SpringfieldNewsSun.com

The latest mystery novel by Springfield writer Angela Henry has her fans asking, "Where are all of Hollywood's black leading ladies?"

Hollywood racism is put in the spotlight in the new book by Henry, "Diva's Last Curtain Call. "It was published by Kinai Press, an imprint of Harlequin, on June 1st.

The book is the last of a three-book series. The plot revolves around the series' main character, Kendra Clayton, who must solve the murder of a black actress whose career is fading in order to clear her own sister of the crime.

Henry sees parallels between her book's Hollywood theme and the publishing industry.

"I could name dozens of super-talented African-American actresses working in Hollywood today, but I could count on one hand the actresses that I regularly see in leading movie roles. ...When I first started writing my series 13 years ago there were just a handful of African-American mystery writers," she said.

It took her years to find a publisher interested in her first book, "The Company You Keep," until she was discovered by BET Books in 2003 and signed on for her three-book deal. Since then, Henry has founded the MystNoir Web site to promote black mystery writers, which was once featured by Black Issues Book Review Magazine.

Henry also has received an honorable mention in Ebony Magazine for a writing contest, and is a reference specialist at Clark State Community College.

Since its release, "Diva's Last Curtain Call" has been on Amazon's best-seller list for African-American Fiction.

For more information about the book or about Henry, you can visit her Web site at www. Angelahenry.com

Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0349 or sjacobson@coxohio.com.