Mysteries

While I don't miss grading papers or sitting through meetings, I do miss the student contact I had as a professor. So I've been giving Zoom lectures to libraries and writers' groups. Right now my passion is Ethical Uses of AI for Writers.

Do you belong to a group that I could speak to? Drop me an email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we'll schedule something. 

Here are the latest novels, stories and other books that I've been publishing lately. I like to alternate between a variety of genres, from the cozy world of Steve and Rochester to the police procedurals of the Mahu Investigations.

Here's a free prequel to the golden retriever mystery series, narrated by Rochester himself. Rochester's Puppyhood

I'm also branching out into translations. See my translation page for more information.

A heartfelt MM romance of love, forgiveness, and second chances, The Big Race reminds us that the most important finish line isn't always the one you can see—it's the one you cross together.

When a marriage hangs in the balance, sometimes the greatest race is finding your way back to each other. After twenty-five years together, Jeffrey and Ray's marriage is crumbling. Ray's affair has shattered their trust, and both men are questioning whether their relationship is worth saving.

In a desperate attempt to reconnect—or find closure—they apply for The Big Race, a reality TV competition that sends couples racing around the world for a million-dollar prize. From the tropical heat of Panama to the snow-capped peaks of the French Alps, from Thailand's bustling markets to Venezuela's treacherous jungles, Jeffrey and Ray must navigate not only physical challenges but the emotional minefield of their broken relationship.

With cameras capturing their every move, they're forced to confront the patterns that drove them apart while rediscovering what brought them together in the first place. As they face bungee jumps, cultural challenges, and elimination pressure, Jeffrey—the cautious computer programmer—must learn to take leaps of faith, while Ray—the competitive former athlete—discovers that some victories can't be won through sheer determination.

Buy for Kindle or in print.

Come in from the cold. The coffee’s brewing, and the dogs are waiting.

At a quiet Brooklyn café watched over by painted dogs and warmed by just the right cup of coffee, two teenagers arrive—lost, hurting, and unsure where to turn next.

In this deeply compassionate third entry in the Smiling Dog Café series—fully enjoyable as a standalone—author Neil S. Plakcy shares two powerful novellas about grief, resilience, and the unexpected ways we find our way home.

In Grounds for Hope, Miguel is alone on the streets after his father is deported back to their violence-plagued homeland. Cold, hungry, and nearly out of hope, he’s led to the café by a mysterious pit bull named Baxter—and taken in by Betty, the wise café owner whose coffee and compassion help restore his sense of safety and purpose.

In Finding Grace, Tanya is reeling after her mother’s decision to walk away from their life to “find herself.” Angry and unmoored, Tanya is gently nudged toward the café by Kiyomi, a calm, three-legged Samoyed—and slowly begins to rediscover her strength, her voice, and her path forward.

This tender volume celebrates how healing begins—in community, through ritual and memory, and with the quiet guidance of a dog who always knows exactly who needs help next.

Buy for Kindle or in print.

Hawaiian secrets meet Silicon Valley ambition

When tech entrepreneur Noah Kim is found murdered outside his office in Honolulu, Kimo and Ray must unravel a complex web of academic rivalries, cultural conflicts, and family secrets. Kim's startup, Kahola.ai, promised to revolutionize medical care for Pacific Islanders through artificial intelligence, but his death exposes the dark side of mixing traditional knowledge with modern technology.

As Kimo investigates, his own family life is upended when his partner Mike is injured in a fire investigation. Suddenly juggling full-time parenting of their twelve-year-old twins with his police work, Kimo finds uncomfortable parallels between the case and his own understanding of what makes someone a father. The trail leads him from the tech startup world to fertility clinics, from sacred Hawaiian traditions to the raw wilderness of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park.

In this fourteenth Mahu Investigation, Kimo must confront questions of identity, family bonds, and the intersection of modern science with indigenous culture. When the truth finally emerges, it challenges everything he thought he knew about fatherhood, biology, and the choices we make to protect those we love.

Buy for Kindle or in print.

Murder disrupts a joyous carnival

When Steve and Lili attend Stewart's Crossing's first Purim carnival, Rochester discovers a shocking find behind the bounce house—the body of Yakov Shmerler, a young Orthodox diamond dealer.

The investigation draws Steve and Detective Rick Stemper into the secretive world of Kiryas Lev, an ultra-religious community plagued by poverty and oppression. The victim was supposed to marry Hadassah Schildkraut, an eighteen-year-old woman who fled an arranged marriage to live with her cousin, Rabbi Shimmy Haveson.

As Hadassah launches a blog exposing the community's problems, Steve uncovers Yakov's involvement in a drug smuggling operation using yeshiva students as mules. The corruption reaches the highest levels of religious leadership, threatening anyone who dares speak out.

Blending Orthodox Jewish culture, contemporary social issues, and cozy mystery elements, Dog of Deliverance delivers a mix of computer sleuthing, canine detection, and thoughtful exploration of tradition versus progress.

Audio also available from Audible, iTunes & other sites.

In Victorian London, Reed Lydney's carefully constructed life has fallen apart. Dismissed from the Foreign Office for an indiscretion, he now lives with his sister Cadence, whose husband's recent suicide has left her nearly bankrupt. When Reed encounters Israel Kupersmit, a Jewish scholar fallen on hard times, their immediate connection goes beyond their shared love of poetry. Together they uncover a web of espionage, blackmail, and murder that threatens the British Empire's interests in The Great Game against Russia. As they race to expose a dangerous conspiracy, Reed and Israel must navigate their growing feelings for each other while staying one step ahead of a Russian spymaster who will stop at nothing to protect his secrets. The fourth installment in the acclaimed Ormond Yard series delivers a gripping tale of forbidden love, international intrigue, and the courage to forge a future together against all odds.

The Lord's Gambit is another tale of two wounded men finding each other and fighting for their true love match in a restrictive society. Fourth in the Ormond Yard series of historical romances, it can easily be read as a standalone.

Buy for Kindle or Print

Other Vendors

When master carpenter Barry Goldstein loses his wife Ellen to a sudden heart attack, he finds himself drawn to Brooklyn’s mysterious Smiling Dog Café, where the coffee tastes like memory and painted dogs on the walls seem to watch with knowing eyes. Meanwhile, his estranged sister Leah has rebuilt her life in Connecticut after years of addiction and loss, including the death of her husband Jaime and their unborn child.

After fifteen years of silence, a chance meeting at Ellen's funeral cracks open the door to reconciliation. As they cautiously rebuild their relationship, Barry and Leah uncover a family history of patterns repeated through generations: love and loss, staying and leaving, building walls and tearing them down.

When they discover their father had a sister named Temmy who died as a child—a sister whose existence was never mentioned, whose grave was abandoned when the family moved from Connecticut to Newark—they embark on a journey to find her final resting place and reclaim this forgotten piece of their history.

When enemies share a hotel room in a Boston snowstorm, things are bound to heat up...

Miami preservationist Victoria Whitmore has met her match in Alex Rivera—a devastatingly sexy developer who's determined to tear down the historic neighborhood she's sworn to protect. With his smoldering dark eyes and perfectly tailored suits, he's temptation personified. Too bad he's also her sworn enemy.

Self-made developer Alex Rivera has always gotten what he wants through hard work and determination. But proper, passionate Victoria Whitmore tests his control like no one else. When she challenges him with that aristocratic tilt of her chin, he doesn't know whether to argue with her or kiss her senseless.

Forced to work together against a ruthless competitor, Victoria and Alex find themselves sharing a hotel room during a Boston snowstorm. One bed, two stubborn hearts, and enough chemistry to power all of Miami Beach.

Buy for Kindle

Other Vendors 

Two Gripping Novellas

Murder, mystery, and mayhem at the local dog park in this unique collection from authors Neil Plakcy and Joanna Campbell Slan.

In "Dog's Punishment," Steve Levitan and his intuitive golden retriever Rochester uncover dark secrets when investigating the death of a controversial dog trainer. After Melissa Kawamoto is found dead at the local dog park, Steve must untangle a web of professional rivalries, stolen patents, and bitter grudges to catch a killer who turned a revolutionary training method into a deadly weapon.

In "Lamb Chopped," scrapbook store owner Kiki Lowenstein's peaceful morning at the dog park turns horrific when her Great Dane Gracie digs up a severed hand. The discovery pulls Kiki into a disturbing investigation involving missing pets, corrupt officials, and a shadowy network trafficking shelter animals to research facilities. With help from her homicide detective husband, Kiki must expose the truth before more animals—and humans—become victims.

Both stories showcase the unbreakable bonds between humans and their canine companions while delivering clever mysteries filled with twists, turns, and compelling characters. A must-read for fans of cozy mysteries and anyone who believes dogs have an uncanny ability to point us toward the truth.

Welcome to The Smiling Dog Café, where lost souls find their way home, guided by mysterious dogs and comforted by the scent of perfectly brewed coffee. This collection of two interconnected novellas brings the Japanese tradition of healing fiction to the streets of Brooklyn, where an unassuming café holds more magic than meets the eye.

In "Code of Silence," Jeff Hodges has spent his life afraid to speak his truth, until the day he loses everything and follows a golden retriever to a café that seems to exist between worlds. There, proprietor Betty Martinez serves coffee that tastes like memories, while her wall of dog portraits holds secrets that could help Jeff finally find his voice – if he's brave enough to face what he's been running from.

"A Mother's Heart" introduces us to Sophia Greenwood, whose young daughter has just been diagnosed with the same heart condition that claimed Sophia's mother. As she grapples with this inherited legacy of both loss and love, Sophia finds herself guided to The Smiling Dog Café by an Irish Setter who seems to know exactly what her heart needs. There, surrounded by Betty's gentle wisdom and the café's subtle magic, Sophia discovers that some inheritances are stronger than fear.

Murder is Cooking at Friar Lake!

When Eastern College launches its first winter intersession program, administrator Steve Levitan is excited to host a course on Caribbean cuisine at Friar Lake Conference Center. His wife Lili is co-teaching with her friend, prominent food anthropologist Dr. Yesenia Ubeda. But before the first meal is served, threatening notes appear, old documents surface with explosive implications for US-Cuba relations, and a student with a hidden agenda is found murdered.

With Rochester at his side, Steve must untangle a web of long-buried secrets and dangerous obsessions. Someone at Friar Lake is willing to kill to protect—or destroy—Yesenia's reputation. As more violence erupts and a brutal winter storm isolates the hilltop campus, Steve races to identify the killer before they can strike again.