Kathleen Marple Kalb's Blog: So You Wrote the Book, Now What?: It's on You
Sunday, September 15, 2024
Little Big Crimes: The Bride Case, by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Little Big Crimes: The Bride Case, by Kristine Kathryn Rusch: "The Bride Case," by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, September/October 2024. This is the ni...
Beneath the Stains of Time: Gray Tones: The Case of the Elevator Slaying (2017) by R.L. Akers
Beneath the Stains of Time: Gray Tones: The Case of the Elevator Slaying (2017...: R.L. Akers is a self-styled, self-published storyteller who authored several science-fiction novels and short story collections blending sci...
Sample Sunday: Excerpt: Package of Pain in Crimeucopia - Let Me Tell You About...
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Normally, I
would have been on top of this, but between being sick a lot these past months
and the new issue with my foot, this got on top of me before I knew it was
happening. Last Tuesday was publication day for the new anthology, Crimeucopia - Let Me Tell You About.... Published by Published by Murderous Ink Press, edited by John Connor, the read is available
in both print and digital formats at Amazon and other vendors. It
also contains my short story, “Package of Pain.”
Written in 2001,
my short story is a crime fiction tale featuring a suspended Fort Worth detective.
It is an adult orientated story and not designed for kids. A far tamer version
of the story appeared a few years later on the long ago discontinued Mouth Full
of Bullets website. This full version of the story is also included in my MindSlices short story collection.
PACKAGE OF PAIN
Mike
Thornstein sat in his truck in front of his own house as a light drizzle coated
the windshield. The package was there
again, even though it wasn’t supposed to be.
He had been promised by everyone that it was all over. The investigation was supposed to have ended
months ago. He had been cleared,
publicly exonerated, but nothing changed.
It
sat there wrapped in plain brown paper on his stoop. When they first started showing up every
Friday like clockwork, his colleagues had searched for the sender. Each one had been mailed from a mailbox in
Fort Worth. Television had “Walker,” but
all Mike had were bureaucratic bosses who decided the packages weren’t a
threat. When the sender wasn’t
identified after a few weeks, manpower and resources were delegated
elsewhere. Mike was still on suspension
while awaiting assignment, albeit very unofficially, and the packages were
still coming. Something had to be done
to end it.
The
windshield wipers slapped across clearing the glass. Visible again, the package sat there waiting
for him. He turned the engine off and
listened to it tick as it cooled. The
glass slowly misted over as the drizzle continued. The package dissolved from view into globs of
water on the glass. Sitting there, watching the mist fall, wasn’t going to
solve the problem.
Mike
heaved himself out of his old truck and crossed the leaf-strewn yard. Rain and wind had stripped most of the leaves
off the trees, leaving just a few to decorate the leaden sky. Everything dripped water and matched his mood
perfectly.
The
package was small and light, just like all the others. Wrapped in brown paper and twine, it bore the
Fort Worth postmark from the downtown office. Beyond that, it was like all the
others and would offer up no clues as to the sender. Mike shook it softly as he looked in vain for
a return address. Nothing rattled, and
it fit in the crook of his arm as he fumbled with the door lock.
Mike
got the door open, stepped in and back-kicked the door shut. He wandered into the den and placed the
package on the coffee table. His coat
went onto the couch as he headed to the kitchen.
The
refrigerator beckoned, and he grabbed a beer made from some river out in the
Rockies. All beer tasted the same, but
this one had been on sale. His only
preference was for long-necked bottles.
Beer wasn’t supposed to come any other way. The top went flying into the sink with a
clatter, and Mike chugged the beer down in several large swallows. One soldier down and into the trash. A second one was pulled out and popped
open. He took a long swallow and
contemplated the job ahead. Fortified,
he headed back for the den.
The
bottle went onto a small table next to the recliner. Mike switched on the reading lamp and used a
car key to slit the package open. Just
like the others, there was purple tissue paper inside. He reached inside past the folds, and there
was the expected videotape. It was
labeled “Continued” in block letters. He
popped it into the
He
sat in the recliner with the package in his lap. He swallowed some more beer while he contemplated
the box. The bottle went back to the
table, making another wet ring to join its companion. Mike reached deeper into the box and found
what he was looking for. Black lace
brushed against his fingers as he pushed the tissue paper back. Nestled on the panties was one small bullet
with a lipstick mark at the tip. It
sounded like some stupid detective novel from the forties, but it was all too
real. It was nice to know that this
wasn’t a threat, according to the bigshots downtown. He wasn’t reassured.
Mike
twirled the panties on his finger, whipping them through the air. Now he had almost half of a month’s worth of
panties and they were still coming. This
was the sixth bullet, all sealed with a kiss.
He knew what he was going to see on the tape; it had been a variation on
a theme. He didn’t want to watch, but he
had too. He tossed the empty box and
punched the remote.
For the rest of the story, pick up a copy of Crimeucopia - Let Me Tell You About....
Kevin
R. Tipple ©2024
In addition to having
been the multiple term president of the Short Mystery Fiction Society, Kevin R.
Tipple’s short fiction has appeared in numerous places online and in magazines
such as LynxEye, Starblade, Show and Tell, The
Writer's Post Journal, Mystery Magazine, and others. His short
stories have appeared in the anthologies, Back Road Bobby and His
Friends, Crimeucopia-Strictly Off The Record,
and Crimeucopia-Say It Again, Larceny & Last Chances: 22 Stories of Mystery &
Suspense, Notorious in North Texas: Metroplex Mysteries III, among others. His award-winning
blog of reviews, guest posts, and more is at: https://kevintipplescorner.blogspot.com/
Saturday, September 14, 2024
Foot Update: Still Annoyed Edition
Saw the food doc back
on Tuesday morning. As you can see, I have graduated to the wrap thingy. I see
him in a month to assess how things are then.
In the meantime, I
have to do physical therapy. I hate the idea as, with me, every time I have
done it for one thing or the other, it has always made things worse. But, I am
told, firmly, that I have to do it. Waiting on insurance to approve this deal.
At least, for now,
surgery is off the table and things are a little better than they were when
this deal started.
KRL This Week 9/14/2024
Up on KRL this week we have reviews and giveaways of 4 more fun mysteries for your September reading-"A Very Woodsy Murder" by Ellen Byron, "Murder at an English Séance" by Jessica Ellicott, Come "Shell or High Water" by Molly MacRae, and "Trouble is Brewing" by Vicki Delany https://kingsriverlife.com/09/14/september-mystery-catchup/
And a review and giveaway of "The Jig is Up" by Lisa Q. Mathews along with a fun interview with Lisa https://kingsriverlife.com/09/14/the-jig-is-up-by-lisa-q-mathews/
We also have a review and ebook giveaway of "Buried on a Sundae" by Lena Gregory along with a fun fall cookie recipe from Lena https://kingsriverlife.com/09/14/buried-on-a-sundae-by-lena-gregory/
Up during the week we posted another special midweek guest post, this one by mystery author M.E. Proctor about their main character and their new book "Love You Till Tuesday" https://kingsriverlife.com/09/11/declan-shaw-was-born-on-labor-day-in-a-manner-of-speaking/
Up on KRL News and Reviews this week we have a review and giveaway of "The Case of the Secretive Secretary" by Cathy Ace https://www.krlnews.com/2024/09/the-case-of-secretive-secretary-by.html
And a review and giveaway of" The House on Graveyard Lane" by Martin Edwards https://www.krlnews.com/2024/09/the-house-on-graveyard-lane-by-martin.html
Happy reading,
Lorie_,_._,_
Scott's Take: Birds Of Prey Vol 1: Megadeath by Kelly Thompson, illustrator Leonardo Romero, and illustrator Arist Deyn
Birds Of Prey Vol
1: Megadeath
by Kelly Thompson, illustrator Leonardo Romero, and illustrator Arist Deyn has
Black Canary assembling a team to rescue her sister Sin from the Amazons. To do
this she will need a squad of really exceptional women to get it done. She
recruits Batgirl (Cassandra), Big Barda, and Zealot so that they have three of
the best female warriors on the planet. Now they need their x-factor --something
the Amazons could not be ready for. Enter Harley Quinn. Hopefully, their plan to distract Wonder
Woman will keep her away from the island while they do what they need to do to
rescue Sin. Get in, grab the girl, and get out without anyone getting hurt.
Simple. Of course, it’s not going to be that simple.
Kelly Thompson
is my favorite female writer in comics. She brings a sense of humor to her work
that I really like. I really enjoyed her versions of Harley, Black Canary, and Batgirl.
I liked Zealot and Big Barda, but I am less familiar with those two. Wonder
Woman and Green Arrow also are in this action packed book. The art is really
good and looks incredible in the action scenes. Harley has a great entrance
plan into the island that would have looked far less cool with a less talented
artist.
Volume 2, which has no
title yet but has a release date of Jan 7th, 2025, has Black Canary forming
another team as only Cassandra sticks around for the next mission. The new
mission is to stop someone from the future from killing Batgirl (Barbara
Gordon). Two of her best friends are not going to allow someone from the future
to kill their bestie so time to form another team.
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/46FA4Ri
My reading copy
came from Hoopla through the Dallas Public Library System.
Scott A. Tipple
©2024
Friday, September 13, 2024
FFB Review: Some Like It Hot Buttered: A Comedy Tonight Mystery by Jeffrey Cohen
From the massive archive…
Having a patron die in your theater
isn't a good thing. Especially if all you show are comedy films. It isn't like
the movie scared the patron to death. Having a patron die because the popcorn
was poisoned is worse. For Mr. Elliot Freed, the death of Mr. Vincent Ansella
is a shock. After all, Mr. Ansella, who had occupied seat 18 of row S, is his
first dead customer. He isn't quite sure how to react.
A fairly common malady in his life.
Thanks to a novel that did okay and was successfully butchered into something
that doesn't remotely resemble his book by Hollywood, Eliot Freed has a bit of
money, and no desire to ever write anything again. He has no marriage either
though he does have a somewhat civil relationship with his ex, Sharon. They
have lunch once a week. Then there are the monthly alimony checks he gets from
her as well as the way he still feels when he looks at her.
While he doesn't have a car and instead
rides a bike, he does have a struggling theater that has few customers. Freed
owns the former "Rialto" with all its problems and has renamed it
"Comedy Tonight." He shows a comedy double feature consisting of a
one current film and an older title. Despite the efforts of "Young
Frankenstein" and "Count Bubba, Down-Home Vampire," Mr. Ansella
died and that isn't going to help ticket sales.
Neither is the fact that the local
police have to close his theater because it is now a crime scene. Getting it
back open on a steady basis isn't going to be helped by the fact that the
police soon discover that he has a pirating operation going on out of the
basement. It would be easy to blame his suddenly missing employee for
everything that has happened and something the local police seem perfectly
willing to do. Freed is sure that the employee, a film major at Rutgers, had
nothing to do with any of it and sets out to prove his innocence and save his
theater. Bumming a car when he needs one, Freed begins digging into the case
despite being warned off by everyone involved.
It would be easy to compare this novel
to the Aaron Tucker series and find it wanting. The humor of the
parental dynamic as well as Tucker's often strange adventures drives that
series and that sort of thing isn't present at all. Freed has no kids and
doesn't have a dog. While Tucker gets involved in strange stuff or things go
differently than expected, Freed is more of an everyday guy that just had
something happen to him that has to be dealt as best as he can. Tucker is a
writer and as such for those of us in the business, at whatever level, there is
a resonance in his amusing tales of the world of publishing. Freed has walked
away from writing and only briefly relates what happened to his novel and why
he has given up writing. Not to mention the fact that the Aaron Tucker
series often relies on the madcap in terms of humor and that certainly
isn't the case here.
But, this book isn't an Aaron
Tucker series novel and therefore should not be judged on that
standard. This book has to be judged on its own merits as will the series to
come. Comedically, while it does not have the explosive laughter moments for
this reader, it does have a number of amusing chuckle type moments as Freed
references cultural and movie items. Those that have a strong grounding in
comedy films will get considerably more out of the novel than those who do not.
While the book is somewhat predictable
with a large part of the resolution foreshadowed early on, there are enough
twists and a couple of nice surprises to keep readers highly entertained. The
book moves at a pretty good pace though it does stop occasionally for Freed to
summarize in depth what has gone on and that seemed a bit redundant and
excessive. Still, that is a minor quibble and did not really have a negative
impact on the book as it falls under more of a personal preference category.
Overall, the book is a pleasant read and a nice start to an interesting
character and new series. Next up in the series is It Happened One Knife
and that is currently scheduled to be released in July.
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3XlTvu7
Kevin R. Tipple © 2008, 2017, 2024
Thursday, September 12, 2024
Review: Den of Iniquity: A J.P. Beaumont Novel by J.A. Jance
It is Valentine’s Day, 2020, as Den
of Iniquity: A J.P. Beaumont Novel by J.A. Jance begins. Bellingham,
Washington, is clear and cold this morning. The news of Covid dominates, though
the impacts have yet to be felt here. J. P. Beaumont plans on taking his wife, Mel,
to a nearby restaurant for the evening. That is until J.P. and Sarah (their dog)
return from a walk and find grandson, Kyle, parked in the drive.
It takes some time to drag out of Kyle
why he made the nine-hour drive and arrived with no warning. There is a mess at
home. Kyle left and brought with him his stuff and his troubles. He had a very
good reason to show up as his family (J. P.’s daughter, her husband, and Kye’s sister)
has, basically, imploded. While Mel and J.P. try to come to grips with what has
happened and the sudden addition of a teenager to their house, Ben Weston
reaches out to Beaumont.
Back when Beaumont was a Seattle
Homicide Detective, he first met Ben as a five-year-old kid. There had been a
violent home invasion leaving Ben the only survivor. Ben is now a Seattle
Homicide Detective as is Scotty, J.P. Beaumont’s son, and they have desks close
to each other. Ben needs a favor.
After Ben’s parents died, a woman at
church, Matilda Jackson, always looked out for Ben. She had been good friends
with Ben’s mom. Mrs. Jackson’s grandson is dead. He died of a drug overdose
back in November of 2018. The police followed the medical examiners ruling of
accidental death due to fentanyl overdose and closed the case. Mrs. Jackson is
sure that he was sober and things were going right. She is absolutely sure it
was murder.
As he talks to Mrs. Jackson, J. P. is
not hearing anything that is very convincing, but Ben wanted him to look into
it, because he can’t. For the cops, it is a closed case and that means Ben can
do nothing. J. P. agrees, talks to her some more, and starts investigating. It
isn’t long before he is sure Matilda Jackson is right. Her son was murdered.
He wasn’t the only one.
What follows is a fast moving read that
switches back and forth between Kyle’s family issues, and there are many, and
the Jackson case J.P. is working. Investigative skills come in handy for family
and others. J.P. has a lot going on in Den of Iniquity: A J.P. Beaumont Novel
by J.A. Jance.
While those that have read the series to
this point will get more out of the book, one could start here as there is
enough background material to get new readers comfortable in the read. This
reviewer, a long-time reader of the series, enjoyed it a lot.
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3z5nG0F
My ARC digital reading copy came from
the publisher, William Morrow, by way of NetGalley.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2024
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