Central Crime Zone

Black Friday and the srewing of retail employees

2011-10-30T16:20:00.000-05:00

Black Friday is the a horrible day, the day after Thanksgiving when Americans go crazy and shop like the Apocalypse is coming. Shoppers on this day are traditionally cheap and rude, I know, I worked a number of them and I've watched people shop on this day. Shoppers in large stores seem to be getting ruder as it is already, on this day they lose their minds. Just look at these assholes in the picture.

I love the holidays, and I love getting gifts. I also really love giving gifts and shopping for them. As a result I am one of those taking part in the annual shopping frenzy. But I do so during normal hours.

Over the last few years the stores are opening earlier and staying open later. The latest is now Thanksgiving night at midnight stores will open their doors to people rushing out to get bargains.
And to the people making these decisions I say shame on you. You are effectively destroying a family holiday for your employees. To be at work at midnight is outrageous. The people working these hours have to go to bed early and forgo the holiday normally spent with their family. And with times the way they are, who is going to make a stink about it and risk losing their job?

Among the stores opening at midnight are, Kohls Department store, Macy’s and Target among others. Employees will be getting out of bed at 10 or 11 pm Thanksgiving night to go to work and wait on people who line up at these stores. The corporations behind this justify it by saying that they open early because people show up to shop. You know what? If you wait until 7:00 am, they will wait until then to shop, greedy bastards.

And if you are one of the weirdos getting up early to shop at these places and perpetuating this problem, shame on you as well. People who work retail work hard and have to put up with a lot of crap. They deserve to have family holidays too. By being one of the people showing up when the doors open you are part of the problem.

My answer to this for 2011 is that I will not be partaking in this mistreatment of employees and I will be boycotting stores that open at ridiculous hours. I’ll shop local at locally owned stores that keep more human hours where the people deciding the hours are actually working the hours along side employees.

today in history

2011-10-05T19:51:00.003-05:00

In the minute to minute world that owes much of the immediate release of information to Steve Jobs, it is right and just that the news is flooding all aspects of print, televised and social media. There was a magic to the man who believed in cohesive design with functionality. A genius who introduced the world to products that many of us cannot live without, I often wonder if from time to time he didn't see a down side as well. I could not live without my I-pod, but radio has become poorer for it. I covet an I-pad but to add the additional wi-fi charges to the desk top wi-fi, the two cell phones and the land line we continue to have, seems quite silly. Still, just two weeks ago I was at the apple store, looking at the Mac Air, the Apple TV, and the aforementioned I pad. The merchandise was flying off the shelves, the customer service was, as always, amazing. A son of counter culture who's death is stealing the news cycle from the happenings on Wall Street, a look at justice served with definite caste bias, and an upcoming election that may very well kill the middle class... the history of Pixar just doesn't seem quite as important to me. Even if the end of Toy Story Three made everyone cry. And yet in the end there's that first product, the Mac. How many brilliant books have been written with this machine. How many troglodytes have managed to find a way to just type it and keep going? Returning to parts of the free flow and tightening them up to say things that others should be reading?

I pity the folks so tied to their phones they text during concerts rather than watch them, I pity everyone under the age of twenty who talk to their friends perhaps once a week but text at them when they are in the same room. For in this age of instant communication, it seems we are losing the ability to communicate in meaningful ways.

So "Stay hungry, stay foolish" and make the world a better place. Steve Jobs was a one of a kind genius. Known to 1/2 the planet and yet a private person. Let's use the tools he's given us to make our dreams happen. Ruth

Bouchercon St. Louis

2011-09-25T09:04:00.011-05:00

Bouchercon, that mad beast that cannot really be described to those who weren't there. Does one even try?

Quite simply, Bouchercon is a mystery lover's OZ minus the wicked witch. Four days of walking down paths you've never trod before and enjoying food,wine, coffee, dancing,singing, bowling and conversation with friends you may have never even met. If you had pulled back the curtain this year you'd have found Jon Jordan and a staff of volunteers who made every little thing work as seamlessly as possible.

From our very first exploratory trip, the committee knew that St. Louis would be a great place to have a Bouchercon. It was up to us to lay the groundwork. We had no doubt that everyone would be able to make their own fun.

That the Guest of Honors made everyone welcome was a given. There is not a better group of writers in our community.

Here's to Cleveland!!

Crimespree issue 43 ready to ship

2011-08-30T08:44:00.000-05:00

Crimespree Magazine issue 43

Editorial by Jon Jordan

Newsbites

Hanging with Ayo

A Slice of Mystery with Avery Aames

The Perils of Writing a History Mystery with Tony Hays

COVER STORY: Get Closer to Sara Gran w/ Scott Phillips

Sunset Boulevard by Sara Gran

Behind the Books with Lisa Unger

Crime & Idiocy by Jen4 Jordan

FICTION: Old Friends by Anthony R . Pezzula

Morphing Into Mystery by Martin Shepard

The Long and the Short of It Darrel Janes Interviewed by Alan Orloff

In the Court of Public Opinion by Denise Hamilton

FICTION: The People I Help Out by Kenneth Nicols

NEW CONTRIBUTER Mystery Town with Linda Brown

Reed Farrel Coleman

Craig’s Joint by Craig McDonald

5 Favorite Films with Dan Krokos

5 Favorite Films with Todd Ritter

Dialogue with Declan Burke featuring Dennis Lehane

The Towering Non Inferno by Douglas Lindsay

FICTION: Rain Dog by Thomas Pluck

DVD Reviews and Eye on Hollywood with Jeremy Lynch

Buzz Bin and book reviews

Cooking with Crimespree by Avery Aames

This one is heading out the door on Wednesday the 31.

Need to renew?

http://www.crimespreemag.com/subscribe.html

bouchercon redux

2011-08-29T23:06:00.004-05:00

Mrs, Crimespree has sent off mail today. She has composed a to-do list that Lewis and Clark themselves would be proud of. She realizes this is the last time she has for a truly chatty blog before Bouchercon 2011. Indulge me folks, for this is yet another how much do I love my life post.

I love my life a lot. Last week on Monday, at the Laura Lippman Pizza party there was a lot of synergy for me. Laura introduced me to someone I’ve “known” for two decades. Jacquelynn Bost Morris is not a name you all will be familiar with, but Jackie from the AOL Hardboiled board certainly is a name known to some. Jackie with Kathy Bartlett made a world for me. A world where I could reach out and talk to writers I admired, share their experiences. Somewhere along the blurred lines these folks began to share mine. Charlaine Harris made me laugh out loud again when my family had given up. Sara Paretsky made me question why one death could be so hard. Val McDermid showed me life’s possibilities. Then Bob Crais told me to go to Bouchercon (rather emphatically), you know, my good friend from the innernets. Sexiest author alive that year too (we gave him hell).

The mystery community has always been inclusive. The inclusion is why Bouchercon started, a group of Anthony Boucher’s friends decided they needed to celebrate this genre he loved so much. Anthony, I have to tell you, you’d be proud sir as would your widow. Thanks to a wonderful group of volunteers over these 4 decades, your name may be mispronounced but it is never forgotten.

So, I was “The Girl Who Went to Bouchercon”. I met Val McDermid. I met Ian Rankin. I met George Pelecanos. I met Dennis Lehane. I smoked with Lee Child and M.J. Lake. C.J. Songer was an all-star that year. I met Otto Penzler and Steve Stillwell. I met Richard Katz and the gang from Sleuths of Bakerstreet. I met Kate Flora and a guy named Jon Jordan.

I’ve reached out over the years and have met Robert Randisi as a result (thanks Bob). I’ve met new writers and writers back on the scene; One of my favorite moments ever is with Gayle Lynds, another with Michael Koryta. An interview with Sean Chercover in ’08 left me giddy.

I’ve come a long way, always fan first. The most important person in my life outside of my husband may well be Judy Bobalik. Judy is the bomb, y’all. If you come to Bouchercon 2011 without meeting her, you’ve made a mistake. For like “Jackie” of the hard-boiled board she has the passion to make this a community. She is what Anthony Boucher thought this place in fiction and community is all about.

Now, I go to Bouchercon with an expectation to meet friends I never have and celebrate with friends I love. Some will be there this year. Some will be missing. Elaine, Barbara, David. I also know I’ll have a hug with Alafair & Hillary, finally meet Erin and by Joseph, that laptop is ours Duane Swierczsynki!

An Afternoon in Brigadoon

2011-08-25T19:45:00.003-05:00

On Tuesday afternoon a 5.8 earthquake hit the city of Baltimore. I happened to be in Baltimore but I didn’t feel it. In fact, I think the author Laura Lippman and I may have been the only two people in Maryland to not feel it. As the lady in Louise’s Bakery said, “Well, you were in a car, you wouldn’t feel it in a moving car.”

Why were we in a car? The cookies at the bakery were a factor. A beautiful day was the other. The day was so lovely the thought of going to a gym to get on a machine for cardio was uninspiring. Ms. Lippman offered an alternative. Would I like to hike her childhood neighborhood with her instead?

Laura has been one of my strongest fitness inspirations for a decade now. The last two years I’ve even been paying attention. A hike with one of my facebook cheerleaders on a beautiful day in a part of Bal’mor I didn’t know? (Yeah) We set out on a nice path; my tour included parts of Woodlawn, the babbling stream & the pond above (where Laura learned to skate), The Crimea Estate, a set of steps that led to a trail, a trail that had an incline that kicked my ass by the way. The house Ms. Lippman grew up in and the elementary school she had attended were part of our hike. The highlight was the beautiful and out of time Dickeysville. An old mill town surrounded by Leakin Park, it has a sense of isolation and promise. There’s a peace in this community. A feeling that the world can be anything you’d like it to be.

Somewhere after the incline that kicked my ass and before the playground ….

My perspective of the afternoon shifted. I was still walking with my friend Laura, but everything became slightly surreal. It was launch day for Laura Lippman’s newest novel , THE MOST DANGEROUS THING and I was on a walking tour of the novel’s inspiration. A community the writer said later that evening, “I’ve been circling for years in the books, and finally got there.” I looked at my host and admitted to her there would probably never be a bigger fan moment for me. She laughed and retorted, “Well, I won’t be doing it for anyone else today.”

I have a lot of joy in my life. I have family, I have friends, I have reading and I have a group of authors I admire and have had the opportunity to spend time with. Tuesday afternoon they all melded into one. I understand why Laura thinks of Dickeysville as Brigadoon. There was an instant on Tuesday when it became mine.

Saturday Jon and I left Milwaukee to visit with friends in Baltimore. Saturday Crimespree Magazine went to Baltimore to attend the Laura Lippman Pizza Party celebrating the release of her novel, THE MOST DANGEROUS THING. The magazine was also present at the Tuesday night launch for the book. Ruth and Jon took their friend Laura out to dinner afterwards. It’s a wonderful life (giggle,giggle,giggle).

For more on the Baltimore trip and reviews of the book THE MOST DANGEROUS THING, see the print edition of Crimespree.

Smallville

2011-08-18T21:36:00.002-05:00

Thank you Smallville. I wasn't sure how I would react to your end. Being able to see and yes, preview the last episodes months before viewing could have been a bad thing. Years ago a friend declared, "Smallville will end when Clark becomes Superman and Lex becomes Lex Luther. The finale gave us that and so much more.

How happy am I that Chloe had a happy ending and Tess has become a hero? Thank you writers for not putting every guest star ever in the church for the wedding scene.

That's the thing about Smallville, whether you watched the TV series with Steve Reeves, saw the Christopher Reeves movies, or simply have read the Comics over the years ... Smallville is accessible, in the way few television shows are. It tells a story we've all known from the beginning. It entertains and at times has exceptional writing. Tom Welling take a bow. You were born to play this character. the finale episode is isolated and yet true to a story arc as only a comic can be. I will not spoil it here. I simply hale the series in its entirety. For every misstep and overwrought scene there is a "pencil line" that brings us back to the legend of Superman.http://youtu.be/QHPHT5SbAEM

The last season featured "the darkness" and even affects some of our heroes. It's almost an anti-the watchmen. There's history in a series this long and some are rescued. Some fall. Destiny is pure in a comic world and you guys have pulled it off. Thank You for making me understand just how pure my concept of Superman is. Thank you for letting me follow the story of Clark Kent, his family and his friends. I'll miss you and have no idea what I'll do Labor Day weekend from now on. Maybe the U.S. Open ????

Duane Swierczynski : Serial Thriller

2011-08-07T13:14:00.004-05:00

Serialization – Publication in serial form.

When I was a little girl in Burlington Vt. I was introduced to Buck Rodgers on our black and white T.V. The 60s version Batman could be heard every afternoon, “Same Bat Time. Same Bat Channel.” The summer between 7th and 8th grade I sat in a movie theater and with millions of others read the words, “Long Ago, In a Galaxy Far, Far away.” The Star Wars movies and George Lucas have defined “serial” for three generations now.

Certain forms of “publication” have used this format for a very long time. Both Dickens and Doyle were serialized in Magazines. I remember reading Agatha Christie in my Grandmother’s Ladies Home Journal. Play Boy was the first glimpse we had of many talented authors. There’s panache and a history to the very idea. There’s Star Wars.

In the last decade of the last century Stephen King released GREEN MILE through every outlet that ever sold a book. I was all in. It was a glorious experiment. Green Mile was a great but not all together successful work of Serialization. It’s a fine work and King talked frankly about the Death Penalty, mortality and morality within the parameters of the form. I wasn’t sharing my views at the water cooler though. I think mainly we were just waiting to figure out the deal with the mouse. No one peels back a story better than King but like many I didn’t get over the King part of it all.

A few years back, when the NYT had a better budget they serialized works by some of my favorite writers including Ian Rankin and Laura Lippman. Great stories and bound together, really good books. Waiting in the wings with a story of his own was a young writer by the name of Duane Swierczynski. The Times concept didn’t pan out as they’d hoped and EXPIRATION DATE was released as a novel. A fan of the book, I wondered how would this experience have been, waiting week to week to see what would happen next?

Swierczynski is younger than me. Star Wars has always been a part of his life. He’s a true scholar of not just popular fiction but pop culture. All of it. Movies? I suspect he can quote dialog from just about any movie, ever. Music? Try to stump him.

When Little, Brown & Company announced a new imprint called Mulholland Books in 2010 they released a mission statement.

“The goal of Little, Brown’s Mulholland Books is simple: to publish books you can’t stop reading. Whatever their form—crime novels, thrillers, police procedurals, spy stories, even supernatural suspense—the promise of a Mulholland Book is that you’ll read it leaning forward, hungry for the next word. With a focus on online community building, internet marketing and authentic connections between authors, readers and publisher, Mulholland Books will be at the center of a web of suspense.”

Duane Swierczynski is just one of the terrific writers published under this imprint.His is a special story.
FUN &GAMES was released earlier this year. A good book demands you read it. FUN & GAMES left me frothing for the next book. In the cliffhanger to end all cliffhangers ….

The story of a man with a past and a young actress thrown together… The author pulled out all stops creating an Entertainment for the reader that had me buzzing like nothing in any form since those words scrolled down the movie screen. My expectations for the sequel to FUN & GAMES was so high I quite wondered if HELL & GONE would be able to further enamor me or if it would be a Phantom Menace in book form.

I am so very happy to report that in the middle of a too busy week I opened this book and once again dove into Swierczynski’s world with abandon. The author accelerated in FUN & GAMES . He floors it in HELL & GONE. Charlie Hardie and the Accident People are destined to entertain for a long time to come. Swiercyski’s series defines serialization for the book world like Lucas has for the movies. Now, where the hell is book three?

Charlaine Harris

2011-07-21T23:47:00.002-05:00

Charlaine Harris made headlines last week with the news that book thirteen is it. Sookie and the rest of her cast of characters from The Southern Vampire Series are wrapping up their story lines. The news spread like wild fire throughout both the internet and print press. It was mainly met with sadness. I’m excited. I cannot wait to see what one of my favorite writers has rattling around in that magnificent mind and what group of characters she’s going to introduce us to next. I’m also intrigued. What is her end game? Who will Sookie choose? Or will she just Walk away?

A strange thing happens when a favorite book series hits the TV. It’s even a little stranger when Alan Ball is backing the production. The two and a half seasons of the TV show True Blood have been glorious. Ball has certainly hit upon a lot of the themes Charlaine drives home in the books. If you read this series first as opposed to watching you’re dealing with an altered time-line. It’s all well and good, but different. Looking at sales numbers for the novels, I have to believe that most of the viewers have caught up to the readers. I cannot help but think they’re nodding their heads and thinking to themselves, “I know why she’s special, it’s in her blood.”Those of us who read the books all remember the betrayal and the joy, washing over us all at once. Whether you read first or watched first there is something very special here. A traditional setting, a small town girl with a great heart who believes, sincerely, that all are created equal and have the right to live a happy life. A young woman goes above and beyond to make her world a better place. Sookie makes mistakes, but not many. The most memorable scene from the books is yet to hit your T.V. In this scene Charlaine Harris manages to encompass Sookie’s humanity, heroism and horror with such compassion for where we are as a world today it will break your heart. I hope Ball captures that scene.

Charlaine Harris has afforded me many memorable scenes over the years. I started with Aurora Teagarden. Charlaine’s small town librarian who ends up married to a man of the world. I’m not even sure how I got there. Was it a blurb on the back? Was it a recommendation from a friend? I don’t remember but I do remember I immediately read a Lily Bard. Shakespeare’s Landing came to me at a time in my life where I’d lost control of my own environment. Here was a young woman who’d lived through something much worse than anything I’d ever been through, and was reclaiming her life. Lily did this in the gentle confines of a traditional mystery flooded with contemporary pathos. Even while I was absorbed in the mystery, I was taking strength from this fictional heroine.

Meanwhile Aurora had a list of titles for me. Classic mysteries that I’d never heard of. Reading I began to tackle. I often wonder if I ever would have read Tey or Allingham if not for Harris and Teagarden. I often think I owe Charlaine a lot of effusive thank-yous for this alone. And then she made me laugh. LOL in a way I’d not done in two years. DEAD OVER HEELS was the book. The opening scene has perhaps the most unique body discovery of all time. It’s so entirely ridiculous I couldn’t help myself. I learned a lesson about my reading habits that day. I am a reader who escapes into a book. I’ll never be able to truly deconstruct any novel no matter how many times I read it. That’s okay, I can live with that. It means I’ll always have something I want to read.

Over the years I’ve gotten to know this wonderful belle with a beautiful brain. Charlaine is the southern woman with a story of her own. I’ve seen her give back to fellow scribes. I’ve seen her giggle with fans over any number of things. She’s given me a recipe for Sweet Tea. I’ve been able to share her work with a number of people who don’t read much and discuss how very good and subtle this work is with folks who read a lot.

How I’ve enjoyed her ascent from low mid-list to the upper echelons of sales. 1,000,000 downloads anyone?
How about every book being in print? I remember a night almost three years ago. I was on the phone passing along information to a friend. “Ruth, have you seen the bestseller list?” “No I’m really swamped with Bouchercon but I know you hit # 1.” “No, look at the list, you have to see it.” Through sheer happenstance a fan got to share a moment with one of her favorite authors. A moment that doesn’t come very often. We giggled. A lot.

So I’ll miss Sookie. Sure I will. But baby I cannot wait to see what Charlaine Harris has up her sleeve for us next. I know it will be special.

I Am a Cult - Guest blog by Colin Cotterill

2011-07-20T00:07:00.002-05:00

Exposed brickwork is all the rage in Surrey. My Uncle John has an entire bathroom that looks like it was carted over directly from Berlin. But I get the feeling the naked bricks here at the Zuela Guesthouse in Luang Nam Tha, Laos, are more a homage to the cost of plastering. My room’s like a cell. No fridge. No TV. No modern arty pictures of men on buffalos. No closet safe. No closet. No feeling in my limbs after a night on the compressed bread mattress. Outside, the rains are crashing down on the banana plants and the roads are flowing red with mud. The power goes off half-a-dozen times a day. But, believe this if you will… they’ve got Wi Fi. Not even the Hilton gives away the internet for nothing. I just finished a tour of twelve cities in the ‘civilized’ side of the planet and not once did I get free wireless. But here in the hills of the north I can sit at my wonky desk and surf the world. I love this country.

How can I not have extreme feelings for a place that made me what I am today? A cult. Yes, I did spell that correctly. It’s written there in black and white on my laptop. ‘Colin Cotterill is one of the most highly regarded "cult favorite" crime writers today’. One of my two fans sent me the link. I was overwhelmed. I was elated. I didn’t know what it meant. I looked it up. Was I really a quasi-religion? I don’t think so. That only left definition 2.

a : great devotion to a person, idea, object, movement, or work (as a film or book); especially : such devotion regarded as a literary or intellectual fad b : the object of such devotion

So that was it. Like the hula-hoop and the slinky, I was a fad. The people in the next room at the Zuela obviously did not realize that I was the object of devotion or I wouldn’t have had to bang on the bricks with my flip flop last night to get them to shut up. And how would this cult following change me? Obviously not financially, because I believe devotees of a cult are generally reluctant to stick their hands in their pockets in fear that it might spoil me. Commercial success is the death knell for cults like me. And how did it come about, this cultdom? Just ten years ago I was staying in guest houses like this because it was all I could afford. Now I’m here on research. I can wash off the red street mud in a four-star hotel when I get back to Thailand. How did I begin along this path?

(cue harp music played by a tall slim woman with long dark hair and glasses)

It all started in 2000 when I wrote the first of my Lao books, The Coroner’s Lunch. I guess I knew then I wouldn’t be jabbing my nib into the mainstream artery of crime fiction. In fact, I didn’t even consider myself a crime writer. I thought I was just writing stories. (Eight of them last count). Only moderate and playful gratuitous violence. Absolutely no obscenity unless you’re really easily offended. Just a bunch of nice quirky characters doing quirky things. Comparable to other writers only with regard to the exotic location. . I hadn’t set out to make depressed people write rude things about me on Amazon or be disgraced by my books. I wanted my readers to have fun. Colin the Entertainer, that’s what I was.

I argued myself blue in the face that I wasn’t a crime writer and what happened? They handed me a Crime Writer’s Association Dagger award. You try to argue you’re not a crime writer once that’s happened. So I guess, subconsciously, all the while I was pulling away from the norm. I didn’t want to be in someone else’s genre. I wanted a genre all my own. I briefly considered vampire whodunits. Toyed with Noir fairy stories. But I’m not the serious type. If I weren’t so painfully shy and didn’t need several hours to be spontaneous, I would have been a stand-up comedian. So my new series, my truly cult adventure, would have to be funny.

Four years ago I moved to the south of Thailand to a quiet fishing village on the Gulf. Monkeys collected coconuts. Jelly fish bobbed. Dogs scratched. Some might have considered it boring. I found it utterly charming. There was so little crime that the local jail didn’t even have a lock-up. So what better premise to launch a cult series than to turn this peaceful haven of innocent squid fishing into the hub of sin and iniquity of the Eastern Seaboard? I needed characters who were not clichés nor Thai stereotypes. What better way to achieve that than to take those same stereotypes and turn them upside down? What happens when the beautiful Thai transsexual ages twenty years? What happens to the traffic cop who refuses to take bribes? What happens to the body builder who is a cowardly lion? The tough female investigative journalist who has no crime to report? The organized matriarch whose mind is slowly being turned by dementia? Throw a few mysteries into this mix and a dollop of the ridiculous and what do you have? Killed at the Whim of a Hat, and its follow up, Granddad, There’s a Head on the Beach.

I don’t mind being a cult. In fact I’m quite proud about it. What would I do with all that money, anyway? And look where it’s got me. I’m at the wonky desk at the Zuela reading emails from the organizers of September’s Bouchercon to which I am being sent as the token overseas fad. I’m being emailed reviews from German magazines and south African newspapers. My British publisher is hounding me for a new book. My Swedish translator tells me that ‘wanker’ isn’t in the dictionary. All this and I am a mere cult. You wait and see what happens when I get the Nobel.

Colin's new book is KILLED AT THE WHIM OF A HAT and is on sale now!

He is also one of the guests of honor at Bouchercon in St. Louis

Want to be entered to win a copy of the new book?
shoot an email to
Jon@crimespreemag.com

We'll be sending out at least two!

BLOODLINE

2011-07-14T10:39:00.004-05:00

A funny thing happened at Casa Crimespree when we watched the THORNE mini-series. I fell in love with Mark Billingham's character Tom Thorne all over again. So great to see him back at the beginning of this journey, before the support system and Thorne himself were battered, beaten, left for dead. It was a wake up call to all Billingham has managed to do in the eight books that have been published in the U.S.
Today number nine officially hits bookshops and on-line vendors throughout the U.S.A. BLOODLINE is a remarkable book. A twisty, terrible ride into the mind of two killers and the man looking at the cases they're involved in. What happens when the children of a Serial Killer's victims begin to die? From the epilogue at the very beginning of the book you'll know the stakes are high.
Did I turn you off with the words "serial killer"? Don't let it be so.
For this is a book about choices and history. The characters both heroic and cowardly. The puzzle is truly remarkable. Bloodlines is the kind of book you lose yourself in until you're done..
Once again I've got to go back to the mini-series. When you love an author's work from the beginning you often lose prespective of everything he has managed to accomplish. In Billingham's case he has dealt effectively and compassionately with Alzheimer's, Gay rights, the Iraq War, the socio-economic system, inner-office politics, homelessness. And you forget because you are so caught up in the character of Thorne. Simply one of the best Police to ever grace the page. His books are big. Think McDermid, Robinson, Rankin if you like Brit. Think Harry Bosch and Cork O'Connor if you're a fan of American police procedural.
Back to the mini series though. In watching the TV adaptation I found flaws. All faithful readers do. What I saw was eye opening. Tom Thorne is an over the top every man cop with layers and baggage. He is Jimmy Smit's Simone from NYPD Blues. He is Timothy Olyphant in Justified. He is Rudy Carazzo from the 57th Precinct series. He is Lucas Davenport without the cash. He is Harry Bosch with all the bad political savy.
Mark Billingham and Tom Thorne are the best of reads. There's a depth of character and plot written with the pacing of an airport best seller. It's time to join the party. Out today from Mulholland Books don't miss BLOODLINE.

Three Crime Fiction writers - 1 character- THE PUNISHER Volume 6

2011-06-22T14:49:00.000-05:00

In the last few years a number of our favorite crime fiction writing dudes have been branching out into comics.

One book that a number of them have worked on is THE PUNISHER from marvel comics.

They have collected the various issues all into one lovely and large hardcover edition THE PUNISHER VOLUME 6. (Amazon has it at a wonderfully affordable price of $24.26)

Hurwitz, Gischler and Sweirczynski aside from having hard to spell names each have a different take on the character and they were able to inject their own writing sensibilities into the runs they did on the comic.

Hurwitz does a tale that is similar to the actual Juarez Murders, set in Mexico the Punisher stands up for the little guys and gets some payback for people who can't on their own

Victor Gischler take ol' Frank Castle down the the Bayou in a twisted Punisher version of Deliverance. Good Ol' boys getting their asses handed to them in a swamp, FUN STUFF!

And Duane Does a wonderful race the clock story which bring Frank to Duane's stomping grounds in Philadelphia.Another classic crime fiction spin to a Punisher tale.

If you dig crime fiction and or/dig the Punisher you need this book.

Go get yourself some Here!

Michael Koryta , THE RIDGE & More

2011-06-03T06:15:00.003-05:00

I'm not afraid of the dark
When the sun goes down
And the dreams grow teeth
And the beasts come out
Cast their long shadows
Every time that they start
I'll be right here with you
I'm not afraid of the dark
Josh Ritter

Michael Koyta’s strength as a story teller is well known. From TONIGHT I SAID GOODBYE to THE CYPRESS HOUSE his words have spoken to the readers with a distinct voice that continues to whisper at you long after the book is done.THE RIDGE is a journey into the impossible made real by one of today’s best writers.

“What would you prefer, Murder or Suicide?” A challenging question uttered to Chief Deputy Kevin Kimble by Wyatt French .

“It will be very important to keep the light on after I’m gone.” Wyatt’s words for reporter Roy Darmus.

As one Sentinel closes for good another is about to become necessary in Sawyer County. There’s something happening out at Blade Ridge. The stakes are high. The past and the future stalking the present like a lion upon his prey.

Wyatt French lives on the edge of town. For years he’s been the town eccentric; living in a lighthouse in the middle of the woods, drinking by day and holing up in his abode by night. When Roy arrives at Wyatt’s to check up on him, the lights are about to go out and the narrative to begin in earnest.

Koryta pulls you into a story that will unlock a deeper part of your imagination with every page. This writer’s well known sense of place is finely honed. Blade Ridge is a little slice of Kentucky. A failed mining hub of the 19th century that has become a sleepy hollow of the 21st, Blade Ridge is pulsing with an evil that is timeless. Wyatt’s closest neighbor is a big cat rescue center. Audrey Clark and her team rescue abused cats, feed them and give them a life.
Photographs and memories aren’t all that Wyatt leaves behind. Kimble, Darmus and Clark will have to solve the puzzle of the Ridge soon. It’s a matter of life & death.
Koryta’s abilities as a writer have grown since that first book. THE RIDGE is a brilliant piece of craftsmanship that will captivate both crime fiction and horror readers. THE RIDGE is a place as real as King’s Derry, as singular as Jackson’s Haunted House and a puzzle as honed as McDermid’s A GRAVE TATTOO.
Read it & keep the light on..

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. I'm in fact quite fond of the author's entire body of work. He recently said to Alafair Burke in a q&a that he really hoped all of his readers would enjoy the novel but he knew he was writing a different kind of book. That it was important to continue to evolve as a writer. You done good Michael.

I was fortunate to be introduced to Michael Koryta at a convention in 2003. He was attending because his "first" novel, TONIGHT I SAID GOOD-BYE had won the coveted St. Martin's/PWA First Novel contest. A wonderful mix of a PI partnership, an introduction to side characters we'd come to love and a case guaranteed to break the heart, TONIGHT I SAID GOOD-BYE also had a glimpse of the Koryta we'd see in later books. On a deserted beach three people fight for their lives. The scene is vivid, the chill from the ocean feels real and the backdrop of a deserted amusement park adds to the eeriness. The bullets fly.

So yes I'm a fan. I would declare myself to be a protective fan even. When Koryta took a year off from the Joe Pritchard/Lincoln Perry series to write his first stand-a-lone I was a little leery. ENVY THE NIGHT set my mind forever at rest. A story about fathers and their children, sins of the past catching up to the now, ENVY THE NIGHT was not only a great read, it was so structurally sound my high school English teacher would have loved this book for the symbolism and themes. she'd have found passages of "succinct character development".

In 2009 at the Indy Bouchercon we found out that Michael was going to release his next three books in One calendar year. Write every day. Koryta is a firm believer in this mantra. Three books in one year?

SO COLD THE RIVER, winner of the LA Times Best Mystery of the Year contest last year blew me away. The story of a film maker shortchanged by temper and his chance to get back not only his career but his wife stepped into the world of the unknown. The base of the story steps into the past, to a time when the Rockefellers vacationed in West Baden and everyone drank the water. The Pluto Water. The book has had a remarkable staying power with me. Just last month when the horror of Joplin hit, I could not help but think to myself, "They needed Annie.". If you've read the novel you'll understand. If you haven't put it on your reading list.

CYPRESS HOUSE arrived just a few months ago it seems. Set in Florida during the great depression. It is the story of a man who sees death coming, the boy he's taken under his wing and a woman with a whole lot of trouble on her hands. As good as I believe SO COLD THE RIVER to be, CYPRESS HOUSE is probably better. The atmosphere surrounding the novel is like the low pressure front before a hurricane and you are about to be blown away. It is a book so visually exciting that I'm entirely jazzed by the news from Hollywood that Christopher Columbus and 1492 films has acquired the rights to interpret the book for the screen. Koryta has given them a storyboard as clear as any graphic novel but with atmosphere only a seasoned veteran with talent to spare could possibly manage.

It's been quite a year for Koryta. It's been an even better year for his readers.

THE TWO DEATHS OF DANIEL HAYES

2011-06-02T06:16:00.003-05:00

Marcus Sakey. Not too many years ago this author took a leap of faith and sat down to write his first novel , THE BLADE ITSELF. One of the last decade's most well received debuts, Sakey immediately found a place on the shelves of Crime Fiction fans. Well crafted thriller plots set with the back-drop of his hometown, Chicago and the soul of the traditional mystery have quickly expanded this writer's fan base.

This weekend he'll be debuting his new novel at Printer's Row in Chicago. If you're in the area and don't have plans stop by the main stage and pick up a copy. There's a rumor he's buying the beer. Do you live elsewhere? Put this book on your list.

None other than Lee Child declares Marcus Sakey to be one of the "New Voices quickly becoming an old favorite." Michael Connelly declares the book to be, " A tight, intuitive and terriffic read"

With a drop date of June 9, Sakey is about to expand his audience. THE TWO DEATHS OF DANIEL HAYES opens on a beach in Maine. Our Protagonist doesn't remember why he's there or who he is. He's naked and close to freezing. The first clues to his identity are a car and a gun.

Inexplicably drawn to L.A. ,the man heads to California with the police on his tail. The trouble is just beginning. Who is this man with no memory? Will he have a chance to answer the question of why he was on that beach to begin with before he loses his freedom?

Sakey parses out snippets of this story as bits of memory return to his hero's past. It is a story of one man and an all to public personal life. The story of a marriage that reached for the stars. Did it crash to earth? Are we reading into the mind of a killer or the heart of a victim?

Every note of cadence in this novel is hard rock, the sound that reverberates to the reader drawn out like a Slash solo. There is no good place to stop for a breath during this read. That is a testament to story.

On a cold day in January I sat down to Sakey's latest, THE TWO DEATHS OF DANIEL HAYES and I had a moment. This is a young writer who owns his words, every one of them. Kudos Mr. Sakey, your dream has arrived and readers everywhere will be better for it.

For the next few weeks, I'll be highlighting some of this summer's books. I need to begin with a disclaimer. The books I'll be talking about are books that I have enjoyed, books that have made me marvel at the author's talent. The wonder of Crimespree is that there really are too many books in the sense that I haven't read nearly everything I intend to read this summer. Forgive me if I come late to the party on a few. I also have a huge advantage over the average reader in that I am gifted of many books. My book budget is nicely supplemented by kind hearted publishers who hope to gain exposure for their product in our Magazine. So once again, I'll suggest that anyone who read's this blog or any "best of"list use it as a guideline and not an absolute. A trip to a well stocked bookstore, just you and the flap copy is always the best way to find the perfect fit between you and a book.

2011 MWA University Schedule - Registration is Open

2011-05-20T11:06:00.000-05:00

We are pleased to announce additions to our 2011 MWA University Schedule - Registration is now open.

For details about MWA University, visit this link

MWA University - Waukesha, Wisconsin - Friday, June 17, 2011

Location:  University of Wisconsin Waukesha
Northview Hall – Room N133 – Main Level
1500 N University Dr
Waukesha, WI 53188

Class/Instructor: After the Idea - Jess Lourey
                            Dramatic Structure & Plot - Hallie Ephron
                        Setting & Description - John Galligan
                            Character & Dialogue - Megan Abbott
                            Writing as Re-Writing - Reed Farrel Coleman
                            The Writing Life - Hank Phillippi Ryan

Campus Map: www.waukesha.uwc.edu/About-UWW/Directions-Maps.aspx
We have arranged for a discount at the Marriott Milwaukee West - $95/per night. Reservations must be made via the link below. The heavily discounted rate will only be available until June 6, 2011:
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/mkemw?groupCode=sewsewa&app=resvlink&fromDate=6/16/11&toDate=6/20/11

Registration Form

MWA University - New York - Saturday, August 13, 2011

Location: Fordham University School of Law
McNally Auditorium – Atrium Level
140 W 62nd St (between Columbus & Amsterdam Avenues)
New York, NY 10023

Class/Instructor: After the Idea - Jess Lourey
                            Dramatic Structure & Plot - Hallie Ephron
                        Setting & Description - Daniel Stashower
                            Character & Dialogue - Cordelia Frances Biddle
                            Writing as Re-Writing - Reed Farrel Coleman
                            The Writing Life - Hank Phillippi Ryan

Map of Area: http://tinyurl.com/6f2d3t2

Registration Form

MWA University - St. Louis - Wednesday, September 14, 2011 (the day before Bouchercon begins)

Location: Holiday Inn Select – Downtown St. Louis
Washington & Broadway Rooms
811 N 9th St
St. Louis, MO 63101

Class/Instructor: After the Idea - Jess Lourey
                            Dramatic Structure & Plot - Hallie Ephron
                        Setting & Description - John Desjarlais
                            Character & Dialogue - Vicki Stiefel
                            Writing as Re-Writing - Reed Farrel Coleman
                            The Writing Life - Hank Phillippi Ryan

Map of Area: http://tinyurl.com/3b79f3m

Registration Form

MWA University - New Orleans - Saturday, October 1, 2011

Location: Hotel Monteleone
Vieux Carre Room
214 Royal St
New Orleans, LA 70130

Class/Instructor: After the Idea - Jess Lourey
                            Dramatic Structure & Plot - Hallie Ephron
                        Setting & Description - David Morrell
                            Character & Dialogue - Julie Smith
                            Writing as Re-Writing - Reed Farrel Coleman
                            The Writing Life - Hank Phillippi Ryan

Map of Area: http://tinyurl.com/64tcoxr

We have arranged for a rate of $159/per night at the hotel (includes a continental breakfast). The rate will cover the following date range: September 29 - October 2, 2011. Reservations must be made by September 23, 2011. Reservation link to hotel will be available soon.

Registration Form

The Boxer by Sean Monaghan

2011-05-04T12:25:00.002-05:00

Due to a production error, the short story in the latest issue got cut off. We are posting it here so you can read the WHOLE story.

Jon

The Boxer By Sean Monaghan

Tony bounced on his toes, grazed knuckles still in front of his bruised eyes. Rodriguez lay on the mat. The referee grabbed Tony's hand, holding it aloft. Tony hadn't even heard the count.

There were some muttered cheers, but Tony just went to the corner and let Perry damp him down.

"Mr Armitage is here," Perry said.

Tony glanced around, saw Armitage and Drexler.

"You did good tonight," Armitage said.

"Fifteen hundred," Tony said. A few more fights and he'd be clear.

"You do win quite often,” Armitage said as they walked to the locker room.

"I guess,” Tony said.

"I’d pay you well to take a fall."

"You’ve told me that before."

Armitage laughed. "Yes I have. Well then, how would you like to resolve your situation, tonight?"

"I don't understand."

"Repay the debt. In full."

"He shouldn't fight any more," Perry said. "Not tonight."

Armitage waved his cigar. "No, not fighting. Another little job for me."

Tony nodded.

He got cleaned up and Drexler drove them out of the city, down towards the Cape. A small town Tony had never visited. Since fleeing Oregon, he'd hardly been out of central Boston. Drexler parked the Limo in front of one of the clapboard villas on a street filled with similar colonials.

Armitage put out his cigar. "Two houses along," he said, handing Tony a key and a small flashlight. "Number thirteen sixty eight."

Tony took the things.

"This requires discretion," Armitage said. "Can I count on you for that?"

"Discretion?"

"I gave her some expensive jewelry and I want it back."

"You can't ask her?"

"Ah, Tony, there's my problem. She ended our relationship, fearing for her child and marriage, I suspect."

"Couldn't you-"

"Tony, this is a delicate situation. The jewels are in her top drawer. The dresser is obvious, her room - their room - is the second door past the top of the stairs. You'll be in and out in a couple of moments."

"I don't know, Mr Armitage." Breaking and entering sounded risky.

"A few minutes. They aren't home. You understand why I can't go in."

"I ..."

"And your debt will be erased."

Tony nodded. Wiping eighty thousand was taking a long time. For a while the fights had barely made interest. Now he was getting close, but the sense of ending it buoyed him. He looked at the key. "Front door?"

Armitage nodded. "Dresser drawer. Second door. Top of the stairs. No one home."

"Alarms?"

"None. It’s a quiet, sleepy town. See you in a few minutes."

Tony stepped out onto the sidewalk and went along to the house. There was a twin seat swing on the front porch, beside an aluminum table with an empty coffee cup. The key turned in the lock.

Tony went across the threshold, clicked the flashlight on. Stairs with a rodded mat. On the wall there were photos of scuba divers and fish and whales. A toddler in a bathing suit running across sand.

He jogged up the stairs, went to the second door. There were more photos, but Tony didn't look. He darted the flashlight around the room. Closet, bedside tables with lamps, rumpled bed, dresser. He hauled the drawer out, wondering how Armitage knew exactly where the jewels were.

Rifling through smalls Tony didn't find anything. Growling he emptied the drawer onto the floor, shining the flashlight through the woman's underwear. Nothing.

Something wasn't right.

Tony opened the next drawer. Socks.

A toilet flushed in the en suite.

Tony yanked out the drawer and tipped it over. Something clunked to the floor amongst the spilling socks. The jewels. Reaching to pick them up, he felt a pistol.

The light flicked on and someone screamed.

Tony put the gun up on the dresser and backed away from her. The jewels weren't here anyway. Armitage had been wrong.

The woman hurled a book at him, then the bedside lamp.

"Hey," Tony said. "I'm just collecting the jewels."

"Get out," she was holding up a pillow as if ready to smack him.

Her eyes flicked to the gun and Tony almost picked it up again. "Sorry," he said. "I didn't mean any trouble." He would have to keep on with the fighting to clear the debt. He had a feeling that Armitage wasn't going to make it easy for him.

Wide-eyed, the woman clutched the pillow.

"Mom," someone called out from the hallway, and a light glowed on behind Tony.

"Go back to bed honey," the woman said.

Tony saw that she was shaking. He could tell why Armitage had taken up with her, full blond hair, light eyes, trim figure. She looked at the gun again and he knew he couldn't leave it behind.

As he reached out, another hand slipped over the pistol. Tony looked up to see Armitage. "Hello Tony," he said. "No jewels? Oh well. Hello Claire."

Armitage had gloves on. Tony knew his own prints were on the gun.

The woman's face narrowed to a scowl.

"Where is it, Claire?"

Tony realized that Armitage hadn't known where the jewels were, but must have known about the gun.

"Spent," the woman said. "You knew it would be spent."

Someone raced along the hallway and crashed into Armitage. He staggered. Twisting, he fired. The sound made Tony jerk. The woman screamed again. A girl, perhaps fifteen, collapsed to the floor. Blood blackened the carpet under her in a growing stain.

"Daphne." The woman dove, shoving Tony aside. She scooped the dying girl up, clutching her close. "Bastard, you bastard."

"Claire," Armitage said softly. "You know how this works. I own you."

"I made a mistake. My husband will be-"

Armitage shot her in the shoulder. She fell back, the girl's body sprawling. "Your husband is lucky he's not home. But I will, eventually, be collecting from him."

The woman's face shifted from agony to sadness and then Armitage gave her a kill shot.

"What the hell?" Tony said.

Armitage removed the clip and clicked the bullets out into his palm, replaced the empty clip, then tossed the gun at Tony. He caught it reflexively.

Armitage pocketed the bullets and turned to the stairs. "Your debt is cleared," he said. "You're free to go." He glanced over his shoulder. "But I have a feeling that your problems are just beginning."

Tony looked at the two bodies. A set-up.

He jumped at Armitage, already halfway down the stairs. Armitage buckled under him and they tumbled to the front door, the gun clattering away.

"Idiot," Armitage said, clutching a bleeding cheek.

Tony punched him.

Drexler appeared at the doorway. "What the ...?" He bent for the gun.

Tony jumped up, but Drexler was fast, had the gun in his hand, leveled at Tony.

"I'm being set up," Tony said. He realized that Drexler had gloves, but hanging from his pocket, not on his hands. Drexler was part of the set-up, but now his prints would be on the gun too.

Drexler tipped his hand and glanced at the empty gun. He knew, Tony realized, from the weight.

Tony sprang and knocked Drexler down across the steps. Armitage's man was tough, but no match for Tony's fists.

Tony stood up. Sirens in the distance.

Armitage had lawyers. No matter what Tony said, Armitage would walk, find himself another drudge boy, find someone else to take those falls.

And Tony would be in jail. He wasn't going back there. Ever.

Taking the keys from Drexler, Tony dragged Armitage over to the car. He tossed the boss in the front seat, then sat behind the wheel.

It wasn’t going to work.

Tony leapt back out of the car, ran to Drexler and wiped the gun down. He took the gloves and stuffed the gun into Drexler’s belt.

Back in the car, Tony edged into the access alley and crept across a few streets, letting the cops pass. Once he felt clear, he fled to the freeway, then on across the bridge to the Cape. Near Provincetown he found a seaward beach access. He crossed the packed sand and stopped close to the water.

Armitage was still groggy, not quite conscious. Tony climbed out and hauled him into the driver seat. Then he went around behind the car and began pushing. With the slope and the backwash he got it down. Waves broke over the hood as the car drifted off, settling, then sinking.

Tony walked back across the beach, feeling light. Whatever happened the debt was clear. No more fighting, no more trying to avoid Drexler. He watched the waves for a few moments, then turned to the dunes. He had a long walk back home. Wherever that was.

Mystery Week

2011-04-30T08:38:00.002-05:00

Everyone who knows Crimespree, knows that we spent this past week in New York City. What a week it was. I came to the party late. Trailing two days behind Jon, Paul, Jen and Judy.

Here are the bullet points.

Great meetings with many of New York's top publishers. We were there to talk Bouchercon involvement. The enthusiasm was gratifying. Jon has developed a good and quick presentation over the past three years. I'm a proud wife.

Big News for two of Mystery's champions.

Agent extraordinaire David Hale Smith has joined Inkwell Management in a move that I believe to be brilliant for both sides. The incredible talent the two are merging promises great reading ahead for readers everywhere.

Good Friend Ben Leroy of Tyrus Books had some news of his own. I am very excited both by the launch of F&W Crime, and the future of Tyrus Books. Ben has an eye for fiction that thinks outside the box and adds to the world of books.

Tremendous Launch for THE RICH & THE DEAD at The Mysterious Bookshop: When hundreds of people descend upon an independent bookstore on a Tuesday evening, it reaffirms my belief in the book itself. The bookstore on Warren Street was pulsating with life and overflowing with both authors and the folks who buy their books. If you are a reader be sure to visit this store on any New York visit.

The 65th Edgar Awards
And the Edgar goes to.....
A night of glitz, glamour, and celebration. A banquet with edible food. New memories created with old friends and new acquaintances. Long live mystery.

The Raven Winners: To see Augie (Centuries & Sleuths) Pat & Gary (Once Upon a Crime) outside of their natural milieu was worth a trip to New York. These three people have championed the book and the people who write them for many years. Owning a bookstore would be a thankless task except for their love of the written word. This one time "Payback is a Blessing". I cannot over-emphasize what it meant for me to see them receive this honor in person.

The 2011 Grand Master: Sara Paretsky is one of the world's most amazing women. Three decades ago now she began to write a series about a PI named V.I. Warshawski. This series breathed a fresh breath into the life of the Private Eye Novel, proving it could sell. Her sales encouraged many of the writers I know, male and female to begin writing what was in their gut. The sales allowed publishing houses to take a chance on talented new writers in the field of Crime.One of the founding members of Sisters in Crime, Paretsky has influenced an entire industry, from the people who publish it to the folks who report it. She has done it with a quiet elegance that has required the raising of her voice on occasion.
The champion of many social issues, Sara has lent her name and reputation to homelessness, womens' shelters and the list goes on. Her series has explored issues ranging from abortion to the quiet death of print newspaper. She does this with one of mystery's most enduring characters. V.I. is the go to chick for many of us who read and write.

That she receives this honor in a year when the presidency of the MWA is passed from Laura Lippman to Lisa Scotteline only makes it more special.

Typing from Wisconsin with two cats at her feet...

The 8 % Solution Continued

2011-04-22T07:14:00.003-05:00

I began this project with a simple request. Asking people to bring a friend to an Independent Book Store on the weekend and share a photo with us.
I'm not done yet. Last night I had the great good fortune to go to a book event. Have you attended one this month? Would you be willing to share a photo? I've got more books. Send me a picture by April 26th and you'll be entered in a drawing for a St. Martin's Press book.

The Winner of our first Photo Contest is Bill Cameron pictured here with a charming young man at Powell's Books. Bill is also a writer with ferocious chops and insane talent.

If you have the time to tell me your favorite story (500 words) about any bookstore purchase and will share I will consider it a privilege to read it. Any and all stories will make my birthday week a little better. I will share mine with everyone next week.

The strong core of Mystery Indies can keep our favorite genre healthy. Please help by finding one to frequent.

Ruth

Guest Blogger PETER BLAUNER

2011-04-19T14:43:00.000-05:00

New York Times bestselling author [and scriptwriter for Law & Order], Peter Blauner, has written six critically-acclaimed novels including Slipping Into Darkness and The Last Good Day. Here, Peter shares the back-story behind his first novel, the Edgar award-winning Slow Motion Riot.

I began my career as a novelist with a determined sense of mission - sort of like the Donner Party, I guess. I didn't want to write a "snow on the tennis court" novel. I wanted to write a book that was engaged with the real world, not dewy memories of childhood or an ode to tragically wasted adolescence. But to do that, I needed to get out of my own life and into someone else's. So I remembered (or misremembered) a quote from the novelist Stanley Elkin, who said he always began by thinking about what a character did for a living. So I began looking for a job that would provide the characters, the language and ultimately the story I was looking for. And I found it one day when I did a story, as a journalist, about a probation officer in New York.

Here was a world I hadn't seen in a novel before. A dimly-lit 8 by 10 cubicle on the tenth floor of a municipal building, which became a crossroads of urban criminal life and, in some ways, a microcosm for the city. Because it was the 1980s and prisons were overcrowded, a wide-range of people were getting probation - Wall Street brokers, street kids selling crack, middle-class ladies with kleptomaniac issues. And the probation officer himself was the richest character of all - kind of a half-cop, half-social worker, who could either help these people or send them to prison, every appointment a potential existential dilemma. So I decided the only way to do this was full-on. I took of absence from my job at New York magazine and signed for a six months as a volunteer probation officer, going through the training program, sitting in on office visits, and eventually going out into the field with the gun-carrying squad serving warrants. Then I came home and typed as fast as I could, trying to capture not just the scary moments, but the surreal humor and the glimmers of humanity I saw. The result, in somewhat more polished form, is Slow Motion Riot. It's raw and rough, and there are parts that I wish were maybe a little more balanced and refined, but it's the way it was - or more accurately, it’s the way those characters would have seen it at the time.

Of course, the irony is that now I like some "snow on the tennis court" novels. But you can't tell young people anything.

Five of Blauner’s novels are available for the first as ebooks from Open Road Media: Slow Motion Riot, Casino Moon, Slipping Into Darkness, Man of the Hour, and The Last Good Day.

Barry Bonds

2011-04-13T20:22:00.002-05:00

To say I know Barry Bonds would be perhaps, an exaggeration. To say he was stand up when we were in proximity to one another is not.

As a young woman in my twenties I took the trek to work the Cactus League in Arizona, I didn't know what I wanted to do with my life but dammit, I knew I loved baseball.

Barry Bonds story read like a fairy tale. He too, loved baseball. He too moved west. He made a lot of money, me not so much. If you're a true fan of baseball you know how much his free agent deal meant. If you are not a true fan of baseball I'm sure you remember or will be reminded of the numbers.

When Bonds signed his contract with San Francisco we were all excited. This would be what got us there and we were ready. Bonds in the batting cage was magic and not just for this concessions office manager. He'd slam them into the backdrop for the kids when he should have been saving it for the season. He worked with Coach Kennedy. He signed autographs. He shared stories with the fans and did the calisthenics with his team mates. He said hello every day to a young woman who was working from 4:30 in the morning until 1:30 at night. He signed a bat and a ball for her and with Matt Williams made his first season with the Giants perhaps my most memorable.

The man loves the game. He's always appreciated his gift.

The verdict is in. It is perhaps fair and perhaps not. I personally would like to know why?? While our country was involved in a war most of us don't want, a bank scandal that took away life savings from many I know, and too many other substantive issues, why did we focus on steroids. Why were these the congressional hearings that were held and seemingly mattered?

Just last summer I argued with a friend that the only rule a ball player was ever told couldn't be broken was betting on baseball. We learned that one the hard way. In the late eighties and early nineties players did what they had to to be better, bigger, swing the bat harder, run faster. We demanded it of the players.

The left hand challenges the right here in America. It doesn't mean we're paying attention . I choose to remember the best ball player of his age greeting me in the morning with a "You didn't let Ed talk you into living on McDonald's' again today?"

Thank you Barry Bonds for everything you did for baseball. I'm sorry baseball didn't do everything it should have for you.

2011-04-09T12:28:00.000-05:00

Our mailing service is shipping the latest issue, as I type it should be on trucks driven be dedicated postal workers.

Jeremy Lynch did a really nice interview with Don Winslow and the guest editorial from Jen Forbus is terrific.

In this issue we have:.

GUEST EDITORIAL by Jen Forbus

LEGACY OF RICHARD STARK

HANGING WITH AYO - Q & A WITH JUSSI ADLER-OLSEN

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A SPY

LOSES CONTROL OF HIS MIND by Keith Thomson

FICTION: THE BOXER by Sean Monaghan

COVER STORY

DON WINSLOW INTERVIEWED by Jeremy Lynch

5 QUESTIONS, 5 ANSWERS with Sophie Hannah

Let’s Twist Again by Hank Phillipi Ryan

Footprints: The Spider , Master of Men

This Time It’s Personal by Dave Zeltserman

CREATING INDIAN COUNTRY NOIR by Sarah Cortez

RESPONSIBLE, CREATIVE, LOYAL by Libber Fischer Hellmann

Reed Farrel Coleman – TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING

CRAIG’S JOINT: ELLROY’S DARK PLACES by Craig McDonald

FICTION: THE NICKEL by Gay Degani

EYE ON HOLLYWOOD by Jeremy Lynch

SCIENCE FICTION NOIR by By Maxim Jakubowski

DVD REVIEWS

BUZZBIN - book coverage

BOOK REVIEWS

CRIMESPREE ON COMICS

COOKING WITH CRIMESPREE by Alison Janssen

Need a subscription or need to renew?

Click here to get hookedup

Do You Have A Local?

2011-04-04T19:39:00.004-05:00

This blog is dedicated to all of the wonderful folk who feed my addiction for books in the most personal of ways. Sometimes it's nice to walk through the door and have everyone know your name. More importantly, it is astounding to think that I can go to 40 different cities in this country, roll up to the counter and the Bookkeeper is gonna be able to put my book of choice in my hand. This number would be even higher if I was better traveled.

This past weekend Crimespree flew to Minneapolis for Writes of Spring, an annual event held at ONCE UPON A CRIME. How heartening it is to see Authors rally around their local book store. Even better? Seeing the folks coming out to buy books. It warmed my heart to see that all that booky energy.

The last four times I've been to my own local, MYSTERY ONE BOOKS in Milwaukee the crowd has also been good. It's worth mentioning that on Super Bowl Sunday .. in Wisconsin, Robert Crais had an audience of 70 people. Not bad at all.

Have I lost you? Are you thinking there goes Ruth with her Rose Colored glasses.. If you're still here I have an idea... a crazy, silly & wonderful idea. All I need is a little help from my friends. All I need is a little help from the people I haven't met yet but stumble across this blog. All I need is a commitment.

Do you remember the rush when you stumbled across that perfect book? Do you recall a cover calling to you, the flap copy adding to the harmony, and possibly a blurb that sealed the deal? When you read that book it was yours. The book belonged to you and was yours to talk about, share, put into other folks hands. It was the discovery that made it special.

For most fiction readers that feeling I just described along with print reviews is the way they find these treasures, for now. The casual reader likes to walk into a store and find the book that's going to get them through that chilly weekend or long plane ride.

Summer is coming and with it the beach & vacations. An outlet is gone for those who are part time readers to get their fix. The closing of Border's presents any number of problems to everyone with any conscious awareness of the Publishing Industry. Last year the box store accounted for 13% of all book sales.

There's an opportunity here. Last year Indy stores accounted for only 2% of Sales. Let's change that this year. Let's Make it 8%.

That co-worker who asks you what to read? The friend who asks you what you think they might like? Surely all of us can find two people to walk into an independent bookstore of our choice who've never been to one before.

That's it. That's my plan. If all of us do this we can help the Indy dealers who lay the footprint for the best sellers of tomorrow. These smaller stores may not have as many end caps or focal points as a Borders but they are full of reading goodness and staff who knows how to put the right book into the customer's hand.

There will be hard choices for writers, publishers, distributors and the consumer in the months ahead. But for the now, let's gift our family, friends and acquaintances with a choice they never knew they had. The Indy Book Store.

This idea is so simple I bet Joe Konrath has time to play and a desire to help.

Mad Men Season 4

2011-04-04T09:26:00.001-05:00

News hit last week that Mad Men has been renewed and we'll be getting more. The fourth season on DVD also just shipped.Here in Castle Crimespree we love the show, the look, the feel, the music, the characters, and the stories. It's great television.

To celebrate we will be giving out a free copy of MAD MEN SEASON FOUR on dvd.

But of course there is a catch. You need to subscribe to Crimespree to enter the drawing. On Friday afternoon April 8th we will pick a name and send out the lat3est DVD set to one winner.

You can subscribe here: http://crimespreemag.com/subscribe.html

IT IS ALL FUN & GAMES

2011-03-28T19:46:00.002-05:00

"All the best stories in the world are but one story in reality - the story of an escape"
A.C Benson
Brought to you by chapter 16 of Duane Swierczynski's FUN & GAMES

For ten years now, Ive been escaping with this writer. Stealing moments and sharing adventure. I cannot even remember who suggested the writer Duane Swiercynski to me first. It could have been anyone of a dozen people. Was it Ken Bruen, Reed Farrel Coleman, Jason Starr? It might have been Vicki Hendricks, Sean Doolittle, Victor Gischler or Neal Anthony Smith. Was it Laura Lippman? It may have been an e-mail from Houston's Murder by the Book. Perhaps it was Sandra Ruttan....Hell, it could have been his publisher. Or..

What's remarkable about Duane and his first book, SECRET DEAD MEN is that I'm quite sure I heard about it from all the people on the above list before the second round of arcs (Advanced reading copies) were out and this was in the days before Crimespree. It was before twitter and facebook. People were so happy with this book they were suggesting it to everyone they knew who they thought would enjoy it. This is a book people wanted to share.

And we haven't looked back.

Images float through my mind; a drink in an airport bar, a deserted toy store, a bowl of potato salad, a downsized reporter drinking beer on a stoop, a bunch of geezers. It's all great and some of it is glorious. Swierczynski's latest published book EXPIRATION DATE is up for the 2010 Edgar.

EXPIRATION DATE a wonderful book that looks at relationships, crimes, the pharmaceutical industry, and our ability to make choices. It's a locked room mystery with a bottle of tylenol in charge of the plot. There's time travel (sci-fi) and the scary man who lived down the hall (horror). It is an un-put-downable book that demands more & more credibility with each new and often bizarre twist.

Duane Swierczynski is one of the great new writers who believes there aren't just three motives and a limited number of plots. He allows you into his books with a touch of noir and a dash of whimsy, grabs you and doesn't let you go.

When Mr. Swierczynski started writing books (the first a non-fiction entitled THE BIG BOOK OF BEER) he was a reporter working the daily deadline beat. A steady gig with Marvel Comics allowed him to begin working from home. A couple of conversations, an ability to absorb and distill pop culture, and a discipline for the written word have brought us to a new publishing house and a new era....

Duane Swierczynski & Charlie Hardie

presented by Mulholland Books
featuring Hollywood
introducing "The Accident People"

I was all in with the idea of a Swierczynski trilogy from the moment the first news leaked into my ears. After reading it? I have all the chips.

Ex policeman/ house sitter Charlie Hardie takes a gig in L.A. looking after a screenwriter's house. He doesn't do plants or animals. He secures the house.

Starlet Lane Madden takes a late night drive.

All Hell is about to break out.

Someone's written an equation for Murder and Charlie is that unknown variable.

What's in the duffle bag?

Impaling, martial arts, poison, fire, secret rooms.... Hollywood.

This book has it all.

Duane creates a world we can see. FUN & GAMES is a conspiracy book to rival my favorite conspiracy movie, The Parallax View. I declare this book fastest read of the year. I want part two, HELL & GONE now.

Why am I teasing you with a book you won't see drop until June? It's simple. I'm so happy with this book I'm suggesting it to everyone I think will enjoy it now. That's the entire blogoshere people. Thanks for the escape Duane.

Visit Duane at Secret Dead Blog & take a look at Mulholland Books a remarkable new brand in Crime Fiction

(exclamation points controlled in honor of my favorite Hachette editor)

“Dear Reader, you now have all the clues you need ….”

2011-03-23T22:40:00.000-05:00

What first made me a mystery lover?

I’ve been thinking about that question a great deal this spring, as the publication of my fifth mystery novel looms. What exactly about mystery caught me in its grip? The intrigue? The window into the darker side of human nature? Or simply the fun of the chase? And after some deep thought, I have decided that it must have been the audacity, the arrogance, the pure hubris of Ellery Queen’s “Challenge to the Reader.”

Where I first learned of it, I don’t know. I may have noticed it while browsing paperbacks at my local bookstore. I might have picked it up in the school library. But I remember reacting strongly to the challenge. I remember thinking, “well, if he can think it up, I can figure it out.” Of course I couldn’t. In fact, I’m not sure that I ever conquered the Queen challenge. But I never gave up trying. And I read them all, every single one.

Though I read some Agatha Christie, I was never taken with Christie’s novels as I was Queen’s. But, as I grew, my reading habits changed a little. Ellery Queen novels mixed with the historical novels of Kenneth Roberts, Esther Forbes and Irene Hunt. Then enter the novels of Fletcher Knebel – The Zinzin Road, Night of Camp David, Dark Horse. I was addicted to political thrillers. Fletcher Knebel became Frederick Forsyth became Robert Ludlum became David Ignatius. But I also discovered George MacDonald Fraser and the Flashman series and John Maddox Roberts’ SPQR mysteries. And with that I was hooked on historical mysteries.

But I never quite lost my love of Ellery Queen and his version of Dupin’s ratiocination, and when my love of reading mysteries turned to a passion for writing them, I couldn’t help but be influenced by Frederick Dannay and Manfred Lee’s creation. In my first two mysteries, I tried out both William Shakespeare as Sherlock Holmes and Ernest Hemingway as Dr. John Watson, so to speak. And though I was not dissatisfied with the results, I still hadn’t found what I was looking for.

Then, while on my way to Kuwait where I was then teaching, I happened on a book at Gatwick about the historical King Arthur. At that juncture, no one had yet set a mystery series in Arthur’s world, and I realized that that was a perfect milieu for an investigator for whom logic and observation were their only tools. I got back to Kuwait and wrote ten pages of such a novel. Then set it aside. Eight years later, I picked it back up.

So was born my Arthurian mystery series. The Beloved Dead is the third entry in the series, and while I can’t claim to be an Ellery Queen, the books have gone three for three with starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Library Journal, and the Romantic Times Book Review names The Beloved Dead a “Top Pick!” in its April 1^st issue.

I will be known now as a mystery author, no matter what else I may write. But I consider that a proud and honorable distinction, and, for me, a natural evolution from mystery fan.

After all, everybody loves a mystery. Right?

He's Absolutely Fabulous

2011-03-21T19:13:00.002-05:00

Win Lockwood to Myron Bolitar: "How to explain this?" He stopped, thought, nodded. "We have a tendency to believe the good things will last forever. It is in our nature. The Beatles, for example. Oh, they'll be around forever. The Sopranos-that show will always be on the air. Philip Roth's Zuckerman series. Springsteen concerts. Good things are rare. They are to be cherished because they always leave us too soon."

Win rose, started for the door. before he left the room, he looked back.

"Doing this stuff with you," Win said, "is one of those good things."

from LIVE WIRE by Harlan Coben

Harlan Coben, the real deal.
This book? One of the good things.

Very rarely do I wax poetic about new releases on the blog. It's even less seldom that I use this space to tout a book that will do more than well without me. It's been six week's since I read Harlan Coben's LIVE WIRE (March 22nd, Dutton). I have suggested the book to over fifty people. I have declared in my Crimespree Review that I have no doubt this book will still be in my top ten on December 31st. I have gushed at the writer on twitter. Now I'm here. If you read this blog or our magazine and find it's content informative or enjoyable, get your hands on LIVE WIRE sooner rather than later.

Harlan Coben is a publishing template for success story. He went from PBO (Paperback originals) to a hard cover deal. With sales figures that continue to grow I don't see this changing anytime soon. He continues to sell Hard Cover, Mass Market and yes, downloads. Coben's work has a mass appeal that unfortunately not every Crime Fiction writer will achieve. He's even huge in France.

He's earned every minute of it.

First and foremost is the product. Harlan doesn't write pretty, run on sentences. He writes really quick, plot driven books. He'll fool you though. When you finish reading one of his books you care about the characters. You'll understand the nuances of themes presented without having known they were there. You'll be able to walk every dark alley and suburb that made an appearance (well, as long as it's real).

Like every "mystery fan" I've run into Harlan from time to time over the years. Interacting with this person who loves what he does and does it so well is always a joy. The fact that he also gives back to everyone whenever he can is astounding. He's been involved with MWA for his entire career. He's served in almost every capacity of that organization. He's almost always at Bouchercon. He attends a number of smaller, regional conventions as he can. He's also part of that larger book world. Attending workshops and trade shows and book festivals to promote his work and that of others. He is one of our finest Ambassadors.

His excitement is real. His generosity is real. His writing is real. Whether you're a fan of the Bolitar books or a fan of the man's stand-alone thrillers, I'm confident when I tell you LIVE WIRE is a special kind of book. I cannot imagine it not being your favorite Coben book when you've finished reading it.

Were you planning to go to Borders to pick the book up? There are multiple independent bookstores you can order the book from. He'll be appearing here if you'd like a signed copy. If you're close to any of these stores go see him, say thank you. Not convinced? Visit the LIVE WIRE page on his web site.

Harlan Coben. LIVE WIRE. Absolutely fabulous.

That Anthony Award Time of Year

2011-03-17T09:12:00.000-05:00

It’s here! That most frustrating of mail. That glorious letter comes complete with return envelope. The Anthony ballot has arrived in my mail box. I will now spend the next three weeks circling around the damn thing. Pad of paper close at hand to jot down my nominees and second guess myself. Have I read enough critical works to come up with five nominees? Have I written down this title because it’s been on all the short lists? Am I writing down that name because the book didn’t get enough attention? Will my nominees even make a difference?

The Bouchercon community is broad. People who love very different aspects of the community become one. The range of nominees can be vast. This is the award with the broadest sense of excellence amongst all the awards. When the final nominees are declared the people on that list know that they are loved by readers, well read readers. Think about this. Do people who don’t read give up their time and their money to attend a book convention?

It’s an honor, this preparation I go through to submit my final fives. I’m thrilled to have a chance to participate in the awarding of one of mystery’s most important awards. Some years the end result is very different than my list and some years quite alike. I am always thrilled for the authors. The Anthony Award short list is first and foremost, Mystery 101. Any reader who wants to dabble within crime fiction and hasn’t can always go to this list, read these books and get a true sense of the best of the best from that year. It will formulate their opinion of our beloved genre; dictate whether or not they choose to return. It’s an awesome responsibility.

I am asking everyone who receives a ballot to participate this year. 100% response has been a goal of the committee for a long, long time. I’m looking forward to seeing whose names will appear. Are you? Make it happen for your favorite books. Fill in the ballot.

Repeating and expounding… in a brand new world… Please continue reading this blog…

The Anthony Award ballots have been mailed out to all the people eligible to nominate the final contenders. Who nominates the nominees? Everyone who attended either Bouchercon San Francisco or is already registered for Bouchercon St. Louis. If you fall into either one of those categories, you are a voice. What if you fall into both categories? You have one voice.

A ballot is available through the internet. Did you forget to update Bouchercon when you moved? It’s there for you convenience. Do you prefer to do paperwork at a key board? We’ve hooked you up. However, if you have an active home address you will receive a ballot in the mail. Yeah, that stuff that used to come in envelopes. Most folks have received theirs. If you don’t have it within 10 days let us know.

So there are two voting options. That doesn’t suggest that you should vote twice. We are not Chicago.

Okay, that’s housekeeping sorted. Well mostly.

A glorious thing has happened in the last five years. The internet Mystery/Crime Fiction community has become vast. We are all hooked into one another and chances are if you don’t know someone you are a friend of a friend on facebook, you follow someone who follows someone else and retweets on Twitter. We are now all able to remind one another of: favorite reads, our books, our clients books and our house’s books. This is great. What would be even better? Make sure your suggestions are eligible. Make sure that folks realize that only Bouchercon members can vote. Make sure that people don’t waste their opportunity to take part in Mystery’s biggest populist award by using their ballot for just that one nominee in just that one category. Because that, that breaks our heart a little.

Ruth Jordan

Guest Blogger - Russel McLean

2011-03-15T08:57:00.000-05:00

Do not adjust your internet.

Your eyes do not deceive you. Today, The Crimespree blog has been hijacked by a beardy Scotsman.

The reason for this blatant invasion (with the permission of the usual Crime Spree crew, of course!) is to mark what is – for me – a very special occasion. Today, the 15^th March 2011 is the publication date of my second novel in the US. THE LOST SISTER has been out in the UK for a while now but I’m delighted to see a hardback (and ebook, of course!) publication in the USofA.

So why choose Crimespree as the first stopping off point for this tour?

It seemed appropriate somehow, as these guys have been supportive since the beginning. Back in 2005, with a few short stories under my belt, I was also running a webzine called Crime Scene Scotland. We were a rag tag publication who were making it up as we went along. But somewhere along the line, Crime Spree started to give us their support. I seem to remember it was Jen Jordan – erstwhile features and fiction editor – who contacted us first. I can’t remember why, but I do know that soon enough I was meeting the whole Crime Spree family. And a more passionate and brilliant bunch of folks, I couldn’t name you.

Of course, I can already hear Jon yelling at me to quit sucking up** to the hosts and get on with the show.

I figured it would be good to start by talking about PI novels. Because THE LOST SISTER is a PI novel. Its influenced by the American tradition, written as it is by a lad who was brought kicking and screaming into crime fandom on the back of the books of Chandler, Block and McDonald.

Of course, the first eye novels I ever truly devoured were Anthony Horrowitz’s Diamond Brothers spoofs – THE FALCON’S MALTESER and NORTH BY NORTHWEST, which introduced me to the tropes of the genre long before I even knew what a “trope” was. In fact I don’t think I’d have cared at the time. All I cared about were the great jokes and the feeling of adventure that permeated the novels. And can I just say that, having recently re-read NORTH BY NORTHWEST, these books really do still stand up very well indeed.

But when I grew up, my dad started feeding me the adult crime fiction novels. I remember him telling me about Lawrence Block in particular. Saying how, “they’re not just about solving a crime. They’re about New York. And they’re about the struggle with drink as much as anything else.”

Reading those books I realised he was right. That you could have a crime – and solve it – while really talking about so many other things. The PI model was ripe for looking primarily at people. The best eye novels are not about clever puzzles so much as they are about unravelling people and motivations and places. Because the eye is not an authority figure, he seems licensed to unravel more than just the crime. He can go places and see things that the cops cannot. And that appealed to me in a big way.

So the Block novels opened a world to me I’d never known before. His Scudder series, for me, is one of the most perfect of the last wave of eyes. With a character who actually evolves and changes between books, who is affected by cases as much as anyone else, it seemed to be the start of the grown up eye for me. Too many series characters – and eyes fall prey to this especially – become unchanging, unaffected heroes whose dimensions are actually quite transparent when held up to the light. No so Scudder. And the fact that Block has a new book coming out that continues to add to this character is a testament to him as a creation.

From Block, I guess I worked my way backwards into the history of the eye. I knew of Raymond Chandler, of course. My dad would rave about how good he was, and certainly my interest was raised when I was taken to see THE BIG SLEEP on The Big Screen (although it would take me a few years to read the book) but I didn’t jump right back. Instead I went a little further back than Block to discover Lew Archer.

The Archer novels fascinated me. Their obsession with family was clearly to become a later influence at least in the titling of my novels, and the emphasis on psychological motivation was something to be dissected and considered. These books, despite what people said, were dealing with deep themes and ideas while still remaining gripping, tightly plotted and thoroughly entertaining. In fact, it was the Archer novels that made me wonder if there was more thought and philosophy to be found in crime fiction than anywhere else.

I would later discover that the philosopher, Ludwig Wittgenstein had once made a similar suggestion in a letter to one of the old pulp magazines.

Jumping back again to the beginning cemented my love of the genre. In Hammett I discovered a steely toughness that’s sometimes absent from later works. And in Chandler, a love of language and its ability to conjure unusual images simply leaps from the page. My dad, of course, said it best (although I’m likely paraphrasing): “Read Hammett for the plot. Read Chandler for the language. But they’re both brilliant.”

I suppose it came as no surprise that when I turned to crime (writing) I would create a private detective; my own humble addition to this genre that fascinated me. But I couldn’t set my books in LA or New York. I knew that wouldn’t convince. And besides, I hadn’t ever read a PI novel set in Scotland and had to wonder what would happen if were to move the genre over here. The result became a series of short stories published in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine which laid the seeds for the character of J McNee who would feature in my debut novel, THE GOOD SON. And now, today, McNee is back for another investigation that will lead him to the back alleys of Scotland’s fourth city as he hunts a missing girl in THE LOST SISTER….

**But I mean it. Every word

A week in wisconsin

2011-03-12T08:43:00.003-06:00

So, the state of Wisconsin is reading like a Ferrigno novel. That's my tie-in to mystery. Those of us who read in this genre are looking upon what's happening in WI with a certain sense of awe. How do two branches of government ignore the Constitution and get away with it?As a life long Democrat, I am not letting my elected officials off of the hook on this one.

The time has come in American politics where we need to re-evaluate what we expect when we cast our ballots on election day. My expectations have never changed. I want the person I voted for to REPRESENT ME for the next two or four years. Government has become farcical. Because it's money with a capital M that gets you there. Do you realize that for a Republican to win the White-house in 2112 it will take a three BILLION dollar buy-in? Those are the projections.

I believe that is a part of the current GOP strategy. I believe WI is a victim. Also Indiana, Ohio, Michigan.....
Little state, no one on either coast really knows where it is.... let's shut down their funding.... see if we can get away with it. On the other side the Dems, like Cinderella's sisters are running around, "how do we make the shoe fit?"

On a global scale what's happening in Wisconsin is irrelevant. Except it really isn't. Wisconsin has been a proud member of these United States. Electing populists, socialists and Unitarians to its electorate. One of the founders of the contemporary Republican party, the links to the Democratic party have been beyond strong since the Kohler strike in the 1930s. Last fall Kohler cast out the union to preserve jobs and a way of life. Proving, one more time, the old adage, "those who forget history.."

And we are forgetting history. Representatives leaving under the cloak of night (where no one but the news affiliates can find them), and others, of another "party" staying behind and adapting a policy with no discourse save their leader's.
I didn't elect the people I elected to pull this crap, nor do I believe that anyone looking into the future wanted the "Walker" policies to occur as they did. There has to be a bad taste in the mouth that this bill was nee of and came to life from the fact that American politics are now dictated by the almighty dollar of re-election.
What has happened in Wisconsin will prove to be either a footnote in history or the time when individuals gave up their right to be represented by government. What has happened here in the last week is unconstitutional, abhorrent and all about the money....

It's the year of a Presidential election. No Republican has the funding to rock Obama. But.... if the unions are fighting lawsuits in multiple states and unable to fund a campaign for the presidency ... all the better.
Me? I simply want what my forefathers affirmed. A country where the people who you elected to office were represented in a discourse amongst great minds. I see no great minds in Wisconsin right now. Run for the border or tell people what's best for them. Both are bad. Destroying the only voice the middle class truly has left is worse. One Big Union! Except I now shun the money. As did a great Wisconsin politician, Russ Feingold. Look where it got him?

So if we can all pull up our bootstraps, shut this down. HERE. Make it messy and hold people accountable. I believe in debate. I believe in Unions. I believe a unity amongst men where we realize that the equality of wages and benefits has more to do with the individual and their work history than with their sex, age, experience, or school. The right PERSON for the right job. Are Unions still there? Yet another question for this debate.
Still I feel we've given up as a people. Even those picketing, theorizing, and vocalizing. We've seen American ingenuity become American gross product. We've seen schools give up liberal arts programs for the football team. We've seen people pull away from ideals with threat of foreclosures. The American dream has come close to strangling us. But no matter what the outside or interior threats may be, we owe it to ourselves as a people to demand that the people representing us in Government (local,state.federal,judicial) know what we believe and what we want them to do for us, the voter.

Yes, Have some.

2011-03-09T08:41:00.000-06:00

The Kindle Edition

2011-03-06T11:23:00.002-06:00

Last May I had a bit of fun with CrimespreeJon and announced to the world on twitter he had just purchased his first cell phone. Replies came in that went rather like this, "Next thing you know he'll set up the indoor plumbing"

So, with head hung low I announce today that I have joined the world of Kindle. Those who know me know that for me, reading is a very tactile experience. To paraphrase a man with whom I share a birthday, "The book's the thing." And so it has always been.

It isn't that I haven't always been curious about e-readers. I remember being allowed to touch Sally Fellow's in Baltimore and liking the simplicity of the gadget. I also liked the first Nook and the first Sony readers I saw.

Two years ago my brother bought his wife a Kindle for Christmas because they have no more room in their house for books. So there's a practicality to the e-reader I understand.

None other than the great Barbara Peters perhaps defined for me what an e-reader could and would be for me. A great way to bring a lot of books on a trip but don't forget to bring a couple of "real books" in case you get stuck on the runway.

Finally, I decided I wanted one. Sure we have a desk top, a lap top, a net book, an Ipod and a smart phone with the kindle app but hey, I love gadgets. It's why we have twenty different whisks in our house.

Still, I hovered, wavered and procrastinated. Because, well, I love books. I love the paper and the binding and the text. I love that at anytime, anywhere and without a power source I can have four hours of an entirely different world at my finger tips.

The kindle arrived two weeks ago. A thoughtful gift from a thoughtful husband. I also suspect he financially justified it as I brought home my fourth pair of reading glasses in two months. You can change the text size! You can read in the dark!! I made sure I knew how to charge it, download materials and turn it on and off. I really liked turning it on and off because different pictures come up when you do.

Yesterday I read on my kindle for the first time. Up first was SERIAL by Jack Kilborn and Blake Crouch, because how could I not read something from Joe Konrath first. He's become synonymous with e-readers. Great story, warped guys. I cannot believe I've slept while they were awake in the next room.

Next I read THE HUNTERS from Jason Pinter. A novella interlude set between THE FURY and THE DARKNESS. This series featuring reporter Henry Parker is making a lot of noise and THE HUNTERS introduces you to Pinter's characters and series... Gives you just a taste. This might be the best use for the Kindle. Or it might be the availability of back lists for the completists amongst us.

But I suspect my third read really tells the story. I'm reading THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF MARK TWAIN next. The man himself might hate the idea of the kindle but a kindle weighs a whole lot less than that book.

In short, I love my kindle.

As for the tactile? I will shop very carefully for my kindle cover. I was downright giddy to find four pages of choices on Google. This may take me awhile.

Next up in the Jordan house? we might get that new gadget everyone's talking about, the radio.

Ruth

We Love Our Readers

2011-02-14T08:38:00.001-06:00

What makes Crimespree work is our readers. Without them, we're kind lof like that guy walking by himself in New York talking to himself.

So as a thank you, anyone subscribing to the magazine or renewing their subscription will get an extra copy if they do so between now and next Monday, the 28th

You can subscribe right on line!

Serious news from Vince Flynn.

2011-02-04T08:13:00.001-06:00

Some serious news from Vince Flynn:

In November, at the end of my last tour, I was diagnosed with Stage III metastatic prostate cancer. Just a few years ago, this diagnosis would have been a death sentence. Today, specialists are making great strides in the areas of hormone therapy and immune response, and there are several very promising drug trials that are changing the landscape of how prostate cancer is treated.

My treatments are working very well, and my near term prognosis is extremely good. In other words, I have more than a few Rapp novels left in me. My attitude is strong, and I feel better than I have in years. I am blessed to be surrounded by a wonderful wife, family, and great friends who have been extremely supportive. My faith has seen me through the darkest moments, and early on, when the diagnosis was not entirely accurate, things were very dark indeed. I am also blessed that I live in a part of the country that is known for great medical care. I have a wonderful group of doctors who are confident that I can beat this thing. For those of you who have gotten to know me, it will not be a surprise to you that this is a battle I do not plan on losing. As with any cancer, this is serious, but the good news is that I have lots of options for slowing this thing down, and then hopefully killing it.

I am currently working with Brian Haig on our joint novel and have started the next Rapp novel that should be out in October of 2011. Please keep me and my family in your thoughts and prayers, and I will try to keep you posted as things progress.

Keep the Faith,

Vince Flynn

My heart goes out to Vince and his family. Cancer is a scary thing, but Vince is a tough guy and I have no doubt he can beat it. Having seen Lee (or Crimespree Cinema) battle lung cancer and win, I know that there is always hope and that determination and a positive attitude are essential. Both of those things Vince has in spades.

I first met Vince when he self published TERM LIMITS. He went to EVERY bookstore in the Twin Cities right before a WCCO appearance and convinced us to order the book. The next week, we were sold out and scrambling to find more copies. While many vilify self-publishing, Vince showed that it can be a good tool to establish yourself and gain a better bargaining position.

I think I speak for the entire Crimespree family when I say that Vince is in our thoughts.

The indie bookstore and you

2011-02-02T03:27:00.000-06:00

The mystery community lost another bookstore this week. The Mystery Bookstore in LA has shut it's doors. I'm not exaggerating when I say people are mourning the loss.

Indie stores are vital to the genre of crime fiction. It's where new authors and smaller presses can break out. The people who run them read, a lot. They take it personal, they aren't just moving product, they are trying to sell you something they truly want you to enjoy, and they want to share the enjoyment with you.

As a consumer I understand the allure of shopping places whee things are cheaper. I mean who wants to pay more for something they can get cheaper somewhere else?

But there is also a bigger picture here. If all the indies go out, where will we discover the next Michael Connelly? Walmart and the big chains didn't care to much about his first couple of books. And I certainly don't want to rely on the internet for book recommendations. Not by itself anyway. The best way to learn about books is from other people, and in person if possible. I discovered more authors due to recommendations from book store owners than any other place. And I've never met an author on a website, but the mystery stores bring in authors and the publishers have sent them out to us, and as a result I have met some wonderful writers I may never have read.

So lets look at this realistically. Money is tight, but you want books. I think it's worth a little more to support the indies. If you buy 5 books a month, get one of them from and bookstore that can use the sales. if you only use the library, go out and pick up one or two paperbacks. And while you're at it, buy books by authors who can use the sales. James Patterson won't feel a bump in sales one way or the other, but there are a lot of midlist authors who having sold an extra couple hundred books could make a difference when it comes time to sign a new contract.

I shop amazon, and I like amazon. But I make an effort to spend at least half my book buying money with mystery bookstores.If we don't support the genre we may find ourselves with very few choices, and personally I want more to choose from than just Patricia Cornwell and Dan Brown.I just would not be happy with the choices that the chains want to give me.

If you love the genre, support the genre. If you love reading indie comics and creator owned comics, show your support by shopping at comic shops that carry the books you want to read. Go to mystery bookstores that introduce you to new authors and love the same books the way you do. Bookstores do more than just try to make money, they have a place in our community as a place to meet and share a love of something.

F PAUL WILSON ~ JACK: SECRET VENGEANCE

2011-01-22T11:48:00.000-06:00

February 1st, the latest from F Paul Wilson hits the shelves. It's a Young Jack book, the adventures of Repairman Jack as a youth. If you like the regular series you'll love this. Your kids will love it. Hell, your pets will love you reading it out loud.

In SECRET VENGEANCE someone close to Jack has is attacked by someone that everyone loves. Jack isn't going to stand for this and sets out to make thing right.

I love these books (and everything else F Paul Wilson puts his name on), elements of great crime fiction, action and adventure. Paul is also truly one of the coolest authors we have met. He's funny, laid back and generous with his time. Authors like F Paul Wilson make being a fan a special thing.

So suport a great guy and a great book and go pick this up!

Paul will also be at Love Is Murder in Chicago the first weekend in February.

Edgar Award Nominations for 2011

2011-01-19T08:21:00.001-06:00

And the Nominees are...Mystery Writers of America is proud to announce on the 202nd anniversary of the birth of Edgar Allan Poe, its Nominees for the 2011 Edgar Allan Poe Awards, honoring the best in mystery fiction, non-fiction and television published or produced in 2010. The Edgar® Awards will be presented to the winners at our 65th Gala Banquet, April 28, 2011 at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, New York City.

BEST NOVEL

Caught by Harlan Coben (Penguin Group USA - Dutton)
Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin (HarperCollins – William Morrow)
Faithful Place by Tana French (Penguin Group USA - Viking)
The Queen of Patpong by Timothy Hallinan (HarperCollins – William Morrow)
The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton (Minotaur/Thomas Dunne Books)
I’d Know You Anywhere by Laura Lippman (HarperCollins – William Morrow)

BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR

Rogue Island by Bruce DeSilva (Tom Doherty Associates – Forge Books)
The Poacher’s Son by Paul Doiron (Minotaur Books)
The Serialist: A Novel by David Gordon (Simon & Schuster)
Galveston by Nic Pizzolatto (Simon & Schuster - Scribner)
Snow Angels by James Thompson (Penguin Group USA – G.P. Putnam’s Sons)

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

Long Time Coming by Robert Goddard (Random House - Bantam)
The News Where You Are by Catherine O’Flynn (Henry Holt)
Expiration Date by Duane Swierczynski (Minotaur Books)
Vienna Secrets by Frank Tallis (Random House Trade Paperbacks)
Ten Little Herrings by L.C. Tyler (Felony & Mayhem Press)

BEST FACT CRIME

Scoreboard, Baby: A Story of College Football, Crime and Complicity
by Ken Armstrong and Nick Perry (University of Nebraska Press – Bison Original)
The Eyes of Willie McGee: A Tragedy of Race, Sex, and Secrets in Jim Crow South by Alex Heard (HarperCollins)
Finding Chandra: A True Washington Murder Mystery by Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz (Simon & Schuster - Scribner)
Hellhound on his Trail: The Stalking of Martin Luther King, Jr and the International Hunt for his Assassin by Hampton Sides (Random House - Doubleday)
The Killer of Little Shepherds: A True Crime Story and the Birth of Forensic Science by Douglas Starr (Alfred A. Knopf)

BEST CRITICAL/BIOGRAPHICAL

The Wire: Truth Be Told by Rafael Alvarez (Grove Atlantic – Grove Press)
Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks: Fifty Years of Mysteries in the Making by John Curran (HarperCollins)
Sherlock Holmes for Dummies by Steven Doyle and David A. Crowder (Wiley)
Charlie Chan: The Untold Story of the Honorable Detective and his Rendevouz with American History by Yunte Huang (W.W. Norton)
Thrillers: 100 Must Reads edited by David Morrell and Hank Wagner (Oceanview Publishing)

BEST SHORT STORY

"The Scent of Lilacs" – Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by Doug Allyn (Dell Magazines)
"The Plot" – First Thrills by Jeffery Deaver (Tom Doherty – Forge Books)
"A Good Safe Place” – Thin Ice by Judith Green (Level Best Books)
"Monsieur Alice is Absent" – Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine
by Stephen Ross (Dell Magazines)
"The Creative Writing Murders" – Dark End of the Street by Edmund White (Bloomsbury)

BEST JUVENILE

Zora and Me by Victoria Bond and T.R. Simon (Candlewick Press)
The Buddy Files: The Case of the Lost Boy by Dori Hillestad Butler (Albert Whitman & Co.)
The Haunting of Charles Dickens by Lewis Buzbee (Feiwel & Friends)
Griff Carver: Hallway Patrol by Jim Krieg (Penguin Young Readers Group - Razorbill)
The Secret Life of Ms. Finkleman by Ben H. Winters (HarperCollins Children’s Books)

BEST YOUNG ADULT

The River by Mary Jane Beaufrand (Little Brown Books for Young Readers)
Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King (Random House Children’s Books – Alfred A. Knopf)
7 Souls by Barnabas Miller and Jordan Orlando (Random House Children’s Books – Delacorte Press)
The Interrogation of Gabriel James by Charlie Price (Farrar, Straus, Giroux Books for Young Readers)
Dust City by Robert Paul Weston (Penguin Young Readers Group - Razorbill)

BEST PLAY

The Psychic by Sam Bobrick (Falcon Theatre – Burbank, CA)
The Tangled Skirt by Steve Braunstein (New Jersey Repertory Company)
The Fall of the House by Robert Ford (Alabama Shakespeare Festival)

BEST TELEVISION EPISODE TELEPLAY

“Episode 1” - Luther, Teleplay by Neil Cross (BBC America)
“Episode 4” – Luther, Teleplay by Neil Cross (BBC America)
“Full Measure” – Breaking Bad, Teleplay by Vince Gilligan (AMC/Sony)
“No Mas” – Breaking Bad, Teleplay by Vince Gilligan (AMC/Sony)
“The Next One’s Gonna Go In Your Throat” – Damages, Teleplay by Todd A. Kessler, Glenn Kessler & Daniel Zelman (FX Networks)

ROBERT L. FISH MEMORIAL AWARD

"Skyler Hobbs and the Rabbit Man" – Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by Evan Lewis (Dell Magazines)

GRAND MASTER

Sara Paretsky

RAVEN AWARDS

Centuries & Sleuths Bookstore, Forest Park, Illinois
Once Upon A Crime Bookstore, Minneapolis, Minnesota

THE SIMON & SCHUSTER - MARY HIGGINS CLARK AWARD
(Presented at MWA’s Agents & Editors Party on Wednesday, April 27, 2010)

Wild Penance by Sandi Ault (Penguin Group – Berkley Prime Crime)
Blood Harvest by S.J. Bolton (Minotaur Books)
Down River by Karen Harper (MIRA Books)
The Crossing Places by Elly Griffiths (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
Live to Tell by Wendy Corsi Staub (HarperCollins - Avon)

# # # #

The EDGAR (and logo) are Registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office by the Mystery Writers of America, Inc.

A very strong list and some really great books nominated. Especially happy to see Steve Hamilton's THE LOCK ARTIST and EXPIRATION DATE by Duane Swierczynski on the list.

JULIE HYZY - BUFFALO WEST WING

2011-01-15T13:59:00.000-06:00

In case you haven't heard, Julie Hyzy rocks. She is one of the most energetic people we've met in the crime fiction/ mystery community. She is funny and seems to always be happy.

Her series won her an Anthony Award in Indianapolis. The latest in the series is BUFFALO WEST WING.
The previous books in the series include HAIL TO THE CHEF, STATE OF THE ONION and EGGSECUTIVE ORDERS. What's the connection between them? The titles all make references to the White house and cooking. And of course that would be because the lead character is a White House chef.

Te books are laods of fun and the mysteries well plotted. This latest is damn good reading and you should check it out!

THE WORLD'S GREATEST SLEUTH! by Steve Hockensmith

2011-01-12T17:53:00.000-06:00

Steve Hockensmith is already an author I love to read. His series featuring Sherlock Holmes worshiping brothers Big Red and Old Red set in the late 1800s is just damn good reading. WORLD’S GREATEST SLEUTH ! (Minotaur)brings the pair to Chicago during the Columbian Exposition, the famed White City. Well damn, that put the book at the front of the line for what to read next. A contest to see who is the best detective becomes more urgent when the organizer of the contest is found murdered. What follows is once again an outstanding plot by Hockensmth and two of the more original characters to hit the shelves in a while.

This book Rocks.

On sale January 18th!

FREE TYRUS BOOKS for YOU

2010-12-20T18:02:00.002-06:00

RUSH - Beyond the lighted stage

2010-12-11T23:39:00.000-06:00

I'm at the age where looking back on my life I see some embarrassing moments, but I'm really not embarrassed by very many things I've done. because of that I find the expression guilty pleasures to be a false statement generally speaking. If you enjoy watching video of dolphins fornicating, that might be something worth feeling guilt over. Feeling any guilt over your preferences in music or movies r books is silly.

I just watched the documentary RUSH: BEYOND THE LIGHTED STAGE. I've listened to Rush since the album 2112 which was the 4th album, it came out in 1976 and I was in seventh grade. The lyrics and music hit me someplace I've never been hit. It was music that defies genre other than Rock. Elements of prog rock,heavy metal, and later Jazz and reggea and even some hip hop and new wave are all a part of the whole that is this band. A power trio like none other.

I've seen the band play live at least 16 or 17 times, and it never gets old. I walk away from each show happy and fulfilled in a way few experiences can do. The energy of Rush is contagious. And the DVD shows this.

From the opening we are on the journey with the band, interviews with the Mothers, a trip to the middle school Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson attended together. Home movies of Alex trying to convince his parents to let him drop out. And lots of live footage. I finally heard it from the horses moths why John Rutsey left the band when they started to break out. Neil Peart talking about joining the band was incredible. They discuss the lyrics, the music and the changes they have been through. This is broken down into different periods of the bands career and is fleshed out with short comments from famous rock stars like Trent Reznor, Billy Corrigan and others. Listening to the band talk about themselves, in a very candid and sometimes self depreciating way is refreshing. These are just regular guys with a lot of talent doing something they love. The whole thing ends on a high note after some tragedy. The band shut down for a while when death hit Neil Peart's family. The final stage of his healing was getting back on the stage.

I have never been a fan of best of lists, i have trouble with them because I can never limit myself to what I would put on them. But I can safely say that any best band list I ever do would contain Rush, and any best of album list would contain at least one of their albums.

Being a Rush fan has never made me feel like a nerd or like I was uncool. If people give me a funny look when I mention my love of this band I just feel sad because they don't get it and that their life is some how missing something. No guilty pleasure here. I love these guys.

Now after watching RUSH: BEYOND THE LIGHTED STAGE I respect them even more.

Dennis Lehane on The Late Show with Craig Ferguson.

2010-12-09T12:02:00.000-06:00

Mr. Lehane made another appearance on The Late Show with Craig Ferguson. Check it out.

Love Is Murder!!!!!

2010-12-02T10:58:00.000-06:00

Bigger....Better...BACK!
The Midwest's ONLY readers' and writers' mystery, romantic suspense, thriller and dark fiction conference returns to Chicago Feb. 4-6, 2011 at the Intercontinental O'Hare Hotel in Rosemont.

* Meet renowned authors Rhys Bowen, Joseph Finder, Carolyn Haines, Joan Johnston, Jon Land & F. Paul Wilson
* Local guest of honor author Michael Allen Dymmoch and Fan of Honor Scott Doornbosch
* Ghost of Honor Chester Gould
* Midwest Writers of America (MWA) Writers' Track
* Graphic Novels track
* Intimate master writing classes with Carolyn Haines and Joan Johnston
* Manuscript critiques
* Pitch your ideas or manuscript one-on-one to agents, authors and publishers at Pitch-a-Palooza
* Networking with authors, readers, fans, agents, editors and publishers
* Panels, exhibits, expert demonstrations
* Evening entertainment like Blood Bingo and Stump the Stars
* Surprises and MUCH more!
* www.loveismurder.net

Pre Xmas shopping suggestions

2010-11-23T12:18:00.001-06:00

I love gift shopping. I lean towards things I like to get like books and DVDs and Music.

Here's a few ideas for the upcoming craziness.

DEVO has a new album out, SOMETHING FOR EVERYBODY is a great album and if you have Devo fans to shop for they will love this.

A new band we started listening to this year is a group called THE DODOS. Cool sounds and not quite like everything else. We saw them on Letterman and bought DVDs and Cds the next day. Love these guys.

New Gorrillaz is also great and it features members of the Clash. I love there last two albums and there is something a bit special about Mick Jones joining them on this.

Looking for comics? There are a lot of great books to pick up, both for you and people you shop for.

BEASTS OF BURDEN was one the best of the year. A beautiful hardcover by Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson from Dark Horse Comics. Jill also has a collection of her Scary Godmother in hardcover.

Like Victor Gischler? Like off the wall humor and violence? You NEED Deadpool. DEADPOOL THE MERC WITH THE MOUTH is in hardcover (It's gorgeous). His latest novel, THE DEPUTY is pretty damn great too.

Like looking at great art? DC released a book called COVER RUN with comic book covers by the awesome Adam Hughes.

Crime fiction comic readers on your list?

How about the Parker graphic novels from IDW? THE HUNTER and THE OUTFIT are both out in hardcovers and they are truly striking looking books and wonderful adaptations done with the full approval of Richard Stark (Donald Westlake).

VERTIGO CRIME has a nice selection of books for your graphic minded crime fiction readers.

A SICKNESS IN THE FAMILY by Denise Mina is dark and disturbing and wonderful

THE EXECUTOR by Jon Evans is a wonderful noirish tale of loss.

AREA 10 by Christos Gage has a wonderful twisted take on the serial killer detective tale.

THE CHILL by Jason Starr has Starr outside his normal zone and it's a great ride.

FABLES is being re released in wonderful hardcover collections. FABLES DELUXE VOLUME 1 and FABLES DELUXE VOLUME 2 are both out now. This is one of the best comics series in YEARS. There is also a tie in novel by Bill Willingham - PETER AND MAX

Looking for something truly magic? How about one of the best comics series of the last 30 years collected in omnibuses? Starman by James Robinson is still one of the best series a ever read. A reinvention of a classic 40's hero that both updates the character and shows the love for the original as Jack Knight takes over the hero biz from his Dad, reluctantly. great writing and great art. These are must own books!

The Starman Omnibus, Vol.1

The Starman Omnibus, Vol.2

The Starman Omnibus, Vol.3

The Starman Omnibus, Vol.4

The Starman Omnibus, Vol.5

The Starman Omnibus, Vol.6

And if you dig those covers by Tony Harris you need to check out Ex Machina, Book 4 (Deluxe Edition). It's another great series, this one written by Brian K Vaughen.

There is also a great DVD called SECRET ORIGIN THE STORY OF DC COMICS . Lots of fun footage and interviews showing the companies 75 year history.

Paul Levitz also has a great big book about DC's history. 75 YEARS OF DC COMICS is a HUGE HUGE book that has tons of stuff for fans of DC

And the creme de le creme of gifts in comics this year has to be WEDNESDAY COMICS . It's a huge over size book with stories from Brian Azzarello, Neil Gaiman, Paul Pope, Kurt Busiek and many more. The art is amazing and this is really something for the whole family.

And don't forget the new release from Archaia, RETURN OF THE DAPPER MEN by Jim McCann and Janet Lee, a beautiful hardcover that has been called "A steampunk fairytale" by USA Today and they are dead on right. It's a great book.

Looking for novels?

How about the new Tasha Alexander? DANGEROUS TO KNOW is another in the Lady Emily series and it's great.

The new Dennis Lehane will be a hit with anyone, not just crime fiction readers. MOONLIGHT MILE is a return to Lehane's series and of course, it rocks.

How about some Lee Child? Reacher makes Xmas more fun 61Hours and WORTH DYING FOR are the two latest.

And as far as I'm concerned you can never go wrong with F Paul Wilson. FATAL ERROR puts us one book away from the end of the Repairman Jack Series. There are also two young adult books featuring Jack, JACK:SECRET HISTORIES and JACK SECRET CIRCLES. And the classic THE KEEP is always a great read.

Adventure done right thriller style means Steve Berry, and the latest is THE EMPERORS TOMB. This series is so damn good and is what Dan Brown wishes he could write.

Love rock and roll? This book should be a MUST own. ROCK AND ROLL WILL SAVE YOUR SOUL by Steve Almond. It's a book by a rock fan for rock fans and it's funny and if you love rock music you will identify with it immediately.

And you can always give a subscription to CRIMESPREE MAGAZINE!

Just shoot me an email for details

( Jon@crimespreemag.com)

SO happy shopping, hope this list helps!

Tyrys Books for the Holiday Gift Giving Season

2010-11-20T14:17:00.000-06:00

As book people we love giving books during the holidays.

We try to give books we love and there are three great books from Tyrus that would make awesome gifts for the crime fiction readers on your list.

The Limited Edition of DELTA BLUES

The Delta Blues limited edition is a full leather binding, using Corona premium bonded leather in burgundy. Both the spine and front cover hold gold foil stamps. The endsheets in this edition are a gold and ebony marbled paper. The interior pages are a 60#, natural colored, chlorine-free stock, 30% post consumer recycled, and the edges are gilded in gold. Each contributor's story is preceded by a unique tip in sheet, featuring the title and author of the story, and including a line for the contributor's signature. At the front, a tip in containing the book title, signed by both editor Carolyn Haines and author of the foreword Morgan Freeman, is numbered (1-100). Contributor signatures include: John Grisham, Charlaine Harris, Morgan Freeman, Ace Atkins, and others.

Click Here

The Limited Edition of AMOS WALKER: THE COMPLETE STORY COLLECTION

Loren D. Estleman, one of the most prolific crime writers of his generation, has been writing about the exploits of Detroit private eye Amos Walker for thirty years in novels and short stories. This anthology collects all thirty two previously published Amos Walker stories, a previously unpublished story written for the collection, and an introduction by Mr. Estleman.

Click Here

The Limited Edition of BY HOOK OR BY CROOK by Ed Gorman and Martin Greenberg

Short stories from: Dennis Lehane, Kris Nelscott, Sandra Seamans, Dave Zeltserman, SJ Rozan, Nancy Pickard, Marcia Muller, Doug Allyn, Bill Crider, Tom Picirrilli, Richard Lupoff, Mary Higgins Clark, Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins, Greg Bardsley, Dana Cameron, Brendan DuBois, Terence Faherty, Gillian Linscott, Lyndsay Faye, Twist Phelan, Charlie Drees, Bob Randisi, Luis Alberto Urrea, Laura Lippman, Jim Fusilli, Clark Howard, Michael Nethercott, and Robert Levinson.

Click Here

And because the folks at Tyrus rock, you can save 10% off the cost of these books by entering a special code found only on this blog -

just enter the code "jonscrime"

Tears for Fears - Mad World - Top of the Pops 1982

2010-10-29T01:47:00.000-05:00

And the original version which I still love.
This song does a number of different things for me, reminds me of friends and good times and gets me through rough ones.
plus I wish I could still do that stuff with my hair...

Mad World - Gary Jules

2010-10-29T01:42:00.000-05:00

I love this version of the song. It's haunting and melancholy and wonderful.

Bouchercon 2010

2010-10-21T21:05:00.004-05:00

We have attained Bouchercon!

Touchdown SFO. A moment that turned into one of the best nights of my life provided by Cara Black & hubby. Such a treat to meet the Mister and to be able to say we love Ms. Black's husband.

Jon did, as I expected him to, fall in love with this city he'd never seen.

One fantastic couple leads into the next. The City by the Bay. A leisurely walk in unexpected tropical temps. Tasha Alexander and Andrew Grant. Two extraordinary writers we cannot imagine without one another and thankfully never have to. Friends first; there was a lot of eye rolling on the girls part as Jon and Andrew picked up post cards and license plates. When we hit the bridge at a perfect sunset, the four of us were bonded forever, and yet, we all took to Twitter. Giggles ensued for the gals. Boys are much too dignified for giggles.

From there, well, it's Bouchercon. The whole darned thing blew up. Mystery and imagination were available everywhere along the Embarcodaro. There was Opening Ceremonies. there were awards. There were tears. The panels and guest interviews were carefully crafted.

What panels there were. OMG does not cover it. I went to more panels this Bouchercon than any since my first. I would have not missed them. The play put on by Declan Hughes and his friends was my favorite. A little different, a little new. Oh, so watchable.

My own panel went well and it was a joy to reintroduce Janet Dawson to the community. At the same time I had the privilege to introduce future luminaries Jamie Freveletti, Andrew Grant and Matt Hilton. Well, since Jamie had won the Barry by this time, maybe there was no "future".

Up and down the stairs, escalators and elevators at the hotel we all embraced crime. I had moments with heroes and moments with friends. I caught up with favorite and "never met before" deities of the everyday. I saw two folks who I love get agents. I saw four folks get new publishers. I saw a boatload of folks win awards.

I got to introduce Eddie Muller to Bill Link. I witnessed Greg Rucka meeting Duane Swiercynsky. I met Med Gardiner. I met many new writers for the very first time in person. Even more I met people whom I'd only known though the internets. I met Marjorie Tucker!! Pop Culture!! the list goes on.

And there was Val. I'm fairly possessive of Ms. McDermid. Always have been. we shared a rather unique experience early on and certainly one this past weekend. I'd always known, but was extremely gratified to find that she commanded respect from every corner. Val McDermid is the best; writer, attendee, comic, friend.

Huge whoo!! for Lee Child. His book, WORTH DYING FOR, was not readily available in Bouchercon's book-room. Yet here he was, throwing a party for 1500 people he knew and making sure everyone else knew it too. This Sunday Morning we all have a date with CBS. 7:30 Eastern Time. (raised eyebrows) I did already mention you should buy the book?

My true shero of this con?

McKenna Jordan. Much as I'd like to claim to be her sister by marital bloodline, I cannot. I will, if she allows, claim her as a sister.I know she's a friend. Here, now? I'll echo the solidarity of this past weekend, "We're so glad you came. It meant a lot to everyone."

Rae Helmsworth has evolved from mere Goddess to Hera in the rapid blink of an eye. Nobody else would have made Bouchercon fold into the fabric that is San Francisco as seamlessly. That she did it with elegance,grace and far more class than those before, it is a testament to the crime fiction and mystery at large communities. Thank you Rae for nurturing something we both love.

I HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS YEAR'S BOUCHERCON...
My husband did and so did my Co-Chair from '08, Judy Bobalik. Me? No credit. Isn't it nice to know there are people as involved in mystery as you are?

Bless us all and here's to St. Louis!

Crimespree Award Winners

2010-10-19T10:00:00.001-05:00

This year we had the privilege of giving out the Crimespree Awards at the Anthony Award Brunch.

Here are the nominees and the winners

Favorite book of 2009

WINNER - THE MYSTIC ARTS OF ERASING ALL SIGNS OF DEATH by Charlie Huston

BURY ME DEEP by Megan Abbott

TOWER by Ken Bruen & Reed Farrel Coleman

TRUST NO ONE by Gregg Hurwitz

THE AMATEURS Marcus Sakey

Favorite First Book 2009

WINNER - EVEN by Andrew Grant

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

RUNNING FROM THE DEVIL by Jamie Freveletti

A BAD DAY FOR SORRY by Sophie Littlefield

Ghosts of Belfast by Stuart Neville

Best in an on-going series for 2009

WINNER- WALKING DEAD by Greg Rucka

THE SILENT HOUR by Michael Koryta

SHATTER by Michael Robotham

SHANGHAI MOON by SJ Rozan

TRUTH by Peter Temple

The Jack Reacher Award is given to an author who is someone we would recommend to everyone one we meet and is also great to their fans and gives back to the mystery community. This year's went to Val McDermid.

Bouchercon 2011 Table at this year's Bouchercon

2010-10-10T11:04:00.009-05:00

Next weekend we're in San Francisco for what promises to be a HELL of a Bouchercon.

We'll have a table in the book room, stop by and say hello.
We'll be in the book room.

Also bring books, we've got authors signing at our table all weekend!

Thursday

Kelli Stanley – 11:00
Tasha Alexander - 11:00

Libby Hellman – 2:30

Todd Ritter – 3:00
Martyn Waites - 3:00

Brett Battles – 3:30

Stephen Jay Schwartz – 3:30

Friday

Val McDermid!!! – 10:30

Meredith Cole – 11:00

Rebecca Cantrell – 11:00

Joe Finder – 11:30

Jonathon King – 12:00
Duane Swierczynski - 12:30
David Corbett- 1:00
Shane Gericke - 1:00
Toby Ball - 1:30

Hilary Davidson – 2:00
Doug Corleone - 2:00

Lou Berney – 2:30
Cara Black - 2:30

Steve Hockensmith – 3:00

Sophie Littlefield – 3:00

Juliet Blackwell – 3:00

Christa Faust – 3:30

Carla Buckley – 3:30

Saturday

Alafair Burke – 10:00

Bill Crider – 10:30

Marcus Sakey – 11:00

RJ Ellory – 11:00

Brad Parks – 11:00

Hank Phillipi Ryan – 11:30
Andrew grant - 11:30

Bryan Gruley – 12:00
Ozzy Osbourne *

Ken Bruen – 2:00

Reed Farrel Coleman – 2:00

Michelle Gagnon – 2:00

Megan Abbott – 3:00

Sara Gran – 3:00

*Not really, but it would be cool wouldn't it?

Max is Back! - Jonathon King

2010-10-08T11:34:00.002-05:00

Don’t miss meeting Jonathon King, Edgar Award winning author of the Max Freeman series, on Friday, October 15th. He’ll be at the Bouchercon 2011 booth inside the bookroom giving away free USB drives with video and a sample chapter from his new book Midnight Guardians (the fifth in the Max Freeman series). Come and get it!

By the way, this year in San Francisco at Bouchercon 2010, Open Road Media will be there.If you’re not familiar with who they are, they’re a new ebook publishing company focused on bringing fans and authors closer together by using cool video and new content direct from authors. Find out more about their company here: http://www.openroadmedia.com/

Open Road publishes a wide range of authors, but have a strong crime fiction and mystery list, including Kensington authors M. William Phelps and Kevin O'Brien, and now Jonathon King, a long time Bouchercon attendee. Jonathon will be host an E-Signing with his new ebook Midnight Guardians on Friday from 12 to 1 PM at the Bouchercon 20100 booth (in the library) -- there fans can have their photo taken with him and uploaded onto USB drives with sample chapters and video from his new book.

Open Road execs Luke Parker Bowles and Rachel Chou will be at the convention.They’re going to be filming their authors and they want to meet readers and people who have eReaders and get your thoughts and opinions. So if you see a bunch of people who look tired from carrying a camera all day long, say hi and find out more ;)

Check out Jonathon King’s video here.

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