Why the Desert Setting Matters in Stories of Murder & Mayhem

Deserts have long held fascination as places of great mystery and startling contrasts. Movies like Lawrence of Arabia portray deserts as, at once, lavish and austere, transformative and dangerous. Naturalist, Ann Haymond Zwinger, in her book, Mysterious Lands, writes eloquently about the exquisite extremes and breathtaking beauty to be found in desert landscapes throughout the U.S. Southwest. Such settings often surprise and inspire awe. They are, for example, among the hottest places on earth. And yet, terrain that scorches by day may chill us to the bone by night. With their vivid blue skies, abundant sunshine, drifting sands and scorching heat, these arid places challenge us to take them seriously, or else.

Setting matters. Maybe that’s why the Sonoran Desert seems such a natural setting in which to write about murder and mayhem, Jessica Huntington style. The desert cities in and around Palm Springs provide an almost magical backdrop to the unsettling events that occur in A DEAD HUSBAND and A DEAD SISTER, books 1 & 2 in the series. The opulence of Jessica’s upscale lifestyle and splendor of the desert stand in stark contrast to the horror wrought by lowlifes bent on wreaking havoc. Terrain matters, too, in book three, A DEAD DAUGHTER. And it will matter, at least as much in The Cleansing, the first book in The Betsy Stark Desert Cities Mystery Series.

Setting engages us. The Sonoran desert is as much a character as any other in the books I write, and in many of those I read and enjoy. Details about the setting draw us into the action, not just intellectually, but sensually. We’re pulled into the thick of things by images of vivid blue skies, or swaying palms that glitter in the sunlight as they dance. Those palms swish and crackle as they sway, catching us up in the moment by sound as well as sight. The warm desert breezes, that set the palms in motion, caress us engaging our sense of touch. We may taste a bit of gritty sand carried aloft by the breeze. Or perhaps catch a whiff of creosote, desert lavender, sage or another of the ingredients baked by sun and heat into a desert potpourri.

Setting can set the tone or evoke a mood. A desert sunrise may inspire us, while a sunset conjures up resignation or respite. An enormous, shimmering desert moon might suggest a mystery about to be revealed or spur a budding romance. Whether we’re talking about swanky, high-end, hijinks, or down and dirty, ankle-biting free-for-alls, setting portends and amplifies the action. Setting can propel both story and plot, by insinuation or by hitting us right between the eyes with scenes that shock or surprise.

There are so many ways in which ‘the desert’ plays a central role in the life led by characters, real and fictional, here in the Coachella Valley. And, this is no ordinary desert. It has been cast as a kind of Shangri La by many, and was, in fact, one of the places where Lost Horizon was filmed. Manicured and massaged, gilded and augmented, architects and developers have sought to mold their dreams on the sands of the Sonoran Desert here in the Coachella Valley.

In many ways the place is a lot like a Disneyland for adults: the palms are up lit and the mountains backlit. Golf greens vie with desert scrub, diabolical sand traps and water hazards. Over time distinctive enclaves have emerged in an attempt to capture and convey “Our Araby”, mid-century modernist suburban utopia, Andalusian equestrian vistas, Spanish Haciendas and Mediterranean villas. Still, the wildness of the place sends a lot of folks scurrying for a good part of the year. How on earth could we live here and not believe that the desert setting matters?

What do you think? Does setting matter? How does it impact what you read?

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