Three May Keep a Secret

Endurance Mysteries #1

by Susan Van Kirk

Grace Kimball, recently retired teacher in the small town of Endurance, is haunted by a dark, past event, an experience so terrifying she has never been able to put it behind her.

When a shoddy journalist, Brenda Norris, is murdered in a suspicious fire, Grace is hired by Jeff Maitlin to fill in for Brenda, researching the town's history. Unfortunately, that past has dark secrets.

When yet a second murder occurs, Grace's friend, T.J. Sweeney, a homicide detective, races against time to find a killer. Even Grace's life will be threatened by her worst nightmare.

Against a backdrop of deaths and a 175th town celebration, Grace and Jeff find an undeniable attraction for each other.

Genres: Mystery

244 pages, Hardcover

Published November 19, 2014

About the author

Susan Van Kirk's book, Death in a Ghostly Hue, has been nominated for a 2025 Anthony Award for Best Paranormal Mystery.


Susan Van Kirk was born in Galesburg, Illinois, and educated at Knox College (BA) and University of Illinois (M.Ed). She taught for thirty-four years at Monmouth High School in Monmouth, Illinois,(1968-2002), and an additional ten years at Monmouth College (2002-2012.)

She wrote a memoir of her teaching life in "The Education of a Teacher (Including Dirty Books and Pointed Looks)," published 2010.

Her Endurance Mysteries include "Three May Keep a Secret," "Marry in Haste," "The Locket: From the Casebook of TJ Sweeney," "Death Takes No Bribes," and "The Witch's Child, and "Fabric of Lies."" Harlequin Worldwide Mystery has republished this series.

"A Death at Tippitt Pond" is a standalone cozy mystery.

The Art Center Mysteries, published by Level Best Books include "Death in a Pale Hue," "Death in a Bygone Hue," and "Death in a Ghostly Hue" (July 2024.)

She divides her time between her home in Monmouth, Illinois, and Phoenix, Arizona, where her children and grandchildren live.

Reviews

[Pam S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I learned that one of my high school teachers wrote a mystery novel, I just had to read it. After all, how could I pass up the opportunity to return the favor of critiquing her work? I wasn't surprised that it was good. It was fun reading a novel set in a fictional town that was based on my hometown. In fact, I laughed on the first page of the first chapter when she described the town square as "more of a circle than a square." I've been describing it that way to people for years.

Mrs. Van Kirk did a spectacular job with describing the town of Endurance and the scenes. The story moved along nicely without lagging, and I didn't get bored along the way.

I prefer mysteries written in a limited point of view like first or limited third person, because I feel it adds to the mysterious aspect. So I was disappointed when I realized that Mrs. Van Kirk wrote this in a limited omniscient view. However, as I kept reading I understood why she did it, and it still left unanswered questions to answer.

My biggest disappointment was how easy it was for me to figure out who the bad guy was. I actually had a first and a second choice. It turned out to be the second choice, and the twist wasn't a twist to me. I had that figured out right from the start. My goal, with every mystery I read, is to solve the puzzle before the end of the book; but I don't want that goal to be reached so early in the book. Maybe I've just read too many mysteries or watched too many crime dramas on TV.

I enjoyed the book and will read the upcoming sequels. It'll be fun and interesting to see what kind of other mysteries can happen in this small farming community for retired teacher, Grace Kimball, can solve.

[James Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three May Keep a Secret is a cozy mystery debut from Susan Van Kirk. Bring Jessica Fletcher to Endurance, Illinois, have her teach English so she knows everyone in town (and remembers what they were like as teenagers), and you’ve created the remarkable Grace Kimball. While Endurance (pop. 15,000) is much larger than Cabot Cove, they share the small town setting where everyone knows what everyone else is doing—except when they are keeping secrets. And as the title reminds us, “Three May Keep a Secret ….if two of them are dead.”

Grace has recently retired as a high school English teacher. Her friends all have ideas what she should do in her retirement, but she wants to take time to consider her options. However, when Grace’s former colleague, now turned muckraking journalist, turns up dead, Grace jumps at the opportunity to pick up one of the journalist’s projects: writing about the town’s history for their 175th anniversary. But it isn’t all ancient history Grace finds in the archives.

Van Kirk writes with meticulous detail about Endurance and its inhabitants. When you finish reading you feel like you could enter a bar and greet the townsfolk as you walk to your favorite barstool. With a solid cast of characters (well, those still living), the Endurance Mystery Series should keep us entertained for a long time.

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

How refreshing to encounter a primary female character of age 56 who is vitally active physically and mentally! Not that Grace Kimball doesn't have a human foible or two, such as fear of fire which becomes understandable when aware of her personal history.

The author offers much to like about Grace - widowed young to single-parent three children, and taught high school English for twenty years, and now recently retired, writing book reviews for the local paper. She has a tight group of three friends, and the youngest, police detective TJ Sweeney features prominently in this story.

The small town life in Endurance, Illinois rings true to me who grew up in a similar small town in southern Illinois, except for the arson, blackmail, and murder. I especially like the preparations for the parade and the big town anniversary celebration. Also I understand about a retired teacher running into former students all over a small town - very enjoyable reading Grace's thoughts about them.

The plot unfolds well and logically, but perhaps not enough suspects presented to stump all readers. I figured out the culprit fairly early in the story. But I liked the overall storyline.

In summary, I liked the characters and setting well enough to want to read another of these Endurance Mysteries! Also, I am curious enough to want to see if romance blossoms between Grace and the newspaper editor.

[Amy Mckee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book through goodreads first-reads

I have incredibly mixed feelings about this books, most of which probably come from the fact that I'm 16 and not exactly the target audience but the purpose of a review is to explain said mixed feelings so here we go.

First of all I loved the characters, especially TJ, they were well developed and interesting, they all had there own individual personalities which sounds obvious but is so rare so that was great!

I also loved the ending, it was full f suspense and had me on the edge of my seat, but by the ending I mean about the last three chapters rather than the whole conclusion.

Apart from these things I quite often felt like the story wasn't going anywhere, Grace didn't seem to make much progress and what progress was made was minimal and almost made up. Yes, there was some scenes that I found interesting but to be honest I was more interested in her life as a retired teacher turned book review writer than the mystery itself. This was right until the end of course!

I feel like the only thing that made me feel this way was the fact that I am by no means the target audience and I can't really identify with a retired English teacher as I myself still haven't left education.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Newly retired high school teacher Grace Kimball agrees to write a book review column for the local paper. When a former colleague of hers is killed in a fire, it brings back ghosts from Grace's past, but she steps in to write a story about the 175th anniversary of their small town. The dead woman had picked three cold cases to use in her story, but apparently the cases aren't all as cold as they should be--or why would Grace find herself prisoner of a dangerous sociopath? An excellent debut; I look forward to returning to Endurance, IL, which is not nearly as cutesy as too many other small towns in fiction.

[D.J. Adamson · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Nothing gets past you, Miss Marple, does it?”
-Agatha Christie’s Murder at the Vicarage


Susan Van Kirk’s first Endurance Mystery offers a small town retired teacher who is haunted by a past experience and needs to face the event all over again in this well structured novel. You can’t help but like Grace Kimball as she ferrets out blackmail, lies and secrets.
While Ms. Van Kirk may not be an Agatha Christie, her talent of developing a meaningful, enduring character is nicely accomplished.

[Tambra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story. First time reading her. Cant wait to read more.

[Stefanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book started a bit slow for me, as cozy mysteries often do, but sped up and left me second guessing myself.

There is a 2 part mystery about the killer, and the first part I solved (so I thought) early on and was correct. The second part, the "who" was more perplexing for me. I dismissed the actual killer after feeling confident s/he didn't do it, and moved to another person after flipping back and connecting some dots, one being a red herring. My guess and then dismissal of the actual killer was a hunch.

The character development of even the secondary characters made me feel as if I knew them.

I do know the author as she was my college professor, and some of the tidbits about Endurance were taken from the town in which I attended college. That was a really fun local element. I was picturing the town as I was reading. A few of the colorful characters from the story reminded me of people in town, though that could be a coincidence. I am excited for the next installment.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the west central Illinois setting of Three May Keep a Secret, and it was refreshing to have a middle-aged protagonist. While often clichéd, the book is well plotted. I guessed one of the mystery’s secrets very early on, and Grace behaves in a very foolish manner toward the end. But the characters are good – including a black female detective – and that’s what most cozy series rely on to keep readers coming back.

The main character, Grace, is a retired high school teacher, and her thoughts are peppered with remembrances of what people she encounters in her daily life were like in high school. (For example: “Lacey Lancing….Terrible speller. Did her research paper on whether the Loch Ness Monster – spelled ‘Lock Nest Monstir’ – could be related to Big Foot.” (p. 11). “Clarissa Durdle, one of the good ones. She did her term paper on Florence Nightingale and it was superb.” (p. 238).) This could have become annoying but I found it amusing and something that made Grace seem like a real person.

A fine start to a new cozy series.

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead." ~~Benjamin Franklin

A fire killed a husband, wife, and a young teenager they had taken into their home. Prior to that fatal fire, the town experienced a number of damaging fires, too many, Grace surmised, to be accidental. During 1964-1968, several fires were attributed to arson. The fire chief's theory was that a pyromaniac was loose in Endurance. They never caught him. [...] The year 1967 brought two barn fires in the country that were total losses in both property and livestock, but so far Grace read of no human fatalities. Each of the first happened at night. That all changed in January 1968, when William and Terry Kessler were killed in a farmhouse fire, along with Nick Lawler, a teenage friend of the family. The three bodies were severely burned and they did not find the body of Ted Kessler, the teenage son of the family. It was widely believed that he had set the fire.



~~A farmhouse burns, out of control, lighting up the night. This photograph closely matches my mental image of the Kessler fire. Most of us are mesmerized by the warmth and beauty of campfires or a glowing fireplace. This attraction is likely engrained in our DNA--fire has been lifesaving to the human species for thousands of years after all. Pyromaniacs take this fascination to a pathological level and often combine it with a sociopath's lack of empathy or concern for those they harm with their "hobby".

First few sentences: "Time to celebrate! Second retirement in our venerable and seasoned group. Here's to you, Grace," and Jill Cunningham raised her wine glass high and pointed toward the guest of honor.

Grace is eager to trade in the taxing job of a high school English teacher for rest, relaxation, and quality time with her circle of friends. Her friends, in contrast, seem eager to sign her up for any and all fundraising or town events to "keep her busy." One task Grace eagerly embraces is writing a weekly book review column for the small town--Endurance, Illinois, population 15,000--newspaper. Not long after taking the job, one of the key reporters, Brenda, is killed in a house fire. The fire department rules the fire suspicious. Grace is asked to take on many of Brenda's responsibilities for the newspaper. She also inherits Brenda's office, which is jam-packed with boxes and file folders of cold cases Brenda was investigating for the 175th town anniversary special edition.

The more Grace reads, the more intrigued she becomes by the Kessler fire (see opening quote). She's convinced that the Kessler's son, thought to be the culprit, is still alive, and possibly living close to Endurance. She wonders if Brenda stumbled too close to the truth, resulting in her death. Because this is a cozy mystery, Grace will continue to follow the trail of clues, heedless of any possible danger to her own life. Will she figure out the decades old mystery before becoming another statistic herself? Read to find out!

My two cents: Miss Marple set the bar high for the cozy mystery genre. Unfortunately, many authors miss the mark. I started this novel with fairly high hopes. I love the idea of a middle-aged protagonist--one who has lived her life in a smaller town, knows everyone, and has her finger in most of the pies so to speak. A teacher who has seen most of the town's population come through her high school fits that bill perfectly. The prose, however, was awkward, and the dialogue was stilted. I also guessed the plot twist (both twists) well before the big reveal. The final straw for me, though, was having Grace throw all caution to the wind towards the end of the book. Overall given a rating of 1.5 stars or "below average." Recommended as a fluff library checkout if you are looking for a vacation read, and like this genre. Otherwise, it's probably one to skip.

Further reading: As good as place to start as any if you wish to understand a little more about the minds of pyromaniacs. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/co...

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Three May Keep a Secret” Earns 5/5 Fiery Memories…Compelling!

A fiery nightmare immediately grabs a reader’s attention, like mine, in Susan Van Kirk’s first book in An Endurance Mystery series. Newly retired teacher Grace Kimball still struggles, after thirty-six years, with memories of the horrific fire that left her with emotional and physical scars and cost the lives of her two college roommates. The emotions become more raw with the recent fire that tragically took the life of Brenda Norris. Brenda was a former colleague, but she was forced to resign due to scandals unbecoming a teacher. She had worked herself up to reporter at the local newspaper, but her reporting style was often more tabloid than truth. Her exposés angered several residents resulting in one filing a lawsuit charging libel. Recently, she had publicly remarked that she was working on a story that would “blow the lid right off this town,” so to Grace her death was automatically suspicious. Evidence confirmed…murder. Grace had hoped to enjoy her retirement, maybe writing a novel, so keeping busy was the challenge she faced. The new “city slicker” editor of the newspaper offered her a bi-weekly column reviewing books, but giving her Brenda’s old office sparked a different path. Filled with files of research, boxes of cold-case reports and evidence, and a few cryptic notes, has led Grace on a journey that literally and figuratively forces her to confront those nightmares. Cold cases. Arson. Secrets. Blackmail. Murder. The perfect subject for front page headlines.

Susan Van Kirk’s well-written and compelling story illustrates well Benjamin Franklin’s quote, “Three may keep a secret…if two of them are dead.” Van Kirk twists together a fascinating cold case, a reporter’s cryptic notes, salacious secrets, greed, and murder all played out with the town’s 175-year anniversary celebration as a backdrop. With vivid description, rich characters, and a complex murder investigation, Van Kirk slowly reveals several fascinating scenarios for the murder, plausible suspects and motives, and a shocking revelation leading to a nail-biting dilemma. Whew! Although tempted to scroll to the end for the conclusion, I resisted. The connections uncovered, interactions among friends, current and long ago clues, and a squeak of the door to reveal…sssh! were deliciously intense and well-worth reading every word. Van Kirk provides chapter titles to alert readers when the third-person narrative changes, and an Epilogue to clean up some loose ends. There is a hint of a possible romance for widowed Grace, feelings and pleasant interactions, but it isn’t really explored in this first book. Being a retired teacher myself, I can personally identify with those first months of retirement wanted to still be involved and relevant along with many of Grace’s comments: seeing former students grown up, remembering what they were like as students, and even surprised about what they’re doing. This book is now a contender for “Top Surprises” of 2021.

[Brenda Rezk · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book in a cozy mystery series set in a small town in Illinois. The main character, Grace, is a freshly retired school teacher, who has taught many of the young adults in town. This sets up some quirky internal dialogue as Grace recalls little factoids about what kind of students people were or what kind of troubles they got into as her students.

Grace's friends won't even let her enjoy her initial weeks of retirement, before volunteering her to work on the town's big 175th birthday celebration. It doesn't take long before an old estranged friend dies under suspicious circumstances, leading Grace to help investigate.

The opening chapter is a nightmare/flashback to the traumatic fire which Grace survived back as a college student. I think this would have been better placed after she learned of the present-day fire. Having it in the first chapter makes it appear that Grace is having a premonition. At the very least, it is immediately obvious that there will be a fire and that someone will probably die in it.

Grace does some stupid things as she gathers information. So that's kind of annoying. It's a decent start to a cozy series though. I like some of the supporting characters.

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grace was a teacher and she finally decided to retire. So her friends thought she needed something to do. Well she ended up doing alot that she didnt ever think she would do. She started reading books and doing reviews on them for a newspaper. Brenda a writer for the newspaper who was one no one liked as she always was digging up the bad stuff . She told Grace I have something real big to write about in this little town here no ones going to believe it. She was found dead in a fire later. Grace tried to help figure out who and what started the fire. As time went on another friend died in a fire. Grace went threw all their belonging to see if she could find out anything. Well she got more than she expected from the real fire bug and murderer as she got closer and closer to figuring it all out after all these years the truth finally comes to light . Will she be able to figure away out of this mess .

[Tom Leverett · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was a well-written small-town mystery with just enough violence and psychopathy, not overboard like almost everything else out there. We can relate to the small-town characters, comfortable in their world until fires consume part of it and people are murdered. We know that the author is starting from a world she knows very well - but that's fine with me, you have to start somewhere, and she at least portrays it accurately. Good plot, good characters, good setting, and well-written.

[Lori Robbins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three May Keep a Secret is a terrific read. The protagonist is exceptionally well-drawn--a complex, sympathetic, and engaging character. As an English teacher, I loved the references, but Grace is far more than the sum of her parts. With a compelling backstory and a tightly plotted mystery to solve, Grace kept this reader tuned in from beginning to end. I highly recommend this book, and I look forward to reading the next.

[Ryan Hoffman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three May Keep A Secret is the first in the Endurance Mystery Series. It centers around the fictional town of Endurance, Illinois. The two players in this story are Grace Kimball and TJ Sweeney. Grace is a retired English teacher that takes a job on the Town paper. TJ is one of Grace's freinds and the main detective in Endurance. Grace's other friend Brenda was a reporter on the paper working on a secret project. Until she ends up murdered. The story and mystery mostly focuses on Grace's "sleuthing" along with bits of TJ's actual investigation.

[Cyclewheeler · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun read. I am just getting into
mysteries and there was a
nice twist in this one. I had been
introduced to Knox College this
last Spring by both my partner and
one of my best friends where I found
this book in shop on campus. I expected
it to be well written as Knox puts out
really good scholars. I enjoyed the book!

[Jennifer Shepard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first book I read from this autor and let me tell you that I loved it! Such a good book, very well writen with great characters that keeps you obsessed with every page since the first one. Amazing job! If you like mystery this is definitely a must
read! I can't wait to read them all!

[Mhd]

[led here by Mystery Scene mag article]

[Gene Georgelis · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can see a teachers thoughts in Grace.

[Harlequin Books]

Categories
Mystery & Detective
Miniseries
An Endurance Mystery

[Read Ribbet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Since the book is written by a wonderful retired long time English teacher in a small Illinois town, Three May Keep a Secret perfectly captures the setting and main character Grace Kimball. This is the first of at least three Endurance Mysteries featuring Grace Kimball who finds herself in the middle of a crime involving an old acquaintance. The mystery unfolds engaging the reader in trying to solve the crime along with characters. Plotted strategically with wonderful asides as this retired teacher takes us down memory lane recalling students and events from the school years, I am now looking forward to the next in the series.

[Karen Wingate · Rating 3 out of 5]

In order to solve the mystery of two murders in her small town, Grace Bimball must face the nightmare of her past. It's refreshing to read a book set in a small town. Susan VanKirk has caught small town living so well where everyone knows your business and it's hard to keep a secret from anyone unless they're dead. While the story dragged in spots and I felt myself yawning through some of the deliberations of whodunit, my heart picked up its pounding pace at the climax of the book. I was appropriately caught up in who the real killer was. While I had my suspicions, I wasn't totally sure until it was revealed - which in my opinion, makes for a good suspense novel.

[Gail Baugniet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Are There Any Kept Secrets in a Small Town?

Because I grew up in a town two-thirds the size of Susan Van Kirk's Endurance, it was easy to relate to everyone's knowing the next person's business. The "cozy" aspect of this novel is what kept me reading. I wouldn't want to imagine relatives and friends as blood-thirsty murder suspects. Grace's career as a school teacher lent credibility to the unfolding plot and the mystery's solution. A satisfying ending always has me looking toward the next installment in a series.

[Mary Davidsaver · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent first mystery in a Midwestern setting by Monmouth, IL, author Van Kirk. There are lots of interesting characters, good and not so good, to provide a good deal of local color. I still don't know how to pronounce the proper way of saying "175th anniversary," but it hardly matters. The life of a recently retired English teacher was skillfully and effectively developed into an interesting and intriguing story. In this case, knowing nearly everyone in town really paid off with dividends.

[Belinda Earl Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

How to Fill Time!

Grace Kimball just retired from teaching, and her family and friends are concerned that she won’t know what to do with extra time on her hands. Suddenly she finds herself involved in preparing for the town’s 175th anniversary event, and investigating the death of a former colleague!

The colleague seems to have been involved in shady shenanigans; was her death accidental or a case of murder? Was it linked to a cold case she was researching? Read Three May Keep a Secret to find all the secrets!♥️✝️🐑✡️♥️

[Debbie Dingman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book

Three May Keep A Secret was a quick read that I couldn't put down. The characters were well developed and the descriptions were so vivid I felt I was right there in the middle of the murder mystery. I can't wait for the sequel to find out what Grace does next.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great cozy mystery. I thought I had figured it out, but actually had it wrong! Likeable characters.

[Rhonda LeFebvre]

Good read.

This is a story one can relate today about a small Midwest town. Wish we had gotten today know the two young boys better.

[Terri · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't like much. Took me a week to read. The writing is awkward and doesn't flow. Just not interesting.