Mystery 
Three Bags Full
“He was healthy yesterday,” said Maude. Her ears twitched nervously. “That doesn’t mean anything,” pointed out Sir Ritchfield, the oldest ram in the flock. “He didn’t die of illness. Spades are not an illness.” Indeed! This clever start to Leonie Swann’s Three Bags Full immediately draws readers into the story, and it is an unusual… Read More ›
Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame
Master Jia is giving a tour of a great wonder under construction when, upon entering the sunlight, he begins to spontaneously combust. Is this some divine retribution? Are supernatural forces at work? No, it is a case of murder in China, circa 690 A.D. When judges from China’s supreme court begin their investigation, it is… Read More ›
When the Rains Came…
Yet again, I’m skipping ahead to introduce the prologue to my planned seventh novel, When the Rains Came… Unusual, at least for me, in that it’s the first book or story to be told in first person, something I’m not a huge fan of. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy reading books with first person narration. It’s… Read More ›
The Poisoned Martini – IV
Leap Day brings Part IV of the serialized original eStory written by yours truly exclusively for this website. Future installments won’t be as long in appearing. Although when’s the next Blue Moon…? Set in Syracuse, New York, in 1987, in The Poisoned Martini, Rick Gray is about to get a rude awakening. He’d met an intriguing… Read More ›
Unearthing Murder
Read along with The Poisoned Martini this Spring… Mysteries are all about uncovering hidden truths. Archaeology is all about unearthing secrets of the past. Together they are a natural fit for an exciting story that presents a murder to solve and details about another time and place. Such stories have long been part of the… Read More ›
Dead Man’s Folly
“It’s a very wicked world, M. Poirot. And there are very wicked people in the world. You probably know that as well as I do. I don’t say so before the younger people, it might discourage them, but it’s true…Yes, it’s a very wicked world…” So says Mrs. Folliat to M. Poirot at the end of Chapter… Read More ›
Hillary Waugh’s Guide
Take a guided tour of the mystery genre with this writing reference book, Hillary Waugh’s Guide to Mysteries & Mystery Writing. Published in 1991, not long after I began writing mysteries, this was—and still is—a book I read for inspiration and ideas. The book is essentially a two-in-one guide. The first part focuses on “The History… Read More ›
Mystery Subgenres
With the publication, in 1841, of “The Murders in the Rue Morgue,” Edgar Allan Poe created elements of detection and the modern murder mystery genre. His detective, Monsieur C. Auguste Dupin, is said to be based on the very real François Eugène Vidocq, a criminal who eventually became the head of the Sûreté. An autobiography… Read More ›
The Cozy Mystery List
Blog Week III is underway, and to kick things off, I’ve added to my blogroll! The newest addition is The Cozy Mystery List Blog. Focusing on cozy mysteries, this personal blog site was begun in 2006. I’ve only recently become aware of it thanks to a member of my book discussion group. In planning a Spring… Read More ›
The Big Over Easy
It’s not a hardboiled mystery. (I really, really couldn’t resist.) Detective Inspector Jack Spratt of the Nursey Crimes Division–understaffed, underfunded, and underwhelming (though not how you might think)–is called in to investigate the demise of Humperdinck Jehoshaphat Aloysius Stuyvesant van Dumpty, aka Humpty Dumpty. Businessman, philanthrophist, and large egg, Dumpty has seemingly committed suicide. It… Read More ›
The Poisoned Martini 