Features
Playing Chase with Thomas Perry
Jane Whitefield is a woman of action—and never more so than in Poison FlowerJane Whitefield is a woman of action—and never more so than in Poison Flower.
by Kevin Burton Smith
John Buchan
The author of The 39 Steps and the father of the modern spy thriller.
by Michael Mallory
Jane Langton
Witty cozies featuring a Harvard professor with wide-ranging intellectual interests.
by Brian Skupin
Hearing Voices
We read PI fiction as much for the voices as the stories they tell.
by Kevin Burton Smith
Reginald Hill 1936-2012
The much-admired novelist was a dominant figure in British crime writing of the last half century.
by Martin Edwards
Where the Ripped Edges Peel Away
Fierce, beautiful, startling, Elizabeth Hand’s Cass Neary novels explore creative genius.
by Art Taylor
Touch of Genius
An interview with Elizabeth Hand, author of Available Dark and Generation Loss.
by Paul Doiron
Anthony Shaffer: Grand Artificer of Mystery
The celebrated author of Sleuth had a long and varied career criminal career.
by Joseph Goodrich
Author Anagrams, Part III
by Kate Stine
The Red Box Mystery Crossword
by Verna Suit
Departments
At the Scene
by Kate Stine
Mystery Miscellany
by Louis Phillips
Hints & Allegations
Dilys Award, Thriller Award nominations, Left Coast Crime Awards, Endeavour Morse on TV
The Hook
First Lines That Caught Our Attention
Gormania
Mary Astor in Act of Violence, Margaret Millar’s How Like an Angel, Hitch gets kinky in Frenzy
by Ed Gorman
New Books
Mayhem in the Hamptons
by Elizabeth Zelvin
Burnt Offerings
by Michael Lister
Bootlegging in Big Grove
by Sarah Wisseman
Drive-ins, Shootouts, & Fast Cars
by Rick McMahan
Reviews
Small Press Reviews: Covering the Independents
by Betty Webb
Short & Sweet: Short Stories Considered
by Bill Crider
Very Original: Paperback Originals Reviewed
by Lynne Maxwell
What About Murder? Reference Books Reviewed
by Jon L. Breen
Sounds of Suspense: Audiobooks Reviewed
by Dick Lochte
Mystery Scene Reviews
Miscellaneous
The Docket
Letters
Our Readers Recommend
Advertising Info
Advertiser Index
"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.
