The Red Room - Ridley Pearson

My review of The Red Room by Ridley Pearson first appeared in Shelf Awareness for Readers. I am posting it here today with their permission. You can also check out my interview with Ridley Pearson from Shelf Awareness where we talk further about The Red Room and other aspects of his writing career.

First line: "Two men await a delivery van."

The Red Room, Ridley Pearson’s third installment in the Risk Agent thriller series, embodies the consummate elements of both a thriller and a mystery. Contractors John Knox and Grace Chu travel to Turkey to broker the sale of a priceless art sculpture. The real goal, however, is to be in the same room with the buyer—an Iranian academic—for five minutes. Neither knows why they need to be in the room and this leads them to investigate on their own. The more the duo learns the less they understand and the greater liabilities they become. In a high-intensity race for their lives, John Knox and Grace Chu can trust only each other and hope they make the right choices.

Pearson tightly constructed the action and pacing of this novel to elicit an urgent energy. He offers the readers only the insight Knox and Chu uncover, so the disorientation and mystery surrounding the events are as real for the audience as the characters.

In addition, Pearson offers up a stunning backdrop with Istanbul. The setting is elegantly woven into the plot to accentuate and propel the story’s themes and issues, not simply paint a pretty picture.

As exceptional as these elements are in the novel, they pale in comparison to the book’s true treasure, the dynamic characters. From the protagonists down to the lowliest of supporting characters, each exhibits dimension and fulfills a vital role in the book.

The Red Room may be full of questions and ambiguities, but one thing’s for certain; it’s an outstanding reading experience.

The Red Room is available in hardcover (ISBN:9780399163746) from Putnam and as an unabridged audio (ISBN: 9781480533509) narrated by Todd Haberkorn from Brilliance. 

The Pokey Little Bouchercon Post

Yes, I'm still blogging about Bouchercon. Yes, it is a little sad on my part. In my defense I had three other planned posts for last week, and the last two posts I have are totally worth waiting for. Why you ask? Well let's take a look at Friday in St. Louis!

The morning started bright and early with a very nice breakfast co-sponsored by the Midwest chapter of Mystery Writers of America and CriminalElement.com. The breakfast was held for librarians, bloggers, booksellers and other related conference attendees. Guests of Honor Charlaine Harris and Colin Cotterill spoke, while additional Minotaur authors hosted individual tables.

Brad Parks and Sabrina Ogden

Charlaine Harris

Colin Cotterill deep in thought about Charlaine's speech?

Ali is tweeting? Or Facebooking maybe?

Once we had full tummies, we could move on to the programming of the day. For me that started with a panel called "Shake and Finger Pop." It's a bit of a misleading title as the panel dealt with fight sports in crime fiction. The panelists included Jamie Freveletti, Tom Schreck, Christa Faust, and Frank Bill all moderated by Eric Beetner. It's fascinating to hear the way each of the panelists views fighting in relation to plotting and their characters. Tom Schreck and Frank Bill have more of a boxing background and Jamie Freveletti is a martial artist with a black belt in aikido. Christa Faust's character is a former porn star, and Christa pointed out parallels between the porn industry and professional fighting.

Jamie Freveletti and Christa Faust

Jamie Freveletti

Christa Faust and Tom Schreck

Tom Shreck and Frank Bill

The next session I attended was Ridley Pearson's interview by Jeff Abbott. I know from my own experiences interviewing Ridley, that he's a wonderful interviewee. Add to that Jeff Abbott is a fabulous interviewer and this session was outstanding! Jeff rocked the house with his self-deprecating sense of humor, his knowledge of his subject and his appreciation for Bouchercon as a fan conference. Sometimes participants forget that. This isn't a writer's conference. The fans come to know the writers more than the writing. The unfortunate part of this interview was its time slot. The charity bowling tournament was going on at the same time. I'm sad more people couldn't have enjoyed this wonderful interview. And sadly, I arrived a few minutes late, so I didn't get to record it. That was my biggest regret of the conference. But here are some pictures from the fun:

Jeff made Ridley really think on this question.

This picture says so much about the entire interview.

 

Ooooh, I think Ridley is telling a secret!

I just love this shot! Doesn't Ridley look like an excited little kid? So much fun!

Following Ridley's interview I opted to see Dark Angel: Morally Challenged Heroes. This was an extra special panel for me because two people I've gotten to know and really like through social media were teamed up here. Chris Holm was the moderator and Bill Cameron was one of the panelists. And I can attest that they are super great people and it was wonderful to get to meet them in person. Also on this panel were Blake Crouch, Theresa Schwegel, Michael Wiley and Leighton Gage. After a little unforeseen informercial, the panel was off and running and quite entertaining. The interesting outcome was that none of the authors really viewed their heroes as morally challenged.

Chris Holm and Bill Cameron

Theresa Schwegel and Michael Wiley

The programming element of the day ended with one of my highlights for the conference: Gregg Hurwitz interviewed Robert Crais. I'm not going to say a lot about this interview because I have it recorded for you to see yourself. If you didn't get to attend, here's your chance to see it. If you did attend and just want to relive it...here you go. What I will say is that Gregg Hurwitz did an exceptional job. He understood the idea of the fan convention and created an environment where the fans could know the man behind the writing. It was fun, humorous and enlightening. Gregg has given me much to aspire to in the realm of interviewing. And that's enough from me. Here's the video:










Finally, I'll wrap with our gift to Robert Crais. The Craisies did a little brainstorming and with the initiative of Naomi Johnson (The Drowning Machine) we got jersey's that said "The Craisies" across the front. Then we each picked an RC character and had the name put on the back. He was gifted the #1 shirt:

More of Bouchercon 2011

The convention officially kicked off on Thursday with the beginning of the programming, more people coming in and an opening night ceremony. But I forgot to mention about my big surprise that arrived on Wednesday evening. Well, I can't claim it as totally mine, but when Pop Culture Nerd knocked on my hotel room door, I was OVERJOYED. The Craisie brigade would be out in full form!

The first session I attended was the Guest of Honor Panel, which included Colin Cotterill, Charlaine Harris, Val McDermid and Robert Crais, moderated by Oline Cogdill. Before the panel started I got to hang out with Daniel Palmer (DELIRIOUS) and we chatted about a number of things, but he also shared some fun info about his new book, coming out in February - and I'm reading right now. It's a page-turner y'all, so you'll want to check it out next year. Anyway, back to business.

Don't ask what was going on with my hair this weekend; it's hopeless!

The "Passengers" panel was lively and thoroughly entertaining. Robert Crais was asked out for a drink by a woman in the audience, Colin Cotterill wanted to know if anyone in the audience was NOT there to see RC. Val McDermid referred to writers as vampires (a la Charlaine Harris) - Val explained that they suck the life out of those around them to put in their stories. The only panelist to answer Oline's question about "sharing something the audience wouldn't know about you" was Val McDermid who said she knits scarves.

Following that panel, I attended the "Timebomb" panel. This time Daniel Palmer was ON the panel instead of watching it. He was joined by the most wonderful Meg Gardiner, JT Ellison, Adrian Magson and debut novelist Simon Toyne. This panel revolved around a lot of the age old thriller questions: "difference between a mystery and a thriller" - that sort of thing. The panelists were wonderful fun; Daniel and Meg bemoaned the horrors of the end of the school day for writers. My friend and librarian, Wendy Bartlett, commented to me later how impressed with Daniel Palmer she was. This is always good news to me because Wendy's the one who brings authors to the Cuyahoga Library System!

The final panel I attended on Thursday was "I Got the Right to Sing the Blues." This was also a very animated panel, but I don't think you could expect less with Mark Billingham, Jonathan Hayes and Roger Ellory all on the podium together. Debut novelist Rochelle Staab also contributed quite a bit to the energy of this panel. The final panelist was Bryan Gilmer and the panel was moderated by Wallace Stroby. Mark Billingham expressed his undying devotion to Phil Collins - that's a joke for anyone who doesn't know how much Billingham dislikes Phil Collins' solo work. And Rochelle Staab talked about meeting John Lennon.

Mark Billingham and Jonathan Hayes

Mark Billingham, Jonathan Hayes, Rochelle Staab

The official convention day ended on Thursday after the Opening Night Festivities, emceed by Ridley Pearson. Ridley is such a perfect emcee. I can't imagine ever being tired of listening to his wonderful stories. Each of the guests of honor was recognized, the Macavity, Barry and Crimespree Awards were all announced and authors from Harper and William Morrow signed books.

Ridley Pearson takes the prize for Outstanding Emcee

Robert Crais recognized as American Guest of Honor

Here you can see the Craisie Club gathered. We made Erin Mitchell an honorary member! This picture makes me so happy. What a joy to be with all of these wonderful friends. From the right: Michael, Carolyn, Naomi, Elyse, Lauren and Erin. I wish I had months to spend with them instead of just days.

Some of crime fiction's most powerful women congregating. Better watch out!

 

Val McDermid, Laura Lippman and Karin Slaughter

Following the ceremonies, people found their ways to dinner, publishing parties and of course the hotel bar. A very successful first day! And since I can never do anything in condensed style, there will be more Bouchercon fun, photos and VIDEO to come!

Bouchercon 2011

This will be the first of a few posts on Bouchercon 2011. I have much to share: memories, pictures, video, etc. So let's get started, shall we?

I was fortunate to be able to leave for St. Louis early and spend several days doing touristy stuff. I drove, and the timing of the trip was such that on the way home, there was much more color in the leaves of the trees than a week earlier when I was driving down.

Between Sunday and Wednesday, I was able to visit the St. Louis Zoo, which was wonderful;

the Arch,

including a ride to the observation deck on top;

and simply wander around the city a bit.

I had hoped to get a pedicure, but St. Louis proper is sorely in need of a good spa. One salon didn't have a nail tech all week and the nail specific salon wasn't open at all. Well, such is life.

The weather was gorgeous Sunday through Tuesday, so I soaked up many sun rays while at the zoo. But on Wednesday when we unloaded the book bags and supplies from the trucks, it poured rain. I was a little wet by the time all the book bags were out of the trucks. But I got myself cleaned up in plenty of time to attend the volunteer dinner with the guests of honor.

The dinner was held at Pappy's Smokehouse (warning, there's auto music at this link - you can turn it off), which was appropriate for St. Louis because it was voted the "Best BBQ in St. Louis" by the Riverfront Times, "one of the 101 best places to chow down in American" by the Travel Channel, and one of St. Louis Magazines "Top 40 Restaurants."

BBQ is their thing, and everyone thoroughly enjoyed the fixin's. There were a few vegetarians and they had some alternatives to eat. Everyone seemed to leave happy and full.

Ayo Onatade and Val McDermid

RC with Murder by the Book's McKenna and John

Ridley Pearson and Colin Cotterill

Note the full roll of paper towels that were left on each table! Dinner was followed up by the requisite time in the hotel bar. This year's bar was difficult for me because it was so enclosed and there were just far too many people in at the same time, so I stayed outside the bar - more in the lobby area - for the most part and talked to folks there. Wednesday night meant most people were making their way in and there were a lot of overdue greetings to enjoy. The conference was off to a fantastic start!

I will of course have much more to share with you this week on my Bouchercon memories. Be sure to check back for Bouchercon recaps, I have two interviews from the conference recorded to share with you and some Banned Books Week fun as well. Hope your week is a great one!

UNDERCURRENTS - Ridley Pearson

FIRST LINE: "As he stepped off the jetway, Lou Boldt spotted the child held in the woman's arms, a keen sense of expectation in the young blue eyes as they briefly caught his own."

Lou Boldt is a sergeant with the Seattle Police Department and saddled with the Cross Killer cases, a series of murders that have eluded Boldt for months. One murder, however, appears as though the killer finally made a mistake. Or did he? Then a possible witness is uncovered. As Boldt moves in on the killer he finds all the pieces don't seem to fit together the way they should. With the help of Daphne Matthews, a police psychologist in the department, fellow officers Bobbie Gaynes and John LaMoia, Boldt has to figure out how the pieces DO fit to solve his puzzle.

UNDERCURRENTS is the first book in Pearson's Lou Boldt series. It introduces a complex character who searches to answers for his cases as well as his own life. The richness of Boldt's character comes across on page one when Pearson contrasts the image of a smiling, laughing young child Boldt notices at the airport with the image of the case Boldt has to confront:

"He heard the child giggle and found himself tempted to turn around. He loved the musical sound of a child laughing. Was there anything more beautiful? Anything more missing from his life?

But right now the child didn't matter.

The killings had started again; that was all that mattered."

The plot of UNDERCURRENTS is equally complex. There are layers upon layers that are naturally created by the different elements of people populating the storyline. Running parallel to the murders Boldt must solve is the disarray of his personal life. Pearson does an outstanding job of illustrating the reality of police life. The reality that these men and woman are not superheros from our comic books but rather real people who have to go home at the end of the day and deal with their own real-life situations.

Being already familiar with Pearson's Walt Fleming series made the sense of place very pronounced in this novel. The Walt Fleming series take places in a more rural setting. Pearson brings to life the urban-ness of Seattle in this novel, using it to advance his plot and develop his characters. He also takes advantage of some of the unique aspects of Seattle as a setting. These unique aspects allow Pearson to take advantage of creative forensics ideas before forensics was en vogue.

UNDERCURRENTS was first published in 1988, but over 20 years later it is still standing the test of time. Granted, there are details that help determine the date of the novel: cassette tapes, no cell phones, etc, but the strengths of the novel are in the universal elements allowing the reader to be carried away to Pearson's Seattle.

UNDERCURRENTS was published in 1988 in hardcover (ISBN: 0-312-01841-X) by St. Martin's Press. UNDERCURRENTS is available in mass market paperback (ISBN: 9780312929589) from St. Martin's Press as well.

Ridley Pearson at Murder & Mayhem in Muskego

I must apologize profusely. I've fallen behind on the Crime Writers Caught Recommending Crime - for the holidays. Don't fear, I have many more recommendations for you. I just have to get caught up. Today however, I want to share the Ridley Pearson interview with you. Originally I was going to just edit snippets of it together and give you the mini-version, but he's so incredible that I couldn't decide what to leave out. Therefore, you'll find the interview below in 6 pieces, each piece in the vicinity of 8 to 10 minutes. This was truly one of the most amazing experiences of my life. I hope you enjoy it.

I'll have more video posts coming in the near future - still have my panel from Bouchercon to share, plus I'll give you a rundown of the whole Murder & Mayhem in Muskego event. Wednesday I'll have the next holiday recommendation for you. So much fun stuff. But for now...Ridley Pearson:

Part 1:




Part 2:



Part 3:



Part 4:



Part 5:



Finale:

Some Friday Chit Chat with Ridley Pearson

This summer I had the opportunity to read and review Ridley Pearson's newest Walt Fleming novel, KILLER SUMMER. But this man is busy, busy. He also has a young adult novel coming out next month and a young reader novel in January...whew! He just doesn't stop. But, in addition to contributing to the six-word memoir project, he was kind enough to pause briefly and chit chat with me about a few things, including his research, teaching TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, upcoming projects and his love of music. Today I get to share that chit chat with you. So let's get to it y'all!

Q: Your new novel KILLER SUMMER centers around a rather high class wine auction where wine believed to have been owned by John Adams is one of the gems available on the auction block. Are you a wine aficionado? How did this particular event wind up as the center of your novel?

Ridley: I conduct a good amount of research to help create as believable a world of fiction as I can. I came across a Wall Street Journal article about some counterfeit bottles "from" Thomas Jefferson's collection. Combined with the real-world wine auction in Sun Valley, it seemed like a good marriage.

Q: And you’re well known for your in-depth research when it comes to your novels. What did you find yourself having to do to prepare for KILLER SUMMER? What would you say has been your most fascinating research endeavor?

Ridley: I have many, many stories about research I've done for the books. The most rewarding was a sub-plot I used in a novel (Undercurrents) that was later read by law enforcement and has gone on to be used to solve three real life homicides. Research is the meat of good crime fiction; it puts the reader in the shotgun seat.

Q: KILLER SUMMER has been out for awhile now and is being well received. In October you have your young adult novel, PETER AND THE SWORD OF MERCY, coming out. This is a busy year for you. Do you know what’s beyond October? What can your fans anticipate next?

Ridley: It's a BIG year for me. Killer Summer is out in bookstores now. Peter and the Sword of Mercy (co-written with Dave Barry) publishes in October. Then, early in January, 2010, the book I'm most excited about: a younger reader novel, Steel Trapp: The Program will publish. It's a book about a 14 year old with extraordinary powers of memory. And the much anticipated Kingdom Keepers 3: Disney In Shadow publishes in April. But my focus right now is on the newest Walt Fleming novel. I've just finished it and am heading into rewrite. I think it's the most powerful yet.

Q: PETER AND THE SWORD OF MERCY is part of the Starcatchers series that you collaborate with Dave Berry on. Can you talk a little about the differences in writing when you’re collaborating as opposed to writing solo? What do you prefer about each style? What happens if you disagree on and element of the book?

Ridley: Dave Barry and I have a great time writing our collaborations. The process involves outlining the books together and then one of us writing a first draft of a chapter, decided by what characters are in that particular chapter, and then editing the other's work without questions. It's a wild process, but it works. Every chapter is rewritten 5 to 8 times.

Q: You also spent some time teaching English in Shanghai. Can you tell us a little about your experience there? I understand that Harper Lee found out you were teaching TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD and was flattered to hear it. That’s exciting!

Ridley: That was/is the thrill of my career--to have Harper Lee discover I'd taught her wonderful novel to university students in China. I reread To Kill A Mockingbird at least every two years. Only Crime and Punishment gets that same treatment from me. I think To Kill A Mockingbird is the perfect novel; to me nothing else comes close. I'm collecting emails from my students and Ms. Lee will apparently get a look at them soon. What a thrill.

Q: To end, I’d like to circle around to the beginning of your career, you began your career as singer/songwriter and today you play bass in the Rock Bottom Remainders. Are you still writing music? And how did writing music morph into writing novels?

Ridley: I don't write much music right now. But I still love music. The Rockbottom Remainders just played two nights ago! Music and writing share what adult and YA novels share: story. Story. Story. Story. It's what I do. What I love.

Well, I for one am glad that story is what Ridley does and loves! I'm also excited that the next Walt Fleming is well on its way to publication. But I sure don't know how he juggles all those different projects!

Many thanks to Ridley Pearson for taking time to chat with me. You can find out more about Ridley at his website. You can also follow him on Twitter (@RidleyTheWriter). And for those of you planning in advance, Ridley will be attending the 2011 Bouchercon in St. Louis as the Toastmaster.

KILLER SUMMER - Ridley Pearson

Sun Valley, Idaho is home to an annual wine auction. This year's wine auction includes three bottles purported to have been a gift from Thomas Jefferson to John Adams. These historic treasures bring in wine connoisseurs from around the world as well as thieves. Sheriff Walt Fleming has to make sure the auction goes off without a hitch, which may be tougher than he thought when a murder occurs before the auction even begins. When Walt receives a report that his nephew may be abducting a minor he's not sure which way to turn.

KILLER SUMMER, the third book in Ridley Pearson's Sun Valley series, added killer fun to my reading list. I knew almost from the get-go that KILLER SUMMER was going to be a quality read. The book starts out with a death that Walt and his nephew observe but are powerless to stop:

"When the convulsions began, the two stopped the gurney and tended to him. But death was upon him, in its unforgiving way. A series of violent, guttural gasps were followed by an oppressive silence, and he had passed.

Kevin went quiet, looking on in horror, longing for a PAUSE button that didn't exist.

The paramedics, not giving up, finally got the gurney into the back of the ambulance.

Kevin sank wordlessly by his uncle's side.

'God...' Kevin finally choked out.

'Let's hope so,' Walt said."

This is simply one of the finest, most powerful death scenes I have read in quite some time. In crime fiction we sometimes forget that death is a horrific event. Every life - and therefore every death - matters. This scene makes the reader slow down and not only remember that fact, but experience that fact.

Those who read my reviews regularly know that I will often rave about the "flawed" protagonist. I prefer that my protagonists are not unbelievable superheros. Walt fits that profile well. He doesn't always say the right thing; he doesn't always make the right decisions. But he's authentic and empathetic. A great combination when you want your reader to connect with your character. And how can you help but love a sheriff in charge of a high class wine auction who chuckles to himself as he listens to the wine connoisseurs because "to him, wine came in a box, and eventually went down the toilet." He's the common man dealing with life's not so common events.

KILLER SUMMER has an outstanding supporting cast of characters as well. Fiona, Walt's part time crime scene photographer is a character I took to from the very beginning. She's smart and witty and yet still makes mistakes. Summer was a character I thought I wasn't going to like, but instead as she developed throughout the course of the novel, she became one of my favorites. What perfect use of development; allow the reader to get to know a character, to break through the outer mask and see the whole person.

The relationships between the characters is the icing on the cake, or maybe for this book they're the fizz in the champagne. Just as the characters are unique, their relationships are too. And the relationships actually work to fuel the action of the plot. A book can have excellent pieces parts - characters, settings, plot - but if those pieces aren't working well together, the book falls apart. Pearson knows how to make his pieces function together; regardless of how dysfunctional the individuals are, the whole hums like a well-oiled machine. I can't wait to see what trouble this cast can wiggle its way into next.

KILLER SUMMER (ISBN: 978-0-399-15572-7) was released by G.P. Putnam's Sons in June this year.

It's That Time...Six-Word Memoirs!

Wow! How did it get to be Wednesday again already - and July 1st, too, holy moly. Anyone know where the first half of 2009 went? Well, this is Week 6 of the 6-Word Memoirs for those who are keeping track, and I have another good line-up for you today on the memoirs, so let's get to it.

Next up on our interview recaps is James Fredericks. James is a Fortune 500 executive turned legal thriller writer. He released his debut last year with BROTHER which happens to be about, well, yes, brothers - twin brothers to be exact. James enjoys cooking, traveling, playing the piano and spending time with his family. So his memoir is not really much of a surprise:

His family; his friends; his legacy.

Also from our interview recaps is Jane Cleland, the author of the Josie Prescott Antiques Mystery Series. This past April saw the release of the fourth book, KILLER KEEPSAKES, in that series about an antiques dealer in New Hampshire. Jane's first book in the series, CONSIGNED TO DEATH, was nominated in the best first novel category for the Agatha, David and Macavity awards. Jane's first short story, "Killing Time," which appeared in the Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine was an Agatha award finalist this year and is also nominated for the Anthony award. When she's not busy writing about Josie, Jane chairs the Wolfe Pack's literary awards and serves on the board of the New York chapter of Mystery Writers of America. I think I need to find out what her secret is because she says her memoir is:

Striving for clarity changed my life.

So who's new this week, you ask? Well it just so happens that two authors who had releases yesterday agreed to play in our memoir sandbox this week.

Ridley Pearson started his career as a singer/songwriter in an acoustic rock band. And despite the fact that he is now a New York Times Best Selling Novelist, he hasn't given up that music career. He is now a founding member of the Rock Bottom Remainders, an all-authors 60s rock and roll band - do you love that or what?

Ridley was the first American to be awarded the Raymond Chandler Fulbright at Oxford University, a "fellowship that recognizes published writers with emerging reputations." Ridley took advantage of this fellowship to research and outline the second and third books in his Lou Boldt series about a Seattle Homicide Police Sergeant. In addition to the Lou Boldt series, he also writes the Walt Fleming series about an Idaho sheriff and a slew of stand alone novels for adult readers. But that's not enough for Ridley Pearson! He also has some children's novels. He collaborated with Dave Barry on a series that explains the beginnings of Peter Pan, and Ridley also has a series called Kingdom Keepers, which is a mystery series set in Disney World.

One of the coolest facts about Ridley Pearson - in my humble opinion, of course: his daughters are named Paige and Storey. I just love that.

So this week, Ridley Pearson released the third book in the Walt Fleming series, KILLER SUMMER. And for Boldt fans, you can catch Lou Boldt in Ridley's short story, "Boldt's Broken Angel", that is part of the KILLER 2: Stories You Just Can't Put Down anthology. For Ridley's young reader fans, PETER AND THE SWORD OF MERCY will be on bookshelves in October. Whew. I guess if you're creating at this rate, your memoir would have to be:

Long days writing. All hours dreaming.

And last but certainly not least, an author who I just recently discovered but who never fails to make me laugh, Toni McGee Causey. And while she may be new to me, Toni is definitely not new to the publishing industry. She started out as a journalist then moved on to editing the BATON ROUGE MAGAZINE and selling to national publications. Since then she has worked successfully at screenwriting and now writing fiction. And hang on to your hats, Toni did her graduate work in Creative Writing and Philosophy. Now there's a dangerous combination for you!

It should come as no surprise that Toni has strong southern influences. She is a native of Louisiana and lives now in Baton Rouge. She also did her graduate work at Louisiana State University.

Yesterday, Toni's second book in her Bobby Faye series, GIRLS JUST WANNA HAVE GUNS, was released in paperback by St. Martin's Press. This is part of a back-to-back-to-back release this summer. At the beginning of June, the first book in the series, CHARMED AND DANGEROUS, was released in paperback and coming in August will be the third part of this action-packed trilogy, WHEN A MAN LOVES A WEAPON. You just have to know you're going to laugh with titles like that. And you have to know you're going to laugh when the author of those titles has a memoir like this:

Writing? Paid to be crazy? Cool!

If you'd like to check out the beginning of Cajun, eccentric Bobby Faye, you can read the short story, A Failure to Communicate, that Toni published in KILLER YEAR: STORIES TO DIE FOR.

Many, many, many thanks to James, Jane, Ridley and Toni for their willingness to participate in "You Have the Right to Six Words: Six-Word Memoirs from Crime Fiction's Greatest Writers." I had fun with these four excellent crime fiction writers and their memoirs. I hope you did, too. And I hope you'll meet me back here - same time, same place - next week for four more willing participants!

Killer Weekend - Ridley Pearson

I strive to read more and more authors that I have never read before, and what makes me deliriously happy is that even though I do do that, there are still so many more out there to find and explore. I don't foresee myself ever running out of new material to check out. Ridley Pearson is a new one for me, although I know he's been around awhile. I started with Killer Weekend.

Walt Fleming is the county sheriff when Liz Shaler returns to Sun Valley to announce her candidacy for president at a world famous communications conference. But someone else has other plans for Liz Shaler. The "someone else" has hired a hit man to take her out of the running as soon as she puts herself in it. Walt has to scurry to save her since the hired security and the Secret Service think Walt's instincts on the matter are unfounded and over protective - they also don't want to be "outdone" by the local sheriff. As far as they are concerned, he's out of his jurisdiction.

I listened to this book on audio, narrated by Christopher Lane. I've listened to other work done by Lane and he does a fair job.

The book overall was an entertaining story to listen to on the way to and from work, but there was little to make it be "great." The plot seemed to contain some extra "stuff" that didn't need to be included. The whole affair business with Walt's soon-to-be ex-wife and his deputy seemed to go nowhere and do nothing to advance the plot, for example. Another example would be the death of Walt's brother. It seems to be brought up every now and then but it goes nowhere and really does nothing, except maybe explain the behavior of Walt's nephew which also adds to the plethora of extra "stuff."

I also had a little difficulty with all the cruelty to animals in this book. I'm not naive enough to think it doesn't happen...I'm very aware of all the cruelty in life to animals. I just prefer not to read about it in my fiction works as well. The death of the dog on the plane could have easily been avoided, the insinuation that the wild cougar would be put down could have been left out, and the shooting of the cat could have definitely been some other event entirely. These two items would not have changed the plot one iota.

The characters overall were o.k. Nothing really made any of them stand out to me as especially GREAT characters. Walt was likable and a good protagonist. Danny Cutter was actually an interesting character, but he didn't end up with much development. My favorite character was probably Fiona. She was a strong-willed woman who did things with the best of intentions, even though her intentions didn't always turn out great. I loved that she was as diverse as leading a fishing group one day and taking photos at a crime scene the next. The biggest disappointment for me was Liz Shaler, especially after the discussion between her and her assistant. She didn't seem to believe in what she was doing; she was just playing the politics game. But at other points, Pearson seemed to be portraying her as above all that. I didn't like that inconsistency, especially in a female character who was supposed to be running for president.

Overall it was a decent book, and I'll probably check into other Pearson material at a later time. Maybe some of this other books have more WOW to them.