Todd Borg, author of the Owen McKenna Mystery Thrillers

TODDBORG.COM

THE OFFICIAL WEBSITE OF TODD BORG

AUTHOR OF THE AWARD-WINNING OWEN McKENNA MYSTERIES

Introducing The 5th Owen McKenna Mystery Thriller!

TAHOE SILENCE

Chosen by the prestigious Library Journal as one of the Five Best Mysteries of the Year!!

TAHOE SILENCE is about a girl named Silence Ramirez. Silence is an exceptional artist and, according to one of her teachers, brilliant. She's also autistic and mute and has not spoken a single word in her 17 years. But she has an extremely valuable secret.

When Silence is kidnapped on the eve of the Tahoe Biker Heaven festival, Detective Owen McKenna and his Great Dane Spot pursue a notorious biker gang and a kidnapper who will stop at nothing, including murder, to get what he wants.

Time to save the girl is short. Silence knows the reason she was kidnapped, but that knowledge is locked up inside her mind...

EXCELLENT REVIEWS INCLUDING A STARRED REVIEW IN LIBRARY JOURNAL

TAHOE SILENCE has already gotten great responses from the media, such as a fantastic review in the major journal BOOKLIST. They said, "ANOTHER EXCITING ENTRY into this too-little-known series. McKenna and his Great Dane, Spot, make a wonderful investigative duo, and the Tahoe atmosphere comes through loud and clear."

Even better, TAHOE SILENCE received a STARRED REVIEW from the prestigious Library Journal. They said, "Borg turns what could have been a typical PI novel into something rather special. This is his best book to date and should call wider attention to AN EXCELLENT SERIES."

Sam Bauman at the Nevada Appeal said, "THIS ONE IS A REAL PAGE-TURNER, rich in local scenery and ever richer in knowledge about autism...Borg has won several prizes for his Tahoe series, all richly deserved. TAHOE SILENCE rings thriller bells."

"HEARTBREAKING" and "AWESOME" were words that Midwest Book Review used in its five-star review of Tahoe Silence.

Mystery News gave Tahoe Silence a five-quill rave, the highest honor their journal bestows. They said that Tahoe Silence "IS SUPERB."

PRECEDED BY:

The Reviews:

Thank you for discovering the website of Lake Tahoe local Todd Borg, writer of the award-winning Owen McKenna mystery thrillers, praised by: Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, Booklist, Midwest Book Review, Dallas Morning News, St. Paul Pioneer Press, San Jose Mercury News, Kansas City Star, Reno Gazette Journal, Charlotte Observer, Nevada Appeal, The Mystery News, The Poisoned Pen, Tahoe Daily Tribune, Petaluma Post, Billings Montana Gazette, Sacramento Bee, Tahoe Mountain News, Deadly Pleasures, and dozens more.

The Awards:

Borg won "Best Mystery" and "Best Thriller" prizes from the Bay Area Independent Publishers Association, and on the national scene was awarded a Ben Franklin Silver Medal Award for Best Mystery. In other national awards, TAHOE ICE GRAVE was chosen by Mystery News reviewer Gayle Wedgwood as one of the Top 5 books of 2002. Deadly Pleasures magazine chose TAHOE DEATHFALLl for their Best New Fiction list. And the Cincinnati Public Library chose TAHOE DEATHFALL for their Best New Fiction list along side such mystery notables as Dennis Lehane, Stephen Hunter and Donald Westlake.

The Novels:

TAHOE DEATHFALL is a captivating mystery about the murder of a six-year-old girl on the rock slide above Tahoe's world-famous Emerald Bay. Eleven years later, Detective Owen McKenna and his Great Dane Spot are hired by the victim's identical twin sister to hunt for an elusive killer.

Kirkus Reviews said, "THRILLING EXTENDED RESCUE/CHASE...Easygoing, self-confident Owen provides the perfect counterpoint to the menacing forces arrayed against his teenaged client...a practiced debut."

The Novels Cont.:

The Midwest Book Review's Shelley Glodowski said, "A TREMENDOUS READ FROM A GREAT WRITER."

John Orr of the San Jose Mercury News said, "HIGHLY LIKABLE CHARACTERS. It's likely (Borg) will graduate to the hardcover big leagues before long."

TAHOE BLOWUP is a gut-clenching story about a

murderous arsonist who is setting deadly forest fires in the Tahoe Basin. When detective Owen McKenna's girlfriend is kidnapped by the arsonist, Owen and his dog Spot have only a few hours to save her before she burns up in a fire so big that firefighters call it a Blowup.

Recipient of a Best-Mystery Ben Franklin Award, TAHOE BLOWUP has received raves across the country.

Barbara Peters, owner of the famous Poisoned Pen bookstore said, "A COMPELLING TALE OF ARSON ON THE MOUNTAINS that readers of Nevada Barr's Firestorm will dig."

Catherine Abel of the Tahoe Mountain News said of TAHOE BLOWUP, "HIGH TENSION... Features a hero who is as smart and sensitive as he is tough... I welcome Borg's Owen McKenna and his sidekick Spot into the front ranks of fictional heroes."

"Borg has real talent," Jason Kaufman, Senior Editor at Pocket Books said of TAHOE BLOWUP. He continues, "His descriptions are vivid, there is subtle humor and liveliness in his characters (both human and canine), and most of all the writing is smart. When his star rises I'll be the first to applaud."

Sam Bauman of the Nevada Appeal said, "A FUN, QUICK READ...A FAST-MOVING PLOT...SURE TO KEEP THE READER TURNING PAGES."

TAHOE ICE GRAVE is about a young man who walks naked into Lake Tahoe in the middle of winter. He carries to his death a secret about a long-lost manuscript by Mark Twain, left on the Hawaiian island of Kauai when Twain visited there in 1866. A vicious killer will do anything to obtain it. The manuscript may have turned up in Tahoe, another Twain hangout, with deadly consequences for all who come in contact with it.

Only one person knows where the manuscript is. Owen and Spot have to find that person before the killer does. They are running out of time as they chase the killer up a mountain in a blizzard to a cave of ice and a battle to the death.

Kirkus Reviews said, "BAFFLING CLUES... MISCHIEF AND QUIRKY CHARACTERS...OWEN McKENNA, A COURTLY SLEUTH OF THE OLD SCHOOL, CONSISTENTLY ENTERTAINS."

John Rowen of Booklist wrote, "A CLEVER PLOT AND AN INTRIGUING MIX of Hawaiian, Native American and Western culture... a spectacular setting, a charming Great Dane who like microwaved treats... Recommend this mystery to readers who like puzzlers set in stunning, exotic country."
Karen Dini of the Addison, Illinois Public Library wrote, "ONCE YOU READ AN OWEN McKENNA NOVEL, YOU'RE HOOKED FOR LIFE!"
Shelley Glodowski of the Midwest Book Review said of TAHOE ICE GRAVE , "A BIG THUMBS UP...Mr. Borg's plots are super-twisters... (Owen, Spot and Street) make for a winning combination of grit, intelligence, strength, and tenderness that is captivating to the reader."

TAHOE KILLSHOT is about the pop star Glory who is killed while mountain biking on the world-famous Flume Trail high above the east shore of Lake Tahoe. Detective Owen McKenna and his Great Dane Spot are drawn into a harrowing investigation with more victims than clues. What first appears to be the carnage of a thrill-killer, begins to look like the fallout from a complicated multimillion-dollar land scam. Owen and Spot must track down a twisted murderer with a synthetic voice and a penchant for killing in the most unusual ways...

TAHOE KILLSHOT has gotten raves. Gayle Wedgwood of the Mystery News wrote, TAHOE KILLSHOT "IS A WONDERFUL BOOK containing fascinating characters, hard-hitting action, a fast-paced plot, and believable dialogue."

Shelley Glodowski of the Midwest Book Review wrote, "A WONDERFUL YARN...A GREAT READ!"
Nancy Oliver Hayden of the Tahoe Daily Tribune wrote "SPOT ROCKS! and so does Tahoe author Todd Borg... another action-packed mystery... full of twists and turns and clever clues."
Catherine Abel of the Tahoe Mountain News wrote, "...EXTREMELY FAST-PACED ...pick up Tahoe Killshot for a great read."
Sam Bauman of the Nevada Appeal wrote, "THE OPENING CHAPTERS ARE EXCELLENT HOOKS FOR A GOOD THRILLER, offering all the pleasure and comfort of sitting down with an old friend to hear another good story. And it is a good story... (Borg's books) get better every outing. Keep 'em coming, Borg."

(For dozens of raves, please visit the Quotes page.)

Lake Tahoe, the second highest big lake in the world. Please visit the "Tahoe Tour" page.

The Owen McKenna Mystery Thriller series features six foot six inch, ex-cop McKenna who, after a tragic shooting in San Francisco, moved to Lake Tahoe to start a new life as a private detective.

Owen has a Harlequin Great Dane named Spot (with more polka dots than any six Dalmatians). Spot "Remo" from Dakota.com, looks just like Spot. Learn about him on Spot's Page. is a lovable dog who knows how to act tough, although it is usually just that, an act, followed by the wagging of an actor inordinately pleased with his performance. When he's not snoozing or eating an out-sized amount of dog food, Spot helps Owen with his investigations. At the climax of the novels, Spot usually makes a critical difference. Read all about Spot on Spot's Page.

Owen's girlfriend is Street Casey, a forensic entomologist who studies maggots in corpses to help determine time of death and other details about the victim. Street is a striking, too-thin woman who has, as Owen puts it, 'eyes that can see my soul and a voice that can melt it.' Street cares deeply about Owen, but because of the emotional scars of a terrible childhood she won't commit to the permanent relationship that he desires.

Owen is an art lover who finds in paintings essential truths about human nature. He uses those insights to help solve his cases. As an ex-cop, Owen is not an art scholar, nor has he ever taken any classes on art. But he routinely finds himself drawn into his extensive collection of art books, there to gaze at the reproductions and learn about the interiors of people. His discoveries give him a new perspective on his cases and help him to nail the killer. You can learn more about him on Owen's page.

Please explore this website. Learn about the stories that Owen and Spot and Street inhabit. Read an interview with the author. Find out about Spot's favorite food. Take a visual tour of Lake Tahoe. Read excerpts from the books. And discover why the most respected reviewers in the business are raving about the Owen McKenna novels...

Then order the books from your favorite bookstore. (The order page has all the details.)

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