Meet Frank DeLuca: The Reluctant Hero of Murder on Page Street

When I started writing Murder on Page Street, I didn’t just want to write a mystery—I wanted to write about someone who felt real. Not a detective trope. Not a superhero. Someone who’s brilliant, brave, deeply flawed, and doing his best. That someone became Frank DeLuca.

Frank is Italian-American, a former FBI agent, and the kind of person who sees what others miss. He’s incredibly smart—obsessive even—and often throws himself into work to avoid dealing with the messier parts of life. He grew up in a loving family until something unspeakable happened and everything fell apart. By the time we meet him, he’s enjoying a quieter life, focused on himself and the people he cares about. And then, like life does, everything shatters.

Writing Frank surprised me. I didn’t set out to write a story about grief, trauma, or healing, but as the chapters unfolded, those themes found their way in through him. His pain, his struggle to move forward, and the way he lets us in—especially during his lowest moments—made me fall in love with him as a character. He’s not perfect. He’s human. And watching him find his way back to himself was one of the most powerful parts of writing this novel.

There’s a moment in the book when Frank hits absolute rock bottom, and he tells himself: “Remember who you are.”That line stayed with me. Sometimes we forget. Sometimes we fall. But Frank reminds us that even in our darkest moments, there’s a way through—if we’re willing to face the past and fight for what comes next.