It’s always a pleasure to introduce readers to a debut mystery author. Sara E. Johnson’s first book, Molten Mud Murder, will be released on September 3 from Sourcebooks/Poisoned Pen Press. You can order a signed copy of the debut, set in New Zealand, through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2PKbISm

Sara, congratulations on the release of Molten Mud Murder, your first book.  Would you introduce yourself to readers?

I live in Durham, NC with my husband Forrest and goldendoodle Beau. I love to read, write, travel with my husband (we just returned from Minnesota’s North Shore where we kayaked, hiked, and ate lots of fresh trout), walk the dog, and practice yoga. I am a former middle school reading specialist, and continue working part time helping kids read and write. 

Would you introduce us to Alexa Glock?

My pleasure! Alexa Glock, mid-thirties, is lured to New Zealand by a visiting  odontology fellowship. Never married, she is better with teeth than men. She goes geeky over duct tape evidence and doesn’t let caution tape stand in her way. The lab is her happy place, yet she feels a yearning for love and companionship that she tries to outrun. 

Before you tell us about Molten Mud Murder, would you tell us about the mud pots?

Geothermal mud pots are one of New Zealand’s coolest ““ well, most awesome ““ features. I saw my first boiling, plopping pot in Rotorua on the North Island, and I knew I had to write a mystery in that setting. The acid in the viscous mud decomposes rock. Imagine what it does to a body!

Tell us about Molten Mud Murder, without spoilers.

A good mystery starts with a body. In this case, a tourist group discovers one half-submerged in a molten mud pot. 

Alexa barrels her way onto the scene and into the lives of Rotorua’s finest, especially Detective Inspector Bruce Horne. There’s something about his glacial blue eyes that gets under her skin, even though she’s sworn off men.

Danger lurks in “the land of the long white cloud.” The murder victim had trespassed on a sacred island forbidden to Pakeha, or non-Maori, and Alexa must follow suit. The Maori community believe the rules of tapu have been disregarded and the consequences are disaster, demonic possession, or death.

Alexa doesn’t believe in the three Ds, but when she discovers an unorthodox death threat in her rented cottage, she reconsiders. A second murder heats the case to the boiling point.  At the heart of Molten Mud Murderis an age-old debate: Is the past better left undisturbed, or unearthed? And at what cost either way?

Feel free to tell me we’ll have to wait for this next issue to be discussed in a future book. Alexa is always in a hurry. She seems impulsive, and tends to steamroll over people at times. Is this just her nature, or is there something else you can tell us about her?

Alexa lacks self-awareness, and because she has cut ties with her family and colleagues in the States, she doesn’t have a sounding board (and she doesn’t think she needs one).

Can you tell us anything about the next book in the Alexa Glock series?

I am super excited about the next Alexa Glock mystery, coming out in September, 2020. Great white sharks have been circling New Zealand’s Stewart Island for centuries. Until the arrival of shark-cage tourism, islanders and sharks left each other alone. But when a man’s shark-ravaged body washes ashore, it confirms what locals have been hashing out at the pub: cage-diving has changed the sharks’ behavior. Turned them into man eaters. Alexa, working as a traveling forensic scientist,  is dispatched to identify the remains. As she measures bite patterns, she makes a discovery that has her chumming for a different species: man.

You lived in New Zealand for a year. Where did you take visitors when they came?

Milford Sound. Milford Sound. Milford Sound. That’s how many times we went with visitors to this incredibly beautiful remote fjord on the South Island. Waterfalls, rain forest,  Mitre Peak, seals, dolphins, penguins. Did I mention rain? 

Now, for a few personal questions. If you had to recommend 5 books to a person so they could get a feel for your reading taste, what 5 would you pick?

These are five books I would (and have) reread:

The Shipping News by Annie Proulx

I Know This Much is True by Wally Lamb

The Poems of Robert Frost

The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

Were there books you read as child that led you to mysteries? What were your favorite books as a child?

When, at ten years old, I read the storm scene in Carolyn Keene’s The Bungalow Mystery, the world around me dissolved. I was in a skiff on Moon Lake with Helen and Nancy, lightning flashing, waves crashing, about to be devoured by the storm. The blue-cloth copy I still have was given to my mother in 1942.

When I was younger, I loved my Lonely Doll Learns a Lessonbook by Dare Right. And I read all the Little House books.

What’s on your TBR (To Be Read) pile?

It is a treat to answer this. I am on my 39^th book so far this year. I am currently finishing Michelle Obama’s Becoming. I have found it inspirational and touching. Next up is Death of a Rainmaker by Laurie Loewenstein. I heard Laurie speak on an author panel at Malice Domestic, and her book sounded great. I am also reading Dreyer’s English by Benjamin Dreyer. Who knew colons (“little trumpet blasts . . . don’t use so many of them that you give your reader a headache”) were such fun? The audio book I am listening to next (after I finish Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb) is Denise Mina’s Conviction. I have heard her compared to Tana French, so I am psyched.  I always have a book of poetry going. I am reading Tianna Clark’s Equilibrium. Her poem “Spot in Antioch” breaks my heart. Finally, I am doing an author event with fellow North Carolinian Thomas Kies at The Poisoned Pen in Scottsdale, Arizona in September. I can’t wait to read his newest: Graveyard Bay.

Thank you, Sara, for taking time for the interview. Good luck with Molten Mud Murder, and the launch of a new series!

Lisa Lutz, author of The Swallows, recently appeared at The Poisoned Pen. Before you read the CrimeReads interview with her, you might want to check out the book. You can still order a signed copy of The Swallows through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2Lber39

Here’s the description of The Swallows.

A teacher at a New England prep school ignites a gender war—with deadly consequences—in this dark and provocative novel by the bestselling author of The Passenger

“Riveting . . . full of imagination and power.”—Caroline Kepnes, author of You and Providence

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF AUGUST BY Bustle “¢ Entertainment Weekly “¢ PopSugar “¢ Refinery29 “¢ New York Post

When Alexandra Witt joins the faculty at Stonebridge Academy, she’s hoping to put a painful past behind her. Then one of her creative writing assignments generates some disturbing responses from students. Before long, Alex is immersed in an investigation of the students atop the school’s social hierarchy—and their connection to something called the Darkroom. She soon inspires the girls who’ve started to question the school’s “boys will be boys” attitude and incites a resistance. But just as the movement is gaining momentum, Alex attracts the attention of an unknown enemy who knows a little too much about her—and what brought her to Stonebridge in the first place.

Meanwhile, Gemma, a defiant senior, has been plotting her attack for years, waiting for the right moment. Shy loner Norman hates his role in the Darkroom, but can’t find the courage to fight back until he makes an unlikely alliance. And then there’s Finn Ford, an English teacher with a shady reputation, who keeps one eye on his literary ambitions and one on Ms. Witt. As the school’s secrets begin to trickle out, a boys-versus-girls skirmish turns into an all-out war, with deeply personal—and potentially fatal—consequences for everyone involved.

Lisa Lutz’s blistering, timely tale of revenge and disruption shows us what can happen when silence wins out over decency for too long—and why the scariest threat of all might be the idea that sooner or later, girls will be girls.

Praise for The Swallows

“The Swallows is fast-moving, darkly humorous and at times shockingly vicious. The battle of the sexes within its pages couldn’t be more compelling. . . . Lutz delivers a frantic, morbidly funny story.”—BookPage

“A decade before the #MeToo movement kicks off in full force, women are coming for the patriarchy in this big ol’ novel, ripe with idiosyncratic characterization and memorable scenes.”—Refinery29

*****

If you’d like to Olivia Rutigliano’s interview with Lisa Lutz, you can check out the article, “Lisa Lutz on Creating Iconic Female Protagonists”, an article at CrimeReads’ site, https://bit.ly/2PNoy2D

Many of you may have already seen the conversation at The Poisoned Pen with Barbara Peters, owner of the bookstore, and authors Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. You might not have yet seen the humorous interview when Tina Jordan of The New York Times interviewed them. Their latest book, Old Bones, debuts at #2 on this week’s Bestseller List. You can check out the interview here. https://nyti.ms/2PnOZeQ

You can still order a signed copy of Old Bones through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2PsbO0S

Here’s the summary of Old Bones.

The #1 NYT bestselling authors Preston & Child bring the true story of the ill-fated Donner Party to new life in this thrilling novel of archaeology, history, murder, and suspense.
Nora Kelly, a young curator at the Santa Fe Institute of Archaeology, is approached by historian Clive Benton with a once-in-a-lifetime proposal: to lead a team in search of the so-called “Lost Camp” of the tragic Donner Party. This was a group of pioneers who earned a terrible place in American history when they became snow-bound in the California mountains in 1847, their fate unknown until the first skeletonized survivors stumbled out of the wilderness, raving about starvation, murder-and cannibalism.

Benton tells Kelly he has stumbled upon an amazing find: the long-sought diary of one of the victims, which has an enigmatic description of the Lost Camp. Nora agrees to lead an expedition to locate and excavate it-to reveal its long-buried secrets.

Once in the mountains, however, they learn that discovering the camp is only the first step in a mounting journey of fear. For as they uncover old bones, they expose the real truth of what happened, one that is far more shocking and bizarre than mere cannibalism. And when those ancient horrors lead to present-day violence on a grand scale, rookie FBI agent Corrie Swanson is assigned the case…only to find that her first investigation might very well be her last.

*****

And, if you missed The Poisoned Pen interview, it’s still available to watch.

It’s time to share this announcement from the Australian Crime Writers Association. You’ll also want to check out the note following the shortlists.

Monday August 19: The Australian Crime Writers Association has announced the shortlist for the NED KELLY AWARDS 2019. Now in its 24th year the Awards are Australia’s oldest and most prestigious crime writing awards.

Past winners have included Jon Cleary, Peter Corris, Adrian McKinty, Jane Harper, Helen Garner, Peter Temple and Michael Robotham. This year has seen the largest number of entries received in the Awards’ history.

ACWA’s Deputy Chair, Robert Goodman said, “The Ned Kelly Awards celebrate some of Australia’s most exciting crime storytellers. They play a vital role in championing local crime writers and the Australian publishing industry both here and overseas.

“The three 2019 shortlists contain a diverse collection of works from both emerging writers and some of our best-known and best-loved crime authors.”

“I congratulate all authors on making this year’s shortlists. They contribute not only to our cultural life but demonstrate Australia’s well-deserved reputation as the home of some of the world’s best crime writing.”

The awards will be held in Sydney on Friday September 6 at the Harold Park Tramsheds and will be MCed by Jane Clifton as part of the BAD Sydney Crime Writers Festival. For tickets and further information, go to https://www.austcrimewriters.com.VIEW THE SHORTLISTS NOW

BEST TRUE CRIME

Eggshell Skull ““ Bri Lee
(Allen & Unwin)

The Arsonist ““ Chloe Hooper
(Penguin Random House)

The Lindt Café Siege ““ Deborah Snow
(Allen & Unwin)

Waiting for Elijah ““ Kate Wild
(Scribe Publishing)

BEST FIRST FICTION

The Portrait of Molly Dean ““ Katherine Kovacic
(Echo Publishing)

The Rúin ““ Dervla McTiernan
(HarperCollins Australia)

The Yellow House ““ Emily O’Grady
(Allen & Unwin)

Greenlight ““ Ben Stevenson
(Penguin Books Australia)

BEST FICTION

Kill Shot ““ Garry Disher
(Text Publishing)

Gone By Midnight ““ Candice Fox
(Penguin Random House)

The Spotted Dog ““ Kerry Greenwood
(Allen & Unwin)

The Lost Man ““ Jane Harper
(Macmillan Australia)

The Other Wife ““ Michael Robotham
(Hachette Australia)

Live and Let Fry ““ Sue Williams
(Text Publishing) 

*****

You’ll undoubtedly recognize some of the authors’ names, especially under Best Fiction. Sourcebooks/Poisoned Pen Press is the U.S. publisher of Kerry Greenwood’s The Spotted Dog. The cover is not the same as the Australian edition. However, if you want to check out any of the books, check the Web Store. And, look for The Spotted Dog. You can pre-order that seventh Corinna Chapman mystery. It’s due out in September. https://bit.ly/2Hy7rv7

Betrayal is a bitter pill to swallow…

Rising at four o’clock every morning isn’t Corinna Chapman’s favorite part of running her Australian bakery, Earthly Delights, and the glowing light of dawn starts to feel even harsher when a seemingly disturbed man collapses in her shop. When the man, a military veteran, comes around and reveals that his beloved ex-service dog is missing, Corinna and her longtime companion, Daniel, feel compelled to help. It soon becomes clear, though, that they have gotten involved in something much bigger and more complicated than they had bargained for… especially when threatening notes begin to appear in Corinna’s apartment.

Along with searching for the kidnapped dog and trying to stay out of range of the gang of drug runners who are probably responsible for his disappearance, Corinna has to make sure the delicious breads, muffins, and treats that she has become known for are still fresh and ready for her eager customers. Can she take the heat?

I’ve been waiting to see and share this video, so I’m happy The Poisoned Pen posted it. Billy Jensen, author of Chase Darkness with Me: How One True-Crime Writer Started Solving Murders, and Hank Phillippi Ryan, author of The Murder List, recently appeared at The Pen together. Both authors are journalists. You’ll be able to see them talk about their books and their careers in just a minute. In the meantime, you can order signed copies of their books through the Web Store. https://store.poisonedpen.com

Heres the description of Jensen’s Chase Darkness with Me.

***With an exclusive behind-the-scenes conversation between Billy Jensen and retired detective Paul Holes on the Golden State Killer, their favorite cold cases, and more***

Have you ever wanted to solve a murder? Gather the clues the police overlooked? Put together the pieces? Identify the suspect?

Journalist Billy Jensen spent fifteen years investigating unsolved murders, fighting for the families of victims. Every story he wrote had one thing in common—they didn’t have an ending. The killer was still out there.

But after the sudden death of a friend, crime writer and author of I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, Michelle McNamara, Billy became fed up. Following a dark night, he came up with a plan. A plan to investigate past the point when the cops had given up. A plan to solve the murders himself.

You’ll ride shotgun as Billy identifies the Halloween Mask Murderer, finds a missing girl in the California Redwoods, and investigates the only other murder in New York City on 9/11. You’ll hear intimate details of the hunts for two of the most terrifying serial killers in history: his friend Michelle McNamara’s pursuit of the Golden State Killer and his own quest to find the murderer of the Allenstown Four. And Billy gives you the tools—and the rules—to help solve murders yourself.

Gripping, complex, unforgettable, Chase Darkness with Me is an examination of the evil forces that walk among us, illustrating a novel way to catch those killers, and a true-crime narrative unlike any you’ve read before.

*****

Here’s the summary of Hank Phillippi Ryan’s The Murder List.

“An exhilarating thrill ride that keeps you turning pages.. Ryan deftly delivers a denouement as shocking as it is satisfying.”–Liv Constantine, bestselling author of The Last Mrs. Parrish and The Last Time I Saw You

Law student Rachel North will tell you, without hesitation, what she knows to be true. She’s smart, she’s a hard worker, she does the right thing, she’s successfully married to a faithful and devoted husband, a lion of Boston’s defense bar, and her internship with the Boston DA’s office is her ticket to a successful future. 

Problem is–she’s wrong. 

And in this cat and mouse game–the battle for justice becomes a battle for survival.  

The Murder List is a new standalone suspense novel in the tradition of Lisa Scottoline and B. A. Paris from award-winning author and reporter Hank Phillippi Ryan.

*****

Now, here’s what you really want to see today on the blog. Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, introduces Billy Jensen and Hank Phillippi Ryan.

You might not think the author of Thirteen: The Serial Killer isn’t on Trial. He’s on the Jury, would be funny. However, Steve Cavanagh is a storyteller from Northern Ireland. Once you hear his story about accidentally studying law, you’ll understand. But, before that, you can order a signed copy of his book through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/30QyXew

Here’s the description of Thirteen.

Thirteen is the legal thriller Lee Child, Michael Connelly, and Ruth Ware are raving about and readers can’t put down.

“Outstanding – an intriguing premise, a tense, gripping build-up, and a spectacular climax. This guy is the real deal. Trust me.” —Lee Child

“A dead bang BEAST of a book that expertly combines Cavanagh’s authority on the law with an absolutely great thrill ride. Books this ingenious don’t come along very often.” —Michael Connelly

It’s the murder trial of the century. And Joshua Kane has killed to get the best seat in the house ““ and to be sure the wrong man goes down for the crime. Because this time, the killer isn’t on trial. He’s on the jury.

But there’s someone on his tail. Former-conman-turned-criminal-defense-attorney Eddie Flynn doesn’t believe that his movie-star client killed two people. He suspects that the real killer is closer than they think ““ but who would guess just how close? 

“A brilliant, twisty, ingeniously constructed puzzle of a book. Steve Cavanagh pulls off an enviable premise with panache.” —Ruth Ware

*****

Now, you can watch Steve Cavanagh in conversation with Patrick Millikin from The Poisoned Pen.

After reading the Poisoned Pen’s Collector’s Corner newsletter yesterday, I ordered my copy of the current Hot Book of the Week, The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep by H.G. Parry. It’s also the August First Mystery Book. It may go quickly, so you might want to order your signed copy as well. You can order it through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2U8WGnR

Here’s the information from Barbara Peters in the newsletter.

Parry, H.G. The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep (Orbit $27 in stock). Charley Sutherland is a literary scholar and prodigy with a secret gift: he can bring characters from books to life. As fun as a visit from the Cat in the Hat or teatime with Sherlock Holmes might sound, Charley’s older brother, Rob, knows better—it always means trouble. But Uriah Heep, that unlovable character from David Copperfield, appears as one of Rob’s law firm interns, and the brothers later discover an entire Dickensian street filled with characters Charley swears he didn’t create. Suddenly what used to be a nuisance turns into a dangerous adventure as they realize other summoners exist while surviving attacks from the Jabberwocky and the fearsome and giant Hound of the Baskervilles, among others. Meanwhile, Rob digs further into reality and discovers even deeper mysteries surrounding their own family. It comes down to saving the real world from complete fictional takeover.

Our August First Mystery Book of the Month reminds me strongly of Jasper Fforde’s s huge hit The Eyre Affair ($17). So much that I conjured up signed copies from the New Zealand author, an exclusive for The Pen. Another fan adds,

“The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep, H.G. Parry’s debut novel,
is a Dickensian booklover’s delight, filled with the most popular characters from Western literature, from Heathcliff , Dorian Gray, and five brooding Mr. Darcys to more modern characters like Matilda and the Implied Reader, all navigating their own stories as well as the real world they’ve come to inhabit. Anyone who has ever wondered what it would be like to have a conversation with the Artful Dodger or to hold the legendary Excalibur in their hands will be in excellent company in the pages of this delightful literary fantasy.” As one fictional creation puts it: “I think we’ve found ourselves in the middle of an adventure.” I recommend this gem to lovers of historical and literary fiction as well as fans of intelligent cozies.

*****

Interested? I thought you might be.

I hope that heading caught your attention. Radha Vatsal recently wrote a piece for Kirkus Reviews called “Yes, Crime Fiction is Literature (and Other Observations on the Genre.” Vatsal uses some of Borges’ works to prove her point. You can read the article here. https://bit.ly/2U4VUsg

And, once you’ve read it, you might want to check out Vatsal’s own mysteries, available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2ZnoY37

A Front Page Affair is the first in Radha Vatsal’s Kitty Weeks series. If you’re like me, you like to start at the beginning of a series. Here’s the description of that first book.

“This lively and well-researched debut introduces a charming historical series and an appealing fish-out-of-water sleuth who seeks independence and a career in an age when most women are bent on getting married, particularly to titled Englishmen. Devotees of Rhys Bowen’s mysteries will enjoy making the acquaintance of Miss Weeks”—Library Journal, STARRED Review

New York City, 1915

The Lusitania has just been sunk, and headlines about a shooting at J.P. Morgan’s mansion and the Great War are splashed across the front page of every newspaper. Capability “Kitty” Weeks would love nothing more than to report on the news of the day, but she’s stuck writing about fashion and society gossip over on the Ladies’ Page—until a man is murdered at a high society picnic on her beat.

Determined to prove her worth as a journalist, Kitty finds herself plunged into the midst of a wartime conspiracy that threatens to derail the United States’ attempt to remain neutral—and to disrupt the privileged life she has always known.

Radha Vatsal’s A Front Page Affair is the first book in highly anticipated series featuring rising journalism star Kitty Weeks.