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Press Kit

Everything you need for reviews, features, and interviews.

Book Details

Title: Secrets of Pagua Bay
Subtitle: A Caribbean Mystery
Author: Deborah Balthazar
Genre: Mystery / Literary Fiction / Caribbean Literature
Publisher: Self-published (Amazon KDP)
Format: Paperback & Kindle
Pages: Approximately 280
Copyright: 2025 Deborah Balthazar

Author Bio (short)

Deborah Balthazar is a Dominican-born, Toronto-based writer whose debut novel Secrets of Pagua Bay brings the vibrant oral traditions of the Caribbean to the page. Set on the island of Dominica, the novel weaves a mystery of forbidden love, suspicious fire, and a community's fight for truth through voices alive with Dominican Creole. The work draws deeply on Kalinago traditions, the Nine Night funeral custom, and the rich tapestry of Caribbean village life.

One-Line Description

When a forbidden interracial love affair ends in a suspicious fire on the coast of Dominica, a young woman fights to uncover the truth the village conspires to bury.

Key Themes

Forbidden Love Caribbean Mystery Kalinago Heritage Dominican Culture Nine Night Tradition Creole Language Race & Class Village Life Truth & Justice Obeah & Spirituality Oral Tradition Debut Novel

Suggested Interview Topics

→ The experience of writing in both English and Dominican Creole
→ How Caribbean oral tradition shapes literary fiction
→ Portraying Kalinago culture and the responsibility that comes with it
→ The Nine Night tradition as both cultural practice and narrative device
→ Self-publishing a Caribbean literary novel — challenges and rewards
→ The immigrant writer's relationship with the homeland
→ Race, class, and love in small Caribbean communities

High-res cover available on request

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Media Contact

For review copies, interviews, and press inquiries, please reach out:

secretsofpaguabay@gmail.com