I’ve always loved books, and my favorites are crime fiction.  Curl up with a Michael Connelly, Denise Mina, Karin Slaughter, or Ben Winters novel for thought-provoking social commentary, insight, and thrills. See through another person’s eyes!  I began my Storm Kayama series to tell pulse-racing tales of the Hawaiian Islands, using the myths and legends familiar to Hawaii’s people.  At present, there are four books starring protagonist Storm Kayama: Primitive Secrets, the first in the series, The Green Room, a Book Sense Notable pick, Fire Prayer, and Pleasing the Dead.

Though I have a B.S. in zoology from the University of Michigan and attended the University of Iowa Writers’ Summer Workshop, I have lived in Honolulu for most of my life and am honored to have received The University of Hawaii’s Meryl Clark Award for Fiction.

Another of my interests is addiction, which runs in our family.  When my husband and I were told that a close family member suffered from an opiate use disorder, we discovered that there was almost no information or support for families.  Consequently, I took a break from fiction and wrote Feathers in the Soul: A Guide for Families Struggling with a Child’s Addiction, which is available on Amazon.  Click on Feathers in the Soul in the “Author” section for more information and resources.