Thursday, September 17, 2026

Thursday Treats: 9/17/2026

 Some reading opportunities of interest this week.

 

The news is starting to appear across social media. DEATH CAMAS: Best New England Crime Stories 2026 is scheduled to be released in early October from Crime Spell Books. As always, the anthology includes short stories from numerous SMFS list members. Sone of those members are: Nikki Knight (Milk. Bread. Homicide.), Steve Liskow (A Deed without a Name), Edith Maxwell (Cough Lasagnas and Salty Memories), Ruth McCarty (I Hereby Bequeath), Ang Pompano (The Angel of Sachem Creek),  Susan Oleksiw (All’s Well That Ends . . .), Stephen D. Rogers (A Scene of Salt and Sea), and Leslie Wheeler (The Wound Clinic). It can be preordered now at Amazon and elsewhere.

 

Also coming in October is the latest book by Dallas area author Harry Hunsicker. I have long been a fan over the decades and now doubt will enjoy the thriller, Mother May I. You can learn more about the book, and where to preorder it, at Mr. Hunsicker’s website. If you are not already reading him, you should be and there is a lot of really good stuff to read.

 

Just a few minutes before I was setting up this post on Tuesday afternoon, fellow SMFS list member Nikita Costiuc, and welcomed frequent commenter here, announced that he is in the inaugural issue of Betascape as is fellow SMFS list member A.L. Sirois. This is a free to read publication aimed at, according to the website, “speculative, crime, and genre fiction” pieces and readers. They also generate editorial comment on the stories by highlighting certain segments. You click on that and you get information on story structure, character development, pacing, etc. Nikita Costiuc’s short story, A Narrative Concerning the Allocation of Assets, as well as  A.L. Sirois’ short story, The Cage, can be read here in this first issue.

 


SMFS list member Aimee Kluck announced the publication of her short story --Late, But Right on Time—was published ay Shotgun Honey. You can read the tale online, for free, here.

 





Black Cat Weekly #263
is out and includes the short story, The Raven Messenger, by Teel James Glenn of the SMFS. You can pick up the latest issue here.

 




And, now for something completely different--- as they used to say on a certain show when I was growing up. I have long been a fan of the science fiction and fantasy works by author Terry W. Ervin II. He has a lot of stuff out there and I am always behind. I just found out that his latest book, Relic Shield: Book Three of the Crax War Chronicles, is now out. You can pick it up on Amazon where it is also available through the KindleUnlimited program.

 

I now pause to remind you, that as we have discovered the hard way, the KindleUnlimited program, in fact, is very limited. You are limited to no more than twenty titles at a time. Makes as much sense as telling me the buffet is unlimited and then I get one serving of three things and can do no more. If you share the deal, as I do with Scott,  you are even more limited. Boo.

 


Coming in early October is the anthology, The Speculative Detective Agency: Case Files of the Supernatural and Fantastic. Published by Diversion Books, the read is available to preorder at Amazon and other vendors.

 

Back to crime fiction and mystery reads…

 

Punk Noir Press announced on Twitter that FAFO—A Punk Noir series that the second installment of the new series is available to  read. Four more stories are here.  You can also still read, for free, the first group here.

 

 


SMFS list member, and editor, Michelle Kubitz recently announced that Shotgun Honey Books will be releasing the new anthology, Daydream Believer: Crime Stories Inspired by the Songs of the Monkees!. The book includes a short story by fellow SMFS list member Alan S. Orloff as well as tales by numerus other folks. Proceeds go to American Library Association. You can preorder the book now at the publisher or at Amazon. September 29th is the planned release date.

 


I have been a fan of author Frank Zafiro for quite a few decades now. His latest read in his River City police procedural series, The Quick of the Night, is now out. Assuming everything with Amazon and Kindle worked right. Published by Code 4 Press, the read is available now for preorder at Amazon and will be part of the Kindle Unlimited program at time of publication.

 



Also now out is the latest read from fellow SMFS list member and author, C. W. Blackwell. The Cold Dark Forever: A Novel, published by Shotgun Honey Books, is a crime fiction read set in 1942. The read is now available  at Amazon.

 




Additionally, now out is the young adult read, It Should Have Been You: A Novel by Lynn Slaughter. Now published by Picarones Press, an imprint of Misti Media Publishing, the book is available at the White City Press.

 

 


Back last June, professor and author John A. Tures did a guest post here on the blog about his book, Branded, published by Huntsville Independent Press. His next book, Independent Thought, is now out with the same publisher. This sequel deals with the possibility of a third-party presidential candidate and more. 

 

 

Until next time…. 

 

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2026

Wednesday, September 16, 2026

Lesa's Book Critiques: Kevin’s Corner Annex – Dark Harbor by Bruce Robert Coffin

 Lesa's Book Critiques: Kevin’s Corner Annex – Dark Harbor by Bruce Robert Coffin

Little Big Crimes: The Ordnance Special, by James D. Crabtree

Little Big Crimes: The Ordnance Special, by James D. Crabtree: "The Ordnance Special," by James D. Crabtree, in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, September/October 2026. There are war c...

Bitter Tea and Mystery: Short Story Wednesday: Books from the Book Sale

Bitter Tea and Mystery: Short Story Wednesday: Books from the Book Sale:   Since I already own so many short story collections and anthologies, not to mention all my husband's short story books, I always plan ...

George Kelly: WEDNESDAY’S SHORT STORIES #288: THE GIRL WHO FELL FROM THE SKY By Kate Wilhelm

 George Kelly: WEDNESDAY’S SHORT STORIES #288: THE GIRL WHO FELL FROM THE SKY By Kate Wilhelm

Patricia Abbott: SSW: Lost Child, Joyce Carol Oates (from the New Yorker)

 Patricia Abbott: SSW: Lost Child, Joyce Carol Oates (from the New Yorker)

Tuesday, September 15, 2026

Lesa's Book Critiques: Kevin’s Corner Annex – One Good Eye by Kevin Wade

 Lesa's Book Critiques: Kevin’s Corner Annex – One Good Eye by Kevin Wade

SleuthSayers: Mixing Urban Legends and Crime Stories

SleuthSayers: Mixing Urban Legends and Crime Stories: Coming up with anthology themes isn't always so easy. Ideally a good theme is at least a little different from what's  already  been...

Happiness Is A Book: Sapphires on Wednesday by Malcolm Gair

 Happiness Is A Book: Sapphires on Wednesday by Malcolm Gair

ButtonDown.Com: Out Today: And Then There Were None

 ButtonDown.Com: Out Today: And Then There Were None

Monday, September 14, 2026

Lesa's Book Critiques: Receipts from the Bookshop by Katie Clapham

 Lesa's Book Critiques: Receipts from the Bookshop by Katie Clapham

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 The Arena p...

Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: A Murmuration of Starlings: A Birder Murder Mystery by Steve Burrows


A Murmuration of Starlings (Durndurn Press, September 2026) is the tenth book in the Birder Murder Mysteries by Canadian Steve Burrows. The first title, A Siege of Bitterns, won the Crime Writers of Canada award for Best First Novel and was selected as one of the Globe & Mail’s top 100 books of the year. Burrows has pursued his birdwatching interest on eight continents so far and has published articles on travel and environmental issues around the world.

In this newest story with a multi-layered approach Detective Chief Inspector Dominic Jejeune visits a former superior, Detective Chief Superintendent Colleen Shepherd, now in the Australian outback, to discuss his future career and becomes enmeshed in the kidnapping and death of the Environmental Compliance Officer of a large mining firm. Meanwhile his team back in Norfolk has the sudden death of the CEO of the largest lithium battery production facility in the country to investigate. It could have been an accident but the timing was entirely too convenient for some people not to suspect foul play.

Relationships are in high focus in this story, both personal and professional, and the outcome of both cases lead to major turning points for several of the characters. What is even more prominent is the discussion of present-day Australian environmental concerns, their history, current impact, and possible solutions. An aboriginal elder adds a strand of mysticism to the narrative. The descriptions of the Australian landscape, the animals, and of course the birds are wonderful and make the book worth reading for the travelogue alone.

Usually I have no trouble collecting enough back story to understand the context of a mid-series title but just identifying the location of action, Norfolk or Australia, wasn’t always clear in this book. This is not the right place to start the series. Environmentalists and nature lovers will likely already know this author, but if not, they definitely should. Police procedural fans will enjoy the complex plot and the careful work of both the Norfolk and the Australian investigation teams to unravel the mystery. Recommended. 

 


·         Publisher: ‎Dundurn Press

·         Publication date: ‎September 22, 2026

·         Language: ‎English

·         Print length: ‎360 pages

·         ISBN-10: ‎1459756592

·         ISBN-13: ‎978-1459756595

 

Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4rd08xw

 

 

Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2026

 

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

Sunday, September 13, 2026

Kathleen Kalb: Burnout or Boredom?

 Kathleen Kalb: Burnout or Boredom?

Lesa's Book Critiques: Writer in Residence by Rhonda McKnight

 Lesa's Book Critiques: Writer in Residence by Rhonda McKnight

Beneath the Stains of Time: Half-Mast Murder (1930) by Milward Kennedy

Beneath the Stains of Time: Half-Mast Murder (1930) by Milward Kennedy: Milward Kennedy was an English civil servant, journalist, literary critic, reviewer and mystery writer, who was a founding member of the De...

Update on Santa Rage 2

Acceptances went out Saturday morning into the early afternoon. Make sure to check both your inbox and your spam folder if you submitted. 


Rejections have also been sent out as I only had 12 slots and received over 30 submissions. A lot of good stuff did not make the cut. 

The result should be one heck of a read. 

Saturday, September 12, 2026

Lesa's Book Critiques: Stage Left by Mary Ethel Schmidt

 Lesa's Book Critiques: Stage Left by Mary Ethel Schmidt

Dru's Book Musings: New Releases ~ Week of September 13, 2026

 Dru's Book Musings: New Releases ~ Week of September 13, 2026

KRL Update

Up on KRL this week a review and giveaway of "Purranormal Activity" by Cate Conte https://kingsriverlife.com/09/12/purranormal-activity-by-cate-conte/

And a review and giveaway of "The Art Critic's Last Forgery" by Elaine Orr https://kingsriverlife.com/09/12/the-art-critics-last-forgery-by-elaine-orr/

And a review and giveaway of "Don't Look Close" by Jaima Fixsen along with an interesting interview with Jaima https://kingsriverlife.com/09/12/dont-look-close-by-jaima-fixsen/

We also have a mystery short story by Joli Huelskamp https://kingsriverlife.com/09/12/mystery-short-story-the-missing-employee/

Up on KRL News and Reviews this week we have a review and ebook giveaway of "The Corpse With The Steely Gaze" by Cathy Ace https://www.krlnews.com/2026/09/the-corpse-with-steely-gaze-by-cathy.html

And a review and giveaway of "Treasures and Treachery in Tenerife" by Victoria Tait https://www.krlnews.com/2026/09/treasures-and-treachery-in-tenerife-by.html

And a review and ebook giveaway of "Board to Death" by J.C. Eaton https://www.krlnews.com/2026/09/board-to-death-by-j-c-eaton.html

Happy reading,
Lorie

ButtonDown.Com: Accidental Assassin Vol 1

 ButtonDown.Com: Accidental Assassin Vol 1

Scott's Take: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder Vol. 1 by Dan Watters and Illustrators Michele Bandini and Sid Kotian


Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder Vol. 1 by Dan Watters and Illustrators Michele Bandini and Sid Kotian is set in the second series of IDW TMNT books. The second series is a continuation of the first series, but they rebooted it because the issue numbers got too high. They also did a significant time skip forward.

 

The Shredder returns with PTSD and without the Foot Clan. He is now alone in the world. He returns to find that a new Foot Clan has risen in his absence. This Foot Clan seeks to cause the end of the world. The Shredder isn’t going to allow that to happen. Things are way more complicated than this, but that is the basic synopsis without revealing too much.

 

This is a violent story that uses the complex character of the Shredder in a dark tale as he goes around the globe on his mission. This tale is more violent than the usual TMNT story. The Shredder has no qualms about leaving people in bloody heaps as he goes about his mission.

 

The art is excellent and detailed. The character work is interesting. By the end, Shredder has a new purpose and a new mission. If one is expecting to see the Turtles in this one would be disappointed as they only get a brief cameo.

 

This story is about the Shredder and I am interested to see where it goes from here in Volume 2. At this time, I have no idea what the title is for that and could find no record of it anywhere. But, I want to read it.

 

 

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

 

 

I read this by way of Hoopla through the Dallas Public Library System.

 

 

Scott A. Tipple ©2026

Friday, September 11, 2026

Lesa's Book Critiques: The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies by Kate Westbury

 Lesa's Book Critiques: The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies by Kate Westbury

Don't Need A Diagram: Patrick Raden Keefe, “London Falling”

 Don't Need A Diagram: Patrick Raden Keefe, “London Falling”

Happiness Is A Book: Friday’s Forgotten Book: A Bullet in the Ballet by Caryl Brahms and S. J. Simon

 Happiness Is A Book: Friday’s Forgotten Book: A Bullet in the Ballet by Caryl Brahms and S. J. Simon

In Reference to Murder: Friday's "Forgotten" Books: The Dancing Man

In Reference to Murder: Friday's "Forgotten" Books: The Dancing Man: Philip Maitland Hubbard, better known as P.M. Hubbard (1910-1980) studied at Oxford where he won the Newdigate Prize for English verse in 19...

Patricia Abbott: FFB-SIDESWIPE, Charles Willeford

 Patricia Abbott: FFB-SIDESWIPE, Charles Willeford

Mystery Fanfare: 2026 McIlvanney Prize Shortlist

Mystery Fanfare: 2026 McIlvanney Prize Shortlist: Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival announced the shortlist of nominees for the 2026 McIlvanney Prize. The winner will be ...

Lesa's Book Critiques: What Are You Reading?

 Lesa's Book Critiques: What Are You Reading?

In Reference to Murder: Mystery Melange

In Reference to Murder: Mystery Melange: Bloody Scotland revealed the shortlist for the 2026 McIlvanney Prize. The finalist titles will be promoted in bookshops throughout Scotland...