Ten of the World’s Most Enticing Borders Borders have always fascinated me. With just one step, you can cross culture, language, food, politics and much more. Some are tense. Some are awash with welcome. Sometimes, there’s the swipe of a biometric code. Sometimes, a creaking pole across a dusty road, miles from anywhere. […]
Category Archives: Blog Article
The Mathematics of Mystery
The Mathematics of Mystery Some novelists are all but born knowing they should write. Some study literature, or creative writing, become experts is the academic form of the art. Some belong to families of writers and words are their legacy. But not me. I came to writing via the scenic route, completely oblivious to the […]
Is True Crime Good for You?
Is True Crime Good for You? I never gave much thought to true crime until I began working on my new true crime anthology series. Suddenly it occurred to me that I’d been a consumer of true crime since my teens, though at the time I wasn’t conscious of the fact that all those […]
Search of “Dunits”
Search of “Dunits” We’re all familiar with the term “Whodunit.” Classic mysteries by authors like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, and Dorothy L. Sayers set the standard that has endeared the genre to millions of readers throughout the years. The challenge? Can the reader match wits with the detective and unmask the killer first. […]
Who The Spies Really Were
Who The Spies Really Were Most of us hold a certain image in our minds of who a spy is: Ian Fleming’s James Bond— particularly as interpreted by the movies, John le Carré’s George Smiley, or Alan Furst’s Jean Casson. By turns they are sexy and athletic, quiet and self-effacing, or glamorous and artistic, […]
Ten Great Crime Stories Set During the Holidays
Ten Great Crime Stories Set During the Holidays As we head toward the cold, night-wrapped end of the year, let us reflect on crime classics that take place in December. The holidays have it all: thrillers, heists, espionage, true crime, and noir. As winter descends and Christmas carols slide into a minor key, toss […]
A CRIME WRITER IS BORN
A CRIME WRITER IS BORN In 1981 my parents purchased a JVC HR-3660, one of the first VHS-based VCRs commercially available in Ireland. It was top-loading, weighed more than thirty pounds and had a row of gleaming silver levers that reminded my mother of piano keys. The VCR cost 795 Irish pounds or almost […]
MY TOP TEN AUSTRALIAN MYSTERIES WITH A UNIQUE SENSE OF PLACE
MY TOP TEN AUSTRALIAN MYSTERIES WITH A UNIQUE SENSE OF PLACE The diverse Australian landscape offers a wealth of opportunities for the mystery and thriller writer. Beyond the cosmopolitan cities it’s a harsh, unforgiving country, and there’s peril at every turn for those who are unprepared, desperate or unaware. There’s a vast maze of tinder-dry […]
So what actually is Folk Horror?
So what actually is Folk Horror? In times of national – and international – uncertainty we often turn to genre fiction for escapism and entertainment. This has been borne out throughout the Twentieth Century. Vicious new methods of killing devised during the First World War and, coupled with improvements in healthcare, meant that what […]
The True Grist of Oklahoma Thrillers
The True Grist of Oklahoma Thrillers Oklahoma!—a mostly bouncy show—also has a murder in it. My native state has only been a state for about a hundred years. Long before statehood, the land was traversed by nomadic hunting tribes like the Kiowas and Comanches. It was also tilled by agricultural tribes like the Caddos and […]
The Light Inside Noir
The Light Inside Noir In 2010, James Ellroy and Otto Penzler edited an anthology of noir fiction, The Best American Noir of the Century. A writer for the New Yorker asked Penzler what accounted for the popularity of such dark tales. He said, “Have you ever lifted up a rock and seen slugs and millipedes and other ugly […]
Top Ten Holiday Mysteries and Films…
Top Ten Holiday Mysteries Having to work on a holiday has been known to put me in a horrible mood, yet Poirot, Holmes, and Inspector Alleyn seem to delight in having their holidays marred by the odd murder or theft. Here’s a list of the top ten novels and stories set during the holiday season […]