Woman arrested for biting Fred’s employees
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Saturday, October 03, 2015
First It was the Thin Mints Melee
3 siblings arrested after altercation outside of Olympia bar: Several witnesses reported that one female suspect had gotten into an argument with the male victim, and she threw a hot dog in his face.
Misdirection -- Austin Williams
It's hard for me to resist a book with a magician as the protagonist. I'm not sure why. Maybe I was infected by my enjoyment of Mandrake in the comics back in the old days. So I was predisposed in favor of Misdirection, with its protagonist, Rusty Diamond, who's left his Las Vegas life (things have been going downhill) and returned to his hometown of Ocean City. He doesn't tell anyone he's back and rents a room from a nice woman who lets him have it cheap. And then she's murdered.The cops naturally suspect Diamond, but it turns out that an old high-school friend is a detective and knows Diamond wouldn't do such a thing. Rusty's not locked up, so like any good character, he becomes an amateur sleuth.
Don't let the phrase "amateur sleuth" mislead you. This definitely isn't a cozy. There's violence and blood and cussing, and Diamond finds himself up against drug dealers and other bad guys. And this isn't a mystery novel. We find out who the killer is early on. The question is whether Diamond will survive to find out, too. Since the word "trilogy" appears on the cover, it's not a spoiler to tell you that he does.
And what's good is that Diamond uses a good many magic tricks in the book. He may be trying to leave Las Vegas behind, but the tricks and illusions are a big help in finding the killer.
There are a few things left hanging at the end (not the solution, however), and no doubt those will be covered in the next books. I'm looking forward to more tricks and illusions and another investigation.
I Miss the Old Days
Dublin’s OCLC prints last library catalog card: Shortly before 3 p.m. Thursday, an era ended.
Link via Neatorama.
Link via Neatorama.
Friday, October 02, 2015
Fire Star Press: #NewRelease--NINE DEADLY LIVES An Anthology of Fel...
Livia J. Washburn: Fire Star Press: #NewRelease--NINE DEADLY LIVES An Anthology of Fel... This anthology reprints my story "The Easter Cat." My daughter, Angela Crider Neary, also has a story in it. Read all about it at this link.
John Guillermin, R. I. P.
The New York Times: John Guillermin, a prolific British director best known for blockbusters like the 1974 disaster movie “The Towering Inferno” and the 1976 remake of “King Kong,” died on Sunday at his home in Topanga, Calif. He was 89.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
FFB: Fiddlers -- Ed McBain
I've mentioned my admiration of Evan Hunter (aka Ed McBain, among many other pseudonyms) before. Here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here, for example. So it was with a little bit of sadness and regret that I picked up Fiddlers, which, because of McBain's recent death, is probably the last of the 87th Precinct novels.
McBain hasn't lost a step with age or illness. I'm sure you can think of a writer or two who should have stopped writing long before the end of an extended career, like an athlete who plays one season after his talent has deserted him. McBain wasn't one of those writers. He's just as sharp now as he was when I first read one of his books more than 50 years ago. Maybe sharper. I think that his body of work is about as impressive as that of any writer during the second half of the 20th century.
For me, it was impossible to read Fiddlers without having McBain's final illness in mind, and I'm convinced that he had it in mind, too. Just how much, I'm not sure. Is the book a grim joke in its own way? Autobiographical in any sense? I don't know. I do know that it's a typically well-written procedural with appearances by Steve Carella, Meyer, Bert Kling, Cotton Hawes, and Fat Ollie Weeks tracking down a serial killer. The stories of their personal lives aren't resolved, exactly, but I think readers who have been following them for many years, as I have, will be satisfied with their final appearances.
When I closed the book, I thought, "Well, that's it." But it's not. I can always go back and start over at the beginning of the series with books like The Mugger and The Pusher. I probably won't, but the possiblity is always there. McBain will be around for a long, long time.
Thursday, October 01, 2015
The Grid -- Harry Hunsicker
In the first two novels featuring Jon Cantrell, he was a free-lance law-enforcement contractor for the Feds. He left quite a lot of damage and quite a few bodies behind, but he got the jobs done. Now he's serving as sheriff in a small Central Texas town, but his problems are a lot different from the ones faced by Sheriff Dan Rhodes (a personal favorite of mine). Rhodes has to deal with runaway bulls, pigs, and donkeys, plus the occasional murder, whereas Cantrell finds himself faced with the murder of one of his deputies, a deputy who is, admittedly, a terrible person, but that doesn't matter. Murder is murder. Almost as soon as Cantrell starts working on the murder, Cantrell is roped into working with the Feds again because someone's trying to take out the regional power grid. Terrorists? That's what some people would like to believe. Cantrell also has personal problems. The woman he loves has taken their daughter and gone off to parts unknown.
What Cantrell doesn't know, but the readers do, is that the death of his deputy came at the hands of a serial killer (one of two female serial killers in the novel), who's connected to a very wealthy family.
And speaking of connections, did you think that the two cases, the murder and the power grid destruction, were connected? Well, you were right, but I'm not going to spoil things by telling you how and why.
Hunsicker tells the story smoothly written first- and third-person sections, and it zips right along. Plenty of action, one heck of an explosion, lots of shooting, some sex, and even some humor. You gotta love a book that homages one of the best lines from Road House.
You don't have to have read the first two books in the series to enjoy this one. Check it out.
Uh-Oh
Paramount Remaking ‘The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance’: Matt Jackson, the president of production at IM Global, is producing the remake. The project may be set in a relatively contemporary period, such as 1980s Western Pennsylvania amid the retrenchment of the steel and auto industries, but no decision has been made.
First It Was the Thin Mints Melee . . .
. . . and once again Texas leads the way.
EAGnews.org: A federal agent is under investigation after he allegedly assaulted a man at a high school football game, then pulled his gun on a crowd that gathered during the melee.
EAGnews.org: A federal agent is under investigation after he allegedly assaulted a man at a high school football game, then pulled his gun on a crowd that gathered during the melee.
Decades After Her Death, Mystery Still Surrounds Crime Novelist Josephine Tey
Vanity Fair: Decades After Her Death, Mystery Still Surrounds Crime Novelist Josephine Tey
Once Again Texas Leads the Way
Cameramen showcasing Houston robbed at gunpoint: The men were filming the "We love Houston" sign when they were approached by another man who pulled out a gun and robbed them.
Wednesday, September 30, 2015
First It was the Thin Mints Melee
Orlando Sentinel: Officers say a 27-year-old South Daytona man fired a shotgun toward his mom and threatened to cut her kitten in half after an argument about chores.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
Hat tip to Jeff Meyerson.
“Murder Under the Oaks” (by Art Taylor)
“Murder Under the Oaks” (by Art Taylor) | SOMETHING IS GOING TO HAPPEN: Art Taylor debuted in EQMM’s Department of First Stories in 1995. He has gone on to win a Macavity and multiple Agatha and Derringer awards for his short fiction. The last time the Virginia author posted on this site, in March of this year, his EQMM story “The Odds Are Against Us” was up for the Agatha. It won that award and currently the story is nominated for the Anthony and Macavity awards, the winners to be determined at the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention, to be held in Raleigh, North Carolina October 8–11. This month, Art’s first book, On the Road With Del and Louise (Henery Press), a “novel in stories,” was released. A review of the novel (which incorporates two stories previously published in EQMM) will appear in our January issue. For this post, the author takes off his mystery-writing hat and dons that of anthology editor. It’s an interesting turnabout!—Janet Hutchings
Uh-Oh
Shakespeare’s Plays to be Translated into Modern English: Bad news for Shakespeare purists, good news for struggling English students: The Oregon Shakespeare Festival recently announced a project called “Play On!” which will task 36 playwrights with translating the plays attributed to the Bard into “contemporary modern English.”
Another Giant Leap Forward for the Human Race
You Can Now Have Your Tattoos Framed: The National Association for the Preservation of Skin Art is dedicated to saving your inked skin after you die. It argues that these precious works of art don't have to disappear as a body decays underground or is burned with cremation. Preservationists can remove tattooed skin and make it permanently presentable.
Tuesday, September 29, 2015
Frankie Ford, R. I. P.
Blues singer Frankie Ford dies at 76: NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Rock and roll and rhythm and blues singer Frankie Ford, whose 1959 hit Sea Cruise brought him international fame, is dead at the age of 76.
Dragon by the Bay -- Garnett Elliott
In 1866, Carson Lowe arrives in San Francisco to make his fortune. Things go wrong almost immediately, and Lowe finds himself in jail, where he witnesses something incredible as another prisoner is removed from his cell by a masked figure. Is magic involved? Lowe doesn't find out at once because he's bailed out by Constance Perrine, a bawdy house owner who wants Lowe to keep order and provide more intimate services for her. One of the whores goes missing, and Lowe looks for her, uncovering in the process a lot of secrets of the Chinese in the city. And under the city.
These secrets involve martial arts that border on the magical, and if you've ever seen Big Trouble in Little China, you know what I mean. Fights in the middle of the air, almost superhuman powers, and of course there's that dragon. Remember the San Francisco earthquake? Well, there's a dragon in the bay. You can find out more about it in this novella, which has a lot of martial arts action, some humor, and characters that it would be fun to see more of. Check it out.
Alice at 150: Wonderful Editions
Alice at 150: Wonderful Editions: Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, a story about a curious girl who falls down a rabbit hole and discovers a magical, nonsensical world, celebrates its 150th anniversary in 2015. Read by millions of children and adults alike around the world, this iconic book has been translated into at least 97 different languages and continues to be published in various forms. From Sir John Tenniel to Arthur Rackham and Margaret Tarrant, this book has had many artists interpret the classic story with unique illustrations.
Overlooked Movies: Young Sherlock Holmes
Memory, or at least my memory, works in mysterious ways. For whatever reason, I remember just about everything about the evening Judy and I saw this movie, and in fact the memory of the evening is clearer than the memory of the movie itself. That might not seem so odd if the evening had been extraordinary in any way, but it wasn't. Weird.But let's get to the movie. It's an origin story of sorts, in which Holmes and Watson meet in public school instead of later in life (and the ending, which I won't give away, makes it even more of an origin story). Holmes is, of course, already brilliant, and when he and Watson meet, Holmes shows off a bit by using a few clues to reveal a lot about Watson. There's also a lovely young woman, Elizabeth, who's clearly the love of Holmes' life. [SPOILER ALERT. This does not bode well for Elizabeth. END OF SPOILER ALERT]
The plot involves a mysterious hooded figure who's shooting people with thorns that cause hallucinations, and the people then die mysteriously. Holmes figures out the connection these people have to one another, but he's brushed off by Inspector Lestrade of Scotland Yard. Things get complicated when Holmes learns that all the murders seem to have to do with an Egyptian death cult, and Holmes, Watson, and Elizabeth get shot by thorns. There's a bit of derring-do that involves the use of a flying machine, making this movie an early steampunk film.
Since this is a Spielberg movie, there are plenty of special effects, foreshadowing the Robert Downey, Jr., Holmes movies of more recent years. The young actors are all appealing, and the movie looks great, but somehow it doesn't really work very well, or at least not for me. It's okay, but not great. Holmes purists probably won't care for it, but it's worth a look, considering all the current interest in all things Holmesian.
Monday, September 28, 2015
Gestapo Mars -- Victor Gischler
What if Ian Fleming had been writing for Amazing Stories or Science Fiction Adventures in 1957 but hadn't been restricted by the then current prohibitions on graphic sex and violence? He might have written something like Gestapo Mars.The secret agent in this case isn't James Bond but Carter Sloan, who's working for the Third Reich, which in this imagined future has control of the Moon and Mars and pretty much the entire galaxy. Now the regime is being threatened by the Resistance, and only Sloan can save it, which is why he's awakened and removed from the cryogenic chamber where he's been stashed for 258 years. He's been left there because assassins are a lot better now, humans having been improved with all kinds of million-dollar-man additions. But now the Reich needs someone like Sloan, who's merely been a heavily conditioned, but human, killing machine. He won't be so easily spotted as he undertakes his mission to kill (or to save; the mission changes often) the Daughter of the Brass Dragon. This is complicated by the alien Coriandon, who look like blobs of snot and who are intent on doing a number of the Reich and taking over the galaxy.
After the opening sentences, it's just one damn thing after another, with, as I mentioned, lots of graphic sex and violence (and cussing; did I mention cussing?) as Sloan attempts to save the Reich (or not, depending on his mood) and the human race. The fate of the galaxy is in his hands!
Hardly any of the story, much less the science, is believable, but who cares? This isn't something that John W. Campbell would have published in Astounding even at gunpoint. It's a rollicking adventure with sex, violence, and cussing, as I may have said already. A couple of times the action stops for a page or so, and at one point there's even a little discussion on how hatred for "the other" sustains the Reich. Any resemblance to current events is purely coincidental, I'm sure. And I liked the talking dog that explains "the Kardashian effect."
One small complaint is the hissing of the unhissable: "'Over there,' I hissed." Oh, well. There was probably a lot of that in Science Fiction Adventures in 1957, too.
You might note that on the cover there's a line that says, "A Carter Sloan Novel." That implies that there'll be more of them, and I'll be reading them, too.
Book Signing Tonight
I'll be in Austin this evening to sign books at Book People along with Ben Rehder and Reavis Wortham. All you Austin folks come on out and keep us company.Because of the travel involved in the signing trip, I'll be away from the blog for most of today and tomorrow. The usual stuff has already been scheduled, and I'll probably have other things show up, too. You'll hardly even know I'm gone.
You Know You Want One
Mozzarella Stick-Stuffed Raspberry Bun Burger: Two giant mozzarella sticks, a meaty slab of chuck and short loin, pepperoni slices and fresh spinach — all decked out in creamy pizza sauce and ranch, then unceremoniously stuffed in between two bright red buns. Every bite of this wildly decadent burger deserves a pause, or more, a moment to catch your breath while you register every insane bite.
Sunday, September 27, 2015
Once Again Texas Leads the Way
One man injured after carjacking, shooting at gas station: Police say a witness then pulled out a gun and began shooting at the suspects, accidentally hitting the carjacking victim in the head.
The victim was transported to a nearby hospital where he remains in stable condition. Police say the witness who shot at the suspects picked up shell casings and left the scene.
The victim was transported to a nearby hospital where he remains in stable condition. Police say the witness who shot at the suspects picked up shell casings and left the scene.
Arkansas Leads the Way
America's Fattest States: Back in 1980, no U.S. state had a rate of obesity higher than 15 percent. In 2014, however, obesity rates were 30 percent or higher in 22 U.S. states, according to a recent report entitled The State of Obesity: Better Policies for a Healthier America.
Forgotten Hits: THE TOP TEN HITS OF THE '70's
Forgotten Hits: THE TOP TEN HITS OF THE '70's
Don Coffin, using BILLBOARD, compiled his own list and linked it in the comment. I'm linking it here to make it more visible.
Don Coffin, using BILLBOARD, compiled his own list and linked it in the comment. I'm linking it here to make it more visible.
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