June Writing Update

It's summer already???

Where has the time gone? So far, I've only published one book this year, Cordelia Catches A Count, which was well enough received that there will be a book three in that series. Even so, I need to get cracking!

The Case of the Poisoned Papyrus, Book 8 of The Masked Man of Cairo series, will come out later this summer. Watch this space for pre-order info. An Autumn Murder in Berlin, book four of The Berlin Murders, will, appropriately enough, come out in the autumn.

Also, Vinci Books will release the first two volumes in a new series titled Bunker, mysteries set in a network of billionaire bunkers after World War Three. That's right, post-apocalyptic mystery. After eight billion people die, does one murder more really matter? It does if you're stuck in a bunker with the murderer! They haven't given me a set date yet. I'll share it when I get it.

Besides this blog, the best way to follow my progress is by subscribing to my newsletter, Sean's Travels and Tales, which gets your two free ebooks as well as a monthly magazine with coupons, updates, and travel articles. 

My Writing Year: A Look Back and a Look Forward

It's been a busy year for me when it comes to writing and publishing.

It may not seem like it to my readers, because I only released two books in 2026: The Case of the Cackling Crocodile (Masked Man of Cairo Book 7) and A Summertime Murder in Berlin (Berlin Murders Book 3), yet behind the scenes I've been working on much more.

To wit, two new science fiction series! Tech Scavengers is a lighthearted space opera, and Bunker is a grim post-apocalyptic thriller. Both will see the light in 2026. I'm also hard at work on more of the historical mysteries I'm best known for, including another Cordelia book, book 8 of the Masked Man of Cairo, and more!

In other news, Tantor Media is releasing my Masked Man of Cairo books as audiobooks. The Case of the Purloined Pyramid is already available wherever audiobooks are sold, and book two comes out in January.

In other news, I've sold the rights to my Toxic World and Moroccan Mysteries series to Vinci Books, a UK publisher that plans to redo the covers, get them in bookshops, and also as audiobooks and foreign language translations. If these two older series do well, I'll be adding to both of them.

You can see the progress of all these projects on the wordcount sidebar to the right as well as via my newsletter. 

Have a great new year and thanks for joining me on this journey!

 

The Berlin Murders Book 3 Available For Preorder!

Book 3 of The Berlin Murders is available for pre-order and will come out on October 31! The print edition should come out around then as well, but I have no set date yet. This series is a bit darker than Cairo, although it does have its humorous bits. Explore Berlin of the 1920s and 30s, when it was Europe's wildest (and most dangerous) city!

A blurb is below:

A deadly crash. A dark conspiracy.

When amateur sleuth Katherine Schmidt witnesses the fiery death of champion race driver Manfred von Rauch, suspicion of foul play falls on the pit crew—including two of her friends.

To save them from prison, she’s now in a race of her own to uncover who sabotaged the car and why.

Diving headlong into Berlin’s gritty underworld in pursuit of the killer, Katherine uncovers sinister connections to her own life and to dark powers that want to take over the country.

 

Pre-ordering a book really helps me out because it kicks in the algorithm early and helps my visibility. If you pre-order the ebook, it will be delivered to your device on Halloween! It's available on Amazon US, Amazon UK, and all the other Amazons. 

Enjoy! 

October Writing Update

The year is racing toward its finish, but I'm not finished with writing! 

Right now I'm busy editing A Summertime Murder in Berlin, book 3 of The Berlin Murders. Katherine is back on the trail of her strangest murder yet! I'll be announcing it on pre-order here in a couple of works.

Besides editing, I'm writing the second Cordelia book as well as a post-apocalyptic mystery. Not sure when they'll come out yet.

I don't have much travel planned for the rest of the year, perhaps another trip to Morocco. Most of the next three months I'll be cloistered in my home office in Madrid working on more books for you!

See you next month! 

July Writing update

Hello again!

It's summer, and up in Oxford on my annual research trip. I'm delving into the archives of the famous Bodleian Library to research the 1930 election in Germany and the independence movement in Egypt. I love doing research for my historical novels.

New books in both the Masked Man of Cairo series and The Berlin Murders will be out by the end of the year. I also intend on having a sequel to Cordelia Cracks the Case. Currently I'm working on a post-apocalyptic thriller called Bunker. Those should be out by the end of the year too More on that soon!

In the meantime, Radio Hope, book one of my post-apocalyptic series Toxic World, is only 99 cents through July 16, so if you might want to give it a try.

See you next month!

June Writing Update

Hello from Italy! Here's a photo of a lovely old house I came across on the Appian Way. I'm here doing some initial research for an upcoming historical mystery series. I won't say more because it will be a while before I publish anything. I have to finish five-book series The Berlin Murders first!

Speaking of, I'm nearly finished writing book three of that series, A Summertime Murder in Berlin. Also, book seven of my Cairo mystery series, The Case of the Cackling Crocodile is about to head off to the beta readers. If you want to be one, hit me up. 

To keep up with my progress, check the word count meters on the sidebar. You can also subscribe to my monthly newsletter via the left-hand sidebar, and also check out my Facebook page and Instagram feed. Plenty of travel photos on there lately!

May Writing Update

 

 

Hello again! I've been powering ahead on writing now that I can devote my full time to it.

Early this month I finished book seven of my Cairo mystery series, The Case of the Cackling Crocodile. That's going through edits before heading off to the beta readers. If you want to be one, hit me up.

Now I'm focusing on A Summertime Murder in Berlin, book three of The Berlin Murders. The photo this month dates to the Weimar period like the series, and is of the "Mordauto", literally "murder wagon"! This was one of the first mobile crime labs in history and brought a new scientific approach to crime scene investigation. The Germans were leaders in this field, perhaps because they had such scientific expertise as well as a high murder rate. That's something poor Katherine has certainly learned!

To keep up with my progress, check the word count meters on the sidebar. You can also subscribe to my monthly newsletter via the left-hand sidebar, and also check out my Facebook page and Instagram feed.

April Writing Update

 

As I mentioned in a previous post, I quit my ghostwriting job to free up time for my own projects and I've been loving every minute of it. It's sooooo nice to only work on my own stuff!

Mostly I've been working on book seven of my Cairo mystery series, The Case of the Cackling Crocodile. That should be done by the end of the month and then it will go through edits before heading off to the beta readers. If you want to be one, hit me up.

Once that book is in edits, I'll be working on A Summertime Murder in Berlin, book three of The Berlin Murders.

To keep up with my progress, check the word count meters on the sidebar. You can also subscribe to my monthly newsletter via the left-hand sidebar, and also check out my Facebook page and Instagram feed.

Expect Lots More Books From Me In 2025!

 

Hi everyone! Big news!

I just quit my day job and will devote all my writing time to my own books. For the past five years, I've been ghostwriting novels for a New York publisher. The money was good, although the production schedule was grueling. I've decided that this is the point in my life to strike out on my own.

That means you'll be seeing a lot of new books from me from now on. First up will be book 7 of the Cairo series, followed by book 3 of the Berlin series, and then probably Cordelia book 2. Then there will be some more mystery novels and a brand-new science fiction series!

I'm heading into uncertain waters and I could use your help. You're already buying my books and for that I'm deeply grateful. What would also help me is if you left a review on Amazon or Goodreads. Mentioning my books on your page would also be a big boost. If you know a podcaster or blogger who covers the kind of topics I do, I'd love to be introduced.

To keep up to date on what's happening, you might want to join my newsletter and Facebook page. There I give regular updates plus photos of my travels and articles about places I've been.

Thanks for coming along with me on this crazy ride, and I hope you'll like all the books I'll be coming out with in 2025!

My Writing Year: A Look Back and a Look Forward

The year 2024 was a busy one for me. In addition to a heavy workload of ghostwriting, I came out with three books under my own name. 

The first was A Springtime Murder in Berlin, book two of The Berlin Murders. Katherine and her friends are faced with another murder, this time on the set of a movie.

Next I published Cordelia Cracks the Case, the first in Cordelia's Cairo Case Files, a new spinoff series from my Masked Man of Cairo books. A lot of you told me you wanted to see more of Cordelia Russell because the male characters underestimate and overlook her. Hey, it's 1919! So now she's getting her own series of cases.

 

I also kept my most popular series going with Book 6, The Case of the Disappearing Dervish, which sees Moustafa having to return to his village in the Soudan to solve a case implicating his cousin. Sir Augustus and Faisal come along too, of course!

 

So now it's 2025, and later this month I'll be heading to Egypt to write book 7, The Case of the Cackling Crocodile. Our heroes are off to the Fayoum this time, and Cordelia is coming along. I'll also be working on the next Cordelia book.

 

In the summer I plan to release A Summertime Murder in Berlin, followed closely by An Autumn Murder in Berlin, which will round out The Berlin Murders except for an epilogue that I plan to release in 2026.

 

There will be a big change in 2025 as I take fewer ghostwriting assignments and eventually stop before the end of the year. Hopefully that will free up time to come out with some more titles. Stay tuned!

A big thank you to all of you who bought my books in 2024, and a special thank you to all those who reviewed them. As a working writer, that helps a lot!

 

Happy 2025!!!

 

 

Writing Update!

Hello everyone!

I just got back from southern Egypt, where I was researching Book Six in my Masked Man of Cairo series, called The Case of the Disappearing Dervish. Moustafa has to go back home to the Sudan in order to solve a mystery, and of course Sir Augustus and Faisal come along. It will be out later this year.

I'm also launching a parallel series starring Cordelia, who doesn't get as much page time as she deserves in the main series. Tentatively called Cordelia's Cairo Casebook, it starts with Cordelia Cracks the Case. That's in production and will be out in a couple of months.

I'll soon be diving back into the The Berlin Murders with book three, A Summertime Murder in Berlin. Katherine and friends get tangled up in some pretty nasty business! I'm also (slowly) working on the Tech Scavengers science fiction series.

You can watch the progress of all these projects on the sidebar to the right. You can also follow along by subscribing to my monthly newsletter.

If you want to see more photos of my travels, check out my Instagram!

My Writing Year: A Look Back and a Look Forward

The year 2023 was a busy writing year as usual for me. I got a lot of ghostwriting assignments that kept me at the keyboard from New Year's through Christmas. Because of that, I only got two of my own books out, the first two books of The Berlin Murders. A Winter Murder in Berlin introduces a new series in which a German-American visits Germany in 1929 during the wild Weimar Era and gets caught up in a murder. A Springtime Murder in Berlin sees her on the case again solving a second mystery.

So far the series is doing well. I'm writing a book for each season, with an epilogue that happens in 1945. It's been a lot of fun to write, with lighter moments and a dark thread through it all. You can't really write about that era and avoid the darkness!

What the readers didn't see were the other books I've been working on. Cordelia Cracks the Case is now with the beta readers. It's part of my popular series The Masked Man of Cairo and follows the solo adventures of one of the minor characters who deserves more page time. That should come out in March.

I'm also halfway through a science fiction trilogy called Tech Scavengers, which is about far-future archaeologists trying to restore a galactic civilization after a cataclysmic fall. I'm going to have a rapid release schedule for those so I'm holding off releasing book one until I have the series mostly complete. Look for those late in 2024.

Coming before then will be The Case of the Disappearing Dervish, Book Six of The Masked Man of Cairo, and A Summertime Murder in Berlin, Book Three of The Berlin Murders. Those will come out in the summer.

Looks like I'm going to have a busy year!

Book Two of The Berlin Murders out now!!!

 

While my blog was locked down, book two of my historical mystery series The Berlin Murders came out. A Springtime Murder in Berlin sees Katherine solving another mystery with the help of her friends. A blurb is below.

A chance at stardom. A murder on the set.

Katherine Schmidt has always dreamed of being an actress. An opportunity arises when her flamboyant cousin Anton gets her a role as an extra in a major German motion picture. But those dreams come crashing down when the leading lady drops dead.

Anton is arrested for her murder. His family disinherited him years before due to his lifestyle and the studio thinks he’s guilty. Katherine knows she’s the only one who can help.

Now she must find out who’s behind the brazen poisoning and clear her cousin’s name—before she becomes the next victim.


Katherine and her friends are on the case again in the second installment of The Berlin Murders, set in the Weimar era’s decadent Berlin.

Check out A Springtime Murder in Berlin today!

My Latest Historical Mystery is out Now!

A Winter Murder in Berlin, Book One of The Berlin Murders, is now available. This is a slightly darker take on historical mystery than the Masked Man of Cairo series, although there are lighter bits. A blurb is below.

The voyage of a lifetime turns into a nightmare.

When Katherine Schmidt sails for Europe in late 1929, she looks forward to a year of carefree travel thanks to an unexpected inheritance. But when a companion on her steamer is murdered and she becomes a suspect, she needs to find the real killer before the police close in. Now she must delve into Weimar Berlin’s decadent nightlife and radical politics in order to clear her name.

Can an innocent young woman from Missouri outwit fascists, communists, and the denizens of Berlin’s notorious shadow world?

 

A Winter Murder in Berlin is available at Amazon US, Amazon UK, and all the other Amazons. If you have Kindle Unlimited, you can read it for free! Book One is a standalone, but the series will continue with Book Two, coming out this summer.

My Writing Year: A Look Back And A Look Forward

Happy New Year! I hope your holidays have been fun and relaxing. Now’s the time to look back at the past year and think of ways to improve in the new one.

I had a busy year with a lot of ghostwriting assignments. Luckily, I did get some time to write books under my own name. In May I released The Case of the Dastardly Djinn (A Masked Man of Cairo Prequel).

I also finished the first book in a new series. Titled A Winter Murder in Berlin, it follows the adventures of Katherine Schmidt, a young German-American woman who decides to visit her parents’ homeland for the first time in 1929, and gets caught up in a murder investigation in which she is the prime suspect! There's lots of intrigue set in Berlin’s decadent nightlife and increasingly brutal politics. It's a bit more serious than The Masked Man of Cairo books, but does have its lighter moments. The series is titled The Berlin Murders, and I plan a book for each season (A Springtime Murder in Berlin, etc.), as well as a fifth book following the adventures of one of the younger characters, all grown up and returning to Berlin right after the end of World War Two.

A Winter Murder in Berlin is currently with beta readers. I hope to have it out in February.

I also finished Book One of Tech Scavengers, a new science fiction series set in the far future as humanity and aliens try to pick up the pieces after the collapse of a galactic empire. I plan to write the entire trilogy before releasing them in rapid succession.

So what’s in the cards for 2023? At the moment I’m working on Cordelia Cracks the Case, a short novel featuring a supporting character from The Masked Man of Cairo series solving a mystery on her own. I’ll also come out with one or two of the Berlin series, and go back to Egypt to write the next Cairo book, The Case of the Cackling Crocodile. Sir Augustus, Moustafa, and Faisal investigate a murder in the Fayoum, the vast swampland southwest of Cairo.  Plenty of stuff to read in 2023. Stay tuned by subscribing to my newsletter. 

When is my next mystery coming out?

A bunch of people have asked me when my next mystery is coming out. I haven't come out with anything since May when I released The Case of the Dastardly Djinn (A Masked Man of Cairo Prequel).

So what's going on? Have I gotten lazy? Is my ghostwriting career taking up all my time?

Fear not! I have two mysteries in the works. First off, I'm working on Book One of The Berlin Murders. Titled A Winter Murder in Berlin, it follows the adventures of Katherine Schmidt, a young German-American woman who decides to visit her parents' homeland for the first time in 1929, and gets caught up in a murder investigation in which she is the prime suspect! There's lots of intrigue set in Berlin's decadent nightlife and increasingly brutal politics. It's a bit more serious than The Masked Man of Cairo books, but does have its lighter moments.

The next Masked Man of Cairo book will actually be a novella titled Cordelia Cracks the Case. A character who did not make a very good first impression, Cordelia has been coming more and more into her own in recent books and it's time she got the spotlight. After that, it will be back to another adventure focusing on our three regular heroes. They might be going to Sudan for that one, and so will I!

I hope to have both A Winter Murder in Berlin and Cordelia Cracks the Case out by the end of February. I'm nearly done with Katherine's adventures, and will wrap it up with a research trip to Berlin later this month. Then I'll set to work on Cordelia when I'm in Cairo in December.

You can keep track of the progress of all my books by checking out the word count meters on the right-hand column of this blog. You can also sign up for my newsletter and get two free ebooks to tide you over!