Observations from the Balcony

New blog address

2008-06-12T17:08:00.000-07:00

If anyone should happen to be coming over from The Rap Sheet, or anyone else that picks up the story, my new blog address is:

http://www.mysterybookspot.com/brianlindenmuth/

This was done in order to keep everything under one roof.

If anyone is interested in moving their blog over to the MBS digs (still a work in progress) drop me a line and let me know.

Brian

What the Dead Know by Laura Lippman - review

2007-05-10T08:44:00.001-07:00

What the Dead Know will by the end of the year be recognized as one of the top novels of the year.

In many ways What the Dead Know is a tour-de-force of story telling whose only serviceable comparison is the tapestry of bullshit, truth & wonder that Verbal Kint weaves in the movie The Usual Suspects. To extend the comparison just one step further if the central question of the movie was ‘Who is Keyser Soze’? Then the central question of What the Dead Know is ‘Who is Heather Bethany’? It’s exactly this question that Lippman will answer for us over the course of 384 masterfully controlled and written pages.

The story is crafted in such a way so that it leap-frogs back and forth in time. This serves two purposes and executes both beautifully. First it allows Lippman to pick and choose which bits of information to give us and when to give them to us. The bits of information quickly become a potent mix of hints and red-herrings that will form a literary bread crumb trail. Second, and perhaps more importantly it will allow for a careful dissection and examination of the events and the relationships surrounding them. Read More

All of my reviews can be found here

From the front lines of Charm City

2007-05-09T06:35:00.000-07:00

A scene from the set of the fifth season of The Wire,now currently filming around town OR real life.

There are only 42 Homicide detectives in Baltimore. 42. That's it. So far for the year 2007 there have been 101 murders. In addition to being woefully understaffed and over worked Homicide detectives are required to work one week every month on cold cases, of which there are 1065 from the past nine years.

The Homicide departments closure rate for the year so far is 23.4 percent. The national closure rate, according to the FBI, is 62 percent.

All of this information is especially relevant after the announcement last week that Homicide detectives are going to have to start walking the beat.

When David Simon wrote Homicide ---- years ago he painted a bleak and sober picture. Things have gotten worse and now this. Ridiculous.

There were 20 murders in the month of April. Four have been solved. On April 7th Brent Flanagan was beaten and stabbed. His body was dismembered and stashed in a house. Then the house was set on fire to cover it up.

State Delegate Jill Carter wrote recently “Bullets in Baltimore are as urgent a crisis as bombs in Baghdad."

"Baltimore or Baghdad: Which is the greater American tragedy?” Carter’s letter asks. “As of March 19, 2007, violence has claimed the lives of 47 Americans in Baghdad since the start of the year. During the same period, violence claimed 61 lives in Baltimore, Maryland — most due to gunshot wounds. Thousands marched this past weekend to end the loss of life in Baghdad. By contrast, the cry of outrage in Baltimore has barely risen to the level of a whisper.”

That last line is important and sad because it reflects how used to murder the people of Baltimore have become.

Only in the bureaucratic nightmare as portrayed so accurately in The Wire can something like the following happen:

Joseph Ensey died in November 2006 due to complications from a 1991 shooting. Ensey’s death was ruled a homicide by the Medical Examiner’s Office on April 20. The man police say is responsible for Ensey’s killing, Gamel Brown, 42, of Baltimore, cannot be tried for the homicide because he already pleaded guilty in the early 1990s to a handgun violation in connection with Ensey’s shooting, police said.

APRIL HOMICIDE VICTIMS

April 2: Darrell Smith, 21, of Baltimore, shooting

April 8: Eric Zuraski, 39, address unknown, stabbing

April 9: John Daughtry, 25, of Baltimore, shooting

April 11: Tavon Campbell, 20, of Baltimore, shooting

April 12: Brent Flanagan, 16, of Baltimore, stabbing *

April 18: Johnnie James, 25, of Baltimore, shooting

April 18: Kevin Randall, 45, of Baltimore, shooting

April 19: Christopher Wayman, 23, of Baltimore, shooting *

April 20: Joseph Ensey, 45, of Woodlawn, shooting *

April 22: Van Johnson, 29, of Baltimore, shooting

April 22: Damon Dubose, 23, of Baltimore, shooting

April 26: Ernest Buchanan, 18, of Reisterstown, stabbing *

April 27: Dewitt Smith, 25, of Baltimore, shooting

April 29: Ronald Daniels, 29, of Baltimore, shooting

April 29: Victim’s family not notified, 36, address unknown, shooting

April 29: Azerwoine Walker, 30, of Baltimore, shooting

April 29: Leroy Sanders, 22, of Baltimore, shooting

April 30: Deshaun White, 31, address unknown, shooting

April 30: Adult male victim unidentified, shooting

April 30: Eric Queen, 24, of Baltimore, shooting

Blood of Paradise by David Corbett - review

2007-05-02T08:32:00.000-07:00

With an assured hand David Corbett has been quietly crafting some of the best novels of the last 5 years.

Corbett is better then anyone else at using a simple premise or crime as a platform to spin epic stories of the human experience writ large against a vast canvass. From personal interaction with one another; to interactions with ourselves; to interactions with our own ghosts and demons; to interactions with faith, god and fate; to interactions with the socio/politico machines of our own creation. The beating heart at the center of Blood of Paradise may be a dark one but it’s a real one that we, at times, can recognize as our own. Read More

Yesterday

2007-04-17T10:41:00.000-07:00

Locus has now confirmed that SF writer Michael Bishop's son, Jamie Bishop was among the victims yesterday. He taught German at the school and examples of his work can be seen at his site.

I've read Bishop's novels over the years and his introductions to other works. I was very shocked to hear about his son. I've never met the Bishop's but it still felt close to home to walk over to my book shelf and realize that this man's son was killed yesterday.

A man should never have to bury his child. My heart and thoughts are with you Michael

Cast of Shadows by Kevin Guilfoile - review

2007-04-15T13:35:00.000-07:00

Cast of Shadows takes a small handful of issues, cloning and stem cell research chief among them, and crafts a tale that that launches from a simple premise and becomes a multifaceted discussion that is at times moral, scientific and religious. The premise and its exploration prove to be an effective evaluation of these difficult issues without any real political or religious bias.

The story is told over 20+ years, during which we get to watch these characters grow, change and age. Every character is complexly rendered producing very real, very sympathetic people.

“In spite of his dedication to work, he had raised the kind of young woman a teenaged Davis Moore would have admired, would have befriended, would have pursued with all his energy and charm. More important, he had the raised the kind of young woman who would have seen through teenaged Davis Moore’s unflappable, swaggering bullshit.”

Cast of Shadows is divided into two parts. The first part will cover a little over a decade and focuses on Dr. Moore’s twin obsessions of finding his daughters killer and keeping up with Justin’s growth and progress. Justin’s face will very slowly start to come into focus as he grows into the man who killed Moore’s daughter. By the end of this first part nothing will be the same and everyone’s lives will be affected.

Read more

Ice by Vladimir Sorokin - review

2007-04-15T13:31:00.000-07:00

The terse, clipped prose moves the story along at a fast pace. The first part of Ice follows three characters through their lives as they are awakened and after the awakening has taken place. They are plucked from all walks of life and economic backgrounds. Not only do we get to witness first hand the at times brutal awakenings but we also get a nice cross section of Russian life. The second part of the novel threats us to a lengthy first person account of how one member of this group was awakened. The Nazi’s took her from her village as a young teenager. Upon arrival in Germany she was kept aside at a camp because of her physical features then awakened. Her heart proves to be older then her body and she quickly become part of the upper echelon of the secret group. Her personal history will act as a history lesson of the group for not only us but also the three recently awakened characters from the first part. We will learn about its origins and its relationship with the Tunguska event, its methods and its ultimate goals.

From the moment we witness the first awakening in the opening moments, and especially as we learn more about them, we are forced to wonder if they are a menacing group or are they our superiors. Will their success be a benevolent act for a humanity that was never supposed to be? Will the destruction of the world, as we know it be a mercy killing for a patient that has been dead for a long time, even if they just didn’t know it? Will the final act be one of selfless love or ultimate selfishness? These are not easy questions to ask and no clear answers are provided.

Re-reads & A Case of Weird Synchronicity

2007-04-09T11:40:00.001-07:00

When Paper Trails was published a couple of months ago I decided that I was going to re-read Paris Trout. It had been a long time since I read it; in fact it had been a long time since I read any Dexter. He's such a low key guy, damn near invisible in fact, that I have a tendency to forget about him sometimes.

I'm happy to say that Paris Trout has not lost any of its dark power over the years. I had forgotten portions of the book and mis-remembered others so it was a fresh experience for me again.

The language is stark and impressive with some scenes being so hard to watch unfold and yet so utterly compelling. I felt, at times, like a rubbernecker gawking at a car accident on the side of the road.

The characterizations are so deeply detailed that the ending of the book becomes so tragic on every level. It’s the rare book that just leaves you gasping for air as if you'd been punched in the gut.

Lest I forget why I started reading Paris Trout in the first place it should be said that Paper Trails is just brilliant. I've been reading it in little bits to try and make last as long as possible

Plus they both are PT books.

I also spent some time reading The Last Good Kiss by James Crumly again. Without a doubt it blew my hair back when I first read it but does it still hold up and should it be considered a classic? Interestingly the answer is yes and no.

Pro-classic opinion

On one hand it is a classic because by the time Crumly came out the hard-boiled, noir, PI genre was stale, predictable and reductive. Ultimately pandering to its lowest common denominator. So its influence can never be taken away and for that it will always be a classic.

Crumly has a vivid writing style that is both masculine and sentimental. His exploration of the underside of the American psyche/experience in the post-Vietnam era was sober and refreshing. It also brought the genre kicking and screaming into the present and out of the domain of fedoras and dames. This was a brutal modern western in every sense of the word.

He presents the post conflict solider as a tragic teary-eyed figure floating adrift, lost as he finds himself out of his element now that he isn't in the jungle with his brothers. The government created them as warriors to fit their needs and then forever cast them aside. To live with that they have turned to drugs and alcohol and sex. Think the first Rambo movie, but without the descent into cartoonishness.

An interesting question though needs to be asked. Is Crumly a writer of his time, specifically that of post-Vietnam era America? I think it will be interesting to see what future novels of his will bring to the table in post 9-11 America. Will they continue to be relevant or will they be unable to move forward by mining the same vein. Only time will tell.

Afterthought: Crumly shows a willingness to poke fun at the genre in later books, just witness the first part of The Mexican Tree Duck. From the planned execution of a jukebox to the repossession of tropical fish from a biker gang using a Sherman Tank and the assistance of two fat brothers. Must be read to be believed.

Dissenting opinion

One could say that Crumly's characters are pompous blowhards. That they have a total inability to adapt to the real world. Crumly’s answer to a reductive genre was a reductive response, all of his characters fit into the parameters of 'If its the bad guy then kill it; if it has a hole then fuck it; if it can be cut into a line then snort it and if can be rolled then smoke it.'

It seems readily apparent that only those with penis's can really understand these characters and their plight of trying to cope in the real world. Only those who fought in Nam are worthy of consideration and development into a character with a third dimension. Dames are still dames even if you don't use the word.

Crumly's world is not only reductive but it’s overly simplistic as well.

Conclusion

After playing devils advocate with myself I've come to the conclusion that it is a book worthy of being called a classic but maybe when considering some other aspects of it that it’s better to call it a flawed classic. But then aren't most classic books flawed in some way?

Now I called this post Re-reads & A Case of Weird Synchronicity for a reason. I'm reading a book now called Ice by Vladimir Sorokin. In it a woman is violated by a wine bottle. In Paris Trout a woman is violated with a glass water bottle.

What the hell kind of stars have to align for someone to read two books in a short period of time where women are treated this way. In Paris Trout the scene was effective in making the character of Paris loathed by the reader because we were made so uncomfortable while it was happening. So far in Ice I can’t see that there was a point to the scene.

Win Sandra Ruttan's Suspicious Circumstances

2007-04-04T06:37:00.001-07:00

There is a new contest up at Mystery Book Spot. We're giving away one copy of Suspicious Circumstances by Sandra Ruttan. Entering is easy just register at the site and send me a PM. The deadline for the contest is April 20th with the winner being announced shortly after.

Deadstock by Jeffrey Thomas - review

2007-04-04T06:35:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of Deadstock by Jeffrey Thomas over at Fantasy Book Spot.

Con Ed by Matthew Klein - review

2007-04-04T06:34:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of Con Ed by Matthew Klein over at Mystery Book Spot.

No Offense Intended by Barbara Seranella - review

2007-03-30T06:14:00.001-07:00

Here is Maria's review of No Offense Intended by Barbara Seranella over at Mystery Book Spot.

A new reviewer

2007-03-29T06:51:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago we brought on a new reviewer at Mystery Book Spot, Maria.

If it can be said that I read the darker stuff then its safe to say that she reads the lighter stuff. All the better to round out the reviews and strengthen the site.

So far she has reviewed the following books.

As Dog is My Witness by Jeffrey Cohen

Murder...Suicide...Whatever by Gwen Freeman

Monkey Man by Steve Brewer

No Human Involved by Barbara Seranella

Dope by Sara Gran - review

2007-03-28T11:42:00.000-07:00

Here is my review of Dope by Sara Gran over at Mystery Book Spot.

Murdaland Issue #1 - review

2007-03-27T13:24:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of Issue #1 of Murdaland over at Mystery Book Spot.

Stealing the Dragon by Tim Maleeny - review

2007-03-27T09:37:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of Stealing the Dragon by Tim Maleeny over at Mystery Book Spot.

Go to Helena Handbasket by Donna Moore - review

2007-03-26T11:11:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of Go to Helena Handbasket by Donna Moore over at Mystery Book Spot. Donna was also kind enough to chime in on the comments section afterwards.

Suspicious Circumstances by Sandra Ruttan - review

2007-03-26T11:10:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of Suspicious Circumstances by Sandra Ruttan over at Mystery Book Spot

Robert Ward interview

2007-03-26T11:09:00.001-07:00

Here is my interview with Robert Ward over at Mystery Book Spot.

Big City Bad Blood by Sean Chercover - review

2007-03-26T11:08:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of Big City Bad Blood by Sean Chercover over at Mystery Book Spot

The Blade Itself by Marcus Sakey - review

2007-03-26T11:07:00.003-07:00

Here is my review of The Blade Itself by Marcus Sakey over at Mystery Book Spot

The Long - Legged Fly by James Sallis - review

2007-03-26T11:07:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of Long - Legged Fly by James Sallis over at Mystery Book Spot

A Fifth of Bruen by Ken Bruen - review

2007-03-26T11:06:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of A Fifth of Bruen by Ken Bruen over at Mystery Book Spot

The Blue Cheer by Ed Lynskey - review

2007-03-26T11:05:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of The Blue Cheer by Ed Lynskey over at Mystery Book Spot

Red Cat by Peter Spiegelman - review

2007-03-26T11:04:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of Red Cat by Peter Spiegelman over at Mystery Book Spot

Sacred by Dennis Lehane - review

2007-03-26T10:56:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of Sacred by Dennis Lehane over at Mystery Book Spot

Rilke on Black by Ken Bruen - review

2007-03-26T10:55:00.003-07:00

Here is my review of Rilke on Black by Ken Bruen over at Mystery Book Spot

The Keeper by Sara Langan - review

2007-03-26T10:55:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of The Keeper by Sara Langan over at Fantasy Book Spot

Calibre & Vixen by Ken Bruen - review

2007-03-26T10:54:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of Calibre & Vixen by Ken Bruen over at Mystery Book Spot

The Dramatist by Ken Bruen - review

2007-03-26T10:53:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of The Dramatist by Ken Bruen over at Mystery Book Spot

The Cleanup by Sean Doolittle - review

2007-03-26T10:49:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of The Cleanup by Sean Doolittle over at Mystery Book Spot

Do the Creepy Thing by Graham Joyce - review

2007-03-26T10:48:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of Do the Creepy Thing by Graham Joyce over at Fantasy Book Spot

Art in the Blood by Craig McDonald - review

2007-03-26T10:47:00.003-07:00

Here is my review of Art in the Blood by Craig McDonald over at Mystery Book Spot

The Bible Repairman by Tim Powers - review

2007-03-26T10:47:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of The Bible Repairman by Tim Powers over at Fantasy Book Spot

Four Kinds of Rain by Robert Ward - review

2007-03-26T10:46:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of Four Kinds of Rain by Robert Ward over at Mystery Book Spot

The Magdalen Martyrs by Ken Bruen - review

2007-03-26T09:41:00.001-07:00

Here is my review of The Magdalen Martyrs by Ken Bruen over at Mystery Book Spot

Favorite Fantasy & Mystery Books

2006-12-29T12:33:00.001-08:00

Awhile ago I posted my list of favorite fantasy books. Recently I posted my list of favorite mystery books. Take a gander and feel free to disagree, as long as you do it publicly.

Another Round-up

2006-12-29T12:28:00.001-08:00

I doubt that I'll be writing anything else in 06 so here is the last round up of reviews and interviews.

My interview with Jason Starr

My review of 47 Rules of Highly Effective Bank Robbers by Troy Cook

My review of Blitz by Ken Bruen

My review of Probable Cause by Theresa Schwegel

My review of Red Baker by Robert Ward

An interview with Ken Bruen

2006-12-27T12:34:00.001-08:00

Here is an interview that I recently conducted with Ken Bruen over at Mystery Book Spot.

Some highlights include:

-specifics about some of his books

-what we can expect in 2007 as I try to pry some specific information out of him

-what he liked in 2006

-what art we can expect in a post 9/11 world

and much more.

Enjoy.

Mid December Review and Interview Round Up

2006-12-19T06:23:00.001-08:00

I read books at a faster rate then I can write about them. So my goal is to be completely caught up and out of the hole by the end of the year. So its likely that there will be a purge of reviews over at Mystery Book Spot from now until then.

I just posted my interview with Jason Starr in conjunction with the contest that we are running for Lights Out. The interview is here.

The reviews that I've posted in the last week or so are:

Ex Machina

The White Trilogy - Ken Bruen

Darkness Take My Hand - Dennis Lehane

Fags & Lager - Charlie Williams

The Killing of the Tinkers by Ken Bruen

American Skin by Ken Bruen

and

No Dominion by Charlie Huston

Book Give Away Contest: Jason Starr's Light's Out

2006-12-11T07:24:00.001-08:00

Mystery Book Spot is holding it's first book give away contest and it's a good one. We are giving away a copy of Jason Starr's Light's Out. Entry into the contest is very easy. Sign up at the site and send me a private message. That's it.

There will be other contests so keep checking back.

The Rising by Brian Keene - review

2006-11-29T11:13:00.000-08:00

Here is my review of The Rising by Brian Keene over at Fantasy Book Spot.

The Impossible Bird by Patrick O'Leary - review

2006-11-29T11:05:00.000-08:00

Here is my review of Patrick O'Leary's The Impossible Bird over at Fantasy Book Spot. The mission to kick O'Leary out of the shadow cabinet continues.

A Drink Before the War by Dennis Lehane - review

2006-11-22T06:58:00.000-08:00

Here is my review of A Drink Before the War by Dennis Lehane over at Fantasy Book Spot.

My interview with Patrick O'Leary

2006-11-18T15:17:00.000-08:00

Here is my interview with Patrick O'Leary over at Fantasy Book Spot.

Kiss Her Goodbye by Allan Guthrie - review

2006-11-18T15:15:00.000-08:00

Here is my review of Allan Guthrie's Kiss Her Goodbye over at Mystery Book Spot.

Drive by James Sallis - review

2006-11-17T08:41:00.000-08:00

Here is my review of Drive by James Sallis over at Mystery Book Spot. A modern masterpiece.

Lights Out by Jason Starr - review

2006-11-16T10:59:00.000-08:00

Here is my review of Jason Starr's latest Lights Out over at Mystery Book Spot. It is his first hard cover release and he is well deserving of it.

Resume With Monsters by William Browning Spencer - review

2006-11-16T07:15:00.000-08:00

Here is my review of Resume with Monsters by William Browning Spencer over at Fantasy Book Spot.

To the Power of Three by Laura Lipmann - review

2006-11-16T07:14:00.000-08:00

Here is my review of To the Power of Three by Laura Lipmann over at Mystery Book Spot.

A Simple Plan by Scott Smith - review

2006-11-16T07:12:00.000-08:00

Here is my review of A Simple Plan by Scott Smith over at Mystery Book Spot.

Chance Fortune & The Outlaws by Shane Berryhill - review

2006-11-16T07:10:00.000-08:00

Here is my review of Chance Fortune & The Outlaws by Shane Berryhill over at Fantasy Book Spot.

The Gun Seller by Hugh Laurie - review

2006-11-16T07:06:00.000-08:00

Here is my review of The Gun Seller by Hugh Laurie over at Mystery Book Spot.

A review of Bust by Ken Bruen & Jason Starr

2006-11-16T06:52:00.000-08:00

Here is my review of Bust by Ken Bruen & Jason Starr over at Mystery Book Spot.

Three Days to Never by Tim Powers - review

2006-11-02T12:00:00.000-08:00

Here is my belated review of the incomprabale Tim Powers' latest, Three Days to Never over at Fantasy Book Spot.

Chasing the Dead review

2006-11-02T11:59:00.000-08:00

Here is my review of Joe Schreiber's supernatural thriller Chasing the Dead over at Fantasy Book Spot.

Jennifer Government by Max Barry - review

2006-11-02T11:57:00.000-08:00

Here is my review of Maxx Barry's Jennifer Government over at Fantasy Book Spot.

A Dangerous Man by Charlie Huston

2006-10-19T11:17:00.000-07:00

Here is my review for Charlie Hustons
conclusion to the Hank Thompson trilogy over at Mystery Book Spot.

The Night Gardener by George Pelecanos

2006-10-17T10:38:00.000-07:00

Here is my rview for The Night Gardener by George Pelecanos over at Mystery Book Spot.

Creepers by David Morrell - review

2006-10-16T12:43:00.000-07:00

Here is my review for the quite enjoyable Creepers by David Morell over at Mystery Book Spot.

The Gift by Patrick O'Leary

2006-10-16T12:42:00.000-07:00

Here is my review for the criminally unread The Gift by Patrick O'Leary over at Fantasy Book Spot.

No Dominion by Charlie Huston

2006-10-16T06:04:00.000-07:00

I recently recieved and read Charlie Hustons No Dominion. The second Joe Pitt casebook. Already Dead, the first book in the series was reviewed by me over at Fantasy Book Spot. I'm happy to say that No Dominion does not disappoint. It is a little more streamlined then Already Dead , with at least one glaring omission from it readily addressed. Plus, tons more questions are asked with the answers meted out to us leaving us always asking for more.

Patrick O'Leary update

2006-10-12T09:18:00.000-07:00

After posting my review of Door Number Three over at Fantasy Book Spot I continued my relentless search for Patrick O'Leary. Well I'm happy to report that it was a success. I found him and he agreed to an interview. He has big news for the future. He has a collection due out from PS Publishing sometime on 2008.

Stay tuned for more info. Hopefully the review will posted soon

Godspeed - update

2006-10-12T08:47:00.000-07:00

I heard from Julie at McAdam/Cage. She informed me that the release date of Will Christopher Baer's Godspeed has been pushed back to March 2007 with ARCs going out by the end of the year.

Thoughts from my reading of Children's Hospital

2006-10-12T08:39:00.000-07:00

I've started reading Children's Hospital by Chris Adrian a few of days ago and I'm only about 50 pages deep. Its not that the book is bad its just a very deliberate book that demands you to take your time. It's an odd reading experience so far. Most paragraphs feel as if they could be journal entries, because they are so complete in their miniaturized existence in a larger frame work. It's hard to explain but maybe when its been read I'll have a better understanding of my gut feeling.

Tumbling After by Paul Witcover - review

2006-10-09T08:23:00.000-07:00

Here is my review of Tumbling After by Paul Witcover over at Fantasy Book Spot.

The Wheelman by Duane Swierczynski - review

2006-10-03T06:21:00.000-07:00

Here is my review for The Wheelman by Duane Swierczynski over at Mystery Book Spot. For a fuller appreciattion of his upcoming The Blonde in november one should read this book too. There are some links that establish them as being in the same universe.

Already Dead review

2006-10-03T06:19:00.000-07:00

Here is my review for an over looked modern classic, Already Dead by Charlie Huston, over at Fantasy Book Spot.

Hell's Half Acre reviewed

2006-10-03T06:01:00.000-07:00

Here is the review for the conclusion of the Phineas Poe Trilogy over at Fantasy Book Spot. Like its main character its a flawed work.

Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor - review

2006-10-03T05:59:00.000-07:00

Here is my review for the flawed but interesting Looking Glass Wars over at Fantasy Book Spot.

Door Number Three

2006-08-28T08:26:00.000-07:00

Here is my review for Door Number Three by Patrick O'Leary over at Fantasy Book Spot. This book is brilliant and its time for it to be re-discovered.

The Guards by Ken Bruen - review

2006-08-28T08:25:00.000-07:00

Here is my review for The Guards by the always brilliant Ken Bruen over at Mystery Book Spot.

Bubba Ho-Tep

2006-08-28T08:24:00.000-07:00

Here is my review for Bubba Ho-Tep, the story, over at Fantasy Book Spot

Shotgun Opera by Victor Gischler - review

2006-08-28T08:23:00.000-07:00

Here is my review for Shotgun Opera by Victor Gischler over at Mystery Book Spot.

Penny Dreadful review

2006-08-28T08:20:00.000-07:00

My review for Will Christopher Baer's 2nd book in the Phineas Poe trilogy, Penny Dreadful is up at Mystery Book Spot here. I think it is the strongest book if the three. Take a look.

2006-08-18T13:35:00.000-07:00

Over at Fantasy Book Spot there was recently areview posted about The Girl in the Glass by Jeffrey Ford.

In the forum section there is an interesting debate taking place as to the reliability of Diego as the narrator. I think thats its an interesting subject that hasnt really been broached anywhere else.

I'm one of the participants and would love to hear what other readers of this fine story think.

Genre Fiction Awards

2006-08-18T07:16:00.000-07:00

Any reasonable person can see why a publisher would want to make sure everyone knows that a book or an author has won an award. Noting it on a books cover, an authors bio, on his/her web site, at a convention, wherever really.

But what I'm curious about is the designation "nominated for..." or "...nominee"

Are genre fiction publishers more inclined to include these designations then there more mainstream counterparts. If so, then why. Are genre publishers scrambling for acceptance and recognition in an attempt to say "see, see, it was nominated for an award it must be good..."

When reading a book that was nominated for an award does one immediately have the knee-jerk reaction of asking "who won"? I personally don't.

Or in the case of some awards that have a lot and I mean A LOT of categories, do the amount of categories devalue the award. Like the Hugo, there are so many damn categories that it seems like everyone in the field has one. Does the fact or more importantly the perception that EVERYONE has a Hugo diminish the award. I think it does to some degree.

Does a large amount of nominees devalue the award. If 20 books are nominated and the award has been around for awhile then that's a lot of nominees. Theoretically then everybody would be a nominee. If everyone is advertised as a ______ nominee then its a level playing field right.

If the genre is small in terms of the reading community and sales and there are a large amount of awards isn't that the equivalent of getting a participation trophy in little league.

Kiss Me, Judas by Will Christopher Baer review

2006-08-16T11:08:00.000-07:00

My review for Kiss Me, Judas is here, over at Fantasy Bookspot. There's tons more to say about this book.

Allusions, references and parallels abound. Keep an eye out for reviews of the other two books in the trilogy and an extended criticism in the near future.

Because enough can't be said about the movie Snakes on a Plane. Here is Swiercznyski's brilliant analysis of the theme song.

Come Closer by Sara Gran - review

2006-08-11T05:42:00.000-07:00

My review for Sara Gran's Come Closer over at Fantasy Book Spot is here.

Kids talk

2006-08-10T12:11:00.000-07:00

We're eating dinner and talking about dinner when my aunt says anything can be good for you in moderation. My daughter says "except coke and chicken pox"

Pistol Poets by Victor Gischler - review

2006-08-09T13:11:00.001-07:00

My review for Pistol Poets by Victor Gischler over at Mystery Book Spot is here

Boyos - review

2006-08-09T13:11:00.000-07:00

My review for Boyos over at Mystery Book Spot is here

Will Christopher Baer's new book Godspeed

2006-08-09T11:10:00.000-07:00

I just finished the first book of the Phineas Poe trilogy, Kiss Me, Judas. I'll be posting a review of it soon over at Fantasy Book Spot. I went to the authors site and hey he has a new book coming out soon. Check out this description

--from the publisher
According to Milton, heaven and hell are but a hand's breadth apart. In GODSPEED, there is no heaven or hell. There is only "the presidio," a lawless noir purgatory populated by fugitive souls, fallen angels, demon children, immortals, and the undead. Moving among them is a complicated hero in Ryder Fell.mercenary thief, repentant womanizer, and sometime savior of lost children--afflicted with the "godspeed," a dizzying array of paranormal talents he can neither control or explain. The worst of these are nightmare visions of black doors All hell breaks loose when an exiled undead soul, in the body of a young girl, borrows the godspeed from Ryder and plunges through the wrong door...Milton had one thing right--the next world is a heartbeat away from this one, an easy jump for the lucky few who know how to secure passage. For the rest of us, the real hell is in the journey.

Sounds original and very interesting. Cant wait to give it a try!

Setting the bar too low

2006-08-09T10:54:00.000-07:00

This is my promised response to an earlier blog post by Sara Gran. I love her books I just don’t always agree with her blog posts is all. I linked to it yesterday so please read it first.

Chick-Lit vs. Romance

I don’t agree with the way that you are using the terms Romance Novel and Chick-Lit interchangeably. They are distinct genres; a quick visit to Wikipedia bears that out.

1) “A romance novel is a novel from the genre currently known as romance. The genre has two strict criteria:

* The story must focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people [1];
* The end of the story must be positive, leaving the reader believing that the protagonists' love and relationship will endure for the rest of their lives.

If a novel does not fulfill those conditions, fans of the genre are likely to claim that it belongs to a related genre, such as women's fiction or chick lit, or that it is just a mainstream fiction novel.

Some romance novel readers would claim that the genre has additional restrictions, from plot considerations such as the hero and heroine meeting early on in the story, to avoiding possible themes, such as neither hero nor heroine committing adultery in the course of their relationship developing. However, these are not hard-and-fast rules, and some writers deliberately write stories that may put off some readers in order to push the genre's boundaries.”

2) "Chick lit" is a term used to denote a genre of popular fiction written for and marketed to young women, especially single, working women in their twenties. The genre's creation was spurred on, if not exactly created, in the mid-1990s with the appearance of Helen Fielding's Bridget Jones's Diary and similar works; it continued to sell well in the 2000s, with chick-lit titles topping bestseller lists and the creation of imprints devoted entirely to chick-lit.

Chick-lit features hip, stylish female protagonists, usually in their twenties or thirties, in urban settings (usually Manhattan), and follows their love lives and struggles in business (often in the publishing, advertising, public relations or fashion industry). The books usually feature an irreverent tone and frank sexual themes.

They aren’t the same. Chick-Lit is a bit harder to define because it is newer but some examples are Megan McCafferty’s "Sloppy Firsts" and "Second Helpings"; Read Between the Lies; Mrs. Mourning Glo; Candace Bushnell's Sex and the City; The Girls Guide to Fishing and Hunting by Melissa Bank; Helen Fielding's Bridget Jones's Diary; Devil Wears Prada and Animal Husbandry. Whereas we all know what a Romance novel is, after all we have all seen the section at the bookstore regardless of the store.

So, with that said I don’t think that Romance novels will ever attain a level of critical acceptance or re-appraisal. I think as a genre it will always remain in the critical basement. I think that one of the biggest reasons for this is the Romance genres inability to produce what others outside of the genre or even those inside the genre would call a classic. All other genre fiction has laid claims on certain titles and authors who are regarded as classics.

Name me one Romance writer. You can’t. In fact the average persons knee jerk reaction to hearing the phrase Romance Novel is probably Fabio. That right there exists as one of the prime indicators of the superficiality of that genre when the most prominent figure is a male model who poses for pictures that are usually drawn, not even a photograph!

Lowest Common Denominator

Good fiction is good fiction regardless of genre. But just because a book is written by a woman isn’t enough of a reason to champion it. If that becomes your sole reason, or your top reason for recommending a book then you considerably lower your baseline for comparison. The bar becomes lowered as you play to the lowest common denominator. If you recommend a book to me simply based on the fact that a woman wrote it then that becomes the blind date equivalent of “Well, she’s nice…”

To hear your argument put another way just change the word woman to brown hair. So now you’re saying that a book should be read because the person who wrote it has brown hair.

In other words, quality needs to come into the discussion at all times. Quality doesn’t mean that the high walls of academia approve of it and let it romp freely inside their high walls. After all there are different types of quality, no one is going to say Ken Bruen writes like Dante but they both are quality writers.

"To suggest that another woman's ostensibly literary novel is chick lit feels catty, not unlike calling another woman a slut -- doesn't the term basically bring down all of us?" -- Curtis Sittenfeld in the New York Times [1]

Laughing All the Way to the Bank

Romance novels are most popular in the United States and Canada, where it is the best-selling genre. In North America in 2002, sales of romance novels generated US$1.63 billion and comprised 34.6% of all popular fiction sold - by comparison, general fiction comprised 24.1% and mystery, detective and suspense fiction comprised 23.1%. Over 2000 romance novels were published, and there were 51.1 million romance novel readers.

Romance novels are doing just fine the way that are and the above stated statistics bear that out. They don’t need our critical approval when they are getting our dollars. In fact given the inherent superficiality of the genre the statistics speak bibles full of truth about readers’ habits.

The 70’s Reappraisal

I’m not too sure even where to start with her contention that of the so called 70’ reappraisal of other genres of fiction. It feels mis-informed at best so it may aggravate me I’m not offended by it. She even admits her own un-interest in other genres. So it may warrant a response but I don’t feel it’s necessary at this time.

Sara Gran's recent thoughts on fiction and women

2006-08-08T10:40:00.000-07:00

Sara Gran recently had a blog post that aggravated the piss out of me. It seems as her basic premise was to say that gender should play a role as to whether fiction is good or not. I was going to post a comment to it on her site but I never seem to get responses over there. I am going to post a response to it here soon.

By the way if you havent been reading her books you should be.

I'll be posting a review of her Come Closer soon over at Fantasy BookSpot.

A Blonde walks into a blog

2006-08-08T10:22:00.000-07:00

Duane Swierczynski posted a link to the review that I wrote for his new book The Blonde over at Mystery Book Spot here

Thoughts on genre fiction experimentation

2006-08-08T10:15:00.000-07:00

John Connoly recently posted some interesting thoughts about experimentation in genre fiction here.

Note to Self

2006-08-08T07:52:00.000-07:00

Is it possible that St. Christopher was a werewolf?

Tapestry Novels

2006-08-07T12:17:00.000-07:00

I find myself increasingly interested in the idea of what I call the Tapestry Novel. Over the course of an authors career it will always become obvious that there were certain themes that were visited and revisited. In a select few bodies of work though it becomes apparent that there is something larger going on. You not only have the reappearance of themes, but words, phrases, objects and most importantly characters. A large cast of characters that don't all appear in all of the books but make frequent appearances. This has the effect of creating a real world. Some of the greatest practitioners of this are Edward Whittemore, Robertson Davies, Russell Hoban (in his latter works) and Jonathan Carroll. Its Carroll's works that I'm concerned with now. My hope is to explore this concept in greater.