Last Ride at Elysian Park Paperback – February 20, 2026

It’s fall 1992, and Abby Williams is struggling at St. Dymphna’s, her new school. She eats lunch alone to avoid the cafeteria’s invisible rules and obvious hierarchy.Percy Van Allen is one of those rich kids. He drives the black BMW his father paid for, but pretends he wants nothing of his father’s wealth. He makes money he doesn’t need selling plastic bags of pills because it’s one choice he gets to make for himself.Kira watches all the other kids coupling up and wonders what’s wrong with her that she is always alone.Scott is a football star, top student, and everyone’s friend. But he hides a bevy of bad decisions he can’t help making, repeatedly.Bridget is a popular cheerleader, and plays her role of bitchy, mean girl to the hilt, but it’s masking a home life she yearns to escape.Breck thrives on being one half of the “it” couple at Aksarben High but soon learns it’s merely a façade.Javi dates Bridget, but his real interests lie elsewhere, a secret he can only barely admit to himself.TJ has abandoned his family and is living behind the local Target. Will his friends and teachers even notice?One of these students is found dead after the end of the season party at Elysian Park, a local amusement park. The police are convinced it’s a suicide, but Abby knows better. This was a murder. And her investigation will uncover the secrets and lies everyone tries to keep hidden.Last Ride at Elysian Park is a mystery set in Omaha, Nebraska in the early 90s. It is a story about a community processing a tragedy and the friends and family left behind, dealing with their grief and searching for answers. Read more