WELLINGTON, Colo. - s4story -- "Blood Kills" is the spine-tingling fourth tale in the Angelina Bonaparte Mystery thriller series from author and former Milwaukee native, Nanci Rathbun.

Just released, this new installment is already earning five-star reviews and praise from readers. Nanci Rathbun was also recently awarded an International Book Excellence Award for "Blood Kills," which was selected as a Finalist in the Mystery category ahead of hundreds of other books. Founded in Toronto, Ontario, the Book Excellence Awards is an international book awards competition dedicated to recognizing both independent and traditionally published authors and publishers for excellence in writing, design, and overall market appeal.

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Awards are nothing new for this series, which has already garnered two awards. In 2020, "Honor Kills" earned the Wishing Shelf Book Award Silver Medal for fiction and in 2017, "Cash Kills" was an IBPA Benjamin Franklin Silver Award Honoree.

Set in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the series turns around 50-something private investigator Angelina Bonaparte, a feisty former librarian (and daughter of a former advisor to the mob) who puts down her books after a messy divorce and reinvents herself as a private investigator. As "Blood Kills" opens, Angelina is preparing to reunite with her homicide detective boyfriend Ted Wukowski after an obligatory embargo of several years. But she is forced to put the relationship on the back burner when she discovers a local artist brutally slain. Digging into the artist's death leads her deep into a mafia mystery and a tangle of evidence that doesn't square.

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Rathbun's well-researched plots coupled with her ability to deliver heart-pounding suspense have created a loyal fanbase of readers that like their mysteries a little on the cozy side without sacrificing intricate plots and complex relationships. The character of Angelina Bonaparte frequently draws comparisons to Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone and Robert B. Parker's Spencer.

That's not an easy task, yet Nanci Rathbun has managed to create a relatable female P.I. with intelligence, humor, strength, and style, all the while blending procedural and straight-up private detective elements to create a series that is gripping and unforgettable.

Nanci Rathbun is a novelist, Congregationalist minister, and former IT project manager. A long-time resident of Milwaukee, she now makes her home in Wellington, Colorado.

To learn more about Nani Rathbun and the Angelina Bonaparte Mystery series, please visit https://nancirathbun.com/