The tropics get steamier in this sizzling murder mystery. Honolulu police detective Kimo Kanapa'aka is the best on the force, but he lives with a secret he barely acknowledges even to himself. His days are spent serving and protecting Hawaii, surfing the waves and bedding female tourists. One night, he inadvertently sees someone dump a body in an alley outside a gay bar, and, because of his own inability to come to grips with his sexuality, makes a decision that threatens all that is important in his life. As Kimo and his partner search the tropical paradise for the killer, he struggles to find his way as an openly gay man in a macho world. Unable to deny the truth any longer, Kimo begins the process of coming out, of understanding and accepting his homosexuality, all while trying to find answers to a mystery that involves his own family. Mahu - a negative Hawaiian term for homosexuals - introduces a unique character to detective fiction. Kimo Kanapa'aka is a handsome, mixed-race surfer living in Honolulu, a police detective confronting his homosexuality in the atmosphere of macho bravado within the police force. A man of intelligence, strength, honesty, resourcefulness and intense dedication to the people of Hawaii, Kimo is a hard-boiled hero readers will never forget. Fast-paced, intricately plotted and thoroughly enjoyable, this is a sexy, surprisingly moving mystery that is as much about discovering oneself as it is about catching a killer.
I've wanted to be an author since I was about sixteen, when a high school assignment on A Separate Peace showed me how powerful writing can be. At the University of Pennsylvania I studied creative writing with Philip Roth and Carlos Fuentes; I went on to receive my MFA from Florida International University.
Kimo Kanapa'aka, the detective hero of Mahu, Mahu Surfer, Mahu Fire, Mahu Vice, Mahu Men, and Mahu Blood (due out in Fall 2010) has had a powerful hold on my imagination for many years. I love writing about him and hope to keep doing so for a long time.
In addition to writing about Hawaii, I've edited a collection of essays about gay men and their dogs, called Paws and Reflect, as well as three erotic anthologies: Hard Hats, Surfer Boys, and Skater Boys. My romance novels are GayLife.com, Three Wrong Turns in the Desert, and Dancing with the Tide.
I live in Hollywood, Florida now, with my partner and our golden retriever. Sam is the inspiration for Rochester in my Kindle mystery, In Dog We Trust.
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