Saturday, August 25, 2012

Bye-Bye Mykonos

It’s a sad time for me.  Shouldn’t be.  September and October on Mykonos are by far the most beautiful time, crowds are gone, anxieties of the season are past, and life has returned to a pace dictated by the locals, not a tsunami of tourists. 

But for me things will be different.  For the first time in thirty years I will not be on Mykonos in September. 

I will be back in the US on book tour for Target: Tinos.  Not that I mind book tours.  I love them.  Just not in September and October, unless it’s a signing at an Aegean bookstore, taverna, or bar. 
Mykonos Bookshop signing
Perhaps it’s fated by the gods.  Besides I know it will be a blast.  How could it not be? After all, it kicks off September 7th with a double bill, one night only performance by the peripatetic Tim Hallinan and yours truly at Janet Rudolph’s Mystery Readers Salon in Berkeley, California.  Tickets on sale now.  And during the first week of October I’ll get to visit with most of my MIE buddies at the Bouchercon mystery convention in Cleveland, Ohio.  Yes, Cuyahoga County is not quite an Aegean island, but it does have Lake Erie.
Not Cleveland
Anyway, I’ll spare you further details of my book tour as they’re posted on my website. 

But I won’t spare you what I’ll be missing most:
Inland Mykonos landscape
Neighboring Naxos


The land, the sea, and most of all, my Mykoniate friends…for tomorrow I must fly away.
 Yiasas.

Jeff—Saturday

29 comments:

  1. Bad for you that you miss Mykonos at such a wonderful time of the year. Good for me that you are because I'll get to see you at The Poisoned Pen!

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  2. Now that's a reason for me to rejoice, Cathy!! Looking forward to it.

    PS. Terrific choice of books for your photo!

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  3. Parting is such sweet sorrow. See you in NYC tomorrow!

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    1. I purposely put up all those photos, Annamaria, so you'd recognize your stalker. Looking forward to seeing you in the City.

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  4. We're really going to miss you here in September, Jeff. But fear not, we'll update you with tidbits of info as to the goings on in your absence. Now, about those last photos: seeing you boarding your flight leads me to think I've been undercharging you, big time!!! Travel safely, my friend, you will be missed in the coming weeks!

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  5. Will miss you guys, too. As for the overcharging, well what can I say. I learned to dress down so as to throw off the tax collector little realizing how well it worked in bars.

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    1. Well you just know you'll be missed but all the more reason to look forward to Autumn in the Cyclades in 2013

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  6. Trust me, John, no more book tours between May 1 and October 31.

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  7. Ken and I will keep Mykonos and the Aegean warm for you in Oct. in your absence....Have a great book tour and we will see you in NYC before 2013! Hugs....

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    1. Thanks, guys, and I will definitely miss our nights of you guys singing and me drinking. It brought a sort or order to the world.

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  8. Wish the Pacific Northwest was on your tour route but I've checked your website and see that it isn't. Guess we will just have to meet you in Mykonos next year!

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  9. Well, Mykonos' loss is my gain, Jeff -- see you in San Francisco. Do you know anything about what's expected of us at Janet's? Oh, and what colors will you be wearing?

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  10. Bummer, no visit to the Pacific Northwest. But on the positive side, I don't have to worry about color coordination like Tim does...

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  11. Jackie, Joel and Everett, I had every intention of coming to the glorious Seattle Mystery Bookstore as I have done every year, but when my daughter's June wedding forced me to switch my book tour to September, JB--who owns the shop and is a terrific guy--thought that it was "too late" to host a signing for a book that came out in June. That's why he didn't reschedule and I won't be in Seattle this year. Of course, all that occurred before Marilyn Stasio chose "Target: Tinos" as a NYT pick of the summer (he said snidely), so please feel free to call SMB and ask "Why isn't Siger coming to your shop in September?":)

    And, Tim, puce with persimmon accents should do nicely. That way no matter what we do (of which I have no idea but I'm toying with bringing along my harmonica), it will be a guaranteed big improvement over first impressions.

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  12. Will do my best to see you and Tim at Janet Rudolphs!!
    But definitely at Bcon!

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  13. Come on, Cara, show up at Janet's. That the only chance we'll have for an MIE'er to look good in the colors!

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  14. Bon voyage and, as we say in South Africa, hamba kahle - go well.

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  15. Jeff, due to my committment to a panel at the Western History Association meeting I can't go to Bouchercon. The MIE panel was one of my favorites at St. Louis.

    Darn! Too many places. Too little time.

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  16. And I shall miss you, Charlotte, as you're one of my favorites everywhere!

    But WHA shall certainly profit form Bouchercon's loss.

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  17. Have a good tour. Try not to have too much fun :) Mykonos will be there for you when you get back, as beautiful as ever.

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    1. Thanks, Lil, but it's not how Mykonos will be when I get back that worries me--the island is always beautiful--it's me:)

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  18. A few weeks of rest recreation, and you will be as lovely as ever too.

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    1. Blush...blush...eyelash flutter...Ahh shucks, thanks, Lil:)

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  19. Oh, you poor dear! How will you manage amidst all your (other) adoring fans? P.S. Will you be anywhere near D.C. this time?

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    1. It appears my efforts at fishing for compliments worked a heck of a lot better than my chasing tsipura with a speargun. Thanks, Supriya, and I'm still waiting to hear from Barnes & Noble in Reston, Virginia. I've been there two years in a row, but in light of cutbacks, who knows?

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  20. Are you coming to the UK by any chance?

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    1. I don't know if you received my direct response, Junying, but I'd love to. Just not sure when. Hopefully in the Spring, though I used to spend Christmases in Castle Combe. Nothing like it anywhere. Fond memories.

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  21. Right now I'm re-reading "Little Drummer Girl," so my Mykonos vision is temporarily skewed by being on the other side of the 35-year looking glass.

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  22. LOL, Knute. Sorry didn't get back to you sooner but your comment posted while I was in the air and jet lag kept me out of working order for the next day. Le Carre, huh. Can't go wrong with him...to say the least. And as for LDG, well I think it's safe to say that all sides of that spy thriller gem would feel right at home on Mykonos in August today. Dressed differently, of course.

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