Jane Golden

Author of International Mysteries
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Summer in Sofia

The gripping tale of an American diplomat’s wife as she relies on her amateur sleuthing skills to dive headfirst into the deep end of an international murder mystery.

What others say

“Golden’s first-hand knowledge of Romania is fascinating.”
Clarion Review

“An engaging mystery that turns the classic expatriate dream on its head.”
Kurkus Review

“The perfect vacation book . . . Colorful, entertaining, and beautifully written.”
Marian Petrutza

President of the Romanian-American Press Association

“Nothing makes an overworked genre like mystery seem quite so fresh as a story set in an exotic locale. SECRETS IN THE VINES takes this theory to heart, offering up a murder mystery set in the wine country surrounding Romania. It’s a winning formula.” “Author Jane Golden drew on her own time in Bucharest to set up this tale, and it pays off nicely. Observations about the life of a foreigner trying to make sense of a new culture are spot-on and often funny; thoughts about parking customs and the laconic pace of government reflect an outsider’s tendency to compare things to life at home, while also taking us deeper into the atmosphere. The mystery is gripping, but it’s the setting that steals the show.” The review concludes with this about SECRETS IN THE VINES: It has a “terrific pacing and a plot that ends well.” Better yet, the reviewer states that “we’re left wanting more of this juicy escapism.”
BlueInk Review

From my Instagram

A fun evening with our three children at Southern Yacht Club in New Orleans kick off party for the 2022 Regata Al Sol sailboat race from Pensacola to Isla Mujeres, Mexico.

The clear blue waters off the beach of Sao Vincente Island, Cape Verde turn green as the hit shore. The soft sand and high dunes were formed over thousands of years from the sands of the Sahara blowing across the Atlantic. It has perfect surfing waves and deadly rip currents.

The clear blue waters off the beach of Sao Vincente Island, Cape Verde turn green as the hit shore. The soft sand and high dunes were formed over thousands of years from the sands of the Sahara blowing across the Atlantic. It has perfect surfing waves and deadly rip currents.

Homes on island of San Anteo, Cape Verde, surrounded by sugar cane used to make grog, the rum liquor of the country. Remote from the world, surrounded by lush mountains.

Arrived in Cape Verde at sunrise after a week sailing down the coast of Africa. The archipelago (Portugese until 1975) is incredibly interesting with jagged mountains that resemble the Andes. We crossed race line 3rd in multi-hulls, but won't know final results with handicaps until tonight!

Leaving in a few minutes for the start of the ARC plus race across the Atlantic! 10 foot waves and gusty wind, but still excited to be on the way to Cape Verde and then Grenada.

I loved this window in Ston, Croatia. Who needs perfection?

Visiting Casa De Colon in Las Palmas, Canary Island, where Christopher Columbus stayed before embarking on his voyage in 1942, the same voyage across the Atlantic under sail that we will take in another week. So far, the biggest difference is that our provisioning will not include live animals!

A quiet sunset in a small fishing village on the coast of Croatia

Look what I found!

I love Stari Grad on Hvar Island! It is one of the oldest towns in Europe and the oldest in Croatia

Tonight at anchor in Vis, Croatia

Recent Travels

Adriatic Regatta 2019

I considered the bad omens at lunch as I sat with my husband at a table on the lee side of a four-hundred-year-old building on the Pjaca (old town square), sipping on a glass of crisp white wine and eating light crusty pizza. The wind whipping around us made for clear skies and spectacular views of crashing waves slamming into the marble boardwalk outside Diocletian’s Palace, but it was not the wind I wanted to feel. It didn’t matter that in the distance I saw a harbor full of catamarans and sailboats appearing like an apparition of appetizers, their masts so uniform in height they resembled hundreds of toothpicks stuck in tasty, yet expensive treats.

Escape the Winter Blues

An American ex-pat turned amateur sleuth sets out on a fast-paced search to find her missing niece who has disappeared into the murky waters of international yachting. Will she find her, or will it end in mutiny, or even worse, in murder?

Love on Lastovo Island

We arrived by sailboat to the Croatian island of Lastovo – surrounded by the crystal clear Adriatic and known for the fact that its main village was in the center of the island as opposed to sitting on the harbor like all other cities and villages of its age. The...

In the Footsteps of Marco Polo- part two

It was a perfect November day, but there was not much information about Marco Polo. Yes, there were restaurants, bars, and shops bearing his name, but not much to satiate our curiosity. We left feeling privileged to have peaked into the enchanted lives of the year-long residents, but a bit disappointed we did not learn more about the famous traveler.

Jane Golden Author of International Mystery Novels

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Jane Golden Author of International Mystery Novels