In the Wings
Getting the opportunity to explore a Waco 9
Flying over Sisters on the way to Sunriver Airport.
Making our annual Christmas Tamales
Getting the opportunity to explore a Waco 9
Kelly is at work on her next historical novel, set in Southern California in 1929. The story has led her into the citrus groves of Santa Ana, the early days of women in aviation, and the world of liquor smuggling during Prohibition. She has also delved into the history of gambling ships anchored off the California coast, where gambling took place beyond the reach of anti-gambling laws.
To experience the world of her characters, she has learned the basics of flight through a few lessons in a small private plane, where she practiced both flying and navigation. She has also spent time in the air aboard a stick-and-rudder biplane and a restored Ford Trimotor.
Whitewater Thriller Series
The Deschutes River Canyon
Deschutes River
Sunset under the Deschutes River Bridge
The Deschutes River Canyon
Dead Drift and I Am the River are the first two books in Kelly’s Whitewater Thriller Series. The third book is now underway.
Each story grows from time spent in the places it’s set. Kelly studies the river from every angle—on the water, along its banks, and from the air—while learning from the people who know it best. She has rafted its stretches, spent time with guides, learned to tie her own flies, and stayed in the kinds of places her characters would pass through, from riverside hotels to old cabins and tents.
This physical research grounds her story in a setting that feels lived in rather than imagined.