I’m thrilled to welcome Jeff Widmer, author of Peak Season and Tourist In Paradise (part of the CW McCoy series), Mr Mayhem and Mr Magic (part of the Brinker series), Riding With the Blues and The Spirit of Swiftwater to the blog today to speak about location and settings in his novels. Please note that all links for his books, which are on Amazon, Audible, Barnes & Noble, iTunes and Kobo, as well as on Jeff‘s website, are later on in the post and I am looking forward to getting stuck into the CW McCoy series myself very soon!

The Locus of Murder

By Jeff Widmer

J.G. Ballard once said that the dystopian landscapes in his books reflect the character’s inner world as much as the outer one.

We’re more familiar with the opposite. Places affect how people feel and act. Think New York in the decade when the city cleaned up graffiti-defaced buildings, repaired windows and installed lighting as part of its crime-fighting strategy.

In fiction, when does location move from background to foreground? When does setting become character?

I’m interested in the collision of those inner and outer worlds. In writing fiction, I look for places that both create and reflect a mood. The tony beach town of Sarasota, Florida—Spanish Point in the McCoy novels—provides a wealth of locations that meet that criteria. Even with altered geography and names, those places seem to resonate, like an image from a dream . . . or a nightmare.

They did with me while doing research for Peak Season, the first in the Florida series featuring CW (Candace) McCoy, a former police detective who, after her family is kidnapped, must decide which side of the law she’s on. (If you enjoy the locale and the people who inhabit it, be sure to look for CW’s second adventure, Tourist in Paradise.)

Let me introduce you to the places that inspired CW’s Florida, the real scene of the fictional crime.

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Sarasota marina, similar to the one where CW’s mentor Walter Bishop berths his sailboat in the McCoy novels.

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The relentless construction of hotels, condos and homes in Sarasota motivates man of the characters in Peak Season and its sequel, Tourist in Paradise.

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The Saturday Farmers Market in downtown Sarasota, where CW and Detective Tony Delgado meet in Peak Season.

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The Sarasota skyline inspired the creation of CW McCoy’s Spanish Point.

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Drumming the sun down at Siesta Key’s world-famous beach, where CW finds a second body in Peak Season.

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Please note that the cover image leads to a universal Amazon buy link for the book

What they say: After shooting a fellow police officer, CW McCoy surrenders her gun, her badge and her confidence. Moving to Southwest Florida to care for her ailing grandfather, CW swears off violence until a fugitive kidnaps her family and she’s forced to decide which side of the law she’s on. Set in the tony beach town of Spanish Point during the height of the tourist rush, Peak Season marks the debut of an investigator confronting the most dangerous enemy of all . . . her own fears. Revised edition features expanded content and the first chapter of the author’s newest novel.

Peak Season is available through Amazon, Audible, iTunes, Barnes & Noble, Kobo and from Jeff‘s website

Amazon http://amzn.to/1KvTAgH

Audible http://adbl.co/2dHHOqP

Barnes & Noble http://bit.ly/1RuqZ2u

iTunes http://apple.co/1LYtW7t

Kobo http://bit.ly/2fQFQFA

Jeff‘s website http://www.jeffwidmer.com/

About the author

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Jeff Widmer has worked as a dishwasher, surveyor, guitarist, journalist and marketing professional. He is the author of the CW McCoy and the Brinker series of crime novels as well as several nonfiction books. A native of Pennsylvania, he lives in Sarasota, Florida.

Jeff’s social media links