Joseph Robert Janes is a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 author

Author

An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...

 born in Toronto.

A mining engineer by profession, he taught geology, geography and high school mathematics and later geology at Brock University

Brock University

Brock University is a comprehensive university located in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. Brock offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degree programs that include co-op and other experiential learning opportunities to an enrolment of over 17,000 full-time students.The enabling legislation is...

 until he dedicated himself to writing full time.

Janes has published fourteen novels, five mystery novels for children, and textbooks on geology. His St.Cyr & Kohler mysteries, set in occupied France during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, are his most popular works and critically acclaimed by The Wall Street Journal

The Wall Street Journal

The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....

, amongst others, for their historic accuracy. The American based Western Society for French History, used his writings as a study of the convergence of fiction with history.

Works

• The odd-lot boys and the tree-fort war (1976)
• Danger on the River (1982)
• Spies for Dinner (1985)
• The Alice Factor (1991)
• Carousel (1992)
• Mayhem (1992)
• Kaleidoscope (1993)
• Mannequin (1994)
• Salamander (1994)
• Sandman (1994)
• Dollmaker (1995)
• Stonekiller (1995)
• Gypsy (1997)
• Madrigal (1999)
• Beekeeper (2001)
• Flykiller (2002)
• The Hiding Place
• The Third Story
• The Toy Shop
• The Watcher