Fiction Review

Just check out the event schedule for the next week. Maybe you can catch the events online. Hopefully, you’ll catch a book or two through the Web Store. https://store.poisonedpen.com/

David Rosenfelt returns for a Poisoned Pen virtual event to talk about Citizen K-9. Of course, when Barbara Peters, owner of the bookstore, talks with Rosenfelt, you’ll get a discussion of dogs as well. You can still order a signed copy of Citizen K-9 through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/3w0ClpM

Here’s the summary of Citizen K-9.

In Citizen K-9, bestselling author David Rosenfelt masterfully blends mystery with dogs and humor to create an investigative team that readers will be rooting for book after book.

The Paterson Police Department has created a cold case division, and they want to hire the private investigators known as the K Team to look into the crimes. After all, Corey Douglas and his K-9 partner, German shepherd Simon Garfunkel, recently retired from the force. Plus, another K Team member, Laurie Collins, used to be a cop as well.

Their first cold case hits home for the K Team. A decade ago, at Laurie’s tenth high school reunion, two of their friends simply… vanished. At the time Laurie had just left the force, and Corey was in a different department, so they had no choice but to watch from the sidelines. With no leads, the case went cold.

As the team starts to delve deeper into the events leading up to that night—reopening old wounds along the way—the pieces start to come together. But someone wants to stop them from uncovering the truth behind the disappearance, by any means necessary.

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DAVID ROSENFELT is the Edgar-nominated and Shamus Award-winning author of more than twenty Andy Carpenter novels, including One Dog Night, Collared, and Deck the Hounds; its spinoff series, The K-Team; the Doug Brock thriller series, which starts with Fade to Black; and stand-alone thrillers including Heart of a Killer and On Borrowed Time. Rosenfelt and his wife live in Maine with an ever-changing pack of rescue dogs. Their epic cross-country move with 25 of these dogs, culminating in the creation of the Tara Foundation, is chronicled in Dogtripping.

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If you’re a fan of dogs or David Rosenfelt’s books, you’ll enjoy this conversation.

Evidently, there was a small problem with the opening of the virtual event with author Rick Bleiweiss. That’s okay. Jump into the video when you have a chance to listen to a fascinating conversation with Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen. Bleiweiss’ historical mystery is Pignon Scorbion & the Barbershop Detectives. You can order a copy of the book through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/3vV1Vg4

Here’s the description of Pignon Scorbion & the Barbershop Detectives.

For fans of Sherlock Holmes and Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot, author Rick Bleiweiss’s quirky new detective and ensemble cast of characters set against the backdrop of small-town England in the 1910s will feel both comfortingly familiar and thrillingly new.

The year is 1910, and in the small and seemingly sleepy English market town of Haxford, there’s a new police Chief Inspector. At first, the dapper and unflappable Pignon Scorbion strikes something of an odd figure among the locals, who don’t see a need for such an exacting investigator. But it isn’t long before Haxford finds itself very much in need of a detective.

Luckily, Scorbion and the local barber are old acquaintances, and the barbershop employs a cast of memorable characters who—together with an aspiring young ace reporter for the local Morning News—are nothing less than enthralled by the enigmatic new police Chief Inspector.

Investigating a trio of crimes whose origins span three continents and half a century, Pignon Scorbion and his “tonsorial sleuths” interview a parade of interested parties, but with every apparent clue, new surprises come to light. And just as it seems nothing can derail Scorbion’s cool head and almost unerring nose for deduction, in walks Thelma Smith—dazzling, whip-smart, and newly single.

Has Pignon Scorbion finally met his match?

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Rick Bleiweiss started his career in music as a rock performer, producer of over fifty records, songwriter, and record company senior executive, and worked with Clive Davis, Melissa Etheridge, the Backstreet Boys, Kiss, U2, Whitney Houston, the BeeGees, and other industry legends.   

Since 2006 as a publishing company executive, he has acquired works by bestselling and award-winning authors including James Clavell, Gabriel García Márquez, Rex Pickett, Catherine Coulter, and Nicholas Sansbury Smith, among others.  

In his latest creative endeavor, Rick has crafted the Pignon Scorbion historical mystery series—blending his love of the past with the twisty deliciousness of a whodunit. 

 Follow Rick and Scorbion at www.RickBleiweiss.com 

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Enjoy the conversation, and the introduction to Rick Bleiweiss.

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, recently welcomed author Roy Johansen for his first appearance for the bookstore. Johansen’s latest book is Killer View. Signed copies will be available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/3J0zil4

Here’s the description of Killer View.

New York Times bestselling author Roy Johansen delivers a thrill-a-minute read featuring a fearless heroine for hire.

Kendra Michaels, blind before gaining her sight via a revolutionary surgical procedure, offers her razor-sharp senses to assist her friend Jessie Mercado in a baffling case. An army vet and former bodyguard for the rich and famous, Jessie has faced all kinds of danger but one thing the motorcycle-riding private investigator has never encountered before is an incarceration consultant.

Preparing wealthy people to go to prison is big business. When Owen Blake of Mamertine Consulting hires Mercado to find his missing partner, their suspect list is filled with recently released white-collar criminals, a few drug kingpins, and a couple of murderers to keep things interesting.

As witnesses turn up dead and car chases leave destruction in their wake, Jessie and Kendra learn just how far someone will go to keep the fate of one man hidden. But why? Together they must hunt down the lethal secrets of Blake’s company, hell-bent on staying one step ahead of disaster.

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Here’s Roy Johansen’s fascinating biography.

Roy Johansen began his professional writing career with his original screenplay for “Murder 101,” for which he won the national FOCUS award, sponsored by Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, and Martin Scorsese. The movie stars Pierce Brosnan, and the script won the Edgar Allen Poe award from the Mystery Writers of America in the Best Television Miniseries or Movie category.

Johansen has also collaborated with comic book legend Stan Lee in creating The Accuser superhero character and has written screenplays for Warner Bros., Universal Pictures, Disney, and MGM. His novels include The Answer Man, Beyond Belief, and Deadly Visions in addition to nine works co-authored with Iris Johansen.

To find out more, visit:
RoyJohansen.com
Facebook.com/RoyJohansen.Author
Twitter @RoyJohansen

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Enjoy this conversation with Roy Johansen.

I’m always so excited when the authors appear in person for The Poisoned Pen lately. C.J. Box just appeared to talk about his new book, Shadows Reel. He chatted with the audience and Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen. You’ll want to hear the real story behind Shadows Reel, the story of a librarian and a donation. Then, you might want to order a signed copy of the book through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/3KtsyN6

Here’s the description of Shadows Reel.

Wyoming Game Warden Joe Pickett and his wife Marybeth make separate discoveries that put the Pickett family in a pair of killers’ crosshairs in this thrilling new novel in the bestselling series.

A day before the three Pickett girls come home for Thanksgiving, Joe is called out for a moose poaching incident that turns out to be something much more sinister: a local fishing guide has been brutally tortured and murdered.  At the same time, Marybeth opens an unmarked package at the library where she works and finds a photo album that belonged to an infamous Nazi official. Who left it there? And why?

She learns that during World War II, several Wyoming soldiers were in the group that fought to Hitler’s Eagles Nest retreat in the Alps—and one of them took the Fuhrer’s personal photo album. Did another take this one and keep it all these years?  When a close neighbor is murdered, Joe and Marybeth face new questions: Who is after the book? And how will they solve its mystery before someone hurts them…or their girls? 

Meanwhile, Nate Romanowski is on the hunt for the man who stole his falcons and attacked his wife. Using a network of fellow falconers, Nate tracks the man from one city to another. Even as he grasps the true threat his quarry presents, Nate swoops in for the kill—and a stunning final showdown.

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C. J. Box is the author of twenty-two Joe Pickett novels, six stand-alone novels, and a story collection. He has won the Edgar, Anthony, Macavity, Gumshoe, and Barry Awards, as well as the French Prix Calibre .38, and has been a Los Angeles Times Book Prize finalist. A Wyoming native, Box has also worked on a ranch and as a small-town newspaper reporter and editor. He lives outside Cheyenne with his family. His books have been translated into twenty-seven languages. He’s an executive producer of ABC TV’s Big Sky, which is based on his Cody Hoyt/Cassie Dewell novels, as well as executive producer of the Joe Pickett television series for Paramount Studios/Spectrum Originals.

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Enjoy this terrific event. It was live, but it was filmed for all of us who couldn’t be there.

Brad Meltzer’s The Lightning Rod is his second Zig & Nola book, following The Escape Artist. When Meltzer spoke for The Poisoned Pen, it was his first appearance for this latest book. There are signed copies available through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/3ILAJDX

Here’s the description of The Lightning Rod.

“Nola is the most accomplished kicker of ass since The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.” —A. J. Finn

Zig and Nola are back—in the hugely entertaining, highly anticipated follow-up to Brad Meltzer’s #1 New York Times bestselling thriller The Escape Artist.

What’s the one secret no one knows about you?

Archie Mint has a secret. He’s led a charmed life—he’s got a beautiful wife, two impressive kids, and a successful military career. But when he’s killed while trying to stop a robbery in his own home, his family is shattered—and then shocked when the other shoe drops. Mint’s been hiding criminal secrets none of them could have imagined.

While working on Mint’s body before his funeral, mortician “Zig” Zigarowski discovers something he was never meant to see. That telling detail leads him to Mint’s former top secret military unit and his connection to artist Nola Brown. Two years ago, Nola saved Zig’s life—so he knows better than most that she’s as volatile and dangerous as a bolt of lightning.

Following Nola’s trail, he uncovers one of the U.S. government’s most intensely guarded secrets—an undisclosed military facility that dates back to the Cold War and holds the key to something far more sinister: a hidden group willing to compromise the very safety and security of America itself.

Trouble always finds her…

She’s the lightning rod.

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Brad Meltzer is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twelve thrillers including The Escape Artist, and nonfiction books such as The Lincoln Conspiracy and the Ordinary People Change the World series. He is also the host of the TV show Brad Meltzer’s Decoded on the History Channel. He lives in Florida with his wife and three children.

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Brad Meltzer tells the story behind these books. Enjoy the conversation with Barbara Peters, owner of the The Poisoned Pen.

Rhys Bowen hadn’t written a Molly Murphy mystery in five years. She’s been concentrating on Her Royal Spyness and standalones. But, Rhys’ daughter, Clare Broyles, had an idea for a new Molly Murphy book. The result is Wild Irish Rose. The two authors recently appeared for a live event at The Poisoned Pen to talk about their book. There are signed copies of Wild Irish Rose available through the Web Store. https://tinyurl.com/4p4h8mpw

Here’s the description of Wild Irish Rose.

New York Times bestselling author Rhys Bowen, now writing in partnership with her daughter, Clare Broyles, transports and enthralls readers through the incomparable Molly Murphy Sullivan. Wild Irish Rose is the next novel in this beloved mystery series, a cause for celebration for readers and critics alike.

New York, 1907: Now that she’s no longer a private detective—at least not officially—Molly Murphy Sullivan is looking forward to a time of settled tranquility with friends and family. Back in New York, where her own story began, Molly decides to accompany some friends to Ellis Island to help distribute clothing to those in need. This journey quickly stirs up memories for Molly. When you’re far from home and see people from your country, every face looks like a family member.

That evening Molly’s policeman husband, Daniel, is late returning home. He comes with a tale to tell: there was a murder on Ellis Island that day, and the main suspect is the spitting image of Molly. The circumstances are eerily similar to when Molly herself arrived on Ellis Island, and she can’t help but feel a sense of fate. Molly was meant to be there that day so that she can clear this woman’s name.

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RHYS BOWEN is the New York Times bestselling author of the Anthony Award- and Agatha Award-winning Molly Murphy mysteries, the Edgar Award-nominated Evan Evans series, the Royal Spyness series, and several stand-alone novels including In Farleigh Field. Born in England, she lives in San Rafael, CA.

CLARE BROYLES, who is Rhys Bowen’s daughter, is a teacher and a musician. She has worked as a composer and arranger in the theater for both Arizona Theater Company and Childsplay and was nominated for an Arizone ‘Zoni’ theater award. Clare is married to a teacher and they have three children.

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Join Rhys Bowen and Clare Broyles as they talk about their book. (The first minute or so of the sound is bad, but hang in there. The event itself sounds fine.)

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, recently hosted two Poisoned Pen Press authors. Sara E. Johnson is the author of The Bone Track. Frederick Weisel’s The Day He Left reminds Peters of Ed McBain’s 87th Precinct books or Dell Shannon’s Luis Mendoza police procedurals. You can order copies of the books through the Web Store. https://store.poisonedpen.com/

Here’s the description of The Bone Track.

A nature trek turns dangerous when the wilderness gives up its bones…

New Zealand’s remote Milford Track seems the perfect place for forensic investigator Alexa Glock to reconnect with her brother Charlie, with whom she hasn’t spent much time since they were kids. Their backpacking trip seems ill-fated from the start, though, when she must stop on the way to examine nine skeletons—most likely M?ori tribespeople—whose graves have been unearthed by highway construction. Before she opens the first casket, a M?ori elder gives her a dire warning: “The viewing of bones can unleash misfortune to the living. Or worse.”

Though Alexa dismisses his words as superstitious, they soon come back to haunt her as the idyllic hike takes a sinister turn. First, Charlie is aloof and resentful of the time Alexa has spent at work. Then a rock avalanche nearly carries her away as it reveals the skeletal remains of someone who has clearly been stabbed to death. When a fellow hiker goes missing and is later found dead, Alexa has all she can do to focus on the science as she investigates two murders, while trying not to become the third victim.

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Sara E. Johnson lives in Durham, North Carolina. She worked as a middle school reading specialist and local newspaper contributor before her husband lured her to New Zealand for a year. Her first novel, Molten Mud Murder, is the result.

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Here is the summary of The Day He Left.

After he was gone, the only things left behind were secrets

Annie has fallen out of the habit of listening to her husband. She and Paul have been married for a long time; it’s easy to nod as he drones on, responding to his voice while completely ignoring every word he says. That becomes a problem, of course, when Paul disappears and the police have questions. Was Paul having issues at work? Is there any reason to think he might harm himself? Annie doesn’t know.

But someone does.

An unsettling photo found amongst Paul’s things turns the investigation toward his job as a middle school teacher and a troubled girl who is hiding secrets of her own. But what exactly happened to Paul on the day he left for work and never made it to the classroom? Is his disappearance related to a local heroin trafficking operation? As Eddie Mahler and the members of the Santa Rosa Violent Crime Investigations Team rush to find the teacher, they discover the members of his family have hidden lives of their own, and that Paul may not have been running away but toward something that could ruin his career and marriage—and even cost his life.

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FREDERICK WEISEL has been a writer and editor for more than thirty years, and his articles have appeared in the Boston Globe, Washington Post, and Christian Science Monitor. He lives with his wife in Santa Rosa, California.

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Enjoy Barbara Peters’ conversation with authors Sara E. Johnson and Frederick Weisel.

I know this only contains the next five events, but check out these high-demand authors! You can order books through the Web Store. https://store.poisonedpen.com/ And, you can check out the rest of the scheduled March events on the calendar. https://calendar.time.ly/9plshfqx/posterboard

You won’t want to miss some of these events, though.

Ann Parker and Donis Casey are both Poisoned Pen Press authors. Donis Casey recently hosted Ann Parker for a discussion of Parker’s eighth Silver Rush mystery, The Secret in the Wall. Parker and Casey discuss the different direction taken in the series, and Barbara Parker, the editor for the books, chimes in. You can order a copy of the book, and the books in the series through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/3hBT1eW

Here’s the description of The Secret in the Wall.

Sometimes you can’t keep your gown out of the gutter…

Inez Stannert has reinvented herself—again. Fleeing the comfort and wealth of her East Coast upbringing, she became a saloon owner and card sharp in the rough silver boomtown of Leadville, Colorado, always favoring the unconventional path—a difficult road for a woman in the late 1800s.

Then the teenaged daughter of a local prostitute is orphaned by her mother’s murder, and Inez steps up to raise the troubled girl as her own. Inez works hard to keep a respectable, loving home for Antonia, carefully crafting their new life in San Francisco. But risk is a seductive friend, difficult to resist. When a skeleton tumbles from the wall of her latest business investment, the police only seem interested in the bag of Civil War-era gold coins that fell out with it. With her trusty derringer tucked in the folds of her gown, Inez uses her street smarts and sheer will to unearth a secret that someone has already killed to keep buried. The more she digs, the muddier and more dangerous things become.

She enlists the help of Walter de Brujin, a local private investigator with whom she shares some history. Though she wants to trust him, she fears that his knowledge of her past, along with her growing attraction to him, may well blow her veneer of respectability to bits—that is, if her dogged pursuit of the truth doesn’t kill her first.

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Ann Parker is the author of the award-winning Silver Rush historical mystery series set in 1880s, featuring saloon owner Inez Stannert. A science writer by day, Ann lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and is a member of Mystery Writers of America and Women Writing the West.

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Poisoned Pen authors and their editor. Check out the virtual event.