By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Behind every novel is a story. When playwright and pickleball player Rob Munden searched for a novel about pickleball, he found nothing. So, in 2022, the Larned resident published his first novel, “Peanut Butter Pickleball and Murder.” He has now released his second book in the trilogy, “The Ghost of Pickleball Past."
“It might be a spoiler alert but the serial killer lives in the first one,” Munden said. “He’s in prison in Lansing, and he gets haunted by the ghost from a victim he killed previously. It’s kind of a mystery whether the ghost is trying to help him or hurt him.”
“Ghosts” was edited by Munden’s daughter, Dallas Richardson, who also designed the cover. The new book is almost two novels in one. There is the ghost plotline, then there’s the group in Wichita that helped catch the killer in book one. In “Ghost,” the group investigates two more pickleball-related deaths.
“People don’t know it’s murder,” said Munden. “They think they are accidents for health issues. (The group) suspects differently, so they’re investigating that. Eventually, the two separate stories intertwine as one.”
Munden graduated from Hoisington High School, Barton Community College, and Fort Hays State University before settling back in the area in Larned. More than 30 of his plays have been produced or had special readings throughout Kansas, Minnesota, and Florida.
Munden has three meet-and-greets planned for his second novel. He will be at the Great Bend Public Library at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 26 to sign copies. Munden will be one of several authors at a Jordaan Library event at the Larned Community Center from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Oct. 3. He will also be competing at the Kansas Senior Games in Topeka on Sept. 21, where he will sign books. Munden previously finished third there as a singles pickleball player, and will compete as a singles and doubles player this fall.
The third and final book of the trilogy, “Power Politics and Pickleball,” will be released at a future date. "The Ghost of Pickleball Past" can be purchased on Amazon by clicking here. For signed copies, message Munden directly on Facebook.