When A Bridge Falls

This post originally appeared on Murder Is Everywhere. Like so many Baltimoreans, I spent yesterday on the phone telling friends and relatives that I was alive. No, I hadn’t been anywhere near the Francis Scott Key Bridge early Tuesday morning. But I was following the news from before sunrise, because my email carried an emergency bulletin … Read more

The “Wife’s Help”: Writing about abortion in historical fiction

This post originally appeared on Murder Is Everywhere. About two years ago, I started work on a new book in the Perveen Mistry historical mystery series. The beginning is a lot of fun. Searching for historical events and themes to explore is typically a magical period of big dreaming. To coax out story ideas, I reach … Read more

Happy Navroze—Spring is Here!

This post originally appeared on Murder Is Everywhere. Jamshedi Navroz Mubarak! According to the old Persian calendar, March 20 or 21 is the day that the new year named Navroze, Navroz, Nawrooz, and various other spellings is welcomed. This observance mostly celebrated by Zoroastrians—the group inside known as Parsi; Bahai worshippers; and Sunni Muslims with roots … Read more

How Can a Woman Win?

This post originally appeared on Murder Is Everywhere. I’m posting on the eve of the day that Democratic House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi has called for an impeachment inquiry. The Democrats’ concern—which is shared by me and many Americans—is whether the Republican president, Donald Trump, coerced a foreign government to investigate his own political rival. I … Read more