I’m thrilled to announce the launch of my second crime thriller novel, The Ghosts of Willow Beach. It’s a darkly disturbing story about a grisly discovery made inside a dead man’s basement, which prompts an investigation led by homicide detective Dieter Gorman. Shocking revelations about key suspects will expose a decades-long mystery and forever alter Gorman’s perceptions of good and evil. 

A special thank you to Jaret Fattori, Emma Fattori, (the late) Rod Urquhart, Amy McIntyre, Anna Di Meglio, Kathy MacLellan, Darryl Oreskovich, Diane Brousseau and Sigrid Macdonald for their professional assistance, and to the many friends, family members and fellow authors who have provided support, encouragement and inspiration.

The Ghosts of Willow Beach is available as an e-Book and a paperback on Amazon. Stay tuned for news about upcoming book signings in the spring and summer of 2025.

Click Here To Order

I'm excited to announce that my new crime thriller novel, The Ghosts of Willow Beach, is scheduled to be released on Mardch 1, 2025. The book will be available as a Kindle Edition and as a paperback, on Amazon. The Kindle editon is currently available on pre-order at the link below. 

Here's a brief plot summary:

A small fishing boat with two men aboard washes ashore in the sleepy community of Willow Beach. One man doesn’t speak, and the second man – a reclusive scrap dealer – is dead. In conducting his investigation, Homicide Detective Dieter Gorman makes a grizzly discovery at the dead man’s home. In the basement, he’s confronted with a scene of unimaginable horror.

Gorman is drawn into a darkly disturbing case that is impeded by a suspect who is unable to communicate, and by a retired newspaper reporter who might hold important clues but who suffers from Alzheimer disease. In his search for answers, Gorman relies on his savvy street smarts and on LSD, a potent hallucinogenic which has helped him in prior investigations.

Will Gorman’s investigative skills and acid tripping be enough to solve the biggest case of his career? Whatever the final outcome, shocking revelations about key suspects will expose a decades-long mystery and forever alter Gorman’s perceptions of good and evil.

Here is the link to pre-order: Click Here 

 

First Book Signing for 'A Case Against the Clock'

My first-ever book signing event for ‘A Case Against the Clock’ is in the books! By all measures, the day was a resounding success in terms of books sold, overall attendance and lively conversation. A heartfelt thank you to my family, friends and fellow authors who showed up to buy my novel and to offer their support. A special thanks to Melissa Kargus and Michelle Taylor of Indigo Kanata for arranging this event and for their unwavering support for local authors; to Emma, Jaret and Barbie for making the long trek; and to Chi Chi Nguyen for going the extra mile in spreading the word. It was fun meeting readers and talking books, authors, writing, stories, publishing and the written word. For every book sold, I’ll be donating $1.00 (CAN) to ALS Canada.

Franklin Expedition Reimagined Through Fiction

Far too many years have passed since I last read a Dan Simmons novel (Hyperion, Song of Kali, back in the ‘90s). Just finished Simmons’ The Terror (2007), a fictionalized account of the 1845 Franklin Expedition. Simmons constructs a compelling and heart-wrenching narrative of the tragic attempt to locate the Northwest Passage in the Canadian Arctic, based on true events and actual crew members aboard the two ships (HMS Terror and HMS Erebus). Simmons’ vivid descriptions of the hostile winter conditions, coupled with realistic portrayals of the main players, including Captain Sir John Franklin himself and Franklin's second-in-command, Francis Crozier, make for an absorbing work of historical fiction. The novel precedes more or less chronologically using frequent flashbacks and dream sequences. The Terror is further enriched with elements of horror and the supernatural, which create an underlying sense of foreboding as the crews’ circumstances become more desperate and hopeless with each passing day. In addition to being a captivating read, this novel is a study of human nature and the extremes to which men will go when faced with unrelenting threats to their survival. All in all, this is a brilliant novel that left me in awe of Simmons’ talent as a wildly imaginative writer and a gifted storyteller.

Secrets of Stone Is A Remarkable Work of Fantasy Fiction

 

Secrets of Stone is a debut fantasy adventure novel by a talented young writer named Coltrane Seesequasis. Coltrane, a writer of Indigenous heritage who grew up in Gatineau, Quebec, has created a future world in which humans have become extinct and which is ruled by sentient wolves. From start to finish, I was swept up in the coming-of-age adventures of the young wolf, Silversong, who embarks on a perilous journey across a hostile landscape, in an attempt to vanquish his enemies and win the respect of his tribe. The novel is populated by wolves imbued with human characteristics, and includes surprising plot twists, fantastical imagery and remarkable insights into human thought and behaviour. I can’t recommend Secrets of Stone highly enough, and I’m looking forward to the next novel in this planned four-book series. I recently had the pleasure of attending Coltrane’s first-ever book signing, at Indigo Rideau Centre in Ottawa. To learn more about the author and to order Secrets of Stone, visit coltranebooks.com. Congratulations, Coltrane!

Hiaasen's Tourist Season Is Satire at its Best

Carl Hiaasen’s Tourist Season is a flat-out hoot of a novel that delivers all you’d expect from one of America’s wittiest novelists. The story involves a zany but engaging plot, a crew of outrageous characters, biting satire, hilarious dialogue and a sprinkling of social commentary. Published in 1986, in the pre-internet, pre-smartphone era, Tourist Season begins with several bizarre and seemingly unrelated deaths in Miami, Florida. A former reporter turned private eye, Brian Keyes, suspects that these deaths are more than random. His investigation leads him to the Miami Sun, and eventually to a group of reactionaries hell bent on fomenting enough fear and panic to drive tourists (and future economic development) out of the Sunshine State. This ragtag group is led by a popular (and deranged) Sun columnist and includes a former pro football player, an ex-Cuban militant and an indigenous entrepreneur with a score to settle. From the opening scene when a visiting Shriner goes missing to the final pages where a coral isle is about to be blown to smithereens, Tourist Season is a fun, lively romp that will keep readers entertained and laughing all the way.

I, The Jury - Sheer Escapist Fun

"I hate too hard and shoot too fast.” Mickey Spillane, I, The Jury

First published in 1947, I, The Jury by Mickey Spillane introduced a private detective named Mike Hammer. Hammer, who appeared in twenty-two novels and short stories, and in numerous films and TV series, embodies the classic elements of a noir private eye: he’s equal parts charming, cynical, tough guy, hard drinking, and intolerant of anyone who gets in his way. He’s like a one-man wrecking ball, pursuing leads and hunches with pit bull determination in an effort to ferret out the truth. In I, The Jury, a close friend and war buddy of Hammer’s, Jack Williams, is murdered, and suffers a particularly cruel and painful end. Hammer vows to avenge his friend’s death by meting out his own form of justice. As the story unfolds, and suspects are mysteriously killed, Hammer finds himself falling in love with a beautiful psychiatrist named Charlotte who might hold clues about Williams’s murder. There is a whiff of cheesiness about this novel, but it’s quality cheese nonetheless. Spillane’s writing is sparse, gritty, fast-paced and devoid of sentimentality or pretensions of reality, but in terms of sheer fun and escapism, I, The Jury delivers a one-two punch of reading pleasure.