Blood flows like wine in the vineyards.

When Maddie "Mad Girl" Whitney discovers the body of a wine merchant in a barrel, she's drawn into the big-spending world of  wine collectors and dealers.

Then, two wine connoisseurs go missing, and she must team with her ex, Sheriff Oliver Desjardins, and their K-9s on a race to find them.

All broken-hearted Maddie wants to do is hunker down at the ranch with her pack, but what if there really is a Cabernet Killer on the loose?

I'd hoped to have the fourth novel in my Coyote Run series completed at the end of last year. Alas, I've been delayed by, you know, life. I expect to release Deadman's Dance by summer.

I was just visiting family in Napa. Spring in wine country is so breathtaking: herds grazing on brilliant green rolling hills, the tall blossoms of wild mustard and wild radish waving in the breeze, and hawks soaring above. Many fruit trees were in bloom, but the grapevines and incredible California living oaks hadn't yet leafed out.

The torrential rains the winter before last ended the historic Megadrought, but California is a drought climate. Each summer and autumn get hotter, and wind becomes something to fear because it can carry sparks miles. So springtime is a brief respite, when everything is fresh and new and bursting with life.

Springtime brings hope and joy. Let's find out if our favorite Mad Girl finds it! 

In other news: Tantor Media will be publishing the Coyote Run series as audio books! I'm thrilled that award-winning narrator Cindy Kay is signed on for this project. I'm especially happy that Cindy's a Northern California native, too, and I think she'll do a great job with Maddie's voice.