J. Mark Bertrand Books In Order

Publication Order of A Roland March Mystery Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

J. Mark Bertrand is an American author of fiction. He is most known for his work in the genre of Christian crime fiction. Originally from Louisiana, he graduated from the University of Houston with his Master’s degree in creative writing. He lived with his wife there until departing for South Dakota, where there are fewer hurricanes.

J. Mark Bertrand first became an author in print when his nonfiction book Rethinking Worldview was released in 2007. His first fictional book was published in 2010, a collaboration with another author. J. Mark Bertrand first saw his own standalone novel released in the same year when Back on Murder was published.

Bertrand is the author of the Roland March series. This series features a detective in Houston, Texas named March. He has a difficult job– showing up to crime scenes involving homicides and finding out what happened. It’s a grisly job, but someone’s got to do it. He is great at his work and does his best to not only solve mysteries but bring murderers to justice.

Back on Murder is the first book in J. Mark Bertrand’s exciting crime series featuring Houston detective Roland March. Having to report to crime scenes is nothing out of the ordinary for this hardened detective, but having been on the job for so long has taken its toll on him. If he admits it to himself, he has been less and less engaged and essentially mentally on the way out of his career. He’s no spring chicken, and the things that March had seen would keep anyone up at night.

He’s certain that he’s on the path to retirement, but finds himself the sole person at a crime scene and finds evidence that there may be a female victim that has disappeared from the crime scene. March feels like he’s being given one last case to prove his worth and that he still has it. But before he can make much headway, March is transferred to a different case entirely.

This new case is one that has been making the headlines recently. It’s a case that is in the spotlight and involves a teenage girl’s disappearance. The media frenzy is out of control because the girl is the daughter of someone who is a famous evangelist in Houston. Now it’s up to March to find out what happened and hopefully track the girl down and return her to her family.

But why has she disappeared in the first place? It’s up to the detective to find out whether the teen was simply unhappy at home or it was related to boyfriend problems or the worst possible scenario: she was abducted and may be dead. Hoping to spare the evangelist the pain of finding out that his daughter is dead, March will do everything in his power to find the missing girl and bring the guilty parties (if there are any) to justice.

March isn’t totally alone is his mission, however. Along the way, he finds some unexpected allies, including a youth pastor that may be helping him to help clear his own guilty conscience. Regardless of the motivation, March is thrown into a part of the world where faith and church are a part of life for nearly everyone in the community.

It’s up to this Houston detective to crack the case and find the girl before it’s too late. Along the way, he hopes to prove that he still has what it takes and come up with a good result one last time. Can he do it? You’ll have to pick up this novel to find out!

Pattern of Wounds is the sequel in this exciting series from J. Mark Bertrand. Once again readers are reunited with Detective Roland March, who is just off his most recent case. March is at home in Houston once more and it’s Christmas time, the most wonderful time of year. The holiday season may be a bit merrier for the other residents of Houston, however, as March is once again called to the scene of the crime for another murder case.

Usually, it’s just another body and another case to crack, but March has no idea that this time the case will be more personal to him than ever. He has no idea who the young woman at the crime scene was and did not know her before she was tragically stabbed to death. However, that’s not what is making this particular killing so personal for him.

It’s a strange situation for many reasons. For one, the murder was committed in an affluent neighborhood where most people have money and it would be unusual for them not to have gates, locks, security systems, and cameras. Murders don’t happen here, whether they’re from the inside of the home or from someone from the outside. It’s extremely out of the ordinary.

Even though he does not recognize the victim, March thinks that the crime scene looks a bit too familiar to one from the past. It’s not just the fact that the scene bears all the telltale signs of a serial killer. Could the events from nearly a decade ago have come back to haunt him? It was only ten years ago that he gained fame nationally when he was featured as the subject of a true crime novel.

This crime scene seems way too familiar to that one. The book featured a case where March’s work ended up helping to send the killer to prison. Could this be the same person, a copycat, or did he put the wrong guy between bars– meaning that the true killer is still at large on the outside and has been for ten years? That’s the rumor as gossip starts to spread that the detective may have captured the wrong killer.

The situation is bad, and March finds himself on the outs with his colleagues who clearly believe that he has caught the wrong man. There’s more on the line than just his reputation. Houston may be facing an active serial killer that may be taking more victims. More cases start to emerge, and March thinks that he is starting to see a pattern here.

With the people of Houston at risk, dead bodies adding up, his marriage starting to crack, his career in doubt, his reputation in jeopardy, and more pressure on him than ever to figure out the case, March must dig deep to discover who the true killer is before the killer comes a little too close to home. If this sounds exciting, pick up Bertrand’s second novel in the March series and find out what happens!

One Response to “J. Mark Bertrand”

1. Todd Steele: 3 years ago

   Mr. Bertrand, I have thoroughly enjoyed your Roland March series. I’m just beginning #3. Would love to see more books, if that’s in your plans.
   If you left Houston after Harvey in 2017 I understand why! I live in Refugio and our town was devastated, as were Rockport, Port Aransas and several other small South Texas towns. It was more of a wind event here and a water event on Houston as you know. My brother’s home in Katy was destroyed when they opened the reservoir north of him. No flood insurance of course.
   Anyway, thanks for your stories, for the familiar Houston scenes, and most of all for the colorful and interesting characters. I have every flaw that Roland does, and more. Lol!
   Take care, say your prayers, and look both ways before crossing the road.

   Reply