Fierce Winds: Two Journeys, Two Worlds, One Vision: 4 (Sedona Chi Mysteries)

Skip Rhodes, an Arizona tour guide, receives a mysterious message summoning him to Barcelona to find a son he never knew existed. What begins as a personal search quickly spirals into a fast-paced international thriller when he stumbles upon a murder and is pulled back into a dangerous life he once swore to leave behind. Surrounded by mafia conspirators, shadowy Catalan separatists, and a cagy Spanish police inspector, Skip must navigate a web of intrigue, organized crime, and political tension to find the boy — and a way out.

Mirroring Skip’s desperate mission is a Sinagua man named Chuchip, living at a cliff dwelling in 1392 Arizona. In this gripping work of Native American historical fiction, violent newcomers known as the Fierce Ones descend upon his valley, attack his home, and steal his son. Set against stunning sandstone landscapes and a time of climatic and cultural upheaval, Chuchip’s journey to recover his child becomes a dark, revenge-driven quest shaped by survival, loss, and transformation.

Fierce Winds is a powerful dual-timeline mystery novel that bridges modern Barcelona and the ancient Southwest in a story of fathers searching for lost sons across centuries. Blending international crime thriller elements with historical suspense, this Arizona desert mystery delivers relentless pacing, cultural depth, and high-stakes action.

For fans of the Sedona Chi Mysteries — including Tale of the Broken Spoke, Whitewater Honeymoon, and Chocolate Jungle — and for readers discovering the series for the first time, Fierce Winds is an exciting, cross-cultural adventure filled with conspiracy, betrayal, and the enduring bonds of family.

As a veteran tour guide in Sedona's beautiful red rock country and the Grand Canyon state, Paul toured thousands of visitors to natural and cultural sites throughout Northern Arizona, sharing its stories, geologies, and histories. A storyteller at heart, he developed and wrote Tale of the Broken Spoke, first of the Sedona Chi Mystery series, during the isolated days of the Covid pandemic when there was little to do for tour guides.Sedona Chi Mysteries follow the adventures of Skip Rhodes, an Arizona guide with a secret past, and his half-Mayan friend, Kulkulkan Balthazar. Along with an eccentric cast of recurring characters, they encounter murder, mystery, and mayhem among the Southwest's dramatic scenery and multicultural settings. Woven into each book is Paul's love of history and travel. In Fierce Winds, Skip's checkered backstory takes him to Barcelona, Spain, where his adventure there dovetails with the story of a Sinagua man living at an Arizona cliff ruin in 1392 - both searching for a missing child. Visit Paul's website at www.sedonachi.com to purchase his books, subscribe to his Readers List, follow his Writer's Blog, and to discover more about Skip and Kulkulkan's adventures. He is currently hard at work on the next book in the series, Tequila Twist.