Edith Maxwell's Blog, page 130

Road Trip with Annette Dashofy

Edith here, so happy to host my good friend (and many-time Agatha finalist) Annette Dashfy on the blog once again. Under the Radar is her latest Zoe Chambers mystery and she’s here to tell us about a research road trip she took – and to give away a signed book! But first, let’s hear about the story.

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Paramedic and deputy coroner Zoe Chambers responds to a shooting and discovers her longtime friend, Horace Pavelka, has gunned down a man who’d bullied him mercilessly for decades. Ruled self-defense, no charges are filed. When another of his tormentors turns up dead in Horace’s kitchen, Police Chief Pete Adams questions the man’s innocence in both cases…especially after Horace and his girlfriend go into hiding. 

While fighting to clear her friend, Zoe is handed the opportunity to finally learn what really happened to her long-lost sibling. What starts out as a quick road trip on a quest for answers leads her to an unfamiliar city in the middle of a November blizzard, where she finds way more trouble than she bargained for. Pete’s own search for Zoe and a missing murderer ultimately traps him in a web of deception. Face-to-face with one of the most cunning and deadly killers of his law enforcement career, Pete realizes too late that this confrontation may well be his last.

Road Trip!

My Zoe Chambers Mysteries have mostly been set in “Monongahela County,” Pennsylvania, a fictionalized version of Washington County where I’ve lived my entire life. Zoe, like me, has grown up in the farm country and small towns of the area. I took her out of her comfort zone for the fifth book in the series, No Way Home, when I had her travel to New Mexico. In Under The Radar, she once again hits the road for unfamiliar territory—although not as far or unfamiliar as the American Southwest.

This time, Zoe, her cousin Patsy, and friend/investigative journalist Lauren pile into a behemoth rented SUV with Zoe’s mother Kimberly for the road trip from hell. And that’s before they even get to Erie where an early winter blizzard is whipping in from Canada.

Writing this journey and unlikely travel team was some of the most fun I’ve had sitting at a computer. Kimberly is always a hoot. Self-involved, overbearing, and—as a resident of Florida—never quite prepared for winter, Zoe’s mother can be exasperating to those around her. But now, as the domineering mother of the bride, she takes the concept of control freak to a whole new level.

The trip is only supposed to be a quick run to Clarion, a very real town about three hours north and east of Monongahela County. Zoe, with Lauren’s help, is trying to locate information on her missing half-brother when Kimberly shows up unannounced with cousin Patsy grudgingly in tow. Kimberly, while loathing the idea of her late husband having a child prior to their marriage, insists they settle this once and for all by simply driving to Clarion, the last known location for the missing sibling’s mother. Besides, Kimberly can plan Zoe’s wedding on the way.

[image error]Snow in Erie. Photo by Marianne Main.

Of course, it’s never that easy. Answers lead to more questions, and ultimately to a name and an address. In Erie. Except Kimberly has quickly tired of the mission—and the cold—and wants to return to Monongahela County and her scheduled flight back to sunny Florida. Instead, Zoe and friends head north. To Erie, and straight into the heart of a blizzard. And into the hands of a killer.

Lauren stood and approached Kimberly. “There’s another option.”

Hurricane Kimberly turned her gale-force bluster on the reporter. “And what might that be?”

“We split up.” Lauren pointed at Kimberly and Patsy. “You two head home. Zoe and I’ll rent a car and go on to Erie to find her brother.”

“That’s the stupidest idea yet.”

“Why?” Lauren demanded. “Because it’s not yours?”

The room fell silent, all the air sucked out of the eye of the hurricane. Zoe waited for Kimberly to flatten Lauren verbally if not physically.

For what felt like an eternity, the only sound was the soft tick of ice crystals tapping on the window. When Kimberly again spoke, her voice was quieter. “No. Because I was always taught you leave the dance with whomever brought you. We all came together. We stay together.” She looked at Zoe. “If you insist on continuing this wild goose chase…” Kimberly stood taller and lifted her chin. “I’ll reschedule my flight.”

Zoe stared at her mother. Who was this woman?

Why Erie? Because it’s one of my favorite places to visit, although preferably in the summer. Lake-effect snowstorms are the stuff of legends. The story is set in November, a time of year when my area is usually cold and very gray. And wet. Snow is definitely possible, even likely, but most of the time, we get a lot of rain. The trees have largely been stripped of leaves. It’s just…bleak. But east, in the Laurel Highlands (where, by the way, Vance Township Police Chief Pete Adams is searching for a missing couple wanted for questioning about a murder), and north toward the lake, larger accumulations are a regular occurrence.

It was fun getting Zoe and Pete out of familiar territory. Research wasn’t an issue since I already knew both areas well.

Kimberly? She didn’t have so much fun. But we do see another side of her—one I always knew was there, but readers, Zoe, and maybe even Kimberly herself did not.

Readers: Have you ever taken a road trip? And if so, what unexpected bumps along the road created unforgettable memories?

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Annette Dashofy is the USA Today best-selling author of the Zoe Chambers mystery series about a paramedic and deputy coroner in rural Pennsylvania’s tight-knit Vance Township. Annette has garnered five Agatha nominations including her current nomination for Best Contemporary Novel for FAIR GAME. She is the vice president of the Pittsburgh chapter of Sisters in Crime Chapter and is on the board of directors of Pennwriters. UNDER THE RADAR is the ninth in her series.

Wicked Wednesday: Unrequited Love

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Wickeds, our books are mysteries, not romantic suspense. But romance does play a role in many of our books, either in the present or in the past. I’ve been thinking about unrequited love, and what a powerful motivation that can be. Do any of your characters have unrequited love in their past, or a sense of ennui for what might have been? Or does this question give you any ideas?

Julie: I’m not sure anyone can escape the “what might have been” feeling in their life. I’m working on book #4 in the Garden Squad series, and have been thinking about past loves and the different experiences folks have with that love. How it affects them. I’m also wondering what Roddy has in his past, or whether he’s feeling unrequited love now.

Jessie: Interesting, Julie! I haven’t thought much about this for my characters and your question has provoked some mulling! I would say that my character, Edwina Davenport is one of the “surplus women” of the 1920s. She is happy in her unmarried state but she does love children and would have liked to have had at least one of her own. She is unlikely to ever do so and lavishes her attention on her plants, her dog and her growing enquiry agency.

Sherry: Jessie, that makes my heart ache for Edwina! Chloe Jackson, in my upcoming book From Beer to Eternity, has had several relationships in the past including a broken engagement. Through the course of the book she finds out something shocking which turns her world upside down and makes her rethink her adult life and her relationships.

Liz: Maddie has alluded to a number of sub-optimal relationships in her past, usually with bad boy band members and how those have affected her world view of relationships, but I haven’t really thought about whether there was one that she really regretted or wished could have been. I think she probably wishes she’d made better choices along the way, but she also understands that everything is a learning experience.

Barb: The unrequited love in my Jane Darrowfield series is of a different type. Jane is estranged from her son at his initiation. I don’t know that he doesn’t love her, but they haven’t had contact in eleven years. This has left an enormous hole in Jane’s heart. Each of her bridge friends at some time has pointed out, gently and kindly, that Jane spending her retirement fixing other people’s problems is ironic and that perhaps she needs to resolve her own problem soon.

I love these answers! Dear readers, do you like characters with longings? Or do you prefer neat packages of relationships?

A Wicked Welcome to J.C. Kenney

I’m delighted to welcome J.C. Kenney back to the blog today, and grateful for his message to us all.

One Word at a Time

Hi, friends! Thanks so much for visiting. It’s a thrill returning to the Wicked Authors to hang out with you today.

I have a confession to make, though. I’m no fan of the month of February. I live with depression, having been diagnosed in 2012, and the winter months are a challenge. After weeks of cold, dark, and dreary weather, by the time I get to this time of the year, my mantra is to literally focus on simply getting from one day to the next.

While this outlook may seem bleak, for me, it’s a necessary means of self-care. I know that, as the weather improves with the arrival of Spring, I’ll start to feel better. Until then, key is to muddle through and find happiness in the small accomplishments.

In short, just keep swimming (thank you, Dory!).

I often apply that approach to my life as an author because the simple fact is some writing days are better than others. There are times that the words flow from my head through the keyboard and onto the screen like a swift moving river. It’s glorious. It’s exciting. It’s fun.

I love those days.

Other times, getting the words to come forth is like clearing my driveway of a foot of heavy, wet snow with a shovel I should have replaced two years ago. It’s exhausting. It’s frustrating.

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And it’s totally okay.

Because any amount of progress I make is just that. Progress.

But what about the days I simply can’t confront the snow-packed driveway and instead head back inside to watch another episode of The Brokenwood Mysteries? To me, that’s totally okay, too, because sometimes the thing we need more than anything is rest. For our body, our mind, and our creative soul.

At my day job, I work for a non-profit that provides services to vulnerable populations. Our Phrases that Pay our prominently posted around the office. They’re our company guiding principles. They’re also pretty darn helpful in everyday life. One of my favorites is this one.

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In my life, the notion that change is incremental, not instantaneous is every bit as important at work as it is at home and while I’m writing. The way I look at it, every minute you spend thinking about your story, every idea you discuss with a friend or colleague, every word you type, is a change.

After a while, those thoughts coalesce into ideas which become words on the page. Then those words become sentences, then chapters, until incrementally, you’ve written a story. And that, my friends, is a huge accomplishment, built upon countless, daily small accomplishments. See what I did there?

So, do me a favor, folks. Try to set aside, even for a short while, the worry about what we need to accomplish in the coming days, weeks, or months. Instead, take a breath with me and remember that change is incremental, not instantaneous. Take pride in the small successes. I think keeping that in mind makes life a lot more enjoyable.

How about you? Do you have a strategy or mantra you’d like to share that helps you get through the day? Tell me about it. We’re all in this together, after all!

In closing, I want to thank Julie Hennrikus for the invitation to return today and to all of the Wicked Authors for their amazing work. And if you or someone you know is struggling with mental health and/or substance abuse problems, you can call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration National Helpline at 1.800.662.HELP (4357). Take care friends, and until we meet again, wishing you sunny skies and warm breezes!

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[image error]Best-selling author J.C. Kenney writes cozy mystery stories set in his home state of Indiana. He lives in Indianapolis with his wife, two children, and a kitty cat. He loves motor sports, so when he’s not writing, you can probably find him checking in on the latest from IndyCar and Formula 1.

His latest novel, A Mysterious Mix Up, was published on January 7, 2020 and is available wherever e-books are sold. Find out more at www.jckenney.com and Kensington Books/J.C. Kenney.

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About A Mysterious Mix Up:

Allie Cobb returns home from a book conference armed with hugs for her cat and her boyfriend, and dreams of a long, hot bath. She’s also getting ready to take the plunge by hiring an intern for her expanding literary agency. But it’s one for the books when Allie finds the town’s librarian—and her longtime role model—seconds away from death on the library floor.
 
Who would want to poison Vicky Napier—one of Rushing Creek’s most beloved citizens—on the eve of her retirement? But it seems there were toxic people in her life, like the handyman with an obsessive crush, and a wood carver with a hair-trigger temper. The list of suspects includes Allie’s boyfriend, Brent, who’s in the running to take over as town librarian. Avenging her friend’s murder could be a trap as she goes up against a killer determined to write Allie’s epitaph . . .

Murder Comes to Call Cover Reveal!

Jessie: in New Hampshire, where more snowy weather is in the forecast for tomorrow!

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One of the things I think is most magical about reading and writing is the way that thoughts and images in my head will have at least a passing resemblance to those of my readers or to the authors of books, I in turn, read. One of the things I hope the most about crafting stories is that what I am imagining can be expressed in a vivid enough way for it to reach readers as fully fleshed out as the characters and situations seem to me.

I always hope that a similar thing will occur when I’m asked by my editors to provide cover art suggestions for my books. I try to communicate by sharing images and shortlists of words and phrases that I think will get my ideas across. Despite my best efforts, it can be startling to see an image in front of you of what someone else imagines when you describe a scene or character or situation.

Still, there are months between the time my editors request cover ideas and when I receive my first glimpse of the artwork. During that time I usually forget all about the fact that someone, somewhere, is creating a cover. I’m busy writing the next book, or working on copy edits, or creating blog posts like this one, and cover art is rarely on my mind. But then one day, I’ll receive an email, unexpectedly, from my editor announcing the cover is ready. I always cross my fingers and hope that we have a match between what I described and what the artist interpreted.

So, here’s the latest cover! It’s the first time I’ve had an interior scene for the Beryl and Edwina series. I think the artist captured the sense of an English country house. I just love the way the victim’s feet poke out past the potted plant, just as they do in the story! I guess crossing my fingers worked!

Readers, what do you like to see in a book cover? Does it matter if it accurately reflects the story itself? Writers, do your covers look the way that you expect?

A Valentine to Our Readers!

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We’re going to make this reader appreciation day, and offer you all a valentine of appreciation.

Julie: Speaking for myself, I love meeting our blog readers in 3D. When I’m at an event or a conference, and folks come up and say hello it means the world. We have such a rich community of folks here at the Wickeds, and so appreciate the opportunity to say hello in person.

Edith/Maddie: I’m with Julie on that one. I also love getting comments here, plus emails or Facebook messages from readers who let me know how much you loved my story or what hard time it got you through. I’m as excited as you are that you spied my latest book in your local bookstore – and took the time to snap a photo and post it! Thank you for reading, thank you for hanging out with us on the blog, and thank you for sharing.

Sherry: When I started writing the Sarah series, I didn’t realize that readers would be as invested in the characters and their lives as I was. As Julie and Edith said meeting and hearing from readers is the very best part of being an author. All of you who take time to comment on the blog have become part of the Wicked family.

Barb: I love it when readers come in pairs (or more). I got an email this week that said, “My mother and my aunt love your books.” I hear often from mothers and daughters, spouses, sisters, and friends who share books back and forth and love discussing them. That’s the way it always was in my family. So keep reading, keep sharing and keep talking! We love you!

Liz: Ditto to all of the above, and also, I love that readers share their furbabies with me! With my books so heavily focused on animals, I like to share my own animals with readers and love that it’s a great way to establish relationships and get to know each other. Anyone who loves a furry friend is a keeper in my book! Thank you for reading and for being awesome pet parents!

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Dear readers, you mean the world to us! Thank you for being part of this blog, for being part of our Facebook group, for subscribing to our newsletter, and for supporting us individually as well.

Happy Valentine’s Day to you all!

Our Stories

by Julie, drinking gingerale and eating saltines in Somerville. T’is the season.

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I recently became a certified life coach. Now, when I started to take the classes I thought that since I’ve been a teacher for years, worked in many capacities, mentored and run workshops, I knew everything there was to know. The classes would just be a piece of paper.

Boy, was I wrong.

For those of you who don’t know what life coaching is, think of it this way. It’s about setting goals and moving forward. There are times when it includes dealing with issues that are keeping you stuck, but it is not the same as therapy. Often therapists and coaches will work together, but the process is very different.

Which brings me to the topic of stories. I’ve been thinking about them a lot lately.

Each of us on this blog is a storyteller. We revel in creating worlds, developing characters and creating plots that both delight and confound our readers.

But what about the stories we tell ourselves? The stories that we believe without challenging them? In the coaching trade we call these limiting beliefs. They can include “I’m fat”, or “I can’t sing” or “I could never write a book”. Think about this for yourself. What have you always believed and never questioned about yourself? What would change if you changed that story?

That shift can be powerful. When I work with folks, or do the work on myself, I enjoy seeing the change that shifts can bring.

I’ve also been thinking about my characters. What are their beliefs? Which of those beliefs are limiting? Does a strong sleuth, like Lilly Jayne, push past her limiting beliefs in the name of justice? Or has she worked them out already? Is that what makes her so aware of the human condition?

Is a character who is more aware of their foibles more interesting than a character who has them but moves through life unaware? As I’m working on book #4, I’m thinking a lot about that. What are the stories the characters have told themselves? How can other people figure that out? For me, this is adding another layer of complexity to what is already a fairly complex story.

Readers, do you like characters who are self-aware, or characters who are who they are and clueless about their impact?

Wicked Wednesday: Plans for Friday?

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My grandparents were married on Valentine’s Day, so I’ve always had a soft spot for the holiday. Even when I haven’t had a valentine, I celebrate it. Wickeds, some of us have romance in our novels, others don’t. How will your characters celebrate Valentine’s Day? Any special food or rituals that would be fun to talk about? A pining for previous loves, or a celebration of friendship? Or a romantic dinner?

Jessie: What a lovely question! My sleuth, Beryl, will likely open a lavish number of cards and tokens on the day from a wide circle of admirers. She will be pleased but non-plussed. Edwina may be faced with a heartfelt offerings from her dear friend Charles who is far more interested in her than she is in him. I am afraid her day will be spent in discomfort and agitation! Both ladies will receive flowers from jobbing gardener, Simpkins.

Julie: Jessie, I love Simpkins, and suspect he will make lovely bouquets for them both. Delia is sort of dating Stan from the Star, but he’ll be working. So she and Lilly will plan a decadent dinner of their favorite things, and they’ll invite Ernie and Roddy. Ernie will bring them plants. Roddy will bring them really good chocolates.

Liz: What a fun question! Maddie tends to have low expectations, but this year she’s hoping that Lucas, the hot dog groomer, will plan something lovely to show that he’s not like the guys she usually dates. She’s fine with low-key, but wants to feel appreciated. So maybe a nice dinner somewhere, and a card or flowers.

Barb: On Friday, Julia and Chris will be working their tails off at their dinner restaurant. Gus’s Too is positioned as a place for locals to have a date night during the off-season, so it is fully booked. To compensate, on the Tuesday before Valentine’s, when they were closed, Chris cooked a romantic dinner for two in the restaurant space. It’s a bit of a busman’s holiday for him and Julia tried to talk him into going out somewhere off the penninsula, but she could see he really wanted it so she gave in. At the appointed hour, when Julia came downstairs from their apartment, wearing a dress for the first time in months, there were roses in “their” booth, the place where they re-met after all Julia’s years away. The table was set with china and linens borrowed from Julia’s mother. Dinner was a multi-course extravaganza that took Julia’s breathe away…

Edith/Maddie: Aww, Barb. I love that! Down on Cape Cod, Mac’s boyfriend Tim will cook her a romantic dinner at his cottage – and gently hint how much he’d love to start a family with her (like she doesn’t already know…). In South Lick, eighty-something Samuel is taking Robbie’s Aunt Adele out to the fanciest restaurant in Nashville, but Abe and Robbie decide to go simple and have cheese fondue in front of his fireplace, followed by chocolate fondue.

Sherry: Seth is going to whisk Sarah off for a weekend at a cozy historic inn on the coast of Massachusetts. Sarah is going to give him a antique shaving mirror as a gift. She tried to get one for him recently but it didn’t work out the way she planned. Other than a nice dinner out they plan to take walks, hold hands, and visit some antique stores.

Readers, do you like to imagine what characters are doing on holidays when we haven’t got them solving crimes? Any Valentine’s Day wishes?

Guest Liz Milliron

Edith here, battling a nasty respiratory thing and finally on top of it (I think). And I’m excited to welcome Liz Milliron back to the blog with a debut mystery in a new historical series. In the late fall, she asked me if I would blurb it, and it was easy to offer an enthusiastic endorsement. Here’s the meat of it: “The story is riveting, Betty’s courage and persistence are a delight, and her sidekicks provide perfect support and caution. The Homefront Mysteries promise to keep you on the edge of your seat…and smiling as you read.”

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First let’s hear about The Enemy We Don’t Know:

November, 1942. Betty Ahern is doing her part for the war, working at Bell Aircraft while her older brother and fiancée are fighting overseas, but she really wants to be a private detective like her movie idol Sam Spade. When sabotage comes to the plant, and a suspected co-worker hires her to clear her name, Betty sees it as her big chance.

As her questions take her into Buffalo’s German neighborhood, Kaisertown, Betty finds herself digging into a group that is trying to resurrect the German-American Bund, a pro-Nazi organization. Have they elevated their activities past pamphlets and party-crashing? When the investigation leads Betty and her two friends into a tangle of counterfeiting and murder, as well as the Bund, the trio must crack the case–before one or more of them ends up in the Buffalo River…wearing concrete overshoes.

But I Don’t Write Historical

First, thanks to all the Wickeds for hosting me today and helping me celebrate the launch of my new book/series. “But I don’t write historical,” was me in the spring of 2016. I was participating in a short story challenge and Malice Domestic had just announced the theme of their anthology to be released in 2017 – Mystery Most Historical.

I’d never written historical. I wrote contemporary. There were too many details for historical, too much research, too much possibility of getting it wrong. And all of the story ideas I’d ever had were contemporary. The historical field was populated with such big names: Rhys Bowen, Edith Maxwell, Sujata Massey…what did I have to add to the canon? This was one I’d be skipping.

And yet…

A character started bugging me. A young lady who worked at Bell Aircraft during WWII, a girl very loosely based on my paternal grandmother. What if she was a movie buff who dearly wanted to be a private detective? What if she showed up to work one day and found her shift supervisor killed? What if she decided to solve the crime? What if…?

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And a story was born.

It was intended to be one story. When I finished it, I swapped stories with friend Keenan Powell for critique and she said, “There needs to be more Betty stories.” But I was done with this character. Time to get back to modern times. After all, I didn’t write historical.

Or so I thought.

I still hadn’t sold the Laurel Highlands series. The question was, “Should I write a third in that series or do something different?” How much time did I want to spend on a series that might not go anywhere?

Betty piped up. “I’ve got one for ya,” she said.

Of course, I resisted. I still labored under the delusion that I was in charge, or at least sort of in charge. Silly me. Betty kept nagging me. I hadn’t involved her good friend Liam “Lee” Tillotson in the last story. He’d be mad. And she had a humdinger of a tale to tell. I told her, no. After all, I didn’t write historical.

Needless to say, Betty wore me down. And her story was pretty intriguing. Soon I found myself immersed in the history of the P-39, the events of WWII in November, 1942, Bureau of Labor Statistics wage tables, and what Buffalo, New York looked like in 1942 (my history-buff father was a great help with that). I looked at maps, and old pictures. I read books set in that time period and watched movies to get a feel for dialogue. I looked up pictures of fashion and work attire. I had to admit, I was having fun.

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When I finished, I didn’t know what to do with the book. I put it aside and shortly thereafter, I sold the Laurel Highlands series. Betty seemed destined to wait in the wings. Then in 2019, my publisher announced they were starting a historical imprint, aptly named “Historia,” and were looking for manuscripts. I put up my hand. “I have a historical if you’d like to look at it.”

The rest, as they say, is history. I guess I write historicals after all.

Readers: What is something you always said you didn’t do only to find out you did it after all?

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Liz Milliron is the author of The Laurel Highlands Mysteries series, set in the scenic Laurel Highlands and The Homefront Mysteries, set in Buffalo, NY during the early years of World War II. Heaven Has No Rage, the second in the Laurel Highlands Mysteries, was released in August 2019. The first book of the Homefront Mysteries, The Enemy We Don’t Know, was released in February 2020. Soon to be an empty-nester, Liz lives outside Pittsburgh with her husband, two children, and a retired-racer greyhound.

The World at My Fingertips…

by Barb who became a grandmother for the third time on Saturday

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Lately, when I turn on Netflix, it’s been nagging me. “Next time, try using your voice remote to say ‘Netflix.'”

Here’s the thing. I don’t want to use my voice remote. I don’t want to say, “Netflix.” I am perfectly happy to tab around until I locate the Netflix logo on their app and then press the select button on my remote. In fact, I prefer it.

I don’t want to talk to my computer. Or my iPad. Or even my iPhone, more than is absolutely necessary. If I have a question I’ll type it into a search engine, thanks. And if not talking to my phone means I can’t text you while I’m driving, you can wait. The odds of you texting me something so important I have to respond immediately are infinitesimal.

I don’t want my devices talking to me, either. Nothing annoys me more than when I’m using technology to accomplish some task and suddenly a video ad starts running or music comes blasting at me. I keep the sound off on every device I own most of the time, but once in a while I turn it on to actually listen to something I want to hear and then forget to turn it off. I always regret it. I miss a lot of stuff with the sound turned off, like the notification about your all-important text, but I can’t say I’m sorry.

I don’t want my devices doing anything or remembering anything or reminding me of stuff. I have real people in my life to nag me, and frankly, that is plenty. I don’t need inanimate objects pitching in. I spend my days with a roomful of imaginary people for a reason. Leave me alone.

My husband has rigged up something at our house. I can’t even tell you if it’s Alexa or Siri or what. Honestly, that’s how little I interact with it. But every once in awhile, whoever she is will announce she’s turning off the TV. And then she does. I don’t know if she’s responding to something one of the characters in the TV show has said, or if she’d decided we can’t handle whatever we’re watching. Or that maybe that we should go outside and get some fresh air. I never find it helpful.

I realize that up to this point, this post has sounded like the rantings of a classic crankly old person. “Oh for the good old days of rotary dial phones and typewriters.” But I have no interest in going back there. I now understand that I spent most of my adulthood in what was a golden age for me. The age of the keyboard.

In junior high I flunked typing twice. Proto-feminist that I was, with the sophistication of a thirteen-year-old, I reasoned that if I couldn’t type, I would never end up being some man’s secretary. (“Why would she be worried about that?” younger readers are wondering. Good. Progress.) Of course, I also have the fine motor skills of a puppy playing the piano, so while I deliberately threw the class, I undoubtedly wouldn’t have done well even if I’d tried.

And then I spent the rest of my life typing. SO IRONIC. And I’m still terrible at it. And slow. But I’ve come to understand it’s the slowness I value. I LOVE having those keystrokes between me and the world. They provide just enough distance to make me happy and comfortable. Just enough delay so I can absorb and process. My keyboard is the the transformer that converts my fast-moving mind to the speed of my slow-moving fingers. Which is a better speed for me to handle to world and for the world to handle me.

Don’t get me wrong. I don’t want to shut the world out. I just want it on a permanent sixty-second delay.

What about you readers? Talking to your devices — mega-convenience or uncomfortable interaction?

A Wicked Welcome to Bruce Coffin! **And a Giveaway!**

We’re thrilled to welcome Bruce back to the blog in celebration of the latest book in his Detective Byron series, WITHIN PLAIN SIGHT.

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Bruce Robert Coffin here. Many thanks to the Wickeds for allowing me the opportunity to guest blog. I hope you’re all enjoying a great start to 2020. With the release of my fourth Detective Byron Mystery, WITHIN PLAIN SIGHT, my year is certainly starting off well.

I thought I’d share with you a question most often posed to me by readers, and that is: where did I come by my love of books? Well, it all began one summer when I was a wee lad. Already addicted to reading and to great storytelling, I discovered a local flea market within biking distance of our house. Flea market, as I learned that summer, is a fancy moniker for a store that sells cool used stuff. Believe me when I tell you this place had everything, tools, artwork, collectibles, but most importantly it had books. Lots and lots of books. Displayed proudly at the back of the store upon painted shelves was a treasure trove of all things fiction. Row upon row of Nancy Drew Mysteries, The Hardy Boys, Spin and Marty, and Tom Swift. Oh, what a quarter would buy back then. And while these titles pre-dated me, they intrigued me all the same. I still recall the little white price stickers and the intoxicating scent of musty old books. So very captivating were their covers and illustrations. I deliberated over each and every one like an indecisive teen. Even the titles were brilliant: The Secret of the Caves, The Ghost at Skeleton Rock, The Whispering Statue, and The Mystery of the Dragon Fire. I had no idea what dragon fire was and I couldn’t wait to get the book home and find out.

I often wonder whether books played a larger role during my formative years simply because of the limited number of television channels, the absence of computers and cellphones, and Internet. But books were and continue to be a major part of my life. You may wonder why that is. They are simply paper and ink after all. Only words printed on pages, bound together by a spine, sandwiched between two cloth-covered pieces of cardboard, then wrapped in a shiny dust jacket. Nothing too extraordinary, right?

But if books really are no big deal, if they don’t rise above the sum of their parts, then why do we erect buildings dedicated to them? Why are we compelled to purchase shelves to hold them, and boxes in which to store them? Why do we display them on coffee tables and night stands, as if they were treasured photos of loved ones? Or race to the store to buy the latest in a series? Or stand in lines to have them autographed by strangers?

I think it’s because books have the ability to transport us back to a time when we were different people, younger versions of ourselves. Don’t believe me? Try picking up a copy of Clifford the Big Red Dog or Where the Wild Things Are, then tell me you don’t see images from your childhood dancing before your eyes. Or Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl. I still recall sitting at my desk in third grade while our homeroom teacher read to us, wondering how an everlasting gobstopper or a snozzberry might taste.

When I turned twelve, I read my first Stephen King novel, Salem’s Lot. I can still recall the magical scent of those new pages, much like the pop quiz sheets straight from the mimeograph in the principal’s office. I also remember King’s book scared the hell out of me, as have many of his subsequent works. As I aged, my tastes changed, along with my books: One Police Plaza, The Fellowship of the Ring, The Haunting of Hill House, Tuesdays with Morrie, Of Mice and Men, and A Walk in the Woods. I imagined myself hiking up and down mountains along the Appalachian Trail while chatting with Bryson, or maybe sharing a cream soda with Katz. Each book represented a new chapter in my life, new memories.

More than just paper and ink, books are an endless stream of thought and consciousness, knowledge and idea. Each one possessing the power to entertain and enrich us. Books allow us safe passage, an escape from this world, if only for a short while. Evoking an infinite number of emotions, the best books are like amusement park thrill rides, lifting our spirits one moment, then rocketing us downward toward some imaginary horror the next.

Readers, how did you get hooked on books?

Bruce will be giving away a copy of his book to a commenter on the blog!

About WITHIN PLAIN SIGHT:

The latest gripping installment of the award-winning, #1 bestselling Detective Byron mystery series: a grisly crime captivates Portland, sending John Byron and his team on a wild chase to catch the killer before it’s too late

“These books are absolutely superb, beautifully plotted. I can’t recommend them highly enough.” —Douglas Preston, #1 bestselling co-author of the Pendergast series

Amid the dog days of summer, Detective Sergeant John Byron is called to the scene of a horrific crime: a young woman’s body, dismembered and left in an abandoned Portland lumber yard. The killing shares striking similarities with a spate of murders committed in Boston by a serial killer known only as the Horseman.

As Byron’s team investigates the case, they quickly push up against powerful forces in town. But Byron will stop at nothing to find the truth, not when there is a killer on the loose and everyone is a suspect. Has the Horseman expanded his killing field? Is this the work of an ingenious copycat—or is nothing what it seems? One thing is certain: Byron must uncover the truth before the killer strikes again.

Review

“Flawless prose, witty dialogue, startling twists. In Within Plain Sight, a cross-country hunt for a killer spirals dangerously out of control. Akin to what Michael Connelly does for L.A., Coffin fully immerses us in a gritty, realistic Portland, Maine. Authenticity seeps from every page, from the police work to the resonating emotions. Unforgettable.” (K.J. HOWE, internationally bestselling author of Skyjack)

“Within Plain Sight fires on all cylinders: a page-turning plot, compelling characters, outstanding dialogue, and an immersive setting. As usual, Bruce Coffin delivers. In spades.”  (BARON R. BIRTCHER, LA Times bestselling author of Rain Dogs and Hard Latitudes)

“Within Plain Sight sizzles and pops like thick-cut bacon tossed into a smokin’ hot skillet. … This fast-paced tale has it all. … A mystery that will keep you guessing until the final bullet-riddled revelation.” (Jim Nesbitt, author of The Last Second Chance)

Bio:



[image error]Amanda Huebner Photography

Bruce Robert Coffin is the bestselling author of the Detective Byron Mysteries. A former detective sergeant with more than twenty-seven years in law enforcement, he supervised all homicide and violent crime investigations for Maine’s largest city. Following the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, Bruce spent four years investigating counter-terrorism cases for the FBI, earning the Director’s Award, the highest award a non-agent can receive.

His most recent novel, Beyond the Truth, winner of Killer Nashville’s Silver Falchion Award for Best Procedural, was a finalist for the Agatha Award for Best Contemporary Novel and a finalist for the Maine Literary Award for Best Crime Fiction. His short fiction appears in several anthologies, including Best American Mystery Stories 2016.
Website: brucerobertcoffin.com