Author News & Interviews

Author Talk: Betty Webb, author of Desert Redemption: A Lena Jones Mystery

Mar 14, 2019

Betty Webb wraps up her Lena Jones mystery series with the release of its 10th installment, DESERT REDEMPTION, in which the Scottsdale private eye investigates the death of a woman that may lead her to some long-overdue answers about her troubled past. In this interview, Webb explains why she’s saying goodbye to Lena, who came to her in a dream 20 years ago; gives a shout-out to the crime fiction authors whose work inspired her to give novel-writing a try; previews a new series that she plans to begin following the completion of her current project; and talks about a shocking story she covered as a newspaper reporter that she wished she could’ve incorporated into one of her books but didn’t feel comfortable doing so.

Interview: Annie Ward, author of Beautiful Bad

Mar 7, 2019

BEAUTIFUL BAD is Annie Ward’s page-turning debut psychological thriller about a devoted wife, a loving husband and a chilling murder that no one saw coming. In this interview conducted by Michael Barson, the Director of Publicity at Poisoned Pen Press, Ward talks about her inspiration for writing in this genre; why she chose to set the novel in exotic and unusual locations like Sofia, Bulgaria, and Skopje, Macedonia; her decision to turn the book, which was originally intended to be a memoir, into a fictional thriller; why she made her story’s romantic love interest such an atypical figure; and her excitement over her next novel, which she is having a lot of fun writing, and the film adaptation of BEAUTIFUL BAD that is in the works.

Interview: W.K. Stratton, author of The Wild Bunch: Sam Peckinpah, a Revolution in Hollywood, and the Making of a Legendary Film

Feb 13, 2019

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the release of The Wild Bunch, which was named one of the greatest Westerns of all time by the American Film Institute. In his newly published book, THE WILD BUNCH, W.K. Stratton tells the fascinating history of the making of the movie, which was shaped by infamous director Sam Peckinpah and starred such visionary actors as William Holden, Ernest Borgnine, Edmond O'Brien and Robert Ryan. Michael Barson, the Director of Publicity at Poisoned Pen Press, talks with Stratton about his extensive research, which included interviews with many of the surviving cast and crew members; what he considers to be Peckinpah’s single most serious miscalculation in the making of the film; and why he is less than enthusiastic about its upcoming remake, which will be directed by Mel Gibson.

Interview: Matt Coyle, author of Wrong Light: A Rick Cahill Novel

Dec 12, 2018

Matt Coyle revived the Raymond Chandler hard-boiled PI model, set in today’s fancy (and seedy) side of San Diego and the adjacent affluent city, La Jolla. WRONG LIGHT has protagonist Rick Cahill mired in the perplexing case of a stalker homing in on sultry radio talk show host Naomi Hendrix. Meanwhile, Rick revisits Sergei Volkov and “the devil’s daughter,” Tatiana, leaders of San Diego’s Russian mafia. They offer a deal that Rick can’t refuse --- if he wants to live.

Rick pushes compatriot PI Moira MacFarlane’s friendship to the brink, yet feisty Moira doles out favors that Rick can never recompense. The multifaceted plot structure makes for one satisfying hard-boiled detective lore.

In this interview, Coyle chats with Bookreporter.com’s Dean Murphy about his appointment as upcoming Left Coast Crime Convention Toastmaster, Rick’s strained friendships, Russian collusion and the next Cahill adventure.

Interview: Diane Setterfield, author of Once Upon a River

Dec 4, 2018

Diane Setterfield is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of THE THIRTEENTH TALE and BELLMAN & BLACK. Her third novel, ONCE UPON A RIVER, is about the wrenching disappearance of three little girls and the wide-reaching effect it has on their small town. In this interview, conducted by The Book Report Network’s Rebecca Munro, Setterfield explains her inspiration for this richly imagined storyline; the role that the river Thames plays as a plot driver, the effects of which are felt by each and every character; and the research she conducted that allowed her to immerse herself in the time period in which the book is set (towards the end of the 19th century) and what she learned during the process that surprised her.