Georgia Writers Museum is proud to host 2023 Georgia Author of the Year Wanda Morris as its “Meet the Author” presenter next month on her new mystery novel,
Anywhere You Run. The book was hailed as one of the best crime novels of the year by The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Library Journal. It also was named one of “Fifteen Standout Historical Fiction Books to Read This Year” by Oprah Daily.
The book’s suspenseful plot begins in the summer of 1964 when three innocent men have been brutally murdered for trying to help Black Mississippians secure the right to vote. Against this backdrop, 21-year-old Violet Richards finds herself in more trouble than she’s ever been in her life.
Suffering a brutal attack of her own, she kills the man responsible. But with the color of Violet’s skin, there is no way she can escape Jim Crow justice in Jackson, Mississippi. Before anyone can find the body or finger her as the killer, she decides to run. Violet escapes with the help of her white beau, but desperation and fear lead her to hide out in the small rural town of Chillicothe, Georgia, unaware that danger may be closer than she thinks.
Morris recently was named 2023 Georgia Author of the Year for the detective/mystery novel category by the Georgia Writers Association. She is the acclaimed author of All Her Little Secrets, which was named one of the “Best Books of 2021” by Hudson Booksellers and selected as the No.1 Top Pick for “Library Reads” by librarians across the country. It also was selected as a Book Buzz Pick by “Good Morning America” and won the 2022 Lefty Award for Best Debut Mystery Novel.
Her new novel, Anywhere You Run,
already has been nominated for the Anthony Award, the Strand Critics Award, and the Macavity Award, and is on the shortlist for the Crook’s Corner Book Prize. In its review, Booklist stated, “This riveting and moving novel, with echoes of Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, is highly recommended for fans of suspense and women’s fiction.”
Morris is an alumna of the Yale Writer’s Workshop. As a corporate attorney, she has worked in the legal departments of several Fortune 100 companies. She previously served as president of the Georgia chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel and is a member of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, Crime Writers of Color, and serves on the Board of International Thriller Writers. Morris is married, a mother of three, and lives in Atlanta.
“Meet the Author” with Wanda Morris will be held at the museum on Aug. 1, with doors open at 6:30 p.m. for a 7 p.m. start. Tickets for this special event are $45 each, or $40 each for two or more tickets.
Tables of six are available for $200, representing a savings of $40. Contact Georgia Writers Museum or visit georgiawritersmuseum.org to register and pre-order a copy of Anywhere You Run. Morris will be signing her books following her presentation.