Tuesday, July 31, 2018

Noir At The Bar: Dallas (Thursday Evening)

Author Michael  Pool has organized another Noir At The Bar to be held at The Wild Detectives in the Oak Cliff area of Dallas. I missed the last one back in May as I had to be at UTD with Scott. This time around I plan on being there.

Something that would not be possible without the transportation assistance provided by a friend as the long drive as well as the very limited parking in the neighborhood around the place is very problematic. I simply am unable to park and walk (limp with cane)  blocks on end as there is not any handicapped parking in the area. The venue itself is great. Especially if you link to drink as they heartily embrace the bar angle of things. My twenty years --as of this month---of sobriety, remains intact despite the stressors and incredible grief of these past few months. Drinking is not going to help and I know that. So far, I have kept that wall of my life up though it has been shaky at times.

I am looking forward to this. I hope if you are the area you can make it.

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: After Anna by Lisa Scottoline

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: After Anna by Lisa Scottoline: Reviewed by Kristin When a mother is reunited with her long-lost child, you might expect a heartwarming story.   Not this time. ...

Lesa's Book Critiques: Hiding in Plain Sight by Mary Ellis

Lesa's Book Critiques: Hiding in Plain Sight by Mary Ellis

Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 26 Calls for Submissions in August 2018 - Paying M...

Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 26 Calls for Submissions in August 2018 - Paying M...: Pixhere There are more than two dozen calls for submissions in August. As always, anything you can think of is wanted - flash fiction,...

Monday, July 30, 2018

Bitter Tea and Mystery: Night Rounds: Helene Tursten

Bitter Tea and Mystery: Night Rounds: Helene Tursten: This is the second book in Helene Tursten's series featuring Inspector Irene Huss, and is set in Sweden. The story starts when the power...

TOUGH: Texas Two-Step by Michael Pool, reviewed by Paul J...

TOUGH: Texas Two-Step by Michael Pool, reviewed by Paul J...: Texas Two-Step Michael Pool Down and Out Books April 2018 280 pages $7.99/$16.95 Reviewed with a pre-release eARC provided by the p...

RTE for July 28, 2018

The JULY 28 2018 issue of RTE is out and includes fifteen new reviews as 
well as a new interview:

http://www.reviewingtheevidence.com

Priscilla Royal in the 'Sixty seconds with . . .' interview hot seat: 

http://www.reviewingtheevidence.com/interviews.html?id=257


REVIEWS THIS WEEK:

A NOISE DOWNSTAIRS Linwood Barclay Reviewed by Anne Corey

THE OTHER WOMAN Daniel Silva Reviewed by Anne Corey

BABY'S FIRST FELONY John Straley Reviewed by Barbara Fister

PIRATA Patrick Hasburgh Reviewed by Susan Hoover

THE BOOK OF M Peng Shepherd Reviewed by Katie Voss

CONAN DOYLE FOR THE DEFENSE Margalit Fox Reviewed by Rebecca Nesvet

SALT LANE William Shaw Reviewed by Barbara Fister

DEAD IF YOU DON’T Peter James Reviewed by Jim Napier

DAY OF THE DEAD Nicci French Reviewed by Lourdes Venard

RESCUED David Rosenfelt Reviewed by Caryn St Clair

A HOWL OF WOLVES Judith Flanders Reviewed by Caryn St Clair

THE MARMALADE MURDERS Elizabeth J. Duncan Reviewed by PJ Coldren

STILL WATER Amy Stuart Reviewed by Diana Borse

MURDER TO THE METAL Annie Hogsett Reviewed by Ruth Castleberry

FEAR ON FOUR PAWS Clea Simon Reviewed by Ruth Castleberry

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

Unlawful Acts: Incident Report No. 52

Unlawful Acts: Incident Report No. 52

In Reference To Murder: Media Murder for Monday 7/30/18

In Reference To Murder: Media Murder for Monday 7/30/18

Monday Markets and Jobs for Writers for 7/30/18

Monday Markets and Jobs for Writers for 7/30/18

TEXAS BOOK LOVER: Monday Roundup: TEXAS LITERARY CALENDAR July 30-Au...

TEXAS BOOK LOVER: Monday Roundup: TEXAS LITERARY CALENDAR July 30-Au...: Bookish goings-on in Texas for the week of July 30-August 5, 2018:  Special Events: Texas Writers' League Summer Writing Retreat , N...

Aubrey Hamilton Reviews: Walking Money by James O. Born


Walking Money by James O. Born (Putnam, 2004) is the first of three thrillers featuring Bill Tasker, an agent in Miami Office of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, i.e., the Florida state police. Tasker has a black mark on his record from years ago, which makes him the perfect fall guy for Tom Dooley, a crooked FBI agent who has his eye on the cash Rev. Alvin Watson and his ex-con sidekick Cole Hodges have skimmed from the fake community activist organization they front. Hodges uses a well-timed riot and associated looting to conceal the initial theft from the small bank where the stash was being hidden. He fends off Watson in his attempt to take it but loses out to Dooley, who manages to grab the bag of money.

From there the money changes hands at a dizzying pace, leaving a trail of bodies in its wake. Everyone, gangs and corrupt cops alike, is anxious to take a cut of the peripatetic $1.5 million. All the while the lead FBI agent believes that Tasker is guilty of both theft and murder, thanks to a couple of anonymous tips from Dooley. Even the lawyer Tasker eventually retains thinks he is guilty.

His ex-wife believes in his innocence but can’t take the media circus so has told Tasker to stay away from his much-loved daughters until it’s over. Tasker knows he has been set up and sees he will have to investigate the theft himself to clear his name, because no one else is, so investigate he does.

Born used his years of work experience in the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to good effect here, describing internal police operations and interagency politics convincingly as the backdrop to a fast-moving story full of twists and turns and an unexpected ending.

Booklist starred review. 2005 Barry Award for Best Novel Finalist.


·         Hardcover: 272 pages
·         Publisher: Putnam Adult (June 17, 2004)
·         Language: English
·         ISBN-10: 0399151699
·         ISBN-13: 978-0399151699


Aubrey Hamilton © 2018
Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal IT projects by day and reads mysteries at night.

Sunday, July 29, 2018

Do Some Damage: Mission Impossible: Fallout - The Best Pulp Movie ...

Do Some Damage: Mission Impossible: Fallout - The Best Pulp Movie ...: by Scott D. Parker First of all, Mission Impossible: Fallout is a phenomenal movie. I absolutely loved it. The action scenes are as you’d ...

Sunday Movie Review: The Jurassic Games (2018)


The Jurassic Games was a flick Scott spotted on Netflix and had sent to us. When he told me what the deal was supposed to be about, I was less than impressed. But, an action movie is an action movie and we had it here, so I figured, what the heck?

Synopsis:

In the near future, every year 10 of the world's most lethal death row criminals compete for their freedom in "The Jurassic Games", a TV show where contestants must survive against ferocious dinosaurs and each other. The last survivor is granted freedom, fame, and fortune.

Freedom anyway. Having seen this deal, I am not so sure about the fame and fortune part. All in all, this was a decent action movie. Not epic, but certainly not hideous either. The CGI is a bit weak in some spots, but for the most part, pretty good. Dialogue was decent and those involved did not practice the sin of overacting. The movie had a bit of a secondary storyline that also was not only interesting, but had some relevant social commentary.

Both Amazon and Netflix have it as non-rated as is typical with straight to DVD flicks. There is no frontal nudity, let alone nudity of any type in the movie. Language, at times, is on the adult side, but nothing that just burns your ears off.  Violence, human upon human(s) as well as creature on creature and creature on human(s) is off the charts. Depending on the individual viewer involved, I would think teen and beyond. Atthe same time, my late eighty year old Mom would have been bothered by the violence so this one would have not been appropriate for her either.

Bottom line…..we enjoyed it for what the movie is. Did not expect much out of it and was pleasantly surprised. Enjoyed it much more than Escape Plan 2: Hades from last week and way more than The Hurricane Heist from early June.

Saturday, July 28, 2018

Lesa's Latest Contest: A Clark mystery giveaway

This week, I'm giving away books by authors whose last name is Clark. You could win a copy of Tracy Clark's Broken Places or Becky Clark's Fiction Can Be Murder. Details on my blog at 
https://www.lesasbookcritiques.blogspot.com. Entries from the U.S. only, please.

Crime Watch: Review: MARSHALL'S LAW by Ben Sanders

Crime Watch: Review: MARSHALL'S LAW: MARSHALL'S LAW by Ben Sanders (Allen & Unwin, 2016) Reviewed by Craig Sisterson Ex-undercover cop Marshall Grade is hiding out...

Something Is Going To Happen Blog: CHANGES TO THE PROCESS by Janet Hutchings

Something Is Going To Happen Blog: CHANGES TO THE PROCESS by Janet Hutchings

Writer Beware: HOW PREDATORY COMPANIES ARE TRYING TO HIJACK YOUR PUBLISHER SEARCH

Writer Beware: HOW PREDATORY COMPANIES ARE TRYING TO HIJACK YOUR PUBLISHER SEARCH

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Murder in an Irish Village by Carlene O’Connor

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Murder in an Irish Village by Carlene O’Connor: Reviewed by Jeanne After their parents’ deaths, the O’Sullivan Six are struggling to keep the family bistro going. Twenty two...

Do Some Damage: Interview with Chris Offutt

Do Some Damage: Interview with Chris Offutt: What follows is an interview with Chris Offutt, author of two novels, "The Good Brother" and his latest "Country Dark" w...

KRL This Week Update for 7/28/18

Up in KRL this morning reviews and giveaways of another group of fun food related mysteries-"Killer Green Tomatoes": A Farm-to-Fork Mystery by Lynn Cahoon, "Italian Iced": An Ethnic Eats Mystery by Kylie Logan, "Bought the Farm": A Farmer’s Daughter Mystery by Peg Cochran, "S’More Murders": A Five-Ingredient Mystery by Maya Corrigan, and "Last Call": Mack’s Bar Mystery by Allyson K. Abbott

And a review and giveaway of "Return to Hiroshima" by Bob Van Laerhoven, along with an interesting interview with Bobhttp://kingsriverlife.com/07/28/return-to-hiroshima-by-bob-van-laerhoven/

We also have the latest mystery Coming Attractions by Sunny Frazier, along with a giveaway of an ebook copy of "Destination: Murder", A Travelogue of Cozy Mysteries which includes books by 8 different authors, among them Leigh Selfma http://kingsriverlife.com/07/28/coming-attractions-the-dog-days-of-summer/

And a review and ebook giveaway of "Ice Blonde" a novella by Elaine Viets http://kingsriverlife.com/07/28/ice-blonde-novella-by-elaine-viets/

And up on KRL News & Reviews we have a review and giveaway of "Magick Run Amok" by Sharon Papehttps://www.krlnews.com/2018/07/magick-run-amok-by-sharon-pape.html

And for those who also enjoy fantasy, we have a review of "Ash and Quill" by Rachel Caine, and a giveaway of the first book in the series "Ink and Bone" https://www.krlnews.com/2018/07/ash-and-quill-by-rachel-caine.html

Happy reading,
Lorie 


-- 
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/ 

The Rap Sheet: Revue of Reviewers for 7/26/18

The Rap Sheet: Revue of Reviewers for 7/26/18

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Nevermore: Casablanca, Tristan Betrayal, Palestine...

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Nevermore: Casablanca, Tristan Betrayal, Palestine...: Reported by Kristin Nevermore traveled back to the Golden Age of film with We’ll Always Have Casablanca: The Life, Legend, an...

Saturdays With Kaye: The Lost Woman by Sara Blaedel

The Lost Woman by Sara Blaedel


Paperback

This is a deliciously dark Danish crime thriller, the third in a series featuring Inspector Louise Rick, head of the elite Special Search Agency.

The story begins with a woman being murdered in England—shot through the kitchen window by an unknown killer. Her death uncovers her true identity as a Danish citizen who has been missing for almost twenty years. Rick’s lover, Eik, sneaks over to England and ends up jailed for her murder! The relationship between Louise and Eik has been about to cause some problems in the department, but she finds she has much, much bigger problems now. She doesn’t know if she can trust what Eik says—or does. She doesn’t even know that he didn’t kill Sophie, the woman in England, who turns out to have had a past relationship with her.

Louise Rick’s world turns to quicksand when she doesn’t know who to trust. She encounters mysterious bank accounts and transfers, and more dead people. She also runs headlong into the controversial subject of assisted suicide, and the aspects are examined through different characters, pro and con.

Great tale! Scandinavian through and through.




Reviewed by Kaye George, author of Death on the Trek, for Suspense Magazine

Friday, July 27, 2018

LA Times: Who Is Anna March?

LA Times: Who Is Anna March?

Forbes: Publishing Industry Scams Are Evolving For The Self-Publishing Age

Forbes: Publishing Industry Scams Are Evolving For The Self-Publishing Age

Book Riot: AN ODE TO LIBRARIES, THE ORIGINAL CO-WORKING SPACES

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FROM DUNDEE'S DESK: Another Look: THE ELECTRIC HORSEMAN (1979, starrin...

FROM DUNDEE'S DESK: Another Look: THE ELECTRIC HORSEMAN (1979, starrin...: Yeah, I know – this movie also stars Jane Fonda. So if you're among those who hate Fonda and will never watch anything she's in, ...

In Reference To Murder: Mystery Melange for 7/26/18

In Reference To Murder: Mystery Melange for 7/26/18

Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 31 Writing Contests in August 2018 - No entry fees...

Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 31 Writing Contests in August 2018 - No entry fees...: Pixabay There are more than two dozen writing contests in August, none of which charge entry fees. This month there are contests for sho...

FFB Review: BRASS KNUCKLES: The Oliver Quade, Human Encyclopedia Stories by Frank Gruber (Reviewed by Barry Ergang)

For this final Friday in July, I thought I would run again the below review which first ran in May of 2013 here. It was probably way too hot then too. The full list of books that may or may not cool you off, but just might distract you from the heat can be found over at the wonderful blog of Patti Abbott. I also remind you of the fact that these are the final few days of the current Smashwords sale where I and far more famous and prolific authors such as Barry Ergang, Kaye George, and others, have books for sale. Whatever you choose to read or watch, stay cool and hydrated.  Dallas Cowboys have started training camp so our long national nightmare is almost over as the NFL returns….

  

BRASS KNUCKLES: The Oliver Quade, Human Encyclopedia Stories (1966) by Frank Gruber

Reviewed by Barry Ergang


Frank Gruber had a fondness for itinerant book salesmen who stumble into murderous situations. His best-known series of novels features Johnny Fletcher and his partner Sam Cragg. Fletcher pitches the book Every Man a Samson while the muscular Cragg, who maintains he's the strongest man in the world, shows off his physique to the audience. For the pulp magazines Gruber created Oliver Quade, the Human Encyclopedia, ten of whose adventures are collected in Brass Knuckles. (One was published in Thrilling Detective. The rest appeared in the legendary Black Mask.) Quade pitches the one-volume The Compendium of Human Knowledge, which he sells for only two ninety-five. Declaring himself possessed of "the greatest brain in the United States, possibly the greatest in the world," he maintains that "I know the answers to all questions." Over fifteen years, he has read a twenty-four volume set of the Encyclopedia Americana four times. "I've an unusual memory," he tells a woman in one of the stories. "I remember everything I read and therefore I know everything that's in the encyclopedia." The odd bits of knowledge he's picked up often aid in the solutions of the murders he has the convenient habit of stumbling upon.


The book opens with a lengthy, fascinating foreword, "The Life and Times of the Pulp Story," in which Gruber reminisces about how he struggled to break into writing for the pulps, and about the early failures and eventual successes, large and small, he experienced. It includes an eleven-point formula he claims is a "foolproof" method for plotting a salable mystery story. Although I enjoyed them, I'm not convinced all of the stories that follow exemplify it.


In the first and shortest story in the collection, "Ask Me Another," Oliver Quade and Charlie Boston are on the verge of being locked out of their hotel room because they owe three weeks' rent. But Quade figures they can raise the money by pitching the Compendium of Human Knowledge to the attendees of the Great Chicago Auditorium Poultry Show. Neither he nor Boston expects to encounter murder.


At the kennel show in Westfield, New York, the last thing Quade and Boston expect to find in their booth is the corpse of one Wesley Peters. Even more confusing is the willingness of several people in attendance to confess to shooting him. Before long, Quade tangles with the local police chief, a renowned private detective named Christopher Buck, a gangster just out of prison, and has another corpse to account for in "Dog Show Murder."


"Funny Man" takes Quade and Boston to Hollywood, where Quade is hired by Slocum Studios head man Tommy Slocum to dub the voice of cartoon character Desmond Dogg, since the actor who usually voices the character has laryngitis. Coming out of Slocum's office, Quade encounters his old adversary, self-declared "world's greatest" private detective Christopher Buck. Buck assumes Quade is working as an investigator and wants to know what he knows. Conversely, Quade wants to know the same about Buck. When studio executive Stanley Maynard, Buck's client, is found murdered, the amateur and professional sleuths compete to discover the killer's identity.


Still in Hollywood and staying at an expensive hotel, Quade and Boston owe more than four hundred dollars for rent, meals, and incidental charges—money they don't have. The hotel manager confronts them in the dining room and tells them they have until six p.m. to come up with the cash or he'll have them arrested for intent to defraud. Having overheard, another diner named George Grimshaw offers them twenty dollars to deliver a letter to a Martin Lund. They accept, not worried about the two thugs who want to relieve them of the letter. They find Lund but can't give him the letter because he's been murdered. So Quade opens the envelope, finds another envelope inside and a note from Grimshaw telling Lund to meet him at the track. Thus, it's "Oliver Quade at the Races," where Grimshaw is also murdered and Quade must use his wits and wiles to get to the bottom of things—and pay the hotel bill.


A small passenger plane makes a "Forced Landing" in a snow-covered clearing in northern Wisconsin. One passenger is dead, the result of flying glass from a shattered window. The pilot is dead, too—from a bullet wound. Around the same time, Oliver Quade and Charlie Boston are driving through the area on their way to Duluth when the car runs over an animal that turns out to be a silver fox, a creature whose pelt is very valuable. When their car won't start, they have to start walking. Eventually they come to a house owned by fox breeder Karl Becker. Not long after they arrive, the airplane's co-pilot staggers in and tells them of the crash. They set out to find and bring back the remaining passengers. That's only the beginning of an adventure that includes a pair of profit-minded fugitive kidnappers, another murder, and plenty of action.


In "Death Sits Down," Quade, sans Boston, goes to the Bartlett Cash Register Company's recreation room to launch into his sales pitch, not knowing the employees are about to go on strike and prevent anyone from entering or leaving the building. Among those in it is a vicious murderer who doesn't intend to let anyone hinder the scheme he's hatched. The author does a good job of building the tension in this fast-paced story.


"Words and Music" opens with Quade and Boston "in the dough" for a change, and relaxing in the cocktail lounge of New York City's Midtown Hotel, where they have rooms. They're approached by a drunk named Billy Bond who says he's a song writer, claims "I wrote the best little damn song that's been written in this damn town in the las' five years." He then hands sheet music to the lounge's piano player, tells the man to play, and sings the lyrics himself. After a pause during which he gulps some beer, violent convulsions seize him and he falls into Quade's arms—dead. The police are summoned, and Quade describes a man he saw switch glasses with Bond. The police detective recognizes the description as belonging to a deranged chemist named Soup Spooner, so named for providing nitroglycerine to safecrackers. Quade can't resist investigating, despite Boston's objections, and plunges into the world of music publishing rackets. Spooner is still out there, setting an insidious and deadly trap.


The second shortest story in the book, "State Fair Murder" takes Quade and Boston to the titular location in Minnesota. Quade has barely launched into his pitch when a man in the crowd falls into him, the victim of a poisoned dart in his back. As usual, despite Boston's protests, Quade can't resist playing detective in a case dealing with conflicts within a publishing company.


Among the "how-to" advice often given to both beginning and experienced writers is never open a story with a description of the weather. But in "Rain, the Killer," Frank Gruber does exactly that—and very effectively. This is, for me, the most exciting story in the book, so I don't want to give too much away. Suffice it to say that it's a take on the isolated, impassable locale that puts Quade (who once again is without Charlie Boston), the members of a wealthy household, and a sheriff and his deputy in dire peril from the weather and a particularly brutal murderer, one of whose crimes is depicted somewhat graphically. A whodunit, it does not play fair with the reader, but the tense and exciting situation that befalls the cast of characters more than makes up for it. The only element in the story that is somewhat dubious by modern standards is the psychology of the murderer.


In another story that omits Charlie Boston, Quade finagles his way into the barn Reggie Ragsdale converted into an arena on his Long Island estate in which to hold cockfights. "Long Island didn't see many cocking mains. Cocking wasn't a gentleman's sport like horse racing and fox hunting In fact, many of Long Island's blue-bloods had shaken their heads when young Ragsdale took up cock fighting. But they had eagerly accepted invitations to the Ragsdale estate to witness the great cocking main between Ragsdale's birds and the best of the Old South, the feathered warriors of George Treadwell." When Treadwell is murdered, Quade as a gate-crasher becomes a prime suspect and has to solve the crime himself. "Death at the Main" is sort of fairly-clued, if one allows for an obscure bit of lore that provides the solution.  


Were he writing today, Frank Gruber would be designated a minimalist, so stripped-down was his style. The physical descriptions of characters in these stories are always very brief and sometimes non-existent, and the people themselves are largely dimensionless names on the page. There is no sense of place of the kind one finds in, say, Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler and, except in "Rain, the Killer," no real sense of atmosphere. I would not rate Gruber as one of the top-tier writers who honed their skills in the pulps, but he could nevertheless tell a story effectively, as the tales in Brass Knuckles demonstrate. They aren't serious literature to be pored over and explicated; they're fast-reading fluff meant strictly for entertainment. Regarded in that light, they're recommended.


Barry Ergang ©2013, 2018

Some of Derringer Award-winner Barry Ergang’s work is available at Amazon and Smashwords. The latter site is running its annual sale through the month of July. Barry and Kevin Tipple are among the participating authors, so take advantage of their reduced prices.


Thursday, July 26, 2018

Review: A Gathering Of Secrets: A Novel by Linda Castillo

“’Sooner or later all of these weird little secrets everyone is keeping are going to come to light.” I put the vehicle in gear and pull onto the road. “When they do, we’ll have our answer.'” (Page 130, A Gathering Of Secrets: A Novel, Linda Castillo


Hideous secrets regarding horrible themes have always been a major part of the books by Linda Castillo. That tone was set from the very first book in this series, Sworn To Silence. That fact is certainly true in her latest, A Gathering Of Secrets.

Chief of Police Kate Burkholder got the call around 4 am that the Gingerich barn, located at their farm a couple miles outside of Painters Mill, Ohio, is on fire. A barn fire is a disaster, but with the help of the neighbors they can rebuild. A far bigger concern is the fact that Miriam and Gideon Gingrich can account for their other children, but not eighteen year old, Danny. He is missing and nobody has any idea where he might be.

By the time Chief Burkholder got to the farm, the scene was controlled chaos as volunteer firefighters and others worked to put out the massive blaze at the Amish family farm. She organized the first stages of the police search for the missing teenager, but it is only after the horrendous fire is out that a body is discovered. Whether that badly burned body was the remains of Danny as Chief Burkholder and others suspect will take time to determine. Who that person was and what happened is the launching pad for A Gathering Of Secrets.

A powerful and intense novel from start to finish that again refers to earlier events in this very good series while also exploring the frequent themes of justice and vengeance. Along with making sure to keep readers entertained with the evolving stories of numerous secondary characters, author Linda Castillo weaves another interesting tale of mystery and intrigue through the main storyline. A storyline that will strike a painful chord for a significant portion of her readership.



This series has always contemplated dark truths while encouraging the reader to think about justice, punishment, and more. Such is the case in the latest in the series, A Gathering Of Secrets. Highly recommended as is the concept of reading these books in order starting with Sworn To Silence.  




A Gathering Of Secrets: A Novel
Linda Castillo
http://www.lindacastillo.com/
Minotaur Books (St. Martin’s Publishing Group)
http://www.minotaurbooks.com/
July 2018
ISBN# 978-1-250-12131-8
Hardback (also available in eBook and audio formats)
320 Pages
$26.99



Book provided by the good folks of the Dallas Texas Public Library System.



Kevin R. Tipple © 2018

Wednesday, July 25, 2018

Crime Time : ARKADY RENKO'S ASTOUNDING TRUST IN MARTIN CRUZ SMI...

Crime Time : ARKADY RENKO'S ASTOUNDING TRUST IN MARTIN CRUZ SMI...: Please consider this an intermission in my weekly reporting on the eight -episode series featuring Martin Cruz Smith's incredible ...

Near To The Knuckle: DIRTY ENGLISH by Tom Leins

Near To The Knuckle: DIRTY ENGLISH by Tom Leins

Only days left to win books by Kate Carlisle, Kathi Daley, Leigh Hearon and more from KRL

Only days left to win a copy of "Buried in Books" by Kate Carlisle
http://kingsriverlife.com/07/21/buried-in-books-by-kate-carlisle/

And to win a copy of "Runaway Murder" by Leigh Hearon, while there check
out an interesting interview with Leigh
http://kingsriverlife.com/07/21/runaway-murder-by-leigh-hearon/

Also to win a copy of "Secrets by the Sea" by Kathi Daley and while there
check out a mini interview with her, and a fun guest post
http://kingsriverlife.com/07/21/secrets-by-the-sea-by-kathi-daley/

And to win a copy of "Death on the Vine" which is set in the Central Valley
and written by Linda Lee Kane. While there check out her interesting
article on wine fraud http://kingsriverlife.com/07/21/california-drinking/

And on KRL News & Reviews to win a copy of "A Stone's Throw" by James Ziskin
https://www.krlnews.com/2018/07/a-stones-throw-by-james-w-ziskin.html

Also to win a copy of "Saving Dabba" by Randy Rawls
https://www.krlnews.com/2018/07/saving-dabba-by-randy-rawls.html


Happy reading,
Lorie

SleuthSayers: Just Like Starting Over by Michael Bracken

SleuthSayers: Just Like Starting Over: by Michael Bracken Beginning August 2003 and ending May 2018 I had one or more short stories published each and every month. That’s 14 yea...

Tuesday, July 24, 2018

Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 32 Writing Conferences in August 2018

Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 32 Writing Conferences in August 2018: Photo credit: Laura Hoffmann, Flickr, www.bbx.de This month there are nearly three dozen writing conferences spanning the country from o...

Waxahachie Daily Light: Midlothian Talk celebrity writes humor and horror

Waxahachie Daily Light: Midlothian Talk celebrity writes humor and horror

Sundown Press: New Release — BLAKE’S RULE by John Lindermuth

Sundown Press: New Release — BLAKE’S RULE by John Lindermuth: Blake’s rule has always been to do what’s right…not what’s easy. Range detective Sam Blake is after cattle rustlers—but when a beautiful...

Lesa's Book Critiques: Have You Heard? Out of Circulation by Miranda James

Lesa's Book Critiques: Have You Heard? Out of Circulation by Miranda James

Review: Down and Out Volume 1, Issue 2 Editor Rick Ollerman


Down and Out: The Magazine Volume 1, Issue 2 offers a short welcome back note from Editor Rick Ollerman before diving into the short stories. First up is the tale titled “One at a Time” by Lissa Marie Redmond. The problem with a 1969 Ford Fairlane is that it is old.  Bad news if you are trapped in the trunk and being driven out to somewhere out in the woods so that you can be killed and dumped. Being strapped for cash and a beautiful woman was the combination that led to imprisonment in a trunk with no emergency release.

“Family Business” by Andrew Welsh-Huggins comes next where a man by Foley needs to take care of various issues. That includes ending his relationship with Kelsey. A relationship that has had its benefits, but that has also crossed too many of his self-imposed boundaries.

In a world where it is rare for a person to actually drive a car, technology has the ability to record, for a fee, everything in your loved one’s home after their death. “Closure” by Nick Kolakowski details a small slice of that world where a VR recorder can move from room to room scanning and collection the visual record in order to recreate the place later for the family. It can also be used in other ways which the customer may never see.

As he was in the first issue, J. Kingston Pierce of the website, The Rap Sheet, is back with his book suggestions column, “Placed into Evidence.” Just take a moment and go ahead and get out your checkbook, your credit card, or your library card, as there is reading to do.

A work by the late and deeply missed Bill Crider comes next. “Tell the Bees: A Sheriff Dan Rhodes Story” features the good sheriff at work in a mystery story with plenty of humor and Texas flavor. Note that the next and possibly final installment in the long running Dan Rhodes series, That Old Scoundrel Death, is scheduled for release in February 2019. I keep hoping that his daughter, Angela Crider Neary, will pick up the Sheriff Rhodes legacy as she is the only person remotely qualified to do so.

Timothy J. Lockhart is up next with his tale “Last Night at Skipper’s Lounge.”  It has been quite a few years, but the bar that Mackey spent a lot of time in during aviation officer candidate school still stands. Mackey is back in Pensacola as the bar will soon close for good. Back to relive memories good and bad and maybe make some new ones.

Sam has a problem and he is pretty sure his current plane ride is going to end badly for him and everyone onboard. In “A State of Decline” by J. J. Hensley, Sam has to try to talk some reason into the man who just killed everyone who could fly the plane. Not only has he got to figure out how they are going to safely land the plane with the flight crew all dead, he has to figure out a way to disarm the man who has proven more than willing to use that gun.

“Say It with Lead: A Race Williams Story” by Carroll John Daly comes next. This story originally appeared in the June 1925 issue of Black Mask Magazine and it is a good one. Howel L. Foster knows that his life is about to be in serious danger. Mr. Foster knows as he is a man of resources who has his fingers in a lot of endeavors. He also knows who is most likely behind the threat and knows the motive most likely would be revenge. He wants Race Williams around to prevent his death. Should Foster die anyway, he intends to set up things so that the person who captures or kills those responsible will get two hundred thousand dollars. Foster hopes that by having Race Williams at his side and letting it be known that if he is killed the well-known Race Williams would come after the killer or killers for the two hundred thousand dollar reward just might keep him alive. To make all this happen and to make sure the word gets out Foster will pay him a significant sum of money know for Race to accompany him back home and make his presence known. The deal is struck and soon Williams and Foster are headed north out of NYC on the business of trying to keep Foster alive. As always, the context introduction by Rick Ollerman is very helpful to the reader.

Revenge is also a theme in the closing story, “A Calculated Risk” by Ben Boulden. It has been six years, two months, and thirteen days since everything changed. Most folks would have forgotten. He had lost it all. But, like the proverbial phoenix, he is back with a vengeance and a plan. Harry is ready to have his revenge.

A final word from Editor Rick Ollerman previewing the third issue and a listing of other books available from the publisher brings the second issue to a close.  Building on the strength of the first issue, the second issue is another solid and highly entertaining read. The book column from J. Kingston Pierce is a definite winner as are the short intros to each story that place the work in context while also making reading suggestions.  Down and Out: The Magazine Volume 1, Issue 2 is a solidly good read and very much worth your time.



Down and Out: The Magazine Volume 1, Issue 2
Editor Rick Ollerman
Down And Out Books
December 2017
ASIN: B077XYK2XV  
eBook (also available in print format)
168 Pages
$5.99


Material was purchased by way of a gift card from my oldest son late last December.



Kevin R. Tipple ©2018

Monday, July 23, 2018

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: The Ones We Choose

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: The Ones We Choose: The Ones We Choose: A Novel by Julie Clark. New York: Gallery Books, 2018.   344 pages Reviewed by Brenda G. In this, Cla...

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Unlawful Acts: Incident Report No. 51

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TEXAS BOOK LOVER: Monday Roundup: Texas Bookish Calendar for July 23...

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Monday Markets and Jobs for Writers for 7/23/18

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Aubrey Hamilton Reviews: Murder on Memory Lake by J.D. Griffo


Last Sunday Kensington Publishing and the Fountain Bookstore hosted a cozy conference in Richmond, Virginia. The impressive line-up of authors included Sherry Harris, Maya Corrigan, A. L. Herbert, Ellery Adams, Alex Erickson, Amy Lillard, Bethany Blake, Carlene O’Connor, J.D. Griffo, J.R. Ripley, Lane Stone, Libby Klein, Lyn Cahoon, Misty Simon, and Mollie Cox Bryan. Both LynDee Walker and Rosemary Stevens supported their fellow authors from the audience.

They fed us a substantial brunch and we ate while the authors visited each table to describe their books in a timed rotation. This author round robin is a standing event at the larger conferences and is the source of much hilarity for the attendees, if not the authors, who have to be exhausted by the time it is over. I collected a goodly quantity of bookmarks which I added to the swag bag of more bookmarks and other book promo materials. The bookmarks will find their way to a local library to distribute to its readers.

Kensington generously gave away a number of books, including a large basket full. I was fortunate enough to win an ARC of J.D. Griffo’s debut cozy Murder on Memory Lake, to be released on 31 July. The second in his Ferrara Family series Murder in Tranquility Park is due out in March 2019.

Alberta Ferrara Scaglione inherits her family’s vacation home on peaceful Memory Lake, radically different from noisy Hoboken, New Jersey, and settles in to live there full-time. She is elated to learn her granddaughter, a budding investigative journalist, has found work nearby. What doesn’t make her happy is the discovery of a body floating in the lake. Even more distressing is recognizing the victim as a childhood acquaintance that she never particularly liked. While the local police chief, another childhood friend, tells her to stay out of it, Alberta and her granddaughter are determined to identify the person who damaged the serenity of Alberta’s new home. They team up with Alberta’s sister Helen and their sister-in-law Joyce to form an intrepid crime-solving team.

Full of Italian maxims and cooking with an emphasis on family and friendship, this book is a lively read and a welcome addition to the cozy genre.



·         Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
·         Publisher: Kensington (July 31, 2018)
·         Language: English
·         ISBN-10: 149671394X
·         ISBN-13: 978-1496713940

Aubrey Hamilton © 2018
Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal IT projects by day and reads mysteries at night.

Sunday, July 22, 2018

PSA

Due to the extreme heat, if you or a loved one are hearing ominous music and have realized you are about to be the victim of a serial killer, you are asked to cooperate fully in your death and you are asked not to struggle or resist. Disposal of your body is going to be hard enough in these weather conditions so please cooperate fully with your killer. However, as always, if you hear banjos, go ahead and run, but it probably won't matter.

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