Taken by Surprise (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781492985426)

Leslyn Amthor Spinelli-writer, editor, and publisher of two childhood newspapers-put creative writing on the back burner when it came time to choose a "real" career. Her interest in the field of criminal justice took her on quite a journey. She earned bachelor's and master's degrees in psychology, but her most fascinating educational experiences occurred in the workplace. Leslyn was employed by the Federal Bureau of Prisons as a case manager at a halfway house in Kansas City, at the prison camp in Leavenworth, and at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Chicago. Later she was hired as a probation officer for the U.S. District Court in Madison, where she conducted in-depth investigations into the backgrounds of criminal defendants. Throughout the years, Leslyn's clientele included mobsters, gangsters, drug dealers, meth cookers, tax evaders, bank robbers and embezzlers. Many were addicted-to drugs, alcohol, gambling or spending. The fictional characters and plotlines in Leslyn's three Caroline Spencer novels are influenced by her own occupational experiences and those of her husband Nick, a retired private investigator. Leslyn and Nick live in the Midwest and enjoy spending winters in San Diego. They have two grown children. Leslyn is at work on her fourth novel.