Nan Willard Cappo

I grew up in Pittsburgh, the fifth of six children. The only early indication I gave of someday being a writer was my constant reading--my parents thought I might become a librarian or a book critic. I didn't; I went into sales, first of computers and later of textbooks, but I never stopped reading. Or writing.

CHEATING LESSONS was published in 2002 by Atheneum/​Simon & Schuster. It came out in paperback in 2003 and has sold over 30,000 copies. I'd have once said it was geared toward high school students. But it found an immediate home among junior high students, who like to read up. Live and learn.

My latest novel is UNACCOUNTED FOR, a mystery once again set in Michigan, this time featuring a male protagonist. It's for adults,mystery lovers, and teens over 15 who like a strong plot and characters worried about stakes bigger than school and themselves--not that those aren't important. Like CHEATING LESSONS, it features a moral dilemma--the source of all true suspense, in my opinion--but there's some sex and violence, too. Watch the trailer!

My husband and I are moving back to Pennsylvania where we both grew up. So I think I'll set Book 2 in the Milo Shoemaker series there. There are a few unanswered questions in UNACCOUNTED FOR that can work themselves out really well in the hills and businesses of Pittsburgh.