Pawel began to develop an interest in the
Iberian Peninsula while studying
flamenco and classical Spanish dance in junior high school. She graduated from
Stuyvesant High School in 1995, She received her
master's from
Teachers College in 2000. Pawel has asserted she never intended to write mysteries, and came upon the idea almost by accident. It was also nominated for the
Macavity Award at
Bouchercon, and was a finalist for the
LA Times Book Prize.
Death of a Nationalist was originally conceived as a stand-alone mystery, but became the foundation for an entire series of novels centered around the character of Carlos Tejada Alonso y León. The first Spanish-language edition of
Death of a Nationalist appeared in 2005. Pawel teaches English at
The High School for Enterprise, Business and Technology in
Williamsburg,
Brooklyn. She recently finished the first draft of an as-yet untitled novel set in Renaissance
Flanders in 1577. ==Influences==