Thursday, 07 October 2010
San Francisco Legal Thrillers
With Bouchercon about a week away, I am continuing the ongoing look at San Francisco-based mysteries.
I've been trying to come up with several legal thrillers based in San Francisco and, amazingly, I am coming up short. Surely San Francisco would be wonderful fodder for legal thrillers.
So readers, help me out. If you know of other authors who write legal thrillers set in San Francisco, please post their names.
alt
John Lescroart: A Certain Justice and A Plague of Secrets, among others -- Lescroart's series about attorney Dismas Hardy go beyond the courtroom to look at how a community deals with strife. Flawed characters, flawed ethics and a flawed legal system add up to exciting novels. In 1995's A Certain Justice, Dismas Hardy only makes an appearance as Abe Glitsky, the head of San Francisco’s homicide department, takes center stage when a race riot engulfs the city. The murder of a manager of a trendy coffee shop jumpstarts the energetic A Plague of Secrets (2009). Lescroart's latest novel is Treasure Hunt, the first of a new series about San Francisco private investigator Wyatt Hunt.

Julie Smith: Death Turns a Trick -- Before she turned her attention to New Orleans and Skip Langdon and Talba Wallis, the heroines of her two Big Easy series, Smith wrote about San Francisco attorney Rebecca Schwartz. These novels are lighter in tone than her other two series, and often quite funny. Death Turns a Trick (1992) introduced the self-described "Jewish feminist lawyer." Before my first trip to the Monterey, I read Dead in the Water (1993), which is set at the Monterey Aquarium; on each visit I always look twice at those wonderful exhibits.
San Francisco Legal Thrillers
Oline Cogdill
san-francisco-legal-thrillers
With Bouchercon about a week away, I am continuing the ongoing look at San Francisco-based mysteries.
I've been trying to come up with several legal thrillers based in San Francisco and, amazingly, I am coming up short. Surely San Francisco would be wonderful fodder for legal thrillers.
So readers, help me out. If you know of other authors who write legal thrillers set in San Francisco, please post their names.
alt
John Lescroart: A Certain Justice and A Plague of Secrets, among others -- Lescroart's series about attorney Dismas Hardy go beyond the courtroom to look at how a community deals with strife. Flawed characters, flawed ethics and a flawed legal system add up to exciting novels. In 1995's A Certain Justice, Dismas Hardy only makes an appearance as Abe Glitsky, the head of San Francisco’s homicide department, takes center stage when a race riot engulfs the city. The murder of a manager of a trendy coffee shop jumpstarts the energetic A Plague of Secrets (2009). Lescroart's latest novel is Treasure Hunt, the first of a new series about San Francisco private investigator Wyatt Hunt.

Julie Smith: Death Turns a Trick -- Before she turned her attention to New Orleans and Skip Langdon and Talba Wallis, the heroines of her two Big Easy series, Smith wrote about San Francisco attorney Rebecca Schwartz. These novels are lighter in tone than her other two series, and often quite funny. Death Turns a Trick (1992) introduced the self-described "Jewish feminist lawyer." Before my first trip to the Monterey, I read Dead in the Water (1993), which is set at the Monterey Aquarium; on each visit I always look twice at those wonderful exhibits.
Monday, 04 October 2010
Read Dashiell Hammett -- It's the Law
San Francisco's history is one of the country's most colorful filled with pirates, scallywags and the occasional earthquake. I appreciate a city that embraces is unsavory past and builds on a future that includes a most diverse populations.
altRemember, I'm from Florida, the land of anything goes.
And since Bouchercon 2010 will be in San Francisco in just a few weeks, I 'm offering an ongoing look at mysteries set there.
Dashiell Hammett: The Maltese Falcon. Granted when this novel about Sam Spade and the stuff that dreams are made of was published in 1930 it was a contemporary novel. Now we can look at what is often called the quintessential San Francisco mystery as a historical that also is as modern as when it was published. The alleys, streets and fog of San Francisco haven't changed much. There's also a plaque on the street where Archer was killed. I think it is a law that any mystery fan -- or anyone for that matter -- who visits San Francisco must read The Maltese Falcon at least once.
Joe Gores: Spade & Archer -- Published in 2009, this prequel to The Maltese Falcon delves into the background of Sam Space, his partner Miles Archer and other characters from Hammett's classic. Although he was first refused, Gores eventually got permission from Hammett's relatives to write the novel.
Read Dashiell Hammett -- It's the Law
Oline Cogdill
read-dashiell-hammett-its-the-law
San Francisco's history is one of the country's most colorful filled with pirates, scallywags and the occasional earthquake. I appreciate a city that embraces is unsavory past and builds on a future that includes a most diverse populations.
altRemember, I'm from Florida, the land of anything goes.
And since Bouchercon 2010 will be in San Francisco in just a few weeks, I 'm offering an ongoing look at mysteries set there.
Dashiell Hammett: The Maltese Falcon. Granted when this novel about Sam Spade and the stuff that dreams are made of was published in 1930 it was a contemporary novel. Now we can look at what is often called the quintessential San Francisco mystery as a historical that also is as modern as when it was published. The alleys, streets and fog of San Francisco haven't changed much. There's also a plaque on the street where Archer was killed. I think it is a law that any mystery fan -- or anyone for that matter -- who visits San Francisco must read The Maltese Falcon at least once.
Joe Gores: Spade & Archer -- Published in 2009, this prequel to The Maltese Falcon delves into the background of Sam Space, his partner Miles Archer and other characters from Hammett's classic. Although he was first refused, Gores eventually got permission from Hammett's relatives to write the novel.
Wednesday, 29 September 2010
Marcia Muller and More San Francisco Authors
If you're in San Francisco for Bouchercon, it's not too late to power read some mysteries set there. If you can't make it this year -- and we miss each of you -- take a virtual tour of San Francisco with our look at the city's mysteries.
alt
Marcia Muller: Any Sharon McCone novel. My friend Janet Rudolph recommends starting at the beginning of this wonderful series with Edwin of the Iron Shoes (1977). And that's a darn good place to start. But really any Sharon McCone novel will do. In this series, Muller has taken her private detective Sharon McCone from a wide-eyed innocent working tirelessly for a San Francisco legal co-op to a savvy businesswoman whose own agency is one of the city’s best-known. Along the way, Muller also has melded an acute look at San Francisco in her novels, blending factual and fictional sites to capture the spirit of San Francisco with a realism that becomes quite apparent to anyone who visits the area. If you like to start in the middle, try Dead Midnight, which looks at the demise of the dotcom industry. The newest McCone novel Coming Back will be released during October.
Meg Gardiner: The Dirty Secrets Club -- San Francisco forensic psychiatrist Jo Becket looks at a series of odd suicides and murders in the debut of this series. Gardiner first came to the attention of American readers when Stephen King wrote a glowing magazine column about her. Gardiner, who was published in the U.K. first, went on to win the Edgar Award for her novel China Lake. She will be one of the guests of honor during Sleuthfest 2011, from March 4-6 (mwaflorida.org/sleuthfest). She will share the honor with Dennis Lehane.

Rick Mofina: No Way Back -- A searing look at journalism and its ethics are at the heart of the solidly plotted No Way Back as a news story becomes personal for San Francisco crime reporter Tom Reed.
Robin Burcell: Face of a Killer -- San Francisco FBI forensic artist Sydney Fitzpatrick looks at the 20-year-old murder of her father before his convicted killer is executed.
Marcia Muller and More San Francisco Authors
Oline Cogdill
marcia-muller-and-more-san-francisco-authors
If you're in San Francisco for Bouchercon, it's not too late to power read some mysteries set there. If you can't make it this year -- and we miss each of you -- take a virtual tour of San Francisco with our look at the city's mysteries.
alt
Marcia Muller: Any Sharon McCone novel. My friend Janet Rudolph recommends starting at the beginning of this wonderful series with Edwin of the Iron Shoes (1977). And that's a darn good place to start. But really any Sharon McCone novel will do. In this series, Muller has taken her private detective Sharon McCone from a wide-eyed innocent working tirelessly for a San Francisco legal co-op to a savvy businesswoman whose own agency is one of the city’s best-known. Along the way, Muller also has melded an acute look at San Francisco in her novels, blending factual and fictional sites to capture the spirit of San Francisco with a realism that becomes quite apparent to anyone who visits the area. If you like to start in the middle, try Dead Midnight, which looks at the demise of the dotcom industry. The newest McCone novel Coming Back will be released during October.
Meg Gardiner: The Dirty Secrets Club -- San Francisco forensic psychiatrist Jo Becket looks at a series of odd suicides and murders in the debut of this series. Gardiner first came to the attention of American readers when Stephen King wrote a glowing magazine column about her. Gardiner, who was published in the U.K. first, went on to win the Edgar Award for her novel China Lake. She will be one of the guests of honor during Sleuthfest 2011, from March 4-6 (mwaflorida.org/sleuthfest). She will share the honor with Dennis Lehane.

Rick Mofina: No Way Back -- A searing look at journalism and its ethics are at the heart of the solidly plotted No Way Back as a news story becomes personal for San Francisco crime reporter Tom Reed.
Robin Burcell: Face of a Killer -- San Francisco FBI forensic artist Sydney Fitzpatrick looks at the 20-year-old murder of her father before his convicted killer is executed.