Wednesday, May 13, 2026

Bitter Tea and Mystery: Short Story Wednesday: More Stories from Three for the Chair

Bitter Tea and Mystery: Short Story Wednesday: More Stories from Three for...:   A brief overview of the Nero Wolfes series by Rex Stout: Nero Wolfe is a genius who supports himself (and his household) as a private dete...

George Kelly: WEDNESDAY’S SHORT STORIES #270: THE SPACE OPERA RENAISSANCE Edited by David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer (Section 3)

 George Kelly: WEDNESDAY’S SHORT STORIES #270: THE SPACE OPERA RENAISSANCE Edited by David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer (Section 3)

Jerry's House of Everything: SHORT STORY WEDNESDAY: THE DEAD SPEAKETH NOT, THEY JUST GRUNT NOW AND THEN

Jerry's House of Everything: SHORT STORY WEDNESDAY: THE DEAD SPEAKETH NOT, THE...:  "The Dead Speaketh Not, They Just Grunt Now and Then"  by "Lionel Fenn" (Charles L. Grant  (from The Ultimate Zombie ,...

Patricia Abbott: Short Story Wednesday: "Standings," Chang Rae Lee

 Patricia Abbott: Short Story Wednesday: "Standings," Chang Rae Lee

Short Story Wednesday Review: Blaze Orange: A Short Story by Paul Doiron


The latest novella, while billed on Amazon and elsewhere as part of the Mike Bowditch Mysteries, does not have a trace of him in the read. Blaze Orange: A Short Story by Paul Doiron is a prequel of sorts built around young Maine Game Warden Kathy Frost. With a year under her belt, the first and only woman in the Maine Warden Service has been transferred to a new district where she is still being ignored and treated like a rookie. Being the first woman in the service comes with a heavy burden and that is not the only thing she deals with on a daily basis.

 

Her new field training officer is Charley Stevens. Already a legend among all, he has quite a few years on her and, more importantly, an openness to her presence in the service. At attitude that is almost as rare as her status.

 

He shows up at her new home one Sunday morning seeking her company on a call. It is November and deer hunting season is well underway. Earlier today a man has been shot in the area of Wilton. He was shot and killed by a hunter.

 

The case should have been hers from the start, but nobody bothered to alert her. Instead, Charley Stevens has come by to collect her and take her to the scene. According to Charley, Douglas Ludwig is dead after being shot by Don Sands. Both the shooter and the victim await their arrival.

 

Charley Stevens takes her to the isolated scene being held down by a Maine State Trooper who is clearly less than thrilled to see the female game warned. The trooper has already decided it was clearly an accident.

 

Was it?

 

Or, was it murder?

 

That question is one that Charley Stevens and Kathy Frost work to answer as they investigate in this fast-moving read. During the course of this enjoyable novella, readers learn quite a lot about the background of Maine Game Warden Kathy Frost. The same figure that will play a large role in Mike Bowditch’s professional and personal life in the coming years.

 

Also included with the novella are the first three chapters of the upcoming book, Storm Tide. Having already read that book by way of the ARC by way of the publisher through NetGalley, I skipped the approximately 20 paged excerpt. My review of that book will appear here on the blog on the scheduled publication day of June 30th.

 

As to this read, while I was very disappointed that Mike Bowditch was nowhere to be seen, I did enjoy the novella. Most of the background of the first female game warden  was already known to series readers, such as myself, so this tale just fleshed it out a little more. We also got to see Charley in action and that is always a treat. How successful this novella will be in attracting new readers to the series, since it does not have one whiff of the signature series character, I have no idea, but I did enjoy it.

  


Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4nvqx7W

 


By the way, the image to the right is the only workable one I could find and it was posted to the author's Facebook account. Everywhere else, the image comes up as "webpage" and I have no idea how to make those work and only know how to use jpegs and card catalogs. My old Kindle does not look that good either. 



Because I thought the Dallas Public Library System was not getting it, I used a little bit of my funds in my Amazon Associate account to obtain this eBook. I should have waited as it is now listed in the Hoopla system through the library.


 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2026

Tuesday, May 12, 2026

Lesa's Book Critiques: The Last Mandarin by Louise Penny and Mellissa Fung

 Lesa's Book Critiques: The Last Mandarin by Louise Penny and Mellissa Fung

John McMahon and his offer: YOUR NAME in my NEXT BOOK


Readers of this blog know that I am a big fan of John McMahon and his books. If things were not so grim here, I would do this in a heartbeat. As I can't, I asked Mr. McMahon if I could share the news here on my blog to help raise visibility of this very cool opportunity. He enthusiastically gave his support so the relevant part of his  latest newsletter, THE OFFER, is below.  Do it and help some folks and get the opportunity to be in the next book. And, if you have not read his books, get yourself to your favorite bookstore, library, or book selling portal. He writes great stuff!  His author website is here



YOUR NAME IN MY NEXT BOOK
Hi Friends,

This newsletter – I come to you with an offer. 

•    Would you like to see – YOUR NAME – as a character in my next book?
•    You could live on in immortality in print (and digital).

I was challenged to help raise money for some good causes.

•    Maybe your name is a judge killed under mysterious circumstances?  
•    Or you’re the Director of the NSA?   

Not sure if there will be a demand for this or not – but trying something new.
 
4 GREAT CAUSES & GROUND RULES
I have four charities that I have some connection to/passion for – and I’m looking to help them build donations.

So – ground rules:

1)    Donate $250 to one of four charities. I will match donations with my own $250. So together, we could raise $500 x 4 causes = $2,000.

2)    You get your name as a character in my next Gardner Camden/Patterns and Recognition book (coming out next Summer).

And if you already support good causes – you could just shift your focus this year – and support one of these. 

OK. Here are 4 great causes we would together support:

charity: water – building wells; ending the water crisis in the world; 100% of our donation goes directly to fund clean water projects. No admin cost.

St. Jude Hospital – amazing pediatric research hospital, focusing on children with cancer and leukemia.

San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance – non-profit parent company of the San Diego Zoo; their mission is simple- to save species worldwide. 


Cystic Fibrosis Foundation – supporting research to find a cure for CF and improve the lives of those living with it.
 
FINE PRINT
1)    You write the check to the charity - but get it to me. I’m going to deliver the checks, but it’s your tax deduction. And no past donations count. 

2)    I will make you sign an agreement about your name in the book so you don't sue anyone. Don’t worry. I will not make you a child predator. (I save that for critics of my books (Kidding :))

IF YOU’RE INTERESTED  – respond to this email – mcmahonjohn@att.net

SleuthSayers: Things I Heard at Malice Domestic

SleuthSayers: Things I Heard at Malice Domestic: This year's Malice Domestic mystery convention was held a few weeks ago, and it was a good time, as always. I usually jot down interesti...

Happiness Is A Book: Angel Without Mercy by Anthea Cohen

 Happiness Is A Book: Angel Without Mercy by Anthea Cohen

Jim Nesbitt's Substack Reviews: A Ghostly Call: Buried Secrets And Blood

 Jim Nesbitt's Substack Reviews: A Ghostly Call: Buried Secrets And Blood

Beneath the Stains of Time: Flower O' the Peach (1916) by W.A. Mackenzie

Beneath the Stains of Time: Flower O' the Peach (1916) by W.A. Mackenzie: W.A. Mackenzie was a Scottish poet, journalist, illustrator, editor and writer who served in Belgium, France and Italy during the First Wor...

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: The Sheep Detectives, aka Three Bags Full

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: The Sheep Detectives, aka Three Bags Full: There's a new movie in theaters entitled "The Sheep Detectives," based on the book Three Bags Full  by Leonie Swann.  I went t...

Monday, May 11, 2026

Lesa's Book Critiques: The Last Lady B by Eloisa James

 Lesa's Book Critiques: The Last Lady B by Eloisa James

PiunikaWeb: PSA: Delete those "Business Manager partner request" Facebook emails immediately

 PiunikaWeb: PSA: Delete those "Business Manager partner request" Facebook emails immediately

In Reference to Murder: Media Murder for Monday

In Reference to Murder: Media Murder for Monday: It's the start of a new week and that means it's time for a brand-new roundup of crime drama news: THE BIG SCREEN/MOVIES Patrick Sch...

Little Big Crimes: Intervention, by Terry Black

Little Big Crimes: Intervention, by Terry Black: "Intervention," by Terry Black, in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, March/April 2026.   Very short stories can be wonderful, ...

Bitter Tea and Mystery: Tatiana: Martin Cruz Smith

Bitter Tea and Mystery: Tatiana: Martin Cruz Smith: In late April, I read Tatiana by Martin Cruz Smith, the eighth book in the Arkady Renko series. This is sort of a police procedural set in ...

Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: An Enigma by the Sea by Carlo Fruttero and Franco Lucentini

  

Carlo Fruttero and Franco Lucentini were a well-known literary duo in Italy for several decades until Lucentini’s death in 2002. For about forty years they co-wrote newspaper and magazine articles, literary essays, edited numerous anthologies, and published six groundbreaking and best-selling mystery novels. Their first novel, The Sunday Woman, was adapted for film in 1975 starring Marcello Mastroianni, Jacqueline Bisset and Jean-Louis Trintignant.

An Enigma by the Sea, their third book, was first published in Italian in 1991 as Enigma in luogo di mare by Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A., Milano. It was published in the UK in 1994 by Chatto & Windus Ltd, London. Bitter Lemon Press has issued a fresh edition with a translation by Gregory Dowling, an Oxford graduate now residing in Venice. Dowling is no stranger to crime fiction, he’s the author of a half dozen historical mysteries.

Bitter Lemon Press seems to specialize in exquisitely written mysteries, although this particular title is more of a comedy of manners than crime fiction. Readers who enjoy snark and eccentric characters along with their whodunnits will adore this book. The aforesaid eccentrics inhabit 153 villas set among the pine trees of the forest Gualdana along the coast of Italy. Most of them use their villas as vacation residences but some inhabit them year round and rely on the tiny village nearby to supply their needs. There’s Signor Monforti, chronic depressive and inveterate naysayer who yearns after the beautiful Signora Neri. He is sure if she would just marry him, his negativity would fly away, never to return. Signora Neri is of a more practical turn of mind and questions just how happy she could be with someone who never is.

Then there’s Signora Baldacci, known to be straying outside her marriage with the much younger Dino Fioravanti. It was popularly supposed that Signor Baldacci was in ignorance of this arrangement until the two men encountered each other outside a local bar and blows were exchanged. Threats were also uttered and the local police fear the threats will be carried out; they were specific and detailed, these threats, and both parties have the means to execute them. Much time and worry is expended within the police office, trying to decide what to do.

Then there’s the villa infested with rats and the daughters of the family shrieking and huddling on the beds. And Signor Salvini who is sneaking a girl into his wife’s vacation villa for the usual reasons, but she is so clearly no better than she should be that he cannot be seen publicly with her for fear of word getting back to his wife. He makes up all sorts of reasons to stop along the way to the village so as to arrive after dark. And the pair of comedy writers who have encountered writers’ block. And on and on.

The story seems never to get around to any crime to speak of but the villa residents and the village storekeepers are so amusing I didn’t really mind. Until about midway in the book one character after another realizes this person or that one hasn’t been seen for awhile. They each make their way to the Marshal’s office to report a missing person, who is overwhelmed by the report of the fourth unexplained absence. Watching the local police investigate is quite entertaining.

A list in the back of the book itemizes the characters and their role in the book. It would be more helpful up front where the reader could consult at the first moment of confusion, of which I had many.

Readers who require frenetic action should pass on this story. But I found it to be a witty, beautifully written book. Kirkus summed it up neatly: “A juicily acerbic mystery that’s more lurid soap opera than whodunit.”

 


·         Publisher: Bitter Lemon Press

·         Publication date: April 21, 2026

·         Language: English

·         Print length: 416 pages

·         ISBN-10: 1916725198

·         ISBN-13: 978-1916725195

 

 

Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3Pwxtoz

 

 

Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2026

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.

Sunday, May 10, 2026

Kathleen Marple Kalb: Mourning Online

 Kathleen Marple Kalb: Mourning Online

ButtonDown.Com: Shoulder Wound Sunday: November

 ButtonDown.Com: Shoulder Wound Sunday: November

Dru's Book Musings: New Releases ~ Week of May 10, 2026

 Dru's Book Musings: New Releases ~ Week of May 10, 2026

ButtonDown.Com: The Coyote and the Snake by Matz & Xavier

 ButtonDown.Com: The Coyote and the Snake by Matz & Xavier

Paula Messina Reviews: Before Midnight by Rex Stout

 Please welcome author Paula Messina back to the blog today…

 

 

Before Midnight

by Paula Messina

 

I knew it was my lucky day when I found Before Midnight, a Nero Wolfe mystery I hadn’t read. I’ve lost count of the Rex Stout mysteries I have read. He’s an author I often return to. Before Midnight didn’t disappoint.

All the elements that make Rex Stout a popular mystery writer are here. The crime is so complicated only a genius of Nero Wolfe’s ilk can solve it. Archie’s as witty and charming as ever. Nero Wolfe is his stubborn, inflexible self.

It’s his way or the highway when Attorney Rudolph Hansen, accompanied by Messrs. Oliver Buff, Patrick O’Garro, and Mr. Vernon Assa, descends on West 35th Street uninvited and  demand Wolfe abort his eleven o’clock tete-a-tete with the orchids on the brownstone’s top floor.

And what matter is so dire the orchids should be abandoned? Not the murder of Louis Dahlmann. Oh, no, not that. It’s Dahlmann’s missing wallet, which contained the answers for a contest to promote Pour Amour cosmetics, that is the pressing issue.

Hansen represents Lippert, Buff and Assa, an advertising agency. LBA’s major client is Heery Products, which sells the Pour Amour cosmetics line. Dahlmann, LBA’s late wunderkind who conceived the idea for a contest with its million dollars in prizes, had the audacity to take a bullet to his chest when the contest was in its waning days.

Dahlmann’s sins are even greater. The afternoon before his inconvenient demise, he waved the sheet of paper with the answers in front of the final five contestants.

Now LBA and Heery Products are in a very sour pickle. Dahlmann’s dead, and no one knows who has the contest’s answers.

After much wrangling, Wolfe agrees to undertake a search to discover who removed the wallet from Dahlmann’s pocket and made away with the contest answers. For once, Wolfeand he is absolutely adamant on this pointis not investigating a murder.

Is the murderer the wallet thief, or was each crime committed separately? Is the wallet thief Attorney Hansen? Someone from LBA? Heery Products owner Talbott Heery? Or one of the final five contestants? The murder scene provides no clues. Interviewing the lot proves fruitless. With nothing to go on, Wolfe’s genius is of little value.

Then a second body drops.

Wolfe blames himself for the death and takes to his bed. But Wolfe finally puts his genius to work, earns his substantial fee, and throws in the solution to Dahlmann’s murder gratis.

As a reader, characters are important to me. They need to be individuals I’m willing to spend time with. Archie Goodwin and Nero Wolfe fill that bill. The introduction to Before Midnight is by Robert Crais, and he lays out a convincing argument that the power of this mystery series is the friendship between Nero Wolfe and his chronicler, Archie Goodwin. I concur.

Crais quotes Rex Stout: “Here are two friends. Here are two people sharing their lives. As you wish for friendship, share in theirs. As you seek companionship, share in theirs. As you search for love, search in theirs.”

After listing many literary couplings, Craig says, “The appeal of friendship is old, and the pleasures inherent in such fictional pairings are no less valid today than they were in the days of Holmes and Watson, or in the thirties, forties, fifties, sixties, and seventiesthe incredible five decades through which Stout published Nero Wolfe.”

In creating Nero Wolfe, Stout clearly was inspired by Arthur Conan Doyle. Just as the strength of the Holmes mysteries is the friendship between Sherlock and John Watson, Archie Goodwin and Nero Wolfe’s relationship is paramount. It contrasts with that of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson. Goodwin is not a sidekick. He is Wolfe’s partner in crime solving. The housebound Wolfe acknowledges that Goodwin is the eyes and legs of the partnership. They’re equals. Holmes, on the other hand, often acts more as a teacher, lording over Watson with his superior intellect and vast knowledge.

Archie’s needling to rouse the lazy Nero to get to work might suggest otherwise, but the pair share a deep respect and filial love. If you have any doubt, read Death of a Dude in which Wolfe doesn’t just venture outside into the wilds of New York, he flies to Montana to assist Archie.

There’s another reason Stout is admired by so many writers. His simple style is deceiving. His descriptions are always unique. For example, in Midnight, he doesn’t tell us contestant Gertrude Frazee has a crooked smile. That would never do.

“When she spoke her lips wanted to move perpendicular to the slant, but her jaw preferred straight up and down. You might have thought that after so many years, at least sixty, they would have come to an understanding, but nothing doing.”

The description is pure Archie Goodwin. His wit is another reason the series has never gone out of print. Archie’s intelligence is often overlooked. Maybe he isn’t the genius Wolfe is, but he’s no slouch when it comes to those gray cells.

For my money, Nero is misunderstood. Yes, he’s hardly the cuddliest guy in the literary world, but he’s not callous. While Archie guarantees a fun time whether it’s watching a Mets game or dancing into the wee hours, Nero is a fantastic host. You might not want to dine with him every night as Archie does, but you can take this to the bank: The food would be five-star Michelin and the conversation scintillating.

Just as Arthur Conan Doyle occasionally drops the veil hiding Sherlock Holmes tender side, Stout gives us glimpses into Wolfe’s sensitivity. If you doubt this, check out The Golden Spiders.

I’m in the same camp as Dame Agatha Christie. I read Stout for Archie, not Wolfe. This is from the Wolfe Pack website: Dame Agatha Christie was a huge Rex Stout fan. She was known to go to her local bookstore and enquire after the latest Archie Goodwin novel. The clerk would gently remind her that they're referred to as Nero Wolfe mysteries, to which Christie would reply, "Nonsense! Everyone knows that Archie does all the work!"

 
 

Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/48OLPag

 

 

Puala Messina ©2026 

Paula Messina writes the Donatello Laguardia stories, which are set in Boston’s North End during the 1940s. They appeared in the Best New England Crime Stories 2024 and 2025 and another Donatello Laguardia short story is scheduled to appear in Black Cat Weekly. She lives near America’s first public beach.

Saturday, May 09, 2026

KRL Update

Up on KRL this week a review and giveaway of "Cat on a Hot Tin Woof" by Spencer Quinn. This was the last review that Sandra Murphy wrote for us shortly before her sudden passing, which is appropriate as this was one of her favorite series https://kingsriverlife.com/05/09/cat-on-a-hot-tin-woof-by-spencer-quinn/

And the latest Mystery Coming Attractions from Victoria Fair https://kingsriverlife.com/05/09/mystery-current-coming-attractions-may-2026/

 

And a review and giveaway of "A Deadly Episode" by Anthony Horowitz https://kingsriverlife.com/05/09/a-deadly-episode-by-anthony-horowitz/

 

Up on KRL last night another special midweek guest post, this one by mystery author Julian M Coleman about her new book "Stolen Prophet" https://kingsriverlife.com/05/06/stolen-prophet/

 

Up on KRL News and Reviews this week we have a review and giveaway of "Two Purloined Pillows" by Allie Pleiter https://www.krlnews.com/2026/05/two-purloined-pillows-by-allie-pleiter.html

 

And a review and giveaway of "Robbie McNeil's Hit List" by Brianna Heath, along with an interesting interview with Brianna https://www.krlnews.com/2026/05/robbie-mcneils-hit-list-by-brianna.html

 

And a review and ebook giveaway of "The Case of the Petrified Potter" by Cathy Ace https://www.krlnews.com/2026/05/the-case-of-petrified-potter-by-cathy.html

 

And a review and ebook giveaway of "Tunnel Vision" by Eloise Corvo https://www.krlnews.com/2026/05/tunnel-vision-by-eloise-corvo.html

 
Happy reading,
Lorie 

Lesa's Book Critiques: The Silent House of Sleep by Allan Gaw

 Lesa's Book Critiques: The Silent House of Sleep by Allan Gaw

Scott's Take: Predator Kills The Marvel Universe by Benjamin Percy, Marcelo Ferreira (Illustrator), Daniel Picciotto (Illustrator), Brent Peeples (Illustrator), and Leinil Yu (Cover Art)

 

Predator Kills The Marvel Universe by Benjamin Percy, Marcelo Ferreira (Illustrator), Daniel Picciotto (Illustrator), Brent Peeples (Illustrator), and Leinil Yu (Cover Art), is the fourth book in the series. This is the sequel to Predator vs Spider-Man.

 

In this book, the Earth suffers a sneak attack from the Predators which quickly wipes out several major heroes. It is up to the survivors of the ambushes to rally together and take the fight to the Predators. The Predators are armed with arsenal of vibranium and are also getting help from Kraven the Hunter to turn the Earth into a hunting zoo.

 

The main trio of people who actively fight back is Spider-Man, Iron Man and Wolverine. Many heavy hitters are nerfed (weakened or written poorly) and have unrealistic deaths in this particular universe to make this bloody and violent book work. The heroes have to be taken by surprise continually for more than half of the read, along with being dumb, to make things work.

 

In Predator versus Black Panther, it was directly asserted that the Panther would be playing a big role in this book. He does not. He stays on the sidelines for most of this book.

 

There is a lot of fighting which happens off screen that I would of like to see. Like the Punisher vs Predators or Dr. Strange and She Hulk vs the Predators.  Instead of seeing the battles, we see the aftermath repercussions.

 

The characterization of Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Wolverine is really good. But, one can tell these are favorites as they are some of the very few characters who actually stay in character for the read.

 

The book is over quickly as once the heroes rally together in issue four, there is one more issue, and done. There is setup for a fifth book, but we will see if the series continues. Whether it will or not has yet to be announced. If one was done, I would like to see how the world rebuilds with just the survivors, the arsenal of alien technology now scattered across the planet, and the surviving Predators still on Earth.

 



I read this through the Marvel Unlimited App.

 

 

Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4mo3z1C

 

 

Scott A. Tipple ©2026

Friday, May 08, 2026

The Rap Sheet: Revue of Reviewers: 5-7-26

 The Rap Sheet: Revue of Reviewers: 5-7-26

Lesa's Book Critiques: Libraries and Bookmobiles

 Lesa's Book Critiques: Libraries and Bookmobiles

Beneath the Stains of Time: The Foggy Past: C.M.B. vol. 11-12 by Motohiro Katou

Beneath the Stains of Time: The Foggy Past: C.M.B. vol. 11-12 by Motohiro Katou: The first story from Motohiro Katou 's C.M.B. vol. 11, "Phaistos Disc," returns to the two part, two chapter format in which ...

Happiness Is A Book: Friday’s Forgotten Book: One Murdered, Two Dead by Milton Propper

 Happiness Is A Book: Friday’s Forgotten Book: One Murdered, Two Dead by Milton Propper 

FFB Review: The Lawyer: Six Guns At Sundown by Eric Beetner

 From the archive... 


Author Eric Beetner continues the excellent The Lawyer series published by Beat to a Pulp with his entry Six Guns At Sundown.  The Lawyer, who used to go by the name of J. D. Miller, is on a quest to find those responsible for the brutal murders of his entire family. He now delivers justice by way of the gun and no longer relies on the courts to provide justice to those wronged.

 

He moves from place to place on his mare, Redemption, as he follows the trail of those responsible. He is currently pursuing a man known far and wide as “Big Jim Kimbrough.” The trail seems to be leading him to the decrypt town of Sundown where every building seems to lean a different way as if the entire town was created by drunks. At least he can find a place for his horse and roof for the night. The Westward Railroad might be coming there to build not only the rail line and their headquarters, but for now the place is clearly in a bad way.

 

So is the man dragged in on a rope behind a horse early the next morning. The Lawyer had planned to move on until the unfolding spectacle put his plans on hold. According to a Mr. Buchanan who dragged the unfortunate man by way of a rope tied to his horse he is to be lynched. The black man’s crime was that was that he ate a piece of cherry pie Buchanan’s wife made right out of the pan and using Buchanan’s own silverware. Not that dragging the hogtied man on the ground behind the horse the entire way from the ranch to town wasn’t enough Buchanan intends to hang him as fast as possible.

 

The lawyer hates bullies and won’t stand for them. He also believes in the rule of law and wants to know the full details of the situation. Not only is what the man did not a hanging offense in this period after the Civil War, Buchanan’s attitude seems to be illustrative of a town attitude that needs to change. The hunt for Big Jim Kimbrough will have to wait as the lawyer is going to prevent a hanging in Six Guns At Sundown.

 

Picking up the mantle laid down by Wayne D. Dundee in The Lawyer: Stay Of Execution followed by The Lawyer: The Retributioners author Eric Beetner has crafted a very good western tale. The Lawyer: Six Guns At Sundown is a western tale of mystery and racism that resonates strongly with events of today. The read does not preach as the storyline moves over a couple days period in the Old West. The result is another excellent tale in the series and yet another very good read from Beat to a Pulp.

 



Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4dFNFxB

 

 

 

I picked this up by way of funds in my Amazon Associate Account in late February 2016.

 

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2016, 2026

 

Thursday, May 07, 2026

Lesa's Book Critiques: What Are You Reading?

 Lesa's Book Critiques: What Are You Reading?

Mystery Fanfare: MOTHER'S DAY MYSTERIES // MOTHER'S DAY CRIME FICTION

Mystery Fanfare: MOTHER'S DAY MYSTERIES // MOTHER'S DAY CRIME FICTION: Mother's Day : So many Mothers in Mysteries . The following is a sampling with emphasis on the Mother's Day Holiday . If I lis...

In Reference to Murder: Mystery Melange

In Reference to Murder: Mystery Melange: The Hollywood Creative Alliance, a professional organization composed of critics, journalists, creators, and industry professionals dedicate...

Thursday Treats: 5/7/2026

 

The latest reading opportunities…

 

Fellow SMFS list member John Timm announced on the list that his short story, The Many Temptations of Owen Jenks, is available in the latest issue of Macabre Magazine. Dedicated to literary horror, the magazine is on an online free read. You can read his short story here.

 


Fellow SMFS list member Jessica Slee announced her short story,  Life’s a Peach, was published at Flash Fiction Magazine. This online free to read publication releases a story a day. You can read her short story here.

 


Fellow SMFS member David Hendrickson announced that his latest mystery, Pain Train, was now out. You may remember my announcement of this project back in early March as he was funding the book through a Kickstarter campaign. That funding was very successful. Published by Pentucket Publishing, the read is available at Amazon and other vendors.

 

Fellow SMFS list member Sandra J. Cady announced that her novel, A Game of Luck: A Sam Roma Detective Mystery, is now out. I first told you about this one in early April when it went up for preorder. Published by Black Rose Writing, the read is available in eBook or paperback formats at Amazon.




 

The latest issue of Black Cat Weekly also came out. Black Cat Weekly #244 has short stories, novelets, and more. You can pick up the latest issue of this weekly, multi genre, magazine here.

 


Also now out is Split Ends: A Psychological Thriller Anthology. SMFS list members, Christine Eskilson (The Woman She Was), Heidi Hunter (Obsession), Debra Bliss Saenger (When the Woods Awaken), and Ed Teja (True Value), all reported on the list as being in the read. Published by Beaches and Trails Publishing, the read is available in a variety of formats at Amazon and other vendors.

 

 

Until next time….

 

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2026

Things are very brutal money wise. Not just with the groceries, gasoline, and more  that is hitting all of us. Scott has not worked in three weeks as there has not been work for him. So, no work means no paycheck, and no income.

 

So, if you like what we do at Kevin's Corner, please consider making a donation through the PayPal widget on the left side of the blog. We could really use the help.

 

Please and thank you.