Peter Abrahams (born June 28, 1947) is an American author of

crime fiction Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, crime novel, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives or fiction that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professiona ...

for both adults and children. His book ''Lights Out'' (1994) was nominated for an

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America which is based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards hon ...

for best novel. '' Reality Check'' won the best young adult

in 2011. ''Down the Rabbit Hole'', first in the Echo Falls series, won the best children's/young adult

Agatha Award The Agatha Awards, named for Agatha Christie Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, (; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English people, English author known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short ...

in 2005. ''The Fan'' was adapted into a film starring

Robert De Niro Robert Anthony De Niro ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor, director, and film producer. He is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of List of awards and ...

and directed by

Tony Scott Anthony David Leighton Scott (21 June 1944 – 19 August 2012) was a British film director and producer. He made his theatrical film debut with ''The Hunger (1983 film), The Hunger'' (1983) and went on to direct highly successful action and t ...

(1996). His literary influences are

Vladimir Nabokov Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov ( ; 2 July 1977), also known by the pen name Vladimir Sirin (), was a Russian and American novelist, poet, translator, and entomologist. Born in Imperial Russia in 1899, Nabokov wrote his first nine novels in Rus ...

Graham Greene Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquired a re ...

, and

Ross Macdonald Ross Macdonald was the main pseudonym used by the American-Canadian writer of crime fiction Kenneth Millar (; December 13, 1915 – July 11, 1983). He is best known for his series of hardboiled novels set in Southern California and featur ...

Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author. Dubbed the "King of Horror", he is widely known for his horror novels and has also explored other genres, among them Thriller (genre), suspense, crime fiction, crime, scienc ...

has referred to him as "my favorite American suspense novelist". Born in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, Abrahams lives in

Falmouth, Massachusetts Falmouth ( ) is a New England town, town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 32,517 at the 2020 census, making Falmouth the second-largest municipality on Cape Cod after Barnstable, Massachusetts, Barnstable. T ...

, on

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The ...

. He is married and has four children including Rosie Gray. He graduated from

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim ...

in 1968.

Echo Falls Mystery Series

''Echo Falls Mysteries'' is a series for younger readers. There are three books in the series: '' Down the Rabbit Hole'' (2005), ''

Behind the Curtain ''Behind the Curtain'' is the second book in the Echo Falls mystery series by best-selling crime novelist Peter Abrahams. Plot summary Ingrid lives in a small community called Echo Falls. She's in the school soccer team and is in the drama c ...

'' (2006), and '' Into the Dark'' (2008). They are based around teen super sleuth Ingrid Levin-Hill who, inspired by her role model

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a Detective fiction, fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a "Private investigator, consulting detective" in his stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with obser ...

, solves mysteries throughout the series.

Chet and Bernie Mystery Series

Writing as Spencer Quinn, Abrahams is the author of the Chet and Bernie Mysteries. These stories are told from the point of view of Chet, Bernie Little's canine partner in the Little Detective Agency. It was not initially known that Abrahams was Quinn. It took some work by journalists to determine who "Quinn" really is. Chet has his own website,www.chetthedog.com
/ref> and is on

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

. Chet and Bernie Bibliography: # ''Dog On It'' (2009) # ''Thereby Hangs a Tail'' (2010) # ''To Fetch a Thief'' (2010) # ''The Dog Who Knew Too Much'' (2011) # ''A Fistful of Collars'' (2012) # ''A Cat Was Involved'' (2012 e-book) # ''The Sound And The Furry'' (2013) # ''The Iggy Chronicles, Volume One'' (2013 e-book) # ''Paw and Order(2014) # ''Tail of Vengeance'' (2014 e-book) # ''Scents and Sensibility (2015)'' # ''Santa 365'' (2015 e-book) # ''Heart of Barkness'' (2019) # ''Of Mutts and Men'' (2020) # ''Tender Is The Bite'' (2021) # ''It's A Wonderful Woof'' (2021) # ''Bark to the Future'' (2022) # Up on the Woof Top (2023) # A Farewell to Arfs (2024) All of the books have been released as Audiobooks read by

Jim Frangione Jim or JIM may refer to: Names * Jim (given name), a given name * Jim, a diminutive form of the given name James * Jim, a short form of the given name Jimmy People and horses * Jim, the nickname of Yelkanum Seclamatan (died April 1911), N ...

. Abrahams has also begun a new amateur sleuth series featuring Mrs. Loretta Plansky, a 71 year-old retired widow in Florida. #1 Mrs. Plansky's Revenge (2023) #2 Mrs. Plansky Goes Rogue (2025)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Abrahams, Peter 1947 births Living people 21st-century American novelists American crime fiction writers American male novelists Agatha Award winners Edgar Award winners 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American male writers Novelists from Boston 21st-century American male writers Williams College alumni