Libi Astaire

I am a mystery writer and explorer of Jewish history who was born in Kansas and now lives in Jerusalem.

The first book in my Ezra Melamed/Jewish Regency Mystery Series, The Disappearing Dowry, was named a Sydney Taylor Notable Book for 2010. Other books in the Jewish Regency Mystery Series, which revolves around Regency London's Jewish community, include The Moon Taker (2015) The Doppelganger's Dance (2013) Tempest in the Tea Room (2012), and Jewish Regency Mystery Stories (2015).

I also work as a journalist, where I frequently write about Jewish history. A topic dear to my heart is the Anusim - Spanish Jews who were forced to convert during the Middle Ages and who became the target of the Spanish Inquisition. My novel about modern-day descendants of Anusim living in Catalonia, Terra Incognita, was published by Targum Press in 2010 and is now available as an ebook and paperback at Amazon.com, etc.

My other books include The Banished Heart, a novel about Shakespeare's writing of The Merchant of Venice; Day Trips to Jewish History, a collection of essays about lesser known people and places in Jewish history; and several ebooks for the Jewish holidays, including: Choose Life! 8 Chassidic Stories for the Jewish New Year, 36 Candles: Chassidic Tales for Chanukah, Pass Over to Freedom: 15 Jewish Tales for Passover, and The World Is Built With Kindness: 15 Chassidic Tales for Shavuos, which bring Chassidic masters such as the Baal Shem Tov and Zusya of Hanipoli into the eReader era.