Mark Mitten's Blog

In Sheriff Breckenridge Dyer’s absence, the small mountain town of Quandary, Colorado falls into a tailspin. Deputy Jenny O’Hara gets rammed off the road in the Blue River Gorge, a gold miner eats a shotgun shell, local ski bums trip on magic mushrooms, and a corrupt United States senator brooks no dissent in her desire for power. Once Breck returns to reclaim his badge, will he have enough time to unravel the knot of deceit and violence before he faces his own day in court?

A Time Between Times: Breckenridge Dyer Book 3 is the third book in the Breck's Quandary Trilogy.

Paperback & Kindle:
www.mittenmark.com

My newest novel was just released. It is called Ghosts of the Past, and it is the second volume in the Breckenridge Dyer Series. This is the sequel to Breck's Quandary.

Here is what it's about:

When a body is discovered in a mine shaft, high in the mountains above Quandary, Sheriff Breckenridge "Breck" Dyer and Deputy Jenny O'Hara follow the evidence to a cryptocurrency conference at the ski resort. It’s a strange mix of high rollers, hipsters, CEO’s and tech gurus from all over the world, but the investigation hits a snag when their main suspect disappears—and the only witness won’t talk. Complicating matters, Breck is under investigation himself, plus it’s an election year, and he has to prove, to both the district attorney and the people of Quandary, that he isn’t a corrupt cop. Optics matter in politics, and Breck knows he could lose in the court of public opinion, even if the truth is on his side.

Get it from SunburyPress.com

Using the fantastic creative talents of voice actors I know, from Colorado, California and New Zealand, I've put together two animated book trailers for Breck's Quandary. Here they are!
~Mark

BOOK TRAILER 1:
https://youtu.be/ipDcuDsA9cY

BOOK TRAILER 2:
https://youtu.be/T2sPSnkrQEE

Breck's Quandary is the first novel in an upcoming trilogy about Sheriff Breckenridge Dyer. Breck and Deputy Jenny O'Hara continue to patrol the streets of Quandary, Colorado, in Book 2:

"Ghosts of the Past"
Coming Spring 2020
Milford House

I will give you a look at the plot on Christmas.

Stay tuned...and thanks for READING!

--Mark

An excerpt from Breck's Quandary appeared in "Sheriff & Deputy" magazine this summer, in their May/June convention issue.

The editor made this kind introduction:

“In addition to dramatizing the issues surrounding marijuana legalization, the novel offers a realistic window into a sheriff’s everyday struggles of budget, staffing, and community relations. Sheriffs are sure to recognize themselves in this action-packed, modern noir.”

—Sheriff & Deputy Magazine

Breck's Quandary

This is a new book, about a sheriff in a small mountain town. It's a modern day crime story, set in Colorado. It was just published by Milford House Press (an imprint of Sunbury Press), and is available in soft cover and digital formats.

This story has been rolling around in the back of my mind for years. An old friend of mine used to be a deputy sheriff in several Colorado mountain towns, and once told me he got overtime just to hike around the National Forest on weekends, looking for illegal marijuana grow fields. It doesn't take much research to realize that Mexican drug cartels have been active all over the USA, too.

Here is the blurb from the back of the book:

Living in a remote mountain ski town called Quandary, Sheriff Breckenridge “Breck” Dyer has a lot of problems. The Sheriff's Office is broke. He’s down to one deputy. The cell phones barely work and he can’t even afford a decent patrol car. Seems like the city council keeps cutting and gutting his budget every time he turns around. But things can get worse and they do. A Mexican drug cartel called Los Equis sends two men to scout out the high country and squeeze out competitors. Caught up in a haze of drug dealers and dirty politics, Breck gets accused of corruption himself. Can he stop the illegal drug trade before anyone gets hurt—or winds up dead?

Peacemaker Award nominee "Hard To Quit" has received positive reviews from Roundup Magazine and the Western Fiction Review:

https://westernfictionreview.blogspot...

Peacemaker Award nominee "Hard To Quit" has received positive reviews from Roundup Magazine and the Western Fiction Review:

https://westernfictionreview.blogspot...

The Western Fictioneers announced the finalists for the 2018 Peacemaker Awards. "Hard To Quit" was nominated for the Best Western Novel category.

https://westernfictioneers.blogspot.c...

The followup to Sipping Whiskey in a Shallow Grave is Hard to Quit. It was published by Sunbury Press on September 5, 2017.

Since I knew the publication date ahead of schedule, I managed to film a BOOK TRAILER for Hard To Quit.

Watch the 1-minute teaser trailer:
https://vimeo.com/235829125

The 8-minute short film:
https://vimeo.com/233591316

I have submitted the short film to a number of film festivals, and it is getting its first public screening Nov 16, 2017 in Denver at the Emerging Filmmakers Project.