A Letter to the Fans of Esther Rayde

Dear Fans of Esther Rayde:
Esther Rayde was the nom de plume of Tyra D. Sheere. It is my sad task to inform you that on May 6, 2011 Tyra died of a head injury on the island of Borneo. She was on her way to Australia where shooting of her Peregrine Jones Mystery series was set to begin filming. (She wrote that series and other mysteries under the name Hydra Seetre.)

Her final moments were without pain. She was sketching only seconds before her death. As her readers you know there is nothing she would rather have been doing.

Tyra leaves a large and popular body of work which we at the Mind Factory know will continue to delight and entertain readers of all ages for decades to come.

Tyra completed the final volume in her Pierce trilogy before she left on her trip. It will be released shortly. It is bittersweet to recall now that when she finished it, her note to me was short and to the point, "It's done. I'm so glad Pierce didn't die." We can't choose the moment of our death, but Tyra was able to spare Pierce for all of us.

Thank you for seeing the delight, humor, and insight in her work. She loved corresponding with you.

A memorial service was held for Tyra on May 18. Friends and family celebrated her work and life. (If you wish to celebrate it you may send memorials to support your favorite nature preserve. I know she would also appreciate it if you would teach a child to draw.)

We will miss her irritating laugh and her too observant eye.

Carol Sprog, editor, Mind Factory Books