41 years ago today Sandi and I were married in the same church her parents had been married in many years earlier. She was, and always will be, my everything.
The grief sea is storm tossed with towering waves, as it has been all weekend. I am not fit to be around, so I will do the usual thing, and isolate myself.
Personal Note--- Please keep a good thought for Lesa. She is sick with something and having a hard time of it.
Paul Levine
is a former trial lawyer and the author of two best-selling legal thriller
series that have won the John D. MacDonald Fiction Award and have been shortlisted
for the Edgar, Macavity, International Thriller, Shamus, and James Thurber
prizes. He took an entirely different direction with his writing in 2025 with a
book set in the late 1930s about real-life friends Charlie Chaplin and Albert
Einstein who united their considerable forces to oppose the creeping fascism
threatening to overtake the world. Combining fact with well-considered fiction,
it was named Best Thriller of the Year from Best Thrillers.com.
The dynamic
if unlikely duo of Chaplin and Einstein is back in Midnight Patriots (Nittany
Valley Productions, June 2026). This time Charlie is in deep trouble. William
Randolph Hearst has put out a contract on Charlie because of his ongoing
dalliance with Hearst’s mistress Marion Davies. (The much older Hearst was
notoriously jealous of Chaplin and possessive of Davies. A Peter Bogdanovich
film called The Cat’s Meow (2001) uses it to explain the death of cinema
producer Thomas H. Ince. Wonderful movie.) In addition, a German sharpshooter
has been sent to assassinate Chaplin for his satirical portrayal of Hitler in
his new movie The Great Dictator. Chaplin made Hitler look a fool and
Hitler wasn’t standing for it.
Einstein
isn’t much better off. An aging German spy named Fritz Duquesne is determined
to show his bosses that he has not lost his touch. He plans to kidnap Einstein
and return him to the Nazi Germany Einstein fled years earlier. At the same
time, and fortunately for both Chaplin and Einstein, a pair of FBI agents is
watching Einstein at J. Edgar Hoover’s orders to obtain evidence of subversive
behavior. Major Leslie Groves is trying to enlist Einstein to monitor the
research into an atomic device underway at multiple universities.
While under
multiple threats, Chaplin tries to convert prospective presidential candidate Charles
Lindbergh from his isolationist views. Mobster Mickey Cohen acts as bodyguard
to Chaplin and Einstein. And Lena Horne gets her big career break when she
meets Cohen who offers her a performing contract at a popular nightclub of
which he is part owner.
Most of the
major players were real people. A summary at the end of the book explains which
is which and what happened to the nonfictional ones. Somehow the idea that
Einstein and Chaplin could be friends is startling but they were both well-known
world citizens and they held similar views. Likewise, Lindbergh’s status as an
aviation hero clouds public knowledge of his conservative politics and strong
belief in eugenics. It is easy to draw parallels between people and events in
the book, set in the late 1930s, and the present time.
Much of the
action takes place on the cross-country train known as the Super Chief, as
Einstein and Chaplin return to Los Angeles after a trip to New York and a stop
in Chicago on their way west. Insight into the workings of the long-gone
passenger railway is always fascinating. Readers who like mysteries set on
trains will want to read this book, as will those interested in the mindset of
the United States as it waffled on entering the war against Germany.
The parts
here about how the pro-war factions in the U.S. worked around the insular Congress
reminds me of one of my favorite books of 2024. The Wealth of Shadows by
Graham Moore (Random House, 2024), which was a fictionalized account of
real-life happenings during the early days of World War II, described how
President Roosevelt tasked the Treasury Department with finding a way to
undermine the German economy, intending to force a financial stop to the
fighting while staying officially within the isolationist policies in place.
A
fascinating piece of fictionalized history. Recommended!
·
ISBN-13: 979-8994263013
·
Publisher: Nittany Valley Productions,
Inc.
·
Publication date: June 16, 2026
·
Language: English
·
Print length: 390 pages
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4xr9ici
Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2026
Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal
It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.
As we continue to celebrate Pride on KRL, this week we have reviews and giveaways of 2 LGBTQ+ cozies-"Murder, Local Style" an Orchid Isle Mystery by Leslie Karst, and "Dragged to Death" A Domestic Partners in Crime Mystery by Frank Anthony Polito https://kingsriverlife.com/06/13/pair-of-lgbtq-cozy-mysteries-from-leslie-karst-frank-anthony-polito/
We also have a review and ebook giveaway of yet another LGBTQ+ mystery, this one by Marshall Thornton, and we also have an interesting interview with Marshall https://kingsriverlife.com/06/13/the-pink-by-marshall-thornton/
And a review and giveaway of "This Weekend Doesn't End Well for Anyone" by Catherine Mack https://kingsriverlife.com/06/13/this-weekend-doesnt-end-well-for-anyone-by-catherine-mack/
And a review of the latest season of one of my favorite mystery TV shows “The Brokenwood Mysteries” on Acorn TV https://kingsriverlife.com/06/13/acorn-tv-brokenwood-mysteries-season-12/
Up on KRL during the week we posted another special midweek guest post, this one by mystery author Gerald Elias about his journey to find a publisher for his latest mystery "Murder on Vacation" that eventually led him to Misti Media https://kingsriverlife.com/06/10/when-at-first-you-dont-succeed/
Up on KRL News and Reviews this week we have a review and ebook giveaway of the latest Smiling Dog Cafe book from mystery author Neil Plakcy https://www.krlnews.com/2026/06/drift-and-return-by-neil-plakcy.html
And a review and giveaway of "You Can't Keep a Good Cat Down" by Maggie Pill https://www.krlnews.com/2026/06/you-cant-keep-good-cat-down-by-maggie.html
And a review and giveaway of "Murder Most Delicious" by Danielle Postel-Vinay https://www.krlnews.com/2026/06/murder-most-delicious-by-danielle.html
Happy reading and Happy Pride,
Lorie
Captain America Vol 1: Our Secret
Wars
by Chip Zdarsky, Valerio Schiti
(Illustrator), and Ben Harvey (Cover Art) is a prequel story set shortly after
Captain America has just woken up from the ice. Captain America, who feels lost
and alone in this new country, has been reactivated by the U.S. Army to join a
rescue mission to save hostages in Latveria. The country has recently been
taken over by the dictator, Dr. Doom. Alongside a new version of the Howling
Commandoes and another new Captain America that had not been referenced before,
they and the reactivated Captain America are to link up with the resistance.
Then get the hostages. Then get out.
At least, that was the mission that
Steve was told. Of course, the real mission is not that. Not even close to
that. The government knew that Steve is
too honorable for the real mission.
This is an action-packed thriller with
plenty of violence and character development. The physical volume won’t be out
until late er this month, as of right now, you can read the whole volume plus
more on the Marvel Unlimited app.
There will be a second volume set in the
present time of the Marvel Universe and that has not been titled yet. It will
tie into the One World Under Doom and Armageddon events. According to various
interview on Marvel.Com, as since Doctor
Doom has left this reality, Latveria has fallen to pieces as various factions
seek to control what Doom has left behind. Red Hulk and the U.S. Army will
clash with the Avengers and Steve over what remains. Doom has left nukes and
even worse things behind. Not much is known about this Armageddon event other
than it is going to have massive ramifications and see a new Avengers team
assembled to save the world again as the Jed Mackay team has been disbanded.
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/42HD9Pm
As noted, I read this enjoyable book as
the individual issues appeared on Marvel
Unlimited.
Scott A. Tipple ©2026
Please welcome author Paula Messina back to the blog
today…
The
Secret Hangman
by
Paula Messina
The Secret
Hangman by Peter Lovesey begins with Inspector Peter Diamond receiving a
letter from a secret admirer. Far from mysterydom’s cuddliest detective,
Diamond is surprised any woman is interested in meeting him. Nevertheless, the
woman who has the hots for Diamond optimistically suggests they meet at the
Saracen’s Hotel on Thursday evening.
Diamond wouldn’t
be Diamond if he wrote the date down in his calendar. It’s fair to guess
Diamond doesn’t own a calendar of any sort. Besides, he put the secret admirer
out of mind as he quickly moved on to search for a missing mother, Delia
Williamson.
The next day, a
woman is found hanging from a swing’s crossbar in Bath’s Sydney Gardens. You
don’t need to be an avid mystery fan to know with absolute certainty that the
dangling woman is Delia Williamson.
Her death is
obviously a suicide. At least that’s what Diamond and everyone else believe
until the pathologist points out “two sets of ligature marks.”
Murder it is.
Diamond returns to
his office to find a chocolate cake in wait. The secret admirer strikes again.
After Diamond and crew polish off the cake, they attempt to trace Williamson’s
final hours. She worked her shift as a waitress at Tosi’s. Did she leave with
the waiter Luigi or with the last diner, Dalton Monnington, a Jacuzzi salesman?
Or was the murderer closer to home? Say her live-in lover, the rather cool
Ashley Corcoran? Or is it possible that Danny Geaves, Williamson’s former
partner and the father of her children, had it in for her?
Diamond wants to
speak to Geaves, only he’s vanished without that proverbial trace.
Until he is found
hanging from a bridge.
Meanwhile,
Diamond, his larder empty, goes grocery shopping and manages to drive over
another customer’s bags. After Diamond pays to replace her destroyed food, the
owner invites him for a drink that night, which is how Diamond meets Paloma
Kean and her son Jerry, a devote Christian who volunteers at hospitals in the
area.
Another woman is
found hanged, and days later, her missing husband is found suffering from a
similar fate. When a third woman is found at the end of a noose, it’s obvious a
serial killer is on the loose. Diamond begins a frantic search to find the
third missing husband before it’s too late.
Hangman
takes lots of twists, and Diamond runs through his list of suspects before
finally solving the who and why of the mystery. The only remaining question is
the fate of his relationship with Paloma Kean.
It shouldn’t come
as a surprise that we have a master plotter at work. Among the many honors
bestowed on Peter Lovesey (1936-2025) are the MWA Grandmaster Award for
Lifetime Achievement, the CWA Gold and Silver Daggers, and the Diamond Dagger
for Lifetime Achievement.
Lovesey’s also
great at spinning characters with real depth and personality. Peter Diamond is
a wonderful character worth revisiting in the other books in the series. He’s
irascible but vulnerable, not quite the curmudgeon he presents to the world,
and he has a sense of humor. Diamond’s still reeling from the murder of his
wife Steph three years before Hangman begins, and the scenes with Paloma
are touching and tender. It’s impossible not to root for Paloma to appear in
the next mystery.
The series also
boasts an admirable cast of supporting characters. There’s the well endowed
Georgina, Diamond’s boss whom he frequently locks horns with, and his
underlings, the delightful Ingeborg, the insufferable John Leaman, and the
long-suffering Keith Halliwell.
Readers enjoy
visiting locations mentioned in their favorite books. Arthur Conan Doyle died
in 1930, taking Sherlock Holmes and John Watson with him to the grave—at least
in theory. Nearly one hundred years later, fans still flock to the non-existent
221B Baker Street, perhaps expecting Mrs. Hudson to open the door and invite
them to wait upstairs for Holmes’ return. So it’s not surprising that another
well developed character in the Diamond series is Bath itself. Diamond climbs
hills and descends into Bath’s many caves. The places mentioned are real, not
figments of Lovesey’s imagination.
While reading Hangman,
I had the sense I could visit the places described and pop in for a pint
at the Old Crown, maybe even chat up Diamond himself, or perhaps spy on Paloma
and Diamond when they meet up at the Saracen’s Hotel for a little tipple. It
turns out Lovesey used to conduct tours of Bath.
I was convinced
that I had figured out early the connection between the three ill-fated couples
and the murderer. I resisted the temptation to jump ahead and confirm whether I
was correct. Of course, I’m not spilling the beans. You’ll have to read The
Secret Hangman to find out whodunnit. I can tell you this: Peter Diamond
and crew are well worth your time.
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4fFP6Nw
Paula 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.
The latest reading opportunities…
Fellow SMFS list member Wil A. Emerson announced
that his short story, Norms and Values, appears in the 3rd edition
of The Writers Monk. His piece appears on page 98 of this free to read
flip magazine. You can read it here.
Fellow SMFS list member Leslie Elman, announced that her short story, When
I Go, was published online at Guilty Flash (part of Guilty Crime Magazine). The
story is free to read here.
Fellow SMFS list member David H.
Hendrickson has been busy. He announced that his short story, Apt Pupil, was
published in the latest issue of Thrill Ride Magazine. This is their 14
issue and is titled Thrill Ride Magazine: Assassins and Vigilantes.
Learn more at the publisher
listing
or go to Amazon to get it.
Mr. Hendrickson also announced that his
short story, The Mona Pizza and The Johnny Pesky Wannabe, appears in the
recently released anthology, Romance for All Seasons: Sunkissed Summer.
Mr. Hendrickson co-edits the anthology series with SMFS list member Annie Reed
who also has the short story, Getting Away From It All. It is available at Amazon and other vendors.
Of course, if the AHMM new issue
is out, so too is the new EQMM. That new issue, Ellery Queen
Mystery Magazine: July/August 2026, also features short stories by fellow
SMFS list members O’Neil De Noux (Le Rouge, 2B), Tom Larsen (
Finally, a reminder that the anthology, Crimeucopia - New Kids In Da 'Hood, is now out. Editor John Connor of Murderous Ink Press 16 crime fiction short story tales in the read. That includes a short story by fellow SMFS list member Thomas F. Gorham III (Classless Reunion). It can be picked up at Amazon.
By the way, if you like what we do here, please consider spreading the word of these posts. Also, if you can, please consider making a donation through the PayPal widget on the left side of the blog. I try not to talk about it, or beg, but the desperation is very real. The hits keep coming here and things are really bad.
Until next time….
Kevin R. Tipple ©2026
Please
welcome Professor John A. Tures to the blog today….
My name is
John A. Tures and my book is Branded, published by Huntsville
Independent Press (https://www.huntsvilleindependent.com/product-page/branded), and it’s a story about a product
placement scandal and the attempt by researchers to uncover what really
happened.
Remember
the O.J. Simpson slow-speed chase?
Even if
you were pretty young, you’ve probably seen it on a Netflix documentary.
Here’s a
trivia question: What was the vehicle?
Spoiler
Alert Here: White Ford
Bronco
Most
people recognize the make and model, even the color when I ask them.
Now who
was with O.J. Simpson in the car?
Probably
need to Google it. I’ve had one person at a book event know the answer.
You may
not know this, but Ford was strongly considering phasing out the Bronco, but
after the incident, they all sold out. The company kept it around for at least
a decade. And now they’re back, thanks to all of those O. J. Simpson
documentaries.
Here’s a
second trivia question: There was a notorious unsolved case of a serial killer,
who was inserting cyanide into capsules for a painkiller throughout Chicago in
the early 1980s.
What was
the painkiller?
Spoiler
Alert Here: Tylenol
Did you
also know that their parent company, Johnson & Johnson had to spend
billions on recalling all of the capsules, replacing them with caplets?
Here’s the
“what if:” What if the O.J. Simpson slow speed chase was manufactured to sell
White Ford Broncos? What if a rival painkiller paid to put a hit on Tylenol in
a bid for market share?
In my
story Branded, a marketing professor and his students unwittingly
uncover part of the scheme while entering a marketing competition involving
research and presentations. The cases are fictitious, as are the characters,
but they’ll feel real.
It rarely
takes one person to pull off this kind of research. The protagonist will get
help from his wife (a tenured professor at their college), the students, fellow
faculty and others at the college, and even their kids. It’s a little different
from some thrillers where the main character is super wealthy or has access to
untapped resources. It’s a David-and-Goliath story, but one where you’ll find
yourself at the end saying “Yeah, I can see that happening.”
My second
book Independent Thought comes out later this summer, also published by Huntsville Independent Press.
When people find out that I am a political science professor, they don’t ask if
I am a Democrat or Republican, or if I’m a conservative or liberal. They ask me
“Why don’t we have a third party in America?”
In Independent
Thought, several characters from Branded are recruited to help with
a new third party. Led by a political maverick, the organizers of the new party
find out just how hard it is to start a third party, and all of the barriers
they face.
Just as
the new party gets its footing, and starts to challenge the political
establishment, strange things and accidents seem to happen to the members of
the campaign. What could be behind these incidents? And the aftermath of the
election may be more exciting than the voting itself!
Amazon
Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4evuAxY
John A. Tures
©2026
The
author, John A. Tures, started writing at age 15 for the El Paso Herald-Post,
then continued in college for the school’s newspaper. After earning his
doctorate, he became a weekly columnist for a number of newspapers and
magazines. In 2020, he started working on Branded, which came out late last
year. A third book, Moral Hazard, in the editing stage covers an international
crisis and its impact on U.S. politics.
The latest reading opportunities… Punk Noir has published, Champagne For My Real Friends, Real Pain For My Sham Friends — Issue 4 . Th...
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