I’m Lisa Lloyd. I was born and raised in Iowa City, IA. My fascination with mysteries began at an early age. I spent a lot of my days playing in the cornfield across the street from my house. My two older brothers and neighborhood kids would often tell urban legends to scare us younger kids as we ventured through the rows of cornstalks. Although I knew they were just trying to freak me out, the stories of alien abductions, hook-hand killers and haunted farm houses both terrified and mystified me. I wondered if there could be any shred of truth to the tales.

When I wasn’t outside, I passed the time playing Clue and helping Scooby Doo and the gang solve mysteries. I quickly transitioned out of fictitious childhood whodunits with the introduction of Unsolved Mysteries. The TV series featured firsthand accounts of brushes with the bizarre. Learning about these real-life experiences opened my eyes to a variety of unusual phenomena. I was intrigued by all facets of the paranormal but found ghosts to be the most intriguing. My curiosity in life after death prompted me to experiment with the Ouija board in my teenage years. Most of the time, it was meaningless gibberish. However, the responses on a few occasions seemed to indicate that I may have been communicating with an unseen force.

In 2006, a sudden illness landed me in the intensive care unit. At the time, my condition baffled physicians at two different hospitals.  Therefore, the proper treatment was unknown. My fight for life resulted in what I can only explain as a near-death experience. I found myself enveloped by the famed white light.  I also witnessed my dear deceased aunt standing in the corner of my hospital room. Though my illness was horrible, it was the point that my life began to change for the better. Synchronicity lead me to my wonderful husband, our first home and a series of other fascinating events. These occurrences have escalated my interest in the unexplained into a personal quest for purpose. Mysteries Over Martinis is a concoction of my passion for storytelling paired with my dedication to everything weird and served up with spellbinding spirits.