Bone Hook is here, at long last, and it's a doozy!
Maui’s ocean is beautiful, wild… and deadly.
It’s been five years since the events of Rip Tides, and Sergeant Lei Texeira gets into hot water much deeper than she’s used to at a crime scene ninety feet down off of the tiny atoll of Molokini, where the death of beautiful marine biologist Danielle “Lani” Phillips is anything but an accident. More suspects than a school of sharks circle a case that takes Lei into territory that hits dangerously close to home, even as husband Michael Stevens heads into his own uncharted depths.
“Toby Neal has delivered another preeminent novel in the irresistible and extremely popular Lei Crime Series. In this tenth addition, Neal is better than ever, not waiting a moment to dive into a scintillating murder mystery in the world of Maui and that comely island’s resplendent coastline treasures.
Don’t miss the very best of Toby Neal and the hottest Lei Crime addition yet. Bone Hook is a masterful, gripping story, destined to become a favorite journey into the darkness of selfishly deceitful human machinations set in the paradise of one of Hawaii’s most heavenly domains.”
~R.S. Guthrie, a Shelf Unbound Magazine 2014 Notable Indie and author of Wise Bear Digital Gold Medal-winning, Blood Land, first in the James Pruett Mystery series.
Bone Hook was a very special book to write. From the beginning, when a fan, writer Ron Logan (now working on a Lei Crime Kindle World novella starring Dr. Phil Gregory, Of Rainbows and Butterfly Wings) suggested doing a mystery involving a murder related to illegal fishing and reef conservation, I was caught up in the story and it had a special, crackling energy and “mana.”
I asked for a consultant to help with the technical aspects of reef conservation from my wonderful Facebook friends and followers and got the name of a lovely young marine biologist, Danielle Kornfiend.
From the moment I met Danielle, we both remarked on her resemblance to the victim in the story—but I’d written the first chapters before I met her. She asked if I’d name the victim after her, and to thank her I did. Danielle, in real life, is a former DLNR agent and a passionate advocate for the ocean and conservation as well as sensible, sustainable fishing practices that support the economy of Maui. Thanks so much, Danielle, for your great help and support and for our research field trip out to La Perouse Bay. If you’re interested in finding out more, check out my blog on that research here: /2015/08/19/reef-conservation-research-for-bone-hook-lei-crime-series-10/.
Another important encounter happened around the amazing cover photo and design. Stacia Pang, who works at our favorite gallery, Native Intelligence, loaned me her deceased husband’s incredibly beautiful hand-carved bone hooks to shoot for the cover in his memory.
Mahalo nui loa to Winston Healani Koon Kau Pang, born October 17, 1955, on Oahu, of Hawaiian and Chinese heritage. He and Stacia were married in Honolulu and moved to Maui in 1980, where he worked as a heavy-equipment operator with Hawaiian Dredging and Construction until his sudden death in August of 2009. Winston was a hard worker, loving family man, and beloved by all who knew him. He carved the hooks out of cattle bones he found while hunting in Kahikinui, a colorful area I was excited to include in the book. Read the full cover story here: /2015/09/07/a-bone-hook-infused-with-mana-and-story/.
Aunty Stacia Pang looks at her husband's bone hooks with love.
Bone Hook is available now at the following retailers:
Barnes and Noble (Nook)
And thanks to all who've pre-ordered, and made it a hit already. I hope you love it, and don't forget to leave a review, they are the best gift an author can receive!
