This summer I had the opportunity to be the visiting author when COSI, our local museum of science, hosted the CSI Exhibit. Talk about being in research heaven! The exhibit featured three different crime scenes and walked participants through the process of using scientific inquiry to solve the crimes. I've been able to incorporate what I learned into a presentation I do for schools about the use of Forensics in Fiction. Today, for your entertainment, I present my top three favorite forensic fun facts:

1. One of the earliest ‘modern-day' authors to make use of forensic science in his writing was Edgar Allen Poe. Edgar Allen Poe looks an awful lot like Bill Murray.


2. You probably know that forensic scientists can determine the approximate time of death by analyzing the larval stage of maggots hatched in a dead body, but did you know they can also use those maggots to determine if the deceased had taken (or been given) drugs before expiring? Entomologists (scientists who study bugs) whir the maggots in a blender and test the resulting liquid for the presence of toxins. Gross, but true.


3. The popularity of such television shows as CSI, Bones and Dexter has caused what some analysts call the CSI Effect, wherein viewers come to expect real-world investigators to solve crimes with the same high-tech efficiency we see on TV. Hint: it rarely happens.

What about you? What do you find fascinating about forensic science? Or, do you find it interesting at all?

View more information on Death by Latte

(View entire post here)

One of the cool things about writing the Death By books was researching what happens when people die. Don't get me wrong - I'm not a serial killer at heart. I just found the whole dead body thing to be very interesting.

As I dug into researching various methods of murder, I discovered all sorts of fun and gruesome facts. In Death by Bikini, for example, I planned to leave my victim dead on the beach, strangled by the strings of her bikini top. While researching what the results of strangulation might look like, I came across an interesting article about a man who had strangled his wife and then stuck her body in the bathtub to make it looked like she had drowned. Investigators quickly disproved his story because of little pinpoint red marks called petechiae they found on the wife's face and eyes. Petechiae are the result of blood leaking from the capillaries, which could be caused by the extreme pressure of strangulation, but would not be present from drowning.

(View entire post here)

No, that's not the title of my next book. For the first time online, here are some of the questions I am most frequently asked about Death by Bikini and Death by Latte when I visit schools.

How do you come up with your ideas?

I have an overactive imagination. Plus I read and travel a lot.

(View entire post here)

Linda Gerber is our guest blogger during the week of November 10th. If you have any questions for Linda Gerber, add a comment to any of her posts. Here is some more information about Death by Latte:

It was only a few weeks ago that Aphra Connolly’s life changed completely. She had been living a quiet existence on her father’s secluded island resort, until Seth Mulo turned up and stole her heart . . . and provided information that led her to find her mom in Seattle. But the reunion isn’t quite what she expected. Aphra’s mom, Natalie, doesn’t seem happy to see Aphra, and Natalie’s boyfriend, Joe, insists that Aphra go home. Even worse, Seth shows up, only to ask her to return the ring he gave her the previous summer. At least Natalie’s hunky neighbor is sympathetic. But when Joe is found dead at a nearby coffee shop, Aphra discovers her whole trip to Seattle has been based on a lie. And now someone just might be trying to kill her. . . .