Back to Paris for a book Birthday

It's that time of year. Tomorrow is a book birthday for the next Aimée Leduc investigation. Hard to believe this is #18 in the series.

So I'll take our yearly dispensation to give you a preview of Murder on the Left Bank.  It's September, 1999, unseasonably warm and as usual, there's a strike in Paris.  A dying man drags his oxygen machine into the office of Éric Besson, a lawyer in Paris’s 13th arrondissement.

The old man, an accountant, is carrying a dilapidated notebook full of meticulous investment records. For decades, he has been helping a cadre of dirty cops launder stolen money. The notebook contains his full confession—he’s waited 50 years to make it, and now it can’t wait another day. He is adamant that Besson get the notebook into the hands of La Proc, Paris’s chief prosecuting attorney, so the corruption can finally be brought to light. But en route to La Proc, Besson’s courier—his assistant and nephew—is murdered, and the notebook disappears. Aimée Leduc, now a maman with a baby, Chloé, runs a private detective agency specializing in computer security after vowing never to work criminal cases again.

Aimée's juggling work, her bébe and the man in her life when Eric Besson, her best friend's cousin begs for her help. This investigation puts her on a collision course with the “Hand," a cabal of corrupt Parisian cops among whose ranks her disgraced father may have once found membership. When a friend’s child is kidnapped while wearing her daughter’s hoodie, Aimée realizes that the case has crossed into the realm of the personal in more ways than one. From the 17th century Gobelins tapestry factory

 to a clue amid the street art of the 13th arrondissement, Aimée searches for answers.

I'm hitting the road on book tour and hope you'll drop by if I'm near you.

Cara - Tuesday

Thank You, Bouchercon, and Hello Book Tour

Jeff—Saturday

In an homage of sorts to Murder is Everywhere coming into being at a Bouchercon World Mystery Convention some half-dozen years back, during Bouchercon week (this year held in New Orleans) we get to put up our favorite posts from the past. It also allows us to spend more productive time at the convention hotel’s bar.

As it just so happens, ten days ago was the release date for my new Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis book, Santorini Caesars, and tomorrow marks the end of my second—and I promised Barbara my final—term as Chair of the National Board of Bouchercon.

So, instead of repeating a past post, I thought I’d instead take this opportunity to reflect on the past by thanking those I’ve served with on the Bouchercon National Board for their support and friendship in making my two years as National Chair a truly remarkable experience.

Yes, that's Zoë in the front row once again laughing at me.

To all these wonderful, all volunteer Bouchercon Board mates of mine, a sincere thank you from the very bottom of my deep, dark, murder-loving heart:

Al Abramson

JD Allen

Mike Bursaw

Stacey Cochran

Oline Cogdill

Janet Costello

Michele Drier

Heather Graham

Kim Hammond

Rae James

Jon Jordan

Ruth Jordan

Ali Karim

Don Longmuir

Dave Magayna

Erin Mitchell

Margory Mogg

Helen Nelson

Connie Perry

Carol Puckett

John Purcell

B.G. Ritts

Janet Rudolph

Stan Ulrich

Ingrid Willis   

And a heartfelt special shout out of thanks to our MIE blog mate Susan Spann for the extraordinarily generous donation of her time and prodigious legal talent in service to Bouchercon’s Board and General Membership.  

As for the plug for my new book, here’s the plotline of Santorini Caesars in a nutshell:

When a young demonstrator is publicly assassinated in the heart of protest-charged Athens, the motive is murky and the array of suspects immense.  Kaldis’ investigation leads him and his team to beautiful Santorini, and a hush-hush gathering of the Caesars, a cadre of Greece’s top military leaders seeking to form their own response to the crises facing their country. Is it a coup d’état or something else?  The answer is by no means clear, but the case resonates with political dimensions, and as international intrigues evolve, the threat of another—far more dramatic—assassination looms ever more real.

And here are a few blurbs from reviews picked at random (as if even I believe that):

“As always, Siger provides readers with an action-packed plot, well-developed characters with lots of attitude, breathtaking Greek scenery, and a perceptive take on the current political and economic problems affecting Greece. International-crime fans need to be reading this consistently strong series.” —Booklist

“While British and Scandinavian authors tend to dominate the conversation about European crime writing, there are some very fine authors operating in other continental locales… Greece is packed with tourist hotspots. Thanks to Wall Street lawyer turned crime scribe Jeffrey Siger, it's also home to a superb modern-day mystery series… starring Chief Inspector Kaldis and his likable team of Greek cops.” — Craig Sisterson

“Riveting story… bridging the social climate in Greece into the narrative…boasts great dialogue, a likable cast, good camaraderie and an intriguing plot that was masterly accomplished.” —Dru’s Book Musings

“Siger the Soothsayer has the uncanny knack of foreseeing chaos in the beautiful country that is Greece and then writing about it in such a way that readers see and hear and taste and feel that turmoil… and if you're wondering, the Greeks themselves love his books... I never miss one of Jeffrey Siger's books. Never!”—Kittling Books

“Jeffrey Siger's books may be set in Greece, but they deal with the world's problems as well...It's a message to the world.” —Lesa Holstine

“[W]ill keep readers on the edge of their seats, while chuckling at the antics of Kaldis's temperamental secretary. Part of a series not to be missed.”—Shelf Awareness

“Put this one at the top of your reading list… As the plot unfolded, I could imagine it actually happening…(and hope it’s not). You won’t be able to put it down. Jeffrey Siger does not disappoint. I don’t know how he does it; each book is better than the last.” —WindyCity Greek

Now, on to my post-Bouchercon tour schedule through the end of 2016. The 2017 tour dates and other additions will be posted as scheduled on my website under EVENTS 

Sunday, September 25, 2016 @ 2:00 PM

Sparta Public Library

22 Woodport Road

Sparta NJ 07871

Monday, October 10, 2016 @ 7:00 PM

(with Michael Kahn and Reavis Wortham)

A Celebration of Poisoned Pen Press

St. Louis County Library—Auditorium

1640 S. Lindbergh Blvd,

St. Louis, MO 63131

Saturday, October 15, 2016 @ 2:00 PM

(with Mark Pryor)

POISONED PEN BOOKSTORE

4014 N. Goldwater Blvd., Suite 101

Scottsdale, AZ 85251

Sunday, October 16, 2016 @ 2:00 PM:

CLUES UNLIMITED

3154 East Fort Lowell Road

Tucson, AZ 85716

Tuesday, October 18, 2016  @ 7:00 PM:

TATTERED COVER

2526 East Colfax Avenue

Denver, CO 80206

Thursday, October 20, 2016 @ 7:00 PM:

MYSTERIOUS BOOKSHOP

58 Warren Street

New York, NY 10007

Friday, November 11, 2016 @ 7:00 PM:

MYSTERY LOVERS BOOKSHOP

514 Allegheny River Boulevard

Pittsburgh, PA 15139

Thursday-Sunday, November 17-20, 2016

ICELAND NOIR

The Nordic House

Reykjavik, Iceland

That should be more than enough BSP for 2016.  Except of course for touting SUNSHINE NOIR (edited by MIE’s own Annamaria Alfieri and Michael Stanley)—now available in paperback—a not to be missed anthology that has Nordic Noir types shuddering in their frozen tundra boots.

See you in 2017 with Kaldis #9!

—Jeff

Bouchercon Hiatus #5: It's All About Me and the Devil.

During this Bouchercon Week we get to post one of our favorite posts from the past. It just so happens that this week is the release date for my new book, Devil of Delphi, and so in order to take advantage of that once a year promotional opportunity and yet comply with our Hiatus practice, I’m reprinting a piece that I wrote a few weeks back for my publisher, Poisoned Pen Press.

Yep, this is my annual, blatant self-promotion post. Some of you might take that as a warning to stop reading now, but if you do there is the distinct possibility you’ll suffer weeks of sleepless nights tossing and turning in wonder at what you might have missed.  So, rather than making me feel terribly guilty, please spend a few moments reading what I promise will help put you soundly to sleep.

My new book, DEVIL OF DELPH, comes out October 6^th just in time for Bouchercon—where I hope I’ll see many of you. DOD received a starred review from Booklist stating in part that, “Siger brings Chief Inspector Andreas Kaldis some very big challenges in his seventh mystery…There are multiple sources of appeal here: the fast-paced plot, the landscape, and, as always, the appealing camaraderie shared by Kaldis and his crew, as well as the bantering relationship between the inspector and his well-connected wife, Lila. The final plot twist proves well worth the wait, but it won't take readers long to get there as they will be turning pages at a ferocious clip.”

Okay, I’ve mentioned the star, so where do I go from there?  I guess I could mention my interview that just appeared in the Huffington Post, but that may be overkill. I absolutely love Devil of Delphi but hate this sort of thing. There is so much BSP out there, yet what choice do we have?  Promotion comes with the territory of book publishing.  Personally, I far prefer the face-to-face book events, and this year I’ve scheduled about a dozen so far, some are joint efforts with other authors (see list below), a practice I think makes the personal appearance circuit all that much more fun. And as I’ve said many times, fun is what this book writing business should be all about.

Quentin Bates

Sister Annamaria

Craig Sisterson, Neil White, Steve Cavanagh

Still, this is a promotional piece, so I guess I should tell a bit about Devil of Delphi, other than what you’ll find described on its cover (or my website). Were it up to me, I’d describe it simply as, “Think Breaking Bad Greek-style”—in keeping with Kirkus Reviews’ observation that my “sublimely malevolent villains make the book a page turner,” and Poisoned Pen Press’s own Barbara Leavy’s take on it: “The world described is a stark one of organized international mobsters joining hands, spreading their destruction from country to country, encircling the globe in order to satisfy their own lust for wealth and power.  Like a plague, their crimes threaten everyone. In this book, contaminated and counterfeit wine and spirits are springing up throughout the world, blindness and death of young people (and older ones) the frequent consequence.”

Should that sound a bit too harsh for your taste, I have another way of looking at it for you to consider—Think of Devil of Delphi as representative of the battles that plague Greece today: self-determination versus foreign control, unbiased justice versus political expediency, respect for the land versus unthinking exploitation, and loyalty to one another versus profit-driven self-interest.

Or perhaps you’ll find an all-together different frame of reference.  After all, once an author puts a book out there it resides in the minds of those who read it, interpreted as they see it. I’d love your insights on #7, even more so if you delivered them to me in person at one of the following upcoming book events:

On the Road 

Friday, October 9, 2015 @ 4:00 PM

Bouchercon 2015—MODERATOR

Interviewing International Guests of Honor Zoë Sharp and Allan Guthrie

Marriott City Center—State A&B

500 Fayetteville Street

Raleigh, NC 27601

Saturday, October 10, 2015 @ 1:00 PM

Bouchercon 2015—PANELIST

Murder Goes International

Marriott City Center—State A&B

500 Fayetteville Street

Raleigh, NC 27601

Thursday, October 15, 2015 @ 7-9 PM:

MYSTERIOUS BOOKSHOP

58 Warren Street

New York, NY 10007

Saturday, October 24, 2015 @ 2:00PM

BOOK CARNIVAL

(with Tim Hallinan and Martin Limon)                     

348 S. Tustin Street                           

Orange, CA 92866

Saturday, October 24, 2015 @ 6-7:00PM

SCIBA

Beverly Garland Hotel

4222 Vineland Ave.                           

North Hollywood, CA 91602

Monday October 26, 2015 @ 7:30 PM:

MYSTERIOUS GALAXY BOOKS 

(with Tim Hallinan and Martin Limon)                     

7051 Clairmont Mesa Blvd. Suite 302

San Diego, CA 92111

Monday, November 2, 2015 @ 7:00PM

(with Tim Hallinan)

ANNIE BLOOM’S BOOKS

7834 SW Capitol Highway (Multnomah Village)

Portland, OR 97219

Tuesday, November 3, 2015 @ 3PM:

(with Tim Hallinan)

SEATTLE MYSTERY BOOKSHOP                                   

117 Cherry Street

Seattle, WA 98104

Thursday, November 12, 2015 @ 7:00 PM:

TATTERED COVER

2526 East Colfax Avenue

Denver, CO 80206

Sunday, November 15, 2015 @ 3:00PM:

CLUES UNLIMITED

(with Donis Casey)

3154 East Fort Lowell Road

Tucson, AZ 85716

Wednesday, November 18, 2015 @ 7:00PM

(with David Wagner)

POISONED PEN BOOKSTORE

4014 N. Goldwater Blvd., Suite 101

Scottsdale, AZ 85251

Saturday, November 21, 2015@ 4:30 PM

MURDER BY THE BOOK

2342 Bissonnet Street

Houston, TX 77005

Thursday, December 3, 2015 @ 6-8:00 PM:

HILTON/ASMUST CONTEMPORARY GALLERY

716 N. Wells

Chicago, IL 60654

Friday, December 4, 2015 @ 7-9:00 PM:

CENTURIES & SLEUTHS BOOKSTORE

7419 Madison Street

Forest Park, IL 60130

Saturday, December 5, 2015 @ 1-3:00 PM

ONCE UPON A CRIME

604 W. 26^th Street

Minneapolis, MN 55405 (E. of Lyndale)

That’s all the BSP for 2015.  See you in 2016 with Kaldis #8!

—Jeff