The Haunting of Chavez Ravine: A Novella

The Haunting of Chavez Ravine, a novella about La Llorona, is now out in the world. The title is apt. While I never lived in Chavez Ravine, it’s haunted me through the years.

I have two other books set in the old neighborhoods of […]

The Spore Queen and Brujeria

My new book is out today! The Spore Queen is a psychological, fungal horror story (some people call it “sporrer!”) featuring mystery and family secrets. But what you won’t see mentioned in the summary of The Spore Queen is brujeria, or Mexican witchcraft. It does play a part […]

La Llorona Sightings Of My L.A. Childhood

You’ve probably heard of La Llorona, the legendary phantom woman who weeps for her lost children. While researching La Llorona for my next story, I made an amazing discovery, one that connects her to the same street in Boyle Heights, East L.A. where I spent most weekends at […]

Celebrating a Good Year for “The Monsters of Chavez Ravine”

Did The Monsters of Chavez Ravine hit the bestseller list? No.

Did I make a lot of money publishing the urban fantasy novella? Hell no.

Did I get all sweaty and clammy waiting for the first reviews to roll in? Oh […]

The Monsters of Chavez Ravine: An International Latino Book Awards Finalist

The Monsters of Chavez Ravine will always be my favorite “book child,” so I was thrilled to learn that it’s an International Latino Book Awards finalist for Best Novel Fantasy/Sci-Fi English. Empowering Latino Futures will announce the awards in October.

Remembering Eviction Day with Rachel Cantu

May 8, 1959 is a day that Rachel Cantu will never forget.

It’s the day Los Angeles sheriff’s deputies forcibly evicted her family from their grandparents’ home in the Palo Verde neighborhood of Chavez Ravine.

The media had turned out in force, so there are lots […]

My Mother as the Main Character in The Monsters of Chavez Ravine

My mother always wore her hair short. Really short. It looked fantastic on her with her high cheekbones and high-bridged nose.

Then I was scrolling online and saw one of those clickbait galleries that show you what a famous person would look like today. Love those!

The Monsters of Chavez Ravine & Social Injustice

The Monsters of Chavez Ravine is an urban fantasy, but it’s based on real events that happened in Los Angeles.
I had some choices to make in writing this […]

Meet Dog Face Bride from The Monsters of Chavez Ravine

The monsters in my urban fantasy novella, The Monsters of Chavez Ravine, are many and come in different shapes and sizes, but the one that first popped into my head was Dog Face Bride.

I’ve been thinking about it since I was […]

My Really Odd Release Day for The Monsters of Chavez Ravine

As can only happen during a pandemic, the release of my new urban fantasy novella The Monsters of Chavez Ravine collided with Covid reality.

I planned to spend the day continuing the marketing push for this book that is so close […]

Go to Top