One of the great benefits to memberhsip in the International Thriller Writer's association is to be part of their Debut Author Program. Amy Christine Parker, a debut last year with her YA Thriller Gated, has accomplished miracles for the debut authors this year. This month she the Palm Beach Peril, a panel at the Palm Beach Library in FL featuring New York Times Bestseller Lisa Scottoline and a handful of debut authors, including yours truly.
Oline Ogdill, fearless reviewer for Mystery Scene, and the Sun Sentinel, posted a review of some of the books before the panel. You can read her article here.
The headliner for our panel, the one who most of the 350-strong audience came to see, was Lisa Scottoline (rhymes with fettucini). Her book is about an mateur sleuth who is also a psychiatrist, and whose OCD patient is suspected of murder.
Next to her pm the panel is Douglas Seaver, author of The Fourth Rule, in which the brother of a Vietnam Vet is a suspect in the vet's disappearance.
Then there is John Connell, who wrote Ruins of War, about a police detective trying to find a serial killer in the immediate aftermath of WWII in Munich.
I'm next to John Connell. I was the only author on the panel with a historical mystery aimed at young adults, The Saffron Crocus.
Next to me is Sandra Block , author of Little Black Lies, a psychological thriller featuring another sleuth who is a psychiatrist.
Last but not least is Stu Strumwasser, author of The Organ Broker. Stu's business card is actually the business card for the hero in the novel: a man who acts as an intermediary between wealthy people who need an organ and people from third world countries who are willing to donate one — for a price. Strumwasser partly funded the novel through a kickstarter campaign.
The panel ran for 90 minutes and there was never a dull moment. Watch these pages for reviews of all the books featured — or better yet, don't wait, go out and read them yourself!