My Life as a Book - 2011

A few years ago, I met my friend and fellow blogger, Pop Culture Nerd, through a meme about book titles. She has devotedly continued that meme each year, and I always look forward to it. I think partly because it's how I met her and partly because she is so darned creative with the sentences.

So, a few weeks ago I was asking her about it. I said, "did I miss it this year? I hope I didn't miss it." I didn't. Her post went up today and here are my responses, describing my life through the book titles I've read so far this year. Feel free to pick it up and run with it yourself. Be sure to drop us a link in the comments so we can come see your answers though. If you don't have your own blog, feel free to leave your responses in the comments! And here we go, MY LIFE AS A BOOK 2011:

One time at band/summer camp, I: Vainished (Joe Finder)

Weekends at my house are: Three Seconds (Roslund & Hellstrom) - blasted things are never long enough! ;-)

My neighbor is: On the Wrong Track (Steve Hockensmith)

My boss is: (the) Silent Enemy (Thomas Young)

My ex was: Delirious (Daniel Palmer)

My superhero secret identity is: The Nightmare Thief (Meg Gardner)

You wouldn’t like me when I’m angry because: You're Next (Gregg Hurwitz)


I’d win a gold medal in: The Last Strip Tease (Michael Wiley)


I’d pay good money for: (a) Portrait of a Spy (Daniel Silva)

If I were president, I would: Fall from Grace (Wayne Arhurson)

When I don’t have good books, I: (start a) Slugfest (Rosemary Harris)

Loud talkers at the movies should be: Long Gone (Alafair Burke)

O.k., there's my contribution. I can't wait to read yours next!

Catching Up...Again

I keep managing to fall behind, so here I am catching up again. I have a slew of fun things to share with you, and God willing, I'll have some reviews to share this week, too.

First is an excited cheer for the fact that A&E officially picked up LONGMIRE. 10 episodes to be exact. So excited about this. And unlike every TV reporting website, it is NOT because Katee Sackhoff is returning to TV. She may be a very good actress, but her return is NOT my excitement. I am rather thrilled to see Lou Diamond Phillips, though. ;-) More than anything, congrats to Craig Johnson!

Bouchercon is almost here. If you still need to register and want to do so online, you need to do that by September 1st. All other registrations must be done onsite. There are also single day tickets available onsite.

Have you gotten your ticket for the Anthony's Brunch? You'll need to contact Jon Jordan ASAP if you haven't taken care of that detail yet.

I have an update on the authors signing at the Crimespree table. We've added some new names since last time, so be sure you mark them down on your schedule:

Thursday:

11:30-12/ Sophie Littlefield & Juliet Blackwell
1-2:00/ William Kent Krueger
2-2:30/ Kelli Stanley & Tracy Kiely
2:30-3/ Tim Hallinan
3-3:30/ Michael Wiley
3:30-4/Hilary Davidson

Friday:
10:30-11/ Todd Ritter & Bryan Gruley
11-11:30/ Tim Hallinan & Gary Phillips
11:30-12/ Jonathan Hayes, Alafair Burke, & Joe Finder
12-12:30/ Hank Phillippi Ryan
1:30-2/ Mike Lawson
2-2:30/ Bob Truluck & R.J. Ellory
2:30-3/ Martyn Waites, Megan Abbott & Daniel Palmer
3:30-4/ Christa Faust

Saturday:
10-11/ Tom Schreck
11-11:30/ Bill Cameron & J.L. Abramo
11:30-12/ Bill Cameron
12-12:30/ Bill Crider
1-1:30/ Cara Black
1:30-2/ Michelle Gagnon & Lisa Unger
2-2:30/ Anthony Campbell & Michael Moreci

For awhile now I've had my link up for the Indie Lit Awards. The nominations are going to start in September, so bookmark this link and be sure to nominate your favorite mystery books from 2011. Pass the word along to your friends as well! Anyone who does not "make their income through the sales of books" is eligible to nominate!

OK, I think that may be it for now. What news can you share with me?

Happy reading!

THE PALE BLUE EYE - Louis Bayard

First line: "In two or three hours...well, it's hard to tell...in three hours, surely, or at the very outside, four hours...within four hours, let us say, I'll be dead."

An apparent suicide is discovered outside the parade grounds of West Point in 1830. A cadet has hung himself from a tree. To add insult to injury, someone sneaks into the coroner's and steals the dead cadet's heart.

In an effort to quietly and discreetly solve the mystery of who would commit such a ghoulish wrong on the dead, West Point Superintendent Sylvanus Thayer calls on Augustus "Gus" Landor, a former constable, to investigate the crime. Landor, being an outsider, needs to find an assistant who can penetrate the West Point code but who isn't a suspect and won't look suspicious in his inquiries. So Gus turns to Edgar Allan Poe.

Louis Bayard has a very rare skill. He manages to blend the literary, the mysterious and suspenseful, the historical and the comical altogether in a most effective combination. The euphonious language may at first deceive readers into thinking the plot's pacing will be slow, but it's quite the contrary. Bayard has constructed a murder mystery that only continues to gather layers and momentum as the story unfolds. Red herrings abound, teasing the reader to follow, daring him/her to just try to put the book down.

The dialogue in THE PALE BLUE EYE resonates with the time period and the characteristics of the speakers, but it is also sharp and witty. Bayard's portrayal of Poe through his language is deliciously priceless: he's at time sympathetic, at times unintentionally comical and always passionate.

The characters populating THE PALE BLUE EYE exude depth and realism, while remaining constructs of their author's imagination. I personally found myself talking to them: "get a grip," "no, don't do it," "awwww!" Those kinds of responses, whether positive or negative, are elicited by the characters who provoke our ardor.  Bayard and his characters are excellent provocateurs.

I listened to THE PALE BLUE EYE on audio, which was an exceptional treat. Charles Leggett narrated Bayard's work with panache. His reading epitomizes what a great audiobook does. Leggett embodies each of the characters through their unique mannerisms, tones, and dialects. The demanding presence of Commandant Ethan Allen Hitchcock leaves even the reader a bit intimidated, while Poe's starry-eyed infatuation is cute and Landor's weariness lamentable.  Bayard's wit comes through in Leggett's interpretation of the work, leaving the reader chuckling or even laughing out loud.  And he seems to flow effortlessly through the various East Coast dialects spoken by the cast.

I believe that certain books should at be experienced on audio at least once. The beauty of the language, when performed well, is simply magical. THE PALE BLUE EYE read by Charles Leggett is one of these books.

THE PALE BLUE EYE is available in trade paper from Harper Perennial (ISBN: 978-0060733988) and on audio from AudioGo (previously BBC America) (ISBN: 978-0792742371).

PIRATE KING - Laurie R. King

First line: "'Honestly, Holmes? Pirates?'"

Mary Russell, wife of Sherlock Holmes, is called into service by Scotland Yard to investigate the possible criminal activity happening with the Fflytte Silent Film Production Company. While not enamored by the idea of the job, Russell is even less excited about the prospect of her brother-in-law coming to stay. So, she packs her bags and sets off for Portugal with a film crew that is creating a "realistic" movie about people performing The Pirates of Penzance.

As if the sheer chaos of shooting a film of a story within a story is not enough to contend with during a criminal investigation, the director's desire for "realism," thirteen actresses, fourteen pirates, a Portuguese translator, and a ship in questionable sailing shape all provide obstacles to Russell's successful completion of this highly bizarre case.

PIRATE KING is my first experience with Laurie King's Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes series. Even though it is the eleventh book in the series, I encountered no difficulties following the narrative - this book can easily stand alone. The story includes an entertaining plot, full of quirky characters befitting a Sherlock Holmes tale - from a creatively-dressed, Napoleon-like director to a soprano-voiced, scar-faced pirate to gum-chewing prima donna.

As Watson narrates the original Doyle stories, Russell narrates King's series. The smart, motivated and witty Russell is a captivating character; her commentary on the events as they unfold provide for colorful story-telling. Her spunk provides humor.

The plot of PIRATE KING contains well placed twists in addition to developing plot layers that work to build suspense throughout the novel. King throws in the occasional silent film subtitle block, reinforcing the movie motif, and the silence imagery extends out to language barriers between characters as well as secrets.

This novel is clever, suspenseful and fun. PIRATE KING is indeed a treasure to be discovered.

PIRATE KING will be available in hardcover (ISBN: 978-0-553-80798-1) from Bantam Books on September 6, 2011.

The Weekend Update: Bouchercon!

Bouchercon is inching closer and closer; excitement is building. I hope many of you are planning to attend. This will be the party of the year. Definitely not to be missed. I have a few items to share with you, but to stay completely up to date, be sure to check out the website and the Bouchercon blog.

First up is the pub quiz. I'll be working with Ruth Jordan to coordinate this session and I'm very excited about it. I think it will be a bunch of fun. We're recruiting teams, so consider this your personal invitation! The pub quiz is open to EVERYONE! So authors, fans, publicists, publishers, EVERYONE is welcome. All you need to do is coordinate three or four of your pals and show up at 8:30 Sunday morning. When you get your team together, email me so we can have an idea of how many folks will be attending. Authors, this is a great opportunity for you to mingle with fans. And fans, this is another opportunity for you to spend time with the authors and your fellow crime fiction friends. So let's all get together and have fun on the final day of Bouchercon!

As in years past the Crimespree Table will be hosting author signings throughout the convention. This is a time when the authors are available to sign and chat....and you KNOW where they are. :-) So if you'd like to meet the authors, get your books signed, etc., mark these times down in your planner and stop by. I know they'd love to see you!

Also, remember, their books aren't available for sale at the Crimespree table. So you either need to bring your book to St. Louis or purchase from one of the dealers there. I'll be updating the schedule periodically as more folks confirm, but here's the schedule as of today:

Thursday:

1-2:00 - William Kent Krueger
2-2:30 - Kelli Stanley
2:30-3 - Timothy Hallinan
3-3:30 - Michael Wiley
3:30-4 - Hilary Davidson

Friday:

11-11:30 - Timothy Hallinan
11:30-12 - Jonathan Hayes, Alafair Burke, Joe Finder
12-12:30 - Hank Phillippi Ryan
2-2:30: R.J. Ellory
2:30-3: Martyn Waites, Megan Abbott
3:30-4 - Christa Faust

Saturday

10-11 - Tom Schreck
11-12 - Bill Cameron
12-12:30 - Bill Crider
1-1:30 - Cara Black
1:30-2 - Michelle Gagnon

So, I hope if you're coming to Bouchercon, you take an opportunity to stop by the table and say hi to some of these wonderful folks!

Before I sign off, I want to wish the Shamus Award nominees a hearty congratulations. I see some very well-deserving names on the list. The Shamus Awards will be given out at a reception held during Bouchercon.

Chicago Comic Con - A Fish Outta Water

This past weekend I was fortunate enough to be able to go to the Chicago Comic Con. If you know me, you know I'm a nerd, but not a comics nerd. I had ulterior motives. Gregg Hurwitz was appearing at the convention!

I introduce Gregg to everyone as a thriller writer, which he most definitely is. But did you also know he's a comic book author as well? He's written several comic book characters now and has some work coming up with The Penguin. You can see information about that work here.

I had intended to arrive at the convention on Saturday morning for Gregg's 11:00 panel on writing; however, no one informed my GPS or Google Maps about the Comic Con traffic delays! I missed the 11:00 panel, but was able to see Gregg at his signing after.

On the convention floor I felt like a fish out of water. I was constantly asking Ruth Jordan, Dana Kaye and Jon Jordan who people were supposed to be dressed as. I could identify the ones everyone knows: Ghostbusters (yes, there were Ghostbuster people), Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, the Joker. And I even recognized Lou Ferrigno when he walked by us before breakfast on Sunday. But I discovered Steam Punk, which I thought were very cool.  There was a man with a furry yellow costume; that was weird. And I reaffirmed the fact that there are far more daring people in this world than I - holy moly, did your mother see you before you left the house looking like that? The little kids were quite cute. One who couldn't have been more than about 2 1/2 feet tall corrected his father (grandfather?) when he identified the wrong character on a t-shirt. Too funny! I didn't take any pictures on the convention floor because there was part of me that simply didn't know how to react. I was definitely a fish out of water.

Gregg moderated a panel later on Saturday, which I was able to attend. The panel consisted of two artists and a comic book writer. Essentially their discussion boiled down to something very similar to novel-writing: being successful requires high levels of talent, work ethic and luck. The talent has to come first, but there are many talented people out there. Luck does play a significant role in the comic book industry.

The other very significant part of this past weekend is the drug Jon Jordan hooked me on. She goes by the name of Jill Thompson. I have met Jill prior to this weekend, but on Saturday Jon handed me a copy of SCARY GODMOTHER, which you will all hear about later this week. Essentially all I had to do was open the front cover, and now I'm scouring about trying to find other children's comics that she's done. I. LOVE. HER. WORK!

That was my wonderful first experience with the Chicago Comic Con. While I don't think I'll be headed out to San Diego any time too soon, this was a fun experience and I'm sure it won't be my last. How about you all? Anyone been to a comic convention? Fun anecdotes to share? I'd love to hear them.

In the mean time, happy reading!

DOMINANCE - Will Lavender

My review of Will Lavender's phenomenal thriller DOMINANCE appeared last week in Shelf Awareness. With their permission, I am reposting it here today. If it's not already, this one needs to be in your MUST READ pile!

First Line: "The Jasper College Faculty Board has approved a controversial night class on a vote of 5 to 4."

Alex Shipley is a professor at Harvard when she’s summoned back to her alma mater, Jasper College, for a murder investigation. Fifteen years earlier Alex and her classmates participated in a night class taught by Professor Richard Aldiss from his prison cell. Aldiss was convicted of murdering two college students, but through Alex’s investigations in the course of the class, she cleared Aldiss of murder. But now there’s another murder, could Aldiss have actually been guilty?

Will Lavender unfolds his puzzling thriller by alternating between 1994 and the present, telling the story through the limited third person perspective of Alex Shipley. By alternating the time periods, Lavender is able to build the suspense, creating cliffhangers and then switching back to the opposite time. He provides just enough information to lead the reader to the edge of the cliff and then throws in a twist.

By using Alex Shipley’s perspective, Lavender creates a tone of uncertainty. Alex believes her professor is innocent, but so much evidence points to the contrary. Her internal conflict ramps up the plot’s intensity. All of the characters are deceptively rich, filled with secrets and hidden layers.

Alex Shipley poses the question to her classmate, “what if you could read a book and treat it as a competition between you and its author?” Lavender is challenging his readers with DOMINANCE; can you defeat the master?

DOMINANCE is available from Simon & Schuster in hardcover (ISBN: 978-1451617290). It is also available in audiobook format from Simon & Schuster Audio (ISBN: 9781442341906). I read DOMINANCE in print, so I can't speak to the narration, but it is read by Christopher Evan Welch.

SILENT ENEMY - Thomas Young

If you missed it in Shelf Awareness last week, I'm posting my review of SILENT ENEMY here with permission from the nice folks at Shelf Awareness. If you aren't receiving Shelf Awareness, be sure to sign up. I have a button in the column on the right. Signing up even gets you entered to win free books. In the mean time, here's SILENT ENEMY by Thomas Young!

First line: "The world went away, and every part of her hurt."

Army Sergeant Major Sophia Gold and Air Force Major Michael Parson are reunited in Thomas Young’s second novel when a bomb destroys the Afghan National Police central training facility in Kabul. Gold’s helping to run the literacy program and sustains minor injuries in the blast. However, many of her students are badly injured and she’s going to accompany them to Germany, the closest hospital facility large enough to handle the number of patients. Parson is called on to fly the patients to Germany, which isn’t an issue until a bomb is discovered aboard the air craft.

Readers unfamiliar with Young’s first novel, THE MULLAH’S STORM, will have no problems following along with the events of SILENT ENEMY. The pace is quick, due in large part to the constant action of the plot combined with well-timed twists.

Young treats the array of characters and cultures with dignity avoiding any hidden agendas in his themes. Some readers may find the technical elements of the air craft piloting a bit daunting, but they play a minor role in the overall story.

Young’s experience as an Air National Guardsman serving in the Middle East works to heighten the authenticity in this exciting military thriller. I’d recommend not reading it on the plane to your vacation destination. Wait until you’ve hit the beach.

SILENT ENEMY is available from Putnam in hardcover (ISBN: 9780399157790) and Penguin Audiobooks in, uh, audio. ;-) It's narrated by Scott Brick.

THE BLUE LIGHT PROJECT - Timothy Taylor

I was asked to be a part of the blog tour for a book called THE BLUE LIGHT PROJECT by Timothy Taylor. Unfortunately there were some snafus along the line...communication and delivery problems. So, I am unable to review the book, but I did want to give you all the information on it in case it sounds like something you'd like to pick up for yourself. So, here's the rundown on THE BLUE LIGHT PROJECT:

When an armed man seizes a television studio in the center of town, Thom Pegg, a former investigative journalist turned tabloid reporter, is as surprised as anyone to learn that he is the only person to whom the hostage taker will speak, bringing him inside the studio and in contact with the frightening truth.

From outside, meanwhile, the drama of the enthralled and horrified city is revealed through the eyes of two characters who meet in the early stages of the crisis and who bond to one another instinctively. Eve is a former Olympic gold medalist and much loved local daughter. Rabbit is a secretive street artist who has just completed a massive street art project involving mysterious installations at the tops of hundreds of buildings through the city.

It’s a time of fear, a time when people have grave doubts about the future, and each other. Yet, when events collide, and Rabbit’s installation is activated, people are shocked into seeing the power of beauty in the world, and the real possibility of hope.

THE BLUE LIGHT PROJECT is available in trade paper (ISBN: 978-1593764029) from Soft Skull Press. And you can check out the author's website here.

MISERY BAY - Steve Hamilton

First line: "It is the third night of January, two hours past midnight, and everyone is in bed except this man."

Foes join forces in Steve Hamilton's eighth book of his Alex McKnight series. Chief Roy Maven seeks Alex's help when his friend, Charles Razniewski, is looking for answers about his son's suicide. Alex doesn't think there's much he can do to help, but for the grieving father, he's willing to go ask some questions. When a few details seem a little off kilter, Alex starts to ask more questions and discover some other oddities. The problems only escalate when Razniewski is murdered in the Chief's house. Alex has stumbled onto something much bigger than a young man's suicide and if he doesn't uncover the truth, Chief Maven may be the next target.

The Alex McKnight series has consistently been a strong crime fiction series, but with MISERY BAY Hamilton's taken his characters to a new level. The dynamics have changed between Alex and Roy Maven as they share experiences that no humans should have to endure. They see new sides of each other and that connection is authentic and well constructed. The bruised egos and jostled reputations are believable, often humorous and heartfelt.

Hamilton once again uses his setting to not only compliment but enhance the plot and build suspense and mood.

I had to chuckle to myself because once again Hamilton got me. I was anticipating his use of a cliche construct only to have him turn the tables and show that he was very conscience of that cliche. I could almost see him sticking his tongue out and saying, "really Forbus, don't you know better by now?" And I should because Steve Hamilton has not let me down to date, and MISERY BAY was no different.

Hamilton pays homage to two other crime writers in MISERY BAY; pay close attention to find Reed Coleman and Jim Fussilli making appearances in this McKnight novel.

I listened to MISERY BAY on audiobook, narrated by Dan John Miller. I am a fan of Miller. I think he does an outstanding job with crime novel narration. His style is especially fitting for Alex McKnight. He's not overly dramatic, but he build an appropriate intensity when it's called for. Miller also brings out the mood that Hamilton creates through his setting, so that you can almost feel the environment where the story is taking place. This isn't a fast-moving novel; Miller sets an appropriate pace that also brings out qualities in the characters. A very well-done audiobook.

MISERY BAY is available from Brilliance in audiobook (ISBN: 978-1-441-81552-1) and from St. Martin's Minotaur in hardcover print (ISBN: 978-0-312-38043-4).