It was the Golden Age mysteries of Ngaio Marsh that first piqued my curiosity about New Zealand. How could someone who wrote like Agatha Christie come from a country so foreign fromRead More…
One-Bite Mysteries: 2019 Short Stories
This has been a year for stories! Left Coast Crime, a favorite conference of Sisters In Crime’s Northern California chapter, took us north across the border this year to Vancouver. I metRead More…
Fault Lines: Stories by Northern California Crime Writers
It’s here! Sisters in Crime’s NorCal branch has published their (our) first-ever anthology — Fault Lines: Stories by Northern California Crime Writers — and I’m delighted that my story “Birdbrain” is inRead More…
Celebrating the New Year with Stories, Theater, Blossoms, & Kumquats
On this bright cold morning after a night of firecrackers (and a dusting of snow!), warm wishes to you for a happy Year of the Pig. So far I’m liking 2019. FebruaryRead More…
Thoughts on The Undoing Project and New Year’s Resolutions
With 2019 approaching, I’ve been immersed in a book about how people make decisions: The Undoing Project, by Michael Lewis. He’s the author of Moneyball. You remember the Oakland A’s, back inRead More…
Mutabilis: The Rose and Edward Gorey
by CJ Verburg Rosa Mutabilis (Chinensis): one of my favorite flowers, from the SF Botanical Garden’s wonderful plant shop. Yesterday, after weeks, two green teardrops swelled into tight yellow buds. This morningRead More…
Disarmed: a Free Edgar Rowdey Cape Cod story!
If you have friends who love a good “smart cozy” mystery, my Edgar Rowdey Cape Cod novels Croaked and Zapped might be exactly the holiday gift you’re looking for. You can findRead More…
See You on Cape Cod – August 3-9
When I lived on Cape Cod, an off-and-on adventure beginning in my 20s, summer started out as beach-and- party season and wound up as dodge-the-tourists season. Nowadays it’s my annual chance toRead More…
12Jun/18
Deadly AMAZON, the G7 Summit, and David Brooks
Beware tech-company claims of respect for privacy! I was staggered to learn from a Goodreads e-mail that I’m reading a book called Mona Lisa Eyes. NOT!!! I spotted the title in myRead More…
Bathtub Gin on Broadway: A Night in the Roaring ’20s at SF’s The Speakeasy
“You have a watch repair appointment tomorrow night.” That’s the first cryptic message slipped through my cyber-mail slot by The Speakeasy. It’s a reminder that this is Prohibition we’re stepping into. FromRead More…