Daisy at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum

While a large storm front moved through northern Arizona, bringing snow and rain, Daisy, Denis, and I headed southeast to Tucson and the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. This is one of my favorite places to visit; you never know what you're going to see. As its name suggests, it showcases the flora and fauna of the Sonoran Desert. Part botanical garden, part zoo, if it's not native to this desert, you're not going to find it here. If I lived in Tucson, I'd be a regular visitor.

The following photographs show our meander through the museum. I hope you enjoy your visit!

Doesn't look like a typical museum, does it?

To get here, you have to drive through a saguaro forest, which is another plus.

Daisy at the vulture exhibit. That's quite a wingspan!

Many of the animals, like this mule deer, looked ready for their siesta.

Sleepy Gambel's quail

The museum is divided into the various habitats you can find in the Sonoran Desert.

Daisy at the prairie dog exhibit.

All sorts of things were in bloom.

Including Arizona's state flower, the saguaro blossom.

This is the first time Denis & I had ever seen buds on a teddy bear cholla.

Daisy Doolittle talking to a disinterested squirrel. The squirrels didn't seem to need naps.

These signs were posted everywhere, but I wonder how many people actually pay attention to them.

He tried to play it cool, but I could feel this chuckwalla watching me.

Daisy and Denis leading the way.

She tried to walk down a path just as this guy was trying to cross it. Can you see it?

A Western Diamondback Rattlesnake AKA Mr. Grumpy. Daisy heard its warning rattle, didn't panic and returned to us. Smart girl! Before you think I'm an idiot for taking this photo, let me just say that my camera has a 60X zoom lens!

This second chuckwalla watched me get separated from my pack.

I wound up in the cactus garden.

Rainbow Hedgehog Cactus

Dwarf Organ Pipe Cactus

Dwarf Organ Pipe Cactus blooms

Broad-billed Hummingbird in the Hummingbird Aviary.

Hummingbird nest-- empty. They are marvels of construction!

Hummingbird nest-- occupied by the sleepy owner.

Living in the desert has given me a much greater appreciation of trees.

Hope you enjoyed your visit to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum; I know we certainly did-- and that includes meeting Mr. Grumpy!

June 2018 New Mystery Releases!

Seems like... not so long ago... I heard people wondering if winter would ever leave, and now it's almost June. Yes, my favorite time of year is here when I take a pile of books and a cold drink out to the pool. I love summer!

And since summer is here, there's all the more reason for me to keep my eyes peeled for new crime fiction to read. I've combed through my various sources, and here are a dozen books I'd love to read while sitting in the shady end of my pool.

I've grouped them according to their release dates and obtained their covers and synopses from Amazon.

Hopefully, I've chosen a title or two that tickles your fancy, too. Once again, they run the gamut from tried-and-true to brand-spankin'-new. Let's check out the list right now!

=== June 1 ===

Title: False Accusations

Author: Cora Harrison

Series: #1 in the Willowgrove Village cozy series set in rural England.

272 pages, digital edition only

Synopsis: "A new crime series with a shocking twist. Perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, Elly Griffiths, and Leigh Russell.

There is nothing to fear if you have nothing to hide …

The Summer of 1991. Nothing unusual ever happens in the sleepy village of Willowgrove. Which is why everyone is shocked to their core when a local woman – Mrs. Trevor – is murdered. Her daughter, Rosie confesses to the crime.

But Rosie has learning difficulties, and Flora Morgan – a former headteacher trained to help those who can’t represent themselves – is called in to assist. Flora has known Rosie for years. And Rosie wouldn’t hurt a fly. So what made her confess? Why would she lie? And if she didn’t kill Mrs. Trevor, who did…? Flora must get to the heart of the mystery before innocence is proven guilty …"

=== June 5 ===

Title: Something in the Water

Author: Catherine Steadman

Standalone Thriller

352 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "If you could make one simple choice that would change your life forever, would you?
 
Erin is a documentary filmmaker on the brink of a professional breakthrough, Mark a handsome investment banker with big plans. Passionately in love, they embark on a dream honeymoon to the tropical island of Bora Bora, where they enjoy the sun, the sand, and each other. Then, while scuba diving in the crystal blue sea, they find something in the water. . . .

Could the life of your dreams be the stuff of nightmares?
 

Suddenly the newlyweds must make a dangerous choice: to speak out or to protect their secret. After all, if no one else knows, who would be hurt? Their decision will trigger a devastating chain of events. . ."

Title: The Word Is Murder

Author: Anthony Horowitz

Series: #1 in the Horowitz & Hawthorne contemporary series set in London.

400 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "New York Times bestselling author of Magpie Murders and Moriarty, Anthony Horowitz has yet again brilliantly reinvented the classic crime novel, this time writing a fictional version of himself as the Watson to a modern-day Holmes.

One bright spring morning in London, Diana Cowper – the wealthy mother of a famous actor - enters a funeral parlor. She is there to plan her own service. Six hours later she is found dead, strangled with a curtain cord in her own home.

Enter disgraced police detective Daniel Hawthorne, a brilliant, eccentric investigator who’s as quick with an insult as he is to crack a case. Hawthorne needs a ghost writer to document his life; a Watson to his Holmes. He chooses Anthony Horowitz.

Drawn in against his will, Horowitz soon finds himself a the center of a story he cannot control. Hawthorne is brusque, temperamental and annoying but even so, his latest case with its many twists and turns proves irresistible. The writer and the detective form an unusual partnership. At the same time, it soon becomes clear that Hawthorne is hiding some dark secrets of his own.

A masterful and tricky mystery that springs many surprises, The Word is Murder is Anthony Horowitz at his very best." 

=== June 12 ===

Title: A Taste for Vengeance

Author: Martin Walker

Series: #11 in the Bruno Chief of Police series set in southwestern France.

352 pages

Synopsis: "When a British tourist fails to turn up for a luxurious cooking vacation in Bruno's usually idyllic Dordogne village of St. Denis, the worried hostess is quick to call on Bruno for help. Monica Felder is nowhere to be found, and her husband, a retired British major, is unreachable. And not long after Bruno discovers that Monica was traveling with a mysterious Irishman (her lover?), the two turn up dead. The Irishman's background in intelligence and his connection to Monica's husband only raise more questions for Bruno. Was she running away? How much does her husband really know? What's the real story behind a scandal buried in the threesome's military past? Meanwhile, the star of the girls' rugby team, a favorite of Bruno's, is pregnant, putting at risk her chances of being named to the French national squad. Bruno's search for the truth in both cases leads him to places he hadn't intended to go--but, as ever, he and his friends take time to savor the natural delights of the Dordogne. Santé!"

Title: Death and a Pot of Chowder

Author: Cornelia Kidd (AKA Lea Wait)

Series: #1 in the Maine Murder Mystery cozy series.

300 pages

Synopsis: "Anna Winslow, her husband Burt, and their teenage son have deep roots on Quarry Island. Burt and his brother, Carl, are lobstermen, just like their father and grandfather before them. And while some things on the island never seem to change, Anna’s life is about to take some drastically unexpected turns. First, Anna discovers that she has a younger sister, Izzie Jordan. Then, on the day she drives to Portland to meet Izzie for the first time, Carl’s lobster boat is found abandoned and adrift. Later that evening, his corpse is discovered―but he didn’t drown.

Whether it was an accident or murder, Carl’s sudden death has plunged Anna’s existence into deadly waters. Despite barely knowing one another and coming from very different backgrounds, Anna and Izzie unite to find the killer. With their family in crisis, the sisters strive to uncover the secrets hidden in Quarry Island―and, perhaps, the ones buried within their own hearts."

Title: Island of the Mad

Author: Laurie R. King

Series: #17 in the Mary Russell & Sherlock Holmes historical series set in England and Italy.

320 pages

Synopsis: "With Mrs. Hudson gone from their lives and domestic chaos building, the last thing Mary Russell and her husband, Sherlock Holmes, need is to help an old friend with her mad and missing aunt.

Lady Vivian Beaconsfield has spent most of her adult life in one asylum after another, since the loss of her brother and father in the Great War. And although her mental state seemed to be improving, she’s now disappeared after an outing from Bethlem Royal Hospital . . . better known as Bedlam.

Russell wants nothing to do with the case—but she can’t say no. And at least it will get her away from the challenges of housework and back to the familiar business of investigation. To track down the vanished woman, she brings to the fore her deductive instincts and talent for subterfuge—and of course enlists her husband’s legendary prowess. Together, Russell and Holmes travel from the grim confines of Bedlam to the winding canals and sun-drenched Lido cabarets of Venice—only to find the foreboding shadow of Benito Mussolini darkening the fate of a city, an era, and a tormented English lady of privilege."

Title: Murder at the Grand Raj Palace

Author: Vaseem Khan

Series: #4 in the Baby Ganesh Agency Investigations series set in Mumbai, India.

384 pages

Synopsis: "For a century the iconic Grand Raj Palace Hotel has welcomed the world's elite. From film stars to foreign dignitaries, anyone who is anyone stays at the Grand Raj.

The last thing the venerable old hotel needs is a murder...

When American billionaire Hollis Burbank is found dead - the day after buying India's most expensive painting - the authorities are keen to label it a suicide. But the man in charge of the investigation is not so sure. Inspector Chopra is called in - and discovers a hotel full of people with a reason to want Burbank dead.

Accompanied by his sidekick, baby elephant Ganesha, Chopra navigates his way through the palatial building, a journey that leads him steadily to a killer, and into the heart of darkness . . ."

=== June 19 ===

Title: Slowly We Die

Author: Emelie Schepp

Series: #3 in the Jana Berzelius legal thriller series set in Sweden.

432 pages

*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.

Synopsis: "2017 SWEDISH CRIME WRITER OF THE YEAR

AN ACCIDENTAL SLIP OF A BLADE…

A tragic incident on the operating table leaves a patient damaged for life and leads a young surgeon to abandon his profession as a physician… Now, years later, a series of senseless, gruesome murders are rocking the same medical community.

THEN MURDEROUS REVENGE…

The weapon? A surgical scalpel.

But who exactly is preying on these victims? And why? What does this grisly pattern reveal? And who will be the one to stop it?

Special prosecutor Jana Berzelius, who has her own dark secrets to hide, is in charge of the investigation. What she can’t know, until she is finally closing in on the murderer, is just how her own mother’s recent death is intimately connected.

This intricately plotted and relentlessly suspenseful medical thriller keeps everyone guessing until the bitter end."

Title: Murder on the Left Bank

Author: Cara Black

Series: #18 in the Aimée Leduc private investigator series set in France.

288 pages

Synopsis: "A dying man drags his oxygen machine into the office of Éric Besson, a lawyer in Paris’s 13th arrondissement. The old man, an accountant, is carrying a dilapidated notebook full of meticulous investment records. For decades, he has been helping a cadre of dirty cops launder stolen money. The notebook contains his full confession—he’s waited 50 years to make it, and now it can’t wait another day. He is adamant that Besson gets the notebook into the hands of La Proc, Paris’s chief prosecuting attorney, so the corruption can finally be brought to light. But en route to La Proc, Besson’s courier—his assistant and nephew—is murdered, and the notebook disappears.

Grief-stricken Éric Besson tries to hire private investigator Aimée Leduc to find the notebook, but she is reluctant to get involved. Her father was a cop and was murdered by the same dirty syndicate the notebook implicates. She’s not sure which she’s more afraid of, the dangerous men who would kill for the notebook or the idea that her father’s name might be among the dirty cops listed within it. Ultimately that’s the reason she must take the case, which leads her across the Left Bank, from the Cambodian enclave of Khmer Rouge refugees to the ancient royal tapestry factories to the modern art galleries." 

=== June 26 ===

Title: Buried in Books

Author: Kate Carlisle

Series: #12 in the Bibliophile cozy series set in California.

288 pages

Synopsis: "Brooklyn has it all covered. She’s triple-checked her wedding to-do list, and everything is on track for the upcoming ceremony with the love of her life, security expert Derek Stone.

Not everyone has been as lucky in love as Brooklyn. Her old college roommates Heather and Sara lost touch twelve years ago when Sara stole Heather’s boyfriend. Brooklyn was caught in the middle and hasn’t seen her former besties since their falling-out. When they both show up at her surprise bridal shower, Brooklyn is sure drama will ensue. But she’s touched when the women seem willing to sort out their differences and gift her rare copies of The Three Musketeers and The Red Fairy Book.

Brooklyn’s prewedding calm is shattered when one of her formerly feuding friends is found murdered and Brooklyn determines that one of the rare books is a forgery. She can’t help but wonder if the victim played a part in this fraud, or if she was targeted because she discovered the scam. With a killer and con artist on the loose, Brooklyn and Derek—with the unsolicited help of their meddling mothers—must catch the culprit before their big day turns into a big mess."

Title: A Steep Price

Author: Robert Dugoni

Series: #6 in the Tracy Crosswhite police procedural series set in Washington.

380 pages

Synopsis: "Called in to consult after a young woman disappears, Tracy Crosswhite has the uneasy feeling that this is no ordinary missing-persons case. When the body turns up in an abandoned well, Tracy’s suspicions are confirmed. Estranged from her family, the victim had balked at an arranged marriage and had planned to attend graduate school. But someone cut her dreams short.

Solving the mystery behind the murder isn’t Tracy’s only challenge. The detective is keeping a secret of her own: she’s pregnant. And now her biggest fear seems to be coming true when a new detective arrives to replace her. Meanwhile, Tracy’s colleague Vic Fazzio is about to take a fall after his investigation into the murder of a local community activist turns violent and leaves an invaluable witness dead.

Two careers are on the line. And when more deadly secrets emerge, jobs might not be the only things at risk."

Title: Salt Lane

Author: William Shaw

Series: #2 in the Alexandra Cupidi police procedural series set in England.

464 pages

Synopsis: "A darkly told crime novel in the tradition of Tana French and Ian Rankin, featuring the return of THE BIRDWATCHER's Alexandra Cupidi.

Sergeant Alexandra Cupidi is a recent transfer from the London metro police to the rugged Kentish countryside. She's done little to ingratiate herself with her new colleagues, who find her too brash, urban, and--to make matters worse, she investigated her first partner, a veteran detective, and had him arrested on murder charges. Now assigned the brash young Constable Jill Ferriter to look after, she's facing another bizarre case: a woman found floating in local marshland, dead of no apparent cause.

The case gets even stranger when the detectives contact the victim's next of kin, her son, a high-powered graphic designer living in London. Adopted at the age of two, he'd never known his mother, he tells the detectives, until a homeless woman knocked on his door, claiming to be his mother, just the night before: at the same time, her body was being dredged from the water.

Juggling the case, her aging mother, her teenage daughter, and the loneliness of country life, Detective Cupidi must discover who the woman really was, who killed her, and how she managed to reconnect with her long-lost son, apparently from beyond the grave."

How did I do? Did any of my choices make your own wishlists? Which ones? Inquiring minds would love to know!

Crime & Punctuation by Kaitlyn Dunnett

First Lines: "I don't know, Cal. It doesn't look good."

Recently widowed Mikki Lincoln has returned to the Catskills in New York state after buying her childhood home. But that purchase means that she has to come out of retirement and become a freelance editor. With her ability to spot details that others miss, it doesn't take Mikki long to earn clients, and aspiring novelist Tiffany Scott wants to add to her workload.

After agreeing to terms, Mikki accepts the young woman's manuscript and reads the first chapters. What she finds sends a chill down her spine. Not only is the manuscript based on her hometown's not-so-distant past, Tiffany Scott turns up dead the very next day... just like the victim in her story. Mikki is convinced that Tiffany's death was not accidental, especially after finding an inconsistency in the manuscript and a possible motive in her research notes. When police refuse to take her seriously, Mikki knows she's got to keep digging on her own. Unfortunately, the only person who does take her seriously... is the killer.

Readers of Kaitlyn Dunnett's first Deadly Edits cozy mystery may learn quite a few helpful tips about proper English usage, but they're also going to read an engaging story featuring a main character they're going to love. Mikki Lincoln is sixty-eight years old, wears hearing aids, and knows all about the Oxford comma. Until his death, Mikki's husband was the center of her world, but now Calpurnia the cat is the only other living soul in the childhood home that she's busy fixing up. Mikki realizes that she has to relearn how to make friends, but she has already found one: Darlene, a former head librarian who had to take early retirement due to her crippling arthritis. Her mobility has been affected so much that she gets around on a combination of walker, electric scooter, and wheelchair.

Mikki and Darlene prove that you don't have to be perky, toned, hunk-on-the-brain twentysomethings to solve crimes, and that's good news for many readers amongst us. Both of them are intelligent, honest, and filled with common sense. (I also love Darlene's way with her electric scooter.)

I have to admit that learning the differences between copyediting, line editing, and developmental editing was fascinating, and so was the fact that the author brought in the area's ties to Murder, Inc. as part of the mystery. Actually, the only thing I didn't like about this delightful book is the fact that Dunnett seemed to telegraph the identity of the killer. But... with so many other things-- and characters-- to enjoy, it really didn't matter all that much. In fact, I'm looking forward to my next visit with Mikki and Darlene. (Never underestimate the power of two "old" women!)

Crime & Punctuation by Kaitlyn Dunnett

eISBN: 9781496712561

Kensington Books © 2018

eBook, 304 pages

Cozy Mystery, #1 Deadly Edits mystery

Rating: B+

Source: Net Galley

Dead Girls by Graeme Cameron

First Line: "Something's wrong."

Two months ago, police detective Ali Green was attacked by a serial killer and left for dead. It's been two months since she could easily recall simple things, two months since her mind felt whole and completely her own. But with more girls falling victim to this killer, Ali has been put back on active duty early, and she's determined to catch this man before he can kill anyone else. But when conflicting statements from a witness and a surviving victim threaten Ali's investigation and her credibility, she begins to question herself and what is and isn't real. The clock is ticking.

The prologue of Graeme Cameron's Dead Girls is excellent; the race to save a missing girl and police officers' lives being in danger yanked me right into the heart of the story. This is a fast-paced tale that can, at times, be bloody, although there is some tiny consolation for female readers in the fact that it's a man's blood being shed instead of a woman's.

This may be a thriller, but the characters and their behavior are what fuel the action. Erica Shaw is the missing girl everyone is frantic to save, but as the story progresses and more facts come to light, readers begin to question her innocence. Is it possible that she's a victim of Stockholm Syndrome-- or something else?

And of course, Ali Green is front and center. The victims and their families are all-important to her, and she will do anything it takes to bring them justice. However, she has suffered major head trauma and is back at work against doctors' orders. The further into the investigation she gets, the readers (and some of her co-workers) realize that she is occasionally hallucinating and speaking aloud without realizing she's doing so. Her shifting focus can have readers distrusting all the other police officers until they begin to wonder-- how much is Ali affected by her injuries? Can she be relied upon?

After seeing how skilled Cameron is with his story, characters, and pacing, I'm definitely looking forward to reading more of his work.

Dead Girls by Graeme Cameron

ISBN: 9780778319887
Park Row Books © 2018
Paperback, 304 pages

Thriller/Police Procedural, Standalone
Rating: A
Source: the publisher


 

Cozy Con 2018: Part Two

I'm going to exercise a little poetic license and deviate from the actual order of the panels for The Poisoned Pen's CozyCon 2018. I'm going to post them in the order in which host Barbara Peters wanted them. Peters had to contend with an author whose flight was late, and I don't so I can follow her original plan. And just in case you missed Part One, you can catch up with the rest of us.

Right now it's time to get this show on the road, so here's the panel with historical mystery writers C.S. Harris, Tessa Arlen, and Ann Parker!

L to R: Barbara Peters, C.S. Harris

"Originally, I was a reader of romance, which will surprise all of you since I started The Poisoned Pen," host Barbara Peters said. "I cut my reading teeth on the Oz books, Mary Stewart, Victoria Holt, whatever. My mother was the more serious mystery reader. She loved P.I. stories, so I was also brought up on Raymond Chandler and Ross MacDonald. I read Robert Parker in real time, but I find that historical mysteries are my passion.

"One of the reasons why I enjoy Poisoned Pen Press and all the other presses is that they publish books that I like to read. I publish books that I like to read, and these three authors write books that I particularly like to read.

"Candace's latest book was reviewed on Shelf Awareness today. They called it 'a blend of Elizabeth George and Georgette Heyer, Why Kill the Innocent will appeal to mystery and Regency readers with its intricate plotting and historical detail,'" Peters continued. "This is the thirteenth Sebastian St. Cyr mystery, and in reading it you will get a history lesson about the totally dysfunctional family of George III. George IV, the heir, had a daughter from one of the worst marriages in recorded history, and she's the focus of part of the plot of this book, right?"

C.S. Harris

"Yes. Princess Charlotte," Candace replied. "I knew the general outline of the family, but I was appalled when I read more and learned what the Prince Regent put his wife through.

"He sent his mistress to the dock to meet his bride's ship. Caroline, his bride-to-be, knew that Lady Jersey was his mistress, and the Prince Regent sat Lady Jersey prominently at the wedding feast. Lady Jersey was invited along on the honeymoon. He had given Caroline pearl bracelets as wedding gifts, and he took them back and gave them to Lady Jersey who made a point of wearing them around Caroline because the Prince Regent had appointed her one of Caroline's ladies-in-waiting. It's really hard to imagine that he could've been any crueler to her unless he would've locked her up.

"The Prince Regent was a narcissist, a pathological liar, and he was very vindictive," Candace told us. "He was incredibly mean to his daughter. I don't think he had the capacity to love anyone other than himself. As his daughter Caroline grew up, the crowds loved her and would cheer as she rode down the street. This made her father hate her because those same crowds would boo and hiss whenever he went by, so he tried to keep her out of the public eye. Despite this, Caroline grew to be a very likable woman.

Available Now!

"She died in childbirth, and that made everyone scramble to get married because, although George III had had all these children, Caroline was the only one who was legitimate. By the time Caroline died, they were all in their forties, so it was too late, and that's how England wound up with Queen Victoria."

"So that's the household in which the mystery takes place. We'll get back to that, but you can see that it was a setting that was just ripe for disaster!" Barbara said. "So, Ann Parker, there you are-- it's good to see you!

"For you, this is a pivotal book because Inez Stannert, whom we first met during the silver rush in Leadville, Colorado, has decided that her life needs a reboot, and she's gone off to San Francisco, which is a rough town. There's a lot going on."

"Yes," Ann replied. "San Francisco in 1881 had the Barbary Coast, it had Chinatown, and in addition to the Barbary Coast waterfront, there was another in the Mission Canal District that I became very intrigued with. It was also a rough part of town. Inez and I began to tiptoe through the town to see what was there and what was of interest. Inez was looking for business opportunities; she's a savvy woman. It was an interesting period for businesswomen in San Francisco."

Ann Parker

"Inez was part owner of a saloon in Leadville with her husband, and they're now divorced," Barbara said. "She's also invested in a couple of bordellos in Leadville with her partner, Flo, who's a madam. So, for her day and age, Inez is an adventurous venture capitalist."

"It just so happens that this is an exciting time for women entrepreneurs in San Francisco," Ann said. "Women owning and running millinery shops, laundries, stationery shops, and boarding houses-- proper and not-so-proper. A lot of them needed capital to grow their business. There actually was a woman in San Francisco who was well-known for giving loans and helping women to build their businesses. Right now her first name is POOF! gone, but they used to call her Mammy Pleasance. Does this ring a bell for anyone? But there is a history of women funding women, which is pretty cool."

Available Now!

"Needless to say, a body floats up, her past comes back to haunt her-- both literally and figuratively-- from Leadville, so it's a very interesting book with lots going on," Barbara said. "And it's a kind of pivot for her to see where we're going. Because Leadville was becoming like Cabot Cove a little bit so San Francisco really opens up possibilities."

"Oh, yes!" Ann replied. "There's San Francisco, and across the bay there's Berkeley. The University of California existed during this time frame-- and accepted women."

Barbara moved on to the third writer on the panel. "So, Tessa, this is your fourth book for Lady Montfort. You've jumped from the Edwardian Era right into World War I."

"Yes," Tessa replied. "In fact, in the third book, I did a little countdown. When the mystery was solved, the boys were going off to war. I left it at that, but then I decided I wanted Lady Montfort to be involved in the war on the home front. I'd just finished reading Robert Graves' Goodbye to All That, and I thought, 'Oh, this is what I want to do.' So it starts in the summer when England is struggling to bring in the harvest without men and women are stepping up to run the Land Army as well as run hospitals and keep everything going.

"Clementine [LadyMontfort] is up in Scotland visiting a friend who's in a very special hospital called Craiglockhart which is taking care of the growing number of soldiers struggling with what they called then 'shellshock' and what we know today as PTSD. The Battle of the Somme ran throughout the summer months, and the casualties were horrendous.

Tessa Arlen

"So Clementine visits Oscar and decides that the Dower House can be turned into a rehab center, which not only had to be funded by her husband but had to get approval through the War Office.

"Everything is going well at the hospital. The doctor has many types of therapy, and he's worked hard to educate the nearby villagers because they all believed these men are cowards and malingerers. Then a young war hero who's not only suffering from shellshock but amnesia as well is found murdered in the hospital's vegetable garden. Since the War Office is about to arrive for its quarterly inspection, with this murder, it looks as though the hospital is completely out of control."

"And Mrs. Jackson, the formidable housekeeper is in charge of the hospital," Barbara remarked. "Many of your readers will already be familiar with country houses being turned into hospitals after watching the second season of Downton Abbey.

"Lady Montfort and Mrs. Jackson have a Holmes-Watson... no, they don't because they're really quite equal. There's not that disparity between them."

"They're intellectually equal, but socially they're not equal at all," Arlen observed. "But they do have a huge respect and liking for each other."

Available Now!

"Candace, let's get back to Why Kill the Innocent," Barbara said. "You've told us about Princess Charlotte and her terrible situation. When a body is discovered, who is it, and why is it of such importance to St. Cyr?"

"The victim is Princess Charlotte's music teacher and a minor composer and was based on a real person named Mary Guest who did teach Charlotte. But she wasn't murdered!" Candace replied. "St. Cyr gets involved because his wife literally trips over the body."

"Sebastian has evolved quite a bit since the series began," Barbara said.

"Yes," Candace replied. "When he returned to London from fighting Napoleon, he was quite damaged-- PTSD-- and then he learned secrets about his own family that he found very hard to accept. Yes, he's definitely coming back from the edge."

"St. Cyr's family is wildly dysfunctional and so is his wife's family," Barbara commented. "You almost have to wonder if there were any normal families among the British upper crust during the Napoleonic Era!"

"I think it was a combination of money and power... and people who were marrying, not for love, but for alliances," Candace said. "Parents had very little to do with their children who were spoiled by nannies."

L to R: Tessa Arlen, Ann Parker

"Ann, let's get back to you," Barbara said. "Inez has come to San Francisco, and she's not alone."

"That's true!" Ann chuckled. "She's brought her ward with her, Antonia, who is a young girl Inez met in Leadville in the previous book. By book's end, Antonia has no family, so Inez takes her under her wing.

"It's interesting how these things bubble up from the unconscious," Ann remarked. "I had no intention of this happening, but I'm glad it did. It's wonderful to get to know Antonia, and I'm finding it's a lot of fun pairing her with Inez. Antonia is such an independent, strong-willed child. She's almost like Inez in miniature. It will be interesting to see where this goes."

"Inez came from such a solid, affluent background, but she made one terrible mistake," Barbara said.

"But he's such a charmer!" Ann laughed.

"Yes, he's a gambler," Barbara said. "It's just so interesting to see Inez, who comes from such a solid upbringing, make this one mistake, and she's led a very unconventional life ever since." 

"Yes, her family disowned her, and the only person who keeps in touch is her sister," Ann said. "How does a person live their life after making one terrible mistake?"

"Lady Montfort, on the other hand, made a spectacular marriage," Barbara said to Tessa.

"Yes, and now Clementine's broken the rules by investigating murders," Tessa said. "She investigates upstairs, and Mrs. Jackson-- who at first didn't want anything to do with this-- investigates downstairs. By this fourth book, Mrs. Jackson is completely on board."

C.S. Harris

Looking at C.S. Harris, Barbara said, "You left us with a cliffhanger, you rat! Do you plan these things out, or do they just happen?"

Candace laughed. "I know how it's going to turn out! Laura Joh Rowland, who's a good friend of mine, told me that she made a mistake with her Sano Ichiro series. She planned it as a one-off, and she said that, if she had it all to do again, she'd plan out the series. So... that's what I did. I sat down and planned things out, like Sebastian's personality and his family. I thought I'd have this all done by book six, but I'm writing book fifteen right now!"

"I like the fact that the series is moving in such small increments of time," Barbara said.

"Yes, thirteen books, and it's only been three years."

"I tell everyone it was a twenty-year war and only ended with Waterloo," Barbara said.

"Fourteen is Who Slays the Wicked," Harris told us. "The blurb will be out soon, so I'm not giving anything away by telling you that Lord Ashworth is the victim."

"Good! At least one of these bastards gets killed!" Barbara exclaimed. (Does she get emotionally involved with any of her favorite series? Nah. Not a bit!)

Ann is interested with the Palace Hotel and a printing co-operative, so she's thinking about an opera singer, that co-operative, and maybe a body in a trunk for her next book, although she's going to have to talk with her editor (Barbara) first. "Oscar Wilde actually visited Leadville," Barbara told us, "and Ann has been trying to think of a reason for Inez to go back there so she can meet Wilde."

"I'm going to wait a book or two on that," Ann said.

Tessa, on the other hand, is thinking about writing something new. "It's a very different protagonist," Tessa said. "She's very young, a little socially awkward, but she's quite independently-minded. She becomes infatuated with an American fighter pilot who's stationed on an airfield that's on her grandfather's land. This takes place during World War II, and the dialogue is so much easier! Her name is Poppy Redfern, and she lives in a very remote village which is horrified at having all these Americans on their doorstep. I'm married to an American, so it's very easy for me to write this!"

Thus endeth Part Two. Come back next Monday for the third and final part which features Paige Shelton, Kate Carlisle, and Jenn McKinlay!