Crime Fiction, Mystery, Thrillers, and Suspense Blog

Sunday, 19 May 2013 04:29

OWEN LAUKKANEN’S LATEST ENTERPRISE

Written by Oline Cogdill
Owen Laukkanen’s debut, The Professionals, was my favorite of 2012. This tale of four newly graduated college friends who turn to kidnapping because they can’t find jobs was a vivid illustration of contemporary economics while exploring how a sense of entitlement and selfishness can shade people’s logic.

Laukkanen’s second novel, Criminal Enterprise, again taps into the economic downturn as a wealthy accountant turns to robbing banks when he is laid off. He finds that bank robbing brings him more job satisfaction than his regular job ever did.

Here’s my review that ran in the Sun Sentinel.

Laukkanen recently stopped at Murder on the Beach in Delray Beach, Florida, and here’s some bits and pieces from his appearance.

Like many authors, Laukkanen starts with the ever provocative “what if” to build his plots. For The Professionals, it was what if a gang of professional kidnappers were working in America, how would they pull it off?

For Criminal Enterprise, it was simply what if your next-door neighbor was a bank robber? What if a doctor lives in that house and a lawyer is in the one next to it and next to it is a guy who robs banks and goes off to work every day just like everyone else on the block.


Laukkanen prefers to devise villains who are not driven by malevolence or greed but by desperation and need. His villains are people readers can relate to, a kind of everyman. He finds the criminals who are most appealing are those who turn to crime by increments. Jaywalking today, stealing candy tomorrow, next week kidnapping.

In Criminal Enterprise, accountant Carter Tomlin thinks “he holds himself to a high-water mark. He rationalizes his actions and the danger it brings.”

For The Professionals, the kidnappers had to be nomadic so he just set them in Chicago because it is right in the middle of the country and it was a good starting point for the gang. “It was a blessing because I went there several times, got involved in a writers’ group and also rode along with a cop,” he said.

But Laukkanen doesn’t make his criminals the heroes of his novels. His series’ real heroes are FBI agent Carla Windermere and Minnesota state cop Kirk Stevens.

Although his novels are set in America and he writes evocatively about the U.S., Laukkanen is from Canada. He grew up in Windsor, Ontario, which is near Detroit. Why he writes about the U.S. instead of Canada is a question that comes up at nearly every book signing—“usually from the Canadians in the audience,” he said.


Being so close to Detroit, Laukkanen grew up with Detroit culture and the culture of America. “Windsor is as close to the U.S. as possible,” he added.

Also, setting a kidnapping gang in the U.S. made more sense because there are more major cities on this side of the border. His criminals could move from city to city without anyone knowing and could more easily pull off their heists. “Canadian cities are more in a straight line. The cops would be waiting in the next town for them to show up. We don’t have the large number of big cities as in the U.S.,” added Laukkanen who lives in Vancouver. “I’d love to write about Canada but I also like writing about America.”

Laukkanen spent three years reporting on professional poker players and wrote a thriller about the poker industry, which he says draws “the most intelligent and degenerate people. It’s a rich world.” But that novel is on hold as Laukkanen continues to work on his series.

Meanwhile, he has finished up his third novel, which is about a contract killer.

While Laukkanen frequently travels the United States for his settings, he has an inside track when it comes to forensics—his mother who is a former forensics pathologist. “Any time I have a question, I can just call up Mom,” he said. “She’s my best source for research.”

 

Wednesday, 15 May 2013 05:19

WITNESS THIS FROM HARPERCOLLINS

Written by Oline Cogdill
About two years ago, the Avon Books imprint, which is part of HarperCollins, launched its digital romance imprint called Impulse.

Now HarperCollins/William Morrow is launching Witness, which is being called its “digital-original” mystery, suspense and thriller line.

Witness will feature new titles, international bestsellers not previously available in the U.S. and newly digitized backlist classics, according to press releases.

According to the publisher, 100 titles already have been selected for Witness with the first 10 titles to be released in October.

In addition to new titles, Witness will include digital versions of Agatha Christie’s short stories. All the Hercule Poirot short stories will be released as digital singles, and then together in a single omnibus edition.

The books will not automatically move into print but it seems likely that some will, especially given Impulse’s track record. More than 60 percent of Impulse titles also are available in print.

The price of Witness titles will range from 99 cents to $2.99. And, while I have no idea how any of this works, apparently author royalties will be the same as the publisher’s other digital-first imprints.

More details of Witness are here.

Anything that brings more authors to the publishing table is a good thing for all of us.

Wednesday, 08 May 2013 10:09

2013 ANTHONY NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED

Written by Oline Cogdill

The season of awards continues.

The Anthony Award nominees for 2013 have just been announced. The Anthony Awards are given during Bouchercon, the World Mystery Convention.

The winners will be chosen by the full-time members of the 44th Bouchercon September 19-22, in Albany, New York.

This is a terrific list. Congratulations to all the nominees.

BEST NOVEL
Dare Me by Megan Abbott (Reagan Arthur)
The Trinity Game by Sean Chercover (Thomas & Mercer)
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn (Crown)
The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny (Minotaur)
The Other Woman by Hank Phillippi Ryan (Forge)

BEST FIRST NOVEL
Don't Ever Get Old by Daniel Friedman (Thomas Dunne)
The Professionals by Owen Laukkanen (Putnam)
The Expats by Chris Pavone (Crown)
The 500 by Matthew Quirk (Reagan Arthur)
Black Fridays by Michael Sears (Putnam)

BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL
Whiplash River by Lou Berney (William Morrow)
Murder for Choir by Joelle Charbonneau (Berkley Prime Crime)
And She Was by Alison Gaylin (Harper)
Blessed are the Dead by Malla Nunn (Emily Bestler)
Big Maria by Johnny Shaw (Thomas & Mercer)

BEST SHORT STORY
"Mischief in Mesopotamia" by Dana Cameron, EQMM, Nov 2012
"Kept in the Dark" by Shelia Connolly, Best New England Crime Stories: Blood Moon (Level Best)
"The Lord is My Shamus" by Barb Goffman, Chesapeake Crimes: This Job is Murder, p.97 (Wildside)
"Peaches" by Todd Robinson, Grift, Spring 2012, p.80
"The Unremarkable Heart" by Karin Slaughter, Mystery Writers of America Presents: Vengeance, p.177 (Mulholland)

BEST CRITICAL NONFICTION WORK
Books to Die For: The World's Greatest Mystery Writers on the World's Greatest Mystery Novels by John Connolly and Declan Burke, eds. (Hodder & Stoughton/Emily Bestler)
Blood Relations: The Selected Letters of Ellery Queen, 1947-1950 - Joseph Goodrich, ed. (Perfect Crime)
More Forensics and Fiction: Crime Writers Morbidly Curious Questions Expertly Answered by D.P. Lyle, M.D. (Medallion)
The Grand Tour: Around the World with the Queen of Mystery Agatha Christie by Mathew Prichard, ed. (Harper)
In Pursuit of Spenser: Mystery Writers on Robert B. Parker and the Creation of an American Hero by Otto Penzler, ed. (Smart Pop)

Wednesday, 08 May 2013 05:12

PENGUIN’S READ HUMANE FOR CATS, DOGS

Written by Oline Cogdill

Buy a book—or several—and help animals while being entertained.

Sounds like a plan that wins for everyone.

Penguin Group USA's Read Humane campaign does just that.

Launched in 2012, Read Humane fights animal cruelty and ties in with May’s National Pet Month to support the Humane Society of the United States.

Special editions of animal-themed titles highlight the campaign with Read Humane seals on their covers and further information inside.

Those novels include Till Death Do Us Bark by Judi McCoy, The Cat, the Wife and the Weapon by Leann Sweeney, File M for Murder by Miranda James, Double Booked for Death by Ali Brandon, Rescue My Heart by Jill Shalvis, and Hounds Abound by Linda O. Johnston.

As part of the campaign, Penguin is donating $25,000 to the Humane Society, regardless of book sales.

Funds are allocated directly to the organization's Animal Rescue Team, which works with law enforcement to investigate illegal animal cruelty as well as save animals from puppy mills, fighting rings and other life-threatening situations.

The group also does disaster relief work. For example, when Hurricane Sandy struck last fall, the Humane Society rescued animals from devastated communities and provided pet owners with assistance, including temporarily caring for the animal family members whose humans were recovering from the storm. The Humane Society volunteers have done that during most of the natural disasters during the past 20 years.

I spoke very briefly with Miranda James, also known as Dean James, about this project while we were waiting for an elevator at the Malice Domestic conference, and then followed up with an email.

"As both an animal lover and a writer whose work features a cat in a prominent role, I am thrilled to have one of my books be part of the "Read Humane" program," said James.

"I hope this will encourage readers to become more aware of the needs of abused and neglected animals in our country," added James.

Leann Sweeney also is happy to be included in this project.

"Thanks to my publisher, Penguin, I am fortunate enough to be part of the Read Humane event along with five other mass market paperback authors," Sweeney said.

The authors share an approach to using animals in their novels, she added.

"All of us write stories involving animals and we take great pride in that," Sweeney said. "We believe our books indeed live up to the Read Humane initiative. Animals are treated with dignity and respect between the covers of our titles. My book, The Cat, The Wife and The Weapon, features three rescue cats and a rat terrier. The animals do not talk or think, they just act like the amazing pets they are!"

Diane A.S. Stuckart, who also writes as Ali Brandon, hopes Read Humane spotlights the Humane Society’s rescue efforts.


“Instances of animal cruelty happen every single day, in every town and city in this country. Sometimes, we can see the abuse and step in to prevent it; most times, however, these things occur out of our sight. That’s why we need The Humane Society of the United States’ Animal Rescue Team,” said Brandon.

She added, “They work tirelessly with law enforcement to investigate cases of animal abuse, including such cruel practices as puppy mills and dog fighting.

"As the owner of four dogs and two cats—all but one of them rescues—I’m thrilled to be part of Penguin’s Read Humane campaign designed to bring additional awareness to the Team’s fabulous advocacy on behalf of our furred and feathered friends,” Brandon added.

More than 3,000 retailers nationwide are participating in Read Humane, from independent bookstores to Barnes & Noble and CVS.

I think this project is terrific. All through my life, my dogs (sorry, allergic to cats) have always been rescues. Their love and personalities have carried me through happy and sad times.

Read Humane was inspired partly by the publisher's four-year-old Read Pink campaign, which supports breast cancer research and awareness, and also by the many writers on its list whose books feature animals.

This year's Read Humane spokesperson is Jill Shalvis, author of the Animal Magnetism series, contemporary romances centered on a kennel owner, a veterinarian and other characters who care for critters.

For details on Read Humane, visit this web site.