What would be most interesting for you is the wide variety of people who write mysteries/suspense stories and their ideas.  Almost any crime you could imagine has been written about.  The heroes/heroines include cops, private investigators, archeologists, little old ladies, female NASCAR drivers, cowboys, secret agents, bumbling professors, and even long-dead historical sleuths.

If any of you would like recommendations for books or writers beyond those I’ll list at the end of this post, please let me know.

The quality of the authors also impressed me.  They ranged through all ages and backgrounds.  One writer worked during the Viet Nam war as a  correspondent in Bangkok and was married to an engineer who was supposed to be building military bases in Viet Nam.   She learned from her journalist friends that he was really in the CIA!  (They remained married)  Another writer lived on a catamaran off the coast of England for a time.  Most of them are very intelligent and, even more importantly, curious about the world around them.

This fascination comes through in their writing, making their stories even deeper and more engaging.

Here are some suggestions for your mystery/suspense reading:

Western–  Murder for Greenhorns, Rob Kresge

Historical mystery–  City of Silver, Annamaria Alfieri

Humorous–  The Pot Thief Murder series, Mike Orenduff

Historical mystery–  SPQD, John Maddox Roberts

International mysteries–  The Charlie Fox series, Zoe Sharp

Gritty, street thriller–  Boulevard, Stephen Jay Schwartz

Humorous–  The Albuquerque Turkey, John Vorhous

Medical thriller–  Bone Dry, Bette Golden Lamb/J.J. Lamb

Archeology– Smoking Frog Lives, Pete Goodman.

NASCAR–  Dead Man’s Switch, Tammy Kaehler

Hope you enjoy some of these great authors!!  I can assure you that each one of them is an interesting, dedicated writer.

Let me know your recommendations for favorite authors!

The post 400 “Criminals” in One Room! appeared first on Colin T. Nelson.

The  StarTribune carried an Associated Press article about the upcoming hearings at:http://www.startribune.com/nation/117590368.html

The proposed hearings are quite controversial.  Of course, most Americans are worried about domestic terrorists but many say that by singling out Muslims, the Congressman is reverting to McCarthyism.  The inquiry should be broader to include any domestic terrorists.

My new suspense novel Reprisal is about an imbedded terrorist who has worked as a scientist in a Minnesota company for years who plots to release a plague in the state.

If you are interested in these issues, I think you’d like my book.  The plot involves several missing young Somali men who left the Twin City area in the past few years.  The FBI thinks most of them went back to Somalia to fight with militias there.  But several of the young men are still missing and unaccounted for…where did they go?  And why?

In my book, the terrorists have stolen samples of small pox virus from a repository in Russia.  They intend to infect the missing Somali men and return them to American schools in order to start a plague.  And since none of us in the U.S. is immune to small pox any longer, the results could be disastrous.

The story has been described as a “page turner,”  or “one I couldn’t put down.”

What makes the book different from other thrillers is that the main character is an American citizen, a young female defense lawyer who must stop the plot before the plague is allowed to break-out.  She’s a moderate, progressive feminist–and a Muslim.  The story shows the struggles she has to be a loyal American and a faithful Muslim.

If you’d like to read it, send me your email address and I’ll send you the first 50 pages for free with no strings attached.

Maybe I should send a copy to Congressman King!

The post Domestic Islamic Terrorists Here? appeared first on Colin T. Nelson.

For a new author like me, unknown and unlisted on the NY Times Book Review, to get into a major chain is very exciting. Why is it there?

I think the cover of the book is compelling. My good friend, Jeff Holmes designed it. The story is about terrorists who plot to use stolen samples of small pox virus to infect American children and then send them back into the schools as weapons of mass destruction to start a plague. The cover mirrors the fear and danger of bio-terrorism. The truly scary aspect for me is that small pox was eradicated from the planet in 1979. No other vaccines were developed and everyone on the planet is vulnerable to the disease–no one has a defense to it. The face of someone plotting to release a deadly virus looks menacing and evil.

People who have read the book tell me it’s a page-turner. I’m happy about that since that was the purpose–to entertain people with a good story.

Also, the main character is an American woman, born here who happens to be Muslim. She’s forced to defend a terrorist who is also Muslim but is totally opposite from her version of Islam. The struggle to be a moderate Muslim in America forms the theme of the book–religious tolerance.

If you’re interested, check it out at the Borders stores around the Cities.

And thanks to all the wonderful readers who have not only purchased the book but have given me many nice words of support!! Thanks to you all.

The post "Reprisal" is now in Borders Bookstores!! appeared first on Colin T. Nelson.

In previous posts, I’ve talked about the vast underground world of international criminals who traffick in many illegal items–including humans. Most are women and children who are sold into prostitution, the sex trade, and slavery for labor. The criminals operate in a world wide web–but not the one you’re familiar with.

They link themselves together for business pusposes, hooking up and dropping links, as they are needed. The criminal networks require a variety of job skills: transportation, logistics, financing, inventory control, labor, knowledge of border penetration points, and knowledge of laxity of law enforcement efforts. The profits from this trade worldwide, run into the billions. So, that makes something obvious: with the potential profits in a fairly low-risk endeavor, wouldn’t these networks attract the best and brightest criminals?

The answer is yes!

Governments around the world know of these networks of course, but what is being done to stop them and their activities?

Unfortunately, many countries lack the resources and will to fight them. Often, the officials in many countries are bribed or even work for the networks. In 2000, the United Nations passed the protocol against “Smuggling of Migrant People by Land/Sea/Air.” It hasn’t been ratified yet because most countries don’t even have laws against smuggling!

In the United States, we defend our borders and work hard to stop the criminals, but we’re hampered by a number of disadvantages that the criminals don’t face. Even our most sophisticated federal agencies, dedicated to sealing our borders and finding the criminals, are modeled on organizational forms that are decades old. For instance, when organized crime ran rampant during Prohibition, the criminals formed themselves into top-down pyramid-shaped groups that mirrored the federal agencies seeking to destroy them. Both criminal and official groups operated slowly, methodically, and efficiently.

Today, the criminal networks are web-like, flexible, morphing into new organizations by the minute, as the needs change. People, money, contraband, and purposes can change rapidly. For instance, criminals used to specialize in one product, drugs, let’s say. The federal agencies could investigate that network with time on their hands and predictable activities by the criminals. Now, the web-like networks may traffick drugs one day and stolen monkeys the next day.

It’s difficult for bureaucracies to keep up with the changes. Most of the federal agencies are the old top-down management in pyramid form. They react slowly to change.

Is it possible to form net-like organizations in the federal agencies? Remember, we’re dealing with power brokers, budgets, Congress, pressure groups, unions, and many other players in order to effect change. As you can imagine, it’s difficult and takes a lot of time. And when we go beyond our borders to third-world countries, the situation is much worse.

At least, in this country, we recognize the necessisity to seal our borders…something that’s really impossible to do. But I think the awareness of the need, gives us some protection. We coordinate between local and federal law enforcement so if a criminal net pops up somewhere, the feds can be alerted quickly.

Still, it remains a challenge that will only increase in effectiveness. We must figure out ways to fight back. Do you have any ideas?

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