Rebecca M. Douglass, Author

This is book #7 in the "Murder Most Unladylike" mystery series, and while the series at least began as children's books, they are murder mysteries, and our main characters are growing up. I'm happy to see that they seem to have stopped renaming--and maybe "translating"?--the books for US audiences. Title: Death in the Spotlight Author: Robin Stevens Publication Info: 2018, Puffin Books. 400 pages Source: Library Publisher's Blurb: 'The whole theatre seemed on edge. There was a feverish atmosphere seeping into every corner of the Rue, as though the whole cast was sickening. Daisy and I both knew that something was brewing.' Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong are off to the beautiful Rue Theatre in London, where they will face an entirely new challenge: acting. But behind the theatre's glittering facade, the girls soon realise that there is trouble at the Rue. Jealousy, threats and horrible pranks quickly spiral out of control - and then one of

Way back in August (remember August, month of heat and smoke?), I spent 8 days hiking the Pacific Crest Trail through Washington's Alpine Lakes Wilderness. Last weekend, I finally finished editing the photos. Here's Part 1 of the report, the first 2 days (and 20 miles), from my trailhead at Surprise Creek to Peggy's Pond up on the shoulder of Mt. Daniel.  I was basically picking up the PCT where I left off... in 1990. I did shorten it a bit, starting at Surprise Creek instead of climbing up the ski slopes at Stevens Pass (I hiked most if not all of that trail at one point or another back in the late '80s). This bought me a day to use later in the trip for more fun stuff. Day 1: Surprise Creek TH to Glacier Lake Loaded up and ready to go! Photo by Tom Dempsey, www.photoseek.com My brother- and sister-in-law drove me to the trailhead and hiked the first couple of miles with me. Corn lilies along the trail. About 5 miles in the Surprise Creek trail intersects the PCT. The

I'm most of a day late with my Wednesday post for the simple reason that I lost track of the days again. This is a nice problem to have, especially as it's because I'm back on the road again, this time hanging in Maine with a friend, enjoying the fall colors (but that overnight flight cost me a day, somehow. Not sure how that worked...). In any case, it's time for my annual (more or less) post about preparing for NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) and plotting vs. pantsing. In so many aspects of my life, I like to fly by the seat of my pants. On my recent road trip, I seldom knew where I would stop until I got there. Even while backpacking in the Sawtooth Mountains of Idaho, I didn't try to stick too closely to a plan, going instead where it seemed to make sense given the weather (on other sorts of trips, I do like to know exactly where I'm going and why, but that's a different story). We've been here before, though. Writing a mystery with no plan

  Jemima Pett has been hosting the SpaceTime Reading Challenge for a few years now, and I keep signing up and then losing track. If you are a SF fan, like a little mind-bending time travel now and then, or just want to find out if you do, sign up and jump in. I recommend following jemimapett.com for ideas about what to read--I've gotten a lot of good tips from her reviews! Sign up here --it's never too late. The SpaceTime Reading Challenge #spacetimereads You can read any book that is from the science fiction/time-travel genres. Any sub-genres are welcome as long as they incorporate one of these genres.  Non-fiction is not included in this challenge. You don’t need a blog to participate but you do need a place to post your reviews (even one-liners) to link up. (blog, Goodreads, booklikes, shelfari, etc.) Make a goal post and link it back here with your goal for this challenge. Books need to be novellas or novels, although anthologies count if they meet the pag

Yesterday I played hooky from my writing and went for a little hike to see the fall colors. The weather gods granted us a perfect day. I picked up my brother-in-law at 7 a.m. It was barely light at that hour, as fog had settled on Seattle. I wondered if we were crazy, but figured the vine maple and other colorful vegetation would still be visible, even if we didn't get good views. After an hour's drive, we started up the Granite Peak trail at 8:20 a.m. It was chilly enough I wore a sweatshirt for at least the first 15 minutes of the hike.  Sun and mist. The first visual reward came within minutes of the start. We reached the sun and the color about the same time. The morning dew still shone on the leaves. After a couple of miles--and a couple of thousand feet of climbing--we broke out pretty much above tree line. Here, the color came from huckleberries (mountain blueberries) and other alpine shrubs. Before the final climb, we got a pleasant surprise--not just Mt. Rainier, but a

It's the first Wednesday of the month, and that means it's time for our IWSG post!       Why? The IWSG is here to share and encourage, to offer a place for authors to admit their insecurities and offer help and support to each other. How? The official IWSG posting day is the first Wednesday of every month. Hop around the list and see who has worries, triumphs, and news to share.  Every month we have an optional question to spark discussion.  Our motto:  Let’s rock the neurotic writing world! Our Twitter handle is @TheIWSG and hashtag is #IWSG. The awesome co-hosts for the October 4   posting of the IWSG are  Natalie Aguirre,   Kim Lajevardi,   Debs Carey,   Gwen Gardner,   Patricia Josephine,  and, well, ME! October 4 question: The topic of AI writing has been heavily debated across the world. According to various sources, generative AI will assist writers, not replace them. What are your thoughts? I really don't have much to say in regards to the optional question,

I just didn't have time in my busy travel schedule to read this, though it sounds very promising. I did manage to squeeze out time to get main character Nic Earp to introduce herself and tell how she came into being! Reading, Writing, and Murder (Chocolate Martini Sisters Mystery) by Brenda Whiteside and Joyce Proell About Reading, Writing, and Murder Reading, Writing, and Murder (Chocolate Martini Sisters Mystery) Cozy Mystery 2nd in Series Setting – Wyatt, Arizona (fictitious setting) Independently Published (September 19, 2023) Print length ‏ : ‎ 273 pages Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0C4G6GZLN At the writers’ conference, murder tops the program. Aspiring mystery author Emma Banefield and travel writer Nicole Earp are excited to attend a writers’ conference during their latest sisters’ getaway. Nic’s birthday should be all about relaxation, writing, and a chocolate martini to toast another trip around the sun, but the climate at the gathering rumbles like a sudden dese