“British” – The story takes place in the United Kingdom of Great Britain with British law enforcement officers (LEOs). It can be written by writers that live inside or outside of the UK. “Police Procedural” – It is a sub-genre of crime fiction that emphasizes the investigative procedure of police officers, police detectives, or law enforcement agencies as the protagonists, as contrasted with other genres that focus on non-police investigators … Continue reading
The first book in Paul Doiron‘s excellent mystery series featuring Maine Game Warden Mike Bowditch was used as a class text in a sophomore English class at Dexter Regional High School in Dexter, Maine. Then the teacher and school librarian invited Mr. Doiron to speak to the students and answer questions about the book and writing in general. I say, “Three Cheers” to the teachers who chose the book and … Continue reading
A steadfast group of mystery book fans in our book club read all 17 of the existing Inspector Gamache books. This is not the only indication of the popularity of Louise Penny and her famous book series set in the fictional town of Three Pines, Quebec. Last year’s book, The Madness of Crowds, was at the top of the NY Times best selling hardcover fiction list for 5 weeks straight. … Continue reading
To my knowledge, Baltimore has the only other full-bodied sculpture of Edgar Allan Poe – the other being in Boston. In a September 2022 trip to Baltimore, I was able to see this sculpture and some other Poe sites. The sculpture is located at Gordon Plaza at University of Baltimore (1415 Maryland Ave.). The statue was commissioned in 1911 by the Edgar Allan Poe Memorial Association of Baltimore and was … Continue reading
Nevada Barr is know for her well-done, 19-book mystery series featuring Anna Pigeon, a park ranger working in various U.S. National Parks. These are serious books that are a blend of cozy and police procedural, although some characters are a bit quirky. I was recently attracted to Barr’s standalone book, What Rose Forgot, after reading the blurb on Goodreads: In New York Times bestselling author Nevada Barr’s gripping standalone, Rose … Continue reading
Gerry Boyle, author of a dozen mystery books, is the guest speaker at an open meeting on Thursday evening, January 28, at 6:30 pm at the Manchester Public Library (MA!). Boyle will speak briefly about his own background as a journalist and how those experiences shaped his mystery novels. His chief character is Jack McMorrow, a fictional reporter who has settled in central Maine after several years in New York … Continue reading
There are not too many mystery books where the author is writing for adults but the central character is a 13 year old boy. But The Last Child by John Hart departs from the norm in other ways as well for it is more than a mystery, it has an underlying theme. Moreover the theme is not the dangers of nuclear terrorism or corporate conspiracies (thrillers) or that crime doesn’t … Continue reading
LET'S PLAY CLUE: Was it MBC Leader Dick Goutal, in the garden, using the poisonous plant, Black Henbane?
