Monday Mystery Backlist - CROSSROAD BLUES

This week I chose to highlight CROSSROAD BLUES by Ace Atkins as the Monday Mystery Backlist because it is in my TBR pile. It taunts me, I swear it does. So, I can't wait until it's up in the rotation so I can escape its hold on me! I also thought it fitting since Ace Atkins was nominated for an Edgar this year for the short story that appears at the end of the new printing.

CROSSROAD BLUES was originally published in 1998 by St. Martin's Minotaur and was re-released in 2009 by Busted Flush Press.

The back cover of CROSSROAD BLUES says:

"A modern, Southern re-invention of The Maltese Falcon, Crossroad Blues won noir fans with its nod to the masters and thrilled readers with a wild ride along Highway 61. It's here that we first meet Nick Travers, an ex-New Orleans Saint turned Tulane University blues historian. Nick searches for the lost recordings of 1930s bluesman Robert Johnson - and a missing colleague - and finds trouble at every turn.

The cast of characters includes a red-headed siren, an Elvis-worshipping hitman, Johnson's ghost, and the Mississippi Delta itself. A decade later, Crossroad Blues still sings."

And Ken Bruen says,

"Ace Atkins brings to mystery what Muddy Waters brought to music - the totally unexpected and the absolute sublime."

Pretty easy to see why this one's taunting me, isn't it? Can't wait to get to it. And you can check it out, too. It's available from Busted Flush Press in trade paper (ISBN: 978-1-935415-03-9). If you get to it before me, let me know what you think!

Monday Mystery Backlist - THE BLADE ITSELF

O.k., so for the first Monday Mystery Backlist title of the year, I've chosen Marcus Sakey's first thriller, THE BLADE ITSELF. I have to admit that with Gregg Hurwitz, Marcus is my favorite thriller writer to recommend because as many times as I've recommended him, everyone has come back raving about his books. And I'm not just talking about people who love crime fiction to begin with! The sceptics love Marcus' work, too. The Chicago Tribune even called him "The new reigning prince of crime fiction." He's one of the writers pulling people into the genre these days, so it's fitting to start 2010 off with the book that ignited his reign.

Danny Carter started life out on the wrong side of the law. A heist gone bad, ironically, gives Danny a chance to turn over a new leaf. However, it's at the expense of his partner Evan and when Evan is finished "doing time" for that heist, he expects payback from model citizen, Danny. Suddenly, everything Danny's worked to achieve is threatened, and Danny has to decide how far he can go to protect it all.

THE BLADE ITSELF was published by St. Martin's Minotaur as a hardcover (ISBN: 978-0-312-36031-3) in January of 2007. A mass market paperback version (ISBN: 978-0-312-37104-3) was published in November of 2007. An audio book version is also available from BBC Audiobooks America (ISBN: 978-0-792-74720-8) and is read by Grover Gardner.

And in a final note for THE BLADE ITSELF, it has been optioned for the big screen with a tentative release date of 2010, produced by Ben Affleck and starring Chris Pine. So read it now before the movie hits the theaters!

Monday Mystery Backlist - THE MILLIONAIRES

This week's Monday Mystery Backlist title is a thriller from Brad Meltzer. With all the chaos in the banking industry, THE MILLIONAIRES is a perfect backlist title to recall.

The tagline for THE MILLIONAIRES is "What would you steal if you couldn't get caught?" for Charlie and Oliver Caruso that would be an abandoned bank account with three million dollars. However, what they think is a fool-proof plan turns into the nightmare of their lives when the bank, the Secret Service and a PI set their sites on the brothers and start closing in fast.



THE MILLIONAIRES is available in hardcover (ISBN: 978-0446527293) or mass market paperback (ISBN: 978-0446611923), so if you're looking for a Christmas gift for your thriller-lover, this may be just the ticket.

Monday Mystery Backlist - ON THE ROPES (Plus a Give-Away)

This week Tom Schreck will release the third book in his Duffy Dombrowski mystery series, OUT COLD. I reviewed OUT COLD in September; you can read it here if you missed it.

In honor of that release, I'm celebrating "Schreck Week." Today's Monday Mystery Backlist title will be ON THE ROPES, the first Duffy Dombrowski mystery. And at the end of this post I will be announcing an extra special give-away! On Friday we'll meet up with Tom for an "unprecedented" (thank you Mr. President) interview. I hope you'll stop by to see it.

But, without further ado, let's talk about ON THE ROPES. Published in 2007, ON THE ROPES introduced Duffy Dombrowski and a rich cast of characters. Duffy is a part-time boxer, full-time social worker who doesn't necessarily like playing by the rules, especially when those rules are nothing more than bureaucratic...well, ridiculousness.

For example, Duffy shouldn't be paying house calls to his clients, but had he not, he never would have learned about Walanda's missing step-daughter. Walanda is a client of Duffy's but she's also a schizophrenic, crack-addicted prostitute. When Walanda ends up murdered in jail, Duffy takes in her Muslim basset hound, Al, and goes in search of the missing step-daughter.

Ken Bruen says, "Not since Carl Hiassen's TOURIST SEASON debut has there been a novel with such superb comic timing and laugh-out-loud lines."

And Marcus Sakey describes Duffy as "an Everyman with a big heart and wicked jab, Duffy Dombrowski may well be the new Spenser."

And if you'd like to see what I had to say about ON THE ROPES, you can read my review from earlier this year, here.

As promised, I have an extra-special give-away for "Schreck Week." Because I love MY own set of Duffy Dombrowski books so much, I got a set to give away to a lucky winner - just in time for the holidays. My gift to you. PLUS, they're all signed: ON THE ROPES, TKO, and OUT COLD! All you have to do is fill out this handy dandy little form I've created here - only entries entered through the form will be accepted. I'm getting high tech on you! ;) The contest is open to anyone with a U.S. postal address. I will take entries through midnight on Friday (December 4th). One entry per person. On Saturday I'll consult the random number generator and find a winner. Good luck!

And remember to visit on Friday for Tom's Inquisition...I mean interview. Happy Reading!

Monday Mystery Backlist - FINAL JEOPARDY

As many of you know, Linda Fairstein is one of the authors I credit with pulling me into the crime fiction genre. And I will do everything within my power to marry Mike Chapman if I ever find him in real life. Just kidding. This week her most recent Alex Cooper novel, LETHAL LEGACY will come out in mass market paperback. So in honor of that release I have chosen FINAL JEOPARDY, the first book of the series, as this week's Monday Mystery Backlist.

In FINAL JEOPARDY Alex Cooper is introduced with this line: "I sat on my living room sofa at five o'clock in the morning with a copy of the mock-up of the front page of the day's New York Post in my hand, looking at my own obituary." No, this isn't a paranormal mystery series. Alex and homocide detective Mike Chapman have to figure out who killed Hollywood actress, Isabella Lascar, who was staying at Alex's home on Martha's Vineyard. They also need to find out if Isabella was the intended victim or if someone mistook her for Alex.

FINAL JEOPARDY introduces the characters of Alex, Mike, and Special Victims detective, Mercer Wallace. And while Alex may encounter "final jeopardy" in the plot, "final jeopardy" plays a duel role. Alex, Mike and Mercer make an effort to hear and bet on the Final Jeopardy question from the television show each night. This is a element that carries over throughout the entire series.

In all of Linda Fairstein's novels, I have found myself on a tour of New York City. She depicts the city so vividly and readers get to glimpse far more than the typical tourist spots. I found that when I made my first trip to New York City, I was recognizing different places because of their prominence in Linda's books.

So, for many reasons, I am happily recommending FINAL JEOPARDY as this week's Monday Mystery Backlist title. The hard cover was originally published in 1996 by Scribner, but has been published in many formats since that time. You can find it in paperback, audio, and e-book as well. A format for everyone.

Monday Mystery Backlist - THE TUNNELS

THE TUNNELS was Michelle Gagnon's debut novel. Protagonists FBI Special Agent Kelly Jones and former FBI agent Jake Riley are investigating the deaths of two female students found mutilated at Kelly's alma mater, a high profile New England college. Jake is employed by the influential father of one of the victims, and together Kelly and Jake must unravel the clues that include mysterious symbols left at each of the crime scenes.

John Lescroart says "THE TUNNELS starts out scary and only gets worse -- or, if you like frightening thrillers, better...THE TUNNELS marks an auspicious debut."

Another motivator to check out THE TUNNELS, as well as Michelle's most recent release, THE GATEKEEPER is a contest she has going on related to both books. You can read more about her contest to win a MacBook here.

THE TUNNELS was originally released in paperback (ISBN: 978-0-7783-2446-1) by MIRA Books in 2007.

Monday Mystery Backlist - A DRINK BEFORE THE WAR

There has been a lot of talk about the fact that Dennis Lehane's new book will be a Patrick Kenzie/Angie Gennaro novel. So, since we haven't featured Dennis Lehane in the Monday Mystery Backlist posts yet, I thought this might be a good week to go back and visit the very first book in this series, A DRINK BEFORE THE WAR.

In Lehane's debut novel, detectives Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro take on a case to retrieve stolen documents for some politicians. The documents were stolen by the ex-wife of a gang leader, which winds them right in the middle of the gang's cross hairs. When Patrick and Angie are able to locate the documents, which don't turn out to be "documents" at all, they find themselves not only stuck between the politicians and the gang members, but in possession of evidence of child abuse.

As becomes Lehane's signature, A DRINK BEFORE THE WAR is complex, dark, controversial and thrilling. The Mystery News was quoted as saying (about A DRINK BEFORE THE WAR):

"Lehane does everything well, but what he does best are characters and prose. Kenzie and Gennaro are beautifully crafted protagonists. They have depth, and they come alive on the page."

The Shamus-award winning novel put Lehane on the crime fiction map. If you have not read the books in this series, A DRINK BEFORE THE WAR, is the perfect place to start.

A DRINK BEFORE THE WAR was originally published in hardcover (ISBN: 978-0151000937) by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in 1994. Among a slew of versions, HarperTorch published a mass market paperback (ISBN: 978-0380726233) in 1996 and a trade paper publication was also released by Harvest Books in 2003 (ISBN: 978-0156029022).

Monday Mystery Backlist - JUST ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE

O.k., I'm back on track with the Monday Mystery Backlist title now that Bouchercon is over. *sniff* And actually, Bouchercon is responsible for this weeks' title. Busted Flush Press, the publisher responsible for bringing the Moe Prager books back into print, has also brought A.E. Maxwell's Fiddler and Fiora series back into print. And book one, JUST ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE, landed squarely in my hands at Bouchercon, thanks to David Thompson, Grand Poobah of Busted Flush Press.

First of all, A.E. Maxwell is the husband and wife writing team of Ann and Evan Maxwell. (Just in case you were like me and didn't know that.) I had this book tucked in my bag while I was waiting for something to start, so I pulled it out and made a huge mistake; I started reading it! I was laughing before I reached the end of page one. Of course, I didn't have time to finish it right then, and I'm trying very hard to stay on my meticulously planned reading schedule, but I'm not kidding, this book is taunting me every night. "Please read me! Please read me!" So, I'm quite sure it won't be long before you see the review for this book here on the blog. But enough about my mental disorders, let's find out a little about JUST ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE.

JUST ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE introduces P.I. Fiddler and his sexy ex-wife Fiora. Set in Southern California in the 80s, Fiora's twin brother, Danny, finds himself in hot water with the U.S. Customs Department concerning his Silicon Valley export business, which may be more than it seems on the outside. Fiddler and Fiora are called on to come to Danny's rescue.

Paul Levine says, "Fiddler is to California what Spenser is to Boston and Travis McGee is to Florida. Tough, smart guys who know that sometimes, what looks like paradise, is pure hell."

Do you see why this book is taunting me? It is available now in trade paper from Busted Flush Press (ISBN: 978-0-9792709-6-3). And because we're only a couple months away from Christmas, you're going to hear me say this a lot. This would make a great Christmas gift for the P.I. novel fan on your list. If they aren't familiar with this series, JUST ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE is the first of the franchise; it's a great place to start.

Monday Mystery Backlist - JADE LADY BURNING

I mentioned yesterday that I received an author recommendation from David Thompson at Murder by the Book in Houston. By the way, David is also the owner of Busted Flush Publishers. So, the author he recommended was Martin Limon. Some of you may be aware of his work because he has a handful of books published by Soho Press. But JADE LADY BURNING will be my first experience with Martin Limon, so I thought I would use it as the Monday Mystery Backlist title this week. I'm going to give you the summary that my library has available for JADE LADY BURNING. It may be from the book jacket, but the listing does not specify so I can't say for sure. Here's what they say about JADE LADY BURNING:

"The bizarre killing of Miss Pak should have belonged to the Korean police. But her amorous associations with American servicemen in Seoul also made her death the business of the U.S. Army's criminal investigation arm, of which Sgt. Ernie Bascom and Sgt. George Sueno were prized digits. George is from East L.A., Ernie is from another planet. In the army, going after the truth is usually seen as a criminal waste of time, so they are well suited to the case. The Eighth Army command is anxious only to squelch the bad press, and the boys are really only interested in enjoying their tour of duty. The two of them know Korea, they like Korea (George even speaks the language), and they are all too happy to check the tawdry dives the woman had trawled for customers. Even if they don't find the perpetrator, the consequences are minimal. There is something odd about the Korean cops' nervousness. Also, the actual killing is pretty heinous; the oddly trussed-up victim is little more than a youngster. Nobody can't die but there are ways no one should. The case gets to George and Ernie. They even work on it after hours. In their line, though, getting involved with a victim isn't smart because you increase tremendously the odds of becoming one. "

David says that Limon is one of his favorite living crime fiction writers, so I'm looking forward to checking out his work. Even better, I'm looking forward to checking HIM out at Bouchercon. He will be one of the authors in attendance.

As just a side note. This will be the last Monday Mystery Backlist title until Oct. 26th. I'll be busy preparing for Bouchercon and then recovering from Bouchercon! So, the backlist post will take a short hiatus. I will still be posting the six-word memoirs, however. I need to stay on schedule with them so we can wrap up on December 9th. Can you believe that? December 9th? For a project that was supposed last through the summer!

Have a great week! Check out JADE LADY BURNING. And happy reading!

Monday Mystery Backlist - IN COLD BLOOD

As I mentioned yesterday, this is National Banned Books Week. In honor of this, I decided to highlight a banned book for the Monday Mystery Backlist title. Last year I reviewed TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD for Banned Books Week, which in my opinion is one of the greatest, if not THE greatest, crime fiction book. This year, I'm highlighting a book by an author who was actually represented in TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD. For those that don't know, the character of Dill was inspired by Harper Lee's childhood friend, Truman Capote. Harper Lee also worked with Truman Capote to research the crime that became the basis for IN COLD BLOOD.

IN COLD BLOOD, banned as recently as 2000, is a true crime novel about the 1959 brutal murders of Herbert Clutter, his wife and their two children. The crime takes place in Kansas and the novel chronicles not only the Clutter family but also the lives of the two men convicted of the horror, Dick Hickock and Perry Smith, and the effects on the community. IN COLD BLOOD was originally published as a four-part serial in THE NEW YORKER in 1965. It was then published in book form by Random House in 1966.

IN COLD BLOOD was banned for a short time in a high school in Savannah, Georgia, when a parent complained about "sex, violence, and profanity" in the book, which was a part of the schools AP English program. Luckily, a community protest resulted in a reversal of the ban.

IN COLD BLOOD has subsequently been adapted into several feature films and a miniseries.

Presently, IN COLD BLOOD is available from Random House in a hardcover edition (ISBN: 978-0375507908) re-released in 2002 as well as a Vintage 1994 trade paper edition (ISBN: 978-0679745587). For the audiophiles among us, there is an unabridged version (ISBN: 978-0739333648) from Random House Audio produced in 2006.

Monday Mystery Backlist - AN IMAGE OF DEATH

This week I'm excited to have a mini "Libby Hellman week." Libby is preparing to release her new novel DOUBLEBACK, which I will be reviewing tomorrow. We will also be talking with Libby in an interview on Friday. So in honor of both of those events this week, I'm highlighting a book that's recently been re-released from Libby's Ellie Foreman series for this Monday Mystery Backlist.

AN IMAGE OF DEATH is Libby Hellmann's third book in her series focused on Chicago filmmaker Ellie Foreman. In this installment, Ellie is filming a documentary on foster children for the very wealthy real estate developer Ricki Feldman when she receives a hand-delivered, unmarked package. Ellie finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation when that package reveals a surveillance videotape showing the murder of a young woman, a young woman who Ellie discovers happens to have a background in Eastern Europe as a diamond cutter during the fall of the Soviet Union.

AN IMAGE OF DEATH was originally released as a hardcover (ISBN: 1-59058-1016) by Poisoned Pen Press in January of 2004. This fall Poisoned Pen Press has re-released AN IMAGE OF DEATH in trade paper (ISBN: 978-1590586754).

Monday Mystery Backlist - WHISKEY SOUR

This week's Monday Mystery Backlist title is the first book in the Lt. Jacqueline "Jack" Daniels series, WHISKEY SOUR by J.A. Konrath. The creativity of this series concept hooked me into buying the first three books. Unfortunately, they are still waiting for me to read them. The sad case of most books I buy for myself these days. But, I'm determined to read this one before the year's out. I moved it to the "high priority" shelf; I'm putting it front and center in the Monday Mystery Backlist now; AND I requested it on audio from my library. There are no more excuses. I'll have a bound version, an e-book version and an audio book version. I WILL make time to start this series! After all, I'm not a big drinker, but one of the drinks I do favor is the...yep, whiskey sour.

Lt. Jack Daniels is down on her luck after losing her boyfriend, her ability to sleep and a large portion of her checking accounting (to home shopping purchases). But that's just the beginning of her troubles. She also has to deal with a serial killer calling himself "The Gingerbread Man." A quirky cast of characters joins Daniels as she works to stop a murderer before he kills her and to straighten out her personal life.

Jay Bonansinga, author of THE SLEEP POLICE, described WHISKEY SOUR like this:

"Put Donald Westlake in a blender with a jigger of James Ellroy, mix in a dollop of Dorothy Parker, and you've got the hilarious, horrific world of Lieutenant Jacqueline 'Jack' Daniels."

In an effort to entice you a little further, you can download the whole WHISKEY SOUR novel at J.A. Konrath's website. You can also download teaser chapters to the other books in this series or opt to listen to teaser audio clips from the novels.

If you're like me and need to have the print book, it is available in the 2004 hardcover (ISBN: 978-1401300876) from Hyperion or the 2005 mass market paperback (ISBN: 978-0786890729) from Hyperion. It is also available from Brilliance Audio in an unabridged CD (ISBN: 978-1593554880) or MP3 version (ISBN: 978-1593353209). There is also a version available for the Kindle.

**Note: next week I will be on hiatus from the Monday Mystery Backlist to participate in a post for Book Blogger Appreciation Week. But Monday Mystery Backlist will return the following week. And a very Happy Labor Day to all, especially the authors who labor over their books to provide us with such a selection of entertainment. Have a great week.

Also, don't forget to get your entries in to win a copy of THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE. I'm excited to give away a brand new copy to a lucky reader. Entries must be in by the end of the day Saturday. Details here.

And the Bouchercon countdown: 38 Days!!

Monday Mystery Backlist and a GIVEAWAY!

Ordinarily I probably would not include THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO by Stieg Larsson in the Monday Mystery Backlist yet. It's first publication in the United States was September 16, 2008 - not quite a full year yet. But it is a translation for the original that was published in Sweden and copyrighted 2005.

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO is a book that has been waiting in my TBR pile for some time now. I tried to talk my book club into reading it a couple times. They aren't a mystery book club, so they weren't as enamored with the idea as I was. But this book has received rave reviews all over the world, and has of course received additional attention due to the untimely death of Stieg Larsson.

Harriet Vanger disappeared 40 years ago, and the mystery of her disappearance was never solved. Her great uncle Henrik Vanger wants to know what happened to Harriet before he dies. So, he hires disgraced journalist Mikael Blomkvist and super hacker Lisbeth Salander to research and investigate the disappearance. In their attempt to find the answers about Harriet, the duo finds much, much more about the Vanger family and it's many secrets.

Lee Child calls THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO "as vivid as bloodstains on snow." And Harlan Coben says it's "so much more than a thriller, THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO is a dazzling novel of big ideas."

THE GIRL WITH DRAGON TATTOO is available from Alfred A. Knopf in hardcover (978-0-307-26975-1) and from Vintage in trade paper (978-0307454546).

O.k., revisiting this is convincing me that I have got to force this book into my reading schedule far earlier than where it is presently. But, if you're one of the smart cookies who read this first book already, then you may be interested in the reason I chose it for this week's Monday Mystery Backlist title. The fine folks at Random House were ever so generous as to provide me with a brand spankin' new hardcover copy of the second book in Stieg Larsson's trilogy, THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE, so I could give it away to a lucky reader! I also have some dragon tattoos to go along with this book.

So, if you've already read THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO or you need some added motivation to move it up higher on your to be read list, send me an email with your snail mail address and I will enter you in the drawing for THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE. Emails can be sent to forbyone (at) yahoo (dot) com and must be received by midnight (Eastern Time) September 12, 2009. Please enter "Fire" in your subject line so your email doesn't fall into spam never to be seen again. I can only accept entries from those with a U.S. snail mail address.

Good luck!!

Monday Mystery Backlist - The Wheelman

This week's Monday Mystery Backlist title is another one that is new to me and that was contributed by Corey Wilde over at The Drowning Machine. Many thanks to Corey for sharing with us THE WHEELMAN by Duane Swierczynski:

A darkly funny rocket-ride of a story about a mute, Irish getaway driver named Lennon whose gang of bank robbers hit a particularly bad patch one day. Lennon's money is stolen, he is betrayed and left for dead. Somebody should have made sure he was, because Lennon now lives for two things: Getting his money back, and getting even. Toss in a hired gun, a dirty cop, mobsters of various ethnic backgrounds, all of them moving at the speed of light and in opposing directions, well, hey. There's bound to be a collision - or several - along the way.

THE WHEELMAN was published by St. Martin's Minotaur in hardcover (978-0312343774) in 2005 and in trade paper (978-0312343781) in 2006.

There goes my TBR list again! And I really get in trouble when I visit Corey's blog. If you haven't been over there lately, you have to pay a visit. He's been catching up on reviews and I've been the one drowning in new books on my ever-growing TBR list! ;)

Monday Mystery Backlist - DEADLY APPRAISAL

We've had a long run of male writers on the Monday Mystery Backlist post, so I wanted to shake things up a bit and get one of the fine ladies of the genre in. There are so many greats that we haven't highlighted here yet, and today we're going to take a look at Jane Cleland and the second book from her Josie Prescott Antiques Mystery series, DEADLY APPRAISAL.

Josie Prescott moved to small town New Hampshire from the hustle and bustle of New York City. Now she's the owner of Prescott's Antiques and is beginning to establish a place in her new world. Prescott's is hosting the Portsmouth Women's Guild's Annual Black and Gold Gala when a Guild representative is poisoned by the wine. The police begin to investigate who had access to the wine and Josie is one of those people. But as the investigation digs deeper, is Josie a suspect or was she the intended target?

This is a series that you've heard me rave about on here. The characters are so well created and developed that you expect them to walk off the pages and right into your living room. You don't have the bumbling amateur who solves case after case, out-smarting the police, on accident. Instead you have an intelligent, compassionate woman who does what she does best and that sometimes contributes to the law enforcement investigations. The element of the antiques in this series is as much a draw as anything else. The little tidbits that are thrown into each novel enhance the plot and add depth to the storyline. This is just a fun series. I have loved the time I've spent curled up with each book included in it, and DEADLY APPRAISAL is no exception.

DEADLY APPRAISAL was published in hardcover (ISBN: 978-0-312-34366-8) by St. Martin's Minotaur in April 2007, and the softcover (ISBN: 978-0312373337) in April of 2008.

Monday Mystery Backlist - BLITZ

I'm so appreciative to Corey at The Drowning Machine for providing today's Monday Mystery Backlist title. Today he's contributed BLITZ by crime fiction's great Ken Bruen.

Ken Bruen's Jack Taylor series may be his best known books, but my first reading of Bruen came via his Detective Sergeant Brant series. Brant is a one-of-a-kind cop who makes Dirty Harry look like a limp dishrag. The character of Brant is less that of a traditional protagonist than of a hub around which other characters (many recurring) revolve. Think Ed McBain's 87th precinct stories, and that's a deliberate comparison, because Brant is a big fan of those books. He is also thought to be the most vicious cop in London, but to leave it at that would be to underestimate Brant's cunning and political savvy. In Blitz, a particularly sadistic serial killer is grabbing tabloid headlines by killing cops all over London. The pressure to catch the killer is having all kinds of unpleasant side-effects on the Southeast London squad. And even if they find the killer, can they get the evidence to convict? For fans of the Jack Taylor series, if you want to step just a little farther out on the neo-noir ledge and look down, Sgt Brant is more than ready to lend a hand.

BLITZ was first published in the United States by St. Martin's Minotaur Books (ISBN: 9780312327262) in June of 2004. In the UK it was first published by The Do-Not-Press Ltd. (ISBN: 9781904316008) in 2002.

As a side note on this novel, the folks over in London are working on a movie version tentatively due out in 2010.

Monday Mystery Backlist - TONIGHT I SAID GOODBYE

This week Michael Koryta will release his fourth Lincoln Perry novel, so I thought it fitting that we pay some homage to the book that started this series as well as Koryta's career - yes, at the age of 21. TONIGHT I SAID GOODBYE was the winner of the 2003 St. Martin's Press/PWA Prize for Best First PI Novel. It was also shortlisted for the Edgar Award for Best First Novel.

When Investigator Wayne Weston is found dead of an apparent suicide, his father calls on the services of Lincoln Perry and Joe Pritchard to prove that it was no suicide. In addition, Weston's father wants Perry and Pritchard to locate his missing granddaughter and daughter-in-law. As they begin to sort through the details of the case, Perry and Pritchard find far more than what they originally expected, including a millionaire real estate tycoon and the FBI.

When Ken Bruen read TONIGHT I SAID GOODBYE, his response was:

"I'm hugely envious of a twenty-one-year-old who arrives fully formed as a writer of poise, style, and damn it, elegance...and he's crafted a narrative that sizzles on the page. My consolation is that I've witnessed the emergence of a unique talent - still madly envious, though."

This is a series well worth starting at the beginning with. TONIGHT I SAID GOODBYE is a phenomenal introduction to a character I count among my favorites.

TONIGHT I SAID GOODBYE was published by St. Martin's Minotaur in hardcover (ISBN: 978-0312332457) in September of 2004 and in mass market paperback (ISBN: 978-0312932091) in November of 2005.

Monday Mystery Backlist - The Blessing Way

I decided to highlight THE BLESSING WAY today by Tony Hillerman. I have not yet read any of Hillerman's Joe Leaphorn novels, so I'll be starting all the way back at the beginning with this one, published in 1970. Hillerman has been a strong influence on many of today's crime fiction and western authors. The crime fiction community lost this great author late last year. But it is through first-time readers like me that the love of his work will continue to prosper and his legend will live on.

In THE BLESSING WAY Joe Leaphorn has to deal with a body found along the side of the road, believed to be dead from an alcohol overdose. Leaphorn has his doubts, though, he sees too many signs of witchcraft to be convinced. THE BLESSING WAY blends the Navajo lore into the America culture, examining the world of Navajo witchcraft.

Have you already read THE BLESSING WAY? Feel free to leave your comments and enhance the Monday Mystery Backlist title this week.

A Sidewinder Publishing edition of THE BLESSING WAY (ISBN: 978-0914001133) was released in hardcover in 2007; Harper reissued the paperback (ISNB: 978-0061808357) in May of this year; and the audio book version, read by George Guidall is available from Recorded Books (ISBN: 978-1-4281-4952-6).

Monday Mystery Backlist - 47 Rules of Highly Effective Bank Robbers

My good blogging friend Corey from The Drowning Machine is taking over the Monday Mystery Backlist post today. I love when Corey helps me out with this post, but blasted, I always end up with a longer TBR list afterward! ;) Enjoy today's title:

47 RULES OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE BANK ROBBERS by Troy Cook is an offbeat tale about an unusual pair of bank robbers. Father and daughter bank robbers. They've been an effective team since Tara was a little girl, but Tara's ready to branch out on her own now, in business and in life. Unfortunately for her, and for anyone close by, Daddy is not at all ready to let her cut that umbilical cord. And even Tara would admit that Daddy is an undeniable sociopath. But Tara is smart, determined and - the most dangerous thing of all - she's fallen in love with the sheriff's son. Could the situation get any more explosive? This is a quirky crime story, with plenty of twists and chases and laughs.

Capital Crime Press (July 1, 2006)
ISBN = 978-0977627660

List price = $14.95 US

Monday Mystery Backlist - James Lee Burke

Tomorrow is the release date for James Lee Burke's RAIN GODS. This will be the 30th publication for Burke, the 28th novel (two books were collections of short stories). This is truly an amazing accomplishment, not so much because he's published 30 works but because the quality of those works has been consistently amazing. And that made today's backlist author choice a no-brainer, but the hard part was picking which title to highlight. RAIN GODS picks up Hackberry Holland, the character from Burke's 1971 novel, LAY DOWN MY SWORD AND SHIELD, so that might be a logical choice. I could also highlight his Pulitzer Prize nominated THE LOST GET BACK BOOGIE, which was rejected 111 times over the course of 9 years before it was published. And there are his two series: Dave Robicheaux and Billy Bob Holland. Finally, one of my favorite James Lee Burke books doesn't fit into any of those categories. WHITE DOVES AT MORNING is a historical novel. Oh choices, choices, choices! And no matter which I choose, I will not do it justice. If you haven't picked up a James Lee Burke novel before, you simply must. If there were ever a writer that I felt everyone should read at some point in their lives, this is the one. But, let me quit stalling and pick a book already.

You may be surprised that my choice to highlight is CIMARRON ROSE, the first book in the Billy Bob Holland series. This is probably the lesser known of the two series that Burke has written (with RAIN GODS I guess we need to say three series now), but this is the book that started me on my love of all things James Lee Burke. For some reason, it called out to me from the bookshelf at the library so I checked it out. I read it in record time and had to find out about the man who wrote this amazing novel. And from there I discovered Dave Robicheaux and the rest is history!

CIMARRON ROSE, as I mentioned, introduces Billy Bob Holland, a former Texas Ranger turned attorney, who finds himself defending his illegitimate son against charges of rape and murder. Meanwhile Billy Bob fights his own internal demons that stem from his family's history of violence and the fact that he accidentally shot and killed his best friend L.Q. Navarro. I'm a reader who often has trouble suspending belief, and yet I found the ghost of L.Q. Navarro to be one of my favorite characters in the book. The ghost is most definitely an element of Billy Bob that he needs to come to terms with, and that internal conflict manifested in L.Q.'s character is incredibly powerful. I wouldn't expect anything less from James Lee Burke.

CIMARRON ROSE was first published in hardcover (ISBN: 978-0786862580) in 1997 by Hyperion Books. It was published in mass market paperback by Hyperion (ISBN: 978-0786889303) in 1998.

And to Jim Burke, congratulations, sir, on book #30. Thank you for the gift of every single one of them!