What do you do when you love mystery books?
For long-time Richmondite Linda McNab, the answer is to bring the West Coast’s largest mystery convention to Canada for the first time.
Their first event — which includes a book reading by award-winning author and the chair of Crime Writers of Canada Cathy Ace — will take place Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at the Richmond Library and Cultural Centre.
“Cathy will talk about how her life has changed since her first novel was published, and the role the convention plays in her world,” explained McNab, a mystery book fan for most of her life.
She and her friend discovered the five-day mystery book convention Left Coast Crime in California in 2014.
“Hundreds of book lovers and writers got together to share their thoughts, it was an amazing experience,” said McNab.
Her favourite part was the breakfast section when all new authors had one minute to introduce their new books.
Since then, McNab has been attending the event every year all over the U.S., until one day she came up with the idea of bringing it home.
“It’s a great opportunity for readers to explore new books and talk to the authors they like; for new writers, it’s a chance to get their books publicity.”
McNab said renowned author Dan Brown was at one of the conventions before he became famous.
Left Coast Crime Convention Vancouver will be hosted in the spring of 2019 with more than 600 expected to attend.
“Vancouver is so beautiful, people will enjoy the city as well as the convention,” McNab said.
“And local book lovers don’t need to pay expensive flights and hotels to have the experience I enjoyed so much.”
McNab is now welcoming the public to join the convention committee and vote on relevant issues.
RSVP: [email protected].
