The Darkness Knows, a noir story set in the 1930s that is book one of the “Viv and Charlie Mystery” series. Honigford says the novel came from her love of mysteries, old Chicago, and old-time radio. It was a quarter-finalist in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Contest and the overall winner of the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense (Unpublished Category).
The story is set in 1938 during the Great Depression, when Europe is on the brink of World War II. Vivian Witchell is an heiress of a rich Chicago family but wants to make her own way. She finds a job as a secretary at radio station WCHI, but her more ambitious plans are to become an actress on the station’s mystery serials. She gets her wish and becomes a radio star playing the character Lorna Lafferty on the detective show The Darkness Knows. She is not sure if handsome costar Graham Yarborough actually likes her or just wants publicity for the show.
One day in the station’s employee lounge, Vivian comes across the dead body of the show’s biggest, and least popular, actress, Marjorie Fox. Marjorie has made a career of drinking and disparaging coworkers. In her dead grasp is a letter indicating that Vivian, or more precisely “Lorna,” is in danger as well. Vivian is afraid she may be the next target of the killer. Private investigator Charlie Haverman is on the case both investigating the crime and protecting Vivian. He learns that an unhinged listener of the show known only as “Walter” has turned stalker and has been causing trouble at the station. Vivian wants to trust that Charlie will keep her safe and find Marjorie’s killer, but she suspects that Charlie is keeping his own secrets.
Meanwhile, Vivian is badgered by a host of characters: her high-society mother, who disapproves of her radio career; her costars, who manipulate Vivian for their own uses, making her fearful of returning to the station so they can take over her acting roles; a star-struck station engineer; and an enterprising colleague who unexpectedly gets a promotion. A contributor to Kirkus Reviews commented: “The predictable plot doesn’t get in the way of the characters’ charm.” However, the critic noted, the author does not spend enough time focusing the distinctive 1930s setting, which would have added to the story. Writing a similar commentary, Barbara Clark said online on BookPage: “The author has offered a predictable, plot-driven narrative, missing a golden opportunity to provide the details of an exciting historical milieu in which real adventure could flourish.” Adding that Honigford squandered a great premise, an imminent world war, and a popular entertainment venue of the era, Clark noted that Honigford’s mystery series has a lot of room to grow.
A Publishers Weekly reviewer called the book atmospheric yet observed that the sparring between Vivian and Charlie sounded more like whining than romantic banter. The reviewer added that the story was disappointing in that “it requires no sleuthing on Vivian’s part to expose the murderer.” On the other hand, Karen Keefe commented in Booklist that “Charlie and Vivian have great chemistry” together and that readers will enjoy more cases involving the tough detective and society girl turned actress. Keefe added that Honigford’s setting of prewar American life and cozy crime will appeal to readers of Jill Churchill’s Grace and Favor series.
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, June 1, 2016, Karen Keefe, review of The Darkness Knows, p. 48.
Kirkus Reviews, June 1, 2016, review of The Darkness Knows.
Publishers Weekly, June 6, 2016, review of The Darkness Knows, p. 64.
ONLINE
Bookpage Online, https://bookpage.com/ (August 2, 2016), Barbara Clark, review of The Darkness Knows.
Cheryl Honigford Home Page, http://cherylhonigford.com (March 29, 2017), author profile.
Born and raised in Ohio, Cheryl Honigford has been writing stories since she could read (and telling stories even before that). She received her BA in Journalism, with a minor in English, from The Ohio State University.
The Darkness Knows began life as a Nanowrimo novel, inspired by Cheryl’s love of mysteries, Chicago, and old-time radio (and all things 30s). It was a quarter-finalist in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Contest and the overall winner of the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense (Unpublished Category).
Cheryl lives with her family in the suburbs of Chicago where she enjoys what her husband likes to call “the interests of an 80-year-old woman” (knitting, canning, cozy mysteries, and Fred and Ginger movies). The Darkness Knows is the first book in the Viv and Charlie Mystery series.
Honigford, Cheryl: The Darkness Knows
Kirkus Reviews.
(June 1, 2016):
COPYRIGHT 2016 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Full Text:
Honigford, Cheryl THE DARKNESS KNOWS Sourcebooks (Adult Fiction) $14.99 8, 2 ISBN: 978-4926-2861-3
A rising radio star recruits a private eye to help her investigate the murder of a co-worker in the hope that she won't be the next victim.Vivian
Witchell has no illusions about her skills as an actress. Though she's not a great talent, she's serviceable on the radio and feels lucky to work for
Chicago's WCHI. She's even landed the plum role of Lorna Lafferty on The Darkness Knows. All is hunky dory in Viv's world, though she can't
tell if handsome co-star Graham Yarborough's intimations of a potential date are genuine or part of the show's publicity. After coffee with
Graham, which turns out to be nothing more than coffee, Vivian returns to the station to pick up her umbrella only to stumble on a prone body
that launches a murder investigation. The dead woman is Marjorie Fox, an aging radio starlet with a drinking problem that should have killed her
before her penchant for angering her co-workers did. Viv assumes that one of her colleagues must be Marjorie's murderer until private
investigator Charlie Haverman warns her there might be something more at play. Charlie, concerned for Viv's well-being, shows her a letter
Marjorie received from a listener-turned-stalker and maybe murderer. Now Charlie's bent on protecting Viv, though all she wants to do is find out
whodunit. Can she talk Charlie into helping her solve the crime, or does he have his own dark connections to hide? The predictable plot doesn't
get in the way of the characters' charm, though a sharper focus on the distinctive 1930s setting could have added a bit more fun to the follies in
this bright debut.
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"Honigford, Cheryl: The Darkness Knows." Kirkus Reviews, 1 June 2016. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA454177081&it=r&asid=a008a4b31c925352f1b1d055b8590f1c. Accessed 5 Mar.
2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A454177081
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3/5/2017 General OneFile - Saved Articles
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/marklist.do?actionCmd=GET_MARK_LIST&userGroupName=schlager&inPS=true&prodId=ITOF&ts=1488752051668 2/3
The Darkness Knows
Publishers Weekly.
263.23 (June 6, 2016): p64.
COPYRIGHT 2016 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
The Darkness Knows
Cheryl Honigford. Sourcebooks Landmark, $15.99 trade paper (352p) ISBN 978-1-49262861-3
Honigford's atmospheric first novel, a series debut, brings to life the world of radio in 1938 Chicago. Aspiring actress Vivian Witchell, formerly a
secretary at station WCHI, now has some small roles in the station's live dramas. When she discovers the body of elderly--and alcoholic--star
Marjorie Fox, early evidence suggests a crazed fan might want Vivian dead as well. Terrified, she spends most of the book trying to show up at
work and behave normally while other characters urge her to stay home. That includes Charlie Haverman, a private detective hired to protect her.
Their frequent sparring sounds rather more like whining than lighthearted romantic banter. Meanwhile, Vivian's high-society mother disapproves
of her career, a glamorous costar may be using her, and a colleague is out to snag all her roles. Some readers may be disappointed that it requires
no sleuthing on Vivian's part to expose the murderer. Agent: Elizabeth Trupin-Pulli, JET Literary Associates. (Aug.)
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"The Darkness Knows." Publishers Weekly, 6 June 2016, p. 64+. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA454730986&it=r&asid=dc35e20b322abe5c61b27e044a2bcceb. Accessed 5 Mar.
2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A454730986
---
3/5/2017 General OneFile - Saved Articles
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/marklist.do?actionCmd=GET_MARK_LIST&userGroupName=schlager&inPS=true&prodId=ITOF&ts=1488752051668 3/3
The Darkness Knows
Karen Keefe
Booklist.
112.19-20 (June 1, 2016): p48.
COPYRIGHT 2016 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist_publications/booklist/booklist.cfm
Full Text:
The Darkness Knows. By Cheryl Honigford. Aug. 2016. 352p. Sourcebooks/Landmark, paper, $14.99 (9781492628613).
Chicago heiress Vivian Witchell plays a supporting character on the popular radio show The Darkness Knows. After the show's star is murdered,
a love letter surfaces to the victim from an obsessed fan, who indicates that Vivians character is another object of his affection. Fortunately, the PI
who consults on Vivian's show, Charlie Haverman, has a soft spot for pretty ladies and unsolved cases. He serves as both bodyguard and
investigator to the frightened starlet. Charlie and Vivian have great chemistry, and readers will want to see the rough detective and society-girlturned-actress
tackle more Windy City cases together. Honigford's portrayal of prewar American life and his take on cozy crime will appeal to
fans of Jill Churchill's Grace and Favor series and Ron Goularfs Groucho Marx mysteries. This debut was a quarterfinalist for an Amazon
Breakthrough Novel Award.--Karen Keefe
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
Keefe, Karen. "The Darkness Knows." Booklist, 1 June 2016, p. 48. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA456094119&it=r&asid=c43d51d2dac6561c9c9b337af6c0780a. Accessed 5 Mar.
2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A456094119
Web Exclusive – August 02, 2016
THE DARKNESS KNOWS
Taking out the radio stars
BookPage review by Barbara Clark
Cheryl Honingford’s debut mystery opens in the autumn of 1938. America is in the midst of the Great Depression, Europe is on the brink of war, and radio is in its heyday. Ambitious young radio actress Vivian Witchell has landed a role in a popular mystery serial “The Darkness Knows” on Chicago’s WCHI radio. She plays the role of Lorna, sidekick to the series hero, and she’s determined to make a name for herself. At first Vivian plays up to her costar, the equally ambitious but enigmatic Graham, but soon finds herself up to her eyes in real mystery when she discovers a body in the employee lounge. It’s the station’s big-name actress, Marjorie Fox, whose public popularity unfortunately does not extend to her colleagues at work. A note found with the body also contains a veiled threat against “Lorna,” and the station owner soon assigns a private detective as Vivian’s protection.
Vivian finds herself attracted to PI Charlie Haverman, and an unlikely scenario unfolds as the two look into what—or who—lies behind the murderous events, which appear to involve letters from an unhinged fan who calls himself “Walter” and who seems to confuse the radio characters with real-life people.
Who might benefit from the aging actress’ death? The search uncovers a host of radioland suspects who seem willing to do almost anything to grab more on-air time and a chance at fame—including Graham, the handsome hero who has a way with women; a couple of wannabe starlets; a star-struck station engineer; and an enterprising midget who unexpectedly lands a choice promotion.
Familiar plot scenarios are not always a bad thing—we often read to relax and visit comfortable territory. Here, however, the author has offered a predictable, plot-driven narrative, missing a golden opportunity to provide the details of an exciting historical milieu in which real adventure could flourish. The author has chosen a great premise—a world in the shadow of war, prime time for a burgeoning form of public entertainment—but never seizes the seemingly endless possibilities for intrigue and story development.
This series has lots of room to grow, and hopefully later installments will leave the shallows and add a generous dose of atmosphere.