Thanks, and where is Leslie Glass? Linda Barnes? But for Jonanthan Kellerman, I wish I could tweak his books a bit

[James K. Bashkin]

Thanks to all who have stopped by my review site. I've mixed in a few other things with the crime lately, and will continue to do so, but I could review crime for years without picking up another book, so there is lots more to write.

I don't see any mention of Leslie Glass in the recent discussions (women writers, etc.). I happen to like her books quite a lot and think they are terrific police procedurals. They have a lot of suspense coupled with great character development, both within the books and from book to book. Am I nuts? Any other takers/fans of April Wu?

I also have to say that I've only seen Steel Guitar mentioned (once), and no other work by Linda Barnes referred to anywhere. I find Carlotta C. to be entertaining, with a an excellent cast of supporting characters. The books are not completely consistent in quality, but they are always a good read.

With Jonathan Kellerman, I find a real dilemma: I like his characters (the Dr. and the Detective) and want to read about them while they solve crimes and dodge bullets. I care about them. But, the bad guys often seem so over the top that I almost expect a crowd of jump-suit wearing men to stop by from a James Bond movie to act as their bodyguards. Can't I have a nice serial killer who is a sociopath and needs to be brought to justice, without making him a comic book villain because of the magnitude of his megalomania? Am I asking for too much? I mean, I know he sells billions of copies, but I feel like playing Borges and re-publishing them under the name K. Jellerman, with nothing changed except the bad guys.

[Amanda Bergstrom]

Hi James, I know what you mean about J Kellerman. I anticipate his novels, get into them and then remember why I hesitated to pick them up about half way through. Even though one always has to suspend disbelief to read most crime fiction, I'm not fond of the melodrama created by super-bad villains.