Sun dusts her shoulders
Sand on her feet
She welcomes the Atlantic dawn
Takes in the world
And smiles at the secret.
Arms spread, head back
She absorbs the light,
Inhales the moment
That instant of being
That she gives to you with a touch
The challenge of a kiss;
The thing she shares
And has always known
Renewed.
The books are:
THE SWAMPS OF JERSEY: Frank Nagler is called to the Old Iron Bog where the body of a young woman was found after a weeklong tropical storm flooded the City of Ironton. A gold ring suggests that Nagler’s estranged girlfriend Lauren Fox might be a victim in this sprawling, disturbing case.
This story also introduces the framework of a conspiracy that the hides in all the stories then bursts to life in Book 5, “Dragony Rising.”
A GAME CALLED DEAD: The story introduces #Armageddon, a self-styled Internet terrorist who transforms an old-style video game into a real-life game that threatens the lives of students at the New Jersey State College of Ironton, the friends of Detective Frank Nagler, and Nagler himself. The story is structured like a game, with rules that change and spin-on-a-dime twists.
“A Game Called Dead” was named a Runner-Up in the Shelf Unbound 2016 Best Indie Book contest.
THE WEIGHT OF LIVING: Who is this young girl found standing in a Dumpster in a cold night wearing summer clothes? Finding the answer to that question leads Detective Frank Nagler down a dark path to deeply hidden secret held by a family, the revelation of which hatches modern threats. A reviewer said: “The narrative is a stunning and engrossing meditation of grief and survival.”
“The Weight of Living” was awarded First Place for Mysteries in the 2017 Royal Dragonfly Book Awards; Named a Notable Indie in the 2018 Shelf Unbound Book Awards; Named a Distinguished Favorite, 2018 Independent Press Awards; Named a Distinguished Favorite in the 2018 Big NYC Book Contest. Named a Finalist in the 2019 Book Excellence Awards; Named A Gold Star Award winner in the 2020 Elite Choice Book Awards; Named a Book Award Winner in 2021 by Maincraft Media Fiction Book Awards.
THE RED HAND: This is the prequel to the Frank Nagler series. He’s a rookie detective assigned to the most serious case of murder in the history of the City of Ironton. Nine women are dead, their deaths spread over months, some with few clues. This is also the story of Martha, Nagler’s wife, whose illness hangs over every action taken by the young detective. The book weaves terror and grief in equal measure.
“The Red Hand” was named a Distinguished Favorite in the 2019 Big NYC Book Contest; Named Second Place winner for mysteries in the 2019 Royal Dragonfly Book Awards; Named a Notable 100 Book in the 2019 Shelf Unbound Indie Book Awards; Named a Distinguished Favorite in the 2020 Independent Press Awards;A Nominee in the 2020 TopShelf Book Awards; Named A Gold Star Award winner in the 2020 Elite Choice Book Awards.
DRAGONY RISING: The explosion that levels two blocks of downtown Ironton, N.J. is not the worst thing that Detective Frank Nagler investigates in this thrilling, wide-ranging and challenging story. The story introduced the Dragony, a sinister, shadow bunch of thugs whose beginnings range back to the mining days of Ironton and whose founders had issues with Nagler’s family back then, even as modern members challenge Nagler in their own times.
Dragony Rising was awarded First Place for Mysteries in the 2022 Royal Dragonyfly Book Awards; named a Notable 100 Indie Book in the 2022 Shelf Unbound Indie Book Awards; A Distingished Favorite in the 2023 Independent Press Awards; A Distinguished Favorite in the 2023 Big NYC Book Awards.
We take that right turn down the puddled overgrown road, one car wide with hanging branches we have to duck that even when we do scrape along the roof like a past that never fades to pull into the barbeque shack that looks like it fell down yesterday to have the ribs drip off the bone as you wrap your tongue around the juice slipping down your chin to your finger which you give to me to lick.
We cut to the hayfield edge when the vines emerge and pull fat, dimpled blackberries off the prickled stalks, fingers stained and bloody, tasting all the same, stains at your hips as you remember a day you came home as a kid with the white dress purple blotted with a pocket filled with crushed berries that you stuffed into your mouth because they wouldn’t make it to the muffin dough.
Marched, hands held high with a million others, sang, yelled, cursed, demanded freedom and love; danced to the edge and beyond, stepped through the fog of hate, pushed past darkness to light to declare as one this what we do. Celebrate all the differences.
Sat on a ledge facing fading sunlight to see your face blush with all the youth and years between, to see the lines at your eyes are the knowledge of time that deepens the smile that slides across your face; filled to know that age has made you more beautiful.
Peace is loud, climactic,
Filled with songs and shouts
And screams of joy; a rhythm of touch.
Hands clasped, widespread.
Smiles like prayers;
Words of thanks yelled
To drown the moan of war.
She will dance with you,
She in the white dress
To waltzes whispered,
Troubling tangos
Body slamming la bambas
Dance, foot slamming and jumping
Till the marching boots stop
Till the weapons’ grinding fades
Till the sterile madness of war
Becomes cracking, wet, open
Dripping love;
Explored till words and tongues taste the world.
And she in the white dress smiles, eyes glowing.
Organizers said Friday June13 the event is cancelled because of rain.
I’ll be one of 70 authors at the Passaic County Book Festival on Saturday, June 14.
The event runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Weasel Brook Park, Clifton.
I’m looking forward to this event.
I attended two well-run BookNJ events run by the Passaic County Library in 2015
and 2017.
I’ll have copies of my 5-book, NJ-based Frank Nagler mysteries on hand.
Kirkus Reviews called Nagler, “One of modern fiction’s expertly drawn detectives.”
The Nagler mysteries at the Book& Puppet, Easton, Pa. and Mechanicsburg Mystery Bookshop, Mechanicsburg, Pa.
The Passaic County Book Festival will be an all-day event, featuring local authors, scholars, and poets across every genre. The event is a county-wide event that aims to promote and bring awareness to the arts and community through exchanging ideas, encouragement of continued research and creative expression, and the promotion of your local libraries. The County is partnered with PALS Plus to bring lectures, programs, and activities for all ages, centered around the written word.
#passaiccountybookfestival #pcbookfestival #pcbf #pcbf2025 #palsplus #seepassaiccounty #RichHistoryBrightFuture #books #booklovers #cliftonnj #tourism #palsplus #palspluslibraries #librariesconnectingcommunities
Where to find her
With everything bottled up,
When to sound those words is relief.
Say a word; say two.
Whisper, then scream.
Listen.
She waits.
A catch in her voice,
Something soft that stings.
She waits.
The white dress clings,
Hangs from a shoulder.
Time circles, not endless.
She’s in your hand when you hold it to the sky.
The simple silent voice she cast returns.
That’s the thing about love.
It floats, hides at time and filters back
Like starlight once around the sun;
Sometimes chipped and bruised,
Sometimes wanting, asking why.
Feel the touch of her in your hand.
Gently wrap your fingers around
The weight of her.
It’s how to seek forgiveness.
Hold tight.
She reminds you
With dark eyes that glow in sunlight
With soft fingers brushing purple flower buds
Then your cheek;
Reminds you
That time needs care
To peel back the skins of error;
Just start, so simple
To find that raw moment
When it was just a look
That opened it all;
When she in the white dress turned,
Showed the air vast and wild,
Said, this is me
Said follow;
And you had to be
Willing to leap.
It was the only word that mattered.
NO!
So she painted it in blue.
NO!
These things can not stand.
She painted it in green.
And the paint dripped down the wall.
You can’t have me.
You can’t have them.
Can’t hide them, steal them, beat them.
NO!!!!
She painted it in red.
One foot tall.
NO.
Then bending, three feet tall.
There are more than just me.
You can’t stop us.
No.
The word on the wall everywhere.
Resist
Fight back.
Tell them NO.
The last word
A running start, ten feet long, drippy, uneven, as ragged as the moment,
A scream from us all.
NNNNOOOOOOOO!!!!
What’s it mean? Someone asked.
“It’s how we win.”
She draws you from the place
Where you left yourself
In darkness.
Hair in the wind
Fingers brushing grass tops;
Eyes wide and round
A voice like silk,
Says follow.
The glow finds her,
like sunlight finds the air.
Frames her.
Draws you.
Rise.
It is the only choice.
It is the weight of light that saves you.
