160 Summer cover, Lori Roy

Hi Everyone,

It was a visit to Georgia’s Stone Mountain that sparked Lori Roy’s interest in the Ku Klux Klan, and became the catalyst for her new novel Gone Too Long. While writing, Roy found painful parallels between the early 20th century—when the KKK was revitalized— and now. “White supremacy has an ebb and flow.... It’s always there, waiting to rise up again, given another set of circumstances,” she says.

Dennis Lehane is one of the giants of modern crime fiction and Tom Nolan’s conversation with him covers, among other things, developing an ear for dialogue, the difference between writing short stories and novels, and creating three-dimensional characters.

Step right up, ladies and gentlemen and children of all ages! Ben Boulden explores Murder under the Big Top in his review of circus mysteries. One versatile writer examines another as our Michael Mallory provides an engaging look at the work of Mignon G. Eberhart.

John B. Valeri catches up with S. J. Rozan whose new mystery features her Chinese-American PI Lydia Chin and her sometimes partner, Bill Smith. It’s the first in this beloved series since 2011, so there’s lots to catch up on.

Nancy Bilyeau takes a look at Philip Kerr’s Bernie Gunther novels in this issue. Sadly, Kerr died last year, but his novels of a man caught in the barbed wire of mid-20th century German history will live on.

“Southern wit was a staple in our household, along with Sunday fried chicken,” says G.A. McKevett. Her sleuth, Savannah Reid, shares the author’s Southern heritage and sense of humor. John B. Valeri talks to her in this issue.

Craig Sisterson, who is originally from New Zealand, has a special treat for us in this issue: an overview of Southern Cross brime. Australia and New Zealand have spawned some of the brightest new talents in the genre recently and Craig gives us the inside scoop on death Down Under. Don’t miss his list of recent novels to get you started.

Hope you enjoy the issue! We’ll be back in September with more criminous fun.

By the time you read this our new Readers Forum will be up and running at our website. Stop by, say hello, ask questions, visit with fellow fans, and join in the discussions— we’ll be waiting for you!

Kate Stine
Editor-in-chief

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