About the Author
D. P. Lyle, MD, winner of the Macavity and Benjamin Franklin Silver awards and a nominee for Edgar, Agatha, Anthony, Scribe, Silver Falchion, and USA Best Book awards, is the author of many nonfiction books (Murder & Mayhem, Forensics For Dummies, Forensics & Fiction, More Forensics & Fiction, Howdunnit: Forensics, and ABA Fundamentals: Understanding Forensic Science) as well as numerous works of fiction, including the Samantha Cody thriller series (Devil’s Playground, Double Blind, and Original Sin); the Dub Walker thriller series (Stress Fracture; Hot Lights, Cold Steel; and Run to Ground); the Royal Pains media tie-in novels (Royal Pains: First, Do No Harm and Royal Pains: Sick Rich); and the upcoming Jake Longly thriller (Deep Six). His essay on Jules Verne’s The Mysterious Island appears in Thrillers: 100 Must Reads; and his short story “Even Steven” appears in International Thriller Writers’s anthology Thriller 3: Love Is Murder.
He has served as guest of honor at Killer Nashville, SleuthFest, and other writers’ conferences. He teaches extensively; is International Thriller Writers’s (ITW’s) vice president for education; and runs CraftFest, Master CraftFest, and ITW’s online Thriller School.
Along with Jan Burke, he is the co-host of Crime and Science Radio. He has worked with many novelists and with the writers of popular television shows such as Law & Order, CSI: Miami, Diagnosis Murder, Monk, Judging Amy, Peacemakers, Cold Case, House, Medium, Women’s Murder Club, 1-800-Missing, The Glades, and Pretty Little Liars.
He was born and raised in Huntsville, Alabama, where his childhood interests revolved around football, baseball, and building rockets in his backyard. The latter pursuit was common in Huntsville during the 1950s and ’60s due to the nearby NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center.
After leaving Huntsville, he attended college and medical school, and served an internship at the University of Alabama; followed by a residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Texas at Houston; and then a fellowship in cardiology at The Texas Heart Institute, also in Houston. For the past 40 years, he has practiced cardiology in Orange County, California.
Website: www.dplylemd.com
Blog: writersforensicsblog.wordpress.com
Crime and Science Radio: http://www.dplylemd.com/crime--science-radio.html
Dedication
This book is dedicated to all the wonderful and hardworking people in the world of forensic science and law enforcement. Your work often goes unrecognized and unrewarded, yet it is essential in the delivery of justice for all. Thank you one and all.
Author’s Acknowledgments
I must thank my wonderful agent Kimberley Cameron of Kimberley Cameron and Associates for many years of hard work and dedication to my writing career and for her always helpful advice — and friendship. Thanks, KC, you’re the best.
To my editors Christina Guthrie and Tracy Boggier and all the professionals at Wiley. You made this update painless.
To my friend, fellow author, and Crime and Science Radio co-host Jan Burke for her help with this book. Her research materials and advice were indispensable in the preparation of this work.
To Nan Owen, my better half, for supplying the artwork for this book.
Publisher’s Acknowledgments
Executive Editor: Lindsay Lefevere
Senior Acquisitions Editor: Tracy Boggier
Editorial Project Manager: Christina Guthrie
Development Editor: Christina Guthrie
Copy Editor: Christine Pingleton
Technical Editor: Susan Walsh, PhD
Art Coordinator: Alicia B. South
Production Editor: Magesh Elangovan
Illustrator: Nan Owen
Cover Image: © Snap Decision/Getty Images