'Lost Hills' Murder Mystery Author Shares 'Bizarre' Inspiration

CALABASAS, CA — Local author Lee Goldberg just released a new break-out mystery "Lost Hills," a cop novel that starts in Topanga Canyon and moves through Calabasas, West Hills, Agoura and Malibu. The #1 New York Times bestselling author has written more than 30 novels and scores of hit TV shows such as "Diagnosis Murder," "SeaQuest," "Monk," and "The Glades."

In "Lost Hills," Goldberg introduces Eve Ronin, who is the youngest female homicide detective in L.A. County Sheriff's Department history after a video of her off-duty arrest of an abusive movie star goes viral. Now, Ronin must prove she's worthy of her promotion.

She gets her chance when she and her partner are called to the blood-splattered home of a missing mom and her two kids. The scene screams murder, but there are no bodies to be found.

Lee Goldberg has two upcoming Southern California events. The first is at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, January 21, at the Calabasas Library (200 Civic Center Way, Calabasas). The second is from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, February 1 at the Superbook Weekend Adventure on the Queen Mary in Long Beach.

For more information, visit Lee Goldberg's website.

Here's a Q&A with author Lee Goldberg:

Emily Holland: How has living in the Calabasas/LA area influenced your work?

Lee Goldberg: I've lived here for 25 years and it has definitely impacted my work. Calabasas is home to the heroine in the five "Fox & O'Hare" thrillers I co-wrote with Janet Evanovich and is the setting for my new crime novel LOST HILLS...and the sequel BONE CANYON.

EH: Can you tell me about the type of homicide investigation research you did before writing the book?

LG: I bought and read a ton of textbooks about law enforcement and forensics...and interviewed some police officers that I know...and I managed to finagle my way into a three-day homicide investigator's training seminar in Wisconsin that is ordinarily closed to civilians. I went to the seminar just to get some details and color for the book, but ended up stumbling on the real-life case that inspired my novel.

EH: What inspired you to write “Lost Hills”?

LG: It was a bizarre murder case that I learned about at a homicide investigator's training seminar. I knew I had to write about it. I couldn't get it out of my head. I chose Lost Hills as the setting for specific reasons, mainly because I know the area so well. So many books have been written about the LAPD, by guys like Michael Connelly and Joseph Wambaugh, and I am not going to do it better than them.

I wanted to write a Los Angeles crime novel that was very different... so I didn't put my character in the LAPD or Los Angeles... but rather in the LASD and the Lost Hills Sheriff's station. The jurisdiction of the Lost Hills station is like an island within metropolitan Los Angeles...it's an environment that has not already been explored in fiction...a huge chunk of land that includes mountains, lakes, ranches, gated communities, mobile home parks, and many different kinds of people and landscapes. I didn't want to repeat, badly, aspects of Los Angeles that other writers have already explored. I could write a dozen books set in Lost Hills...and hope I get a chance to.

EH: Why are getting the details about police work important to you as an author? It definitely adds a level of authenticity.

LG: I don't get the details right... I get a few details right, to establish a sense of authenticity, and make up everything else. I get enough right so that readers will buy into my story. What I am writing is fiction, and my goal is entertainment, not to mimic reality.

EH: Why would “Lost Hills” be a good pick for local readers specifically?

LG: It's probably the first crime novel set in Calabasas specifically and in the Lost Hills jurisdiction of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's department. The story begins in Topanga Canyon ... and moves through Calabasas, West Hills, Agoura and Malibu... places very familiar to local readers, which I hope will add an extra level of enjoyment for them. I've already met a few readers who were delighted to be able to "see" exactly where the story takes place...it added to both their enjoyment and their anxiety.

EH: When did you become interested in crime/true crime media? Do you have any favorite true crime shows or documentaries you recommend?

LG: Since I was a kid. I loved "The Hardy Boys" and "Adam-12." I like the built-in narrative engine of a crime story... the conflicts, the stakes, and the ticking clock. I like it as a reader and I love it as a writer. I am not a big follower of true crime television but I devour crime fiction in books, television and film. I also write for all three mediums. Right now, I am devouring episodes of "Endeavor," the prequel series to "Inspector Morse," another show that I love.

EH: It’s almost like you predicted the Southern California wildfires in your book as it was being written. Can you tell me about that?

LG: I don't want to give away my plot... but I will say that a devastating fire in the Santa Monica mountains plays a role in the story. A year after I finished the book, the fictional fire I created for my story came true in almost exactly the way I imagined it...and exactly where I imagined it. I had the surreal experience being forced to evacuate my Calabasas home, and editing the galleys of my book, and the scenes depicting my fire, while staying in my sisters house in Valencia and watching those same scenes play out in real-time on TV.

EH: I grew up on “Monk,” so I was super excited to see you had worked on the show. What was that like?

LG: Lots of fun! I wrote four episodes of the show and fifteen original "Monk" novels as well. It drives my wife crazy that I am a slob in real life when I obviously know how to be clean and orderly if I'd simply apply myself.