How to Make an Informed Reading Choice
With so many books out there, how do you make an informed reading choice? From the author's point of view, it's all about "book discoverability.' But I read more than I write and from the reader's...
Writing for Water: How to Cure Ebola by Reading
Throughout 2014, for every Kindle book I sell, $1 is donated to Water.org, the charity co-founded by Matt Damon to bring clean and safe water to communities worldwide. Other independent authors have...
Where’s a Cheerleader When You Need One?
Back when dinosaurs roamed the earth, I was part of my high school’s cheer team. I was also a member of the band, playing—yes, you read it here—the cymbals. Those cymbals were red hot when we New...
Book Review: Hotel Pastis by Peter Mayle
Up for a trip to southern France, where mirth, mayhem, and Champagne rule? C'est vraiment drole! Translation: keep reading. I not only write mysteries but I love reading them, too. My favorites are...
Writing for Water: August’s Big Wave
It's almost a tidal wave. As of 30 August, the Writing for Water team of authors exceeded the 2014 goal of providing 25 people with clean water for life, via donations to Water.org. Author donations...
Lighting the Path
"Surround yourself with those who light the way." It was just another pithy Pinterest graphic; worth a nod and a smile. Forgotten in the wake of a great chicken recipe or a cat playing the piano....
An Excellent Liar
Big lies, white, lies, pretty little lies--Acapulco Detective Emilia Cruz is an expert at all of them. But in the Emilia Cruz police procedural mystery series, she hardly ever lies to the people she...
Book Review: The Coroner’s Lunch by Colin Cotterill
Not only do I write a mystery series, but I read them, too. My favorite mysteries are the ones that take me to new places. This week's book review is of THE CORONER's LUNCH by Colin Cotterill....
Writing for Water: The Summer of Love
Throughout 2014, I’m donating $1 for every Kindle book I sell to Water.org. Every time someone buys one of my books, they help bring clean water to communities worldwide. Some terrific author...
Book Review: A Common Evil by Billy Ray Chitwood
Not only do I write mysteries but I love reading them, too, especially the ones that take me to new places. This week's book review is of A COMMON EVIL by Billy Ray Chitwood, a gem I discovered via...
3 Essential Tips for Safe Travel in Mexico
Are you travelling to Mexico but getting nervous when you read the headlines? Yes, there are security issues in Mexico, many of which I write about in the Detective Emilia Cruz mystery series set in...
Book Review: The Garden of Dead Dreams
Etta Lawrence has staked everything on a year at a prestigious writing academy in the rainy Oregon woods. But truth be told, she’s an indifferent writer. She’s also distracted by her roommate’s...
The Right Fork
A number of years ago, when my children were young and we were living in Mexico, my family was invited to the residence of a NATO ambassador and his family for a New Year’s Eve dinner. Our children...
Reshaping the Acapulco Skyline
Acapulco has alot to offer: beautiful beaches, water sports, cliff divers, iconic skyscrapers, swimming with the dolphins. Get off the beaten path and you can add gun violence, murder, cops, and...
DIABLO NIGHTS Cover Reveal and Kindle Release
The third installment of the Emilia Cruz mystery series, featuring the first and only female police detective in Acapulco, is out on Kindle! The paperback version will be available in August. And...
The Lure of the Open Notebook
Maybe it's a sickness. Yesterday, as I was cleaning out my den (also known as the writer's cave, Mom's office, and a total mess) I found a COMPLETELY VIRGIN hardcover spiral notebook...
Book Review: Homicide Chart by V.S. Kemanis
The second Dana Hargrove legal thriller is a well paced, polished, and highly enjoyable read. I liked the first Dana Hargrove book, THURSDAY’S LIST, but Kemanis has hit her stride with HOMICIDE...
If You Went Missing, Who Would Know?
Donde estan? The question amid all the shoes in the picture is Where are they? This is the cry of those who search for and mourn the missing who are the casualties of Mexico's drug war.But...
Writing for Water Update: Hooked a Minnow in May
Throughout 2014, I'm donating $1 for every Kindle book I sell to Water.org. Every time someone buys one of my books, they help bring clean water to communities worldwide. Some terrific author...
Book Review: Something like A Dream by Robert Richter
SOMETHING LIKE A DREAM by Robert Richter is an unusual novel that crosses genres between international mystery and politically oriented literary fiction. It’s the 1980s in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico,...
Bookstores of the Future: A Case Study of Retail Creativity
Are bookstores facing a "survival of the fittest" era? If so, what can make a bookstore "fit?" In the case study letter below, the key is creativity and willing to do something wholly...
Book Review: The Dogs of Rome by Conor Fitzgerald
THE DOGS OF ROME is an unusual mystery, in that it has a narrow cast of characters, there's no climax, and the main character is not involved in the ultimate denouement. Does it work? I'll let you...
Bookstores of the Future: 5 Lessons About Survival of the Fittest
Will bookstores survive? Must they innovate in order to stay relevant and solvent in the era of ebooks and ecommerce? Simply out of curiosity, I began posing this question to authors, book bloggers,...
Book Review: The Origin of Murder by Jerold Last
THE ORIGIN OF MURDER by Jerold last is the latest offering in the Roger and Suzanne mystery series. The book is two parts travelogue to one part murder mystery, all with a nod to famed researcher...
Writing for Water: We Shot for the Moon in April
We made a big leap for mankind in April toward the goal of giving 25 people access to safe and clean water for life through donations to Water.org. Led by a surge in sales of CLIFF DIVER, the first...
Book Review: Federales by Christopher Irvin
FEDERALES is a short novel by Christopher Irvin that packs a hefty punch, slugging the reader to the heart with a story about Mexican corruption, violence, but also redemption and hope. It falls...
On the Occasion of My Second Anniversary as a Published Author
In addition to being a famous Mexican holiday, now celebrated around the world for reasons unrelated to the Mexican victory of Puebla over the French in 1962, Cinco de Mayo is also my anniversary of...