We are delighted to welcome author Phyllis Entis to Omnimystery News today.
Phyllis's new mystery — The Green Pearl Caper (April 2015 trade paperback and ebook formats) — introduces private investigator Damien Dickens. We recently had the chance to speak with Phyllis and talk more about the character and book.
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Omnimystery News: Introduce us to your new series character, Damien Dickens.
Photo provided courtesy of
Phyllis Entis
Phyllis Entis: I picture Damien Dickens as a hybrid of Kinsey Millhone and Guy Noir (from A Prairie Home Companion), with a bit of Humphrey Bogart thrown in. He has had to struggle to succeed, both academically and professionally. He torpedoed a promising career with the Atlantic City Police Department by blowing the whistle on a fellow cop. As the story opens, the Dickens Detective Agency is teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. Although he tries to project a tough exterior, he cares deeply about his clients and his friends, and blames himself for the death of his client. Millie Hewitt, Damien's secretary, is easily dismissed as an empty-headed blond, based on appearances, but is a bright, resourceful woman whose good qualities reveal themselves as the story progresses. I loved watching their relationship evolve through the manuscript. I knew from the very beginning how I wanted their story to end (at least until the next book in the series), but getting there was 90% of the fun.
OMN: Why did you opt to go for a male lead?
PE: It just felt right for my main character to be male. He took up residence inside my head during the writing; I was able to maintain his "voice" without too much difficulty. My main problem was the use of appropriate (from a male perspective) adjectives and verbs. My husband picked up on a few that sounded too "female" for Damien to use.
OMN: Into which mystery subgenre would you place your series?
PE: I have a bit of trouble pigeon-holing the book into a category. I suppose that could be considered a Cozy, although that category always brings Miss Marple to mind. Perhaps "soft-boiled P.I." would come closest to the truth.
OMN: Tell us something about The Green Pearl Caper that isn't mentioned in the synopsis.
PE: The idea for this book began at a drop-in writing workshop — Pen to Paper — that I used to attend in La Jolla. On one occasion, the moderator gave me a tactile prompt — a string of green beads. The prompt led me to write a short piece about a flashy woman (Sylvia Sutherland) dressed in red and sporting a rope of green pearls, who hired a detective to find her missing sister. The detective was Damien Dickens. The pearls gave me the title for the book.
OMN: How much of your own personal or professional experience have you included in the book?
PE: None of the characters in The Green Pearl Caper are based on people I know (at least, not consciously). My parents took my sister and me to Atlantic City in 1961. We stayed at the Imperial Hotel, which is one of the locations that I have woven into my story. There really was an Imperial Waltz, written by a guest of the hotel. In fact, my mother suggested the name to him. Of course, we also spent time on the Boardwalk and at the Steel Pier. The picture that I used as a backdrop for the book's cover was taken by my mother. I guess she must have known that I'd need it someday. The location of Stowe, Vermont (where the climax of the novel takes place) also is very familiar to me. My husband and I lived there for seven years and the description of the log home is based on the home in which we lived.
OMN: Describe your writing process for us.
PE: I was at least 25% into the first draft of The Green Pearl Caper before I stopped writing long enough to draw up a rough outline for the rest of the novel. I added minor characters as I needed them to advance parts of the plot. I was ambivalent as to which of my suspects would prove to be the culprit until near the end of the first draft.
OMN: You mentioned some of the locations referenced in the book. How true are you to these settings?
PE: I've tried to be as true to the major locations (Atlantic City and Stowe, Vermont) as possible. The street names (except for Lois Lane in Stowe) and the driving directions are largely accurate (thank you, Google Maps). Descriptions of landmarks and buildings in Atlantic City are as true to the era as I could make them. Everettville, New Jersey is a fictional town, but its physical location and layout are based on an existing town in that state.
OMN: Suppose The Green Pearl Caper were to be adapted for television or film. Who do you see playing the key roles?
PE: Hmm … Who is the modern-day equivalent of Harrison Ford in his 40s? I see Damien Dickens as a rumpled, rugged guy, possibly with a small scar or two. For Millie Hewitt, his secretary and love interest, I'd say Melanie Griffith in her late 30s. Fluffy on the outside, but bright and resourceful below the surface.
OMN: When selecting a book to read for pleasure, what do you look for?
PE: I appreciate books that are well written and well edited. Nothing grates on me more harshly than poor syntax and incorrect grammar when I'm reading a "professionally written and edited" book. I enjoy historical fiction (the series on Rome by the late Colleen McCullough is one of my favorites), some biography and, of course, mysteries. I dislike extremely gory or outlandish serial killers (ie., I'm not fond of James Patterson). My favorite author in the mystery genre is Louise Penny. I love her characters, her plot lines, her attention to detail and the poetic quality of her prose. It also helps that I was born and grew up in Montreal and enjoy reading books set in that very familiar environment. I also like reading Faye Kellerman, Sue Grafton (Kinsey Millhone) and Jacqueline Winspear (the Maisie Dobbs series).
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Phyllis Entis was born and raised in Montreal, Canada and is a graduate of McGill University and the University of Toronto. She turned a love of science into a career in food safety microbiology that lasted for thirty-five years. Upon retiring, she decided to follow a different dream. She inherited a love for language and wordplay from her mother and her grandfather, and a love of reading from her father. This heritage, along with a lifetime of reading Nancy Drew, Agatha Christie, Sue Grafton, and Louise Penny mysteries, inspired her to create Damien Dickens, Private Investigator. She lives in Carmel, California with her husband and their Australian Labradoodle. When she's not working on a Damien Dickens story, she can be found baking, tending the garden, or sharing long walks.
For more information about the author, please visit her website at website and her author page on Goodreads, or find her on Facebook and Twitter.
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The Green Pearl Caper by Phyllis Entis
A Damien Dickens Mystery
Publisher: Phyllis Entis
Celine Sutherland is dead — her body half-hidden under the Atlantic City Boardwalk — and Damien Dickens, P.I. killed her. Detective Lt. James Holmes found Damien's gun and wallet near the crime scene, and discovered Celine's cash-filled, emerald-studded evening bag hidden in Damien's apartment. Sylvia Sutherland, Celine's older sister and CEO of the family's tobacco empire, insists that Dickens pulled the trigger. And the Sutherlands carry a lot of influence in Atlantic City. Even Damien's secretary has deserted him — gone to work for the Sutherlands. Only Celine's younger sister, Susan, believes in his innocence.
After Susan bails him out of jail, Damien follows his gut and a series of clues in order to clear his name. His quest takes him to several Atlantic City landmarks, inland to Everettville, a small New Jersey town, and north to Vermont, where he confronts Celine's killer.
— The Green Pearl Caper by Phyllis Entis
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