2023 12 08

December 2024 Newsletter

by with No Comment Newsletter

Merry Christmas!

Life in Mexico

They love to drink and drive here. It’s not uncommon to see someone heading to work in the morning with a can of breakfast malt in their left hand. The cops certainly don’t care. You could strap a keg to the roof rack and run a hose through the driver window and they wouldn’t bat an eye.

This may explain the forest of white crosses that sprout around every major intersection. You notice them most in November, because that’s when surviving family members spruce them up with a coat of paint and a plastic floral wreath during Day of the Dead celebrations.

I asked my Mexican friend David about these memorials and he explained that there is a whole industry devoted to venerating loved ones killed in road accidents.

“There are actually little coffins underneath the cross with a boy or girl doll inside, depending on their gender,” he explained.

I asked if they were dressed in clothes that reflected their occupations, like Combat Camo Ken or Barrister Barbie. “Of course.”

I’m not sure if he’s pulling my leg, but I kind of like the idea. If I’m ever lucky enough to be hit by a drunk behind the wheel of a Corona beer truck, I’d like to have a bobble-head of Shakespeare in my tiny coffin.

Now Available at Amazon!


FBI AGENT JACK KENYON is back! When a bomb in Myron Buckstar’s software lab kills an innocent woman, Jack and the crew are called in to find out if terrorists are targeting the flamboyant billionaire. They soon discover that the victim was a member of Scotland Yard working undercover on a mysterious case. As Jack pursues her murder, he uncovers a race to steal the Crystal Ball, an invention that allows its owner to peer into the future. Follow Jack from San Francisco to London as he pursues a host of murderers, conmen and criminals who will stop at nothing to achieve their goal.

Recipe: Stuffed potato skins

I’m addicted. This is the easiest recipe in the world to make, and everyone loves it!

Ingredients

2 baker potatoes

1 Tsp of olive oil

½ cup of sour cream

½ cup of grated cheese

½ cup of diced onion

1 tsp of salt

½ cup of chopped bacon

Directions

Rub the potatoes with olive oil and bake them whole for one hour at 375F. Let cool for half an hour and then cut in half and scoop out the insides, leaving the skins intact.

Mash the potato and mix with sour cream, grated cheese, onion, salt and bacon bits. Refill the potato skins. Place on a baking tin and bake for 30 minutes at 350F. Enjoy!

TV Series

Man on the Inside

Streaming on Netflix

This is a series that you’re going to find either very funny and enjoyable, or dumb. It stars Ted Danson of Cheers as Charles, a widower and retired professor who is rattling around in his house all day, much to the distraction of his doting daughter Emily.

Meantime, a valuable ruby necklace goes missing from the room of Virginia, a dotty resident of the Pacific View Retirement Community in San Francisco. Virginia’s son is mad as hell, and hires Julie, a private investigator, to get the necklace back.

Julie, in turn, does a cattle call to find a senior who can blend into the retirement home and spy on the residents. Charles, hoping to placate his daughter, applies and, to his surprise, gets the job.

So that’s the setup. Charles spends the next few weeks in a classic cozy whodunit, investigating and eliminating the unsuspecting suspects.

We enjoyed it so much that we binged all eight episodes in two nights! If you like charming and witty mystery series with nary a corpse or pint of blood in sight, then I highly recommend Man on the Inside!

Book Review

Happy-Go-Lucky

By Dave Sedaris

This is a very sick man, which is probably the main reason we’ve been reading him for several decades.

Dave writes humorous essays about his life, his loves, his addictions and his family. He first came to the public’s attention with Santaland Diaries, an expose of his job as an elf at Macy’s Santaland Village. The job entailed dressing up in baggy green pants, a yellow turtleneck and a green vest, then guiding kids through their visit with Santa.

“You look like an asshole,” said a Dad on the first day of his job.

“Well, at least I get paid. You’re giving it away for free.”

Sardonic, witty, trenchant and laugh-out-loud funny, his latest book covers topics like the death of his father, the perils of swapping toilet paper with coffee filters during COVID hoarding, and bad jokes sent in by faithful readers.

Two priests are in a car when a cop pulls them over.

“I’m looking for two child molesters,” says the cop.

The two priests look at one another then turn to the cop. “We’re in!”

I highly recommend Happy-Go-Lucky!

Bonus TV Series

Goliath

Streaming on Netflix

This is a great series if you’re looking for a courtroom drama fix while awaiting the next season of Lincoln Lawyer.

Goliath follows the trials and tribulations of Billy McBride (played by Billy Bob Thornton), a hard-drinking lawyer with a penchant for shooting himself in the foot. Once upon a time, McBride was the driving force behind Cooperman/McBride, until his boozing got the better of him and he burned out.

Now, McBride runs a small shop out of a motel on Sunset Blvd with the help of his daughter and a reformed hooker. They stumble upon the wrongful death of an engineer, killed by an explosion on a boat owned buy his defense contractor employer.

McBride takes the case and almost immediately gets into a barrel of shit. It turns out his ex law firm, now run by Donald Cooperman (a delightfully evil William Hurt), is main counsel to the dead man’s employers. Spooks and crooked cops soon turn his personal life into hell and kill his client.

Undaunted, McBride risks it all in search of the truth.

Created by David E. Kelley, the series features a delightful cast with lots of feature roles and the excellent dialogue one comes to expect from the creator of Boston Legal and Big Little Lies. I highly recommend Goliath!

November 2024 Newsletter

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Life in Manzanillo

I remember as a kid growing up in Hamilton when, every spring, the skies over Cootes Paradise would be filled with Monarch butterflies. Unfortunately, when civic authorities launched a big clean-up campaign for the harbor, they cut down all the milkweed growing in abundance along its shores, putting paid to their habitat.

Things are still looking up in Mexico, however. When we arrived in Manzanillo, we were greeted by a fluttery collection of blue, white and yellow butterflies, as well as the majestic Monarch.

A few years ago, we trekked to Morelia to see their winter habitat. It’s well worth the visit; we stayed in Morelia’s old town, which has excellent, inexpensive restaurants and friendly people. The journey to the refuge and back takes an entire day, with several hours spent hiking up the side of a mountain, but the effort is worth it. The best time to go is between November and March, when they begin their long migration back to Canada.

Recipe: Red Curry Shrimp

This recipe is my version of a delicious dish served at Oasis Marina! It’s easy to make and very tasty.

INGREDIENTS

8 jumbo shrimp, peeled

1 cup of chopped zucchini

1 Tsp of sesame oil

1 can of coconut milk

½ cup of tomato sauce

¼ cup of fish sauce

2 Tsp of soy sauce

2 Tsp of brown sugar

1 tsp of red curry paste

1 cup of spinach

Chopped basil

Chopped Jalapeno peppers (optional)

Lime wedges

Cooked rice

PREPARATION

Fry the zucchini and shrimp in the sesame oil. Set aside.

Mix coconut milk, tomato sauce, fish sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar and red curry paste in a large pan. Heat on medium for five minutes. Add in shrimp, zucchini and spinach, place a cover on the pan, and continue to cook for two more minutes.

Garnish with basil and peppers and serve with rice and lime wedges. Enjoy!

Crystal Ball now Available on Amazon!

FBI AGENT JACK KENYON is back! When a bomb in Myron Buckstar’s software lab kills an innocent woman, Jack and the crew are called in to find out if terrorists are targeting the flamboyant billionaire. They soon discover that the victim was a member of Scotland Yard working undercover on a mysterious case. As Jack pursues her murder, he uncovers a race to steal the Crystal Ball, an invention that allows its owner to peer into the future. Follow Jack from San Francisco to London as he pursues a host of murderers, conmen and criminals who will stop at nothing to achieve their goal.

Book Review

I Only Read Murder

By Ian and Will Ferguson

Many of you are probably familiar with Will Ferguson; he is a native Calgarian and winner of the 2012 Scotiabank Giller prize for his novel 419, and a very funny guy. He has now teamed up with his brother Ian to write a cozy mystery series set in a small west coast town.

The novel revolves around Miranda Abbott, the former star in the TV series Pastor Fran, where she played a karate-chopping cleric who dressed in bikinis and busted marijuana drug rings.

Miranda has hit hard times, however; her long-suffering agent is reduced to offering her roles in constipation ads. Her fortunes take a turn for the better when she receives a postcard from her estranged husband Edgar, begging her to return to Happy Rock, an idyllic village on Oregon’s Pacific shores.

Miranda finds herself playing second banana to Annette, the local diva, in the local amateur theatre troupe. Things get frantic when Annette mysteriously dies of poisoning during rehearsals, and all evidence points to Miranda as the prime suspect.

As one might expect from the brothers Ferguson, the narrative has its tongue firmly placed in its cheek and the plot twists are delightfully bizarre. A second book in the series, Mystery in the Title, was published this spring, and I can’t wait to read it. I highly recommend I Only Read Murder!

TV Review

The Diplomat Season 2

Streaming on Netflix

This is a political mystery thriller starring Keri Russel as Kate Wyler, the American Ambassador to the UK. She costars with Rufus Sewell, who plays Hal Wyler, her husband.

In season one, a missile attack against a British destroyer kills 23 sailors. Fingers got pointed to the usual suspects – jihadists, Russians, Iran – but Keri uncovers a link to the British government through UK foreign secretary Austin Dennison, an ambitious politician.

But is Kate being played? In season two, husband Hal, no slouch to intrigue, hunts down the rogues who almost killed him with a car bomb. Allison Janney makes a surprise appearance as vice president Grace Penn in the final plot twist that I’m not going to spoil for you but you gotta know it’s a humdinger.

Excellent writing and acting all around has earned this series lots of accolades. I highly recommend both season one and two of The Diplomat!

COVER FINAL JPG

October 2024 Newsletter

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Life in Calgary

It’s back to Manzanillo this month; we’re looking forward to seeing old friends and enjoying the great (post hurricane) winter weather!

In the meantime, we’ve had a wonderful time in Calgary; it’s been over a decade since we lived here, and it’s grown and matured in so many ways.

Our neighborhood in Eau Claire is now surrounded by summer concerts and events that feature music and culture from around the world. Here’s a small sample;

The Mexifest with wrestlers and tacos!

Beaches the Musical playing at Theatre Calgary!

Book readings by authors who really appreciate you buying their books (ahem).

Crystal Ball is now Available on Amazon!

FBI AGENT JACK KENYON is back! When a bomb in Myron Buckstar’s software lab kills an innocent woman, Jack and the crew are called in to find out if terrorists are targeting the flamboyant billionaire. They soon discover that the victim was a member of Scotland Yard working undercover on a mysterious case. As Jack pursues her murder, he uncovers a race to steal the Crystal Ball, an invention that allows its owner to peer into the future. Follow Jack from San Francisco to London as he pursues a host of murderers, conmen and criminals who will stop at nothing to achieve their goal.

Recipe; Zucchini Stuffed Italian Boats

A big thank-you to our wonderful friend Wilma for supplying us with her home-grown zucchini for this tasty recipe. This is a delicious meal and easy to make – your family and friends are going to give you plenty of compliments! By the way, this recipe is keto, vegan and no kittens were harmed.

Ingredients

2 large zucchinis,

1 Tsp of olive oil.

1 cup of tomato sauce

1 tsp of salt

1 Tsp of Italian seasoning

1 cup of tomato sauce

1 cup of mushrooms, chopped

1 Tsp of butter

1 cup of grated cheese.

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Cut the zucchinis lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Rub them with olive oil and place on a cookie tray. Bake for 20 minutes.

Fry the mushrooms in butter in a medium-sized pan then add the tomato sauce, salt and Italian seasoning. Let simmer on low while the zucchini is baking.

Fill the zucchini boats with the sauce then cover with cheese. Bake in the oven a further 5 minutes, then turn on the broiler and toast the cheese for two minutes.

Let them cool for a few minutes, then serve. Enjoy!

Book Review

The Briar Club

By Kate Quinn

Quinn is an American author who has written a series of tremendously enjoyable novels about brave women who defy the Nazis. If you haven’t read The Huntress, the Rose Code or The Alice Network, then you’re in for a treat.

Her latest work, The Briar Club, is set in Washington, DC, in the 1950s. It veers from her focus on WWII, but I think it’s her best work yet.

The story takes place in the Briarwood boarding house, set in the neighborhood of Foggy Bottom.

Mrs. Nilsson and her children Lina and Pete are hosts to a bevy of women who have come to Washington in search of jobs. They include Nora, escaping her cloying family, Bea, a former player for the All American Girls Baseball League, and Felicity, a young mother whose husband is fighting in Korea.

Into their midst strolls Mrs. Grace March, a widow who soon captivates everyone with her worldly manners and Thursday night potluck. The author unfolds their individual lives and the manner in which they become a family with skill and insight.

And did I mention the prologue features a grisly, blood-spattered corpse? This ain’t no pedestrian stroll through the Eisenhower Era; someone in the boarding house is a cold-blooded murderer. I highly recommend The Briar Club!

TV Series

The Tragically Hip No Dress Rehearsal

Streaming on Prime

This is a four-episode documentary on one of the most original bands to ever come out of Canada; The Tragically Hip. From their origins in Kingston, Ontario, to Gordon Downey’s tragic death from brain cancer at the age of 53, the documentary traces the many potholes and detours on their journey to success.

I have never been a Hip Head. As we stood in line waiting to see its debut at the Calgary International Film Festival, however, I had a chance to talk with some devoted fans. They mentioned how, even in the biggest arenas, Gord would make them feel as though he was personally communicating with them, reaching out to their hearts with his poetic lyrics.

(By coincidence, we met the band in the mid-80s while staying with friends in Toronto. Alan Gregg, their manager, invited the band over on New Year’s Day for a drink and we were charmed by their youth and good manners).

But back to the doco. There’s a lot of shots from the picturesque Lake Ontario city of Kingston as the group walks through the events that brought them together and formed life-long friendships.

There’s lots of footage of the band on the road, performing the day-to-day tasks of hanging out in laundromats and noodling with lyrics and instruments.

And there’s lots of live performances of their most famous songs, with Gord writhing around the stage like a poor soul possessed by a demon as he performs.

The final episode covers the country-wide tour after Gord has been diagnosed with inoperable cancer. Rather than being maudlin, however, it captures the beautiful relationship that the band had with both themselves and their fans. I highly recommend No Dress Rehearsal!

Bonus Book Review

Here One Moment

By Liane Moriarty

Liane Moriarty is one of our favorite authors. She is an Australian writer who lives in Sydney and writes about the lives of ordinary suburban Ozzies in such an extraordinary manner that she captivates you from the very first page.

Even if you’ve never read Moriarty, the chances are that you are very familiar with her work, as her book Big Little Lies was made into an award-winning mini series starring Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman.

Big Little Lies was my favorite Moriarty book until I read Here One Moment. The premise of the book is audacious; during a routine flight from Hobart to Sydney, a 70-year old widow named Cherry walks down the aisle predicting everyone’s cause of death and age of death.

Some of the passengers are amused, while others are thrown into profound anxiety. She tells one young woman that she will die in a car accident within the year. She predicts that the infant sitting in a mother’s lap will drown at the age of seven.

Turmoil erupts when her predictions begin to come true. The young woman does indeed die in a car accident, and others pass away as stated. Suddenly, Cherry has become the mysterious Death Lady, with a website tabulating her prophesies.

Moriarty writes following a code; no ghosts, divine intervention or phantasms ever determine the outcome of her books. So it was with great anticipation as I read this novel; how would she resolve what clearly appears to be a paranormal phenomenon at the heart of the story without compromising her inner tenet?

She pulls it off brilliantly, and, I promise, the ending will delight you. I highly recommend Here One Moment!

2024 09 01

September 2024 Newsletter

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Life in Calgary

As many readers know, I started my professional writing career as a reporter for the Calgary Herald. Thanks to the Daily Oil Bulletin, being back in Calgary has given me the opportunity to practice being a newspaper hack once again.

A few weeks ago, I attended an energy conference at the Banff Springs Hotel. The featured speaker was Stephen Harper, former prime minister and current international consultant.

I had never heard him speak before, and I was pleasantly surprised to learn that he has a very sharp sense of humor. In his opening remarks, he lamented the name change of the Edmonton Eskimos to the Elks due to political correctness.

“What’s next?” he queried. “Are they going to start calling the Oilers the Renewables?”

Crystal Ball Now Available on Amazon!

Read an Excerpt Here!

Movie Review; 50th Anniversary

Blazing Saddles

Streaming on Prime

Half a century ago, Blazing Saddles made its debut. Directed by Mel Brooks, it was a desperate attempt to revitalize his career after a number of flops had pushed him to the edge of bankruptcy.

Undeterred, the comic genius set out to spoof Westerns, a staple of Hollywood. The premise of the movie was standard fare; the town of Rock Ridge hires a sheriff to save them from the clutches of evil politician Hedley Lammar (Harvey Korman), when a railroad is routed through their town.

Brooks then ran the genre completely off the rails. Sheriff Bart, played by black actor Cleavon Little, is almost lynched by the town’s residents but manages to escape their clutches by threatening to shoot himself first.

Bart then enlists the legendary talents of The Waco Kid (Gene Wilder), and Mongo (NFL star Alex Karras), to battle Hedley’s thugs. Along the way, Brooks mixes in Nazis, motorcycle thugs, a Bavarian seductress and a Yiddish Indian Chief. Oh, and the fart scene.

Critics universally panned the movie, but audiences fell out of their seats laughing and the picture took in over $100 million, placing it among the top ten grossing films for that time. It was subsequently nominated for three Academy Awards.

Gross, tasteless and raunchy, Blazing Saddles is considered by the American Film Institute as one of the 100 funniest movies ever made. It has stood the test of time; I highly recommend you watch it!

Book Review

Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone

By Benjamin Stevenson

You have to admit, that’s a great title. The murder mystery is written by an Australian stand-up comedian, and it’s very funny.

The mystery takes place in a ski lodge on the tallest peak in Australia. The Cunningham family has gathered there to celebrate the release from prison of Michael Cunningham, who was convicted of manslaughter in the death of a lifelong criminal.

The Cunninghams are notorious throughout Australia after the family patriarch killed a policeman during a botched robbery in which he was also gunned down in graphic fashion.

His widow subsequently raises three young boys amid public scorn. Ernest, the middle boy, is the narrator of the novel, frequently cataloguing the victims of his siblings and in-laws in satiric fashion through direct observation and flashbacks.

Obviously, a stand-up comic uses stage communication with the audience as their primary means of story-telling, and Stevenson frequently pauses the narrative to seek out the sensibilities of you. The technique can be quite disruptive in the wrong hands as it deliberately suspends the reader’s sense-of-disbelief, but the author uses it to great effect.

Anyway, the family reunion is thrown into disarray when a stranger is consumed by flames during a raging blizzard. Who is the murderer stalking among them? Is it the anal sister-in-law, or her dweeb husband? Constable Reynolds, trapped by the blizzard, must suss out the guilty before they strike again!

I won’t give too much away but the narrator finally pieces the puzzle together just in time for a fiery finale. I highly recommend Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone!

TV Series

The Perfect Couple

Streaming on Netflix

Yes, I know I reviewed this last month, but that was really about the book, and this is about the series, plus I never pass up an opportunity to post a photo of Nicole Kidman.

As you recall, Greer and Tag Winbury (played by Nicole Kidman and Liev Schreiber), are hosting the wedding of their son Benji and his bride Celeste at their fabulous beachside mansion on the island of Nantucket. Hundreds have been invited to the lavish affair, which is expected to be the talk of the island.

The eve of the wedding is tragically marred by the death of the maid-of-honor, however. Merritt is found on the beach below the mansion, apparently drowned. But when the Chief of Police begins to investigate, he soon discovers an undercurrent of deceit and chicanery that belies the reputation of ‘the perfect couple’ and their family.

I was greatly impressed by Nicole’s portrayal of the steely matriarch Greer (she can win an Emmy with the wiggle of one eyebrow), but I was unexpectedly pleased by the performances of two secondary characters, the wedding planner (Tim Bagley), and the maid (Irina Dubova). When the police call them in for questioning, they spill the cattiest gossip you can imagine in straight face; the series is worth watching just to see these two veterans perform.

The critics, of course, are calling The Perfect Couple mindless soap-opera trash, but it’s all done in the over-the-top, prime-time tradition of Dallas, and you’re not going to find a better performer of a wily villain than Nicole Kidman!

Join me for a reading of Crystal Ball on Sunday, September 15, 4 pm at Owls Nest Books!

beautificia

August 2024 Newsletter

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Life in Calgary

Back in the summer of ‘67, my pal Bennie bought Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and invited me over to hear it.

I was especially intrigued by one song; Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.

“What’s that all about?” I asked.

“LSD,” said Bennie.

“Ooh.”

Before it was banned in the late 1960s, chemistry undergraduates at McMaster University were enthusiastically whipping up batches of a potential stress reliever called lysergic acid diethylamide. While the relief of stress was negligible, a microgram of LSD did have the side effect of glorious hallucinations.

Alas, that era is long past, but the visual effects live on in Beautifica, a highly entertaining music and visual extravaganza created by the musician James Hood.

We caught a showing at the TELUS Spark Science Center in Calgary, and were treated to the wonderful sensation of zooming through the universe in a psychedelic starship. The show is on its last leg in Calgary, but you can catch it at various locations in the US this summer.

Available this Fall!

Click Here to Read Excerpt

FBI AGENT JACK KENYON is back! When a bomb in Myron Buckstar’s software lab kills an innocent woman, Jack and the crew are called in to find out if terrorists are targeting the flamboyant billionaire.

They soon discover that the victim was a member of Scotland Yard working undercover on a mysterious case.

As Jack pursues her murder, he uncovers a race to steal the Crystal Ball, an invention that allows its owner to peer into the future. Follow Jack from San Francisco to London as he pursues a host of murderers, conmen and criminals who will stop at nothing to achieve their goal.

Recipe: Veal Burgers

This is easy to mix together and creates a delightful summer BBQ meal!

Ingredients

1 lb. of minced veal (if the butcher doesn’t have it, check the frozen food section).

2 oz. of parmesan, grated

1 tsp salt

1 tsp of paprika

Garnishing

Cob’s Bakery buns.

Directions

Mix parmesan, salt and paprika into the veal. Let it sit for 10 minutes, then form in to patties.

Grill on the BBQ, and garnish with onions, pickles, caramelized onions etc., and serve on lightly toasted buns from Cob’s Bakery.

Enjoy!

Book Review

A Death in Cornwall

By Daniel Silva

This is the 24th  book in the Gabriel Allon series, and it’s a peach.

Allon is an Israeli secret agent who served for many years as a Mossad assassin, rising through the ranks to become the boss of ‘The Office’. His legendary exploits took him around the world, hunting Israel’s sworn enemies in Europe, the Middle East and North America.

Now retired, he devotes his life to restoring the Masters, whether it’s an altarpiece by Raphael or a painting by Rothko. He lives the quiet life with his wife Chiara in Venice with their two children, striving to stay out of the limelight.

Until something royally pisses him off, that is. The effrontery in question is the brutal hatchet murder of an Oxford professor. Allon soon discovers she was on the trail of a Picasso painting, looted from a Paris art collector by the Nazis in WWII.

His investigation leads him to the Geneva Freeport, a tax-free haven where billionaires and crooks store their tax-free loot, including gold and valuable paintings.

Naturally, the bad guys hiding trillions would rather not have the light of the law shone on their shenanigans, and the body count starts to climb. Allon relies on his coterie of contacts and faithful sidekicks to stay one jump ahead of the pack as he dashes across Europe, pursuing his goal with laser focus.

You don’t have to read any of the previous series; each book stands on its own. But it you aren’t familiar with Silva’s work, I highly recommend you start at the beginning and peruse through the lot; you won’t be disappointed!

TV Series Review

The Perfect Couple

Streaming on Netflix September 6, 2024

I don’t normally review something I haven’t seen yet, but there’s a first time for everything!

The Perfect Couple is based on the novel of the same name by Elin Hildebrand. She has written several dozen books set on the island of Nantucket; they chronicle the lives of both the rich summer residents as well as the full-time citizens who (literally) cater to them.

Greer and Tag Winbury (played by Nicole Kidman and Liev Schreiber), are hosting the wedding of their son Benji and his bride Celeste at their fabulous beachside mansion on the island of Nantucket. Hundreds have been invited to the lavish affair, which is expected to be the talk of the island.

The eve of the wedding is tragically marred by the death of the maid of honor, however. Merritt is found on the beach below the mansion, apparently drowned. But when Chief of Police Ed Kapenash begins to investigate, he soon discovers an undercurrent of deceit and chicanery that belies the reputation of ‘the perfect couple’ and their family.

The novel is a very entertaining mix of whodunit and soap opera as the author explores both the backstories and the unraveling of the mystery. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book and I look forward to seeing the mini-series!

Upcoming Book Launch in Calgary!

Join me on Sunday, September 15, 2024, 4 pm., at Owl’s Nest Books for the launch of Crystal Ball. I’ll be doing a reading and signing and greeting all our pals from Calgary!

2024-07-05

July 2024 Newsletter

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Life in Calgary

It’s Stampede time! For ten days every July, the Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth takes over the city and turns it into a very large punch bowl.

Folks outside town tend to think of The Stampede as an excuse to wear a cowboy hat and get drunk (and they’re generally correct), but there’s also an international cultural aspect that often gets overlooked.

Take, for instance, the Mexifest located across the street from our condo in a downtown parking lot. Mariachi bands and churro vendors compete with Lucha Libre wrestlers for the admiration of thousands of Mexican people who now call Calgary home.

Until you hear La Bamba sung with a country twang, you ain’t heard nothing yet.

Coming this Fall: The Official Launch of my latest FBI Agent Jack Kenyon series takes place at Owls Nest Books in Calgary on Sunday, September 15, 2024, at 4 pm.

I’ll be doing a reading and signing paperbacks. You can also order previous books in the series on Amazon.

Book Review

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder

By Holly Jackson

I love reading (and writing) murder mysteries. I enjoy everything from police procedurals (Michael Connelly’s Detective Bosch series), to ‘cozy’ murder mysteries in which an amateur sleuth finds the killer when the authorities are baffled.

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder falls into the latter category. The town of Fairview is rocked when high-school sweetheart Andie Bell goes missing. Her body is never discovered, but her boyfriend Sal commits suicide, leaving behind a note confessing to murder.

The police close the file, but enough disturbing questions remain to motivate young Pippi to dig further; as her senior high-school assignment, she chooses to investigate the tragedy. Along with the help of Sal’s older brother Raji, she interviews Andie’s gang, sifting through their recollections and social media postings for inconsistencies.

Her snooping soon attracts scoundrels who threaten her with harm if she doesn’t desist. Like all good sleuths, however, she toils on, placing herself at personal risk in order to uncover the truth.

The author (pictured) has written two sequels, and the series has just been made into a TV series by the BBC. I highly recommend you check out the novel first, however; it’s a great summer read!

Recipe: Ceviche

This is the perfect summer meal, and easy to prepare!

Ingredients

1/2 lb. of raw chopped white fish (basa)

1/2 lb. raw chopped shrimp.

1 cup lime juice

1 Tsp salt

1 tomato, chopped

1 mango, diced

½ red onion, slivered

1 avocado, diced

3 Tsp cilantro, diced

½ chili pepper, diced

Tortilla chips

Directions

Mix fish, lime juice and salt. Seal in a container and marinate in fridge for at least 4 hours (this cures the raw fish).

In a bowl, mix tomato, mango, onion, avocado, cilantro and chili.

Add cured fish. Garnish with cilantro and sliced onion.

Serve with tortilla chips and lots of cold cerveza.

Enjoy!

TV Series

The Sopranos

Created by David Chase

It’s been 25 years since the launch of The Sopranos? Fuggedaboudit!

For a quarter of a century, Tony, Carmela, Christopher, Silvio and the rest of the crew have been robbing, racketeering, whacking and screwing each other with criminal abandon.

This isn’t one of the best TV series every made, it’s the best TV series ever made. The show was so faithful to the mob life that James Gandolfini, who played the patriarch of the family, noted that he was frequently complimented by real ‘wise guys’ on its authenticity.

But most of all, it was tremendously entertaining. The mix of violence, irony and slapstick keeps you constantly riveted, even when you’ve seen each episode time and time again.

Creator David Chase and HBO, of course, had no idea how much the series would change modern American culture. The set, which is available on DVD and download, contains never-before-seen clips, as well as a documentary in which the cast and crew reflect on the show.

You don’t have to be a die-hard fan to enjoy it, but if you are, then no matter how hard you try to get out, they’ll pull you back in!