New York has to be one of the world's most exciting cities − diverse, charismatic, overwhelming. Andy and I spent a week there in the blistering summer of 2005, mainly to meet with my new US publisher, St Martin's Press. It also turned out to be a good excuse to meet up and spend time with our friend, crime aficionado Judy Bobalik. We were fortunate enough to be shepherded round the local haunts of Reed Farrel Coleman, author of the Moe Prager series, and by SJ Rozan, author of the Lydia Chin and Bill Smith series.