At times it has felt like I’m trying to get somewhere in the charming old truck that sits on our ranch.

Yes, I’m still around. No, I haven’t finished the fifth novel in the Highway Mysteries series yet. Yes, I’m currently working on the last chapter and it will be finished soon.

After blowing past several of my self-imposed deadlines, I hesitate to make any promises but The End is certainly in sight. I will soon let the world know when Yellowhead Blues is ready for release.

Just to tease those of you who have been waiting for the next novel in the Highway Mysteries series, here’s a sneak peek at the new cover. Many thanks and a shout-out to my talented cover man, Steve Johnsen, at Hunter|Johnsen for this marvelous graphic.

If you have been looking forward to more of Hunter Rayne’s semi-professional investigations, you’ll be happy to know that I’ve started to do some research and gather material in preparation for the sixth book in the series as well.

Meanwhile, I hope all of Hunter’s fans have had a great 2019 so far, and are looking forward to Spring.

Just two weeks until Left Coast Crime 2019 A Whale of a Crime in Vancouver, British Columbia. I lived and went to school in West Vancouver, just across the Lions Gate Bridge from Vancouver’s Stanley Park, so being in Vancouver will be almost like coming home. It’s been a long time, though, since I’ve prowled the streets of downtown Vancouver, and I’m looking forward to seeing old familiar sights along with exciting changes in the heart of the city.

If you’re planning to attend Left Coast Crime, please look for me and say hello. I’ll be taking part in the Author Speed Dating on Thursday morning, March 28th, from 9 to 11 a.m., and will be hosting a table at the Saturday evening Awards Banquet along with fellow BC mystery writer, Debra Purdy-Kong.

I am also taking part in one of the last panels of the conference on Sunday, March 31st at 10:15 a.m. The title of the panel is “Not So Traditional Traditionals” (hmmm — could it be that my trucker hero is considered an unusual detective?) and it will also include authors Becky Clark, Marsali Taylor and Ingrid Thoft, as well as moderator Anne Louise Bannon.

Lost Lagoon at the entrance to Stanley Park

If anyone attending is interested in an Author Connection with Yours Truly, I’m open to guiding a few people down Georgia Street on Friday afternoon to visit Lost Lagoon at Stanley Park, weather permitting. It’s about 4 miles return including a stroll around the lagoon, so from 4:00 to 6:00 will give us time for a leisurely walk and a return via trendy Robson Street. If it’s raining or otherwise unpleasant for walking, a visit to Notch8 Restaurant & Bar in the historic Fairmont Hotel Vancouver for a Happy Hour cocktail would be fun instead. (Notch O’s will be on me!)

Left Coast Crime is a great conference for both writers and fans of crime fiction. I hope to meet some of Hunter Rayne’s fans in Vancouver this year, or maybe next year at Left Coast Crime 2020 in San Diego for Murder is a Beach.