Metonyms

Lately I’ve been thinking metonyms, which is when a word or phrase represents something else. For example, when we say “Hollywood,” we are really talking about “the motion picture industry.” (Unless of course you’re talking about the city where I live in Florida!) Washington can be a metonym for the federal government. Madison Avenue means the advertising industry, and the British royal family is the Crown.

Often state slogans can be metonyms. For Pennsylvania, it’s the Keystone State; New York is the Empire State and New Jersey is the Garden State. Do you have a favorite metonym? Leave it in the comments!

Right now I’m waiting to get comments back from my editor on the next golden retriever mystery, Dog Grant Me. It’s about friend of Lili’s who comes to Eastern College to teach a short course on food anthropology. That’s the way that culture influences cuisine, which is a great connection to Lili’s background as a Jewish Cuban, or as we say in Miami, a Juban. It was a lot of fun to write.

While I wait, I’m working on the next Mahu book, Life of a Parent. Moms Sandra and Cathy are both away, so Kimo and Mike are taking care of the twin keikis, who are now young teens. This experience, and the death of a young tech entrepreneur, cause Kimo to think about fatherhood.

Just finished several books I enjoyed. Zara Keane’s Knifed in Nice had enough plot to cover multiple novels, which made for a fun, fast-paced read (free now at Amazon). And I’m a sucker for anything involving the south of France. Splinter Effect by Andrew Ludington is a time-travel mystery involving the menorah from Solomon’s Temple (I read an advanced copy; it’s not out until March 2025). If you’ve read The Graveyard of God’s Name (Have Body, Will Guard #12) you know I’m intrigued by Jewish historical artifacts.

The Drop by Dennis Lehane is a gritty crime novel that reminds me a lot of his early books about Patrick Kenzie and Angie Gennaro. It’s currently only $1.99 on Amazon, so a real bargain. Letters to Half-Moon Street by Sarah Wallace, is a charming, fluffy MM romance told in letters between various characters—an epistolary novel, if you want to get all English teacher about it. Also free on Amazon right now.

I’m starting a push into translations, so if you know people who read in other languages, I already have several, which you can see from the Translations page on my website. I hope you are all staying safe from the nasty weather, and my thoughts are with those who have come to harm.