Welcome back to Jen’s Jewels, your weekly must-read featuring the hottest fiction! This week, I’m thrilled to share MY SISTER IS GOING TO KILL ME by Nina Simon.
I read an early copy of this book while vacationing in Santa Fe, New Mexico – and the timing couldn’t have been more perfect. The wild, rugged setting of the story felt surprisingly close to where I was reading, and I couldn’t help but imagine myself right alongside these sisters as they found themselves in one dangerous situation after another.
If you love family drama, adventure, and a thriller that will keep you turning the pages, MY SISTER IS GOING TO KILL ME belongs on your TBR. You can thank me later. Read on!
LIGHTNING ROUND
What’s your favorite way to spend a slow August afternoon?
Reading a library book while lounging in a net woven into a redwood tree by my house… 80 feet up in the air.
What snack, drink, or sweet treat always finds its way to your desk when writing?
Yorkshire Gold black tea with half-and-half.
What’s one thing that instantly helps you slip into a creative mindset?
Sitting down at my kitchen table on a quiet morning as the fog lifts off the mountain.
THE LATE-SUMMER SPARK
August can feel like a season of transition, with summer winding down and new routines on the horizon. In what ways did this story represent a new direction or challenge for you as a writer?
My first novel was very much a traditional small-town mystery, where someone dies early in the story on the protagonists’ doorstep and they have to figure out who did it and why. MY SISTER IS GOING TO KILL ME has more adventure thriller vibes, with the two sisters at the center of the story being directly threatened and trying both to catch and outrun a murderer while whitewater rafting down the Colorado River.
Writing an adventure thriller challenged me to build my craft regarding how to raise stakes before a dead body hits the page, how to keep the pace moving, and how to balance the readerly pleasure of exploring a gorgeous wild setting with the terror of evading and stopping a murderer.
What was the very first image, line, or idea that sparked this book?
It was the title. My agent came up with the title for my first book, MOTHER-DAUGHTER MURDER NIGHT, and I saw how that fun, cheeky title captured its family element, warmth, and mystery vibes so well. When I was developing ideas for this new book, I knew I wanted to find a title that would “rhyme” with that one, reflecting the humor and complexity of a rich family relationship while also nodding to the fact that this is a murder mystery. MY SISTER IS GOING TO KILL ME was the perfect phrase. I love that it has multiple meanings, and it shows up in the story in both humorous and deadly serious ways.
Setting can shape a story in powerful ways. What role does the setting play in your book, and what inspired you to choose it?
MY SISTER IS GOING TO KILL ME is set in the Grand Canyon, and that setting is as much a main character as either of the sisters at the center of the story. I am positively obsessed with the Grand Canyon. It’s full of stark contrasts, dangerous wonders, and wild beauty that makes it the perfect setting for a high-octane thriller.
Late summer often brings a sense of reflection and nostalgia. Did any personal experiences, memories, or favorite places inspire parts of the story?
My sister Morgan and I did our own whitewater rafting trip in the Grand Canyon three years ago. It was a powerful experience, both for the epic quality of the setting, and for the opportunity to connect deeply with each other far from our other relationships, work, and daily lives. While the two sisters at the center of MY SISTER IS GOING TO KILL ME are very different from Morgan and me, the love between them, and the ways their trip to the Grand Canyon both tests and strengthens their bond, comes directly from my own personal experience.
THE PERSONAL TOUCH
What’s a behind-the-scenes detail about writing this book that readers might never guess?
When I was doing research for this novel, I went on a backpacking trip off the North Rim into a section of the Grand Canyon that would play a key role in the story. I was so entranced by the place that I convinced my hiking buddy that we should stay an extra day… even though we didn’t have enough food for that. He agreed, and we ended up doing the grueling hike back to the rim on our final morning on empty stomachs. Two-thirds of the way up, we ran into a couple men on their way down. We told them our story, and one of them told me he had some extra energy bars. I asked what we needed to do to score one. He said, “just put me in your book.” This is why, on exactly one page of MY SISTER IS GOING TO KILL ME, there is an FBI agent named Casey, in honor of our energy bar benefactor.
Every book comes with its challenges. Was there a moment during this one that reminded you why you fell in love with writing?
I wrote the first half of MY SISTER IS GOING TO KILL ME quietly at my kitchen table. But by the time I got to the back half, I was itchy for connection with a reader. I wanted to build a relationship around the story I was weaving. So I went back to a practice I’d used when writing MOTHER-DAUGHTER MURDER NIGHT: at the end of each day, I’d email the chapter I’d finished to my mom. She’d read it, and we’d talk on the phone for a few minutes. That tether of connection with my mother, and our shared enthusiasm as I was writing some of the most intense scenes in the book, kept me coming back to my laptop every morning full of energy and joy for the process.
If readers could step inside one scene from your book and experience it in real life, which scene would you choose and why?
It would be any moment of deep immersion in the Grand Canyon. For risk-loving readers, I’d recommend a scene rafting one of the Colorado River’s giant rapids, dunking in one of the massive waterfalls that flank its side canyons, or traversing a narrow slot canyon without a rope. For armchair explorers, I’d suggest a more tender sunset moment watching the sun fall purple against the canyon walls, the stars lighting up the blanket of night.
LOOKING AHEAD
Can you give readers a sneak peek into your next project, minus any spoilers?
I love exploring the intersection of strong women, dead bodies, and wild places. My next novel is a contemporary thriller that features two women hopping freight trains across the American Southwest to avenge their dear friend’s death. I was lucky enough to hop a freight train last summer, and I was blown away by the surge of freedom and adventure that accompanied the experience. It inspired me to want to set a novel on the tracks.
Where can readers connect with you and keep up with your latest writing news? Please share your website, social media handles, newsletter, or other favorite places to connect.
You can reach me on my website, or Instagram and Facebook. I also write a very occasional, quite personal, always free newsletter.
BONUS: The Author’s Playlist
Share 3–5 songs that capture the mood of your book or helped inspire you while writing.
Somethin’ Bad – Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood
Taking You with Me – Daniel Tashian, Mindy Smith
Bad Girls – M.I.A.
This Tornado Loves You – Neko Case
MY SISTER IS GOING TO KILL ME by Nina Simon
Narrator: Gabra Zackman
A Novel – A Whitewater Whodunnit of Murder, Secrets, and Danger on the Grand Canyon
From the New York Times bestselling author of the runaway hit Mother-Daughter Murder Night, a Reese’s Book Club pick, comes another fun, family-centered whodunnit about two sisters who work together to find a killer as they raft down the rapids of the Grand Canyon.
What’s a family vacation without a little murder?
Liv and Mandy Chisholm’s yearly sister trip is a sacred tradition, an attempt to bond as their lives increasingly diverge. Liv, the ever-practical older sister, packs the color-coded itineraries. Mandy, a bedazzled human tumbleweed, brings the spontaneity.
This year, the sisters take off for a rafting adventure through the breathtaking depths of the Grand Canyon with a group of strangers. But beyond the terrors of whitewater rapids, sibling squabbles, and rogue reptiles, the ferocious beauty of the river carries a darker undercurrent, and an unexpected guest: a murderer in their midst.
When a fellow traveler is found dead and another corpse hits the water, the rafting trip flips from idyllic sister vacation to high-stakes murder investigation. Every suspect has a secret, every clue is drenched in mystery, and Liv and Mandy can hardly trust each other, let alone their own instincts. With the river raging and danger around every bend, the Chisholm sisters must work together to catch a killer—and keep their relationship from capsizing—before it’s too late.
Mystery Woman Sleuth | Thriller Domestic [ William Morrow, On Sale: August 18, 2026, Hardcover / e-Book / audiobook, ISBN: 9780063478022 / eISBN: 9780063478046 ]
Buy MY SISTER IS GOING TO KILL ME: Amazon.com | Kindle | BN.com | Apple Books | Kobo | Google Play | Books-A-Million | Indie BookShops | Ripped Bodice | Libro.fm | Audible | Walmart.com | Amazon CA | Amazon UK | Amazon DE | Amazon FR
About Nina Simon
Nina Simon has worn many hats: NASA engineer, slam poet, mystery game designer, exhibit developer, museum director, global nonprofit founder. Most of her career has been spent in museums and cultural centers, and she has been described as a “museum visionary” by Smithsonian Magazine for her community-based approach to design. She is an Ashoka fellow and the founder of OF/BY/FOR ALL, a global nonprofit that creates digital tools to help civic and cultural organizations become more inclusive, relevant, and sustainable.
Alongside her work engaging communities, Nina is an in-demand writer and speaker about community participation in museums, libraries, parks, and theaters. She has sold over 40,000 copies of her self-published books The Participatory Museum (2010) and The Art of Relevance (2016), and for thirteen years, she ran the top blog in the museum industry, Museum 2.0. She has over 25,000 Twitter followers, and she has shared her work as a keynote speaker at over 300 conferences in North America, South America, Europe, and Asia, including several state and national library conferences. Her work has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, NPR, the New York Times, and on the TEDx stage.
Born and raised in Los Angeles, Nina now lives in an off- grid community in the Santa Cruz mountains with her husband and daughter. She loves outdoor sports and adventures.
WEBSITE | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM
About Jennifer Vido
Jennifer Vido is the author of The Gull Island Series, sweet Lowcountry romances inspired by her love of coastal living and small-town charm. Serendipity by the Sea won Best First Book from the New Jersey Romance Writers Golden Leaf Contest, and Baltimore Magazine readers named her Best Local Author in 2024 and 2025. A Vanderbilt graduate, Jennifer traded in teaching French to follow her dream of becoming an author. She loves discovering and sharing literary gems through her Jen’s Jewels column, celebrating the books that make her heart happy. Jennifer lives in Maryland with her husband and is mom to two grown sons. Her rescue dog, Fripp, is her constant companion, though he’s better at napping than editing. When she’s not writing, you’ll find her at the beach with her toes in the sand, dreaming about her next romance.
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