Short Stories
One of the more interesting new small presses is Perfect Crime Books, who have just released the collection The Pink Tarantula by Tim Wohlforth. Sure, the subtitle is “A Novel in 9 Episodes,” but it’s really a novel made up of short stories previously published online in Plots with Guns, Thuglit, Demolition, and Back Alley.
The connected stories all concern Tom Bateman, called “Crip” by his body-pierced PI partner, Henrietta, because he’s in a wheelchair. Don’t let that fool you, though. Bateman’s as tough as the come, and so is Henrietta. The relationship between the two is a big part of what makes these stories well worth your time.
"For me, the books I read were the call—the call to adventure, to thinking, to acknowledging other points of view. But to complete the ritual, I needed to respond."
I am surrounded by books. Every room, every space in my large, sprawling 1750s house is full of books...
Our history and experiences can define us, inspire our actions, and as writers impact our words and stories. Mine most definitely has: my father was a small-time gangster. Really.
"My ah-ha moment came when I read The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald.... That was it for me – I was off to the races."
Nietzsche once wrote, “There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness.”
"Mystery books were daring and exciting, firing up my imagination and making me yearn to become a girl detective or even a secret agent. They also empowered me to make up impromptu ghost stories around the campfire for my Girl Scout troop and sneak into the cemetery at night on a dare."
Fire and Ashes, the latest Angela Richman Death Investigator mystery, is an exploration of a fatal fire. To research this novel, Viets delved into the devastating consequences of junk science and arson investigations.
