Angie Williams

It’s no secret that Mark de Castrique is one of Charlotte’s leading mystery writers.  A native of Hendersonville, North Carolina, Mark is the author of two popular mystery series in which he makes use of his familiarity with western North Carolina—the Barry Clayton Series and the Sam Blackman Series.  He has also written several standalone mysteries, including The 13^th Target and The Singularity Race, both of which are set in Washington, DC.  At first glance, it might seem a bit mysterious that a Charlotte writer would use Washington, DC, as a setting.  However, earlier in his career, Mark worked as a broadcast and film producer in Washington, DC, so he knows his way around our nation’s capital. 

Mark draws on his knowledge of the Washington, DC, area in his latest mystery, Secret Lives, which Poison Pen Press will release on October 11, 2022.  Secret Lives is the first book in Mark’s new Ethel Fiona Crestwater Series.  The central character in Secret Lives is a 75-year-old retired FBI agent who runs a boardinghouse.  For readers who want to know more about Secret Lives and Mark’s other mysteries, please click on the following link:  http://www.markdecastrique.com/

I recently contacted Mark and asked him how he came up with the character of Ethel Fiona Crestwater.  Here is what he sent to me:

A few months before Covid struck, I was flying back to Charlotte from Phoenix.  It was a long flight, and at one point I had a brief conversation with the young woman seated beside me.  I asked her if she also lived in Charlotte.  She said she was only connecting to a flight for Washington, DC.  Since I have two daughters in the DC area, I asked if that was her home.  She replied she was going to visit a great aunt who lived in the District.  Then she added, “She’s eighty-five-years old and lives in the house she was born in.” 

“Does any family live with her?” I asked. 

“No,” the woman replied.  “No family, but we don’t worry about her.  She rents out rooms to FBI and Secret Service agents.  There’s always someone in the house with a gun.”

There’s always someone in the house with a gun.  Music to a mystery writer’s ears.  My co-traveler had given me the outline of what could be an interesting character.  But what to do with her?

An older friend in Charlotte had told me that as a 14-year-old high school student in DC, she would ride the bus to the FBI after school where she would classify and categorize fingerprints using cards and a magnifying glass.  This was before computers.  Her experience inspired me to make my character more than a landlady for agents; she would be one herself.  She became a retired FBI agent who had spent her life in the Bureau and whose former borders included the heads of the FBI and Secret Service.

Her name is Ethel Fiona Crestwater, and she is a force to be reckoned with.  I imagine her as Ruth Bader Ginsburg as an FBI agent.  Feisty, brilliant, and protective of those she holds dear.  So, when one of her boarders is murdered in front of her house, there’s no stopping her pursuit of justice.

Thanks to a Charlotte connection and a chance encounter on a plane, Ethel debuts in Secret Lives on October 11th.

Secret Lives is not yet officially released, but it is already getting very strong reviews.  The reviewer from Publishers Weekly praises the central character as “an elderly Nancy Drew: sure of herself and her convictions, and ready to bend a few rules to achieve her goal of seeing justice done.  She’s off to a fine start.”  The reviewer from Kirkus Reviews describes the book as “a taut and crisply told thriller whose charmingly shady protagonist triumphs.”

Mark will be signing copies Secret Lives and talking about Ethel Fiona Crestwater at Park Road Books on Tuesday, October 18, 2022, at 7:00 pm.  I plan to be there.  Ethel Fiona Crestwater might be from the DC area, but I consider her an honorary member of Storied Charlotte.    

Theresa Payton, an expert in the field of cybersecurity and long-time resident of Charlotte, recently published Manipulated:  Inside the Cyberwar to Hijack Elections and Distort the Truth (Rowman & Littlefield, 2020).  Payton is uniquely well qualified to write this book.  She served as the White House Chief Information Officer for President George W. Bush, after which she founded Fortalice Solutions, a leading cybersecurity consulting firm.  In Manipulated, she draws on her experience and expertise to explain how Russia and other foreign and domestic powers are using artificial intelligence and cyberattacks to influence American elections.  She goes into detail about what she calls “the manipulator’s playbook,” and she provides readers with practical advice on how to avoid being manipulated in this way. 

Payton’s book has been out for only a few months, but it is already drawing widespread attention and praise.  The reviewer for Booklist, for example, wrote “Payton, an expert in cybersecurity, sounds a clarion call that our political process is at risk and explains why and how it is being assailed by foreign and domestic enemies of democracy. Many conservatives may want to dismiss Payton’s arguments, since she places much of the blame for the situation at the feet of current Republican leadership. But Payton can’t be dismissed as a liberal Democratic cynic, since her credentials are firmly rooted in the work she did for the George W. Bush administration. Payton clearly knows her stuff, [and] she paints a timely, frightening picture.”

Payton is a well-known player in Charlotte’s cybersecurity circles.  Since the mid-1990s, she has helped Charlotte’s banking community improve the security of their banking technology and IT systems.  She has also shared her expertise with Charlotte’s general public by giving televised presentations on WBTV on “Protecting Your Cyberturf,” and by participating in UNC Charlotte’s Cybersecurity Symposium.   I recently reached out to Payton and asked her about her Charlotte connections.  Here is what she sent to me:

I had a unique opportunity due to the financial services industry to move to Charlotte, NC. I moved here in 1995 and in my mind, I thought it would be a great place to “stay for a couple of years.” It’s now 2020 and I never really left! Funny enough, when my husband first left the US Navy, we had said our goal was to move to Washington, DC; however, our jobs brought us to Charlotte. When offered a position to work for President George W. Bush at the White House, we debated on whether or not to make a move to Washington, DC. We decided the best place to live and raise our family would be Charlotte, so I made the commute each week for almost 2.5 years.

Living in Charlotte means I have easy access to incredibly smart and talented colleagues, a variety of parks and gardens and to direct flights to almost any place in the world. I do most of my idea generation with smart people all around Charlotte. I think through my book ideas while I am on my runs around our beautiful city. For my recent book, Manipulated, guess where my writing desk was? American Airlines planes going to and from Charlotte. I’ve logged over 1.5 million air miles! That’s a lot of time to dedicate to writing. I am proud to call Charlotte home and have been delighted to have the support of Charlotte citizens who have purchased and promoted my books, and from Park Road Books.  It’s one of the best indie bookstores in the nation, and it’s right here!

When I was talking with Sherri Smith from Park Road Books about Payton’s Manipulated, she referred to Payton as one of Charlotte’s most prominent writers of nonfiction. Sherri’s comment caused me to reflect a bit about Charlotte’s community of readers and writers.  Charlotte, of course, is home to many gifted fiction writers.  It is important to remember, however, that Storied Charlotte includes some very influential writers of nonfiction, including Theresa Payton.