MdC Mark de Castrique

The Buryin' Barry Mysteries

Mark was born in Hendersonville, NC, near Asheville. He went straight from the hospital to the funeral home where his father was the funeral director and the family lived upstairs. The unusual setting sparked his popular Buryin' Barry mysteries and launched his mystery writing career.

The Barry Clayton novels build from that funeral-home world into investigations that blend mountain community dynamics, family loyalties, and criminal consequence.

Books in Reading Order

  1. Dangerous Undertaking

    Barry Clayton's first recorded investigation in Gainesboro.

  2. Grave Undertaking

    Barry Clayton returns for a second Gainesboro case.

  3. Foolish Undertaking

    Another Barry Clayton mystery set in the NC mountains.

  4. Final Undertaking

    Barry Clayton confronts escalating stakes in Gainesboro.

  5. Fatal Undertaking

    A Barry Clayton case with sharp wit and layered twists.

  6. Risky Undertaking

    Cherokee burial remains and casino politics collide in Barry Clayton's most risky case yet.

  7. Secret Undertaking

    Barry Clayton's latest undertaking in the Gainesboro cycle.