Dorothy Salisbury Davis, acclaimed mystery writer, dead at 98

NEW YORK, N.Y. – Dorothy Salisbury Davis, a prize-winning mystery writer whose books include the bestselling “A Gentle Murderer” and numerous other works praised for their psychological suspense, has died. She was 98.

Longtime friend Laurie Ferguson told The Associated Press that Davis died Sunday at the Esplanade at Palisades, a senior residence facility in Palisades, New York. Ferguson said Davis had been in failing health for months. Davis’ husband, the actor Harry Davis, died in 1993. They had no children.

A native of Chicago, Davis was nominated several times for the Mystery Writers of America’s Edgar Award, and was named an MWA “Grand Master” in 1985. Her other books included “The Little Brothers” and “Shock Waves.” Her stories were often anthologized, most recently in the 2013 release “Troubled Daughters, Twisted Wives.”