Mysterious

Episode 75: The Murderer Who Helped Write The Oxford English Dictionary Words build worlds. They shape laws, compose prayers, ignite wars, and whisper love. Every word we speak carries centuries of meaning Chester Minor, was a murderer and one of the greatest architects of the English language. ______________________ Now Available ________________________ Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club _______________ Join the Excitement! It's Happening Now! A Facebook Event. Learn about the Aurora, share your photos, and talk with other Aurora lovers. We'll see you there -November 18 - 25! _________ Meet Evan Swensen, your host for Episode 75: : The Murderer Who Helped Write The Oxford English Dictionary Evan Swensen, book publisher, editor, author, and Author Masterminds charter member, along with his wife, Lois, publishes books by authors worldwide. He has been the publisher and editor of Alaska Outdoors magazine and producer of Alaska Outdoors television show and outdoor videos, and host of Alaska Outdoor Radio Magazine. He has been an Alaska resident since 1957. As a pilot, he has logged more than 4,000 hours of flight time in Alaska, in both wheel and float planes. He is a serious recreation hunter and fisherman, equally comfortable casting a flyrod or using bait, or lures. Evan has been published in many national magazines and is the author of five books and publisher of more than 1,000 books by other authors. Evan claims to have the best job in the world; he gets up in the morning, puts on his fishing vest, picks up his fly rod, kisses his wife goodbye, tells her he’s going to work—and she believes him. Author Masterminds: https://authormasterminds.com/evan-swensen Author Masterminds One Last Cast book: https://authormasterminds.com/details/XLxrX One Last Cast on Amazon: https://bit.ly/3H0OzTo One Last Cast short video: https://youtu.be/2wzwWmim-2g Alaska Outdoors https://alaskaoutdoorsmagazine.com. Alaska Outdoors Blog: https://alaskaoutdoorsmagazine.com/blog/ Alaska Outdoors Videos: https://bit.ly/37xjUzl

Episode 74: The Mysterious Plagues of Egypt Most people know the biblical story about the Ten Plagues of Egypt. I learned the story in Sunday School. However, in recent months, I have learned more subtle facts about the story that can only be understood with knowledge of ancient Egyptian society. First, I need to share the biblical history that led to why the Egyptian Plagues occurred. ___________________ Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club _______________ Join the Excitement! A Facebook Event. Learn about the Aurora, share your photos, and talk with other Aurora lovers. We'll see you there -November 18 - 25! _________ Meet Rebecca Wetzler, your host for Episode 74: Rebecca J Wetzler, originally a California girl, has lived in Alaska since she was eight years old. From early in life, she has been an avid reader, and hoped to write her own books someday. From her earliest memories she has been a believer. Shortly after moving to Alaska, she asked Jesus into her heart during Sunday School. As her life progressed, Rebecca realized her faith gives her steady spiritual regrounding to weather the drama of real life. She challenges the untruths forecast by the world’s darkness by believing the Light of God’s Word, and she wants to share the spiritual truths with others. Bread Box for the Broken is her first book. www.rebeccawetzler.net https://authormasterminds.com/rebecca-j-wetzler https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-j-wetzler-7b763a49/ https://www.facebook.com/authorrebeccajwetzler https://www.facebook.com/holyspiritdove

Episode 73: The Valley of Headless Men: Nahanni National Park With landmarks bearing the names of Deadmen Valley, Headless Creek, Funeral Range, and Hell’s Gate Rapids, you might think twice before planning a trip to Nahanni National Park in Canada. However, the legends behind these names make the park even more daunting. Sources Berge, Chloe. “The haunting history of this Canadian National Park.” March 9, 2020. Fodors.com. Malbeuf, Jamie. “Families call for case of mysterious 2005 deaths to be reopened.” May 7, 2018. CBS News. Peters, Hammerson. Legends of the Nahanni Valley. 2018. Western Canada. Hammerson Peters. Vučkovič, Aleska. “Valley of Headless Men: Mysterious decapitations in Canada’s Nahanni Valley.” December 2021. Ancient Origins. _______________________ _______________________ Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club _______________ Coming in November -- Stay Tuned! _________ Meet Robin Barefield, Your Host of Episode 73: The Valley of Headless Men: Nahanni National Park Robin Barefield lives in the wilderness on Kodiak Island, where she and her husband own a remote lodge. She has a master’s degree in fish and wildlife biology and is a wildlife-viewing and fishing guide. Robin has published six novels: Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, Karluk Bones, Massacre at Bear Creek Lodge, and The Ultimate Hunt. She has also published two non-fiction books: Kodiak Island Wildlife and Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier. She draws on her love and appreciation of the Alaska wilderness as well as her scientific background when writing. Robin invites you to join her at her website: https://robinbarefield.com, and while you are there, sign up for her free monthly newsletter about true crime in Alaska. Robin also narrates a podcast, Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier. You can find it at: https://murder-in-the-last-frontier.blubrry.net

Episode 72: The Lost Pages Picture this: You walk into the New York Public Library. Those marble halls, the whispered conversations of scholars, the smell of old paper and binding glue. You might think you're in one of the safest places in the world for precious documents. You'd be wrong. ____________ Now Available ________________________ Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club ________________ Meet Evan Swensen, your host for Episode 72: The Lost Pages Evan Swensen, book publisher, editor, author, and Author Masterminds charter member, along with his wife, Lois, publishes books by authors worldwide. He has been the publisher and editor of Alaska Outdoors magazine and producer of Alaska Outdoors television show and outdoor videos, and host of Alaska Outdoor Radio Magazine. He has been an Alaska resident since 1957. As a pilot, he has logged more than 4,000 hours of flight time in Alaska, in both wheel and float planes. He is a serious recreation hunter and fisherman, equally comfortable casting a flyrod or using bait, or lures. Evan has been published in many national magazines and is the author of five books and publisher of more than 1,000 books by other authors. Evan claims to have the best job in the world; he gets up in the morning, puts on his fishing vest, picks up his fly rod, kisses his wife goodbye, tells her he’s going to work—and she believes him. Author Masterminds: https://authormasterminds.com/evan-swensen Author Masterminds One Last Cast book: https://authormasterminds.com/details/XLxrX One Last Cast on Amazon: https://bit.ly/3H0OzTo One Last Cast short video: https://youtu.be/2wzwWmim-2g Alaska Outdoors https://alaskaoutdoorsmagazine.com. Alaska Outdoors Blog: https://alaskaoutdoorsmagazine.com/blog/ Alaska Outdoors Videos: https://bit.ly/37xjUzl

Episode 71: George Hinton Henry, The Father osf Alaska Journalism Found at Last ---Maybe No chapter on newspapers in Alaska would be complete without a section on the most-sued member of the press, George Hinton Henry. Henry published/edited six papers in four cities between 1907 and 1915. These included the Yukon Press, Tanana Citizen, Hot Springs Echo, Tanana News, Free Press (Fairbanks), and Socialist Press in Fairbanks. He was responsible for a great number of newspapers in a great number of towns, all of which went broke. Further, he probably holds the record for the number of times an editor has been sued for slander, though the true number is unknown as most of the records for that time period have been lost. While some of the historical documentation still exists, the bulk of the information on his sordid career appears in the various papers not published by him. ____________________________ ____________________________________________ ______________________________________________________ Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club ________________ Now Available Meet Steve Levi, Your Host for Episode 71: George Hinton Henry, The Father osf Alaska Journalism Found at Last ---Maybe Steve Levi is a 70-something writer in Alaska. He specializes in the impossible crime and the Alaska Gold Rush. An impossible crime is one in which the detective must figure out HOW the crime was committed before he can go after the perpetrators. As an example, in THE MATTER OF THE VANISHING GREYHOUND, the detective must figure out how a Greyhound bus with four bank robbers, a dozen hostages, and $10 million can vanish off the Golden Gate Bridge. Steve’s books can be seen at www.authormasterminds.com/steve-levi and www.steverlevibooks.com. He also does two historical uploads a week. Send Steve your email, and he will include it in the mailings.

Episode 70: Voynich Manuscript Mystery There is a book, a book that has broken the minds of the world's greatest codebreakers, a book that has resisted every attempt at translation for over a century. A book that shouldn't exist but does. Today we're diving deep into the Voynich manuscript. A 600 year old enigma that has stumped the NSA defeated World War the Second cryptographers and continues to mock every attempt to unlock its secrets. But here's what makes this story truly extraordinary. We now have scientific proof that everything about this book is real except our ability to read it. __________ Coming Soon! This podcast is sponsored by the Readers and Writers Book Club. Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club __________________________________________________ Meet Evan Swensen, your host for Episode 65: Portlock: The Silent Shore Meet Evan Swensen, your host for Episode 61: Ghosts in the Goldfields. Evan Swensen, book publisher, editor, author, and Author Masterminds charter member, along with his wife, Lois, publishes books by authors worldwide. He has been the publisher and editor of Alaska Outdoors magazine and producer of Alaska Outdoors television show and outdoor videos, and host of Alaska Outdoor Radio Magazine. He has been an Alaska resident since 1957. As a pilot, he has logged more than 4,000 hours of flight time in Alaska, in both wheel and float planes. He is a serious recreation hunter and fisherman, equally comfortable casting a flyrod or using bait, or lures. Evan has been published in many national magazines and is the author of five books and publisher of more than 1,000 books by other authors. Evan claims to have the best job in the world; he gets up in the morning, puts on his fishing vest, picks up his fly rod, kisses his wife goodbye, tells her he’s going to work—and she believes him. Author Masterminds: https://authormasterminds.com/evan-swensen Author Masterminds One Last Cast book: https://authormasterminds.com/details/XLxrX One Last Cast on Amazon: https://bit.ly/3H0OzTo One Last Cast short video: https://youtu.be/2wzwWmim-2g Alaska Outdoors https://alaskaoutdoorsmagazine.com. Alaska Outdoors Blog: https://alaskaoutdoorsmagazine.com/blog/ Alaska Outdoors Videos: https://bit.ly/37xjUzl

Episode 69: The Greenbrier Ghost: A True Tale of Murder and the Supernatural In the misty hills of 1897 Greenbrier County, a young woman’s sudden death sparked a chilling mystery that would echo through history. Join us as we unravel the haunting tale of the Greenbrier Ghost, where a spirit’s whisper from beyond the grave led to a murderer’s conviction. _____________ Take a stroll through a haunted amusement park! __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Want more MYSTERIOUS? Be sure to subscribe! __________________________________________________________________ This podcast is sponsored by Author Masterminds and the Readers and Writers Book Club. Check out the Author Masterminds Website Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club ________________________________________________________________________________________________ Met Mary Ann Poll, your host for Episode 69: The Greenbrier Ghost: A True Tale of Murder and the Supernatural Mary Ann Poll is the author of five Supernatural Thriller novels, Ravens Cove, Ingress, Gorgon, Dullahan, and Andalusia Forest. Sign up to subscribe for free information about upcoming events at www.maryannpoll.com and check out her podcast Real Ghost Chatter. _______________________________________________________

Episode 68: Gift Mortgages HERE’S A DOUBLE MYSTERY FOR YOU! THE FIRST ONE IS: DIDN’T YOU KNOW YOU CAN GET THE MORTGAGE ON YOUR HOUSE PAID OFF FOR FREE? THE SECOND MYSTERY IS WHY ARE YOU LETTING THE BANKS GIVE AWAY YOUR TAX MONEY FOR FREE? ___________________ Check out the Author Masterminds Website Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club _______________ Meet Steve Levi, your host for Episode 68: Gift Mortgages M

Episode 67: The Mothman of Point Pleasant Welcome to a journey through one of America’s most haunting enigmas—the Mothman of Point Pleasant. Plus -- The Phantom Dogsled by Steve Levi. __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Take a stroll through a haunted amusement park! __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Want more MYSTERIOUS? Be sure to subscribe! __________________________________________________________________ This podcast is sponsored by Author Masterminds and the Readers and Writers Book Club. Check out the Author Masterminds Website Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club ________________________________________________________________________________________________ Meet Mary Ann Poll, your host for Episode 67: The Mothman of Point Pleasant Mary Ann Poll is the author of five Supernatural Thriller novels, Ravens Cove, Ingress, Gorgon, Dullahan, and Andalusia Forest. Sign up to subscribe for free information about upcoming events at www.maryannpoll.com and check out her podcast Real Ghost Chatter. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ The Phantom Dog Sled was written and performed by Steve Levi. Check out his books at Author Masterminds.

Episode 66: The Clara Nevada -- Accident or Murder? No saga of the Alaska Gold Rush would be complete without a touch of the mysterious. Every rush has its eerie events, and the Alaska Gold Rush was no exception. Perhaps the most perplexing incident of that era was the saga of the Clara Nevada. Here was a tale of greed, robbery, and murder, along with a ghostly re-visitation. But it was more than that. It is also one of the largest successful robberies in American history combined with the third largest mass murders in American history as well, surpassed only by the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 and the 911 attack on the World Trade Center. ___________ Coming Soon! Check out the Author Masterminds Website Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club ______________________________________________________ Meet Steve Levi, Your Host for Episode 66: The Clara Nevada -- Accident or Murder? Steve Levi is a 70-something writer in Alaska. He specializes in the impossible crime and the Alaska Gold Rush. An impossible crime is one in which the detective must figure out HOW the crime was committed before he can go after the perpetrators. As an example, in THE MATTER OF THE VANISHING GREYHOUND, the detective must figure out how a Greyhound bus with four bank robbers, a dozen hostages, and $10 million can vanish off the Golden Gate Bridge. Steve’s books can be seen at www.authormasterminds.com/steve-levi and www.steverlevibooks.com. He also does two historical uploads a week. Send Steve your email, and he will include it in the mailings.

Episode 64: The Mysterious Grand Canyon Since well before the “Americans” discovered the magnificent Grand Canyon, the incredible geologic formation has been shrouded in mystery. The Hopis—who live there on the southern escarpments of Black Mesa in eastern Arizona--are one of the oldest living cultures in documented history, with a past stretching back thousands of years. The Hopi trace their ancestry to the Ancient Puebloan and Basketmaker cultures, which built many stone structures and left many artifacts at the Grand Canyon and across the area of the present day Southwestern United States. Little is known about that mysterious culture beyond what they left behind. ________________ Grab your copy of this epic trilogy. _______________________ Share your Alaska photos and tales at the Explore Alaska Facebook Event! Visit our Facebook Event: Explore Alaska from June 16 to June 30 and share your tales and post photos of Alaska. _________________________ This podcast is sponsored by Author Masterminds and the Readers and Writers Book Club. Check out the Author Masterminds Website Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club __________________________________________________ Meet Carl Douglass, your host for episode 64: The Mysterious Grand Canyon. My pseudonym as an author is Carl Douglass, adopted as a means of telling stories with gripping realism—the truth of which would not bring trouble to my door. My writing of gripping, realistic fiction began after I was obligated to retire from the private practice of neurosurgery due to sudden blindness in my left eye from a retinal detachment which caused loss of stereoscopic vision. I carried with me decades-long knowledge of doctors, hospitals, and institutions of higher learning, including some less than laudatory information. My military experience during the years of the recent unpleasantness in Vietnam also gave me considerable insight. Both of those lengthy experiences provided true grist for the mill of my writing, but neither of them need to connect the stories to the lives of the real people and places where the stories took place. In that sense, I know too much and have no wish to incriminate or to bring harm or embarrassment to real individuals or institutions. My rich and varied life has provided even more fodder to feed my mind and contribute realism to my written work. In my time, I have had to work due to lacking a sugar daddy. I have been a grease monkey, a lumber mill and forest worker, a lifeguard, a slaughterhouse worker, a diener in a morgue, a lab rat, an academic writer, a medical officer in a mental hospital, a naval officer and surgeon, a brig doctor, and a deep diving officer. I have been the husband of one fine wife, the father of four children—one deceased—eleven grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren. All of them have enriched the depth and breadth of my storytelling.

Episode 63: What Happened to the Edmund Fitzgerald? The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down of the big lake they called Gitchee Gumee The lake it is said never gives up her dead when the skies of November turn gloomy Gordon Lightfoot's lyrics memorialize the tragedy of the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, but the mystery remains - what sunk the great ship? Sources: Stonehouse, Frederick. The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Avery Color Studios, Inc. Gwinn, Michigan. 1977. Charles River Editors. The Sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald: The Loss of the Largest Ship on the Great Lakes. Kindle Schumacher, Michael. The Trial of the Edmund Fitzgerald: Eyewitness Accounts from the U.S. Coast Guard Hearings. University of Minnesota Press. Minneapolis, MN. 201___________________________ Now Available ________________ Explore Alaska with the Readers and Writers Book Club. Visit our Facebook Event: Explore Alaska from June 16 to June 30 and share your tales and post photos of Alaska. ______________________ This podcast is sponsored by Author Masterminds and the Readers and Writers Book Club. Check out the Author Masterminds Website Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club ________________________________________________________________________________________________ Meet Valerie Winans, your host for Episode 63: What Happened to the Edmund Fitzgerald? Valerie Winans is a graduate of Northwestern Michigan College, a retired state government manager, and a former campground host in Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska. Valerie is the author of four books: Alaska’s Savage River: Inside Denali National Park and Preserve, Road Trip with Remington Beagle: Michigan to Alaska and Back, and A Hero’s Journey: Life Lessons From A Dog And His Friends, and The Extraordinary Life of Edwin B. Winans: From the Stampede for Gold in California to the Capitol of Michigan. A writer of both fiction and non-fiction, her books are written to inform and entertain readers of all ages. She currently resides with her husband in Traverse City, Michigan. More information can be found at www.valeriewinans.com.

Episode 62: Where's Joe? The endless supply of larger-than-life characters in Alaska makes the state fertile ground for reality television shows and movies based on true stories. If you made a list of the strong, fascinating individuals in the history of this vast state, though, Joe Vogler would rank near the top. Picture a sharply dressed man, wearing a fedora, a bolo tie, and a plaid flannel shirt while he stands in front of a group of rowdy people and proclaims his controversial opinions in a booming voice. Sources Brenan, Tom. Cold Crime. 2005. Epicenter Press. Death of a Maverick. Coppock, Michael. “On Joe Vogler, an independent Alaska.”March 14, 2008. Juneau Empire. Ice Cold Killers. Season 2, Episode 6. “Guns, Gold, and Murder.” _____________ ____________________ Check out the Author Masterminds Website ________________________________________________________________ Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club ___________________________________________ Meet Robin Barefield, your host for Episode 62: Where's Joe? Robin Barefield lives in the wilderness on Kodiak Island, where she and her husband own a remote lodge. She has a master’s degree in fish and wildlife biology and is a wildlife-viewing and fishing guide. Robin has published six novels: Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, Karluk Bones, Massacre at Bear Creek Lodge, and The Ultimate Hunt. She has also published two non-fiction books: Kodiak Island Wildlife and Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier. She draws on her love and appreciation of the Alaska wilderness as well as her scientific background when writing. Robin invites you to join her at her website: https://robinbarefield.com, and while you are there, sign up for her free monthly newsletter about true crime in Alaska. Robin also narrates a podcast, Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier. You can find it at: https://murder-in-the-last-frontier.blubrry.net

Episode 61: Ghosts in the Goldfields Alaska has always been a land of extremes—untamed, ruthless, and seductive to those who believe they can master its wilderness. It has lured explorers, trappers, and fortune seekers into its vast and treacherous landscapes for centuries. Many never returned, but those who did were forever changed by the unforgiving land, where survival depended on grit, resourcefulness, and a willingness _to endure hardships few could imagine. _________________________________________ Check out the Author Masterminds Website ________________________________________________________________ Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club ___________________________________________ Meet Evan Swensen, your host for Episode 61: Ghosts in the Goldfields. Evan Swensen, book publisher, editor, author, and Author Masterminds charter member, along with his wife, Lois, publishes books by authors worldwide. He has been the publisher and editor of Alaska Outdoors magazine and producer of Alaska Outdoors television show and outdoor videos, and host of Alaska Outdoor Radio Magazine. He has been an Alaska resident since 1957. As a pilot, he has logged more than 4,000 hours of flight time in Alaska, in both wheel and float planes. He is a serious recreation hunter and fisherman, equally comfortable casting a flyrod or using bait, or lures. Evan has been published in many national magazines and is the author of five books and publisher of more than 1,000 books by other authors. Evan claims to have the best job in the world; he gets up in the morning, puts on his fishing vest, picks up his fly rod, kisses his wife goodbye, tells her he’s going to work—and she believes him. Author Masterminds: https://authormasterminds.com/evan-swensen Author Masterminds One Last Cast book: https://authormasterminds.com/details/XLxrX One Last Cast on Amazon: https://bit.ly/3H0OzTo One Last Cast short video: https://youtu.be/2wzwWmim-2g Alaska Outdoors https://alaskaoutdoorsmagazine.com. Alaska Outdoors Blog: https://alaskaoutdoorsmagazine.com/blog/ Alaska Outdoors Videos: https://bit.ly/37xjUzl

Episode 60: Mysterious Area 51 and The Skunk Works In the mid-1980s, I was involved in a civil trial in Lancaster, California. Both sets of attornies came from Los Angeles. One of them was openly scornful of the northern part of LA county where the trial was being held. He loved LA with its chewable air, and Hollyweird. During voir dire, he took exception to the answers given him by several potential jurors. The Q & A went like this: Q-What kind of work do you do. A-I can’t say. Q-Why not? A-I can’t say. Q-Where do you work? A-I can’t say. Q-How many people work where you work? A-I can’t say. Q-What can you say? A-Nothing… about work. “Your honor, please instruct the juror to cooperate.” “Mr. Conrad, just accept my word and direction that I know where they work and what they do. You do not need to know. Go onto a different set of questions.” He muttered but went on. Everyone else in the courtroom had a very good idea of where those people worked: either at Area 51 or the skunk works, places as secret and mysterious as the dark side of the moon or the Manhattan Project. Many actual employees of Area 51 listed their occupations where legally required as “Nuclear energy.” One retired brigadier general always responded that he repaired typewriters in Las Vegas during his stint in the Air Force. ___________________________ ____________________________________________________ Join the Readers and Writers Book Club for a Spring Fling Facebook Event and Explore the Haunted Harding House: April 15 - 29 ________________________________ Check out the Author Masterminds Website ________________________________________________________________ Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club ___________________________________________ Meet Carl Douglas, your host for Episode 60: Mysterious Area 51 and The Skunk Works My pseudonym as an author is Carl Douglass, adopted as a means of telling stories with gripping realism—the truth of which would not bring trouble to my door. My writing of gripping, realistic fiction began after I was obligated to retire from the private practice of neurosurgery due to sudden blindness in my left eye from a retinal detachment which caused loss of stereoscopic vision. I carried with me decades-long knowledge of doctors, hospitals, and institutions of higher learning, including some less than laudatory information. My military experience during the years of the recent unpleasantness in Vietnam also gave me considerable insight. Both of those lengthy experiences provided true grist for the mill of my writing, but neither of them need to connect the stories to the lives of the real people and places where the stories took place. In that sense, I know too much and have no wish to incriminate or to bring harm or embarrassment to real individuals or institutions. My rich and varied life has provided even more fodder to feed my mind and contribute realism to my written work. In my time, I have had to work due to lacking a sugar daddy. I have been a grease monkey, a lumber mill and forest worker, a lifeguard, a slaughterhouse worker, a diener in a morgue, a lab rat, an academic writer, a medical officer in a mental hospital, a naval officer and surgeon, a brig doctor, and a deep diving officer. I have been the husband of one fine wife, the father of four children—one deceased—eleven grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren. All of them have enriched the depth and breadth of my storytelling

Episode 59: The Hex Hollow Murder Picture this: late November, 1928. York County, Pennsylvania. The trees are bare, clawing at a gray sky, and the air’s thick with the kind of chill that seeps into your bones. In a little farmhouse tucked away in Rehmeyer’s Hollow, a man named Nelson Rehmeyer is going about his evening. He’s tall, quiet—a farmer and a healer known to the locals. But not everyone sees him as a friend. Some whisper he’s more than a man who knows herbs. They say he’s a pow-wow doctor—a conjurer of spells, a wielder of hexes. And in a world where superstition runs as deep as the roots of the old oaks, that’s a dangerous reputation to have. _____________________ Join the Readers and Writers Book Club for a Spring Fling Facebook Event and Explore the Haunted Harding House: April 15 - 29 ________________________________ Check out the Author Masterminds Website ________________________________________________________________ Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club ___________________________________________ Meet Mary Ann Poll, your host for Episode 59:The Hex Hollow Murder. Mary Ann Poll is the author of five Supernatural Thriller novels, Ravens Cove, Ingress, Gorgon, Dullahan, and Andalusia Forest. Sign up to subscribe for free information about upcoming events at www.maryannpoll.com and check out her podcast Real Ghost Chatter. __________________________________________________________________________________________________

Episode 58: The Mystery of the First Broken Arrow Fat-Boy Bomb The U.S. military defines a “Broken Arrow” as an “unexpectedent involving nuclear weapons that result in the accidental launching, firing, detonating, theft, or loss of the weapon.” The first Broken Arrow event occurred in 1950 during a mission from Eielson Air Force Base near Fairbanks, Alaska. Questions still surround this event and the mystery of what happened to the B-36 aircraft and the Mark IV atomic bomb it carried. Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada Sources Adams, Sharon. “The lost nuke of British Columbia.” January 26, 2022. Legion. Clearwater, John M. “The first one to get away.” November/December 2004. Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. Liefer, Gregory P. Chapter 12: “Broken Arrow.” 2011. Anchorage, AK. Publication Consultants. Roos, Dave. “’Broken Arrow’: When the first U.S. atomic bomb went missing.” January 13, 2020. History. _____________________ What Would You Do if Someone was Hunting You? _____________________________________________ Check out the Author Masterminds Website ________________________________________________________________ Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club ___________________________________________ Meet Robin Barefield, your host for Episode 58: The Mystery of the First Broken Arrow Robin Barefield lives in the wilderness on Kodiak Island, where she and her husband own a remote lodge. She has a master’s degree in fish and wildlife biology and is a wildlife-viewing and fishing guide. Robin has published six novels: Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, Karluk Bones, Massacre at Bear Creek Lodge, and The Ultimate Hunt. She has also published two non-fiction books: Kodiak Island Wildlife and Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier. She draws on her love and appreciation of the Alaska wilderness as well as her scientific background when writing. Robin invites you to join her at her website: https://robinbarefield.com, and while you are there, sign up for her free monthly newsletter about true crime in Alaska. Robin also narrates a podcast, Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier. You can find it at: https://murder-in-the-last-frontier.blubrry.net _____

Episode 57: With all the Chaos Surrounding it, How Was the Alaska Railroad Ever Built? One of the greatest mysteries in Alaska – even though it is quite visible to the naked eye – is the Alaska Railroad. Every year, more than 400,000 visitors to Alaska ride the Alaska Railroad from Anchorage to Fairbanks with a stop in Denali National Park. And it is not a modest railway. It has 656 miles of track and carries 5.11 million tons of freight annually. It has only been owned by the State of Alaska since 1985, but before that, it was the only federally owned and operated railroad. ____________________________________________ _______________________________ Check out the Author Masterminds Website ________________________________________________________________ Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club ___________________________________________ Meet Steve Levi, your host for Episode 57: With all the Chaos Surrounding it, How Was the Alaska Railroad Ever Built? Steve Levi is a 70-something writer in Alaska. He specializes in the impossible crime and the Alaska Gold Rush. An impossible crime is one in which the detective must figure out HOW the crime was committed before he can go after the perpetrators. As an example, in THE MATTER OF THE VANISHING GREYHOUND, the detective must figure out how a Greyhound bus with four bank robbers, a dozen hostages, and $10 million can vanish off the Golden Gate Bridge. Steve’s books can be seen at www.authormasterminds.com/steve-levi and www.steverlevibooks.com. He also does two historical uploads a week. Send Steve your email, and he will include it in the mailings.

Episode 57: Justice for Jon Benet On December 26, 1996, the police responded to a kidnapping call, which later turned into a murder investigation. There were two possibilities: an intruder murdered Jon Benet Ramsey or someone in the house killed her. Sources ABC News. Ex-DA Opens Up About Why She Cleared the Ramsey Family of JonBenet’s Murder. October 28, 2016 Netflix. Trial by Murder. “Dingo’s Got My Baby.” https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/tv/2024/11/25/netflix-who-killed-jonbenet-ramsey-docuseries-revelations-bombshells/76403399007/ Netflix. Trial by Murder. “Brian Dorian’s Story.” https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/tv/2024/11/25/netflix-who-killed-jonbenet-ramsey-docuseries-revelations-bombshells/76403399007/ National Policing Institute In-depth Training of Police Officers Results in Less Crime, Fewer Arrests, and Improved Community Views Toward Police in High Crime Hot Spots.https://www.policinginstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/NPI-Research-in-Brief-Hot-Spots-Jun-2022.pdf __________________________________ Now Available __________________________________________________________ Check out the Author Masterminds Website ________________________________________________________________ Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club ___________________________________________ Meet Valerie Winans, Your Host for Episode 57: Justice for Jon Benet Valerie Winans is a graduate of Northwestern Michigan College, a retired state government manager, and a former campground host in Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska. Valerie is the author of four books: Alaska’s Savage River: Inside Denali National Park and Preserve, Road Trip with Remington Beagle: Michigan to Alaska and Back, and A Hero’s Journey: Life Lessons From A Dog And His Friends, and The Extraordinary Life of Edwin B. Winans: From the Stampede for Gold in California to the Capitol of Michigan. A writer of both fiction and non-fiction, her books are written to inform and entertain readers of all ages. She currently resides with her husband in Traverse City, Michigan. More information can be found at www.valeriewinans.com.

Episode 56: The Mystery of Artificial Intelligence In 1950, a robotic mouse named Theseus found its way through a maze and remembered the route. AI had taken its first baby step, the first step in a journey that would change the world as we know it. It is doubtful that the significance of this achievement was fully understood at the time. ________________________________ Grab a copy of Crystal Shards! _________________________________________________ Check out the Author Masterminds Website ________________________________________________________________ Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club ___________________________________________ Meet Cil Gregoire, your host for Episode 56: The Mystery of Artificial Intelligence I was born to write. Fortunately, life provided me with plenty to write about. As a young woman, I moved from South Louisiana to Alaska, seeking the Alaska dream. And I found it. Or should I say, the Alaska dream found me? For decades, I was too busy living the adventure to write more than highly descriptive letters to folks back home. I did it all, from teaching school in the bush, to commercial fishing in Bristol Bay and Norton Sound, to building a log cabin in the woods. My novels reflect all these experiences and more.