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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

"Deep in the bowels of the afterlife, a storm is brewing." Looking for a great #Halloween read? Dr. Shitz and the Wayward #Ghost is just the thing! An eccentric medium, a vengeful spirit, and a Halloween bash to raise the Devil! On Amazon in ebook and ppbk: www.amazon.ca/dp/B0CJXLGW6S #books

Paperback edition of Dr. Shitz and the Wayward Ghost, the first book in the Dr. Shitz series, by Ron Finch. Tagline: "Deep in the bowels of the afterlife, a storm is brewing." A portrait of Dr. Shitz with a ghostly figure behind him in the background and a ghostly bat flying overhead.

Dr. Shitz wondered if Bradley even knew what he was broadcasting. He was responding to Larry’s communications, but not the way that ghosts usually did, and perhaps this was because he didn’t know he was doing it. Concentrating again, Dr. Shitz sent, “I received a message from you, Bradley, but it’s not clear. I think you’re sending me how you feel instead of sending me your thoughts.”

The torrent of sounds and images came to an abrupt stop.

Dr. Shitz hesitated and then sent, “Why are you so angry?”

There was another stream of sounds and images, but this time it was more focused. The sounds, though muffled and indistinct, seemed to go along with the actors in the images. It was even more like a movie, like that Don Juan which he and Jane had seen in the theatre recently, only in colour. Dr. Shitz thought he saw two people sitting together on a sofa. After a few seconds, the image became sharper, and he recognized the two people. They were Cheri, Bradley’s sister, and her fiancé, Russell Bancroft.

Dr. Shitz realized they were sitting on the very sofa that he and Jane were currently sitting on. It was covered with a colourful afghan. Of course, that made sense; after all, this was Russell Bancroft’s home. He was looking at a memory through Bradley’s eyes.

This was a new experience for Dr. Shitz, and it was very exciting. Ordinarily, when the dead spoke to him, he only heard voices, like speaking to someone on a telephone. But this was almost like time travel. He was looking at an event in the past as though he was actually there!

He continued watching the scene through Bradley’s eyes, afraid to interrupt him. It was almost as good as a picture show, but because, for some reason, he couldn’t understand what was being said, and because there were no helpful contextual cues, like a piano player pounding on the keys to indicate when a crucial event was about to occur, he had to pay especially close attention.

Dr. Shitz watched as Russell picked up a decanter...

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Where's the Rest of the Body?, the chilling 2nd vol in the Joel Franklin Mystery series. A grisly find in a frozen field leads a young Joel Franklin to battle man, ghost, and elements in a fight for survival, truth, and justice. Amazon: www.amazon.ca/dp/1790457939 #canadianauthors #mysteryfiction

Paperback edition of Where's the Rest of the Body?, the second book in the Joel Franklin Mystery series, by Ron Finch. The tagline is: The dead can't rest in pieces. Trees weighted with snow loom over a snowy field.

I heard a yell. It was hard to be sure I’d heard anything over the roar of the wind because, when the wind changed its speed, the pitch of its howl changed as well. If you had a good imagination, you would think it was talking to you. When I tried to move, I could tell the other end of the rope was fixed somewhere. That meant Cst. Herman was stuck. Had he fallen? Was he injured? Those were the first two questions that went through my mind.
I started to shorten the rope. I couldn’t reel it in because it was fixed at the other end, but I could pull myself toward that point. I followed the rope for a minute and then suddenly heard another yell. I was a lot closer to Cst. Herman now, and I could make out the word “Help!” That was definitely Peter, and he was nearby.
I came to a stop and then I moved ahead very slowly. I couldn’t see a thing, but I heard Peter holler for help again and realized he must only be a few feet away. I pulled on the rope and he pulled back. I knew he was trapped somehow, and I didn’t want to end up the same way, so I crouched low to the ground and inched my way ahead. I thought I could hear a splashing noise.
I hollered at Cst. Herman and it seemed his reply came from about five feet away.
“Stop!” he shouted. “You’re at the edge of the pond. Don’t come any closer. Just pull me out.”
We had forgotten about the pond. On our second trip from the front to the back of the farm we’d had to skirt the edge of it. It had been hard to see because of the all the snow, but Roger Conrad had told us about it. He’d said the milder patch of weather before the recent heavy snows had left the ice very thin in the middle. So we’d known the pond was there, but the blizzard had caused us to panic a bit. We’d remembered the group of trees but forgot about the pond.
“Hold on!” I shouted.
I braced my feet as well as I could in the snow and pulled on the rope. As Peter got closer to me, I could hear the crack of ice and splashing of water...

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Joel Franklin Mystery, v1: "The storm was getting louder. Between the booms there was a crackling and an almost subliminal hiss. The lightning was closer, the wind higher, and those vague shapes in the attic more threatening..." Amazon: www.amazon.ca/dp/1983012939 #historical #mystery #paranormal

Paperback edition of Lightning at 200 Durham Street, by Ron Finch, the first book in the Joel Franklin Mystery series. A furious lightning storm rages over a dark landscape.

Fortunately, there was a light right at the top of the stairs. I turned it on.
It was still very dark in the house, but not as dark as the clouds I saw rolling toward me from the southwest through the window. I heard some rumbling and the roar of the wind. It was going to be a bad storm. I could feel it looming closer, feel the clouds humming with energy. Maybe that was just my imagination. I hoped so.
I made my way along the dimly lit upper hall, past my sister’s bedroom, then past my brother’s bedroom, and through the second-floor sitting room to the attic staircase. It wasn’t a very fancy staircase, but the eighteen wooden steps took me up to my space in the attic. I was terrified. It was so dark, and I still had to get across the attic through the assorted piles of stored family stuff to the small light near my cot.
The storm was getting louder. Between the booms there was a crackling and an almost subliminal hiss. The lightning was closer, the wind higher, and those vague shapes in the attic more threatening than they had been on any other stormy night. I looked out the window, now very frightened. I was in the house by myself and in the path of what appeared to be a very wicked and peculiar storm.
By the time I was halfway across the attic, it sounded like I was being cannonaded. The thunder was so loud and so continuous that I laid on the floor beside my cot and covered my ears with my hands. I didn’t know what to do. I’d never heard a storm so loud. The house was shaking. My ears were ringing. The only thing louder than the thunder was the raging beating of my heart. I was in animal mode, just wanting to hide and wait.
The lightning was furious. The air itself seemed energized, and there was an odour.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Teaser for Dr. Shitz Goes to Mars: "At 528,000 feet, give or take, or 100 miles above the earth’s surface, in what appeared to be the depths of space itself, they caught up with the orbiting Martian spacecraft." Amazon: www.amazon.ca/dp/B0H865DWYL #historical #sciencefiction

Paperback edition of Dr. Shitz Goes to Mars, by Ron Finch. Dr. Shitz, wearing an old-fashioned diving helmet, peers over the horizon of Mars while a flying saucer flies out from the centre. A map of Mars is in the background behind Dr. Shitz, and a zeppelin also floats over the surface of the Red Planet.

“We’re at 30,000 feet,” said Sammy. “Fortunately, there’s no cloud cover today. You can see about 220 miles from this elevation.”
Everyone except Wells unbuckled and jumped from their seats, fighting over the periscope. When Dr. Shitz finally got a turn, he was once again amazed. “You can see Detroit from here, at the end of Lake Erie. At least, I think that’s Detroit.”
“I think that’s Chicago, actually,” said Ollie. “On the shore of Lake Michigan.”
“I will never get used to this speed,” said Shitz. “Has anyone ever gone this high before?”
“A pilot in Ohio reached a height of 38,700 feet last year,” said Sammy.
“That’s right, Lieutenant John Macready,” said Ollie. “I remember reading about him in the paper.”
KP and Sammy conferred over the dials, periodically stopping to look through the periscope. Every once in a while, KP would throw a toggle, there would be a little burst from the engine, and they would feel themselves moving a little to the left or the right.
“I hope you know where you’re going!” said Wells, still clinging to his straps for dear life.
“Don’t worry, de calculations are fery precise,” KP reassured him.
“Won’t we freeze?” asked Wells a moment later. “There’s no heat in the upper atmosphere.”
“The craft is well insulated, and the heat being generated by the engine will keep us warm,” said Sammy. Indeed, the cabin was now excessively hot.
At 100,000 feet, the whole world was visible to them, the curvature of the earth, blanketed in its glowing blue sheath, starkly contrasting with the black void of space.
“Where’s the ship?” Wells said, turning the periscope around in a circle. He’d finally felt well enough to join the others.
“Far above us, still,” said Sammy. “We’re only about one fifth of the way there.”
At 250,000 feet, or about 47 miles, Sammy said, “There. You can just see the other craft. It’s that little bright spot, reflecting the sunlight. Your coordinates were perfect, Peter. Now all we have to do is catch it.”
And they almost did.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

This was a lot of work, but a lot of fun! (Dr. Shitz Goes to Mars isn't on here, but you've probably seen enough of that for the time being.) Historical paranormal police procedural scifi mystery & comedy. All my books are on Amazon: www.amazon.ca/stores/Ron-F... #writingcommunity #canadianauthor

First 8 books of the Joel Franklin Mystery series, in order. Lightning at 200 Durham Street, Where's the Rest of the Body?, Terror on the Way, The Deadly Secret, One Foot Out of the Grave, It's Your Own Fault, I Told You I'm Innocent!, and 24 Booke Street

Next 7 books in the Joel Franklin Mystery Series: Who's Crazy?!, Who Stole My Car?, Firebug, Sins of the Past, My Mother Made Me Do It, One Man Left, Numbers; First 2 books of the Dr. Shitz series: Dr. Shitz and the Wayward Ghost and Dr. Shitz and the Time Machine; and the first book in my sci fi series: Devolution: 2036 -- The Truth is Not Enough.

2 books in the Stratford series: The Journey and Money Matters More

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

“You and every other science fiction nut wants a time machine,” said the professor, turning away. “We’ve all read H.G. Wells, Doctor! What makes you think it’s even possible?” “Time bubbles,” Dr. Shitz replied. Dr. Shitz v2 on Amazon: www.amazon.ca/dp/B0DX1DWXZL #canadianauthor #sciencefiction

Paperback version of Dr. Shitz and the Time Machine, by Ron Finch. A spiraling clock face descends into time while several images of Dr. Shitz's face circle around it, smaller and smaller. One of the heads wears a Robin Hood cap. Also depicted are a zeppelin, a dinosaur head, a crow, and several muffins.

Dr. Shitz blurted, “I want to build a time machine!”
A fleeting glimpse of sheer terror lit Dr. Adam Balm’s eyes, but it was quickly stifled.
“You and every other science fiction nut wants a time machine,” said the professor, turning away. “We’ve all read H.G. Wells, Doctor! What makes you think it’s even possible?”
“Time bubbles,” Dr. Shitz replied. “You said it yourself. We know time can run backwards. I was there. I’ve experienced it myself. And your Time Continuum Monitor detected that same abnormality. Time travel is a fact, Professor. It just needs to be implemented. And if anyone can do that, it’s you.”
The professor said nothing. He seemed to be compiling a mental list of objections. While Larry waited, he looked around his workspace, noting for the first time some unusual anomalies. For starters, a bow and quiver of arrows were leaning against a shelf. A chalkboard near the bow depicted a crudely drawn stickman, several curved dotted lines which appeared to be arrow trajectories, and a series of complex equations. On a hunch, Dr. Shitz turned and looked over his shoulder. He found himself facing an archery target which looked relatively well used. There were a number of small holes in the wall behind the target, and an arrow in the map of the solar system on the wall above it.
“One inch to the right and that one would have been in Uranus,” said the professor, admiring the arrow with his hands on his hips.
“Will you help me, Professor?” Dr. Shitz asked.
“It’s impossible, Shitzy!” cried the professor. “Recording time is one thing, travelling through it is quite another. Even if it could be done, it could have devastating consequences.”
At that moment, the professor seemed to realize what was on the chalkboard and hastily flipped it over, exposing a list which had been written on the other side.

felt hat
red feather
wool cloak
leather boots
belt with buckle
archery bracer

Professor Balm saw the list and hastily flipped the chalkboard back to the equations.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Thanks to everyone who showed up to the book signing! I doubt many here live in Stratford, Ontario, but if you do (or you're visiting), you can find my Dr. Shitz books on shelf at the Coles in the Stratford mall. The staff have been very helpful, so thanks to everyone there! #stratford #books

The doctor is in! Book covers for all three books in the Dr. Shitz series in order: Dr. Shitz and the Wayward Ghost, Dr. Shitz and the Time Machine, Dr. Shitz Goes to Mars. Paperbacks on shelf at Coles Stratford.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

Friendly reminder that my book signing is Sunday, August 16, from 12-4pm at the Stratford Coles. Martians walk among us! Blast off with your favourite medium, Dr. Shitz, as he visits Mars! 1920s space travel, flying saucers, other dimensions & ... ghosts?! #sciencefiction #historical #paranormal

Poster that says: "Book Signing for Ron Finch's newest book, Dr. Shitz Goes to Mars, is on Sunday, August 16, 2026, from 12-4pm at the Coles in the Stratford Mall. Ron Finch, local author of mystery, crime, historical, scifi, and paranormal fiction celebrates the release of his latest novel, Dr. Shitz Goes to Mars. A Golden Age adventure." The book's cover shows Dr. Shitz's head in an old fashioned diving suit peering over the horizon of Mars while a flying saucer flies past.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

⚠️ CORRECTION: The 16th is a Sunday. The book signing will be on Sunday the 16th of August, 2026, from 12-4. Martians! UFOs! Roaring 20s space technology! Swing by Coles Stratford for a meet & greet with a local author. Shiny new books for sale & signing! See you there! #Stratford #BookSigning

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

Good news! Dr. Shitz Goes to Mars, 3rd in the Dr. Shitz series, is now available on Amazon in ppbk & ebook! Sweet Marie is missing and Dr. Shitz has been hired to find her. But he'll have to go all the way to Mars! #historical (1927, London, Ontario) #sciencefiction www.amazon.ca/dp/B0H865DWYL

Cover for Dr. Shitz Goes to Mars, by Ron Finch, the 3rd book in the Dr. Shitz series. Tagline is: Boldly going where he's never gone before. Cover shows the planet Mars with Dr. Shitz in an old-fashioned diving suit peering over the horizon.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

A peek inside Dr. Shitz and the Wayward Ghost. 1st volume of the Dr. Shitz series. Vol. 3 is coming out soon! "He was looking at a memory through Bradley’s eyes..." Available in bbpk and ebook on Amazon: www.amazon.ca/dp/B0CJXLGW6S #paranormal #comedy #mystery

Paperback edition of Dr. Shitz and the Wayward Ghost, by Ron Finch. Tagline is "Deep in the bowels of the afterlife, a storm is brewing." Oval portrait of Dr. Shitz with a ghostly figure in the background and a ghostly bat flying overhead.

There was another stream of sounds and images, but this time it was more focused. The sounds, though muffled and indistinct, seemed to go along with the actors in the images. It was even more like a movie, like that Don Juan which he and Jane had seen in the theatre recently, only in colour. Dr. Shitz thought he saw two people sitting together on a sofa. After a few seconds, the image became sharper, and he recognized the two people. They were Cheri, Bradley’s sister, and her fiancé, Russell Bancroft.
Dr. Shitz realized they were sitting on the very sofa that he and Jane were currently sitting on. It was covered with a colourful afghan. Of course, that made sense; after all, this was Russell Bancroft’s home. He was looking at a memory through Bradley’s eyes.
This was a new experience for Dr. Shitz, and it was very exciting. Ordinarily, when the dead spoke to him, he only heard voices, like speaking to someone on a telephone. But this was almost like time travel. He was looking at an event in the past as though he was actually there!
He continued watching the scene through Bradley’s eyes, afraid to interrupt him. It was almost as good as a picture show, but because, for some reason, he couldn’t understand what was being said, and because there were no helpful contextual cues, like a piano player pounding on the keys to indicate when a crucial event was about to occur, he had to pay especially close attention.
Dr. Shitz watched as Russell picked up a decanter full of something that looked like it might have been scotch, but the colour was wrong. Russell was smiling and touching the decanter with this finger and saying something. He was very excited. He offered some to Cheri, but she placed her hand over the top of her tumbler and shook her head with a smile. Russell shrugged and poured an inch or so of the unknown fluid into his glass and into a glass sitting on the table directly in front of Bradley’s eyes.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

Teaser for my near-future mistopian novel Devolution: 2036 - The Truth is Not Enough. AI, androids, social media manipulation, brain implants, drone warfare, Greenland, a futuristic institute, and a band of misfit heroes. #canadianauthor #sciencefiction Pb or ebook: www.amazon.ca/dp/B0F91SXMBP

Paperback edition of Devolution: 2036 - The Truth is Not Enough, by Ron Finch. Tagline: You can't stand for the truth without standing in someone's way.

Beside the door was a small black cubicle with a single android inside. The android had a black faceplate and accents.
“Good day, Mr. Harrington,” the android said in a tinny voice.
“Good day, 7-1-2,” said Harrington. “This is Amaqjuaq and Hanta.”
The android greeted them. No doubt it was recording their faces for facial recognition.
Harrington turned to the door. The door required a retinal scan, fingerprint scan, and voice activation to open.
“It will take a couple hours for the system to update with your security information,” said Harrington, “so I’ll do it.”
He provided his eye, finger, and name and they entered a large dome, slightly smaller than a football field. The walls of the dome appeared to be made entirely of banks of computer servers encased in glass. Pipes, which supplied the coolant system, and bundles of cables, radiated up the sides of the dome toward a shaft in the apex like the webs of an enormous spiderweb. Descending from this same shaft, in the centre of the dome, was a thick pillar ringed with monitors depicting what appeared to be live footage from around the globe. A command centre. The circular command centre was raised above the floor of the dome by about three metres. Most of the floor was taken up by generators and networks of cables. The command centre was reached by a catwalk. The outer ring of the circular platform consisted of a semicircular desk covered with computer terminals, keyboards, and other equipment. A second ring of monitors topped it. A couple of comfortable chairs on wheels sat empty before the desk. Catwalks also ran around the outside of the dome at various levels. Numerous robots of different shapes and sizes could be seen both inside the dome and behind the glass walls shielding the servers. They travelled here and there on purposeful paths. An android with a green faceplate and accents stood alone on the command platform, supervising.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

* Teaser for my book The Journey * "I don’t know who I am, and I don’t know where I am. I don’t even know what day it is. My phone is missing, and my wallet is missing. Obviously, someone brought me here, but I don’t know why." #mysteryfiction #canadianauthor

Paperback edition of The Journey, by Ron Finch. Tagline: Running from a past he can't remember to a future he can't predict.

He woke up and slowly opened his eyes.
He was in a car. Through the windshield he saw that the car was sitting in a lovely, slightly wild setting. There were trees and bushes everywhere. A number of early wildflowers had begun to sprout up in flashes of yellow, white, and blue. It looked like a park. A glance in the rearview mirror revealed more of the same woodland scene.
He rolled down the window and was delighted to hear a variety of bird songs. From some distance away came the muted staccato of a busy woodpecker.
It was magical. Somehow, he had been transported here to this ethereal setting. It was a perfect place for a picnic, but he didn’t see anyone else nearby; nor did he hear the babbling of children, the sound of cars, or a woodsman with an axe.
Then, like a lightning bolt, the realization struck him: I don’t know who I am.
He tried to remember his name, but nothing came to mind.
It was disconcerting, to say the least. But maybe it had been that way for a long time. Maybe he felt this way every time he woke up. He tried to remember if this had ever happened to him before.
The information I need will be in my wallet, he thought. He checked his pockets. It wasn’t there.
He began to methodically search the interior of the car, checking the dashboard, the map pocket in the door, under the seat. After twenty minutes of searching, all he had found was a manual for the car in the glove compartment.
Had someone stolen his wallet?
Identity theft, he thought. He chuckled. They must’ve done a good job, because he didn’t know who he was.
He climbed out of the car, closed the door, and leaned against the side. He took a deep breath. The air smelled clean and fresh; it must’ve rained recently.
He took stock of the situation.
I don’t know who I am, and I don’t know where I am. I don’t even know what day it is. My phone is missing, and my wallet is missing. Obviously, someone brought me here, but I don’t know why...

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 25/05/2026

Teaser for my latest contemporary Canadian crime thriller, Money Matters More. Nefarious villains unleashed on unsuspecting townsfolk. Set in Stratford, Ontario. Available on Amazon in ebook & ppbk and in the Coles in Stratford Mall. www.amazon.ca/dp/B0GPDNCXRC #CanadianAuthor #mysteryfiction

Paperback edition of Money Matters More, by Ron Finch. Tagline, Real Estate Is Murder. Image of twenty-dollar Canadian bills falling on a rural landscape along with drops of blood.

Excerpt from the Introduction: "My name is John Stillson. I am the owner and managing broker of a small real estate company in Stratford, Ontario, and I’m fifty-eight years old. My wife, Denise, is two years younger than I am. We live in a lovely older section of Stratford with many fine homes. We have two daughters who no longer live with us. Becky, who is twenty-seven, is married to Robert Lyman, while Anne, who is twenty-nine, is single. I am writing this story because I was nearly murdered but didn’t realize it at the time. As a result of the attempt on my life, I became quite caught up in the drama surrounding it. I was first interviewed by detectives. Following that, I read front-page stories in the Beacon Herald, Stratford Times, and London Free Press about people in our community caught up in the maelstrom of events. Eventually, I appeared in court as a witness, after which I spent many hours watching the subsequent trials of those who had committed these terrible crimes—crimes that involved kidnapping, attempted murder, and murder. I read court transcripts. I spoke to witnesses and victims of these crimes. I also had long conversations with friends, relatives, and associates of many of the people involved. I talked informally to town council members, reporters, medical professionals, and some of the local police officers. I have, in short, learned everything I can about the matter. In our small but lovely city, a crime as terrible as murder occurs perhaps once every ten years; consequently, to have so many hideous and shocking crimes occur in a matter of months was like a bomb going off in the centre of town..."

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

Saturday's book signing was fun. I got to see some old friends & make some new ones. Thanks to everyone who came. I hope you enjoy your books! It's never too late to try a new author. 3 of mine are available at the Coles in Stratford Mall. Happy reading, everyone! #canadianauthor #mysteryfiction

Money Matters More, tagline Real Estate Is Murder. A crime drama set in Stratford, Ontario, by Ron Finch.

Devolution: 2036 - The Truth Is Not Enough, a near-future AI dystopia by Ron Finch.

Numbers, tagline: Someone's number is about to come up. A Joel Franklin Mystery set in London, Ontario, in Autumn 1939.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

Tomorrow's the big day! The book signing for my latest book, Money Matters More, a crime drama set in Stratford, Ontario, is tomorrow afternoon! Swing by for a chat! Coles, the Stratford Mall, Saturday, May 2, 12-4 pm! Glossy books available for purchase and signing! #canadianauthor #crimefiction

Book Signing for Ron Finch's latest book, Money Matters More, a contemporary Stratford crime drama. Tagline: Real Estate is Murder. Saturday, May 2, 2026, 12-4pm, at Coles in the Stratford Mall. Ron Finch is a local Stratford author of mystery, crime, historical, and paranormal fiction.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

It's almost here! The book signing for my latest book, Money Matters More, a crime drama set in Stratford, Ontario, is on Saturday! Come by for a chat! Coles in the Stratford Mall on Saturday, May 2, from 12-4 pm! Shiny new books available for purchase and signing! #canadianauthor #crimefiction

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 24/04/2026

The book signing in honour of my latest book, Money Matters More, a crime drama set in Stratford, Ontario, is only a week away! Join me at Coles in the Stratford Mall on Saturday, May 2, from 12-4 pm for a meet and greet! Books available for purchase and signing! #canadianauthor #crimefiction

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 18/04/2026

I have an exciting announcement: I will be doing a book signing in honour of my latest book, Money Matters More, a crime drama set in Stratford, Ontario, at Coles in the Stratford Mall on Saturday, May 2, from 12-4 pm! Come say hello and support a local author! #canadianauthor #crimefiction

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

Hard at work on the 3rd Dr. Shitz book! The Dr. Shitz series is a mix of #historical, paranormal, #sciencefiction & comedy set in Canada (among other times and places). If you're looking for something different to read, Shitz is the s***! 1 www.amazon.ca/dp/B0CJXLGW6S 2 www.amazon.ca/dp/B0DX1DWXZL

Cover for Dr. Shitz and the Wayward Ghost, the first book in the Dr. Shitz series. A portrait of a handsome fellow with a moustache and a ghostly figure and bat in the background.

Cover for Dr. Shitz and the Time Machine, the second book in the Dr. Shitz series. A spiraling clock face with a ring of shrinking Dr. Shitzes, a dirigible, crow, muffins, and a dinosaur.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 19/01/2026

I never thought this book would be so relevant! Can a band of misfits and a reclusive genius combat disinformation and stop an attack on #Greenland by a powerful autocrat who wants the truth hidden? You can't stand for the truth without standing in someone's way! www.amazon.ca/Devolution-2...

Cover for Devolution: 2036, The Truth Is Not Enough, by Ron Finch. Tagline: "You can't stand for the truth without standing in someone's way."

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

Anybody else enjoy making maps for their books? I don't think my dad (Ron) understands my obsession with making them. 😭 #writing #BookIllustrations

A map of the City of Stratford, Ontario, circa 2022. Several locations of interest are identified by the legend.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 29/08/2025

Random book promotion! Firebug, 11th in the Joel Franklin Mystery series, set in 1939. A case almost too hot for a young detective to handle! If you like historical and paranormal fiction, you'll burn through this book! On Amazon in ebook or ppbk. www.amazon.ca/Firebug-Ron-... #Canadian #fiction

Cover for Firebug, by Ron Finch, A Joel Franklin Mystery set in the spring of 1939. The interior of a burning building is show with a doorframe outlined in flames. Tagline reads: There's more than one way to get burned.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 31/07/2025

Thrilled to announce Joel Franklin Mystery #14: My Mother Made Me Do It. Joel's on the trail of the deadliest killer of his career--a killer with a taste for blood! Lots of good spooky stuff in this paranormal historical suspense thriller! (And maps!) #Mystery #Fiction www.amazon.ca/dp/B0FKLYK29X

Cover for My Mother Made Me Do It, a Joel Franklin Mystery set in the summer and autumn of 1939, by Ron Finch. Tagline reads: "You might not like what you find when you dredge up the past."

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 24/07/2025

After weeks buried in the pixel mines, I'm just about ready to release my dad's newest book. It's another installment in the Joel Franklin Mystery series. The 14th! A little promo reminder about the series: #Canadian #mystery #novels

It was a simpler time. But it was just as deadly. The Joel Franklin Mystery series by Ron Finch. Set in Canada in the 1930s. A paranormal historical police procedural.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 18/05/2025

What would you do for the TRUTH? That's what the Horseheads are asking themselves now that they've created an international firestorm with their podcasts. Will #Greenland be a refuge or a tomb? Near future #dystopian #sciencefiction! On Amazon (ebook and paperback): www.amazon.ca/dp/B0F8YX8QMK

Cover for Devolution: 2036 - The Truth Is Not Enough. You can't stand for the truth without standing in someone's way. A near-future dystopian science fiction by Ron Finch.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 11/04/2025

Joel's first job as an assistant #detective for the London Police Force pits him against a dangerous psychotic. Can ghosts from the man's past help Joel put this wild animal behind bars before he hurts anyone else? Find out in Joel Franklin Mystery v9: Who's Crazy?! (Link below) #mystery #fiction

Cover of Joel Franklin Mystery: Who's Crazy?! A man's face is split down the middle with a different expression on each side. One side is skeptical, the other angry. The tagline reads: "Some people give everyone the willies."

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 09/04/2025

“Big Bang” was coined in 1949 by physicist-astronomer Fred Hoyle, who was critical of the idea, in a BBC broadcast. Though it was used sporadically after that, mostly in popular science, it did not catch on until the scientific community embraced it decades later, in the 1970s. #historical #idioms

A brilliant white explosion sending light and matter out into the black void of space.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 28/03/2025

Little green men have been in folklore since the 12th century, but the first use of the phrase "little green man" in reference to extraterrestrials dates to an Apr 13, 1908 article in the Daily Kennebec Journal. It rose in popularity with the Kelly-Hopkinsville sighting of 1955. #historical #idioms

Extraterrestrials in Arthur Leo Zagat's novel Drink We Deep depicted as little green men on the cover of the January 1951 issue of Fantastic Novels.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 21/03/2025

Although “flying saucer” was coined in 1947 by pilot Kenneth A. Arnold, the concept is much older. Flying disc-shaped objects were depicted in pulp magazines in the 1930s, and the 1908 novel La Roue fulgurante had a flying disc that abducted people via a beam of light. #historical #idioms

Cover of the November 1929 issue of Hugo Gernsback's pulp science fiction magazine Science Wonder Stories, drawn by pulp cover artist Frank R. Paul. The cover depicts a disc-shaped craft in outer space orbiting the Earth. The craft is projecting rays of energy and also long mechanical tentacles, which are coiled around a large building taken from Earth. A second craft in the background is stealing the Eiffel Tower.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 24/02/2025

H.G. Wells coined the term “time machine” for his 1895 novel, but it wasn't the first story about a machine that transports people through time. Enrique Gaspar's El anacronópete (1887), about a time ship, and Edward Page Mitchell's The Clock that Went Backward (1881) precede it. #historical #idioms

Black and white illustration of the time ship from Enrique Gaspar's 1887 novel El anacronópete. The ship looks like a simple, rectangular building with a large horn-like tube attached to each corner. There are doors, windows, and chimneys. The ship floats through the clouds against the backdrop of a full moon.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 22/02/2025

The prototype is Victor Frankenstein from Shelley’s 1818 novel, but the term “mad scientist” first appeared in 1893 in the Daily Advocate. In 1897 it appeared in a history of the state of Indiana in reference to a 19th century French scientist, Constantine Samuel Rafinesque. #historical #idioms

Black and white portrait of Constantine Samuel Rafinesque. Born October 1783, died September 1840. A young man smiles slightly as he looks at the viewer. He is wearing a high collar, tie, and jacket, and has short styled hair and sideburns.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 30/01/2025

I've drawn a portrait of Dr. Shitz for my dad's books. I'm not an artist, but I think it turned out okay! I drew it with a mouse and a desktop. Very low tech! I'd like to do illustrations for all my dad's books. #historicalfiction #mysterybooks

Black and white line drawing. An oval portrait of Dr. Shitz. Dr. Shitz has dark hair, a thick curing moustache, piercing eyes, a handsome face, and is wearing a suit and a bowtie.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 23/01/2025

Been working on the maps for my dad's new book, Dr. Shitz and the Time Machine. #historicalfiction #maps

A map for the city of London, Ontario, circa 1926, for volume two of the Dr. Shitz series, Dr. Shitz and the Time Machine. It shows the principal locations for the book: Victoria Park, the Shitz Residence, and the Public Library in the centre , the University of Western Ontario Science Building to the north, the Ontario Hospital for the Mentally Ill to the east, the Bozo Brothers Warehouse to the southeast, and the road to Lambeth to the south.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 15/01/2025

Looking for a good mystery with some police action and a dash of the paranormal? Like historical fiction? Looking for Canadian content? Look no further! #mysterybooks #historicalfiction

Promotional ad for the Joel Franklin Mystery series by Ron Finch. Tagline reads: "It was a simpler time. But it was just as deadly." The background shows a revolver, 4 aces, and drops of blood on a table. Around the image are 7 circular thumbnails showing: lightning with the caption "paranormal experiences", a classic car with the caption "dramatic getaways", an ax with the caption "brutal murders", a swamp with the caption "shocking crimes", a portrait of an angry old woman with the caption "vengeful spirits", a burning doorframe with the caption "burning passions", and an evil looking man with the caption "dangerous psychopaths". Another caption on its own reads "a paranormal historical police procedural with a cozy, spooky atmosphere." The books are set in Ontario, Canada, in the 1930s and are available on Amazon.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 11/01/2025

Chosen at random, a book from the Joel Franklin Mystery series. Where's the Rest of the Body? (no. 2 in the series) is set in Chaseford just before a young Joel Franklin joins the police force. Frozen body parts are turning up in the snow outside Chaseford. Chilling winter reading! #mysterybooks

The cover for the second volume of the Joel Franklin Mystery series, Where's the Rest of the Body? by Ron Finch, with the tagline "The dead can't rest in pieces." Shows a snowy forest and snow-covered field with a mysterious wooden shed to one side. Set during the winter and spring of 1932 and 1933.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 18/12/2024

One Man Left is the latest book in the Joel Franklin Mystery series. Joel is a detective for the London Police Force with a gift for communicating with the dead. The series is set in the 1920s-1930s in Ontario, Canada. A historical, paranormal police procedural! www.amazon.ca/One-Man-Left...

One Man Left, volume 12 in the Joel Franklin Mystery series. A bloody planchette on a bloody Ouija board with the tagline "Partners in crime, in life and in death." Set in early summer 1939.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 09/12/2024

“Carpetbagger” is a US slur directed at Northerners who came south seeking opportunities during Reconstruction (1865-77). It refers to the cheap fabric of the bag they brought with them, which contained everything they owned. Now extended to any outsider bent on exploitation. #historical #idioms

A Harper's Weekly cartoon from 1872 showing a vicious-looking man carrying a large bag on his back and another smaller bag his hand as he walks toward a crowd of downcast faceless people. The caption reads: "The man with the (carpet) bags. The bag in front of him, filled with others' faults, he always sees. The one behind him, filled with his own faults, he never sees."

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 09/12/2024

"Stool pigeon," to refer to a police informer, goes all the way back to 1859, which makes it almost as old as policing itself. Good to know if you write historical police procedurals! It most likely comes from the practice of using pigeons as lures for attracting other birds. #historical #idioms

A black and white photograph of several carrier pigeons perched on ledges in a pigeon coop. Date: 1904.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 07/12/2024

In 1859 Albert Niemann isolated and purified cocaine from coca leaves. It was used as a local anaesthetic in the Victorian era. “Cokehead,” used to refer to a cocaine addict, was coined by the sociologist Nels Anderson in 1923. The term became mainstream in the 1980s. #historical #idioms

An advertisement for Cocaine Toothache Drops from 1885. Two happy, smiling children are making a little wooden house out of sticks in their backyard. The drops are 15 cents.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 07/12/2024

Dr. Shitz and the Wayward Ghost is set in the 1920s and is a sort of comedy-horror with a paranormal protagonist. It's full of crazy hijinks. I'm currently doing the edits for the second book, which will hopefully be out early in 2025. (Ron's my dad, I'm his editor and run his social media.)

Cover for the comedy-horror book Dr. Shitz and the Wayward Ghost. A portrait of Dr. Shitz with a ghostly man in the background, a ghostly bat overhead, and coloured glowing orbs in the foreground.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 05/12/2024

"Adrenaline junkie,” referring to a person who is addicted to excitement, goes back to a 1976 interview in the Los Angeles times. In the 80s it was still getting air quotes and appeared most often in sports magazines and clinical literature. It became mainstream in the late 90s. #historical #idioms

A lean, muscular shirtless man scales a sheer cliff face with his bare hands.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

The origin of “cold turkey” is up for debate (though I like the idea that it refers to serving unwanted guests cold turkey instead of a fancy dinner to get them out of the house). Its more familiar sense of “quitting a bad habit abruptly” is probably no earlier than about 1920. #historical #idioms

Black and white woodcut image of a turkey from 1678.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 28/11/2024

The expression “phone it in” isn’t as old as the telephone, but it’s close. Bell patented the phone in 1876, and by the 1910s people were using the expression literally. It didn’t acquire its idiomatic meaning of “giving a lackluster performance” until much later, by the 1950s. #historical #idioms

A black and white photo of a very old fashioned telephone from 1896.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 21/11/2024

“Martian” goes back to the Roman god Mars to signify “warlike.” The earliest recorded use as “an inhabitant of the planet Mars” is Motley’s Historic Progress & American Democracy in 1868. Popularized by H.G. Wells’s War of the Worlds in 1898, its heyday came with 1950s B-movies. #historical #idioms

Illustration from the 1927 Amazing Stories reprint of H.G. Wells's The War of the Worlds. Two slug-like aliens with bulging eyes, beaks, and tentacles are shown emerging from a fallen spacecraft inside a crater while humans look on in horror.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 19/11/2024

“Loose cannon” dates to when ships tied their cannons down to keep them from damaging the ship or hurting people. Its figurative meaning, “a dangerously unpredictable person,” first appeared in the Galveston Daily News in 1889, but the term wasn't popular until the 1960s. #historical #idioms

A row of cannons tied up on the frigate the Medusa with sailors in the background. Black and white etching from 1816.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 18/11/2024

Dr. Shitz and the Time Machine, the second book in the Dr. Shitz series (a paranormal historical comedy). Hoping to finish the edits and get it released by the end of the year.

The cover for Dr. Shitz and the Time Machine, by Ron Finch. A dizzying spiral of an old analog clock face with various images overlaid on top, including several Dr. Shitzes, some muffins, a crow, a dinosaur, and a zeppelin. The tagline reads: "The greatest project of all time is rapidly running out of it."

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 18/11/2024

“Speed Demon” was the name of a 1913 motorboat. Baby Speed Demon II (an upgrade) was the first boat in America to travel over fifty miles an hour and won the 1914 Gold Cup. The name “speed demon” became generalized to other racing sports and eventually a 1932 movie, Speed Demon. #historical #idioms

Speed Demon Reliance, a racing boat from 1913. It was soon replaced by Baby Speed Demon II, which won the 1914 Gold Cup.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 13/11/2024

“Ace in the hole” comes from stud poker, which originated during the American Civil War (1861-65). By World War I (1914-18), it was being used in an idiomatic sense as “having a secret weapon.” Authors of historical fiction should always bear idiomatic expressions in mind. #historical #idioms

An ace of spades sitting on top a deck of cards.

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Ron Finch Books @dwfinch.bsky.social · 12/11/2024

“Having a short fuse,” meaning “quick to anger,” has an explosive history. Fuses go all the way back to the invention of gunpowder (10th c. China), but the colloquial expression probably only dates to dynamite mining around the turn of the century and was common by the 1960s. #historical #idioms

Placing a stick of dynamite into a blast hole in bedrock.

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