Did you ever have a favorite author whose books you devoured? And then she/he up and vanishes? What happened? Sometimes you find out, but more often than not, you don’t. A case in point for me is mystery author Rochelle Krich.

Rochelle first came to my attention in 1995 when I heard her speak at the Women’s Conference in Long Beach. Over the years I read all her books, re-reading a few—they were that good. In 2003 I was privileged to personally meet her at a book event hosted by the Jewish Community Center in Richmond, Virginia.

Rochelle’s first published works were standalones in the mystery/suspense genre. Then she created two mystery series: one features Jessie Drake, a Los Angeles homicide detective; Molly Blume, a true crime journalist also based in L.A., solves crimes in the second series. Rochelle penned a number of short stories that I haven’t read. In most of her work she explores aspects of Orthodox Judaism.

Rochelle seemed unstoppable. She tirelessly promoted her books in the pre-social media days.

But in 2005 she came out with her last Molly Blume adventure, Now You See Me …, and hasn’t published since.

I miss Rochelle and hope she comes back soon.

In the meantime I still have those short stories to savor.

Check Rochelle’s web site at http://rochellekrich.com/. It isn’t updated but her blog postings are some of the best I’ve come across. Most of her books are out of print but you can pick up used copies.

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This is the first of a series of “Whatever Happened to …” postings. At this juncture I plan to stick with “lost” authors but don’t be surprised if I venture into other creative fields.