THE PAPER ROUTE
DETECTIVE CRIME HISTORICAL FICTION FAMILY DRAMA MYSTERY RELIGIOUS
1940s & '50s
Jacqueline Cayer Nelson McDonald
Logline
A mill-town paper girl has an unnatural ability to discern good from evil at first sight. In the course of her daily delivery of the newspaper, she unwittingly collects information relevant to an on-going murder investigation and is key to solving a cold case involving her great aunt
Genre
Detective,Crime,Historical Fiction,Family,Drama,Mystery,Religious
Short Summary
To escape her grim reality, a paper girl surveils an odd, nocturnal stranger who is later wrongly accused of murder. Compelled to alibi him, she seeks out and bonds with the case detective who takes the paper girl, her baby brother and simple uncle under his wing.
The detective's childless family includes his wife and her brother, Jack Kerouac. Through them, the paper girl is introduced to New York City's circle of beat writers and artists, one of whom, it turns out, shares a disturbing connection with her great Aunt.
Setting
Mid-century, mill town, Lowell, Massachusetts & NYC
Based on a True Story
Yes
Plot - Premise
Quest
Plot - Other Elements
Philosophical Questions,Twist
Mature Audience Themes
Language/Profanity
Main Character Details
Name: Jackie
Age: 8 - 13
Gender: Female
Role: Protagonist
Key Traits: Adventurous,Complex,Religious,Lone Wolf,Secretive,Aspiring,Badass,Aggressive,Charming,Engaging,Faithful,Heroic
Additional Character Details
Name: Detective Dahm
Age: 40
Gender: Male
Role: Mentor
Key Traits: Masculine,Aggressive,Confident,Blunt,Strong Moral Code
Additional Character Details
Name: Victor the Strong man
Age: 40
Gender: Male
Role: sidekick
Key Traits: Masculine,Obedient,Uneducated,Complex,Religious,Faithful
Additional Character Details
Name: Jack Kerouac
Age: 50
Gender: Male
Role: skeptic
Key Traits: Narcisstic,Aggressive,Masculine
Development Pitch
THE PAPER ROUTE is a 74,250 word family saga set in mid-century, mill-town Lowell, Massachusetts. It's about a paper girl with a subtle and untapped ability to discern good from evil at first sight. In the course of her daily delivery of the newspaper, she unwittingly collects information relevant to an ongoing murder investigation. Compelled to undo an injustice, the paper girl seeks out and shares her insights with the case detective who comes to regard her fondly as part mystic, part truant. Together, they become a formidable crime solving duo. Forged in Catholicism, longing and loss, the bond between the paper girl and the detective grows to envelope their respective families which include the paper girl's unofficial wards, Chou-chou, her baby brother and Victor the Strongman, her simple uncle. The detective's childless family includes his wife, Caroline and her brother and sister-in-law, Jack and Joan Kerouac. Through them, the paper girl is introduced to New York City's circle of beat writers and artists, one of whom, it turns out, shares a disturbing connection with her and her late great aunt. Recognizing that the paper girl's uncanny ability exposes her to evil, the detective vows to protect her from any and all miscreants, known and unknown. THE PAPER ROUTE, my first book in a planned trilogy, is a cross between HARRIET THE SPY and A TREE GROWS IN BROOKLYN.