A Convict Constable's Journey by Liz Filleul

When I migrated from England to Australia in 1995, a friend recommended I read The Fatal Shore by Robert Hughes. It was a history book about the lives of convicts transported from Britain to Australia between 1787 and 1868. While reading this giant tome, I came across a reference to convict constables – convict men who’d behaved well on the voyage and were recruited as constables to help bolster the police force in the Australian colonies.

An avid reader and aspiring writer of crime fiction, I zoned in on this reference, thinking a convict constable would make a great character in a novel.

But more than 20 years went by before I created convict constable Will Grafton. And 30 years passed before he appeared in a book.

Looking back, I think the reason for this is twofold. First, I needed time to settle down in Australia before setting a book there. (The irony of this being that Will is completely new to Australia!) Second, my favourite crime novels in the late 1990s were feminist PI books – VI Warshawski, Kinsey Millhone, Kate Brannigan etc – and I was keen to create my own feisty female gumshoe. In around 2018, while researching for a different project, I came across a colonial-era news snippet that I thought could make the basis of a short historical crime story. I recalled that long-ago reference to convict constables, and after doing more research into the police in 1830s Hobart Town, Van Diemen’s Land (now Hobart, Tasmania), I had my investigator.

But what to do with the story once I’d written it? I was a ‘serial offender’ in Sisters in Crime Australia’s Scarlet Stiletto Awards (winner in 2004, runner-up in 2007, 2011 and 2016) for short crime stories, but the rules stipulated that the main character be female. So my usual hunting ground for short crime fiction was out. While browsing in the newsagent’s, I came across a copy of The People’s Friend Special, a magazine I remembered from growing up in England. Inside it was a pull-out eight-page mini-mag featuring what the magazine called a ‘cosy crime long read’. I bought the magazine, looked up the People’s Friend’s submission guidelines online, and decided that this was a good paid market for my convict constable story. I read a few more issues to get more of an idea of their very distinct style and tone before sitting down and writing ‘The Convict Constable’. I submitted it to The People’s Friend in 2019, it was accepted around three months later, and it was published in March 2020. I wrote two more convict constable stories for them, which were published in 2021 and 2022, called ‘Death Knock’ and ‘Dead Men Tell No Tales’. I was delighted when ‘Dead Men Tell No Tales’ was shortlisted for a Derringer Award in 2023.

Right from when I’d started writing ‘The Convict Constable’, I’d hoped that I’d have enough ideas to one day put together a book of short stories about Will Grafton. By mid-2024, I was getting closer to that goal. In addition to the three published stories, I had one that People’s Friend had rejected as being a tad too dark for them. I was halfway through writing another Will Grafton mystery and had ideas for a couple more.

Self-publishing was an option, but I decided to try the traditional route first. I contacted Lindy Cameron, owner of Australian small-press genre publisher Clan Destine Press, asking whether she’d be interested in publishing a book of seven convict constable short stories.

Lindy responded straightaway. Unknown to me, she had just established a new imprint, Crime Waves, for publishing short crime story collections. She said if I could put together the seven stories, she’d consider publishing them as a book.

I wrote the remaining stories over the Australian summer of 2024-25, submitted the book in April 2025, and Lindy accepted it in January this year.

Then came the challenge of tackling the continuity issues that showed up during the editing process.

The stories People’s Friend had published contained some necessary repetition – readers buying the magazine in 2022 might not have read the stories published in 2020 and 2021. Hence, each story introduced Will and recurring characters to the reader. But in a collection, all the reader had to do was turn the page, so that repetition needed to go.

Additionally, the original three stories took place in March, June and September 1838, creating natural space for Will’s relationships to develop. With the events of two new stories taking place in April and July, Will’s relationships, including his romance with a convict maid, needed to develop on the page.

Sentenced Beyond the Seas will be published this month and is available in both print and ebook format. I’m so looking forward to seeing Will’s adventures in book form!

I still write regularly for The People’s Friend, and have written over 50 stories, plus several serials for them since my first acceptance in 2019. They haven’t all been crime stories, but the majority have been. Other gumshoes I’ve created for The People’s Friend include 1950s London private detectives Jon Carew and Pat Ellicott, and a 1913 ‘lady detective’, English suffragette Drusilla Wade. In Drusilla, I finally have my (first-wave) feminist PI!

Sentenced Beyond the Seas can be preordered from Clan Destine Press at a 20% discount until September 13. https://www.clandestinepress.net/collections/our-books/products/sentenced-beyond-the-seas.

Liz Filleul is a British-Australian short story writer. She writes regularly for the UK women's magazine The People's Friend, and has also had stories published in Woman's World in the USA and Woman's Weekly in the UK. She won Sisters in Crime Australia's Scarlet Stiletto Award for short crime fiction in 2004, was runner-up in 2007, 2011 and 2016, won the Cross-Genre Award in 2011, and the Mystery With History Award in 2016 and 2025. She was also a finalist for the 2023 Derringer Award. She migrated to Australia from the UK in 1995, after meeting her Australian husband while backpacking in Tasmania.

Dolly Parton by Teresa Inge

I first discovered Dolly Parton watching The Porter Wagoner Show with my mother, who never missed an episode. Dolly arrived as the “new girl singer” after Jeannie Seely left for her solo career, and from that moment, my mother and I were hooked. Dolly sang like an angel and delivered jokes with a sharp, playful wit that made us laugh out loud.

I thought she was hilarious—bold, raw, and unafraid to poke fun at herself. In many ways, she reminded me of my mother, who grew up poor in the country with a house full of siblings, one faded dress, worn‑out school shoes, and barely enough food. Yet my mother was a natural storyteller and gifted joke‑teller. Watching Dolly felt like watching a piece of her—tiny, funny, beautiful, and determined to make people smile.

An American Story 
Dolly’s life has always been an American story—raw talent, relentless drive, and a joy that came from her heart. Raised in a two‑room cabin with no running water or electricity in Tennessee’s Great Smoky Mountains, she grew up in a large family where money was scarce, but music was abundant. With a preacher for a grandfather, faith shaped her world as much as song. On that humble porch, singing to anyone who’d listen, she began honing the voice that would one day captivate millions.

Early Singing Career 
By ten, she was performing on local radio and TV. The day after high school graduation, she headed to Nashville to chase her dream. Her big break came in the late 1960s on The Porter Wagoner Show, as mentioned earlier. Though Porter later sued her for leaving, Dolly never denied her gratitude for the opportunity. Still, she had bigger ambitions and wanted a solo career on her own terms.

Songs from the heart 
Her storytelling reshaped country music. Songs like “Jolene,” “Coat of Many Colors,” and “I Will Always Love You” came from personal truth. She wrote about  

working women in “9 to 5,” suicide in “The Bridge,” and the grief of a stillborn child in “Down from Dover,” subjects many artists avoided.

Film Star and Philanthropist
Her success stretched far beyond music. She became a film star in 9 to 5 and Steel Magnolias, a businesswoman who built Dollywood, and a philanthropist whose Imagination Library has gifted over 200 million books to children worldwide. Her generosity in literacy and disaster relief earned her global admiration.

Despite her fame, she stayed grounded, crediting her upbringing for her resilience and creativity. Her signature style—big hair, bright clothes, and sparkling humor—reflected her belief that life should be lived boldly and joyfully.

The Passing of an Icon 
After her passing last week, the world continues to mourn a cultural icon. Her life remains a testament to authenticity and kindness, showing how a girl from the Smoky Mountains could inspire and uplift hearts around the world.

More Memes for Musing Readers and Writers from Molly MacRae

 A few things to make you think or smile.

Image by Molly MacRae

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Image by Molly MacRae

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Molly MacRae writes the Haunted Shell Shop Mysteries, the Highland Bookshop Mysteries, and the award-winning, national bestselling Haunted Yarn Shop Mysteries. Visit Molly on Facebook and Pinterest, connect with her on Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky. 

Checking Out Libraries by Mary Dutta

My local library branch is closed for a year for renovations. It’s a temporary situation, but losing that access has me thinking about all the wonderful time I’ve spent in libraries over the years.

I grew up in a town with a Carnegie library. It was a red brick building built in 1904, with a Civil War-era cannon out front. That library played a crucial role in making me the avid reader I remain. I remember the summer reading programs and the gradual graduation from the children’s room in the basement to the adult shelves upstairs. I still know my library card number: 206F.

My college and graduate school years in New York City had me doing a lot of research at the main branch of the New York Public Library on Fifth Avenue. That’s the one with the famous lions, Patience and Fortitude, flanking the steps. In those days, paper call slips whooshed through pneumatic tubes to the vast stacks, and the requested books would be delivered to the stately and stunning main reading room.  

I passed my love of libraries on to my kids. First in Boston and then in Virginia, our local libraries played a prominent role in their growing up. They proudly signed up for their first library cards, participated in their own summer reading programs, and loaded up at the annual book sales.

Here in Alabama, I take advantage of all my county system has to offer. One branch holds the biggest selection of travel books. Another has a peaceful forest setting. A third has the best friends-of-the-library bookstore. While my closest option is closed, there are still plenty of welcoming spaces available for a book lover like me.

I was a reader long before I was a writer, and I owe much of that identity to the libraries that shaped me. They have changed over time, in more ways than one. My hometown library quadrupled in size after I left, and the NYPL finally retired its pneumatic system in favor of an all-electronic one about ten years ago. I know my local branch will be a bit different when it reopens next summer, but it will always be a home for me.

How important are libraries in your own life?

What's Not to Like? by Lori Roberts Herbst

Truth is, I don’t find perfect people too interesting—though to be fair, I’ve never known any.

Nor do I care for the righteous, holier-than-thou types.

And don’t bother me with a syrupy sweet goody goody who can do no wrong.

I like ‘em flawed and funny and smart. And apparently, so do most of us.
 
Authors, and especially series writers, understand the importance of a “likable” protagonist. If readers are going to continue to follow a character through book after book, they need to feel an affinity for the person and a desire to spend time with her. But what exactly defines “likability”? For me, at least, it’s not what you might think…

Here are a few examples. One of my all-time favorite TV characters is Dr. Gregory House, played brilliantly by Hugh Laurie. The character’s arrogance is boundless, as is his self-absorption. He verbally bludgeons employees and rarely exhibits kindness or compassion. At first glance—and even under deeper scrutiny—the man appears to be the antithesis of likability.

But we do grow to like him. We admire his intelligence, his skill, his abilities, and the fact that he uses those talents for good instead of evil. We enjoy his acerbic wit. And though he doesn’t display it in an obvious way, House is loyal to people he cares about. A brief scene every so often convinces us that within that tortured soul beats a good heart, and we stick with him in anticipation of its continuing emergence. (Side note: Did you know House is the medical mirror image of Sherlock Holmes? Until recently, I didn’t, but in hindsight, it’s obvious. House/Holmes. Wilson/Watson. Keen powers of deduction. Drug addiction. Residence at 221B Baker Street. Face palm. How did I miss these connections?)

I’ve also fallen in love with Lucas Davenport, the protagonist of John Sandford’s Prey series. Though Lucas softens emotionally as the series progresses, he is a fundamentally aggressive vigilante cop who believes the end justifies the means. But the “end” always occurs in the service of justice, so readers can support him when he takes the law into his own hands. Plus, the man is witty and charming. What’s not to love?

Same with Sue Grafton’s private eye Kinsey Millhone. We admire her intelligence, her cleverness, her loyalty—and her quirks. She is far from perfect, far from sweet, and a bit damaged by her past. But she strives for insight, and she journeys toward what is right, good, and fair.

When I consider the real world, it’s much the same. The people I’m drawn to exhibit depth, eccentricity, and passion. Though I would cringe if they went around killing criminals in the name of justice, I can sense that potential in many of them (you know who you are). I like them not because they’re perfect, but because they’re always trying to be better. And they have a sense of humor. For me, that’s critical.

Following my analysis of likability, I re-examined the protagonist of my own Callie Cassidy Mysteries, as well as Shelley Shore, protagonist of the upcoming Seahorse Bay Mysteries. I’m pleased to say that I believe they fit the bill. I find them tenacious, humorous, flawed, and interesting. They have made—and will continue to make—mistakes, but they own those mistakes and strive for personal growth. Their friends and families rally around them and genuinely like them. As do I.

I hope readers like them, too.

How do you define likability in characters? Who are some of your favorites?

The Callie Cassidy Mystery series is available on Amazon Kindle, Kindle Unlimited, and paperback.

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Lori Roberts Herbst writes the Callie Cassidy Mysteries, a cozy mystery series set in Rock Creek Village, Colorado, and the soon-to-be-released Seahorse Bay Mysteries, set in a Texas cruise port town. To find out more and to sign up for her newsletter, go to www.lorirobertsherbst.com 

Literary Chronological Confusion, Oh My! By Susan Van Kirk

 

This is a blog post guaranteed to confuse you. I’m already confused, and I’m the writer. (Also, this post has spoilers if you haven’t read the Endurance mysteries but plan to.)

When I began writing my Endurance mystery series about Grace Kimball, a retired English teacher, it began with Three May Keep a Secret, and the setting was the small town of Endurance from July through October of 2011. So far, so good. Unlike other writers who knew about series arcs, I simply wrote one book and hoped it would sell. It did. Now what?

I decided if I were going to write a series, I would challenge my mind with something different in each book. The second story was a novella called The Locket, so I had to figure out how to write a novella. Marry in Haste, the third story and second novel, had a double plot, a bit over one hundred years apart, and now I had to scratch my head with how to intertwine the plots and imagine an Endurance in 1893 and 2012. This led to book four, Death Takes No Bribes, where I took Grace back to the high school where she taught and from which she retired. In book five, The Witch’s Child, I moved into the paranormal. Totally different. That story ended with Jeff Maitlin, whom Grace met in book one, asking her to marry him. The most recent book, Fabric of Lies, had Jeff and Grace married, a decidedly different vibe when it came to the relationships among the characters. Whew! But it also had two flashback chapters where readers met her deceased first husband, Roger. Oh, he was alive back then. By the end of this novel, it was only the summer of 2014. Six stories took place in four years. I think people in Endurance should have moved elsewhere with all those murders.

Now what? Time to really confuse my mind with a new adventure that would have to fit around the framework of the years I’ve created with the series. I’m writing two more novellas to fit with The Locket, and I’ll publish them myself in one book this fall. It will be called From the Casebook of TJ Sweeney and will have three of her cases, ending with The Locket. Stupidly, I didn’t write these in chronological order, so that’s where the confusion begins.

The third novella, “The Locket,” is already written and published only as an ebook. The second novella will take place during TJ Sweeney’s twentieth high school reunion. TJ graduated from high school in 1989, college in 1993, became a police officer shortly after that, and a detective in 2000. (This means she is in college when Fiona Mackenzie is born, leading to the story of The Witch’s Child.)

This second novella is called “Two Graves.” High school reunions are often bittersweet, but TJ’s sets in motion a dangerous plot. Gosh, not everyone liked their high school experience, did they? This novella will take place before any of the Endurance novels. That’s easy to keep straight.

I was halfway through the second novella about the class reunion when I realized The Depot, a restaurant run by Grace’s former students, Abbey and Camilla, had not opened yet. So, I had to remove that and change my restaurant to a pizza place called the Saucy Slice. And how old was Grace in 2009? She hadn’t retired yet, nor had she met Jeff Maitlin. Were her children still at home? No, the third child left in 1998. Had “The Locket” happened yet? No, it was two years later. See how complicated it can become when you go back in a series instead of straight forward?

Time out for a time check. “The Locket” takes place in November 2011. That means it fits right between Three May Keep a Secret in July 2011 and Marry in Haste in January 2012.

I have no title yet for the third novella, which will be the first story in the book. It’s a prequel because it takes place in TJ’s third semester of college, which would be fall to winter, 1991. (About this time Conrad Folger and Emily Peterson got married, setting up the disaster that will result in Marry in Haste.) In 1991, Grace is still teaching but all three of her children are in junior high and high school. This means I’ll have to imagine them since they’ve only been mentioned in the novels. TJ has left Endurance for the state university and is known as Theresa Sweeney. She’s an English Literature major, hoping to follow in Grace’s footsteps and become a college professor of English.

What?

Then how did she become TJ Sweeney, renowned Endurance police detective? This novella will answer that question.

If I’m correct on all these dates, here’s the order: “Unnamed college story” is in Fall 1991;“Two Graves” the second novella, is in Summer 2009; Three May Keep a Secret takes place in July 2011; “The Locket” is in November 2011; Marry in Haste is in January 2012; Death Takes No Bribes is in early March 2012; The Witch’s Child is in May 2012; and Fabric of Lies is in Summer 2014.

 

Right now I have five different documents containing timelines. I think it may be time to put them all together. Do you ever notice errors writers make in their books because they’re off on a date or time?

Susan Van Kirk is the author of six Endurance Mysteries beginning with Three May Keep a Secret. Her standalone mystery, A Death at Tippitt Pond, was followed by the Art Center Mysteries beginning with Death in a Pale Hue. The third book of the trilogy was nominated for the Anthony Award for Best Paranormal Mystery of 2025. She is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and is past president of the Guppy Chapter of SinC. Her website: susanvankirk.com

The Layers of Revising

by Maddie Day/Edith Maxwell

I’m beginning the last month of revising my 41^st mystery, due October 1, so I thought I’d talk about what that whole process is like for me.

All writers know that finishing the first draft is only the beginning. I plot very little, and I like to charge through the first draft and get the story onto the page. To that end, I leave lots of notes to myself in square brackets throughout the manuscript to check for facts, for research, for consistency with earlier books in the series. My first revision pass is going through and resolving all those.

Then I do passes for plot holes, sometimes writing several new scenes to flesh out an idea or a subplot. I go through the book checking each scene for hooks at the start and end. I make another pass to make sure I have brought in all the senses, but only in the service of the story. I print out the book and read straight through, marking up whatever I notice, then I put in all my green-in self-edits. I see things so differently on paper than on the screen. For me, this is a valuable and necessary step.

I check for elegant language, again only in the service of the story, and make sure any descriptions of people relate to who they really are. And I run a spelling and grammar check.

All that happened a month ago. When the book is as polished as it can be – or when my eyes glaze over as I’m looking at it – I send it off to an excellent independent editor (Amy in Wisconsin).

She returns it with changes and suggestions marked in Track Changes, and she also includes an editorial letter. The letter includes all the hard stuff: “We need more about what happened to Bella.” “We need more about the beef between Stu and Rick.” “Deanna feels a bit underutilized.” “We need more interaction with the Broads and Michelle.” And so on. Amy asks questions and sometimes makes suggestions on how to implement the comment. 

My process is first to go through the Track Changes stuff. I work in Scrivener, so I have the Word document open next to my Scrivener project for the book. As I go, I knock off all the easy fixes, things like the wrong name, adding missing quotation marks, clarifying language, and other bits.

Then I take a deep breath and start addressing the harder edits. What was Rick’s reason for being angry, anyway? I have no idea, but I either have to come up with one or change/remove the scene where he’s irate. And on and on.

What I’ll be doing in the next month is the hardest part of the whole process. The book is done. I’m ready to move on to the next one. Any big changes I make can ripple through the story. I often have to dig deep to figure out how to address each issue. 

I’m sure it’s hard partly because I didn’t do this work before I started writing, as some authors do. I know my protagonist pretty well, but I might not have spent enough time getting acquainted with my villains and other major cast characters. This particular book, Ruthie Drew Cleans Up, is also the first in a new series, so it’s necessary work.

But I can do it. I have a month left before the due date, and except for a few quick family visits (occasional Grammy day care with my grandgirl, which I love), I don’t have any travel or book events scheduled for September. I know I can meet my deadline by showing up for work every day by seven.

After I turn in the book to my Kensington Publishing editor, I might receive a few high-level comments from him, but for some books he simply writes, “It looks great. No changes needed. I’ve put through the payment.” Yay! A few months later I’ll get copyedits, and sometime after that proof pages to pore over and make last-chance tiny fixes (but nothing that would cause page numbers to change).

I go through this process for every book I write. It happened a year ago for my new book, Murder at the Toy Soldier.Despite all these passes and eyeballs on the manuscript, someone (often my keen-eyed sister in Ottawa) invariably reports a typo or a consistency error. Gah. I’m grateful my editor is willing to make the change in the ebook and in the next printing. I haven’t heard of any errors yet for the new book, which released last week. Fingers crossed!

Readers: Do you report errors in books to the author? Authors, how do you feel about being notified of a flaw in your beloved book that you worked so hard on? Is your editing process appreciably different from mine?

Murder at the Toy Soldier: Cape Cod bike shop owner Mac Almeida is extra busy during a cold, wet February as she and Tim do their best as working parents of a preschooler and a baby. With Ella’s fourth birthday approaching, Mac uses her lunch break to shop for a gift at the Toy Soldier. Behind the counter is Zia Carven, a young woman Mac recognizes. Mac finds a gift Ella will love and Zia offers to gift wrap it. Mac plans to pick it up after work, but when she returns, she finds Zia slumped over the counter, dead, with dried blood on a toy rifle nearby. 

Mac’s mother, Astra, confides that she’d been trying to help Zia, and now the police want to speak with her, which worries Mac. Then Mac discovers that Zia had been in town searching for her birth mother, which only multiplies the questions—and the suspects. One thing is certain: Mac and the Cozy Capers book group will have to double down to find a killer who isn’t playing around . . .

Maddie Day writes the Cozy Capers Book Group Mysteries, the Cece Barton Mysteries, and the Dot and Amelia Mysteries. As Agatha-Award winning Edith Maxwell, she writes Agatha Award-winning historical mysteries and Agatha-nominated short crime fiction. She’s a member of MWA and a proud lifetime member of Sisters in Crime. Day/Maxwell lives north of Boston with her beau and their cat Martin, where she writes, cooks, gardens, wastes time on Facebook, and delights in Grammy duties. Find Edith and Maddie at mysteryloverskitchen.com and at edithmaxwell.com.

The lady doth protest too much, methinks

By James M. Jackson

“The lady doth protest too much, methinks.”
~ Queen Gertrude in Hamlet, Act III, Scene II

I teach a two-week class on story structure. One of the key early lessons is that every good story has two parallel structures: one for plot and the other for character development. Today, I want to talk about character development.

I’ve always been jaded at protestations by politicians about how bad or evil someone else or some other group is. It seems to me that more often than not, fear-mongering or hate is as much inner-directed as directed toward the “offensive” individual or group.

Without naming names, recall the politicians who have been most vituperative describing homosexuals, who were themselves gay. Those most praising the sanctity of marriage were serial philanderers. Those loudest about the need to drain the swamp of corruption are the most corrupt.

Those are perhaps egregious examples of politicians gaslighting the public to hide their misdeeds. Somewhat more subtle are individuals who state what they in fact believe, but they increase their intensity because they know they exhibit the same characteristics they wish to eliminate in the world.

That understanding has taught me to listen carefully when someone sounds off because it can provide clues about what things they don’t like about themselves. This applies equally to people and fictional characters.

It took me a while, but I realized Niki often espoused her appreciation for teamwork and lambasting those who looked out primarily for their own best interests. She points to her participation in team sports, particularly her college championship softball team, on which she played second base, to demonstrate that she practices what she preaches.

And yet, softball is one of the most individualistic team sports. Yes, teamwork is required to turn a double play or to sacrifice bunt or hit behind the runner. But it’s you as the batter against the pitcher and catcher; it’s you who has to catch the ball. Her other high-school team involved target shooting—again a solo event.

She joined one of the most team-oriented law-enforcement agencies in the world—the FBI—and became an undercover operator. She relied on the team—until she went undercover. Then, she was by herself and wanted it just that way.

In Niki Unbound, the final book in the Niki Undercover Thriller trilogy, she learns of a plot to kill the president and disrupt the presidential succession. And she cannot stop it herself. If the enemy is to be defeated, it will require a team's coordinated skills and actions. This realization means Niki must address part of her shadow that she has danced around and actively tried to suppress: she does not trust other people to the extent necessary to be a true team player.

Her challenge in this story is to find some way to change so that when the pressure becomes intense, she maintains her trust in her team. Or will she revert to what’s worked for forty years and go it alone?

Sound interesting? Niki Unbound is available in paperback, Kindle (and free to read on Kindle Unlimited), and as an audiobook on Audible.

Have you ever caught yourself protesting a little too loudly against something you quietly recognize in yourself? For me, it’s lamenting people wasting money on crap with no value other than a quick endorphin boost. Any confessions?

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James M. Jackson writes justice-driven thrillers with brains and bite, including the Niki Undercover Thriller trilogy and the Seamus McCree series. To learn more information about Jim and his books, check out his website, https://jamesmjackson.com. You can sign up for his newsletter (and get a novella and two free short stories featuring his protagonists).