Novel by M.L. Meurs

Reviewed by Pennell Paugh

May 30, 2025 (San Diego)  -- San Diego resident, M.L. Meurs, has released her debut novel, Camp Salvador. Written in first-person, the book reads like a memoir. The main character, Ellis Robinson, shares her experiences in Baja, Mexico where roughly built homes have a spectacular view of the Pacific Ocean.

Ellis and her family enjoy a second home in a small community full of eccentric characters. Most are from the States. Ellis describes the community as a “semi-isolated vintage surfer community.”

Ellis is a sharp, patient, kind soul who tolerates the many conflicts her neighbors experience and sometimes cause. Over time, the presence of the cartel is felt as bodies are found on the camp’s beach. Even so, Ellis returns each year to enjoy her second home with her huge dog that is seen on the book’s cover. Her time at the camp ends with an astonishing conclusion.

The book is as enjoyable as a vacation. And like life, it has its conflicts and surprising turns.

Dr. Keith Black Interview with Anat Tour/ East County Magazine

May 10, 2025 (San Diego) – Recently, ECM Bookshelf host Anat Tour sat down for an in-depth interview with Dr.Keith Black on our East County Magazine Radio Show. Dr. Black  A pioneer in brain tumor research and leading neurosurgeon, he is also author of the book Brain Surgeon.

In the interview, Dr. Black talks about his early learning experiences, his pioneering research, how he believes artificial intelligence will influence the field of neuroscience, and more.

You can view a video of the full interview, hear an audio version aired on KNSJ  Radio, or scroll down to read a transcript. To read a review of Dr. Black’s book, Brain Surgeon, click here.

By Pennell Paugh

April 30, 2025 (San Diego) -- San Diego writer, Peter Shaw recently released a debut novel: Murder on the Way: A Camino de Santiago Mystery.

On a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, the Camino family sends a hitman who poses as a pilgrim. His target stole a bag of the gang’s money, now travels as a pilgrim. To begin his new life, the target has undergone plastic surgery.

The reader, remaining in the hitman’s point of view, finds that the pilgrimage is changing the man dramatically.

By Richard Carrico

Reviewed by Pennell Paugh

April 2, 2025 (San Diego) - San Diego denizen and resident Richard L. Carrico pieces fragments of evidence together for cold cases, while shedding light on a dark chapter in San Diego's history.

East County News Service

March 30, 2025 (Lemon Grove) – The Lemon Grove Historical Society’s “History Alive” lecture series continues this Thursday, April 3 at 7 p.m. with local author Sandra Bonura speaking about her new book, Empire Building: John D. Spreckels and the Making of San Diego. 

Novel by M. Lee Buompensiero

Reviewed by Pennell Paugh

March 6, 2025 (San Diego) -- Long-time San Diego resident, M. Lee Buompensiero has released an award-winning novel, Sumerland. The story is full of romance, unusual hauntings, heart-warming dog crises and mishaps.

By Jacob Hubbard

Reviewed by Pennell Paugh

February 24, 2025 (San Diego) - Long-time San Diego resident Jacob Hubbard has written a debut novel, Sounds of Yesterday, about a romantic relationship during COVID as experienced by an autistic man.

East County News Service

January 21, 2025 (San Diego) – New York Times bestselling author Caitlin Rother, an investigative journalist and former San Diego Union-Tribune reporter, will release an updated edition of her true-crime book, Body Parts, on February 25.  The book takes a deep psychological look at serial killer Wayne Adam Ford, a trucker who confessed to killing four prostitutes picked up along California roads.

The new edition contains information on the identity of Ford’s first victim, who has finally been identified by the Humboldt County Sheriff’s through forensic genetic genealogy 25 years after her body was found by a boater.

Update: The author will have a book signing event at the San Carlos Library onApril 25 at 2:00 p.m.

By Wanjirũ Warama

Reviewed by Pennell Paugh

January 1, 2025 (La Mesa) -- Wanjiru Warama a resident of La Mesa, provides true stories of how her family and community lived in abject poverty on British colonial farms in Kenya in her novel, The Colonial Farm. Her historic memoir sheds light on the struggles of Kenyan farmworkers and rural populations under the British colonial rule. She then covers how Kenya’s rulership developed after the British retreated from governing.

Edited by Matt Coyle, Naomi Hirahara, & Tammy Kaehler

Reviewed by Pennell Paugh

December 5,2024 (San Diego) -- Crime Under the Sun is the second anthology to be offered by Partners in Crime, the San Diego chapter of Sisters in Crime. Out of 60 entries, the editors selected the best 15.

You will meet a beguiling bail bondswoman hanging onto the family business by her fingernails, a magnificent old coot bound to his land and his cattle, four all-too-believable teens playing a deadly game, and a kick-ass 11-year-old cowgirl who takes on a real-life mystery from Hollywood’s Golden Age.

Novel by Carl Vonderau

Reviewed by Pennell Paugh

September 24, 2024 (San Diego) – Award-winning San Diego mystery/thriller author Carl Vonderau's critically acclaimed novel, Saving Myles, weaves a gripping tale of a  couple who encounter intrigue and danger as they race to save their drug-addicted son from kidnappers south of the border.

By Eric Martin

Reviewed by Pennell Paugh

August 18, 2024 (San Diego) -- Erik Christopher Martin lives and writes in San Diego, California. In The Case of the Greensboro Gremlins: Dotty Morgan Supernatural Sleuth Blook Three, Gremlins and fashion don’t mix!

Summer vacation before seventh grade Dotty is expanding and her girlfriend, Hannah, is getting taller. Hannah fights in a wrestling championship and is hired in a fashion show to model Parker’s clothes. He’s Dotty’s best friend.

Parker, is competing in a young designer fashion show in Greensboro, the prelude to Fashion Week. After a series of accidents plague the rehearsals, Parker hires Dotty to investigate. Her sleuthing reveals gremlins are behind the mishaps. Worse, someone put them in the theater on purpose. Sabotage!

Edited by Kimberly Lee and Kate Manning

Reviewed by Pennell Paugh

August 11, 2024 (San Diego) -- Published by San Diego Writers, Ink, The 17^th Volume Anthology: A Year In Ink, is an anthology of the creative work of San Diegans. In the 2024 version, 281 entries were submitted from all genres.

Of those, 46 pieces were selected to be in this year's anthology (23 poetry and 23 prose). Submissions include short stories, novel and memoir excerpts, creative nonfiction, satire, flash fiction/nonfiction, and poetry.