Hola! And Excerpt #2

HOLA!

Right about the time this blog posts, this should be the view I'm seeing. That pretty sunset and twinkly lights are in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico at the very tip of Baja California. Yes, I'm on cruise #21 taking in a little warm Mexican sunshine for my holiday. Wish you could all be here with me!

I love cruising the western coast of Mexico -- called the Mexican Riviera in many travel brochures. In fact, that is what inspired me to write a book or two set on a cruise ship, so the first story just naturally had to be on a ship sailing along the Mexican Riviera.

As you may recall from the previous excerpt, High Seas Deception opens with Adventure Cruise Line's ship Intrepid docked at the harbor in Puerto Vallarta (one of the prettiest cities in Mexico, in my opinion). Here's a view of some condominiums near the cruise dock (this shot was taken from deck 12, the top deck of our ship on a previous cruise), but the more picturesque part of town is about four miles away. I'll be thinking of all of you as I'm strolling along the Malecon (walkway downtown next to the beach).

And to give you a little idea about the exciting life aboard ship, here's a brief excerpt from High Seas Deception:

“I’m telling you something weird is going on today,” Skylar Davidson declared as she unkinked the power cord from the electronic Bingo board, and helped her roommate and assistant cruise director, Avery Knox maneuver the unwieldy piece of equipment into place.

Avery swiped a golden lock of hair out of her eyes. “You worry too much. People lose their sea pass cards all the time. Can you plug this into the power strip?”

Squatting down, Skylar did as Avery asked, but she stubbornly insisted, “This is different. I don’t know why, but I know it’s not just a coincidence.”

“Honestly, Skylar, this is a long way from LAPD. Relax! The worse thing you’ve done yet is roll some drunk out of one of the lounges, or separate two little old ladies fighting over the last blueberry waffle in the breakfast buffet. That’s how it is onboard.”

As she watched the board’s lights blink to life and the corresponding overhead screen flash on, Skylar gave a little shrug of defeat. She knew Avery was right, but old habits were hard to break. Her days were filled with busy work, not crime, and her surroundings were beautiful.

This was exactly what she’d wanted, needed, which was why she’d chucked everything and signed on. Why did she insist on looking for trouble?

“All right, unless you’re expecting a riot from your two dozen frothing Bingo players, I’m going back to the buffet and check for a drive-by fruiting.”

“See you at the sail-away party at seven,” Avery replied.

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Which would you rather be doing right now? Playing bingo? Relaxing by the pool? Shopping in downtown Puerto Vallarta? Or maybe you have other plans? Please share with us!