Gerald So's Posts - CrimeSpace2024-03-19T07:25:00ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/60985496?profile=RESIZE_48X48&width=48&height=48&crop=1%3A1http://crimespace.ning.com/profiles/blog/feed?user=gerald986&xn_auth=noTHE 5-2: CRIME POETRY WEEKLY Seeks Christmas and New Year's Poetrytag:crimespace.ning.com,2011-11-03:537324:BlogPost:3211762011-11-03T19:21:13.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
<p>I'm seeking poems to run on <i>The 5-2</i> the weeks of December 26, 2011 and January 2, 2012. The poems can involve Christmas, any holidays around the same time, New Year's Eve, or New Year's Day. The submission deadline is <strong>December 1, 2011</strong>, and the <a href="http://poemsoncrime.blogspot.com/p/submission-guidelines_04.html">usual guidelines</a> apply.</p>
<p>I'm seeking poems to run on <i>The 5-2</i> the weeks of December 26, 2011 and January 2, 2012. The poems can involve Christmas, any holidays around the same time, New Year's Eve, or New Year's Day. The submission deadline is <strong>December 1, 2011</strong>, and the <a href="http://poemsoncrime.blogspot.com/p/submission-guidelines_04.html">usual guidelines</a> apply.</p>New Weekly Crime Poetry Sitetag:crimespace.ning.com,2011-08-13:537324:BlogPost:3093682011-08-13T13:00:00.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
Two of my co-editors on <i>The Lineup: Poems on Crime</i> #4 decided to step down as their own projects and day jobs have gotten busier. In turn, I've decided to move on to a poem-of-the-week website format I'm calling <i>The 5-2.</i><br/>
<br/>
The guidelines are at <a href="http://poemsoncrime.blogspot.com/p/submission-guidelines_04.html">http://poemsoncrime.blogspot.com/p/submission-guidelines_04.html</a>
Two of my co-editors on <i>The Lineup: Poems on Crime</i> #4 decided to step down as their own projects and day jobs have gotten busier. In turn, I've decided to move on to a poem-of-the-week website format I'm calling <i>The 5-2.</i><br/>
<br/>
The guidelines are at <a href="http://poemsoncrime.blogspot.com/p/submission-guidelines_04.html">http://poemsoncrime.blogspot.com/p/submission-guidelines_04.html</a>THE LINEUP: POEMS ON CRIME #3 now on saletag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-04-02:537324:BlogPost:2315102010-04-02T23:30:00.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
Celebrate April, National Poetry Month, by picking up a copy of THE LINEUP. Our latest issue features chilling verse by Patricia Abbott, Joe Barnes, Henry Chang, Reed Farrel Coleman, Sarah Cortez, Michael A. Flanagan, Anne Frasier, James W. Hall, David Hernandez, Amy MacLennan, Carrie McGath, James M. McGowan, Kristine Ong Muslim, David S. Pointer, James Sallis, Jackie Sheeler, Wallace Stroby, Larry D. Thomas, and Francine Witte.<br></br><br></br>THE LINEUP in stock at Murder By the Book (Houston, TX),…
Celebrate April, National Poetry Month, by picking up a copy of THE LINEUP. Our latest issue features chilling verse by Patricia Abbott, Joe Barnes, Henry Chang, Reed Farrel Coleman, Sarah Cortez, Michael A. Flanagan, Anne Frasier, James W. Hall, David Hernandez, Amy MacLennan, Carrie McGath, James M. McGowan, Kristine Ong Muslim, David S. Pointer, James Sallis, Jackie Sheeler, Wallace Stroby, Larry D. Thomas, and Francine Witte.<br/><br/>THE LINEUP in stock at Murder By the Book (Houston, TX), Once Upon a Crime (Minneapolis, MN), and The Mysterious Bookshop (New York, NY). You can also order it online from <a href="http://stores.lulu.com/geraldso">Poetic Justice Press at Lulu.com</a>.<br/>R.I.P. Robert B. Parkertag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-01-20:537324:BlogPost:2249402010-01-20T19:56:42.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
I first heard the news from Ali Karim on Twitter Tuesday morning. Then Sarah Weinman posted the news as relayed by Parker's U.K. publisher Quercus that he had died "just sitting at his desk." Having said many times he would keep writing novels until a) he died, or b) no one bought them, I think this is just how he'd want to go.<br />
<br />
Parker's Spenser was the first P.I. series I read, over the summer of 1993. By summer's end I'd caught up to his current book. Six years later, I was known on many…
I first heard the news from Ali Karim on Twitter Tuesday morning. Then Sarah Weinman posted the news as relayed by Parker's U.K. publisher Quercus that he had died "just sitting at his desk." Having said many times he would keep writing novels until a) he died, or b) no one bought them, I think this is just how he'd want to go.<br />
<br />
Parker's Spenser was the first P.I. series I read, over the summer of 1993. By summer's end I'd caught up to his current book. Six years later, I was known on many Parker discussion lists as one of his toughest critics, but this was only because his books had such an influence on me I hated to see him turn in less than his best. Looking back, I can think of no better writer with whom to fall in love with mystery, poetry, depth, the resonance of language, than Robert B. Parker.<br />
<br />
If I hadn't begun to moderate my own Parker discussion list in 1999, I could very well have gone on reading him for sheer pleasure, forgiving him the foibles every writer has. Indeed, it's to Parker's credit that he kept me from seeing his flaws so long, that even as I hear he has passed, I don't believe it.THE LINEUP: POEMS ON CRIME #3tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-01-20:537324:BlogPost:2249342010-01-20T19:54:01.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
The third issue of <i>The Lineup</i> officially goes on sale April 1, 2010. Edited by me with Sarah Cortez, R. Narvaez, and Anthony Rainone, it will feature work by:<br />
<br />
Patricia Abbott<br />
Joe Barnes<br />
Henry Chang<br />
Reed Farrel Coleman<br />
Sarah Cortez<br />
Michael A. Flanagan<br />
Anne Frasier<br />
James W. Hall<br />
David Hernandez<br />
Amy MacLennan<br />
Carrie McGath<br />
James M. McGowan<br />
Kristine Ong Muslim<br />
David S. Pointer<br />
James Sallis<br />
Jackie Sheeler<br />
Wallace Stroby<br />
Larry D. Thomas<br />
Francine Witte<br />
<br />
Issue 3 will retail for $7.00 at…
The third issue of <i>The Lineup</i> officially goes on sale April 1, 2010. Edited by me with Sarah Cortez, R. Narvaez, and Anthony Rainone, it will feature work by:<br />
<br />
Patricia Abbott<br />
Joe Barnes<br />
Henry Chang<br />
Reed Farrel Coleman<br />
Sarah Cortez<br />
Michael A. Flanagan<br />
Anne Frasier<br />
James W. Hall<br />
David Hernandez<br />
Amy MacLennan<br />
Carrie McGath<br />
James M. McGowan<br />
Kristine Ong Muslim<br />
David S. Pointer<br />
James Sallis<br />
Jackie Sheeler<br />
Wallace Stroby<br />
Larry D. Thomas<br />
Francine Witte<br />
<br />
Issue 3 will retail for $7.00 at Lulu.com and fine independent bookstores, but <a href="http://poemsoncrime.blogspot.com/2010/01/pre-order-lineup-3.html" target="_blank">we are accepting pre-orders</a> through March 15, 2010.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile, Issue 2 was <a href="http://poemsoncrime.blogspot.com/2009/12/lineup-2-reviewed-in-mystery-scene.html" target="_blank">reviewed by Betty Webb</a> in the Holiday 2009 of MYSTERY SCENE MAGAZINE.THE LINEUP #2 Available Nowtag:crimespace.ning.com,2009-05-12:537324:BlogPost:1981552009-05-12T18:35:00.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_0uepedyqbsw/SfMIMP8UlVI/AAAAAAAAAHA/5XwFzo0_TKo/s1600-h/Lineup2Cover-Full.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5328611790640420178" name="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5328611790640420178" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_0uepedyqbsw/SfMIMP8UlVI/AAAAAAAAAHA/5XwFzo0_TKo/s320/Lineup2Cover-Full.jpg" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 242px;"></img></a><br />
Click on the image to enlarge.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-style:italic;">The Lineup: Poems on Crime</span> 2 is now available for $6.00 USD from <a href="http://stores.lulu.com/geraldso">Lulu.com</a>, and will be in stock soon at Once Upon a Crime in Minneapolis and Murder By the Book in Houston.<br />
<br />
You can hear poems from Issues 1 and 2…
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_0uepedyqbsw/SfMIMP8UlVI/AAAAAAAAAHA/5XwFzo0_TKo/s1600-h/Lineup2Cover-Full.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 242px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_0uepedyqbsw/SfMIMP8UlVI/AAAAAAAAAHA/5XwFzo0_TKo/s320/Lineup2Cover-Full.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5328611790640420178" name="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5328611790640420178"/></a><br />
Click on the image to enlarge.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-style:italic;">The Lineup: Poems on Crime</span> 2 is now available for $6.00 USD from <a href="http://stores.lulu.com/geraldso">Lulu.com</a>, and will be in stock soon at Once Upon a Crime in Minneapolis and Murder By the Book in Houston.<br />
<br />
You can hear poems from Issues 1 and 2 <a href="http://crimewav.com/?q=content/crimewav-36-lineup-poems-crime">this week on Seth Harwood's <span style="font-style:italic;">CrimeWAV</span></a>.<br />
<br />
For more information, visit <a href="http://poemsoncrime.blogspot.com"><span style="font-style:italic;">The Lineup</span>'s official blog</a>.PSYCH: A MIND IS A TERRIBLE THING TO READ by William Rabkintag:crimespace.ning.com,2009-02-04:537324:BlogPost:1800272009-02-04T23:12:13.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
I'd been curious about this novel since the news broke last January it would be written. I was most curious how author William Rabkin would handle Shawn-Vision, Spencer's ultra-perceptiveness shown on TV in extreme close-ups and highlighting. I'm happy to report it's delivered quite smoothly (e.g. Shawn looked at the truck driver and he saw. Saw the chafing on his face. Saw the redness in his eyes.") as is the interplay between Shawn and Gus, the heart of the show.<br />
<br />
What I'd heard of the plot…
I'd been curious about this novel since the news broke last January it would be written. I was most curious how author William Rabkin would handle Shawn-Vision, Spencer's ultra-perceptiveness shown on TV in extreme close-ups and highlighting. I'm happy to report it's delivered quite smoothly (e.g. Shawn looked at the truck driver and he saw. Saw the chafing on his face. Saw the redness in his eyes.") as is the interplay between Shawn and Gus, the heart of the show.<br />
<br />
What I'd heard of the plot doesn't do the novel justice. It's best described as a series of scrapes Shawn and Gus bumble into and escape by the skin of their teeth. The show's plots seem more cohesive, perhaps due to TV's time constraints, but as Psych isn't the most realistic concept to begin with, I read on, entertained enough. First-time novelist Rabkin breaks the one-viewpoint-per-scene rule at times, jumping from Gus's head to Shawn's to others, and I don't see this as mimicry of the show. If he gets a handle on it, I'll be back for more.THE SHANGHAI MOON by S.J. Rozantag:crimespace.ning.com,2009-02-04:537324:BlogPost:1800262009-02-04T23:08:30.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
Just back in New York having spent a month in California for a relative's wedding, Lydia Chin is put on the trail of a storied brooch by her P.I. friend, Joel Pilarsky. Their client is Alice Fairchild, a specialist in the recovery of Holocaust antiquities, who claims to work for heirs of the brooch's owner. When Pilarsky is murdered shortly after leaving a message for Lydia, she must pick up the trail with Bill Smith, four months estranged from Lydia after their last case (<b>Winter and…</b>
Just back in New York having spent a month in California for a relative's wedding, Lydia Chin is put on the trail of a storied brooch by her P.I. friend, Joel Pilarsky. Their client is Alice Fairchild, a specialist in the recovery of Holocaust antiquities, who claims to work for heirs of the brooch's owner. When Pilarsky is murdered shortly after leaving a message for Lydia, she must pick up the trail with Bill Smith, four months estranged from Lydia after their last case (<b>Winter and Night</b>).<br />
<br />
I don't know if Rozan intended her first book with Chin and Smith in seven years to be a "big" book. This is certainly their most complex and sprawling case. There are letters in translation from the viewpoint of the brooch's last known owner, diaries from another viewpont translated from Chinese, stories recounted from memory—yet Lydia, Bill, and friends are as present as ever, too.<br />
<br />
Part of me wanted to believe it had only been four months, but the rest knew that 9/11 intervened and for a time Rozan found herself unable to write about Lydia and Bill. This context makes <b>The Shanghai Moon</b> all the more remarkable and resonant.SHOT GIRL by Karen E. Olsontag:crimespace.ning.com,2009-02-04:537324:BlogPost:1800242009-02-04T23:05:17.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
New Haven police reporter Annie Seymour is at a strip club for a colleague's bachelorette party when gunshots are heard outside. Investigating, Annie finds the club manager, her ex-husband Ralph, dead. At first, the police suspect Annie and her paper pulls her off the police beat as a result. Compelled to look into her ex's affairs to clear her name, she uncovers a conspiracy involving illegal purchases of guns and drugs.<br />
<br />
<b>Shot Girl</b> is told in first person from Annie's viewpoint. While a…
New Haven police reporter Annie Seymour is at a strip club for a colleague's bachelorette party when gunshots are heard outside. Investigating, Annie finds the club manager, her ex-husband Ralph, dead. At first, the police suspect Annie and her paper pulls her off the police beat as a result. Compelled to look into her ex's affairs to clear her name, she uncovers a conspiracy involving illegal purchases of guns and drugs.<br />
<br />
<b>Shot Girl</b> is told in first person from Annie's viewpoint. While a typical first-person narrator may be guarded with other characters but reveal all to readers, Annie is guarded with both. Her own role in events is teased out by others and confessed only when she absolutely must. This makes for more twists than I expected. Olson sustains the novel's pace with Annie's persistent questions as she needs to know the whole story. To Olson's credit, Annie has the same questions readers do at the moment they do, and the nature of the story leads readers to assess events and characters many times over. Satisfying.I've Finally Seen: QUANTUM OF SOLACEtag:crimespace.ning.com,2008-12-02:537324:BlogPost:1699312008-12-02T13:01:36.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
The highest compliment I can pay <span style="font-weight:bold;">Quantum of Solace</span> is I believed the conceit that it picks up twenty minutes after <span style="font-weight:bold;">Casino Royale</span>. Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, and the other returning actors are on their game. The overarching mission to uncover the organization behind Mr. White drives the action at the same breathless pace. I wouldn't mind if all Craig's Bond movies kept this continuity.<br />
<br />
That said,…
The highest compliment I can pay <span style="font-weight:bold;">Quantum of Solace</span> is I believed the conceit that it picks up twenty minutes after <span style="font-weight:bold;">Casino Royale</span>. Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, and the other returning actors are on their game. The overarching mission to uncover the organization behind Mr. White drives the action at the same breathless pace. I wouldn't mind if all Craig's Bond movies kept this continuity.<br />
<br />
That said, <span style="font-weight:bold;">Quantum of Solace</span> doesn't make much of a mark on its own. Bond is so driven it's difficult not to see the new characters Camille and Agent Fields as plot devices. Mathieu Amalric as villain Dominic Greene unfortunately reminded me of a cross between Ioan Gruffudd and Paul Reubens. Director Marc Forster makes some odd stylistic choices (Intercutting Bond chasing down a traitor with a horse race? Intrusive location titles a la <span style="font-weight:bold;">Fringe</span>?), but these stick out because the rest of tone is maintained between the two movies.<br />
<br />
Quantum of Solace won't disappoint those who enjoyed Casino Royale, neither will it convert those who didn't.TRIGGER CITY by Sean Chercovertag:crimespace.ning.com,2008-09-25:537324:BlogPost:1611222008-09-25T20:30:00.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
Still feeling the physical and emotional effects of his brush with Chicago's Outfit in last year's BIG CITY, BAD BLOOD, reporter-turned-P.I. Ray Dudgeon reluctantly goes to work for retired Colonel Isaac Richmond. Richmond's estranged daughter Joan had been head of payroll for a midsize-department store chain when she was murdered by her co-worker Steven Zhang, who left a signed confession before killing himself. Though the facts of the case are clear, Col. Richmond wants Dudgeon to fill in the…
Still feeling the physical and emotional effects of his brush with Chicago's Outfit in last year's BIG CITY, BAD BLOOD, reporter-turned-P.I. Ray Dudgeon reluctantly goes to work for retired Colonel Isaac Richmond. Richmond's estranged daughter Joan had been head of payroll for a midsize-department store chain when she was murdered by her co-worker Steven Zhang, who left a signed confession before killing himself. Though the facts of the case are clear, Col. Richmond wants Dudgeon to fill in the picture of Joan's life. Ray knows better than to go off on a quixotic quest for truth, but with a shoulder needing surgery, he can't turn down the Colonel's hefty check.<br />
<br />
As you might expect, Dudgeon's investigation uncovers much higher stakes, but where other writers would get carried away, Chercover keeps enough focus on Joan and Ray. Many of today's fictional PIs read like rushed updates of the classic archetype. Dudgeon is not the usual macho ex-cop. He never engages in bravado. He reads instead like a friend who's in the same boat we all are.<br />
<br />
TRIGGER CITY goes on sale Tuesday, October 14, and Sean's book tour begins 7pm that night at one of my favorite bookstores, <a href="http://www.crimepays.com">Partners and Crime</a>. The next day, he'll sign at New Jersey's Clinton Book Shop.THE EVIL THAT MEN DO by Dave Whitetag:crimespace.ning.com,2008-08-20:537324:BlogPost:1568302008-08-20T19:39:40.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
Having lost his P.I. license in the aftermath of <span style="font-weight:bold;">When One Man Dies</span>, Jackson Donne is forced back into action when his brother-in-law's restaurant is bombed and his brother-in-law is kidnapped. Part of a multi-viewpoint, multi-generational adventure, Donne must figure out who is targeting his family before it's too late.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-weight:bold;">The Evil That Men Do</span> improves in every way on White's aforementioned debut novel. Though there are…
Having lost his P.I. license in the aftermath of <span style="font-weight:bold;">When One Man Dies</span>, Jackson Donne is forced back into action when his brother-in-law's restaurant is bombed and his brother-in-law is kidnapped. Part of a multi-viewpoint, multi-generational adventure, Donne must figure out who is targeting his family before it's too late.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-weight:bold;">The Evil That Men Do</span> improves in every way on White's aforementioned debut novel. Though there are multiple viewpoints, the chapters flow more readily, building better suspense. The plot relies less on information from the <a href="http://www.thrillingdetective.com/eyes/donne.html">Donne stories</a>, though reading them would add to one's understanding of Donne. The main draw for me was Donne's strained relationship with his family. One would expect anyone to rise to the occasion and protect family, but Donne also has to reconnect with feelings for his family along the way.BURN NOTICE: THE FIX by Tod Goldbergtag:crimespace.ning.com,2008-08-16:537324:BlogPost:1560392008-08-16T20:23:35.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
As a fan of USA Network's <b>Burn Notice</b>, I've wanted to read this tie-in since last November, when I heard Tod Goldberg was tapped to write it. The Fix has burned spy Michael Westen reluctantly helping an aging socialite who's been swindled out of a sizable chunk of her fortune. He also encounters a femme fatale from his past who accuses him of implicating her in a crime. This last has to do with the falsified dossier (from the TV series) that got Michael burned in the first…
As a fan of USA Network's <b>Burn Notice</b>, I've wanted to read this tie-in since last November, when I heard Tod Goldberg was tapped to write it. The Fix has burned spy Michael Westen reluctantly helping an aging socialite who's been swindled out of a sizable chunk of her fortune. He also encounters a femme fatale from his past who accuses him of implicating her in a crime. This last has to do with the falsified dossier (from the TV series) that got Michael burned in the first place.<br />
<br />
Goldberg has a good handle on Michael's wry, seen-it-all tone as well as his relationships with Fiona, Sam, his mother, and brother. I envisioned a two-hour episode of <b>Burn Notice</b> as I read. The book does indeed give fans their fix. My only quibble is with Michael's narration. Of everything about the show, the voiceover has the least legs. On screen it can be broken up by action. The page has no such recourse. First-person is necessary to smoothly deliver Michael's spycraft know-how, but the book can read like one long voiceover with meandering sentences early on that I didn't expect from Michael.<br />
<br />
I still recommend <b>The Fix</b> to fans of the show and of spy fiction in general, and I look forward to where Goldberg takes the characters.CHASING DARKNESS by Robert Craistag:crimespace.ning.com,2008-08-11:537324:BlogPost:1553362008-08-11T22:47:19.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
A routine fire evacuation turns up the body of Lionel Byrd, who, three years earlier, was cleared of suspicion in the murder of a prostitute thanks to evidence found by Elvis Cole. Byrd is now found in possession of an album containing grotesque photos of seven murders, including the one Elvis investigated. While everyone else easily accepts Byrd was the killer, Elvis is driven to find out for himself.<br />
<br />
Since 1999's L.A. REQUIEM, Crais has used multiple viewpoints to tell his stories,…
A routine fire evacuation turns up the body of Lionel Byrd, who, three years earlier, was cleared of suspicion in the murder of a prostitute thanks to evidence found by Elvis Cole. Byrd is now found in possession of an album containing grotesque photos of seven murders, including the one Elvis investigated. While everyone else easily accepts Byrd was the killer, Elvis is driven to find out for himself.<br />
<br />
Since 1999's L.A. REQUIEM, Crais has used multiple viewpoints to tell his stories, contrasting the first-person perspective of his earlier Cole novels. With the exception of the prologue and one section from the recurring Carol Starkey, CHASING DARKNESS is told by Cole. This emphasizes how personal the case is to Cole and preserves the doubt he feels throughout the novel.<br />
<br />
I wouldn't call this a return to form. All of Crais's books are well researched and compellingly written, but it's nice to know he can still tell a fine story mostly in Elvis's voice.THE LINEUP #1 On Saletag:crimespace.ning.com,2008-07-11:537324:BlogPost:1508862008-07-11T10:00:00.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
Patrick Shawn Bagley, Richie Narvaez, Anthony Rainone, and I have finished editing <i>The Lineup: Poems on Crime</i>, a 6" x 9", 44-page chapbook featuring work from 14 poets including Bagley, Ken Bruen, Crimespace's own Daniel Hatadi, and me.<br />
<br />
<i>The Rap Sheet</i>'s J. Kingston Pierce recently invited me to wax a bit about the project's history, and about the place of crime in poetry.<br />
<br />
Copies of <i>The Lineup</i> are available from…
Patrick Shawn Bagley, Richie Narvaez, Anthony Rainone, and I have finished editing <i>The Lineup: Poems on Crime</i>, a 6" x 9", 44-page chapbook featuring work from 14 poets including Bagley, Ken Bruen, Crimespace's own Daniel Hatadi, and me.<br />
<br />
<i>The Rap Sheet</i>'s J. Kingston Pierce recently invited me to wax a bit about the project's history, and about the place of crime in poetry.<br />
<br />
Copies of <i>The Lineup</i> are available from <a href="http://www.lulu.com/content/2132580">Lulu.com</a>.<br />
<br />
<p style="text-align:left"><img src="http://www.geocities.com/g_so/lineup3a-s.jpg"/></p>GO-GO GIRLS OF THE APOCALYPSE by Victor Gischlertag:crimespace.ning.com,2008-07-07:537324:BlogPost:1501992008-07-07T14:52:43.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
Out tomorrow is Victor Gischler's new novel of what happens after the end of the world. In the near future, divorced insurance salesman Mortimer Tate decides to stock up on guns and goods and wait out Armageddon in a mountaintop cave. Nine years later, he feels the urge to come out of seclusion with the quixotic goal of finding his ex-wife Anne.<br />
<br />
I'm a longtime fan of Victor Gischler's work, but even if I weren't, I wouldn't be able to resist the title. To describe the book in much detail is to…
Out tomorrow is Victor Gischler's new novel of what happens after the end of the world. In the near future, divorced insurance salesman Mortimer Tate decides to stock up on guns and goods and wait out Armageddon in a mountaintop cave. Nine years later, he feels the urge to come out of seclusion with the quixotic goal of finding his ex-wife Anne.<br />
<br />
I'm a longtime fan of Victor Gischler's work, but even if I weren't, I wouldn't be able to resist the title. To describe the book in much detail is to spoil the surprise readers should feel along with Mortimer at what the world is like after nuclear devastation. The catalyst is no one stroke, but the confluence of current events taken to plausible conclusions. This grounding allows Gischler to sketch out his new world without bogging the story down in exposition.<br />
<br />
The result is a brisk, funny, poignant read as Mortimer and friends rediscover their purpose.MR. MONK IN OUTER SPACE by Lee Goldbergtag:crimespace.ning.com,2008-06-21:537324:BlogPost:1472752008-06-21T19:42:10.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
Recently out in paperback, Goldberg's fifth Monk tie-in novel has the obsessive-compulsive detective investigating the murder of Conrad Stipe, creator of the '70s science fiction series <i>Beyond Earth</i>, committed by someone dressed as Mr. Snork, security chief aboard the starship <i>Discovery</i>.<br />
<br />
This backdrop allows Goldberg ample opportunity to riff and nod to science fiction fandom and show business in the same raucously enjoyable way <i>Galaxy Quest</i> does (also starring Tony…
Recently out in paperback, Goldberg's fifth Monk tie-in novel has the obsessive-compulsive detective investigating the murder of Conrad Stipe, creator of the '70s science fiction series <i>Beyond Earth</i>, committed by someone dressed as Mr. Snork, security chief aboard the starship <i>Discovery</i>.<br />
<br />
This backdrop allows Goldberg ample opportunity to riff and nod to science fiction fandom and show business in the same raucously enjoyable way <i>Galaxy Quest</i> does (also starring Tony Shalhoub). Helping Monk and Natalie on the case is Adrian's agoraphobic brother Ambrose, expert on <i>Beyond Earth</i> lore.<br />
<br />
What may be the purest fun Monk novel may also be the most harrowing, thanks to the looming presence of a hitman. It's to Goldberg's credit the two extremes work together for another great read.DEVIL MAY CARE by Sebastian Faulkstag:crimespace.ning.com,2008-06-15:537324:BlogPost:1462202008-06-15T10:18:49.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
In 1967, James Bond is called back from a medically mandated holiday to investigate Dr. Julius Gorner, a known drug manufacturer of concern to the British government. Along the way, Bond meets beautiful banker Scarlett Papava, who asks his help to rescue her sister Poppy, last seen in Gorner's company.<br />
<br />
Tabbed to celebrate the centennial of Ian Fleming's birth, <b>Devil May Care</b> received more than a year of hype starting with the search for its author. Perhaps lost in the hype was the fact…
In 1967, James Bond is called back from a medically mandated holiday to investigate Dr. Julius Gorner, a known drug manufacturer of concern to the British government. Along the way, Bond meets beautiful banker Scarlett Papava, who asks his help to rescue her sister Poppy, last seen in Gorner's company.<br />
<br />
Tabbed to celebrate the centennial of Ian Fleming's birth, <b>Devil May Care</b> received more than a year of hype starting with the search for its author. Perhaps lost in the hype was the fact that several others have written Bond novels after Fleming, including Kingsley Amis, John Gardner, and Raymond Benson. The only real anticipation lay in that Benson stopped writing Bond in 2002.<br />
<br />
Careful to mimic Fleming's writing process and style, Faulks surpasses none of the above authors' best work. The period setting is interesting, as is the look at an even more world-weary Bond not at the top of his game. In the end, though, like Indiana Jones, James Bond's formula is so well known, it's difficult to strike a balance between innovation and tradition—especially for Faulks, who signed to write only one novel.<br />
<br />
If you're a Bond fan, you'll read <b>Devil May Care</b>, and if you hate it, don't worry. There's no shortage of authors to write more.RESOLUTION by Robert B. Parkertag:crimespace.ning.com,2008-06-15:537324:BlogPost:1462182008-06-15T10:15:57.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
Graham Powell found himself at a Robert B. Parker signing and did me the great kindness of sending me a signed copy of <b>Resolution</b>, the sequel to his Western <b>Appaloosa</b>.<br />
<br />
Former soldier and lawman Everett Hitch stops in a town called Resolution, where hotel and saloon owner Amos Wolfson hires him as a lookout. While Hitch's unflinching dealing with criminals and "softhearted" treatment of the citizenry leave him well liked by the people, he's a bit too free-thinking for Wolfson's…
Graham Powell found himself at a Robert B. Parker signing and did me the great kindness of sending me a signed copy of <b>Resolution</b>, the sequel to his Western <b>Appaloosa</b>.<br />
<br />
Former soldier and lawman Everett Hitch stops in a town called Resolution, where hotel and saloon owner Amos Wolfson hires him as a lookout. While Hitch's unflinching dealing with criminals and "softhearted" treatment of the citizenry leave him well liked by the people, he's a bit too free-thinking for Wolfson's taste.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile, Virgil Cole visits his friend Hitch. We learn that Cole's woman Allie ran off with another man, and Cole found and killed the man and turned in his badge. So while Hitch helps Wolfson deal with a rival capitalist, Virgil tries to find purpose after a breach of the rules that had always guided him.<br />
<br />
Parker explores the same themes in many of his books, but here the frontier setting gives them some imaginative cover. My only complaint is that each chapter ends too neatly, not particularly driving the story anywhere or compelling me to read on. This is the result of Parker writing ten pages a day without a plan. If the author has only a vague notion where the story is going and eschews revision as Parker does, he can't build toward anything very effectively.MONEY SHOT by Christa Fausttag:crimespace.ning.com,2008-04-07:537324:BlogPost:1356802008-04-07T16:18:03.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
Others have already praised Christa Faust's Hard Case Crime book for authenticity. I can only add that after reading the first few pages of events leading ex-porn star protagonist Angel Dare to be locked in a car trunk, driven to the middle of nowhere, and left for dead, I was completely in her corner and rooted for her throughout this hard-driving revenge tale reminiscent of <b>Kill Bill</b>.<br />
<br />
<b>Money Shot</b>, like all the best books in my opinion, is a fast and fulfilling read.
Others have already praised Christa Faust's Hard Case Crime book for authenticity. I can only add that after reading the first few pages of events leading ex-porn star protagonist Angel Dare to be locked in a car trunk, driven to the middle of nowhere, and left for dead, I was completely in her corner and rooted for her throughout this hard-driving revenge tale reminiscent of <b>Kill Bill</b>.<br />
<br />
<b>Money Shot</b>, like all the best books in my opinion, is a fast and fulfilling read.Because I hate deadline pressure...tag:crimespace.ning.com,2008-01-10:537324:BlogPost:1132252008-01-10T13:44:01.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
I've reserved my room at the Sheraton Baltimore City Center for Bouchercon 2008: Charmed to Death a full nine months in advance. See you there.<br/>
I've reserved my room at the Sheraton Baltimore City Center for Bouchercon 2008: Charmed to Death a full nine months in advance. See you there.<br/>FIRST DROP by Zoe Sharptag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-12-13:537324:BlogPost:1039432007-12-13T13:11:41.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
British soldier-turned-bodyguard Charlie Fox is assigned to protect<br />
Trey Pelzner, the bratty teenage son of an American computer<br />
programmer. From the first chapter, Charlie and Trey are dodging<br />
bullets. When she tries to report the attack, Charlie finds the entire<br />
protection detail has been compromised. Both Trey's father and<br />
Charlie's boss/lover have disappeared, and Charlie stands accused of<br />
kidnapping Trey.<br></br><br></br>Among many highlights, <span style="font-weight: bold;">First…</span>
British soldier-turned-bodyguard Charlie Fox is assigned to protect<br />
Trey Pelzner, the bratty teenage son of an American computer<br />
programmer. From the first chapter, Charlie and Trey are dodging<br />
bullets. When she tries to report the attack, Charlie finds the entire<br />
protection detail has been compromised. Both Trey's father and<br />
Charlie's boss/lover have disappeared, and Charlie stands accused of<br />
kidnapping Trey.<br/><br/>Among many highlights, <span style="font-weight: bold;">First Drop</span>
offers an authentic female, very British first-person perspective on<br />
U.S. culture. Charlie could go toe-to-toe with Jack Reacher, but she's<br />
also believably vulnerable.<br/><br/>Some of the dialogue was off
(several American characters saying things like, "So that means we're<br />
in the clear, yeah?", "You weren't expecting that, yeah?")<br/><br/>and some was flat:<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic;">"Take it easy, honey."<br/>"I am not your 'honey.'"</span><br/><br/>But overall a very compelling read, and a series I'll be watching.GONE, BABY, GONE The Movietag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-11-08:537324:BlogPost:909592007-11-08T11:28:21.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
I'm not the biggest Dennis Lehane fan. Though I found his<br />
Kenzie-Gennaro books compelling, I also thought he tried to do too<br />
much. By the end of the series, I'm not sure the books were P.I.<br />
anymore, and I'm not sure that was a good thing. That said, Lehane's<br />
trademark put-'em-through-hell plot is tailor-made for a movie, and Ben<br />
Affleck nails Boston's local color so squarely the accents and<br />
attitudes grated on this New Yorker's ears. Wicked.<br></br><br></br>The
performances are all good. Casey Affleck…
I'm not the biggest Dennis Lehane fan. Though I found his<br />
Kenzie-Gennaro books compelling, I also thought he tried to do too<br />
much. By the end of the series, I'm not sure the books were P.I.<br />
anymore, and I'm not sure that was a good thing. That said, Lehane's<br />
trademark put-'em-through-hell plot is tailor-made for a movie, and Ben<br />
Affleck nails Boston's local color so squarely the accents and<br />
attitudes grated on this New Yorker's ears. Wicked.<br/><br/>The
performances are all good. Casey Affleck especially nails Patrick<br />
Kenzie's hewn righteousness. I did think there were a few lulls. For<br />
those who've seen the movie, I would have ended it with Angie's line,<br />
"There's nothing to say."<br/><br/>All in all, a keeper.SLIDE by Ken Bruen and Jason Starrtag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-11-04:537324:BlogPost:894202007-11-04T11:50:35.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
Picking up from last year's <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bust</span>,<br />
Max Fisher wakes up in a motel in Robertson, Alabama, no idea how he<br />
got there. Using his friendship with a young stoner desk clerk, Max<br />
returns to New York as a high-rolling crack dealer. Meanwhile, femme<br />
fatale Angela Petrakos finds herself mixed up with an aspiring Irish<br />
serial killer called Slide.<br></br><br></br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Slide</span> is less plot-driven than…
Picking up from last year's <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bust</span>,<br />
Max Fisher wakes up in a motel in Robertson, Alabama, no idea how he<br />
got there. Using his friendship with a young stoner desk clerk, Max<br />
returns to New York as a high-rolling crack dealer. Meanwhile, femme<br />
fatale Angela Petrakos finds herself mixed up with an aspiring Irish<br />
serial killer called Slide.<br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold;">Slide</span> is less plot-driven than <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bust</span>.
The first half of the novel mostly follows Max building his drug<br />
empire, and you just wonder when things will start to go sour. It's<br />
nonetheless fun to see where the characters are now. My favorite<br />
sections of the novel are from Max's seriously warped and thus<br />
hilarious view of himself and others.<br/><br/>During a DetecToday chat in September, Hard Case Crime editor <a href="http://chatterrific.blogspot.com/2007/09/richard-aleas-charles-ardai.html">Charles Ardai</a> mentioned Bruen and Starr were working on a third book in the series, <span style="font-weight: bold;">To The Max</span>.BUST by Ken Bruen and Jason Starrtag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-11-04:537324:BlogPost:894182007-11-04T11:48:46.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Bust</span> begins with cheapskate<br />
tech millionaire Max Fisher plotting the murder of his overbearing wife<br />
Dierdre so he can live happily ever after with his busty Greek-Irish<br />
executive assistant Angela. Max contacts a peculiar hitman calling<br />
himself Popeye, who is actually Angela's lover, Dillion, with whom she<br />
plans to rob Max blind.<br></br><br></br>Got all that? To reveal any more would
spoil the book's madcap fun. The characters are all self-interested to<br />
some…
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Bust</span> begins with cheapskate<br />
tech millionaire Max Fisher plotting the murder of his overbearing wife<br />
Dierdre so he can live happily ever after with his busty Greek-Irish<br />
executive assistant Angela. Max contacts a peculiar hitman calling<br />
himself Popeye, who is actually Angela's lover, Dillion, with whom she<br />
plans to rob Max blind.<br/><br/>Got all that? To reveal any more would
spoil the book's madcap fun. The characters are all self-interested to<br />
some extent, but engaging enough that readers want to see what happens<br />
to them. For the players left standing in the end, the feeling carries<br />
over to the recently released sequel, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Slide</span>.<br/><br/>I can see Bruen and Starr collaborating, trying to top each other and tie everything together, doing a fine job.SONGS OF INNOCENCE by Richard Aleastag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-08-31:537324:BlogPost:684972007-08-31T13:24:03.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
Deeply affected by the events of his last case (detailed in 2004's <span style="font-weight: bold;">Little Girl Lost</span>), John Blake has eschewed the detective business and become an administrative assistant at Columbia. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Songs of Innocence</span><br />
opens with the news that one of Blake's classmates in a writing<br />
workshop, Dorrie Burke, has committed suicide. Dorrie's mother doesn't<br />
believe the reports and tries to hire Blake to find out who killed<br />
Dorrie. He…
Deeply affected by the events of his last case (detailed in 2004's <span style="font-weight: bold;">Little Girl Lost</span>), John Blake has eschewed the detective business and become an administrative assistant at Columbia. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Songs of Innocence</span><br />
opens with the news that one of Blake's classmates in a writing<br />
workshop, Dorrie Burke, has committed suicide. Dorrie's mother doesn't<br />
believe the reports and tries to hire Blake to find out who killed<br />
Dorrie. He refuses.<br/><br/>Blake has already learned a great deal about
Dorrie as part of a cooperative writing assignment. He knows she made<br />
her living as a prostitute and contemplated suicide from time to time.<br />
They had promised each other, in fact, that whenever suicidal thoughts<br />
came to mind they'd call each other, talk it out. Because Dorrie hadn't<br />
called John, he begins to look into who killed her on his own.<br/><br/>A
common thread in Aleas's work is that everything has consequences.<br />
Blake is not the seen-it-all hero who dismisses death and moves on.<br />
Concern for Dorrie draws him in, and as he digs deeper, it becomes<br />
impossible to walk away unscathed. Blake is truly not the man in the<br />
end that he was in the beginning, and Aleas's crisp prose paces his<br />
transformation perfectly.<br/><br/>On sale since July, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Songs of Innocence</span> is <a href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DetecToday">DetecToday</a>'s featured novel for September. DetecToday members will chat with the author on Thursday, September 20, 7:00-8:00 PM Eastern.PATRIOT ACTS by Greg Ruckatag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-08-30:537324:BlogPost:680812007-08-30T02:42:40.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
On sale August 28 is Rucka's first book in six years about<br />
deep-thinking bodyguard Atticus Kodiak. In trademark fashion, Rucka<br />
lands fans in the middle of the action, picking up fifteen minutes<br />
after Atticus and his assassin lover Alena have dispatched their enemy,<br />
Oxford.<br></br><br></br>Atticus intends to leave Alena at a safe house in
upstate New York, but driving away, he is ambushed. Narrowly escaping,<br />
he returns to the safe house to find several guards killed, including<br />
his longtime friend…
On sale August 28 is Rucka's first book in six years about<br />
deep-thinking bodyguard Atticus Kodiak. In trademark fashion, Rucka<br />
lands fans in the middle of the action, picking up fifteen minutes<br />
after Atticus and his assassin lover Alena have dispatched their enemy,<br />
Oxford.<br/><br/>Atticus intends to leave Alena at a safe house in
upstate New York, but driving away, he is ambushed. Narrowly escaping,<br />
he returns to the safe house to find several guards killed, including<br />
his longtime friend Natalie Trent.<br/><br/>So begins Atticus and Alena's
quest to avenge their friends and find out who wants them dead. An<br />
impressive mix of military, espionage, and political thriller with<br />
white-knuckle pace and surprises through the last page.NIGHT WORK by Steve Hamiltontag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-08-29:537324:BlogPost:678862007-08-29T13:44:59.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
Juvenile probation officer Joe Trumbull has spent the past two years<br />
mourning his fiancee Laurel, murdered the night of his bachelor party&mdash;a<br />
case that remains open. When the first woman he's dated in two years<br />
turns up dead, memories come flooding back. When the details of her<br />
death match those of Laurel's, Joe begins to wonder if there might be a<br />
connection, improbable as it seems. When other women with whom Joe's<br />
had the briefest contact are killed in the same fashion,…
Juvenile probation officer Joe Trumbull has spent the past two years<br />
mourning his fiancee Laurel, murdered the night of his bachelor party&mdash;a<br />
case that remains open. When the first woman he's dated in two years<br />
turns up dead, memories come flooding back. When the details of her<br />
death match those of Laurel's, Joe begins to wonder if there might be a<br />
connection, improbable as it seems. When other women with whom Joe's<br />
had the briefest contact are killed in the same fashion, official<br />
suspicion turns on him.<br/><br/>A clear break from Hamilton's Alex McKnight reluctant P.I. series, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Night Work</span>
is tightly plotted and more procedural, featuring the younger,<br />
action-oriented Trumbull. Hamilton's sense of place is sharp as ever. His sense of suspense is more subtle here to good effect.<br/><br/>Sure to build a new audience for Hamilton as well as please his existing fans. On sale September 18.THE CLEANER by Brett Battlestag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-07-04:537324:BlogPost:524012007-07-04T01:13:44.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
On sale June 26, this debut novel of new world espionage follows<br />
professional "cleaner" Jonathan Quinn, hired by secret organization<br />
"The Office" to dispose of a body after a fire.<br></br><br></br>When Quinn
arrives on scene, evidence indicates murder, apparently a calling card<br />
left for The Office. Suddenly not only members of The Office, but Quinn<br />
himself become targets for assassination. Forced to go to ground with<br />
his apprentice in tow, Quinn begins to piece together evidence,<br />
following it from Los…
On sale June 26, this debut novel of new world espionage follows<br />
professional "cleaner" Jonathan Quinn, hired by secret organization<br />
"The Office" to dispose of a body after a fire.<br/><br/>When Quinn
arrives on scene, evidence indicates murder, apparently a calling card<br />
left for The Office. Suddenly not only members of The Office, but Quinn<br />
himself become targets for assassination. Forced to go to ground with<br />
his apprentice in tow, Quinn begins to piece together evidence,<br />
following it from Los Angeles, to Vietnam, to Berlin—all well evoked by<br />
Battles.<br/><br/>Rich as the location details are, the pace never
dallies, raising the stakes to global proportions. In short, everything<br />
a thriller fan could want.THE MARK by Jason Pintertag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-06-12:537324:BlogPost:478462007-06-12T13:24:43.000ZGerald Sohttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/gerald986
After a fight with his girlfriend Mya, 24-year-old <span style="font-style: italic;">New York Gazette</span><br />
reporter Henry Parker is in no mood to interrupt a sobbing voicemail<br />
from her, when in fact Mya was calling for help after being attacked.<br />
Guilt over his inaction drives Henry to intercede when the ex-con he's<br />
just interviewed is threatened by a man with a gun. In the ensuing<br />
struggle, the gun goes off, killing the man.<br></br><br></br>The next day, Henry
picks up the paper to learn the man was…
After a fight with his girlfriend Mya, 24-year-old <span style="font-style: italic;">New York Gazette</span><br />
reporter Henry Parker is in no mood to interrupt a sobbing voicemail<br />
from her, when in fact Mya was calling for help after being attacked.<br />
Guilt over his inaction drives Henry to intercede when the ex-con he's<br />
just interviewed is threatened by a man with a gun. In the ensuing<br />
struggle, the gun goes off, killing the man.<br/><br/>The next day, Henry
picks up the paper to learn the man was a cop. The ex-con and his wife<br />
have lied to reporters, framing Henry as a cop killer. So begins<br />
Henry's desperate quest to evade capture, uncover the truth, and clear<br />
his name. <br/><br/>Pinter's crisp prose and tight plotting pace his
debut novel of an everyman thrown into extraordinary circumstances.<br />
Reminiscent of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Six Days of the Condor</span>.