Five on Friday - Julie Hyzy

Happy June everyone! I can't believe we're in the sixth month of 2012 already.

I apologize for my quiet blog this week, some personal stuff getting in the way of my blogging this week. It's just so inconvenient, I'm telling you! I was, however, invited over the Jungle Red Writers blog this past Tuesday. If you are friends with me on Facebook or follow on Twitter, you probably already saw the links. If you're not, you can check that out here. It was a fun post. I really enjoyed putting it together.

And I know you're as excited about this week's Five on Friday as I am, but very quickly I want to tell you about a contest. It's through Facebook for Andrea Camilleri’s new Inspector Montalbano book, THE AGE OF DOUBT. I've been informed the deadline for this contest is the 5th, so you'll need to act quick if you want to enter. You can win a big basket of gourmet Italian foods plus all 14 of the Inspector Montalbano books.

Two other things. Today starts Alafair Burke's 2012 Duffer Awards. I believe she'll have all the info at her website, so check that out. AND, Sunday's the big day for the premiere of "Longmire" on A&E at 10pm. And as long as everything goes according to plan, I should see Craig Monday evening. So, there will be discussion here!

NOW!! For the fun part of today's post. I'm so excited to finally have Julie Hyzy here on the blog. I met Julie the very first year I attended Murder and Mayhem in Muskego and she's fabulous! Julie writers the White House Chef series and the Manor House Mysteries. The second Manor House Mystery, Grace Among Thieves is coming out this Tuesday.  But today, I'm thrilled to have her HERE. Let's see what questions SHE chose for her Five on Friday (I, personally love what she chose!)...

1. The last book I recommended to someone was...

THE ALIENIST, by Caleb Carr. One of my daughters recommended it to me and I’m thrilled she did. I love the TV show Criminal Minds and am fascinated by serial killer profiling and victimology. THE ALIENIST, set in 1896 and including Theodore Roosevelt as key character, is a story of the very beginnings of this sort of crime solving. I was pulled in immediately. Loved it. Can’t wait to read ANGEL OF DARKNESS next.

2. Five songs on my iPod/music player right now are:

“You Just May be the One” – the Monkees
“Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” – Elton John
“Rockstar” – Nickelback
“Drops of Jupiter” – Train
“HMS Pinafore soundtrack” – Gilbert and Sullivan
(can I add a sixth? “Ruby Tuesday” – The Rolling Stones)

3.  My biggest pet peeve is:

Abuse of the apostrophe! No question about it. I do my best to handle the disgust that crawls up the back of my neck when signs feature apostrophes after numbers or years, like: 80’s vs 80s, because that level of misuse is so rampant I either tune it out or risk going bonkers. But I absolutely freak when obvious plurals wear apostrophes inappropriately. I can’t tell you how often I see signs that read something like this: “Employee’s only,” or “On Sale Today: Orange’s.” Ack!! Ack! My husband has had to hold me back from accosting the management. I want to take them down.

4. My favorite t-shirt (that I own) is:

I mostly wear ratty, gray t-shirts. They’re my all time favorite for hanging out at home. My daughters constantly beg me to step away from the gray and try stylish tops with a bit more color, but who sees me during the day? I’m comfortable. My current favorite t-shirt isn’t ripped or stained too badly. Yet. It features three black labs in silhouette. The dogs are three different sizes, but all very small. They’re wearing blue, purple, and pink collars. We used to have the most wonderful black lab-mix (K’Ehleyr, the best dog in the world) and I tell my daughters that wearing this shirt always makes me think of how much she meant to all of us.

5.  The #1 item on my bucket list right now is:

My #1 bucket list item in my writing life is to have “New York Times Bestselling author” added to my book covers. Although I managed to hit #22 on the extended list, my publisher won’t add the NYT wording until I crack the top 20.

 In my non-writing life, my #1 bucket list item is to visit Machu Picchu. I’ve been fascinated by the Incan ruins ever since I followed Nancy Drew there in one of her many adventures. The photos I’ve seen are breathtaking, and I long to experience the site in person. 

 Yay Julie! This is so fabulous. Thank you for these wonderful responses. And we'll be cheering you on to BOTH of your bucket list items!!

This is exactly what I had hoped for the Five on Friday project. I hope you feel like you know Julie a little bit now.  As I mentioned, I think she's a super, spectacular lady. If you ever get the chance to meet her in person, grab it! And if you want to check out her new book Grace Among Thieves, you may also want to check out this contest she has going on her blog.

Have a great weekend everyone. I hope it's filled with wonderful crime fiction! Happy Reading!

Into the Darkest Corner - Elizabeth Haynes

First sentence: "As far as days to die were concerned, the longest day of the year was as good a day as any." (Note: this follows a court transcript, so it's not technically the first sentence, but it's the first sentence of prose.)

Catherine Bailey is a young, carefree woman out clubbing with her friends when she meets the tall hunky Lee Brightman policing the VIP entrance at one of the clubs. She's pleasantly surprised when Lee shows an interest in her and soon they're spending a lot of time together. Lee's job at the club is just a side gig, Catherine learns. He's helping out a friend; his regular job involves undercover work and he leaves for days at a time and doesn't talk about the work. Catherine's friends all envy her fortune at finding such a wonderful guy. But Catherine soon learns Lee isn't as wonderful as he leads everyone to believe. His behavior morphs into controlling, violent actions against Catherine. As she tries to figure out how to escape this threatening relationship, her friends seem to turn against her...

Four years later, Lee is in jail and Catherine is going by Cathy, living far from her former home. Everyday she must check the doors, windows and silverware tray - obsessively. When she comes home from work she has to check them again. Everywhere she goes she thinks she sees Lee. She can only shop on certain days; she has to drink her tea at specific times; and she varies her route home from work every day so no one can discern a pattern to her route. Panic attacks have become a regular part of her life, but it's a life she controls and understands. So when psychologist Stuart Richardson moves into the flat above hers and encourages her to work on letting go of the obsessive behaviors, the safe bubble she's worked so hard to keep herself in pops, and Cathy discovers it's o.k. until she receives a call on Christmas Eve informing her Lee has been released from jail...

Into the Darkest Corner is written in alternating flashback scenes and present day. Elizabeth Haynes simultaneous shows Catherine's life falling apart as Cathy's life is coming together. When those two time periods collide, Cathy/Catherine experiences an explosive change. This plot effect works brilliantly at building suspense, keeping the reader turning pages with a perverse interest: you desperately want to know what happens but at the same time you're terrified to know. In your head you'll hear the music movies play to build anxiety in the audience. Similarly, Catherine never knew what to expect when Lee would come through her door either. So Haynes puts the reader in Catherine's shoes through this effect as well.

One of the most fascinating elements of this book is the way Haynes details the progression of the abusive relationship and helps the reader to see that just walking away, like so many people insist abusive victims should do, is not always as easy as we'd like to believe. And Haynes developes Lee's character so articulately as the chameleon that the handsome, charming police officer is far scarier than any horror villain with a chainsaw or hockey mask.

99% of this novel is stellar and Haynes shows exceptional promise as a psychological thriller writer. My only disappointment was the ending. Without giving any spoilers, I simply felt that the novel runs out of steam and the end kind of falls off. The energy and power of the novel all the way through didn't seem to match the end. Despite that, I would highly recommend people check out Into the Darkest Corner. This debut novel kept me up literally all night long, and the reading experience was well worth the 400 pages.

Into the Darkest Corner is available in hardcover (ISBN: 978-0062197252) from Harper starting June 5, 2012.

My review is part of the TLC Blog Tour. I encourage you to check out what some of the other bloggers on the tour have to say about Into the Darkest Corner. You can find links to their sites here.

Five on Friday - Steve Ulfelder

We return for a new Five on Friday. Yes, I did make a special effort to finish reading Steve's book before he appeared here. It didn't take too much "effort" though, as you know if you read my review yesterday. Steve is a talented writer, and I'm thrilled that he's a part of the crime fiction community.  I'm excited to know him a little better; I hope you are as well.

If this is your first time visiting us for Five on Friday, this feature is kind of like a Q&A with a bit of a twist. They are quirky questions related to the participants as people. I wanted it to be fun and I wanted it to help all of us get to know people in the industry better.

Steve was given eight questions and asked to pick four to respond to, plus answer "What's the number one thing on your bucket list right now?" So without further ado, please welcome the Edgar nominated author of Purgatory Chasm and The Whole Lie, Steve Ulfelder.

1. The most bizarre place I ever found inspiration for a story was: This is either bizarre or so mundane as to be bizarre: I’m fascinated by self-storage operation, with all their potential for secrets (as in The Silence of the Lambs). It’s more than just the contents, though: something about the businesses themselves intrigues me. The way you see them everywhere, tucked away as if even their owners are half-ashamed of them. An upcoming Conway Sax novel is essentially a Prodigal Son story in which one brother finds fame (and then disgrace, of course!) in Hollywood, while the other stays in Massachusetts to tend a sick parent and run a self-storage outfit.

2. Five songs on my iPod/music player right now are: Guy Clark’s “Dublin Blues,” Elizabeth Cook’s “Mama’s Funeral,” Hayes Carll’s “KMAG YOYO,” Shooter Jennings’ “Fourth of July,” and Jerry Jeff Walker’s version of “L.A. Freeway.” (If I ever write a novel that’s half as rich a story as this latter song, I’ll consider myself a success.)

3. A superstition or ritual I have to observe when I write is: I’m an early riser and a morning writer. If, by 7:30am, I haven’t patted the dog, put on my noise-cancelling headphones and gotten to work, my Teutonic sense of schedule is out of whack and I have a rough time producing anything that day. I’m also a fanatic about counting my words. I begin the day by changing the font color to gold, and I end it by doing a word-count on everything in that color.

4. My favorite toppings on a pizza are: Pepperoni and sausage. The more the merrier. I am a devout carnivore.

5. The #1 item on my bucket list right now is: I’d love to drive in the Rolex 24 at Daytona. It’s one of the world’s premier endurance races, and the only one I have a semi-realistic chance of ever competing in. 

You can learn more about Steve, including his racing and the fact that he went to college not far from me, at his website. You can also catch Steve on Facebook and Twitter. And I hope to be recruiting Steve for future fun on the blog as well.  Many thanks to him for his great sportsmanship in participating and for his wonderful candid photo. Are you all enjoying these photos as much as I am?

Have a super wonderful holiday weekend. I hope it's filled with a lot of great crime fiction and time to read it! Happy Reading! 

THE WHOLE LIE - Steve Ulfelder

First line: "When Savvy Kane walked into my shop, I was wrestling the rotted muffler from a Maxima."

Conway Sax is an auto mechanic and a recovering alcoholic. He has a strong attachment to his special group The Barnburners who are all recovering alcoholics. They hold a "meeting after the meeting" and share a special bond among themselves. So when Savannah Kane, a former Barnburner, walks back into Conway's life with a problem, he feels he has no choice but to help her. "Once a Barnburner, always a Barnburner."

The problem Savannah "Savvy" Kane needs help with is less her problem and more Bert Saginaw's problem. Saginaw is running for Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor and his ticket with favored Gubernatorial candidate Betsy Tinker seems a shoe-in. However, there's a threat of blackmail that could derail the whole election. Saginaw wants Sax to put an end to the blackmail and he's willing to pay substantially for this service. But the payout isn't necessary when Savvy Kane is found dead and another of Sax's Barnburner buddies is found assaulted and left for dead. Sax will find out who is behind all of this, even if it costs him his family.

Steve Ulfelder was recently nominated for Best First Edgar for his debut novel PURGATORY CHASM. I haven't read PURGATORY CHASM yet, and it didn't prevent me from thoroughly enjoying THE WHOLE LIE.

Ulfelder's hero does possess one of the stereotypical crime protagonist's characteristics: he's a recovering alcoholic. But Ulfelder takes a fresh approach with his character. Instead of the alcohol being Conway Sax's hang-up and all of the issues that drove him to drink in the first place, it's his connection to other recovering alcoholics that's important. Conway Sax isn't out to hang a shingle and start detecting. He will help those who are part of his inner circle. That's it. Otherwise, he just wants to be an auto mechanic and help raise his girlfriend's daughters.

THE WHOLE LIE is full of fascinating characters beyond his protagonist. Randall is Conway's buddy and "partner in crime." Randall also happens to be the son of Conway's probation officer. He's smart, witty and wears a prosthetic leg because he lost his limb to a bomb he encountered while serving in the military. Conway's girlfriend, Charlene, is also a recovering alcoholic and she pulled herself out of the gutter to become a successful and driven business woman. But one of Ulfelder's most stellar characters, in my opinion, is Charlene's daughter, Sophie. She doesn't have a huge role, but it's a powerful one, nonetheless. She reflects the damage we can do to those around us when we get too caught up in ourselves.

The plot of THE WHOLE LIE is rather timely with the presidential race in full swing. And the stark contrast between the haves and the have nots plays a central issue in the novel's layers of conflict - the 1% anyone?

I have to give Ulfelder extra kudos because Elyria, Ohio, (my hometown) comes into play in THE WHOLE LIE, as does Oberlin College. But the majority of the novel plays out in the various segments of Boston and its surrounding areas.

If you have to read THE WHOLE LIE in multiple sittings, you'll likely struggle to put it down and rush to get back to it as quickly as you can. Add Ulfelder to my must-read list. I'm looking forward to hanging out with Conway Sax and friends again.

THE WHOLE LIE was released earlier this month in hardcover (ISBN: 978-0312604547) from St. Martin's Minotaur and is also available in audio from Audible, narrated by Mark Boyett.

Some Mid-week Fun Stuff

I've seen some fun things that I wanted to share with you all. Today seemed like a good day for that.

Regular readers know I'm an Alafair Burke groupie. If you haven't had a chance to read 212 and you read ebooks, now's your opportunity to snag it for free!! Nook folks, here's your link. And Kindle folks here's yours. I do not know how long this offer is going on, so I'd grab my copy quickly if I were you.

I found this blog post rather humorous about ways to recognize a crime fiction addict. Although I'd argue the one about being in the gym...REAL addicts know that's time to bust out the audiobooks!

Lisa Brackman wrote a nice post about in-person book events for Lady Killers. You know I'm a big fan of book events, so I appreciated this one.

Time is running out to nominate for this year's Pop Culture Nerd Stalker Awards. Make sure you get over and show the love to those you really enjoyed.

I'm not able to embed this one, but here's a 3-minute sneak peek at Longmire. Good lunch time viewing! The premiere is coming up, June 3rd!

I enjoyed this video with various Open Road Media authors talking about writing short stories:



There area slew of new books coming out this summer that I'm completely psyched about. Some that are at the top of my reading list now:

June releases:

THE YARD (Alex Grecian)
THE RISK AGENT (Ridley Pearson)
SKELETON BOX (Bryan Gruley)
PLAYING DEAD (Julia Heaberlin)
NEVER TELL (Alafair Burke)
THE PARIS DETECTIVE (Gerald Jay)

July releases:
JACK, 1939 (Francine Mathews)
THE TRINITY GAME (Sean Chercover)
LET THE DEVIL SLEEP (John Verdon)
A CITY OF BROKEN GLASS (Rebecca Cantrell)
THE FEAR ARTIST (Timothy Hallinan)

August releases:

CRIMINAL (Karin Slaughter)
THE BEAUTIFUL MYSTERY (Louise Penny)
September releases:
A FIST FULL OF COLLARS (Spencer Quinn)

Two I've already finished and can assure you you'll need to pick up: HEARTBROKEN (Lisa Unger) is out in June and THE SURVIVOR (Gregg Hurwitz) is out in August.

I'm sure as August gets closer I'll have plenty more to add to that list. What's on YOUR list for the summer?

Five on Friday - Brian Freeman

It's that time again! Thanks to everyone who helped us kick off the blog feature last week. If you missed last week's highlight, you can check it out here.

Today Brian Freeman, author of the Jonathan Stride series, took time out from his SPILLED BLOOD book tour and his wife's birthday - Happy Birthday, Marcia - to be our spotlight author today on Five on Friday. About this time last year, I reviewed Brian's book THE BONE HOUSE and you can check that out here if you'd like. But for those who came for the party, let's get it started!

The questions Brian chose to answer:

Brian in front of the Cathedral of the Spilled Blood in St. Petersburg

1. A place I’ve never visited but would like to is: Australia. I hear from readers in Australia all the time who love my books, and they’re always inviting me down there. They’re just so darn friendly. Sounds like a great chance to laugh, drink wine, eat great food, and see some amazing scenery. But sorry, you won’t catch me climbing the Sydney bridge. Like Jonathan Stride, I might go off the edge.

2. When I’m reading a book, I absolutely hate it when a writer gets between me and the story (or me and the characters). Sometimes you can feel great writers sitting by your side, poking you in the ribs, saying, “Wasn’t that a great paragraph? Huh? Can I write or what?” No, sorry, if it’s not moving the book forward, take it out. Sometimes we have to be ruthless with ourselves.

3. Happiness is: a wife of twenty-eight years (as of June 16) and three cats. Doesn’t get better than that.

4. The fictional character that most reflects my personality is: Well, Jonathan Stride, of course. Who else? He’s determined, he’s a fixer (even of things that can’t be fixed), and he has an uncanny knack for screwing up his life from time to time. I can relate.

And the number one thing on Brian's bucket list: to see one of my books up on the big screen. Okay, not much I can do about that myself. Among things I can control, I guess I hope to have a little place on a lake in a warm state someday. (I’m in Minnesota, so note the adjective “warm.”) 

I'm hoping for that warm state one of these days, too! Many thanks to Brian for his great answers. And safe travels on the book tour this year, Brian.

I hope you all have a great weekend filled with some great crime fiction. Happy Reading! 

ROBERT B PARKER'S LULLABY - Ace Atkins

My review of LULLABY first appeared in Shelf Awareness for Readers, and I am reprinting it here with their permission. 

First line: "I spotted the girl even before she knocked on my door."

The first Spenser novel penned by someone other than Robert B. Parker will undoubtedly face a high level of scrutiny. Ace Atkins’ Lullaby will stand up to any level.

The woman who walks into private investigator Spenser’s office is fourteen-year-old Mattie Sullivan looking to set the record straight on her mother’s murder four years earlier. Mattie is convinced the wrong man was convicted, but the combination of Mattie’s age, her mother’s history of drug addition and prostitution, as well as the evidence against the convicted man all cause the police to turn a deaf ear. Spenser listens and soon finds himself embroiled in the dark element of Boston no one’s willing to talk about.

Atkins has proven himself an exceptionally talented writer through his own works, including his most recent Quinn Colson series; Lullaby verifies he’s only shown a fraction of his abilities to date. Taking the essence of all that made Spenser an iconic figure in the P.I. genre, Atkins adds an arresting new chapter in the wisecracking, food-loving, former boxer’s biography.

The dialogue follows in the vein of Parker: sharp, witty, engaging. Relationship dynamics will pull readers into more than just the plot, they will pull readers into the lives of the characters. And Atkins remains true to all of Parker’s characters including Spenser’s regular supporting cast: Susan, Rita, Hawk and Quirk.

Especially impressive is Atkins’ sense of Boston. Unlike Parker, Atkins is not a native, but that doesn’t impair his ability to give it as much life as one of the characters.

Taking on the challenge of continuing the much-loved Spenser series is a daunting task. Ace Atkins responds with a knock-out punch in round one. Parker would most definitely approve.


Extra note: I don't know that 250 (or in my wordy case 280) words can do justice to how wonderful I felt this book was. I was skeptical, and Atkins won me over on page one. The dialogue is simply priceless - reflecting character, expressing humor, evoking emotion:

"You think Broz did the shooting in Dorchester?" I asked.
"Yep," Hawk said. "Course, he didn't pull the trigger. You think Gerry knows one end of the gun from the other?"
"Probably not."
"Leaves us with Red and Moon."
"Bad guys," I said.
"We been up against much badder," Hawk said. "Those boys still minor-league."
"And Jack Flynn?"
"Jack Flynn is on the thug all-star team."

And Atkins doesn't include a dialogue tag in every line. The interaction between characters should be a textbook lesson. It's art. Whether you're a long-time Spenser fan or you haven't ever picked up one of the books, you'll enjoy Lullaby. Don't miss this one!

Robert B. Parker's Lullaby is available in hardcover from Putnam (ISBN: 9780399158032) and on audio from Random House Audio (ISBN: 9780307987730), narrated by long-time series narrator, Joe Mantegna.

CAGE OF BONES - Tania Carver

First line: "It was a house of secrets."

CAGE OF BONES is the third book in Tania Carver's series featuring Detective Inspector Phil Brennan and psychologist Marina Esposito. A demolition crew is about to take down an old abandoned building until a discovery is made in the basement. A grisly discovery.

"As DI with Essex Police's Major Incident Squad - MIS - [Phil Brennan] had witnessed on a regular basis the damaged and the deranged destroy themselves and others with tragic inevitability. Seen loving family homes mutate into abattoirs. Comforted victims whose lives had ended even though they still lived. Attended crime scenes so horrific they gave a glimpse of hell.

And this ranked as one of the worst."

What they discovered in that basement was a cage of bones holding a feral child. But that is only the beginning of this horror. The man who caged the boy isn't an amateur and he wants the boy back; Brennan has to find the monster who has perpetrated this crime. Throughout his investigation, something is nagging him, something he can't explain but is nonetheless real and pulling him away from his family. What he discovers may change his reality forever.

The writing team of Tania Carver have reached down into the depths of darkness to create yet another stellar chapter in the lives of Phil Brennan and Marina Esposito. The chilling effects of their story-telling will keep readers up late into the night, with all the lights in the house lit. 

The complexity of the plot keeps the suspense building throughout the course of the novel, while the sympathetically crafted characters pull readers in to their trials and struggles. CAGE OF BONES is not a choice between plot and character, Tania Carver offers up the whole package.

The writing is intense, driving home the truly heinous nature of the crimes and the evil that lurks behind them. Dialogue is sharp and flows naturally - or as naturally as unnatural crime scenes can be.

Tania Carver turned over many rocks to find the darkest evil and expose it in CAGE OF BONES. The result is an adrenaline-inducing, thrilling story that will stimulate readers senses and haunt their daydreams long after the last page.

CAGE OF BONES (ISBN: 978-1605984063) is not yet available in the United States (it will be published by Pegasus in February of 2013) but the UK publication can be purchased through some independent retailers.

Five on Friday: Craig Johnson

Welcome to the inaugural Five on Friday, a new feature here at Jen's Book Thoughts. For those who don't already know, this feature is a way for you to get a little glimpse of the people behind the books we love to read.

I found myself a little frustrated continually seeing bios that simply listed awards won or social media accounts that only had a picture of a book jacket. What about the PEOPLE? I want to see behind the green curtain and know what the magic looks like. So, what I've done is create some quirky, kinda zany questions. There are a few different versions of the lists, each person received one version that contained eight different questions. They got to choose four of those eight and then had to answer "What's the #1 thing on your bucket list right now?"

Fittingly, Craig agreed to be the guinea pig for the first week. His eighth book in the Walt Longmire series, AS THE CROW FLIES, releases on Tuesday. If you missed my review yesterday, you can see it here along with my thoughts on his short story "Divorce Horse." You can check out an earlier interview I did with Craig here. Fittingly, I had asked him about casting his characters if there was a movie. The "Longmire" television show due out next month doesn't match that cast, but we're all looking forward to seeing it.

Craig actually chose to answer all the questions, so you'll get a little extra glimpse of the man behind Walt Longmire and crew:

Craig Johnson and Cassius May

1. My favorite place to read is: In my chair in the breezeway of my house on an old Molesworth-like chair (can’t afford the real thing) under an old lightning-rod floor lamp I found… Dangerous, huh?

 2. I consider [fill in the blank] totally over-rated because: Tweeting, because who cares if I’m having a latte and it tastes great… (Note: according to Viking/Penguin/Warner Horizon/A&E I have to start tweeting…)

3. The last movie I saw was: Can’t even remember the last time I went to the movies; which says a lot, really…

 4. The most famous person I ever met was: Lou Whitaker, snowed in on Mount Rainier at 12,000 feet. It was fabulous listening to him tell stories about growing up with his brother, who was the first American to climb Everest.

5. The worst vacation I ever took was: The family ones when I was a kid, in the back of a ’66 Plymouth Station Wagon—need I say more?

 6. If I had to be stranded on a desert island with only one other person it would be: My wife, Judy, because she’s my best friend, funny, a wonderful conversationalist, and a hottie.

7. My favorite kind of cookie is: Any and all.

 8. My favorite brand of athletic shoe is: Saucony, because they don’t use sweat shops in Asia.

and the #1 thing on Craig's bucket list:

Climb Mount Rainier; I’ve taken two shots at it and have gotten shut down both times by massive snowstorms…

I'll leave the mountain climbing to Craig! Many thanks to Craig for kicking off the new feature. Hope you all enjoyed it and hope you'll take a closer look at Craig's books if you haven't already. You can find out more about Craig, his books, his new book tour and the upcoming television show at his website.

A Double Dose of Craig Johnson

This was my week with Walt Longmire. First I read Craig Johnson's original short story "Divorce Horse" that is essentially set between HELL IS EMPTY and AS THE CROW FLIES. Then I moved right into AS THE CROW FLIES. So here is a double helping of my favorite literary sheriff.

First line: "It was Memorial Day weekend and I was having dinner with my best friend, Henry Standing Bear, and my daughter Cady at the Busy Bee Café."

Walt Longmire never seems to full convalesce before he finds himself in the midst of more life-threatening situations - or at least physically harmful situations. He does get a bit of a break in "Divorce Horse" after his harrowing experience chasing the escaped convicts through the mountains of Wyoming.

Walt and Henry bet Cady that men talk about relationships less often than women don't talk about them. Got that? Well Cady's keeping score, but she doesn't exactly play fair.

Meanwhile, Walt is summoned to the rodeo grounds to investigate a missing horse, the same horse that helped fuel a notorious Absaroka County divorce, thus Vic named it the divorce horse.

"Divorce Horse" is classic Craig Johnson. It's a nice little taste of the gang from Absaroka to fill some of the space between full-length books. As with all of the Walt Longmire novels, there's an underlying theme of relationships; this story looks at the dynamics of the men and women in those relationships.

The warm humor, crisp dialogue and strong sense of place are there, just squeezed into a smaller package. Fans of the series won't want to miss this little gem. And if you haven't tried this series yet "Divorce Horse" will whet your whistle for all the goodness that is found in Absaroka County.

"Divorce Horse" is an ebook exclusive. It's available for the Nook and the Kindle. It also contains the first chapter of AS THE CROW FLIES, book eight in the Walt Longmire series.

First line: "'I wanna know what Katrina Walks Nice did to get kicked out of a joint like this for sixty-one days.'"

It's closing in on Cady Longmire's wedding to Michael Moretti and Walt has father-of-the-bride business to take care of. He and Henry are on the Reservation trying to work out Cady's desired location for the wedding. However, they're running into a bit of a conflict. There is another event scheduled there at the same time. So Henry and Walt head out to another suggested location, just in time to see a woman fall off a cliff with her infant son. The young woman doesn't  survive the fall but her son does. Two many pieces of evidence point to foul play for the fall to be an accident; the young woman's husband becomes the prime suspect until he too winds up dead.

Try as he might to stay out of it, Walt gets pulled into the investigation when Lolo Long, the newly appointed tribal police chief, needs some serious law enforcement lessons and a similar adjustment to her attitude and people skills. 

My time visiting Absaroka County never seems long enough. Maybe it's because once I pick up one of Craig Johnson's Walt Longmire novels, I can't put it down until the end. And then I'm wishing I would have read it slower.

AS THE CROW FLIES takes place primarily on the Reservation so we have a bit of a change in scenery. Johnson has many strengths as a writer, but few if any surpass his sense of place. He brings the Wyoming - or in this case Montana - landscape and its inhabitants to life and puts them to work as characters, affecting and influencing all the elements of the story. There are no questions that Walt Longmire's surroundings are as alive and vital as he is:

"The surface was a loose scrabble of sedentary shale that looked like shattered terra-cotta in a wild cathedral floor; the footing was unstable, and a few lizards scrambled like ball bearings over the hard surface. I moved toward the edge and kneeled down to look at the disturbed rock shelves at the point where the woman had fallen. The wind picked up a little, nudging me from behind, as I allowed my eyes to drift toward the clouds again, some of the trailing low enough to almost reach out and touch."

The change in scenery also brings with it some new characters, including Lolo Long, her mother Hazel and brother Barrett.

The richness of Johnson's character development can be seen in any of his characters, but Lolo Long is an excellent illustration. She's a tough woman with a hard exterior. She's not a popular chief because of those characteristics, but she is determined. She wants to do well and she wants to do right; however, sometimes she tries a bit too hard. Lolo carries both physical and emotional scars; she's experienced pain before, so she doesn't want to expose her weaknesses and open herself up to more pain, yet still she takes a chance reaching out to ask Walt for help.

And there's no need to worry about humor. Johnson writes serious, thought-provoking themes, but he also knows how to have a good time. Walt finds himself in a bit of a drug-induced state during his time on the Reservation. He battles it out with Henry's infamous pick-up truck, Rezdog, and he has just as many wedding jitters as his daughter Cady.

In short - which I have obviously not been in this review - AS THE CROW FLIES is another winner for the Walt Longmire series. I miss some of our Absoraka regulars who've been on the scarce side the past couple of books, but the new faces are adding more layers of enjoyment to an already scrumptious series I only continue to devour. And now, the wait for book nine.

AS THE CROW FLIES is available next Tuesday, May 15 from Penguin Viking in hardcover (ISBN: 978-0-670-02351-6). As many of you know this is also one of my very favorite series on audio. I'm unable to find any information at this point on the audio release, but once I know the details, I'll be sure to share them.

A New Feature and Stuff

A couple short middle of the week items. The first is something I'm rather excited about. I'm going to be starting a new weekly featured called Five on Friday. This Friday will be the first post. I'm going to be inviting people from the publishing industry to answer some rather non-run-of-the-mill questions. Each participate will answer five (thus, Five on Friday). I wanted it to be a way for readers to get to know these folks as something other than awards or blurbs or bibliographies. I don't know about you, but one of my pet peeves is visiting an author's bio and seeing nothing more than a list of the awards they've won the best-seller lists they made. That's nice, but it doesn't tell me anything about the PERSON. I'm hoping these little snippets will share a little more about the people answer them. So far I've gotten a rather outstanding response to my queries, so you can plan on this running at least through the end of the year if not longer.

I'm also hoping to introduce you to some faces that haven't been seen here quite as often. That doesn't mean you won't see many of my favorite people, it just means, plan to meet some new people as well! I won't reveal ahead of time who will be highlighted, you'll have to pop in each Friday to see. I hope you will.

I was very flattered to be asked by Booklist to participate in their May is Mystery Month. If you haven't been following their Twitter feeds lately, you may have been missing out on some great content from the folks there, so stop by and see them for their celebration of crime.

I reviewed a Baby Shark novel awhile back and I found it to be a fun read. The publisher of that series, however, has closed. So Robert Fate has put the Baby Shark books on Kindle and is having special week's when the books will be free. So if you're a Kindle reader, here's the lowdown, mark your calendars:

Baby Shark will be offered free May 18 thru May 22, 2012.
Beaumont Blues will be free May 25 thru May 28, 2012.
High Plains Redemption will be free June 1 thru June 3, 2012.
Jugglers at the Border will be free June 8 thru June 10, 2012.

And my fellow Nook readers, if I find out about an ePub opportunity like this one, I'll be sure to let you know, but as far as I know, it's only available for Kindle right now.

When I was in Florida I had a chance to hang out with Lisa Unger, Alafair Burke and Erin Mitchell. While we were hanging out, Lisa recorded a "Tiki Talk" episode. You can check it out here. It's not my most glamorous appearance and I don't really say much in the interview, but you don't want to see it for me anyway, go check out what Lisa and Alafair have to say! 

I need some help from you. I have to do a guest post soon and I'm trying to come up with a topic. What might be a good topic you'd be interested in hearing - or reading - me pontificate about? 

My email inbox is out of control right now, so if I owe you a response, I'm sorry...I'm getting there. It will be soon, I hope. In the meantime...Happy Reading!

LOCKDOWN - Sean Black

First line: "Nobody guards the dead."

American Ryan Lock served in the special close protection unit of the British Military. Now he's putting his skills to use in the U.S. as a body guard. In LOCKDOWN he's the head of security for a large pharmaceutical and biotechnology company, dealing with regular protests from animal rights activists. On Christmas Eve, the pharmaceutical company CEO agrees to meet with the leader of the protest and agrees to some of their demands. In a press conference outside the building the celebration turns deadly as the protest leader and others are shot by snipers from a neighboring rooftop.

The murders look appear to be the work of animal rights activists who missed their target. Instead of hitting the evil CEO, they took out their own spokesman. But Lock isn't buying it, especially after he winds up in the hospital from a shot-gun rigged door. During his convalescence, Ryan and his good friend Ty start digging into who is really behind the Christmas Eve blood bath.

LOCKDOWN is the first book in Sean Black's Ryan Lock series and I'm very excited that I don't have to wait a year for the next book - one of the benefits of discovering a series late. This is a fun action-adventure novel with a little bit of everything in it. You can't argue that Lock's a real character when he's knocked out in the first 20 pages. And the shaved head with stitches isn't going to win him People's Sexist Man contest. But he's smart and funny and determined; I think I'm smitten. Lock is never about show; he's about doing the job and doing it right.

Sean Black is equally generous to his female characters. Lock's journalist on again-off again girl friend is an independent, no-nonsense gal. But the female I enjoyed the most in this particular book was the terrorist. There are simply no stereotypes to her character. I wouldn't recommend messing with Sean Black's women.

Black also does a superb job of including the relationship between Lock and Carrie Delaney so that it enhances the novel instead of taking the plot off in unrelated directions. But it's Lock's relationship with Ty Johnson that has the greatest impact on the book for me. Their sharp banter is priceless and the unspoken between them adds just as much to each's character.

The plot is fast-paced. This is a text-book thriller in that sense, but Sean Black puts a unique stamp on the genre in many other ways. The first sentence of the book should tell you that much.

LOCKDOWN is available in the US in ebook format for both the Nook and the Kindle.  If you'd prefer it in print, you can get a print copy through Book Depository (free shipping) or you can check here at Better World Books where they have listings from independent sellers.

A Quick Few Mentions

I just wanted to pass along a few things you might want to take advantage of this week.

Prologue Books, an imprint of F+W Media is offering DON'T CRY FOR ME by William Campbell Gault, the 1952 Edgar Award winner for Best First novel, free on Kindle and Nook.

Booklist online is celebrating May is Mystery Month. If you're following @ALA_Booklist or @Booklist_Keir on Twitter, you can see all the updates.

I've been doing a better job of keeping the xuni Facebook page updated with what the xuni authors are doing, so if you aren't already following, you may want to do so. Regardless of your reading preferences, xuni probably has authors you'd be interested in.

Criminal Element has a contest going on right now to win a copy of Long Island Noir. They also have Reed Farrel Coleman's short story "Mastermind" from the anthology that you can read. The contest ends May 7th, so you need to get your entry in pretty quickly.

New teasers are coming out for Longmire. This one is a little graphic, so if that concerns you, be forewarned:





Also excited for the new book, AS THE CROW FLIES, out on the 15th. Look for a review soon. Also have to mention that Tuesday was the release of Robert B. Parker's Lullaby (written by Ace Atkins). I really enjoyed it and will be sharing that review with you soon as well.

 Last, I love what Naomi did over at The Drowning Machine with "Creative Casting." What do you think? Did the voters nail the casting?

I'm working on a new feature for the blog, so stay tuned for info on that. Hope you're having a great week filled with great books! Happy Reading.

FUN HOUSE - Chris Grabenstein

First line: "He wasn't happy about it, but last night my partner John Ceepak became a TV star."

John Ceepak and Danny Boyle return in FUN HOUSE, the seventh book of Chris Grabenstein's award-winning series. This time Sea Haven is invaded by television, reality television to be exact. "'Think Jersey Shore meets Big Brother meets Survivor.'" The mayor is trying to milk the national attention for all it's worth while Ceepak and Boyle try to maintain order as a house full of twenty-something delinquents wreak havoc on Sea Haven. But when one of the house mates shows up dead, hanging amidst the stuffed prizes in a game booth, the stakes are raised and Ceepak and Boyle are once again, on the case.

We had to wait awhile for this new installment of the John Ceepak series, but FUN HOUSE is well worth the wait. It has all the elements of a great Chris Grabenstein book: intelligent humor, rich sense of place, plenty of Springstein references, fantastic characters and a puzzling mystery.  The cement that really holds the wonderful pieces of Grabenstein's books together, however, is the relationship between his main characters. That relationship continues to develop - as do Danny and Ceepak - and it's what keeps fans of the series coming back.

Whether you're an avid fan of reality TV or not, you can't help but recognize the references to actual stars making regular appearances in today's news headlines. Grabenstein's knack of highlighting the absurd is intensified with these characters and their antics: drunkin' brawls in a skee-ball center, food fights in a seafood restaurant, and a final challenge in the real "fun house."

A few characters from previous books return; if you're a dedicated series fan, you'll recognize the faces, but those unfamiliar with the series will have no problems appreciating FUN HOUSE on its own. Grabenstein provides just enough detail from earlier events to bring new readers up to speed without frustrating those readers who've already experienced them.

The John Ceepak mystery series remains one of my all-time favorites; Chris Grabenstein continues to roll out fun reading experiences layered with topical subjects and two of the most unique protagonists in the genre. If you have not checked out this series, now's a great time to do so.

While I haven't listened to the audio of FUN HOUSE yet (it comes out today), I will give a shout out for narrator Jeff Woodman who has narrated the entire series and is back again for FUN HOUSE. The John Ceepak series is not only one of my favorite series in print, it's also one of my favorite audiobook series.

FUN HOUSE is available today from Pegasus Crime in hardcover (ISBN: 9781605983363) and on audio from Audible.