The Trip to Matamoros

Tom and I had an adventure last week. A Mexicano, with flawless unaccented English, started a business that ferries three people at a time in his Nissan Kick to Brownsville, Texas for booster shots. It was eight hours up and eight hours back with an overnight stay for recuperation and a little shopping. It was … Read more

The Rooftops of San Miguel de Allende

Several of the scenes in The Toltec Conspiracy take place on the rooftops of San Miguel. The photos don’t match the scenes exactly, but show the beauty of this place. “The restaurant was atop a new boutique hotel that mixed Colonial Mexican and Moroccan influences. However, from here on top, all she saw were the … Read more

What Mystery is Hidden within the Pyramids?

Clark Ransom’s Three pyramids Stanford Archaeologist Clark Ransom’s journey through his trilogy takes him to three pyramids in search of clues to solve the central mystery. I took the photos below. Even though the pictures don’t capture the surrounding aura, they sparked the inspiration for the trilogy: Cañada de la Virgen Elvita drove as far … Read more

What was your favorite book from last year?

The two thrillers that I liked best last year were The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn and The Flight Attendant by Chris Bohjalian. I’d give a slight edge to The Woman in the Window, because I thought the psychology and motivation of the main character was more gripping. Note: All books mentioned in … Read more

Do Tarot Cards Actually Work

What does work mean? Does it mean telling someone they’ll be rich or marry well? Many people wanted me to read their cards to learn just that. I always disappointed that group. Or does “work” mean that the Tarot offers another means of self-discovery? There are a couple of scenes in my novel Defiled: The … Read more

The Red Line Pamphlet: What was inside?

I promised to tell you in my last email—which if you haven’t read or don’t remember, here’s a link: What Happened Riding the Red Line from Harvard Square?—what was inside that booklet. I picked it up. Its title was something like An Introduction to B.O.T.A. I opened it and discovered that it was an offer—to … Read more