The next Meg Harris mystery

Well things are starting to hot up for The River Runs Orange. It's due out in April - only 3 months to go! I've just received the final version of the cover from my publisher and I love it. What do you think?

I think it really captures the mood of this third book in the Meg Harris mystery series. Needless to say a river, a wild, rapid filled river plays a key role in the plot. And Meg likes paddling whitewater almost as much as I do.

I'll never forget my first trip on whitewater. It was a seven day, 110 kilometer paddle down the Dumoine River in West Quebec. A beautifully wild river; at times lyrically tame as we drifted past endless stands of red pine and sandy eskers; other times it roared and foamed with the might of its 200 foot descent into the Ottawa River. After dumping twice in the boiling froth I decided I preferred the lassitude of an obstructionless(if that's a word) river bottom, even if the current was moving us along at a fair clip. I also loved the feeling of going down hill. It quite bowled me over the first time I realized that the shore further down river was at a lower elevation.

Thanks to the efforts of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society and other environmental groups, the Quebec government has decided to preserve much of the wilderness surrounding the Dumoine River, so that paddlers will be able to continue to enjoy its untouched magic.

But even if paddling whitewater isn't exactly my thing, I do love paddling and have done a fair bit with my husband. In the weeks to come I'll post some of the photos from these trips.

And I'll also keep you up to date on what's happening with The River Runs Orange. As I did with Red Ice for a Shroud, I will also be doing a book tour so will keep you posted as to where I'll be when. In fact I already have finalized two stops. I'll be at Malice Domestic in Arlington Va., on Apr. 25-27 and at Bloodywords in Toronto Ont., on June 6-8. Hope to see some of you there.