They Said WHAT?

It's the last Sunday of March already. Where the heck did March go? Although, I have to admit, I'm rarely sad to see March go. It means the warm weather is that much closer. However, March was great reading time for me. I hope it was for you, too. Here are some of the great lines from books I was reading this month.

In THE LOCK ARTIST by Steve Hamilton:

"I had learned on freestanding safes, where I could really get my body up next to them and feel what I was doing. As the Ghost had said so many times, when he was teaching me how to do this...It's like seducing a woman. Touching her in just the right way. Knowing what was going on inside her. How do you do that if every part of the woman except her face is hidden behind a wall?"

From Pat Conroy's SOUTH OF BROAD:

"I have an affinity for choosing the tightrope walk across the abyss and have developed a genius for the wrong turn."

"Living as I do in the backwaters of South Carolina, I had not fully appreciated the corroding effect of the celebrity obsession that has taken hold in America, leading to a maggoty and fly-spotted culture."

"As we sit there watching the water recede, I think about Niles in the orphanage on the day I met him, and I guess he had wanted someone, anyone, to hold his hand during the long, dreadful forced march of his childhood. It was the least I could do, as he had long ago taught me a lesson about the great inner strength sometimes granted to the most wounded of men. And how those men can sometimes grow up to be heroes."

In THE BOOK OF LOST THINGS by John Connolly:

"Stories were different, though: they came alive in the telling. Without a human voice to read them aloud, or a pair of wide eyes following them by flashlight beneath a blanket, they had no real existence in our world. They were like seeds in the beak of a bird, waiting to fall to earth, or the notes of a song laid out on a sheet, yearning for an instrument to bring their music into being. They lay dormant, hoping for the chance to emerge."

Ed Lynskey wrote in TROGLODYTES:

"The CNN reporter talking in the background...said another GI had died in Iraq. I frowned. That made one more Gold Star mom. Before the war ended, we'd see a galaxy of them."

In May, Chris Grabenstein's ROLLING THUNDER is coming out, and I think you'll agree that this is one heck of a hook for the book:

"The day starts like so many others with John Ceepak: we bust an eight-year-old girl for wearing high heels."

I just love his opening sentences - every book!

And to round out this month's awesome lines, I was listening to the audio for THE FIRST RULE on the way back from Pittsburgh yesterday and was reminded of this great line:

"He moved back along the hall, thinking how different his own home was from the home that Frank Meyer built. Pike's furnishings were minimal, and the walls were bare. Pike did not have a family, so he had no pictures of family on the walls, and he did not keep pictures of his friends. Pike's life had led to blank walls, and now he wondered if his walls would ever be filled."

I find that excerpt hauntingly beautiful, but it was even more incredible in Robert Crais' gravelly Pike voice.

I hope your March was filled with wonderfully great lines as well. If you have any YOU'D like to share, feel free to leave them in the comments. And let's meet up here again next month to share some more! Happy Reading!

TROGLODYTES - Ed Lynskey

FIRST LINE: "'Watch this.'"

Private Investigator Frank Johnson is being hounded by the IRS for taxes he needs to pay when a job comes along requiring him to track a missing person...in Turkey. He isn't very keen on the idea, but the client was referred to him by his lawyer associate, Robert Gatlin, and of course there's the issue of the taxes that need to be paid. So Frank sets off for Turkey to try to locate the American diplomat, Sylvester Mercedes, who walked out of his hotel one Sunday morning never to be seen again. Frank manages to uncover several dead ends when an employee at the hotel is murdered. Evidence suggests that the murder could be connected to Mercedes, but can Frank prove it. And just where did Mercedes go?

TROGLODYTES is the fourth book in Lynskey's Frank Johnson series. Johnson is the epitome of the classic PI: recovering alcoholic, divorced, and for the most part a loner. He plays by his rules and tries to buck anyone who attempts to force their own rules on him.

The Turkish setting adds an exotic air to this novel, but the actual troglodyte tunnels play a rather small role in the novel. I think I would have liked for that to be developed more, but mostly because of my own fascination with them.

Because of the setting, Lynskey is able to bring in additional unique characters that add flavor to the novel. Omar, the hotel owner, has a drawer full of Lugers and wears many hats in his hotel, including dishwasher. He also has quite an eye for the ladies. His wife Karin is an attractive spitfire of a woman who would prefer not to have to bother with the hotel, but is forced into service by circumstance. And Selami the taksi driver teams up with Johnson to try to find Mercedes.

The last quarter of the novel seemed to pick up pace considerably, but throughout the novel, Lynskey uses vivid language and smart dialogue. The Iraqi war grumbles in the backdrop of the plot as Johnson copes with his feelings about it in relation to his own veteran status.

While I did have a little background on Johnson, having read the second book in the series, THE BLUE CHEER, TROGLODYTES is one a reader could easily pick up with no background on Johnson. So, for a quick trip to Turkey, coupled with murder and mystery, try TROGLODYTES by Ed Lynskey.

TROGLODYTES is available now in trade paper from Mundania Press (ISBN: 978-1-59426-721-5).

You Have the Right to Six Words - WEEK 10!

Can you believe this is week 10 of the "You Have the Right to Six Words" series? Wow! And I was just looking over the schedule I mapped out and I have to tell you that I'm very excited about ever post for this month in this series. It just isn't letting up at all! I do want to give you a heads up that next week's post will be on Tuesday instead of Wednesday. I'll remind everyone, but you can mark your calendars! ;)

Let's get started on this week's memoirists. First our recap from an interview is the author of the Frank Johnson P.I. series, Ed Lynskey. Ed's Johnson series includes THE DIRT BROWN DERBY, THE BLUE CHEER, and PELHAM FELL HERE. TROGLODYTES will be number four in the series and is due out later this year. Ed lives with his wife in the Washington DC area and enjoys walking and gardening. He's also a Nationals fan and a Redskins fan. Ed has been on both sides of writing coin. He's worked as both the author and as the reviewer, and in all aspects of his career he says:

I did the best I could.

First up for our new memoirists is one of my favorite folks on Facebook. What a sense of humor this guy has. However, it isn't as noticeable in his crime fiction writing. Jonathan Hayes is the author of PRECIOUS BLOOD, a thriller about a New York City Medical Examiner who left his career after the traumas of 9/11 only to be pulled back into the fray when he's asked to work as a private consultant. The case he's asked to handle turns out to be dark beyond your wildest dreams. Jonathan himself is a forensic pathologist and he always looks forward to the person in his audience who asks, "what's the most disgusting thing you've ever seen?" And in his other life, Jonathan writes about food and travel. He's even a contributing editor to Martha Stewart living. Up next for Jonathan and his crime fiction writing? A sequel to PRECIOUS BLOOD titled A HARD DEATH that will be on bookstore shelves in the U.S. in early 2010 (UK folks, look for A HARD DEATH in November this year). Is there anything Jonathan won't try his hand at?

Said yes to everything. Regretted nothing.

Sophie Littlefield is preparing for the release of her debut novel, A BAD DAY FOR SORRY. Her novel about a woman fighting back against "problem husbands" is heralding raves from everyone. Sorry breaks the mold of many female protagonists in crime fiction, she's a middle-aged woman who owns a sewing machine shop.

Sophie has seen much of the geography of the United States having grown up in central Missouri, spent 10 years in Chicago and then moved to Northern California. She shares her writing genes with her brother, Mike Wiecek, but she's honed her own distinct voice in the crime fiction genre. Sophie will also be publishing a young adult novel, BANISHED, next year.

One of the reasons I'm so looking forward to A BAD DAY FOR SORRY is the fact that Sophie is one of the bloggers at the 7 Criminal Minds virtual panel blog. Every Wednesday I look forward to Sophie's posts. Folks, this lady can write! And she's gonna write how she wants to write because she

Ain't gonna be who I'm not.

So how's that for spunk? See why I'm looking forward to her book?

Our final author this week is also releasing a book next Tuesday. Stephen White is the New York Times best-selling author of the Alan Gregory psychological thriller series. Stephen builds on his fifteen plus years of experience as a clinical psychologist to bring authenticity to his books. While a practicing psychologist, Stephen spent time in the field of pediatric oncology. At the time only a handful of psychologists around the country worked in pediatric oncology. One of those colleagues was Jonathan Kellerman. While still working as a psychologist, Stephen began writing his first novel, PRIVILEGED INFORMATION. Here he would give birth to Alan Gregory and a whole new career.

In Stephen's newest novel, THE SIEGE, focus changes from Alan Gregory to another series character, Alan's buddy, police detective Sam Purdy. Sam is called on to investigate the mysterious disappearance of several high profile Yale students. Could it be kidnapping? Could it be terrorism? There is no telling. But the disappearances are high profile enough to merit the involvement of the CIA and the FBI. THE SIEGE is Stephen White's seventeenth novel in a career spanning over 20 years. And in those 20 years he's learned to

Live, read. Love, read. Write, rewrite.

Best wishes go out to both of our authors this week who are looking forward to their August 4th book releases. Sophie and Stephen, I'm so glad you could take time out to play with us today before all the big festivities begin; may they exceed your wildest expectations. Thanks also to Ed and Jonathan. They aren't releasing this week but both have books on the horizon and we're looking forward to celebrating those in the near future as well.

Remember next week, we're meeting here on Tuesday to continue the fun. So I'll see you then! Happy Reading!





Bouchercon countdown: 79 days

Q&A with Ed Lynskey

I have to credit Alafair Burke with sending another wonderful author my way, Ed Lynskey. Like Tim Hallinan, Ed contacted me after he read my interview with Alafair. Then I had the chance to read Ed's book The Blue Cheer. If you're like me and you enjoy great characters in your crime fiction, you have to check out The Blue Cheer. I'm looking forward to getting my hands on Pelham Fell Here which is Ed's next book starring Frank Johnson. It's actually some back story on Frank, and it just became available this month.

Since I hadn't heard of Ed Lynskey's work before he contacted me, I thought it would be a great idea to share some information about him with you all. Just in case you were as much in the dark as I was! Hope you enjoy my chat with Ed Lynskey:

Q. Who/what inspired you to start writing and pursue it as a career?

Ed: My writing career has evolved into two distinct segments. From college and through two decades, I wrote bushels of poems and reviews. A professor in a creative writing class I took by chance turned me on to writing poems.

I got paid in lots of contributor copies to fill up a couple foot lockers. From time to time, I see the same small press journals go up for sale on Ebay. Usually a contributor in them is famous like Sherman Alexie or Charles Bukowski. Anyway, it's nice to appear in ink next to such company.

I grew older and tireder (is that a real word?) of writing a product (poems) that few people seemed to want to read. I began to focus more on the writing of fiction - first the short stories, and then I branched into novels.

Actually now that I think about it, the first piece I ever published was a short story for a defunct literary magazine called Defying Gravity at the local community college. These days I find writing novels more of a satisfying challenge than anything else I've ever tried my hand at writing.

Q. Are there other writers you feel have influenced your writing style?

Ed: Style-wise, I admire a clean, crisp prose style whenever I read novels. Bill Pronzini exhibits this trait when I read his "Nameless Detective" series. A good deal of my reading in the crime fiction genre has been novels written in the golden age, say, post-World War II to 1970.

I like the better aspects to such pulp masters as Charles Williams, Gil Brewer, Ed Lacy, Wade Miller, and Day Keene. But the thing is these guys wrote in the 1950s and 1960s, and this is 2008. So, I filter their work through a modern sensibility because I'm not writing a parody or a pastiche.

I like their laconic prose, heady pace, and uncluttered dialogue. Today's books seem to go by the pound. I just don't have the time or vim to slog through 400 pages. It's also difficult to keep a narrative arc (you know the three acts: start, middle, end) even in a thriller over that length. There are exceptions, of course. Stephen Hunter does it better than most. So, shorter novels work better for me. Of course I'm finishing up a novel manuscript that runs 80K words, so go figure.

Q. You also review crime fiction. How has this part of your career affected your own crime fiction writing?

Ed: I see book reviewing as an adjunct activity to my writing fiction. I've done it for a long time for just about every genre of fiction written including literary, mainstream, and commercial titles.

Forced to write and think critically about other writers' novels have lent me some insight into what they do well and how they do it. Writing fair, smart reviews takes a lot of sweat and is a big responsibility. My reviewing has curtailed considerably in the past couple of years. Writing and revising my novels sap most of my best efforts.

Q. There has been a great deal of discussion lately about the decrease in newspaper book reviews. Do you feel this is a reflection of a decrease in interest in reading or are those book reviews merely moving to a new venue?

Ed: Right, the shrinking newspaper review space is a sad commentary on our state, isn't it? I think fiction in any genre is becoming less relevant in the corporate modern world. If you look at the slick magazines (Ladies Home Journal, Esquire, Redbook and Saturday Evening Post) from fifty years ago, you'll see each issue featured four or five short stories by diverse authors. I didn't live back then, but I've seen these magazines in my research for doing retrospective articles.

Not true now. The same page space is given over to recycled articles on how to lose weight without breaking a sweat or how to satisfy your mate by popping a sex pill or how to make your hair glisten like Christmas tinsel.

Here's the encouraging thing: when I go to our library, the place is packed. I see moms checking out basketfuls of books for their children. I see these ladies stuffing their book bags with mysteries. I mean they're toting enough heavy weight in their bags to give me a hernia. When I go to writers' conferences, fans and readers stand shoulder to shoulder to see their fave writers.

So, I refuse to believe there are fewer readers nowadays. The online venues seem to be picking up the slack. I enjoy reading the different blogs discussing books. People's reactions to novels sometimes vary with mine, and I take recommendations for my reading list from the blogs.

Q. What hobbies/interests keep you busy when you aren't writing?

Ed: Well, I'm a firm believer there has to be a life outside of writing. At my doctor's advice to shed pounds (or else dire things happen), I've been briskly walking daily for a half hour. We enjoy watching Washington , D.C.'s pro baseball team, the Nationals, play games. The team management built a marvelous stadium in Southeast D.C. We're big NFL Redskin fans for autumn viewing. Besides my paying work, taking care of a cat and a yard seem to keep me active. I like reading for my leisure, too. Lately, I've been dipping into Westerns, vintage and modern titles. It's like returning to my boyhood fun.

Q. Have you read anything in the last six months that you would recommend to readers who enjoy your work?

Ed: I've read so many books in the last six months they seem to blur together in my analog brain. Megan Abbott has been doing some great noir. J.D. Rhoades writes the top-notch Jack Keller, bounty hunter, series. Jason Starr does New York City noir with flair. Kevin O'Brien writes taut thrillers.

Q. Tell us a little about Private Investigator Sharon Knowles. Am I correct that she will be coming out in a short story collection soon?

Ed: Thanks for asking about Sharon. I created her as a counterpart to my hardboiled P.I. Frank Johnson. In other words, every now and then I tank on reading and writing noir and hardboiled fiction, you know? So rather than burn out and bail from the writing game, I wanted to work with a different series character having a softer edge.

Sharon isn't goofy or wimpy or sexy or sassy. She's just a regular person who happens to also be a smart, stubborn and tough investigator with a good heart. Her specialty is working with troubled youth in street gangs.

Her short stories have been reprinted by Ramble House who has also reprinted fiction by Bill Pronzini, James Reasoner, Ed Gorman, Gary Lovisi, Richard Lupoff, and Barry N. Malzberg.

Her collection of 20 short stories (all but one previously published) is A CLEAR PATH TO CROSS available at: http://www.ramblehouse.com/clearpath.htm

Q. Pelham Fell Here is supposed to go back in time to give Frank some "back story." And that's going to be released this month. What's in store for Frank in the FUTURE? Can you share some little tidbits with us?

Ed: Excellent question. Right now I don't know what will become of Frank. There's one more title, TROGLODYTES, under contract to appear next year. It takes place in Cappadocia, a region in Turkey I visited while I worked there in the 1990s. Frank flies to Turkey to investigate the disappearance of a wealthy American businessman and, of course, runs into a buzz saw.

I've heard a lot of discussion on when a series should bow out. The characters parody themselves, the plots grow flaccid, and the readers get disenchanted. But I haven't written a Frank Johnson book in the last four I've done, so I feel refreshed to tackle a new title. Right now I have an outline together. I believe Frank will sever an old relationship but gain a new friend.

One thought occurring to me is several critics have told me PELHAM FELL HERE is the best title of the series. So, that's encouraging to hear. I mean it wouldn't make a lot of sense to write another Frank Johnson book if his books began slipping gears.

Q. Does Frank or Sharon embody any of your personality traits? If so, which ones? If not, what influenced the development of their characters?

Ed: H'm, interesting question. I don't really see much of me in either of my private detective characters. Maybe an outside observer might draw comparisons. Well, I guess Frank has my dry sense of humor, so that's something.

Frank and his cronies developed as characters in the sixty or so short stories I wrote featuring him before I undertook the novels. As aforementioned, Sharon evolved from her own set of short stories. The short stories were the proving ground for both my detective characters.

I really want to know (and hopefully like) my character before I crawl into 300 pages with them. By contrast, I'm writing a stand alone novel now, and it's taking a lot of time to get some traction. I'm compelled to dwell on the characters until a clear picture emerges of just who they are and how they think.

Patience, grasshopper.

Q. And finally, I like to ask this of everyone I highlight on my blog. There is a book out called Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure. What would be YOUR six-word memoir?

Ed: Oh, I'd use some inane and sappy ditty like: "I did the best I could."

I have to say that I'M impressed with his best! And I'm looking forward to spending some more time with Frank Johnson. I'm also going to have to check out Sharon Knowles. Pelham Fell Here is available now through Ed's publisher, Mundania Press. And the other books in the Frank Johnson series are The Dirt-Brown Derby and The Blue Cheer.

Ed, thanks for taking time out to help us get to know you better! It's always such a fun experience to chat with the writers who create the characters and stories I love!

The Blue Cheer - Ed Lynskey

Frank Johnson left his home in Pelham, Virginia, for what he hoped would be the serenity of Scarab, West Virginia. A cabin in the woods; living a more naturally. What he finds instead is Stinger missiles, walking fish insignias and t-r-o-u-b-l-e.

When Jan Maddox, the wife of his only friend in West Virginia is found brutally murdered shortly after Johnson witnesses a Stinger missile being fired, he finds it's too much of a coincidence for the two events not to be related. He and Old Man Maddox set out to find the murderer, but this endeavor turns deadly as well. Johnson and Maddox are ambushed in a hotel room. Johnson is able to take out the two assailants, but not before they kill Old Man. Johnson isn't sure where to turn, but he knows he is in this mess up to his neck. That's when he calls in reinforcements in the form of his old bounty hunter friend, Gerald, from Virginia.

A short while ago I received an e-mail from Ed Lynskey. He had visited Jen's Book Thoughts and told me he would be interested in participating in a Q&A. I, of course, am excited to have volunteers, but I needed to check out Ed's books so I could create the Qs. The Blue Cheer is the only one of Ed's three books presently available through my library, and I'm going to have to contact them about this. The Blue Cheer is great, and I want to read the other Frank Johnson books in this series now.

Lynskey does a fabulous job with character development. Frank Johnson has so many layers to him, and every one is intriguing. While he comes off very likable, he has few friends. He's more of a loner, and he's a simple man. Bluegrass music is what he favors. He doesn't have the Internet or a television in his cabin home, and that suits him just fine. Life's made him a bit of a sceptic, and yet he is out to do good and help those who are important to him.

Gerald's sub-purpose in the novel is comic relief. What a stitch he is, and quite the charmer. He can be violent when the situation necessitates it, but overall he is carefree and a devoted friend.

The plot contains a little extra fluff. There is a bit of a subplot dealing with Frank's cousin which doesn't really play into the main plot of the novel. It probably could have been eliminated without any negative overall effect. However, the main plot is well developed. I couldn't help but think of Reba McEntire's song, "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia," especially the line "the judge in the town's got blood stains on his hands." Frank is in a "backwoods Southern town" and the law enforcement is questionable at best, but definitely dead set AGAINST Frank.

The book moves quickly and seems to speed up the further in you read. While "who done it" isn't necessarily a mystery throughout, what's going to transpire is. There was an incident early on in the novel dealing with evidence from a crime scene. I remember thinking, "hey, that's not right." But later I saw the purpose Lynskey had in mind for it, and the "ah ha" moment came. Lynskey even leaves a bit of the plot unresolved - on purpose. It works, and it works well.

There were some areas where I thought the writing was a bit rough around the edges, but sections such as this more than made up for the rough patches:

Shouldering the duffel bag with the Marine Corps bulldog, Old Man knocked Jan's photo off the bed table. He turned to stone staring down at the photo. His face then splintered into hurt. Tears seeped into his eyes. He grappled for the nearest bedpost and slumped forward on extended arms. His shoulders jerked and head sagged a little while his heart broke. Old Man cried the mute cry of men of his generation.

If that isn't a vivid image, I don't know what is. That image was incredibly powerful to me as I read it. It was writing like this that really enabled me to "enter" the story; be a part of it.

If you can hunt this book down, it is definitely worth the effort.