Wednesday, September 23, 2026
The Rap Sheet: Revue of Reviewers: 9-22-26
I don't think this has happened before. Myself, Aubrey, and Lesa all made the cut. My review of First Chance by Kasey Lansdale. Lesa's reviews of Hidden Currents by Claire Booth and The Shadow Friends by Tess Gerritsen. Aubrey with her reviews of The Ninth Circle: A Billy Boyle WWII Mystery by James R. Benn, Deception: A Joseph Gunner Thriller by Alan Parks, and Songs of Saigon by Ed Teja. Very cool!
Jerry's House of Everything: SHORT STORY WEDNESDAY: MUCKLE-MOUTHED MEG
Short Story Wednesday Review: The Devil’s Jurisdiction by Michael Wegener (Thriller Magazine: August 2026 Issue)
Thriller Magazine: August 2026
contains six entertaining short stories. My favorite in the issue was the
opening short story, “The Devil’s Jurisdiction” by Michael Wegener.
It is past time to get out of Los Angeles for Gabriel
Cruz. The cops have his car at some impound lot. That means his car is not an
option as he can’t have the cops knowing where he at since they are part of the
problem. The last place he is going to go is to their impound lot.
The only solution is to swipe a new set of wheels.
Easily done.
But, he stole the wrong car, and that made
everything worse.
One heck of a story and a mighty good read.
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4h0XE1H
My digital reading copy came by way of my ninety-day free Kindle Unlimited trial.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2026
Tuesday, September 22, 2026
Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Secret Wonders of the World: 385 Extraordinary Places You Never Knew Existed
Publication Day Review: The Mysterious Bookshop Presents the Best Mystery Stories of the Year 2026
After a forward by Series Editor Otto
Penzler and an introduction by Guest Editor Tess Gerritsen it is on to the nineteen
short stories in the Mysterious Bookshop Presents the Best mystery
stories of the Year 2026. Each of the stories selected begins with a
short bio of the author, the tale itself, followed by a short background
explanation from the author as to how the story came to be, a point they were
hoping to accomplish, the context of the tale, etc. With nineteen short stories
included, I am highlighting several that really struck a chord with this
reader. But to be clear, there is not a bad one in the bunch. I just liked some
more than others.
In order of appearance as I read straight
through from front to back…
Doug Allyn’s “Dead Man’s Mail” revolves
around escape, the legacy of what came before you in the place you now reside
in, and how isolationism can have severe consequences when others want what you
have right now.
Eli is on a mission in “The Lord God Bird”
by Andy Boyle. He’s doing it for Belle. Secrecy is important. The first thing
to do is to get Greg to actually honor their deal.
Amanda and Madeline are on their best
behavior at the elegant restaurant. They are in public and therefore, on stage,
as both are aware. Deceit, double cross, and revenge are all on the menu in
“The Luncheon” by Christopher Fowler.
Arthur Stancil is sure that Dougal
Canterbury must die. The question as “The Twenty-Fourth Canterbury” by Richard
Helms begins is how, exactly, to kill him. The fact that the potential murder
victim is the most decorated detective in Yorkshire presents a complication,
though not unsurmountable.
A murder case is at work in “Juror
Number Three” by Joel Nedecki. Told from the perspective of the juror who has a
lot going on, we follow a case that has plenty of twists and turns.
He just wanted a quiet walk in the woods
with his dog. That is not at all what he
got in “Murder by the Creek” by H.K. Slade. Now he is on the wrong side of the
cuffs and disrespected. Not cool at all.
After the reprinted short stories, there
is a listing of “The Best Mystery Stories 2026 Honor Roll.” This year, eleven
stories and their authors are featured. Each listing includes the publication
so that one can hunt down these good reads.
It should be noted that my digital ARC
review copy from NetGalley did not contain the bonus short story by Agatha
Christie. I have no idea if that was deliberate for the review copy or just an
accidental oversight.
The latest book in the series, The
Mysterious Bookshop Presents the Best Mystery Stories of the Year 2026,
is chockful of good reading. It is well
worth your time and recommended.
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/3TeDnfN
My digital ARC came from the publisher,
The Mysterious Press, through the NetGalley platform with no expectation of a
positive review.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2026
Monday, September 21, 2026
In Reference to Murder: Media Murder for Monday
Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: The Scholars by MacKenzie Common
The
Scholars (Headline, September 2026) by Canadian author MacKenzie Common is
a dark academic mystery set in Oxford. Unlike any other academic mystery I have
read, I don’t know quite what to think of it.
Every year
five outstanding candidates from Britain, the Commonwealth, and the United
States are selected to become the year’s Shepherd Scholars. The notable program
was endowed by a Victorian plantation owner who made his fortune in India. He
was a graduate of Frideswide College, one of the oldest colleges at Oxford, which
hosts the students during their stay. They each receive a full scholarship for
postgraduate study at Oxford, and they are expected to use their experience to
accomplish great things on the world stage, as their predecessors have done.
In 2024 the
five included a young woman with a large social media following and who is
constantly recording content, a young man who is developing an artificial
intelligence program to provide instantly available grief counseling, a young
woman who has established humanitarian projects in India, a Yale graduate
studying mass violence and its origins, and the son of the current Minister of
Higher Education who was working in Asian Studies.
All of their
backgrounds were impressive on paper but a little research showed none of them
were exactly who or what they claimed to be. The research unfortunately was not
conducted until after one of their number fell five stories from the Frideswide
College roof. The police and the university preferred to believe the death was
an accident but rumors quickly swirled around campus and on social media that the
victim had been pushed.
Told from the
perspectives of each of the five students, all of whom are unreliable
narrators, the story describes the anxiety of continuing to work under the load
of suspicion and outright anger from the university populace and the accusations
from social media. Their attempts to cope with the public revelations about
their pasts take them away from the work at hand and prove to be deeply
distracting. The credibility of these prestigious award programs is also
questioned.
Oxford is
omnipresent. Its authority, history, and architecture are gloriously portrayed.
The usefulness and the dangers of social media are also strongly shown. The
ending is unexpected and leaves a number of questions unanswered. Fans of noir
will enjoy this book. Academic mystery lovers may not like it as much.
·
Publisher: Headline
·
Publication date: September 24, 2026
·
Language: English
·
Print length: 352 pages
·
ISBN-13: 9781035426140
Amazon Associate Purchase Link: ???? as it is not listed at this time.
Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2026
Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.
Sunday, September 20, 2026
Lesa's Book Critiques: A Note between Reviews – Steven F. Havill, RIP
Such sad news.... This huts very hard.
Lesa's Book Critiques: A Note between Reviews – Steven F. Havill, RIP
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