What's the story behind the story? What inspired you to write this book?
I believe the world needs more genuine heroes. No superpowers here; just a man and his dog fighting crime. When life feels overwhelming, we look for relatable characters who remind us that decency and grit still matter. Silas Lopez was born from that need. The modern world is loud: news alerts, outrage cycles, doomscrolling. In the middle of all that noise, most of us are starving for a place to rest, and for me that refuge has always been great books—stories about admirable, if flawed, people trying to do right in an imperfect world. Five or so years ago, I reached a point where I needed less bad news and more good narratives, and I wanted to get back to my love of fiction that explores resilience, integrity, loyalty, and second chances. Silas started there: an entertaining, fallible, but fundamentally decent man dropped into the real world, where he tries to do the right thing even when it costs him. As for why a plainspoken former ranch hand ends up investigating murders on the outermost tip of Cape Cod: that man of few words was born of thousands of miles spent exploring and camping around the American Southwest, and thousands of hours hiking the dunes and forests near my home in the Cape Cod National Seashore. The juxtaposition gave me a canvas to explore the places, themes, and ideas that matter most to me.
If you had to pick theme songs for the main characters of your book, what would they be?
For Silas Lopez, “I Won’t Back Down” by Tom Petty. For Wren Bradford, “Northern Sky” by Nick Drake.
What's your favorite genre to read? Is it the same as your favorite genre to write?
The serial mystery with strong characters and a vivid sense of place has been a lifelong favorite of mine and, because its rhythms and conventions have soaked into me bone-deep, it’s what I was always going to write. But I read widely. As an English major, I also love literary fiction, historical fiction, and I’ll occasionally pick up an upmarket romance from one of the big authors just to see how they handle dialogue.
What books are on your TBR pile right now?
I am dying to get to Tana French’s Cal Hooper #3, The Keeper, since I consider her writing—and that series in particular—to be an influence. The thickest book on the TBR stack is the 40th anniversary edition of Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. Naturally, I will read Michael Connelly’s newest Harry Bosch novel, The Hollow, the second it drops. Connelly, along with Robert B. Parker, William Kent Krueger, and Lee Child, is a big influence on my writing. As a fan of Jane Austen and someone who wrote an honors thesis on Edith Wharton, I’ve been curious to try one of the Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion by Beth Brower. I recently heard good things in a living-writers book group about Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon, so that’s on the list. And finally, I met Simon Winchester this summer when our tables were near each other at an author signing fundraiser, so I have a signed copy of his newest and consider that chance meeting to be my kick in the pants to finally read The Professor and the Madman.
What scene in your book was your favorite to write?
There is a scene toward the end of the book where Silas confronts two suspects loaded with insulting bravado at a very public ribbon-cutting ceremony. It’s a classic case where Silas and the reader know more than the suspects do, so it’s great fun to watch as Silas doesn’t take the bait but instead just nods, smiles, and obtains enough evidence from right under their noses to nail their coffins shut. It was hilariously fun to write, particularly the line where Silas is leaving and runs into the banished underling and says, “I think your boss wants a word.”
Do you have any quirky writing habits? (lucky mugs, cats on laps, etc.)
I’m a bit of a snowball rolling downhill. Once a first draft gets moving, I tend to disappear into it for long stretches and write very quickly. I’m much better at staying inside the imaginary world until I’ve gotten it down than I am at politely writing a thousand words a day and stopping.
Do you have a motto, quote or philosophy you live by?
I do. The public version of it is “Things have a way of working out.” The internal family version of it is “MacLeans always land on their feet.”
If you could choose one thing for readers to remember after reading your book, what would it be?
The way Silas made them feel: that right and wrong don’t have to be complicated and that the simplest things—common sense, decency, loyalty, honesty—are enough to navigate to one’s true north.
Christopher Mirabile is the author of the new book The Holdfast (Silas Lopez Mystery Book 2)
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