Places
From the streets of Washington to more than fifteen years in Europe, and now the high desert of Southern Arizona—every place Johnson has lived or visited lends its atmosphere to the settings his characters move through.
Romantic Mysteries · Police Mysteries
Stories of Love, Duty, and Hidden Truths
Discover romantic mysteries and police stories filled with mature characters, meaningful relationships, international settings, and unexpected turns.
Buy It Started With the Letter on Amazon (opens Amazon in a new context) →
Featured Novel
It Started With the Letter
Joan Boyd hasn’t seen Arthur in more than a decade—until the sharp, well-groomed soldier appears in her mother’s doorway. When Army Staff Sergeant Arthur Robinson flies back from Stuttgart to Maryland only days later, the mission is no longer delivering a letter: it’s finding his high school heartthrob, who has disappeared without a trace. Is it sheer coincidence that his reappearance, and her disappearance, happen only days apart?
And it all started with the letter.
“Suspenseful and addictive… I just could not put the book down. I loved the characters, and I loved the references to local places and military customs, terminology and lifestyle.”
— Darlene T., verified Amazon purchase
The Reader’s List
A Mystery Is Better When You’re In On It
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Meet the Author
A Life of Service, Travel, and Storytelling
F. Matthew Johnson grew up in the Washington, D.C. area and went on to serve in the United States Army and the Department of the Army Civil Service—a career that kept him living and working in Europe for more than fifteen years.
He and his wife of more than forty-five years have traveled to forty-seven of the fifty United States and at least thirty countries. Today they make their home in the high desert of Southern Arizona, where genealogy research, jigsaw puzzles, music, and family—two children and eight grandchildren—fill the hours between chapters.
All of it finds its way, one way or another, into the stories.
Meet JohnsonBehind the Stories
Where the Stories Come From
People and History
Years of genealogy research have taught Johnson how the past follows people—old choices, long relationships, and family histories that resurface when least expected. His characters carry their histories the same way.
Music and Atmosphere
Tchaikovsky one evening, Glenn Miller or Earth, Wind & Fire the next—Johnson’s wide-ranging taste in music shapes the emotional texture of his scenes, from quiet tension to warmth and celebration.
Reader Reactions
What Readers Are Saying
“Thoroughly enjoyed the read! It’s a nice easy flow. Loved reading and recognizing so many places in the Washington DC metropolitan area. Go get it, read it! Can’t wait for the next book!”
— TJ, verified Amazon purchase
“After finishing It Started with the Letter, I was in big trouble. I needed to read the next Arthur Robinson book as soon as possible! … I just could not put the book down.”
— Darlene T., verified Amazon purchase
“There are a lot of real places where things in the story take place… He also includes some nice insights into military bands that you don’t often see. No blood and gore. No hard core sex scenes. A nice and relaxing read.”
— CJ, verified Amazon purchase
The Next Letter Could Be Yours
New books, quiet announcements, and the occasional note from Southern Arizona.