Last week, you learned about the first half the authors I met at The Poisoned Pen in Scottsdale, Arizona.  This week, I have the second group of fantastic books for you to check out. They are the perfect escape from the holiday bustle that seems to have started before Thanksgiving arrived! Just for you, these authors have created fantasy worlds through loads of research. If you’d like to attend the annual Birding Expo with J.R. Ripley, pick up a copy of A Bird Lover’s Mystery, it’s sure to capture your attention. Book #8, A Birder’s Guide to Murder released this month! If you want to travel to the wine country, JC Eaton has an intoxicating series, The Wine Lovers Mysteries. Book #2, Chardonnayed to Rest, released in October and is a perfect blend of warm-hearted community with secrets that will keep you guessing. Cheryl Hollon’s Shattered at Sea, A Webb’s Glass Shop Mystery, will open your eyes to the art of glass blowing and cast your imagination out to sea with the beauty and intrigue that occurs when a passenger disappears on a cruise liner. To round out my recommendations, a bit of historical noir will ground you with how…

As an author, there’s nothing more gratifying than meeting readers who take interest in and appreciate your writing. As a reader, there’s nothing more fascinating than meeting your favorite authors, then being introduced to more authors whose work is new to you. As an author who reads religiously, the combination of those two things is heaven…especially when the event is hosted by an indy mystery/thriller bookstore like the Poisoned Pen in Scottsdale, Arizona! That’s what last weekend was for me. Pure bliss. A meeting of mystery authors from my publishing house that had stars shining down on it. I got to sit behind the scenes and chat with fascinating individuals who bring the world of mystery to life with their intriguing experiences. And after that, we got to meet readers and chat about our writing and just life in general. You never know what stories will come forward. Like the author who went out target shooting in the desert with a bunch of men she barely knew…and then she stuck one of their guns in her rib cage because she wanted to be able to describe the feeling in her book! Now there’s a story that could quickly be turned…