Friday, September 30, 2016
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Graphic Novel Round Up by Ambrea
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Graphic Novel Round Up by Ambrea: Recently, I’ve been on a reading jag involving comic books. I don’t know why, but I’ve been on a comic book binge like never before—a...
Bill Crider's Pop Culture Magazine: In Sunlight or in Shadow -- Lawrence Block, Editor...
Bill Crider's Pop Culture Magazine: In Sunlight or in Shadow -- Lawrence Block, Editor...: The full title of this book is In Sunlight or in Shadow: Stories Inspired by the Paintings of Edward Hopper. It contains 17 stories along ...
FFB Double Take Review: TOP SUSPENSE: 13 CLASSIC STORIES BY 12 MASTERS OF THE GENRE (Reviewed by Barry Ergang and Kevin R. Tipple)
Back in 2011, Barry and I reviewed TOP
SUSPENSE: 13 Classic Stories by 12
Masters of the Genre in individual reviews. Barry had gotten his
copy from Bill Crider and Dave Zeltserman had provided me a copy for review.
Today, as part of Friday’s Forgotten Books hosted by Patti Abbott, it is a double take
review as part of the celebration today of anthologies. With our differing
styles, the reviews should complement each other as well as cover the book in
different ways.
The bottom line is we both like the
book very much......
TOP SUSPENSE: 13 Classic Stories by 12 Masters of the Genre
Reviewed by Barry Ergang
I suspect many readers feel as I do
about most anthologies, genres notwithstanding, and find them uneven as to the
quality of the stories they contain. Some stories are superb, others mediocre.
Some make you wonder how and why they made it into the book at all.
Top Suspense proved to be an exception to that
generality. An anthology from a group of some of today’s finest practitioners
in the mystery/suspense field, each of the stories it contains is an engrossing
read. There is plenty of variety here, each story being very different from its
companions. With the caveat that several of them contain crude language, vivid
violence, and graphic sex, and thus might disturb some sensibilities, here is
the lineup:--
In Max Allan Collins’s “Unreasonable
Doubt,” Chicago P.I. Nate Heller, president of the A-1 Detective Agency, while
vacationing in California visits his partner Fred Rubinski and ends up taking
on a case Fred is too busy to handle himself--a case based partly on fact, as
Collins explains in an afterword, involving the strong-willed teenaged daughter
of a wealthy couple, the girl’s gold-digging boyfriend, and a vicious double
murder.
Bill Crider’s story “Death’s Brother”
finds a middle-aged professor of Romantic literature engaged in some
extracurricular activity with a beautiful young student: extra-legal,
extra-lethal activity.
Forbidden to leave the garden without
telling his mother, Dylan nevertheless sneaks off to play with some
neighborhood children who take him to an industrial area beneath a country
park, a trip that has serious consequences, in Stephen Gallagher’s “Poisoned.”
“Remaindered,” Lee Goldberg’s darkly
comic inverted detective story, concerns a writer desperate to revive a
flagging career who meets an ardent--and amorous--fan at a book signing, who
invites the writer to see her collection of signed first editions, among other
things. The writer’s wife is hundreds of miles away and never needs to know.
Where’s the harm? It won’t kill anybody--right?
Seventeen-year-old Bobby Staley,
lusting after a young woman slightly older than he, bargains with God to
see her naked. Thirty-four-year-old Vivian Chase, on the run from an accomplice
after half a lifetime of robberies and seeking repentance, wants only to take
care of the needs of the teenaged daughter she left in the care of another
years before. Their paths converge in Joel Goldberg’s potent “Fire in the Sky.”
“The Baby Store” may at first seem out
of place in an anthology of stories focused on crime and mystery, but Ed
Gorman’s offbeat tale of a competitive future in which prospective parents can
literally design their children ultimately deals with crime on a
personal and, some readers will probably believe, a societal scale.
In Libby Fischer Hellmann’s “The Jade
Elephant,” a professional burglar’s conscience is piqued after he gets some
good news from a doctor but learns that one of his former marks has a serious
medical problem. Wanting to make amends, he must contend with a partner who is
a great deal less sensitive to the needs of others, and with a very determined
fence.
Maternal and murderous instincts drive
the protagonist in Vicki Hendricks’ raw, explicit, and ironic “The Big O”--a
woman seeking a perverse kind of redemption for the sake of her year-old son,
who must contend with his abusive father from whom she’s fled, the drug-dealing
abusive lover she accepts solely to have a place to live, and a hurricane
that’s both literal and symbolic.
Depicting the lingering anti-Japanese
sentiment that permeated southern California in 1951, Naomi Hirahara’s “The Chirashi
Covenant” tells the story of a Japanese-American woman who longs to sell the
house she shares with her husband, daughter, and mother-in-law in a Japanese
enclave , and find a new home closer to the ocean. Her quest leads to
infidelity, tragedy, and revenge.
The narrator of Paul Levine‘s “El
Valiente En El Infierno (The Brave One in Hell)” is Victor Castillo, a
thirteen-year-old Mexican boy who, along with others--among them a pregnant
Honduran girl--is attempting a midnight border crossing into California. He
wants to get to his Aunt Luisa in Ocotillo. She’ll help him get to Minnesota so
he can join his father and older brothers. A couple of vigilantes from the
Patriot Patrol have other ideas.
Another story that takes place in the
desert, this one in Nevada, is Harry Shannon’s tense and memorable “A Handful
of Dust,” in which a hit man named Pike meets and confers with a bizarre
prospective client who has an even more bizarre request.
Because of his partner’s ineptitude, a
thief must bid on a painting from an auction house because its frame conceals
the key to a storage locker containing three hundred thousand dollars he and
the partner stole. In Dave Zeltserman’s fast-paced “The Canary,” the problem is
that someone else is bidding, too.
“The Chase” is the thirteenth and final
story in the anthology. It’s a round-robin effort, as explained in a prefatory
note: “Each member wrote 250 words and sent it on to the next until it had gone
around twice. No planning, re-writing or polishing allowed.” For this reason
it’s the weakest story of the lot--but saying so is akin to fruitlessly
debating who’s stronger, Superman or the Hulk. Whatever “The Chase” lacks in
comparison with the individually written tales that precede it, it makes up for
in nearly non-stop action. Like its predecessors, it will hook and hold
readers.
If the authors represented in Top
Suspense are among the kings and queens of their genre, these stories are
jewels for their respective crowns. Highly recommended.
Barry Ergang © 2011, 2016
Some of Derringer Award-winning author’s Barry Ergang’s work is available at Smashwords and Amazon.
Some of Derringer Award-winning author’s Barry Ergang’s work is available at Smashwords and Amazon.
Featuring 13 stories by twelve authors
this anthology released as an e-book features a lot of variety in the tales.
These previously published stories take place in a variety of settings with
tremendously different themes and writing styles. Because of the variety there
should be several stories that will please any reader.
Max Allen Collins opens the book with
“Unreasonable Doubt.” Nathan Heller is in Los Angeles in 1947 and is
supposed to be on vacation. It isn’t a vacation very long as he is pulled into
the Overell case. Like many a dad before him, Walter E. Overell does not want
to see his daughter marry a guy dad is sure is bad news. What he needs is
proof. He wants Nathan Heller and his partner Fred Rubinski to get the goods on
the guy so that Walter Overell can prove to his daughter the guy only wants her
for the family money.
Bill Crider follows with his noir tale,
“Death’s Brother.” Sometimes the professor just has to help his student
outside of the classroom. Professor Jon Cline certainly intends to
help. The money will be nice too.
In possibly the most disturbing story
of the book Stephen Gallager tells the tale of a lonely only child seeking
friends to play with as well as escape from his overbearing parents in
“Poisoned.” The surrounding English countryside has numerous dangers, many of
them man made. Dylan’s attempts to fit in with the neighborhood kids are
a recipe for disaster that will rock many parents.
Book signings bring out all kinds and
doing one at an area K-Mart in Spokane, Washington may not be the best idea in
“Remaindered.” Written by Lee Golberg, this story features author Kevin
Dangler who has been written off by everyone as a one hit wonder. Desperate
times call for desperate measures as he meets possibly his biggest fan.
Seventeen year old Bobby
Staley wants just one thing out of God – he wants to see Elizabeth Bumiller
naked in the beginning of “Fire in the Sky” by Joel Goldman. This Depression
Era story has nothing to do with Mr. Goldman’s series featuring trial lawyer
Lou Mason or FBI Special Agent Jack Davis. Still, the story is a good one
and features genetics and destiny at work.
“The Baby Store” by Ed Gorman tackles a
subject familiar to science fiction readers – the quest to have the perfect
baby. For Kevin McKay, in light of recent events, that quest is
particularly upsetting but his fellow lawyers don’t see the pain they cause by
bragging on their own kids. Designer kids are the new fad for the wealthy
and powerful and they just don’t care what other folks think. While Kevin is
getting ready to design another child, his wife may not be.
“The Jade Elephant Plant” by Libby
Fischer Hellman is the tale of a green jade elephant sitting in a pawnshop
window and repercussions. It may not be a doggie in the window but Gus
needs it just the same. Too bad he originally stole it six months ago.
“The Big O” by Vicki Hendricks is not
the kind of story the title implies. Or, maybe it is depending on how your mind
works. Either way, this tale of a woman trying to start over somewhere on the
shores of Lake Okeechobee is a good one. Taking her one-year-old son,
Chance, and running seemed like a good idea to Candy. But, running did not change
who she is and old habits are very hard to break in this hard hitting story.
Naomi Hirahara contributes “The Chirashi
Covenant” set just after World War Two. Racism against Japanese Americans
is a major issue and serves as a backdrop to this intriguing story. A
chance meeting might change the lives of Helen and her husband Frank forever.
“El Valiente En El Inferno” (The Brave
One In Hell) written by Paul Levine describes the terror Victor Castillo,
thirteen years old, faces trying to get across the border into the US.
Part of a group that is intercepted by two Americans bent on preventing
illegals from crossing while also having some twisted fun at their expense, it
is up to Victor to save himself and others.
Harry Shannon takes readers to his home
state of Nevada in “A Handful of Dust.” It takes Pike the better part of the
night to drive to a bar in a barely still alive town in the high desert.
The bug zapper on the porch of the bar is not the only thing that kills---just
the most obvious.
“The Canary” by Dave Zeltserman is
billed as “This is a simple crime story featuring a thief and a canary. Make
that two canaries.” Not to argue with the author but it is also a story
about a very simple truth that stretches from the lowest place on Earth to the
penthouse and every stop in between. Plans for success—no matter the
endeavor—are always ruined by incompetent help.
The final story of the anthology is the
round robin story the original members of the Top Suspense Group created and
published last year. Each member wrote 250 words and sent the evolving story on
to the next writer. No polishing, editing, planning, etc. was allowed as the
growing story made its way through the group twice. The very good result
was titled “The Chase” and fittingly concludes the book.
Read by way of the free Kindle for PC
program, this strong and wide ranging anthology is available in a variety of
e-book formats. It showcases the work of some of the best crime/mystery writers
in the game today. Full of rich characters and lots of twists that you will not
see coming, the reads contained in this book are good ones.
TOP SUSPENSE: 13 CLASSIC STORIES BY 12
MASTERS OF THE GENRE
Edited by Dave Zeltserman
March 2011
ASIN: B0074QKGHO
eBook
(also available in paperback
188 Pages
$4.99
Material supplied by Dave Zeltserman in
exchange for my objective review.
Kevin R. Tipple © 2011, 2016
Some of Kevin’s work can be found at Smashwords and Amazon.
Thursday, September 29, 2016
Gravetapping: THE SUNDOWN SPEECH by Loren D. Estleman
Gravetapping: THE SUNDOWN SPEECH by Loren D. Estleman: The Sundown Speech is the most recent entry, 25 th overall, in Loren Estleman’s justly celebrated Amos Walker private detective series. ...
Crime Review Update
We feature new 20 reviews in each issue of Crime Review ( www.crimereview.co.uk), together with a top industry interview. This time it’s author Leigh Russell in the Countdown hot seat. We’re on Twitter at: Crime Review: @CrimeReviewUK Linda Wilson: @CrimeReviewer Sharon Wheeler: @lartonmedia This week’s reviews are: THE MURDER ROAD by Stephen Booth, reviewed by Linda Wilson DI Ben Cooper investigates the murder of a lorry driver whose truck gets stuck under a low bridge near an isolated Derbyshire hamlet. BURIED by Graham Masterton, reviewed by John Cleal The mummified bodies of a family and their pets found beneath the floorboards of a cottage point to an execution during the Troubles. THE QUIET DEATH OF THOMAS QUAID by Craig Russell, reviewed by Chris Roberts PI Lennox subcontracts ‘Quiet’ Thomas Quaid for a simple theft, but things go awry and Quaid ends up dead. Lennox is determined to find out why. BLACK RIVER by Tom Harper, reviewed by Fiona Spence A lost city. The world's deadliest jungle. When your life depends on it, who can you really trust? THE FINAL WORD by Liza Marklund, reviewed by Ewa Sherman Crime reporter Annika Bengtzon is revisiting an old story of a young woman murdered by her violent boyfriend. She also reports on the court case of the savage killing of a homeless man. But the mysterious disappearance of her sister leaves her distraught. THE SILENT ROOM by Mari Hannah, reviewed by Linda Wilson A Special Branch officer, believed to have gone rogue, is taken from a hijacked prison van after being refused bail. Most believe DI Jack Fenwick has been sprung by his dodgy mates, but his former sergeant believes he’s been taken against his will and is an innocent man. CUT TO THE BONE by Alex Caan, reviewed by Sharon Wheeler DCI Kate Riley and DS Zain Harris find they have millions of suspects when a popular internet vlogger goes missing. THE WOMAN WHO WALKED INTO THE SEA by Mark Douglas-Home, reviewed by Linda Wilson Violet Wells was abandoned as a baby. When she finds out that her mother committed suicide just after giving birth, Violet is determined to learn as much as she can about the woman who gave her up. DEADLY HARVEST by Michael Stanley, reviewed by Chris Roberts Samantha Khama, a new recruit to Botswana CID, takes the disappearance of young girls seriously, especially when it appears that they may be ending up in traditional medicine for those seeking power. STREET SOLDIER by Andy McNab, reviewed by Linda Wilson Tough teenager Sean Harker is up to his eyes in trouble and a spell in a Young Offenders’ Institute looks like only digging him deeper in the mire, but then an unexpected offer gives him the chance to turn his life around.
HONKY TONK SAMURAI by Joe R Lansdale, reviewed by Chris Roberts When an old lady catches Hap and Leonard on camera assaulting a dog abuser, they feel a little pressure to accede to her request that they investigate the disappearance of her granddaughter. A POISONOUS PLOT by Susanna Gregory, reviewed by John Cleal Tensions between town and gown threaten full-scale warfare in 1350s Cambridge as physician/corpse examiner Matthew Bartholomew and senior proctor Brother Michael try to solve a series of murders and mysterious deaths. SKIN AND BONE by Robin Blake, reviewed by Linda Wilson Preston Coroner Titus Cragg is called in when the body of a baby is discovered in the town’s notorious tanning yard. A DEATH AT FOUNTAINS ABBEY by Antonia Hodgson, reviewed by John Cleal John Aislabie, one of the wealthiest and most hated men in England, has been threatened with murder. Thomas Hawkins is blackmailed into investigating and must hunt those responsible, or lose the woman he loves. THE LONDON CAGE by Mark Leggatt, reviewed by Jim Beaman Connor Montrose needs to take control of a secret weapon that could destroy all the communications and defence systems of the world. Meanwhile the CIA are on his trail and want him dead. THE DETECTIVE AND THE DEVIL by Lloyd Shepherd, reviewed by John Cleal Constable Charles Horton of the River Police investigates the brutal killing of a clerk and his family in London’s East End and is drawn into the secretive world of the East India Company. BROKEN CHORD by Margaret Moore, reviewed by Sylvia Maughan A brutal murder occurs in a family villa in Italy. With everyone under suspicion the murky side of each character gradually unfolds. Will Inspector Dragonetti be able to cut through all this to find the culprit? BLACK ARTS by Andrew Prentice and Jonathan Weil, reviewed by John Barnbrook Jack lives in Tudor London, in a secluded alley with his mother, until, on the verge of entering life of organised crime, he encounters a world he did not know existed, a world of red-handed priests, demons and magic. THE MURDERER IN RUINS by Cay Rademacher, reviewed by Arnold Taylor The body of a young woman is found hidden behind a wall in the wartime rubble that used to be Hamburg. She has clearly been strangled but, that apart, there are no clues. THE SILENT ONES by William Broderick, reviewed by John Cleal Father Anselm is approached by the head of a minor Order to trace a missing priest who ran from a police station while being questioned over an allegation of child abuse. Best wishes Sharon
Bitter Tea and Mystery: Grifters & Swindlers: edited by Cynthia Manson
Bitter Tea and Mystery: Grifters & Swindlers: edited by Cynthia Manson: Grifters & Swindlers is a collection of 17 short stories taken from Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine and Alfred Hitchcock Mystery M...
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Nevermore: Whipping Boy, Olive Kitteridge, Don't Y...
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Nevermore: Whipping Boy, Olive Kitteridge, Don't Y...: Reported by Jeanne Nevermore opened with Whipping Boy: The Forty Year Search for My Twelve-Year-Old Bully by Allen Kurzweil which ...
Crime Time : A MOMENT ON THE EDGE – Elizabeth George
Crime Time : A MOMENT ON THE EDGE – Elizabeth George: I committed a crime a year ago paying a mere 50¢ at my public library’s used-book sale for an excellent copy of A Moment on the Edge: 100 Y...
Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 12 Calls for Submissions in October 2016 - Paying Markets
Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 12 Calls for Submissions in October 2016 - Paying ...: There are a dozen calls for submissions in October. As always, there are calls for a wide variety of genres and styles. Short stories, e...
A Holland Reads: Denise Weeks - Cozy Mystery Author Spotlight and Interview
A Holland Reads: Denise Weeks - Cozy Mystery Author Spotlight and I...: I am going to be hosting a number of cozy mystery authors on my blog for the next two months. If you have not had the pleasure of enjoy...
The Lust Song of J Alfred Rudeshock by Barry Ergang at Spilling Cocoa Over Martin Amis
This was originally published in a print poetry journal, The Listening
Eye, in 2000.
The Lust Song of J Alfred Rudeshock by Barry Ergang at Spilling Cocoa Over Martin Amis
The Lust Song of J Alfred Rudeshock by Barry Ergang at Spilling Cocoa Over Martin Amis
Wednesday, September 28, 2016
A Writer's Life....Caroline Clemmons: COOL STUFF TO MAKE YOU SMARTER!
A Writer's Life....Caroline Clemmons: COOL STUFF TO MAKE YOU SMARTER!: See how I tricked you into reading about one of my favorite animals, bats. No, don’t stop reading, please! You’ll be so glad you did if you...
Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 23 Writing Contests in October 2016 - No Entry Fees
Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 23 Writing Contests in October 2016 - No Entry Fee...: There are nearly two dozen writing contests in October. All are free (no entry fees). Some of the prizes are in the tens of thousands of d...
Tuesday, September 27, 2016
Blood-Red Pencil: My Rant: Is Editing Ever Elective?
Blood-Red Pencil: My Rant: Is Editing Ever Elective?: Earlier this month, Diana Hurwitz posted a great article entitled " Do You Need an Editor? " Supporting her contention that all wr...
Guest Post: Jeanne on Library Donations in Memoriam
Jeanne
of the Bookblog of the Bristol Public Library is back today with a deeply
personal post on the subject of donating books to the library…
When I was growing up, one of the only acceptable
ways of paying respects to the dead was to send flowers to the funeral. One
also sent food to the living, attended the wake, and of course the
funeral. The standard time between death
and the funeral was at least three days, to give enough time to notify
relatives and friends, and for them to have the chance to travel to the
funeral.
Things have changed quite a bit in the past few
decades. For one thing, the wake—also
known as “sitting up with the dead” in my region, a reflection of when such
things were held in the family parlor—is now largely visitation (“The family
will receive friends..”) and since a jumble of relatives don’t usually descend
for the week, folks have cut down on the food offerings a bit. Some funerals have taken place within a day
of passing or else been held up for weeks as a memorial service has taken the
place of a traditional funeral with a body in a casket. Death notices in the newspaper have become
less of a given, now that many papers charge for such notices.
Another change is the floral tribute which, I am
sure, has been very difficult for the florists.
Instead of automatically accepting flowers, many notices carry a list of
suitable places to make donations in honor of the deceased. I have to say that is a change I applaud;
while I always appreciated seeing the flowers, knowing that one can help defray
funeral expenses for the family or contribute to a charity near and dear to the
person seems a much more useful way to express one’s sympathy.
For me, that has become donating a book to the
library in memory of the person. In
fact, twice a year I make a donation to the library back in our home town in
honor of my mother, a voracious reader who would have loved having a library at
her disposal. When she was growing up,
there was no county library; when I was growing up, there was a library at the
county seat but not in our town. My mother was on the Regional Library Board
and advocated for a library for our town. We did finally get one just about
four years before we moved away. It was
in the town hall, above the jail, in a room not exactly designed to held
thousands of pounds of weight. The floor
bowed in several places. One always had the feeling one could go in for a book
and end up in a cell.
The library now has a new home on a ground floor and
has room for more books, though not the budget. With my donation, I allow the
library to do the selection based on the current needs of their readers. After all, there’s little reason to select a
book that will just gather dust on the shelves. I do give some broad guidelines. For example, my mother had a love of history
and genealogy, so books about our region are good choices. She also loved mysteries
and historical sagas, so things in that genre—especially large print, as that
was her salvation when she developed macular degeneration—are excellent
choices. When the books are selected, a
plate goes inside with her name on it. I
like to think that some reader picks the book up and takes a moment to be
grateful that Negetha G. Powers is remembered in that way.
I know that’s my reaction with the collection
here. There are any number of books with
memorial plates or “In honor of” plates.
If it’s a subject I especially enjoy, I feel a bit of kinship to the
person named. A few years back, we lost
a wonderful patron who was a devoted knitter, especially of socks. With the donations we bought a number of knitting
books, adding greatly to the collection.
Not long after a patron came up, looking a bit puzzled. She too is an avid knitter and had been
through most of the books in our collection.
She pointed to the plate and said, “What does this mean?” I explained,
and her face lit up. “Ah, what a nice
lady!” she said.
So this is my pitch for the day. It comes about as
we have lost a long time staff member, one who was also an omnivorous
reader. My choices for her were
easy: I just chose the books she had put
on reserve but which were not yet published at the time she passed. I know she
was itching to read the next Mike Lawson and Lee Child.
At a time when books, authors, and libraries are
feeling the pinch, when many readers have had financial setbacks and are living
on limited incomes, giving a book to a library pays it forward in so many
ways.
The views expressed herein are my own and not those
of other person or instititution.
Monday, September 26, 2016
Bill Crider's Pop Culture Magazine: Phillip Thompson -- Outside the Law (February 2017 Release)
Bill Crider's Pop Culture Magazine: Phillip Thompson -- Outside the Law: Outside the Law is an original novel, not a reprint. (Brash Books is doing a lot more originals these days.) It's set in a rural Miss...
FROM DUNDEE'S DESK: My Take: THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN (2016)
FROM DUNDEE'S DESK: My Take: THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN (2016): Let me get it out of the way right up front: I liked this film a lot. It has flaws and some plot holes you could drive a Humvee thr...
TEXAS BOOK LOVER: Monday Roundup: TEXAS LITERARY CALENDAR 9/26-10/2
TEXAS BOOK LOVER: Monday Roundup: TEXAS LITERARY CALENDAR 9/26-10/2: Bookish events in Texas for the week of September 26-October 2, 2016: Special Events: Banned Books Week , nationwide, September 25-Oc...
Sunday, September 25, 2016
Bill Crider's Pop Culture Magazine: The Skeleton Haunts a House -- Leigh Perry (Toni L...
Bill Crider's Pop Culture Magazine: The Skeleton Haunts a House -- Leigh Perry (Toni L...: Sid the sentient skeleton detective is back for another adventure. I reviewed one of his earlier cases here . Sid can see although he does...
KRL This Week Update for 09/24/16
Up this weekend in KRL a review & giveaway of "All
the Little Liars" by Charlaine Harris, along with
a fun behind the book interview with Charlaine.
http://kingsriverlife.com/09/24/all-the-little-liars-by-charlaine-harris/
Also upa review & giveaway of "Death of a Pumpkin
Carver" by Lee Hollis, along with a fun guest post
& recipe
http://kingsriverlife.com/09/24/death-of-a-pumpkin-carver-by-lee-hollis/
We also have a review & giveaway of "Pumpkin
Picking With Murder" by Auralee Wallace. http://kingsriverlife.com/09/24/pumpkin-picking-with-murder-by-auralee-wallace/
And a review of the Aurora Teagarden Mystery movies on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries channel, based on the books
by Charlaine Harris http://kingsriverlife.com/09/24/aurora-teagarden-mysteries-on-hallmark/
And reviews & giveaways of 4 more fun mysteries from
Penguin authors-"No Farm, No Foul": A Farmer’s Daughter Mystery by Peg Cochran, "Cancelled by Murder": A Postmistress
Mystery by Jean Flowers, "Digging Up the Dirt": Southern Ladies
Mystery by Miranda James, and "Paint the Town Dead":
Silver Six Crafting Mystery by Nancy Haddock http://kingsriverlife.com/09/24/september-penguins-for-your-fall-reading/
We also have the latest mystery Coming Attractions column
from Sunny Frazier, along with giveaways of books by Lea Wait, Jean Flowers, and Leslie Langtry
http://kingsriverlife.com/09/24/coming-attractions-goblins-edition/
And a mystery short story by Judy Penz
Sheluk
Lastly, on KRL Lite a review & giveaway of
"Whispers Beyond the Veil" by Jessica Estevao
http://kingsriverlife.blogspot.com/2016/09/whispers-beyond-veil-change-of-fortune.html
--
KRL is now selling advertising & we have special discounts for
mystery authors & bookstores! Ask me about it!
Mystery section in Kings River Life http://KingsRiverLife.com
Check out my own blog at http://mysteryratscloset.blogspot.com/ mystery authors & bookstores! Ask me about it!
Mystery section in Kings River Life http://KingsRiverLife.com
Saturday, September 24, 2016
The Southwest Armchair Traveler: #FREE romantic mystery for the #Kindle
The Southwest Armchair Traveler: #FREE romantic mystery for the #Kindle: My romantic suspense novel, What We Found, is currently free on Amazon . Finding a dead body changes a person. 22-year-old Audra Nee...
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Nimona by Noelle Stevenson
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Nimona by Noelle Stevenson: Reviewed by Ambrea Nimona is a shapeshifter, and she’s just volunteered to act as Lord Ballister Blackheart’s new assistant. ...
Friday, September 23, 2016
Bill Crider's Pop Culture Magazine: “The Magical Mystery Book Tour” (by Jenny Milchman)
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Do Some Damage: Brokeback Writer
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FFB Review: BLUNT DARTS (1984) by Jeremiah Healy (Reviewed by Barry Ergang)
Friday means Friday’s Forgotten Books. Make sure you check out the list
over at Patti’s blog after you read Barry Ergang’s review of Blunt Darts by Jeremiah Healy. Amazon
says this is the first book in the John Cuddy series. I am pretty sure I have
never read any of the series.
BLUNT DARTS (1984) by Jeremiah Healy
Reviewed by Barry Ergang
After working as a claims
investigator for Empire Insurance Company for eight years, John Francis Cuddy
was appointed head of claims investigation in Boston. Shortly after his wife
Beth’s death after a long illness, Cuddy was approached by a colleague and
asked to sign an investigation report of a claim that was never probed by the
Boston office, and he refused. This resulted in his dismissal.
 |
| Paperback Blunt Darts |
“Six years earlier the company had
required all of us to obtain and maintain private investigator licenses from
the Department of Public Safety. I knew three or four semi-reputable guys in
the trade who could tell me how to get started and maybe even refer me a few
clients. I decided it was time J.F.C. became his own man.”
When he receives a call from
Valerie Jacobs, whom he met while at Empire because at the time she was dating
a claims adjuster there, Cuddy agrees to meet her for lunch. A schoolteacher,
Valerie is concerned about a former student, Stephen Kinnington, and wants
Cuddy to meet with Eleanor Kinnington, who lives in the town of Meade and who
is the mother of Judge Willard J. Kinnington, “one of the youngest men ever to
go on the bench, and his family has sort of, well, ruled Meade since long before I arrived,” Valerie explains.
“Anyway, Stephen’s mother, Diane Kinnington, killed herself about four years
ago by driving her Mercedes off a bridge and into the river. Apparently she
boozed it up a lot, so no one knows whether it was accidental or suicidal. It
hit Stephen pretty hard, as you can imagine.” Hard because he was catatonic when he went
into and spent time recovering in the sanatorium Willow Wood.
 |
| Hardcover Blunt Darts--Import |
Convinced that the young man has
run away rather than been the victim of a kidnapping, his grandmother, Eleanor
Kinnington, wants Cuddy to find Stephen and bring him home to resume a normal
life. She has a strong sense of where he might have gone, and Cuddy sets out
after him—but not without complications. Among the latter are Judge Kinnington
and his court officer and right-hand man, a brutal giant of a disgraced cop
named Gerald Blakey, neither of whom want Cuddy’s intrusions.
While dealing with personal
issues, not the least of which is his relationship to wannabe-lover Valerie
Jacobs versus loyalty to his dead wife, Cuddy’s quest to find and bring Stephen
home results in revelations about the Kinnington family, among them the judge’s
brother Telford, who died in Vietnam while leading “his company in a
counterattack from an American position against a much larger Vietcong force.” The
overall quest is not without violence and disclosures, plausible if unexpected,
by both Cuddy and the reader.
Blunt Darts is the first novel in the John Francis Cuddy mystery
series and the second one I’ve read, the other being Swan
Dive. Like the latter, Blunt
Darts is a stellar example of economical prose that conveys a powerful,
fast-moving narrative and character-delineating dialogue. I look forward to
reading still more in this exceptional series and would not dissuade other
hardboiled mystery fans—at least, those who aren’t squeamish about occasional
moments of street language—to do the same. Jeremiah Healy is an author well
worth a reader’s time.
© 2016 Barry Ergang
Some of Derringer Award-winning author’s Barry Ergang’s work is available at Smashwords and Amazon.
Thursday, September 22, 2016
Crime Time : ELIMINATION – Ed Gorman
Crime Time : ELIMINATION – Ed Gorman: When I was in high school my dad ran in the Democratic primary for a state senate seat. I was his campaign manager. We didn't have an...
Review: For The Good Of The Clan by Miles Archer
As For The
Good Of The Clan Ulat is pursuing a
deer for his clan. He takes the deer down on an early spring day. Minutes later,
he is taken down at least two blows from behind.
For Ledeth, the
medicine man for the clan, this day has passed like others over his many years.
His name translates to “one who knows secrets” and that sums up what he does on
a daily basis. Revered and feared by his clan he is well aware that time waits
for no creature. He feels a sense of urgency to impart his knowledge to Donathan
who is his latest student. Donathan may have potential, but he is also not
anywhere near ready to take on the responsibility of being the medicine man to
the clan. For Ledeth this is a huge issue, as he knows his time for the long
sleep is coming.
It is Ledeth who the people
feel comfortable with coming to with their concerns. The oldest daughter,
Matha, of his sister comes to him that night to tell him Ulat has not returned
and she is very worried. When Ulat still has not returned the next day, Ledeth
goes to Chief Balog to ask for clan members to be sent to look for Ulat.
The search party sent
out by Chief Balog soon fins Ulat’s body. Ledeth is assigned, not only the
ceremonial funeral, but also the task of figuring out what happened to Ulat.
Was it a fearsome boar as some believe, or was a member of the clan responsible
for the death of the clan’s greatest hunter?
The death of Ulat has
far reaching implications in For The Good Of The Clan by Miles Archer. Part
of the Fingerprints Short Story Line
published by Untreed Reads Publishing,
the fast moving story takes readers back to ancient times when spirits ruled
the land and people did what they could to survive. Ledeth is on the case in a
highly entertaining short story that moves steadily forward to a satisfying
conclusion. For The Good Of The Clan by Miles Archer works quite well in
terms of characters, action, and a strong mystery. A good read and one that is
well worth it.
For The Good Of The Clan
Miles Archer
Untreed Reads Publishing
February 2012
ASIN: B007F1W686
eBook
25 Pages
$0.99
I purchased the book last month by way of funds in my
Amazon Associate account.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2016
Wednesday, September 21, 2016
Tuesday, September 20, 2016
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: The True Tails of Baker and Taylor by Jan Louch wi...
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: The True Tails of Baker and Taylor by Jan Louch wi...: Reviewed by Jeanne Back in 1982—a half a dozen years before a cat named Dewey was put in a bookdrop-- a small town in Nevada...
Monday, September 19, 2016
TEXAS BOOK LOVER: Monday Roundup: TEXAS LITERARY CALENDAR 9/19-25
TEXAS BOOK LOVER: Monday Roundup: TEXAS LITERARY CALENDAR 9/19-25: Bookish events in Texas for the week of September 19-25, 2016: Special Events: West Texas Book Festival , Abilene, September 19-24 ...
Guest Post: Mark Edwards on "As Safe as Houses…The Rise in Domestic Suspense"
Please welcome
author Mark Edwards who has a few thoughts about “domestic suspense”…
As Safe as Houses…The Rise in Domestic Suspense
In the summer of 2012 I attended a party in
central London with a large group of British crime and thriller writers and
readers. Everyone was talking about one book, by a writer who wasn’t at the
party or even in the same country. This novel wasn’t a bestseller yet –
certainly not in the UK – and the author, though reasonably well-known after a
couple of mid-size hits, was far from a household name. But there was a buzz
about this book; the kind of excitement that was genuine and rare. I was
reading it at the time and was blown away by the style and the subject matter.
This, I thought, is going to be big.
The book was Gone
Girl by Gillian Flynn. Its publication heralded the current wave of
what has been called domestic noir, or domestic suspense, a sub-genre of the
psychological thriller with several features that make it easy to spot (and not
just because half of them have ‘girl’ in the title). It’s usually set in or
around the home, with marriage, family and neighbors as a strong theme. The
protagonist is usually female – as is the author. There is almost always a big
twist at the end. The narrator is likely to be, at best, unreliable and, worst,
downright devious. She will be flawed – she might be an alcoholic, a cheat, a
liar with a dark secret. And, of course, this being a thriller, there is
usually a murder, a missing child or some other terrible crime.
Last year, The
Girl on the Train – another example of domestic noir – became the
fastest- and biggest-selling adult hardback novel ever. I know Paula Hawkins
and after reading TGOTT a few months before its publication, I messaged her to
to tell her I thought she had a bestseller on her hands.
Understatement of the century.
Other huge hits of last year included Clare
Mackintosh’s I Let You Go,
which starts with a child dying in a hit and run, and Ruth Ware’s In a Dark Dark Wood, about a
bachelorette weekend that goes murderously wrong. My own domestic noir novel, The Magpies, about neighbors
from hell, has sold over 400,000 copies and is always hanging around the
bestseller lists. The appetite for these novels has clearly not
diminished.
But why are they so hugely popular? Is it just another
publishing fad? Or is domestic noir here to stay?
From the feedback I get from readers, there is a
simple answer to the question of why they are so popular. It’s because people
like reading about things that could happen to them; situations we could all
find ourselves in. Jack Reacher is still enormously popular, and books like Lee
Child’s provide great escapism, but there is an appetite for worlds we all
recognise – and readers love to think about what they would do if their world
shifted slightly and they found themselves in danger.
Gone Girl was a huge hit
because it depicted marriage in a new, frightening way. It was a fascinating
depiction of a toxic relationship that struck a chord worldwide. The Girl on the Train was a
massive seller because everyone who’s ever commuted has wondered what’s going
on behind the windows they pass every day. Perhaps that’s the secret: these
books bring out the voyeur in all of us. While the media becomes more and more
celebrity-obsessed, we readers want to gaze at real people, at people like us.
Publishers have reacted by snapping up dozens, if not
hundreds, of these titles. Right now, it feels like every hot new book is a
psychological thriller. It’s already lasted longer than the erotica boom from a
few years ago, or the Stieg Larsson-inspired interest in Scandinavian crime. As
long as we writers can keep coming up with new angles and fresh twists, I think
domestic noir is here to stay.
Although there are, of course, spin-offs happening
already. I’ve read two psychological thrillers recently set on a cruise ship,
for example. And my new book, The
Devil’s Work, is set in a workplace, an office from hell staffed by
toxic co-workers.
I’m hoping office noir will be the next big thing.
Mark Edwards ©2016
About The Devil's Work by Mark Edwards
It was the job she had dreamed of since childhood. But on her very first day, when an unnerving encounter drags up memories Sophie Greenwood would rather forget, she wonders if she has made a mistake. A fatal mistake.
What is her ambitious young assistant really up to? And what exactly happened to Sophie’s predecessor? When her husband and daughter are pulled into the nightmare, Sophie is forced to confront the darkest secrets she has carried for years.
As her life begins to fall apart at work and at home, Sophie must race to uncover the truth about her new job…before it kills her.
About Mark Edwards
Mark Edwards writes psychological thrillers in which scary things happen to ordinary people and is inspired by writers such as Stephen King, Ira Levin, Ruth Rendell and Linwood Barclay.
He is the author of three #1 bestsellers: Follow You Home (a finalist in the Goodreads Choice Awards 2015), The Magpies and Because She Loves Me, along with What You Wish For and six novels co-written with Louise Voss. All of his books are inspired by real-life experiences.
Originally from the south coast of England, Mark now lives in the West Midlands with his wife, their three children and a ginger cat.
Website: www.markedwardsauthor.com
Twitter: @mredwards
Sunday, September 18, 2016
Little Big Crimes Review: One Last Job by Warren Bull
Little Big Crimes: One Last Job, by Warren Bull: "One Last Job," by Warren Bull, in No Happy Endings, 2016. This is Bull's second appearance in this blog. Our hero is a...
The Short Mystery Fiction Society Blog: Victoria Weisfeld on "Ellery Queen Mystery Magazin...
The Short Mystery Fiction Society Blog: Victoria Weisfeld on "Ellery Queen Mystery Magazin...: Victoria Weisfeld on "Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine – August 2016"
Saturday, September 17, 2016
September 17 issue of RTE
The September 17 2016 issue of RTE is out and includes fifteen new
reviews as well as a new interview:
http://www.reviewingtheevidence.com
Judith Flanders in the 'Sixty seconds with . . .' interview hot seat:
http://www.reviewingtheevidence.com/interviews.html?id=229
REVIEWS THIS WEEK:
A GREAT RECKONING Louise Penny Reviewed by Susan Hoover
SO SAY THE FALLEN Stuart Neville Reviewed by Barbara Fister
THE SHATTERED TREE Charles Todd Reviewed by PJ Coldren
A CLIMATE OF FEAR Fred Vargas Reviewed by Yvonne Klein
FIRE IN THE STARS Barbara Fradkin Reviewed by Ann Pearson
WINTER'S CHILD Margaret Coel Reviewed by Sharon Mensing
STRIPPED BARE Shannon Baker Reviewed by Sharon Mensing
FREE FALL Rick Mofina Reviewed by Susan Hoover
UNDERGROUND AIRLINES Ben Winters Reviewed by Barbara Fister
GHOSTS OF HAVANA Todd Moss Reviewed by Lourdes Venard
BLOOD CRIME Sebastià Alzamora Reviewed by PJ Coldren
IS FAT BOB DEAD YET? Stephen Dobyns Reviewed by Christine Zibas
THE BAKER STREET JURORS Michael Robertson Reviewed by Meredith Frazier
SIGNAL FOR VENGEANCE Edward Marston Reviewed by Jim Napier
THE EMPRESS OF TEMPERA Alex Dolan Reviewed by Christine Zibas
We post more than 900 new reviews a year -- all of them are archived on the site -- as well as a new interview with a top author every issue.
Yvonne Klein
Editor: ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com
http://www.reviewingtheevidence.com
Judith Flanders in the 'Sixty seconds with . . .' interview hot seat:
http://www.reviewingtheevidence.com/interviews.html?id=229
REVIEWS THIS WEEK:
A GREAT RECKONING Louise Penny Reviewed by Susan Hoover
SO SAY THE FALLEN Stuart Neville Reviewed by Barbara Fister
THE SHATTERED TREE Charles Todd Reviewed by PJ Coldren
A CLIMATE OF FEAR Fred Vargas Reviewed by Yvonne Klein
FIRE IN THE STARS Barbara Fradkin Reviewed by Ann Pearson
WINTER'S CHILD Margaret Coel Reviewed by Sharon Mensing
STRIPPED BARE Shannon Baker Reviewed by Sharon Mensing
FREE FALL Rick Mofina Reviewed by Susan Hoover
UNDERGROUND AIRLINES Ben Winters Reviewed by Barbara Fister
GHOSTS OF HAVANA Todd Moss Reviewed by Lourdes Venard
BLOOD CRIME Sebastià Alzamora Reviewed by PJ Coldren
IS FAT BOB DEAD YET? Stephen Dobyns Reviewed by Christine Zibas
THE BAKER STREET JURORS Michael Robertson Reviewed by Meredith Frazier
SIGNAL FOR VENGEANCE Edward Marston Reviewed by Jim Napier
THE EMPRESS OF TEMPERA Alex Dolan Reviewed by Christine Zibas
We post more than 900 new reviews a year -- all of them are archived on the site -- as well as a new interview with a top author every issue.
Yvonne Klein
Editor: ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com