Right up front: I haven’t read “The Quickie,” the latest book with James Patterson’s name on it. The title seems apt enough, but I was wondering: Why use it now, instead of a dozen books ago? Patterson’s hirelings have been turning out volumes of this description for at least a decade. Next up: “The […]
Here’s a pretty good summer read
My brother is a far more voracious reader than I am, so a good part of my paperback collection consists of titles he’s passing along. That’s how I came by Sean Doolittle‘s fourth novel, “The Cleanup.” Mike gave it to me months ago, but I only recently got around to reading it. In terms […]
"The Wire" revisited: It does grow on you
I was underwhelmed by the first couple of episodes of “The Wire,” but after renting a few more via Netflix, I’m beginning to see why this show has attracted a loyal following. While I still think Dominic West looks a little too much like a J.C. Penney model to be fully convincing (and his […]
Larry King’s crimes against television
We turn now from fictional mysteries to a real-life one: What was Tammy Faye Messner thinking when she appeared Sunday on Larry King? (That’s Larry on the left, by the way). I know she’s not long for this world and I sympathize, but somebody might have advised her that this is the time to […]
The supernatural in crime fiction
In the James Lee Burke novel “Jolie Blon’s Bounce,” he introduces a character named Legion Guidry, a man who appears by the end of the book to be, if not the Devil himself, then at least pretty high up in Lucifer’s chain of command. Burke has flirted with the supernatural before, with the ghosts […]
Vote early and often
Because I can, I’ve set up a poll (above and to the right). It’s a new feature offered here at blogger.com, and I might as well be among the first to try it. Sorry for the choice in authors; they were the first ones that came into my head. UPDATE 7/25: With a whopping […]
Norwegian writer impresses local man
At the recommendation of my former colleague Peter (Detectives Beyond Borders), I just read Karin Fossum’s “He Who Fears the Wolf.” I recently decided I needed to broaden my reading list to include more female authors and more foreign ones. Fossum, with her stalwart fans and arsenal of glowing reviews, seemed like a good […]