“It’s possible that Sonia believed it, but she’s a woman and it’s only to be expected.” There’s nothing more satisfying on a rainy holiday weekend than to curl up with a good mystery. Make it a classic tale from a prolific author of the 1930’s, dripping with atmosphere and stocked with a perplexing impossible crime … Continue reading CASTLE TO LET: 80 RMS W/PORTCULLIS, WEREWOLF INCLUDED
CALM DOWN, MAN, IT’S JUST A PASTICHE!
I’ve got five glorious days off from school . . . and I conveniently forgot to bring that set of film papers home to grade! It gives me just the time I need to settle down to a good book. I was going to read and review Anthony Horowitz’ new mystery, The Word Is Murder, … Continue reading CALM DOWN, MAN, IT’S JUST A PASTICHE!
GENRE TRANSCENDANT: A Quartet of Great Films
Christmas is just around the corner (he said two days before Thanksgiving!), and that means movie studios are about to inundate the theatres with their “prestige” films, hoping these will receive consideration for the big awards (the Golden Globes, the Oscars, and the Independent Spirit). Every year, this period where good movies are released shrinks … Continue reading GENRE TRANSCENDANT: A Quartet of Great Films
SINCEREST FORM OF FLATTERY: Ellery Queen’s There Was an Old Woman
If you want to be a successful author today, you had better be ready to devote some time to self-promotion. This may be especially true for self-published and mid-tier writers, but everyone who wants to be read needs to get on the publicity circuit. Publishers have reduced the effort they will expend to promote books, … Continue reading SINCEREST FORM OF FLATTERY: Ellery Queen’s There Was an Old Woman
APOLOGIA: In Which One Modern Mystery Causes Me to Reflect on Too Many Issues for One Post . . . and Asks You to Come Along for the Ride!
A few months ago, I told you I would never buy a Louise Penny mystery again, for a host of reasons you can feel free to check out here. But Penny is fun to listen to in the car, so last week I went to the library and checked out Glass Houses, the thirteenth in … Continue reading APOLOGIA: In Which One Modern Mystery Causes Me to Reflect on Too Many Issues for One Post . . . and Asks You to Come Along for the Ride!
THE EVIDENCE OF THE TATTERED PAPERBACK: Fifty Years of MotOE and Me
Two hundred posts are something to celebrate. It’s time to talk about the book that changed my life. The fact that Agatha Christie is my favorite author has as much to do with her place in my own history as her position as one of the greatest mystery writers of all time. She did not … Continue reading THE EVIDENCE OF THE TATTERED PAPERBACK: Fifty Years of MotOE and Me
BRING IT ON, CHINA: Death in the House of Rain
One of the surer signs that GAD crime fiction is coming back in a big way is the rising availability of detective novels from other lands. And I couldn’t be happier about it! From the British Library’s recent collection Foreign Bodies to the explosion of Scandanavian crime fiction (some of it legit!), we’re starting to … Continue reading BRING IT ON, CHINA: Death in the House of Rain
OF SLEUTHING AND SNOBBERY: The Return of Roger Scarlett
“It’s time I got to work. I have an idea I’d like to gumshoe a bit around the room in which Sutton departed this life. We may not find footprints in the snow, but there are always the forgotten calling card and the initialed handkerchief to be hoped for. Secondly, I have a growing curiosity … Continue reading OF SLEUTHING AND SNOBBERY: The Return of Roger Scarlett
A CANADIAN, AN ENGLISHMAN, AND AN AMERICAN WALK INTO A BAR . . .
I’ve spoken before about how much I love the sense of community within this GAD blogosphere! We all work with due deliberation on our posts because a. we’ve got something to say, and b. we want to hear what others think about what we think! (Did you get that?) Recently, my pals JJ and Noah … Continue reading A CANADIAN, AN ENGLISHMAN, AND AN AMERICAN WALK INTO A BAR . . .
YOUR FAVORITE WHODUNIT FILM: A Teacher’s Plea for Assistance!
People of the blogosphere, I need your help. For the latter third of each fall semester, I discuss film genres with my “Cinema and Society” class. Their final project is to create a 5 – 10 minute film in which they choose a fairy tale and give it the genre treatment. Some great examples from … Continue reading YOUR FAVORITE WHODUNIT FILM: A Teacher’s Plea for Assistance!
Ah Sweet Mystery! 