Every mystery starts with a question. This one started with a conversation that made me wonder: What was a close community of Iranians doing in Colombia?
In Dog of Secrets, you can expect a mystery with international stakes, a grieving young man forced to become a hero, and of course Rochester’s remarkable nose for trouble.
If you’ve already preordered, thank you. I hope you’ll spend some time with Steve and Rochester this week, and if you enjoy the book, a review on Amazon or Goodreads makes a tremendous difference in helping other readers discover the series.
My brain is like a short-wave radio constantly set to receive incoming transmissions. Ideas pop into my head while I’m driving, reading, talking to people, or listening to podcasts. Lately I’ve been pool-walking, crossing the pool in our community back and forth for a half-hour at a time.
The idea for Dog of Secrets came from a conversation with another author. He had an idea for a big thriller, but because the problem was so large, with no one person or organization behind it, he was stymied.
One part was about Iranian expats living in a community in Colombia, involved somehow in oil export. I don’t know why, but “Iranians in Colombia” sparked something in my brain. Instead of a big international thriller like the other author was planning, I realized I could move one family to Stewart’s Crossing and have danger follow them there.
Dog of Secrets is a larger book in some ways than the other golden retriever mysteries, because it connects to an oil-trading scheme. But it’s really about character and Rochester’s ability to nose out clues Steve and Rick can use.
I’ve become increasingly interested in the challenges many young men face today, and as I developed the plot another piece fell into place. A young man whose world had shrunk to computer games and his parents’ home, suddenly forced by tragedy to confront the outside world and uncover the truth about their murders.
(Remember my gaming background? I created my own game for this young man to be playing, which gives him the skills he needs to investigate.)
It brings in father-son issues, which is another theme of mine. It gave me the chance to do research, which I love, and understand the motivations of many different people, some of them good, some bad.
This is the way ideas come to me, in bits and pieces until I can fit them into a coherent plot. I often have multiple ideas floating around at once, waiting for more puzzle pieces to show up.
Right now I have ideas for two more golden mysteries, another Ormond Yard historical MM romance, and two more bodyguard books. I also have the next Smiling Dog Café book in second draft, and as soon as I get K-Pop Double Life off to my editor, I’ll dive into that, giving it one more polish before I send it to Randall for his review.
I’m delighted that so many of you have pre-ordered it and also bought the special edition through Curios. I loved the process of putting together the extras in that edition, and I hope to keep doing that for future books.
I’ll keep the Curios link up for another week in case a reader wants the special extras— the map, the Stewart’s Crossing background and the exclusive short story. I’m also making the e-book available on multiple vendors for those who prefer not to deal with Amazon.
In the fall, I’ll shut down those other sellers and move the book into Kindle Unlimited.
If you haven’t picked up your copy yet, today’s the day. I hope you’ll enjoy Steve and Rochester’s newest adventure.
With love and gratitude,
Neil