Lesa's Book Critiques: The Troubling Death of Maddy Benson by Terry Shames
Monday, September 30, 2024
SleuthSayers: Scaring Myself: The Challenges of Writing a Dual Time-Line Thriller
SleuthSayers: Scaring Myself: The Challenges of Writing a Dual T...: It's always nice to know many fellow mystery authors, either personally or at least via social media, because then I often can contact s...
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: New Books in October!
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: New Books in October!: Andrews, Donna Rockin’ Around the Chickadee Armstrong, Kelley I’ll Be Waiting Banville, John The Drowned Beaton, M.C. Kil...
Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: The Clock Struck Murder: A Lost in Paris Mystery by Betty Webb
Betty Webb is a former investigative
journalist who turned to mystery writing. She used her journalism background in
her first series about Lena Jones, an Arizona private investigator. Each story
conveys a great deal of information about a social issue wrapped into a
competently plotted and tightly written mystery. Desert Wives, the second in this often dark series, highlighted the
ongoing problem of child marriage and polygamy within more extreme sects of the
Church of Mormon. Webb’s journalism in this area helped lead to the arrest and
conviction of Warren Jeffs in 2011.
Her next series is a light-hearted set of
stories about a zookeeper in California and the animals in her care including a
red panda, an anteater, and a llama. Despite the fun setting, these books are
as soundly plotted as any mystery I have read.
Webb’s newest venture is set in Paris in
the 1920s, where artist Zoe Barlow has set up a studio and is settling into the
expatriate community. In this second book of the series Paris is especially
busy as it is hosting the 1924 Olympics immortalized by the award-winning film Chariots
of Fire (1981). Zoe supplements her meager income by hosting weekly poker
games, where she outplays nearly everyone who attends. At one of these
evenings, someone knocks over a fragile clock and breaks it. He has the grace
to offer to replace the piece so Zoe goes back to the flea market where she
found it. The sellers offer several attractive clocks, she selects one, and
then later decides she wants a second one.
She visits the flea market and finds the
seller with the clock she wanted is not working. She walks to the storage area
she knows the seller uses, only to discover the body of the seller. The police
are busy with the increased crime brought on by all the visitors and the
security needed for the dignitaries from participating countries. They don’t
intend to give the murder of a nonentity much time. So Zoe undertakes her own
investigation, to the dismay of her police officer lover.
Surprisingly the seller had made a number
of enemies, most of whom did not appreciate Zoe asking questions. Webb
skillfully employs misdirection right up to the last few pages where the killer
becomes clear. Great references to the Lost Generation, clothing of the time,
and the athletes participating in the games, including Johnny Weismuller, who
would later play Tarzan in a series of movies, and surfer Duke Kahanamoku. For
fans of historical mysteries.
·
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press (April 9,
2024)
·
Language: English
·
Paperback: 320 pages
·
ISBN-10: 1728269938
·
ISBN-13: 978-1728269931
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3Y2CgQb
Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2024
Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.
Sunday, September 29, 2024
Little Big Crimes: Satan's Spit, by Gabriel Valjan
Little Big Crimes: Satan's Spit, by Gabriel Valjan: "Satan's Spit," by Gabriel Valjan, in Tales of Music, Murder, and Mayhem: Bouchercon Anthology 2024. edited by Heather Grah...
SleuthSayers: Musing on Mitty
SleuthSayers: Musing on Mitty: At the just-completed Nashville Bouchercon, I was on the panel "Is It Over Now?: Bringing Characters to Life in Short Stories." ...
Saturday, September 28, 2024
KRL This Week Update 9/28/2024
Up on KRL this week reviews and giveaways of 4 more fun mysteries for your fall reading-"Quilty as Charged" A Measure Twice Sewing Mystery Book Two by Maggie Bailey, “No Paw to Stand On" A Bookmobile Cat Mystery by Laurie Cass, "The Grim Steeper" A Witches Brew Mystery #3 by Gretchen Rue, and "Murder at the White Palace" by Allison Montclair https://kingsriverlife.com/09/28/crafts-cats-historical-witchy-mysteries-for-your-tbr/
And a review and ebook giveaway of "The Con" by Jackie Layton along with an interesting interview with Jackie https://kingsriverlife.com/09/28/the-con-by-jackie-layton/
And our first spooky short story for the Halloween season, "Sky Without Stars" written by mystery/horror author Jane Gwaltney https://kingsriverlife.com/09/28/sky-without-stars-a-spooky-short-story/
We also have the latest Mystery Coming Attractions from Shawn Stevens. Sadly, this will be Shawn's last column. We really appreciate all that she has done in writing this column for KRL. However, we will have a new person taking on the column starting next month so it's not going away https://kingsriverlife.com/09/28/mystery-coming-attractions-october-2024/
During the week we posted another special midweek guest post, this one by mystery author Leslie Budewitz about her historical mystery anthology "All God's Sparrows" https://kingsriverlife.com/09/25/five-reasons-i-love-reading-and-writing-historical-fiction/
Up on KRL News and Reviews this week, a special midweek guest post by mystery author Joe Cosentino about the audiobook release of his novella "Finding Giorgio" https://www.krlnews.com/2024/09/finding-giorgio-by-joe-cosentino.html
And a review and giveaway of "Murder in an Italian Cafe" by Michael Falco https://www.krlnews.com/2024/09/murder-in-italian-cafe-by-michael-falco.html
Up on KRL News and Reviews this morning a review and giveaway of "Echoes of Memory" by Sara Driscoll https://www.krlnews.com/2024/09/echoes-of-memory-by-sara-driscoll.html
And a review and giveaway of "Sick to Death" by Andrew Welsh-Huggins https://www.krlnews.com/2024/09/sick-to-death-by-andrew-welsh-huggins.html
Happy reading,
Lorie._,_._,_
A Writer's Life....Caroline Clemmons: CONTEST WINNERS AND A BIT MORE
A Writer's Life....Caroline Clemmons: CONTEST WINNERS AND A BIT MORE: By Caroline Clemmons Thank you to all who entered my birthday contest. Although I value each of you, I promised only 5 gift cards for $5 eac...
Scott's Take: Titans: Beast World by Tom Taylor, lIlustrator Ivan Reis
Titans:
Beast World by Tom Taylor
and illustrated by Ivan Reis, is the first, according to DC Comics, ever Titans
centric crossover. I am not sure that is entirely accurate, but okay. One could
read volume 1 of the Titans new series to be familiar with some
early story references, but it is not necessary. There is also a tie in
collection book called Titans: Beast World Tour which one could
read, but is unnecessary. The tie ins in that read are a very mixed bag with
some decent stories and some pretty bad ones. The main event book, Titans:
Beast World, is fun and full of action.
In this story,
the Titans attempt to stop Necrostar (giant alien with spores) from destroying
humanity. Beast Boy of the Titans turns himself into a Starro (a giant alien
with spores also) to defeat it. Starro is allegedly the only being in the
universe who can beat it.
The government
agent known as Waller, leader of the Suicide Squad, interferes to prevent the
heroes from saving the day in order to blame the heroes for the failure. Her
interference causes millions of humans alongside several of the world’s heroes
to be turned into animal human hybrids who are now attacking their loved ones. The
Titans have to rally the remaining noninfected heroes to save the planet while
Waller continues her attempts to frame the heroes of the world. She wants the
public to turn on them and she just might get her way.
Being generally
familiar with the Titans characters would be very helpful for this story as
this should not be the first Titans book read. This is a fun read if the idea
of Black Adam being turned into a giant lion and going on a rampage appeals to
you. The Titans have a lot of cool moments and show how powerful and skilled as
heroes they are.
Several
characters that would be helpful in this event just don’t appear in the tie ins
or the main event. Most of the magic users are also noticeably absent. Several
heavy hitters that would be helpful such as Superman (Clark), Wonder Woman, and
Martian Manhunter are just not very relevant to the plot for some reason. They
appear, but the author does not have them do much.
Spoilers--
Batman is taken off the board early so Nightwing can stay as the main leader because
Batman is turned into a wolf. He has been turned into a giant bat before, more
than once, so this time he gets to be a six-foot tall plus wolf. The only non-titan
characters with big roles are Batgirl (Barbara) and Superman (Jon). Also,
Detective Chimp (he is a talking monkey who dresses like Sherlock Holmes and
solves mysteries) has a unique perspective on the new hybrids. As always, the
DC universe is weird.
There are a lot
of epic action scenes, great art, cities being torn apart, character
development, humor, in a highly entertaining read. This book sets up the future
of the DC universe for a while. There are a lot of implied casualties and
several deaths are depicted on screen. Waller, Peacemaker, a cult leader, the
Starro Beast Boy, and Dr. Hate, all make trouble for the heroes. Of course, it
is a given the heroes will save the day, but how the Titans save the world
leads to consequences for the superhero community as a whole.
The Titans are
allowed to step up into the big leagues as the Earth’s protectors. They are
powerful, experienced, and skilled. They are a family, but will they save the
world in a way that the world will be happy with them afterwards? The Justice
League disbanded after Dark Crisis awhile back and left the younger heroes in
charge. Did they make the right call?
Also, expys (an
expy for people who don’t know is a character who, either for copy right
reasons or other reasons, are basically a specific character that is changed just
enough to not be copyrighted and yet is clearly that specific character) of
President Biden and Jill Biden appear. Jill Biden’s DC version is turned into
an otter at one point so in the future people will clearly be able to know when
this was made. As the infection and what type of animal you become is implied
to be linked to your personality, someone at DC thinks Jill is like an otter. Would
have been interesting to see what the convicted felon running for the highest office
of the land would have been in this universe.
Overall, I highly enjoyed this Titans event. But, if one is expecting a lot of crossover with other heroes than one would be disappointed. This is a Titans led crossover that does not want other heroes to play much of a role.
Amazon Associate
Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3X2ZUKC
My reading copy
came by way of the Hoopla App and the Dallas Public Library System.
Scott A. Tipple
©2024
Friday, September 27, 2024
Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 91 Calls for Submissions in October 2024 - Paying markets
Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 91 Calls for Submissions in October 2024 - Paying ...: This October there are more than seven dozen calls for submissions. All of these are paying markets, and none charge submission fees. As alw...
Beneath the Stains of Time: His Burial Too (1973) by Catherine Aird
Beneath the Stains of Time: His Burial Too (1973) by Catherine Aird: Kinn Hamilton McIntosh is a British mystery novelist, known as " Catherine Aird ," who started her writing career in the sixties w...
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Suffrage Song: The Haunted History of Gender, Race and Voting Rights in the U.S. by Caitlin Cass
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Suffrage Song: The Haunted History of Gender, Race...: Reviewed by Kristin This graphic novel packs a lot about the right to vote in the United States into its pages in a very accessible fo...
Jerry's House of Everything: FORGOTTEN BOOK: MAD MESA
Jerry's House of Everything: FORGOTTEN BOOK: MAD MESA: Mad Mesa by "Kenneth Robeson" (Lester Dent) (first published in Doc Savage Magazine , January 1939 [Doc Savage #71]; reprinted ...
Thursday, September 26, 2024
Wednesday, September 25, 2024
The Short Mystery Fiction Society Blog: SMFS Members Published/Honored in The Mysterious Bookshop Presents the Best Mystery Stories of the Year 2024
The Short Mystery Fiction Society Blog: SMFS Members Published/Honored in The Mysterious B...: Today is publication day for The Mysterious Bookshop Presents the Best Mystery Stories of the Year 2024 . Published by the Mysterious Press,...
Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 45 Writing Contests in October 2024 - No entry fees
Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 45 Writing Contests in October 2024 - No entry fees: This October there are more than three dozen free writing contests for short fiction, novels, poetry, CNF, nonfiction, and plays. Prizes thi...
Bitter Tea and Mystery: Short Story Wednesday: Fantasy and Science Fiction
Bitter Tea and Mystery: Short Story Wednesday: Fantasy and Science Fiction: At the Planned Parenthood Book Sale last year, I found two groups of science fiction and fantasy magazines tied together, for sale for a few...
Tuesday, September 24, 2024
Monday, September 23, 2024
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Murder is Easy by Agatha Christie
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Murder is Easy by Agatha Christie: Reviewed by Jeanne Luke Fitzwilliam is happy to be back in England after working as a policeman in the Mayang Straits, and happier still...
Beneath the Stains of Time: Cabaret Macabre (2024) by Tom Mead
Beneath the Stains of Time: Cabaret Macabre (2024) by Tom Mead: Previously, I revisited The Red Widow Murders (1935) by John Dickson Carr , writing as "Carter Dickson," which got a long overdue...
Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 44 Outstanding Writing Conferences and Workshops in October 2024
Publishing ... and Other Forms of Insanity: 44 Outstanding Writing Conferences and Workshops i...: This October there are more than three dozen writing conferences and workshops. Some conferences and workshops will be held online, but most...
Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: Opal by Patricia Wolf
The third
thriller with Detective Sergeant Lucas Walker of the Australian Federal Police
by Patricia Wolf is due to be released at the end of September.
This
adventure finds Walker with his half-sister Grace from Boston showing her the
sights of the outback where Walker’s family lives and where he escapes at every
opportunity. Their cousin Blair has been working in an opal mining operation
even further inland. Blair wants to leave the job early and Walker volunteers
to make the long drive to pick him up. He takes Grace with him, expecting to be
gone no more than 48 hours at most. But a torrential downpour creates a massive
flood, washing away crops, livestock, and bridges and closing roads. Walker,
Grace, and Blair are stranded in a small town that suddenly turns violent.
A
philandering couple is murdered in her bed and her jealous and brutal husband
is the immediate suspect, then when he is ruled out Blair becomes the target of
the investigating officer. A double murder is a great way to create doubt as to
the motive since it is never clear who the intended victim was and Wolf
maximizes the benefit of this plot device. The flooding means the killer can
not have escaped and the fear among the townspeople becomes palpable.
As always the
detail about rural Australia is fascinating. (I didn’t know there was a large
inland sea within Australia at one time.) Plus the description of the mechanics
of opal mining adds to the rich local color Wolf brings to this series.
Apparently Australian opals are considered more valuable than others because of
their high quality.
Walker’s
single-mindedness about his work can be annoying. He brought his naïve city
slicker sister with him to the rural outback and then more or less left her to
the care of strangers while he investigated murders he had been told to stay
away from. This intense focus seems to be typical, though I can see how it
could backfire in some situations.
I have
noticed how some books are fast reads and others require me to look at every
single word in order not to miss anything. This series definitely falls into
the latter category. The depth of detail cannot be skimmed and the text is
dense with it.
A good entry
in a really good series about the Australian outback. I am hoping this author
is developing a strong following so that more books follow.
Aubrey's April 2023 review of the first book in the series, Outback, can be found here
· Publisher: Embla Books
(September 30, 2024)
· Language: English
· Paperback: 320 pages
· ISBN-10: 1471416550
· ISBN-13: 978-1471416552
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/47DEZm7
Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2024
Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.
Sunday, September 22, 2024
Little Big Crimes: The Car Hank Died In, by Mark Troy
Little Big Crimes: The Car Hank Died In, by Mark Troy: "The Car Hank Died In," by Mark Troy, in Tales of Music, Murder, and Mayhem: Bouchercon Anthology 2024, edited by Heather Graha...
Saturday, September 21, 2024
Medical Update
For those who wondered...
No news on physical therapy for the foot. Foot is the same. I am wearing the
brace and taking the anti-inflammatory pills. I am still staying off of it as
much as possible. Still having some pain in it, a kind of weird ache, at times.
I have had issues with that ankle since the 80s and the ankle really does not
like the brace.
Because nothing was happening with the PT, as folks who read my ramblings here already
know, Scott and I got Covid boosted Tuesday afternoon. The Novavax shot worked
me over some and hardly touched Scott at all. We spent Wednesday afternoon and
evening watching television and resting. By Thursday, we both were up and at it
again though not feeling too well. Yesterday we both were our normal selves. The
same is true today. I think we are through it. Compared to what has happened
before with the Pfizer and Moderna shots, this was nothing.
I was doing well enough Thursday and yesterday that I got back to work on my
story idea for the anthology, Santa
Rage: 12 Tales of Murder and Mayhem. This call is from Jay
Hartman and Misti Media with
a deadline of September 30th. The story is now fully written. I have to polish
and tweak, format correctly, and send it off.
My plan and hope is to get it
off early next week.
Once that happens, I really have got to come up with an idea for the next Sisters in Crime North Dallas anthology. My story, Whatever Happened To…?, is in the one that came out earlier this year. I would like to make it back to back appearances. Deadline is the end of October and this dude has no ideas for it at all.
Jerry's House of Everything: SUPER-DETECTIVE LIBRARY No. 9: THE ISAND OF FU MANCH (AUGUST 6, 1953)
Jerry's House of Everything: SUPER-DETECTIVE LIBRARY No. 9: THE ISAND OF FU MA...: Confession time: I am a sucker for Sax Rohmer's stories of oriental menace. Heck, I'm a fan of the Yellow Peril overall, from tal...
KRL This Week 9/21/2024
Up on KRL this week, reviews and giveaways of the first 2 books in a new mystery series by Ellie Alexander-"The Body in the Bookstore" and "A Murder at the Movies", along with a fun guest post by Ellie in the form of a letter from her main character https://kingsriverlife.com/09/21/the-body-in-the-bookstore-a-murder-at-the-movies-by-ellie-alexander/
And a review and giveaway of "A Farewell to Arfs" by Spencer Quinn https://kingsriverlife.com/09/21/a-farewell-to-arfs-by-spencer-quinn/
And a review and giveaway of "Death of a Flying Nightingale" by Laura Jensen Walker https://kingsriverlife.com/09/21/death-of-a-flying-nightingale-by-laura-jensen-walker/
We also have the latest Queer Mystery Coming Attractions by Matt Lubbers-Moore https://kingsriverlife.com/09/21/queer-mystery-coming-attractions-october-2024/
For those who prefer to listen to Mysteryrat's Maze Podcast directly on KRL, here is the player for the latest episode featuring the first chapter of "Four Pieces of Evidence" by Pamela Ebel, read by local actor Sean Hopper https://kingsriverlife.com/09/21/new-mysteryrats-maze-podcast-featuring-four-pieces-of-evidence/
Up during the week, another special midweek guest post this one by mystery author Libby Cudmore about the music that inspires her writing and her new book "Negative Girl" https://kingsriverlife.com/09/18/soundtrack-to-a-crime-scene-the-music-of-negative-girl/
Up on KRL News and Reviews this week, a review and ebook giveaway of "My So-Called Luck" by Jennifer Fischetto https://www.krlnews.com/2024/09/my-so-called-luck-by-jennifer-fischetto.html
And for those who enjoy fantasy with their mystery, a review and ebook giveaway of "Shadow's End" by Keri Arthur https://www.krlnews.com/2024/09/shadows-end-by-keri-arthur.html
Happy reading and listening,
Lorie
SleuthSayers: R.I.P., Nelson DeMille by John Floyd
SleuthSayers: R.I.P., Nelson DeMille: Three days ago, I sat down to start a column about writing dialog--rules, myths, hints, tips--that I intended to post here at SleuthSayer...
Scott's Take: The Avengers Vol 2: Twilight Dreaming by Jed Mackay
The Avengers Vol
2: Twilight Dreaming by Jed Mackay is another action-packed
volume. The Avengers, besides Vision (an android that does not sleep and
therefore does not dream) are sucked into a nightmare. While the Vision’s
teammates are trying to escape the nightmare, he has to face Myrddin and his
Twilight Court. The Twilight Court and Myrddin are the same people who tried to
kill Kang in Volume
One. They are here to do it again.
The final issue of this volume in a separate story of one issue features
Jarvis the butler coming by to teach the Impossible City how to cook. Of
course, things do not go smoothly.
This is another
great volume featuring incredible art especially in the nightmare parts. The
Twilight Court are good foils to the Avengers team. Each Avenger gets a good
moment and plenty of the action for themselves. Jed Mackay and company continue
to make sure no one is left out.
The third volume
is titled Blood Hunt and collects the Fall of X tie ins and the
Blood Hunt tie ins. This is expected to come out in December of this year. In
the first part of that read, the Avengers team up with The X-men to take down
ORCHIS --the fascists who are trying to kill all mutants. The Avengers are
finally ready to make their move. Iron Man and Black Panther have been cooking
up something special for them. The second half will see Captain America (Steve
Rogers) creating a new team to counter the vampire invasion. Since Captain
America has fought vampires for a long time, all the way back during WW2 as he
fought Nazi Vampires, Captain Marvel taps him to create a resistance to the
invasion.
Amazon Associate
Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3WX2bbs
My print reading copy came from the White Rock Hills Branch of the Dallas Public Library System.
Scott A. Tipple
©2024
Friday, September 20, 2024
SleuthSayers: So Long – for now
SleuthSayers: So Long – for now: Didn't realize until I checked – I've been posting on SleuthSayers for almost eight years, since September, 2016. I don't know h...
Jerry's House of Everything: FORGOTTEN BOOK: CARLA
Jerry's House of Everything: FORGOTTEN BOOK: CARLA: Carla by "Sheldon Lord" (Lawrence Block) (1958) I'm more than a bit OSD in my reading. When I find an author I like I want...
FFB Review: Vendetta in Death: In Death Series by J.D. Robb
Vendetta in Death is one of those books where one wonders if the vigilante has the right idea. She calls herself Lady Justice. Her target is scumbag men. And she has plenty of targets.
It is April 2061 and her first target is Nigel McEnroy. He drugged women. He raped. He cheated on his wife. He took her company and then sold it while diverting most of the money to his accounts. All that and a lot more he confessed to Lady Justice as she tortured him.
Now he is dead. Lieutenant Eve Dallas might not know who killed him if not for the note left by Lady Justice tacked to his body where his genitals used to be. Dumped at his building, he was found by a neighbor who called it in.
He’s a scumbag, but that won’t stop Dallas, Peabody, and the team from trying to stop the killer. It was not up to Lady Justice to dispense her form of justice. It was up to the legal system. The vigilante acted and is going to act again and again until she is stopped.
Vendetta in Justice is one of the more complicated reads in this series. Not only in the terms of morality and the issues raised by vigilante justice, but in terms of characters and complexity of plot. It also happens to be a pretty good read.
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4dNyTSM
My reading copy came by way of the OverDrive/Libby App and the Dallas Public Library System.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2024
Thursday, September 19, 2024
Mystery Fanfare: CALL FOR ARTICLES: LONDON. Mystery Readers Journal (40:4)
Mystery Fanfare: CALL FOR ARTICLES: LONDON. Mystery Readers Journal...: Call for Articles: Mystery Readers Journal (40:4): Mysteries set in London We're looking for articles, reviews, and Author essays a...
Beneath the Stains of Time: The Red Widow Murders (1935) by Carter Dickson
Beneath the Stains of Time: The Red Widow Murders (1935) by Carter Dickson: So the quality of detective fiction reviewed on here over the past two, three weeks have left something to be desired, even John Dickson Car...
Jerry's House of Everything: THE CASEBOOK OF GREGORY HOOD: THE MURDER OF GREGORY HOOD (JUNE 17, 1946)
Jerry's House of Everything: THE CASEBOOK OF GREGORY HOOD: THE MURDER OF GREGO...: The Casebook of Gregory Hood began as a summer replacement series for The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes on the Mutual network beginning ...
Wednesday, September 18, 2024
SleuthSayers: Old English Words, New Scottish Quotes
SleuthSayers: Old English Words, New Scottish Quotes: Two weeks ago I wrote about my family's visit to Scotland for the World Science Fiction Conference. I promised that this time I would in...
Jerry's House of Everything: SHORT STORY WEDNESDAY: CHARLIE THE BARBER
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Tuesday, September 17, 2024
Once More Into The Breech: Covid Boosted
After still no word on physical therapy after a week, I made the decision to get Covid boosted this afternoon. I have at least a half dozen medical appointments next month and that includes multi hour cardiac testing deals twice in October. Since the Covid shot normally puts me in bed for anywhere from a week to two weeks, it seemed best to get on with it. Otherwise, it would be early November, sometime after 11/3 and Noir at the Bar, and that runs me into the holidays. Beyond the fact that anything else could happen in the meantime.
So, midafternoon, we went down to our local Kroger. Scott
and I went with the Novavax shot this time. Supposed to have less side effects
for most folks than the previous ones. Also supposed to have slightly better
protection, especially for those of us with weak immune systems. Hoping to
finally unlock my latent Super Hero genes. Not that I want to sling webs
around, or run really fast either, but being able to move objects with my mind
would be handy.
Probably, instead, I will get at least a week in bed, unable to do anything, and being very sick. Hopefully, nothing close to two weeks and nothing like the Shingles shot that tried very hard to make me visit a hospital for a few days. That shot was a brutal two weeks of absolute hell. I think I would have been hospitalized if the places were not all full at the time. I really thought I was done.
We were the only ones masked and there was at least a half dozen folks at the pharmacy all coughing their lungs out. Not dry coughs either. They are all doing those heavy wet ones that sound really bad.
Anyway, I have been shotted once again. Hopefully, it
does not do too much to me as I am actually writing again. I am working on a
story idea for the anthology, Santa Rage: 12 Tales of Murder and Mayhem.
This call is from Jay Hartman and Misti Media with a deadline of September 30th. So,
I have two weeks to get it fully written, polished, and off to be considered. Fingers
crossed that I make it.
SleuthSayers: How Do You Count?
SleuthSayers: How Do You Count?: Some of Michael ’ s many publications. How do short-story writers tally their literary output? By the number of acceptances? By the number ...
Jerry's House of Everything: OVERLOOKED FILM: THE MANDARIN MYSTERY (1936)
Jerry's House of Everything: OVERLOOKED FILM: THE MANDARIN MYSTERY (1936): Based on the EQ novel The Chinese Orange Mystery , this is the second theatrical film featuring detective Ellery Queen. It follows The Span...
Review: Ashes Never Lie by Lee Goldberg
Ashes Never Lie
by Lee Goldberg picks up about a year after the events of Malibu
Burning. This second book in the series also works in Eve Ronin,
and her partner, Duncan Pavone. It is also a really good read.
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department arson
detectives Walter Sharpe and Andrew Walker have pretty much finished at one
fire scene where the fire crew is pulled off to go fight a house fire in the
nearby Twin Lakes housing development. The house is unoccupied. There is also
plenty of ground fuel, thanks to the weather. If firefighters don’t stop the
fire now, it could go through the housing development, get into the bordering
Santa Susanna Pass State Park and then take off for nearby Calabasas and the
Santa Monica Mountains. The last time the fire roared through the Santa Monica Mountains,
Sharpe and Wlaker barely escaped with their lives.
Sharpe, as senior investigator and still teaching
Walker, insists they have to check out the house fire. Walker doesn’t see much
point, as they have not been called in to investigate, but Sharpe wants to see
it because fire guys flush away evidence and won’t know if it is arson or not.
When they arrive, they find firefighters hard at
work fighting a fire that has fully engulfed the two-story home. The house is completely
empty and yet is burning like crazy. Power had only been turned on that morning
and there were no workman inside or around it. In fact, nobody had been working
on it. The weather was fine as it was dry and clear. So, the questions are—What
caused the fire and what caused it to spread so fast and burn so hot?
While the crew works, Sharpe and Walker look at a
nearby home that is identical to the one that is burning. Sharpe has some
questions after the house tour, questions that are reinforced when Captain Guyette
tells him it must have been an electrical as there were multiple ignition
points also over the house next to the electric sockets, light switches, and lighting.
Sharpe isn’t buying it.
Not that he can investigate much right now, as he
and Walker are suddenly pulled off to go to a house fire in Calabasas where
there is a body.
LASD Homicide Detective Eve Ronin and Duncan Pavone
are also there and waiting for them. The four gear up and go into the house. It
is believed that Patrick Lopresti was home alone and is the dead person in the
fire. The question Eve wants to know is where he got murdered, killed himself,
or was committing arson and screwed up?
That question is soon answered in an unexpected way
and becomes one of two complicated storylines in the book. The first being the
house fire scene they were working before being pulled here.
Ashes Never Lie is the second book in the Sharpe and Walker series and a very good read. Complicated and fast moving it roars along at a rapid pace to a satisfying and explosive conclusion. In short, a fun read, and very much well worth your time.
Make sure you check out Lesa Holstine’s
review here.
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4gjCcm5
My reading copy was a digital ARC from the
publisher, Thomas & Mercer, by way of NetGalley.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2024
Monday, September 16, 2024
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley: Reviewed by Kristin In a near future London, a young woman accepts a civil service job without having a complete picture of what that ...
Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: The Drowned by William John Banville
William John
Banville is an Irish novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter. He’s
published around a dozen novels to international acclaim, winning a range of
prizes. Under the name Benjamin Black he wrote a historical crime fiction
series about an Irish pathologist named Quirke in 1950s Dublin, releasing seven
books between 2006 and 2015. The series resumed in 2021 under Banville’s name.
The Drowned (Hanover
Square Press, 1 October 2024) is the ninth book featuring Quirke. Detective
Inspector Strafford with whom he has an uneasy relationship is also involved. A
recluse near the coastal town of Wicklow discovered an abandoned Mercedes in a
field, with the key still in the ignition and the engine still running. As he
lingers in indecision another man wanders up to say that his wife has
disappeared and he is looking for her. He fears she has jumped from one of the
nearby cliffs into the sea. The recluse draws him to the nearest house for
help, where the residents call the local Garda, who in turn quickly call in reinforcements
from Dublin.
The writing
is possibly the most beautiful I have ever seen: melodic, flowing, and cogent.
About a third into the book is a poignant multi-page meditation on grief. It
describes the feeling with the clarity and understanding that only someone who
has experienced deep sorrow can have.
On the other
hand, the characters conveyed by this exquisitely beautiful writing are among
the most unhappy I have ever seen stroll across the pages of a book. They are
caught up in sordid situations, some of their own making, and it speaks volumes
for the quality of the writing and the intricacies of the plot that I continued
to read about these deeply unpleasant people.
The
resolution is neatly imagined and completely unexpected, another plus for this
complicated book.
Starred
review from Kirkus: "Banville remains a master of suspense; it’s not easy
to stop turning the pages until the novel’s genuinely surprising end. This is
yet another fine thriller from an author at the top of his game. Excellent
writing and a clever plot make this one stand out."
· Publisher: Hanover
Square Press; Original edition (October 1, 2024)
· Language: English
· Hardcover: 336 pages
· ISBN-10: 1335000593
· ISBN-13: 978-1335000590
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3Tu1cx7
Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2024
Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.