SCHMOOZING WITH RICK MOFINA

1. Who has influenced you the most in your writing career?

Sister Mary from St. Michael’s Academy who taught me grammar in the 7th Grade with the intensity of a drill sergeant. We feared her. She numbered our seats, called us by our last names and smacked our desktops with a yardstick to ensure we paid attention to the examples she’d written on the board; demanding we identify subject and predicate. I remember how she once stared at me and said: “Mofina, one day you’ll thank me.”

2.What are you working on now?

Going through edits of my next book, EVERY SECOND, which is due for release later in 2015.


3. In what ways is your main protagonist like you? If at all?

I’m a former reporter and most of my main protagonists are reporters. I draw on my experience to get into their heads.

4. Are you character driven or plot driven?

Both. You need a sympathetic character and you need them to face challenges that will re-define them.

5. Are you a pantser or a plotter?

Plotter.

6. What do you hope readers will most take away from your writing?

That feeling you get when you just step off a mid-way thrill ride.

7. Where do you see yourself as a writer in 10 years?

I really don’t know.

8. What is one thing your readers would be most surprised to know about you?

I’d prefer not to say. I don’t want to spoil the surprise.

9. What do you like to read for pleasure?

The notes of F. Scott Fitzgerald, especially his essays in The Crack-Up.

10. Give us a summary of your latest book in a Tweet

Screams in the Night, a gut-wrenching call and a reporter's life-long search for her missing sister.

Rick Mofina is a former journalist who has worked in newsroom across Canada. He's also reported from the Caribbean, Africa and Kuwait's border with Iraq. His books have been published in nearly 30 countries. The Crime Writers of Canada, The International Thriller Writers and The Private Eye Writers of America have listed his titles among the best in crime fiction. As two-time winner of Canada's Arthur Ellis Award, a three-time Thriller Award nominee and a two-time Shamus Award nominee, the Library Journal calls him, “One of the best thriller writers in the business."

MYSTERY REVIEW - GOLD WEB

GOLD WEB
By Vicki Delany
Dundurn

Travel back in time to the days of the Klondike gold rush and meet one of the fiestiest ladies then and now. She's Fiona MacGillivray - Mrs. MacGillivray to her many customers at the Savoy Saloon and Dance Hall, which she co-owns in Dawson, 1898. And she can't seem to stay out of trouble.

In fact, trouble seems to track her down, as witnessed in the earlier three books in this series. But that shouldn't be surprising because as we find out right from the start, Fiona has a somewhat questionable past, despite all her ladylike qualities, and being far away in the north suits her just fine. In fact, in Gold Web, we find out even more about her past and how her life on the streets as a young girl contributed to the determined, clever and crafty woman who is tough enough to own a saloon in a town filled with men struck with gold fever.

All the regulars are back -- Angus, her twelve-year-old son who works part-time in the general store and dreams of being a Mountie; the handsome North-West Mounted Police Corporal Richard Sterling who has a soft spot for Fiona but can't seem to tell her about it, partly because he's too busy keeping the rowdiness of this wild town in check; and, her business partner Ray Walker.

Dawson, being a wide open town with lots of gold nuggets flowing across the bars, gambling tables and stages, attracts an equally boisterous gang of prospectors and women. This time, there's a murder out back of the Savoy and the victim calls out Fiona's name as he stumbles towards her.

The story is rich in historical references. You can see the mud on the street as Fiona tucks her skirt into her boots and trudges along; cringe at the sight of the lecherous drunks; and get a sense of the tightrope the NWMP would often walk in order to keep law and order.

Delany has added another historical layer this time, that has the possiblity of the Scottish Independence Movement taking hold in the Yukon and hints of the Fenian Brotherhood. There's also the American interest in obtaining the territory and even a plot to trade Alaska in exchange for the Yukon...well, you'll have to read it to get the whole picture.

Vicki Delany has managed to fill the pages with a different era, with history and scenery that comes alive on the pages, and with three-dimensional characters whose stories will capture you in the web. The Gold Web, that is.

MYSTERY REVIEW - CORPSE FLOWER

CORPSE FLOWER
by Gloria Ferris
Dundurn

Every now and then it's good to cleanse the palette with a fun, zany mystery! You know the kind, where you end up snickering every couple of pages or else you're thinking, 'oh boy, why did she do THAT?', which is the equivalent of closing your eyes if watching a movie. Corpse Flower had just such an effect on me.

The plot is fairly common, who killed the town employee at the cemetery? Or was it murder? The opening paragraph sets the tone for what's to come. By the end, there are two more murders; some very creative distribution and usages for marijuana; not one but two slightly erotic exotic plants that are about to require cross-pollination and only our intrepid main character, Bliss Moonbeam Cornwall can make sure it happens; and the possibility of romance for Bliss, who is still trying to get even and get a fair settlement out of her ex-husband, the mayor.

If it sounds like a lot going on, it is but it all fits and makes sense. Along the way there are some very zany characters, like Bliss's cousin, the agoraphobic Dougal; his hystrionic ex-wife Glory; the cute, naive neighour, Rae turning tricks at the trailer park; and...sorry, they are just too unique to describe.

Sounds like it would be tricky, working this all into a mystery novel. Not every writer can write for laughs and make it work.
It takes great skill to do both. Enter Gloria Ferris, whose first novel, Cheat the Hangman won the 2012 Bony Blithe Award. And, Corpse Flower won the Unhanged Arthur Ellis Award in 2010 from Crime Writers of Canada.

Read! Enjoy! And go ahead, laugh out loud when necessary!

MYSTERY REVIEW

MY SISTER'S KEEPER
by Brenda Chapman
Grass Roots Press

THE HARD FALL
by Brenda Chapman
Grass Roots Press




Ottawa mystery writer Brenda Chapman has launched a new series, one of the first with Grass Roots Press, an Alberta publisher that is looking at the growing "reluctant reader" market. The first two in the Anna Sweet series, My Sister's Keep and The Hard Fall, were released earlier this month and the appeal of this series goes well beyond its intended market.

Anna Sweet is a former Ottawa police officer who returns to her hometown when her sister's life is threatened in My Sister's Keeper. She comes bearing baggage -- five years of moving around the US, working in bars and waitressing, outrunning her past which includes being jilted by her lover who turned to her sister, and killing a teen in the line of duty. She's at outs with her family but still, when family calls, Sweet answers. No one believes her sister is at risk. Until Sweet takes on a killer.

In The Hard Fall, Sweet has stayed in Ottawa to take care of her sick father, and joined a new PI firm. The case is a tough one -- a high profile married business tycoon, one of the movers and shakers in town, accused of murdering his mistress. Only his wife believes he's innocent until Sweet starts nosing around but even she is surprised by where her investigations lead. Her own life in danger, Sweet sets a trap that could be her last.

These novellas are the perfect length for that wait at the dentist's office, that short plane ride or just a time when you don't want to commit to an entire evening of reading. Fast paced and gripping, well-drawn characters, and dialogue that says volumes, the Anna Sweet series will also be a hit with those of us already committed to reading. Brenda Chapman has perfected the skill of saying a lot with a few words. Don't let the size of these books nor their designation stop you from reading them. You'll find a satisfying read awaiting.

MYSTERY REVIEW

THE DROWNED MAN
By David Whellams
ECW Press

Chief Inspector Peter Cammon is having a tough time with retirement. He’s still trying to come to terms with his brother’s death while his wife copes with siblings who are near the end of their struggles with cancer. When Scotland Yard calls, the opportunity to get back into action is a no-brainer.

He’s asked to go to Montreal to escort home the body of a murdered colleague. It should be straightforward enough but his cop instincts take over and Cammon finds himself all to quickly deeply enmeshed in the search for a mysterious woman who may hold the key to the police officer’s death.

And then there’s the matter of the theft of three letters, one of them reportedly signed by John Wilkes Booth, that shed new light on the political situation north of the 49 during the US Civil War. The British Ambassador in Montreal wants those letters. So does a Separatist professor and any number of private collectors. Were they the reason for the murder of the Scotland Yard detective?

As Cammon travels to Washington in search of the missing woman, the body count starts building. Soon the Surete de Quebec, the FBI and local police forces are chasing the same prey. The stakes are higher than even Cammon realizes. And the game players will stop at nothing to kill the girl and claim the prize.

Whellams’ second Peter Cammon crime novel borders on thriller with several threads and sub-plots crisscrossing throughout the story. There’s history, travel, police procedural and suspense, something to catch the attention of every crime reader. His detective is a well-balanced hero, with a devotion to home and family along with the drive to do what's needed in the pursuit of justice. David Whellams lives in Ottawa. Maybe he'll bring Peter Cammon here for a visit at some point.

MORE CANADIAN CRIME

Money and Murder



After her debut in Safe Harbor last year, Pat Tierney is back. This time, she’s immersed in Black Water. Just released as an ebook on Amazon today and due out as a paperback shortly, Black Water takes Pat into Ontario cottage country where she opens a new branch for her investment firm and finds herself untangling a web of fraud, drugs, bikers and murder.

Pat’s work as a financial advisor has taught her that money isn’t about figures on a spreadsheet. Money is about people—the young couple saving for their first home, the elderly couple worried that they may outlive their savings.
As a financial advisor, Pat needs to know what’s is going on in her clients’ lives to ensure that they’re in suitable investments. She knows which clients have health concerns. She knows how much money they have—or don’t have. And who they plan to leave it to when they die. This insider knowledge gives her an edge as an amateur sleuth.
And she knows that some people can never have enough money, and that this kind of greed is a powerful incentive for theft, fraud and even murder.

Pat is particularly well positioned to spot white-collar crime. The world of finance provides opportunities for people who are clever and greedy enough to challenge the system. In Safe Harbor, red flags go up for Pat when a rookie advisor is given a large investment account to manage. When Pat looks more closely at that account, she sees that a sizeable part of its assets in invested in slowpoke stocks. Things don’t add up. And when thing don’t add up for a financial professional, something is very wrong.

In Black Water, Pat learns that money has gone missing from client accounts at a rival firm, and an elderly man whose sister has been one of the victims has been murdered. Was he killed because he discovered who was behind the fraud? Pat is determined to put the pieces of this puzzle together. The more she delves into the goings-on in a seemingly idyllic rural community, the closer she comes to a long-buried secret and its fatal consequences.

Unlike Pat Tierney, Rosemary McCracken is not a financial professional. Why did she build her mystery series around a character who makes her living managing people’s money?

Well, Rosemary knows a little about the work Pat does. She’s a Toronto journalist who specializes in personal finance and the financial services industry. For her articles, she talks to financial advisors and investment managers. She attends their conferences. She knows the issues they face and the concerns they have. At one point, she considered becoming a financial advisor herself, but decided that she wouldn’t have the stamina. She knew she’d have sleepless night during down markets, and markets have been murder in recent years. But when she set out to write a mystery series and was looking for a central character, an investment advisor was the first thing that came to mind. Pat is an advisor who cares about her clients. She’s a champion of small investors. She’s the one who has sleepless nights during down markets.

Rosemary’s first Pat Tierney novel, Safe Harbor, was shortlisted for Britain’s Crime Writers’ Association’s Debut Dagger in 2010. It was published by Imajin Books in 2012. Its sequel, Black Water, has just been released as an ebook, and the paperback will be available next month.
Visit Rosemary’s website at http://www.rosemarymccracken.com/.
Follow Rosemary on http://rosemarymccracken.wordpress.com/. And on Twitter at https://twitter.com/RCMcCracken and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/rosemarymccracken?ref=tn_tnmn.
http://www.amazon.com/Black-Water-Tierney-Mystery-ebook/dp/B00CWF2X8S http://www.amazon.ca/Black-Water-Tierney-mystery-ebook/dp/BODCWF2X8S

CRIME ON MY MIND

Water-Witching for Unholy Rites



Unholy Rites, the third the Danutia Dranchuk mystery series, is due out in March from TouchWood. This time RCMP Constable Danutia Dranchuk finds herself drawn into investigating ancient rituals in England’s Peak District.

The idea of setting a book in England came years ago, when my husband Chris Bullock and I were at the Buxton Gilbert and Sullivan Festival to promote our first joint novel, A Deadly Little List. Chris is a man of many interests, however, and wasn’t ready to start a second novel right away. So I wrote Sitting Lady Sutra on my own, solving the problem of what to do with Chris’s main character by sending ex-patriate Arthur back to England to care for his ailing mother.

Meanwhile, during visits to Chris’s English friends and relations, we explored possibilities for a Peak District novel. Stone circles and abandoned mines seemed promising until we discovered local mystery author Stephen Booth had already claimed that territory. Then we came upon the popular local custom of well dressing and its attendant festivals, and thought “aha!”

Well dressing likely began as a pagan custom of bringing flowers and garlands to the quixotic springs that bubble up and disappear in this limestone landscape, in gratitude for the blessing of water. In late Victorian times, these simple garlands became elaborated into the forms we see today: large clay-covered panels depicting religious or secular scenes made entirely from natural ingredients such as flower petals, cones, seeds, and small stones. Hydrangea petals, with their wide range of hues, make spectacular skies; sprigs of parsley make luxuriant borders. When finished, these panels are erected adjacent to wells or other sources of water, blessed in a special ceremony, and after a week or so of slow disintegration, removed. The money raised through donations and accompanying activities help to support village churches, schools, and other community organizations.

Well dressing festivals take place in over a hundred Peak District towns and villages between May and September. Because we visited at different periods, we were able to talk to well dressers as they created the panels and to observe the blessing ceremony at several major sites, including Bradwell, Stoney Middleton, Whaley Bridge, and Tideswell. You’ll find photos on my website: www.kaystewart.ca.

Tideswell was crucial to our final choice of setting, for while we were exploring the area, we came across the history of Litton Mill, notorious for its exploitation and abuse of orphan child labourers during the Industrial Revolution. Here was another and much more sinister use of water that we could weave into our narrative, along with the story of Lindow Man, a prehistoric bog man most likely a victim of ritual sacrifice.

How do all these elements fit together? Read Unholy Rites and find out.


Kay Stewart is the author of police procedurals featuring RCMP Constable Danutia Dranchuk. Unholy Rites, written with husband Chris Bullock, is the third in the series. Kay has also published short stories, personal essays, and writing textbooks. She taught at the University of Alberta before moving to Vancouver Island to devote her time to writing. She is active in the crime-writing community, having served as National Vice President and President of Crime Writers of Canada and co-chair of Bloody Words 2011.

MYSTERY REVIEW

MORE THAN SORROW
by Vicki Delany
Poisoned Pen Press

It's been a few years since Vicki Delany wrote a gothic thriller. She's been busy with her Const. Molly Smith police series, set in B.C., and her Klondike mysteries. All very good reads. But it's with the standalones that Delany really shines. Indeed, sparkles.

In More Than Sorrow, we're drawn immediately into the gripping story of Hannah Manning, a journalist who's recovering at her sister's farm in Prince Edward Country after suffering a serious brain injury from a IED during her stint in Afghanistan.

Hannah's new world is frightening and foreign. She's not in control of the blinding headaches that send her to bed for hours on end. She can't read, frustrating for a journalist, but she's also lost her desire to work. She's unable to pitch in and help with the farm work, something that's starting to grate on her brother-in-law, Jake, as the young family struggles to sustain an organic farm. In fact, her young niece often has to keep an eye on her.

The doctors say it will take time; that the brain works in mysterious ways. It's not enough for Hannah and her frustration grows. She's found she can handle handwriting and starts reading her way through old journals and letters found in the attic of the old farmhouse, which had originally belonged to Jake's family but has wound its way through many other owners.

There is also the vegetables Hannah needs for the roadside store she helps maintain.
But the cellar holds something more sinister and Hannah looses herself in time when she enters the space. Many hours are unaccounted for and she's afraid to admit to what could be hallucinations. Here Delany intertwines the story of a Loyalist family that fled the States during the 1776 revolution and eventually settled in Upper Canada...Ontario. It's a fascinating story of lost wealth and position, lost family and dreams.

When a young Afghan woman, Hila, dreadfully scared in her own country, but brought to Canada to live with a family next door, becomes friends with Hannah, this leads to lengthy walks where they silently share the horrors they both left behind. When Hila goes missing and is eventually found dead, Hannah's world is once again turned upside down. She's accused of murder by a vindictive military official; she can't account for gaps in time; and eventually, her family is put in deep peril.

These are two fascinating stories -- that of Hannah and the glimpses we have of her life in the hell of war, and that of Maggie, the young Loyalist's widow who journeyed to her final resting place in Ontario. The stories intertwine as the death count rises.

Delany is an accomplished writer who draws characters that have depth and become important to the reader. The pacing helps add to the suspense and feeling of the sinister. The stakes are such that the reader is drawn in and vested until the final pages. It's a fascinating story; an intriguing plot; and, a tale that will stay with you long past the final page.