Destination Monterey

Written by Ann Shepphird

Narrated by Lauren Davis

Fresh off her first assignment as a travel writer, former investigative reporter Samantha “Sam" Powers is ready for a new adventure.

When her editor at Carmel Today magazine instead asks her to write a travel piece about the local Monterey County area as part of a special issue around the upcoming Pebble Beach Pro-Am golf tournament, Sam is initially hesitant. Not only is she not particularly fond of the sport of golf, Sam has had plenty of reasons to stay away from her hometown for the past dozen years. Truthfully, if it weren't for her ailing father (Carmel-by-the-Sea’s former police chief), she wouldn't have come back at all.

Ultimately, Sam takes the assignment. As she tours the scenic locales of Carmel Valley, Big Sur, Pacific Grove, and Pebble Beach, Sam ends up unearthing a cold case involving the disappearance of the previous editor of Carmel Today. Dangerously in over her head, Sam knows she will have to call on some friends—including the detective she met on her previous assignment to Maui—to solve the suspicious incident and come out alive. Will the unexpected puzzle help her gain a new appreciation for her hometown or will the Monterey area be the last place Sam ever sees?

“Destination: Monterey” is the second in the Destination Murder Mystery series. Readers can expect exotic locales, a behind-the-scenes look at the travel industry, and the twists and turns expected from a quality mystery.

• Language: English
• Publisher: 4 Horsemen Publications
• Release date: Feb 10, 2023
• ISBN: 9781644505991

Ann Shepphird

In her 20+ years as a writer and editor, Ann Shepphird has covered everything from travel and sports to gardening and food to architecture and design for a variety of publications. She has also put her skills to work writing ad copy for California-based animal rescue groups.Now Ann is tackling her favorite genres-rom-coms and cozy mysteries-which is especially appropriate as her first love in life was spending Saturday afternoons reading Nancy Drew mysteries.The rom-coms are part of the University Chronicles series, which are based on Ann's days as a college-level communications instructor, while the Destination Murder mysteries combine her experiences as a travel journalist with her brief stint working for a private investigator (a job she got because of her love of Sue Grafton novels).Ann lives in Santa Monica, California, with her long-time partner, Jeff, and their furry companions Melody and Winnie. When she's not writing, Ann is most likely to be found on a tennis court or in her garden.

Reviews for Destination Monterey

[alexaustin · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Review of Destination: MontereySamantha (Sam) Powers is a former Los Angeles investigative reporter turned travel columnist for the regional magazine Carmel Today. Though Sam grew up in the Monterey area, she was reluctant to move back, but her father, the ex-police chief of the city, lives there and his health is failing. Besides, the job at Carmel Today promised some intriguing perks, including a first assignment to Hawaii, which Sam enjoyed, and while there drew on her old skills to untangle a mystery. Coming off that high, Sam is disappointed when her next assignment is covering her old turf, Monterey Country. Nothing wrong with the area, but she knows it too well to get excited, and hometowns hold a few memories best forgotten. This is a great set-up for a Cozy Mystery plot. Our lead character/detective knows her setting so intimately—the places, people and history—that small perturbations in the atmosphere raise her antenna. Carmel Today had undergone some major changes when Sam arrived, including new ownership and a new editor-in-chief. The magazine has its share of rivalries and discontents, and Sam’s take on these is amusing and insightful (the author knows her way around editorial meetings). The sudden exit of its former editor-in-chief, Buddy Wheeler, is something of a mystery, which, of course, grabs her attention. As Sam compiles the information for her story, the reader is treated to an insider’s look at Monterey from Pacific Grove and Big Sur to the Pebble Beach Pro-Am golf tournament. Shepphird cleverly onstructs the framework of her mystery as Sam reports on the incredible views from Big Sur’s Nepenthe Restaurant or the artwork of chic galleries. As the plot unfolds, Sam, too, reveals much about her own life and loves, though the romance as in all cozies remains subdued. Cozy readers should pay Destination: Monterey a visit.