Deadlines

"Deadlines" launches into action when a land-use activist, Beverly Bancroft, is slain on a stretch of California shore. The killers, who disguise her death as an accident, work for Cornu Point, an equestrian resort seeking to boost profit from public land along the coast. A young reporter, Sebastian Palmer, finds Bancroft's death could be a clever murder. He's assisted by a new friend, Elle Jatob, a beautiful, athletic Brazilian who yearns to be a cop. Palmer's newspaper assigns veteran columnist Colm MacCay to Palmer as mentor. MacCay, a wild alcoholic, fails to perform. Palmer soon becomes the next victim. MacCay convinces Jatob he can revive his investigative skills. She helps him uncover the land-grab that prompted attacks on Bancroft and Palmer. "Deadlines" ends on the old Bancroft estate. MacCay and Jatob must face a determined killer and a lawman who might not be on their side. Their lives are at stake, as well as fate of lands on the California coast.

Paul McHugh reported news for The San Francisco Chronicle and other journals for more than twenty years. His main beat was outdoor sport, resource use, and environmental issues, and he launched several investigative series during his time at the paper. He continues to ôstringö for the New York Times, Washington Post, Bay Nature Magazine, and other publications. McHugh is an award-winning writer and an avid adventurer and outdoor sportsman. He currently lives near Stanford, California, with his wife Dawn Garcia. Deadlines is McHugh's third book and his second novel. Discover more about his life and works at www.paulmchugh.net.