Ed Gorman's Blog, page 105

32 Years Ago Today This Wonderful Woman Married Me

Western Noir: VENDETTA by Ed Gorman now available in e book only $2.99

Goodreads:
Best known for his novels of mystery and suspense, Ed Gorman is also a practiced Spur Award winning writer of westerns, in both novel and short story form. "Simply one of the best western writers of our time," said the ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS. "Gorman turns the western genre on its ear much like the western writing of Elmore Leonard," wrote BOOKGASM. "Ed Gorman's western stories are anything but ordinary. They often take place in lonely, tragic, mythical landscapes," noted GOODREADS. "Western noir...and Gorman's certainly the best at it," declared SOMEBODY DIES.



VENDETTA by Ed Gorman from  Gravetapping

Ed Gorman wrote no fewer than 10 western novels for Berkley between 1999 and 2006.  The Berkley titles are among Mr Gorman’s best western novels, and, like all of his westerns, each is as much a mystery as a western.  I recently read his novelVendetta, which was originally published by Berkley in 2002 and recently released as an ebook by Rough Edges Press.
Vendetta is an off kilter revenge novel; off kilter because it moves in unusual and unexpected ways (i. e. it isn’t necessarily a gun down and it is character rather than action driven).  Joan Grieves’ father, Noah, is killed in a Dryden, Colorado bank by a man named Tom Rattigan.  Noah Grieves was a wash out; he failed at ranching and mining, and when Rattigan offered him a job he took it.  Unfortunately the paycheck came with a frame for embezzlement, and when Noah is released from prison he wants his pound of flesh.Noah’s death is the beginning, but the story is more about Joan Grieves—her journey for revenge—her surrogate parent Father Pete Madsen (who is the closest thing to a protagonist the story has), Tom Rattigan, Dryden’s police chief Walter Petty and Walter’s wife Caroline.  In the end, the story is more about betrayal than revenge and it is difficult to separate the good from the bad.
Vendetta is a beautifully complicated novel hiding in the skin of simplicity.  The surface story—a father and then daughter seeking revenge—is simple, but the details, the unravelling of a town’s secrets and the exposure of the characters’ strengths and, more often, weaknesses is complicated and insightful.  None of the characters are wholly bad, and none are wholly good.  As an example one of the “bad” characters has a daughter with a port-wine stain birth mark on her face, and the love and sympathy he displays for his child is remarkable.The fun of the story is the revelation of who actually is the antagonist; basically the most miserable deceitful bastard in town (and it is something of a surprise when he is revealed).  It is a race to the worst, but the characters’ motives are never dark and murky and are always explained and believable.  This isn’t to say it is a dark story, but instead it is a story about human weakness, and more importantly redemption.  
There is also an interesting piece of vintage slang in the novel.  A madam refers to an abortionist as a “female physician”—“She run up against a female physician who didn’t know what the hell she was doin’ is what’s wrong with her.”  I researched the term, and discovered it was widely used in the 19th Century to describe female abortionists with no formal training.

UPON MY SOUL by Robert J. Randisi Pro-File, Review

Ed here: I can chart Bob's career by how
certain books marked his progress as a
writer--how he moved to the next level.

The Ham Reporter
Alone With The Dead
TheEnd of Brooklyn
Upon My Soul
Pro-File: Bob Randisi


1. Tell us about your current novel/collection.     My new book is UPON MY SOUL, the first in my Hit Man with a Soul Trilogy.  The title comes from a Townes Van Zandt song. It's about a hit man who waked up one  morning and realizes he suddenly has a soul. He is then forced to deal with  what he has done over the years, while others are trying to either kill him  or get him to kill again.
2. Can you give a sense of what you're working on now?   I'm working on something I hope will be new for me, a book called MCKENNA'S HOUSE.  It's about a investigator who, while involved in a case of whether or not a deadman was faithful to his wife, finds and takes in a homeless woman and her smallson.
3. What is the greatest pleasure of a writing career?   Not having to punch a time clock.
4. What is the greatest DISpleasure?     Having to deal with editor and publishers who can't understand what you're trying to do. Thought that might be changing these days.5. If you have one piece of advice for the publishing world, what is it?      Slow down, don't be in such a hurry to get of rid of REAL books.

6. Are there two or three forgotten mystery writers you'd like to seein print again?   I'd like to see some the old P.I. guys print--Thomas B. Dewey, Henry Kane andFrank Kane. In PRINT! Not ebooks.
7. Tell us about selling your first novel. Most writers never forgetthat moment.   I met my first editor wile tending bar at MWA cocktail parties every month. Webecame friends, and bought my first novel, THE DISAPPEARANCE OF PENNY. There wasstop-and-go involved, but it finally saw print in 1980. It's now available on the Prologue Books website.
------------------ UPON MY SOUL a review by James Reasoner


Upon My Soul - Robert J. Randisi




As many excellent hitman novels as there have been over the years—Lawrence Block's Keller series and Max Allan Collins' Quarry series come to mind—you wouldn't think there would be much left to do with the sub-genre. But you'd be wrong, as Robert J. Randisi's new novel UPON MY SOUL proves quite handily.

Sangster, the protagonist of this novel, was an efficient, highly skilled killer for hire until the morning he woke up and realized he had a soul. This discovery led him to retire from the business, and he's spent the last several years leading a quiet, peaceful life in Louisiana.
But people at that deadly level of the underworld usually aren't allowed to walk away, as readers of Peter Rabe's Daniel Port novels and Ennis Willie's Sand series (not to mention the Butcher men's adventure novels) know very well. Sangster's past catches up to him in bloody fashion, and he's forced to choose between preserving his new-found soul by honoring his vow not to kill again or avenging several brutal murders for which he feels some responsibility. It's a dangerous conundrum, and Randisi uses it to ratchet up a considerable amount of suspense.
As usual in a Bob Randisi novel, UPON MY SOUL is very fast-paced, but it's not quite as dialogue-driven as some and is a bit more reflective, which works very well. Sangster is an interesting and sympathetic protagonist, despite his ruthless background, and the supporting cast is good, too, especially a Jamaican cab driver in Las Vegas who becomes an unlikely ally and an elderly butler who is more than he seems. There are some nice twists in the plot as well.
UPON MY SOUL is a fine crime novel, and I'm glad to report that it's also the first in a trilogy. I'm looking forward to reading more about Sangster's continuing struggle for his soul.

Byliner publishes two early Elmore Leonard stories

Byliner publishes two early Elmore Leonard stories Comments0EmailShare1Author Elmore Leonard, shown in 2010, works on a manuscript at his home in Bloomfield Township, Mich. (Carlos Osorio / Associated Press / September 28, 2010)By Hector TobarDecember 30, 2013, 11:54 a.m.Elmore Leonard died in August at the age of 87. But writing can bring a kind of immortality, and the modern noir master has come to life, again, in the form of two new short stories.Today, the San Francisco-based digital imprint Byliner publishes "Confession" and "The Trespassers," both of which were written in 1958 when Leonard was an ad man working at a Detroit agency, Campbell Ewald. "What's interesting is to see where Elmore Leonard, the young writer, started, to study his simple Hemingway-influenced style," Peter Leonard, Elmore Leonard's son, said in a Byliner press release. "Fans of Elmore's work will appreciate how his style changed and evolved over a career spanning sixty years."The two stories (available by subscription) feel like transitional pieces between Leonard's Western and contemporary noir phases: Both tell gritty crime tales set in small-town Western settings.The protagonist of "Confession" is a soft-spoken, whiskey-drinking, cigar-smoking priest who mingles with cowboys and stagecoach drivers at a local saloon. "When two saddlebags filled with cash mysteriously appear on the steps of Father Schwinn’s church, he finds himself caught up in a crime that puts his vows of nonviolence to the test," Byliner said in a release."The Trespassers" begins as a domestic drama told from the point of view of a young woman, Chris, who is frustrated with her mild-mannered husband, Evan. "When Evan refuses to confront men who are illegally hunting on the couple’s remote homestead, Chris takes matters into her own hands, with terrifying results," according to the Byliner summary.Later, Leonard moved the settings of his stories to the urban worlds of Detroit and South Florida. Leonard, who died from complications caused by a stroke, was working on his 46th novel at the time of his death.The stories are also available as Kindle Singles at Amazon, at Apple’s iBookstore, at Barnes and Noble's website and from Kobo.

http://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-et-jc-two-early-elmore-leonard-stories-published-posthumously-20131230,0,7362964.story#ixzz2p0De2Qqn

The great and I do mean great Ken Levine on 2013 Celebrity Break-Ups

DAY, DECEMBER 30, 2013 Celebrity Break-Ups 2013


You can’t turn on E! or read PEOPLE without stars gushing about how much in love they are. I don’t mean to be a cynic, but these celebrities invariably pontificate about what makes relationships work. Khloe Kardashian feels qualified to give romantic advice. Many stars live in a world where no one says “no” to them from the minute they wake up till the moment they go to bed. However, this has never stopped lovers and spouses. They willsay no. They have said no. And usually at their own peril. They end up on the same scrap heap as the publicist who dared open her mouth. 
So because celebrities make such a public display of their affection – jumping on couches, etc. – and always claim to have the secret of long lasting relationships when in fact many don’t even know how to use a debit card, their break ups are fair game for snark. And before you feel sorry for them, remember, they’re all beautiful and will find love again in six seconds, and most of them found that love already when they were still with the partner they broke up with this year.
So here’s a list:
Julianne Hough & Ryan Seacrest – Split in June. Now people can go back to saying he’s gay.
Britney Spears & Jason Trawick -- All those vows of love she gave him, they were lip-synced.
Justin Bieber & Selena Gomez – This is their second break-up. Gomez decided to date boys who were legal.
George Clooney & Stacy Keibler – All I know is Talia Balsam was once married to George and is happy she’s out. So what does that say?
Catherine Zeta Jones & Michael Douglas – I'm reminded of his movie, THE WAR OF THE ROSES.
Clint & Dina Eastwood – I see him married at least another two times.
Miley Cyrus & Liam Hemsworth – Like everything else, this must be calculated on her part to advance her career.
Chelsea Handler & Andre Balazs – Warning: Skank now on the loose.
Bruce & Kris Jenner – A common line from a disillusioned spouse: “I don’t know you anymore.” Considering all the plastic surgery that was certainly true.
Diane Lane & Josh Brolin – He finally discovered that she’s ten times the actor he is.
Bradley Cooper & Zoe Saldana – Their second split. Bradley was hanging onto relationships a lot longer when he was in KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL on Fox.
Ashley Judd & Dario Franchitti – I thought they were the happiest couple in Kentucky next to Boyd Crowder and Ava.
Michael Sheen & Rachel McAdams – Guess he was not a Master of Sex after all.
Michelle Williams & Jason Segel – I’m just glad he’s back on HIMYM.
Miranda Kerr & Orlando Bloom – They’ll find others. Someday.
Malin Akerman & Roberto Zincone – As a nice touch they split up months after the birth of their first child. My guess is he won’t be fighting for custody.
Keri Russell & Shane Deary – This was an arranged marriage by the Kremlin so I’m less broken up about it.
Idina Menzel & Taye Diggs – Gee, they seemed so happy when I saw them New Year’s Eve.


Kristen Stewart & Robert Pattinson – A match made in a casting office.
Nina Dobrev & Ian Somerhalder – “Dear Vampire Diary – I’m writing tonight with a heavy heart…”
Kat Von D & Deadmau5 -- They couldn’t agree on whether she’d take his last name or number.
Madonna & Brahim Zaibat – If Britney Spears broke up then Madonna has to.
Khloe Kardashian & Lamar Odem – I’m shocked. They had so much in common. Both have an IQ of 27.
Meanwhile, my heart goes out to real people who ended relationships this year. May 2014 bring you better luck, happiness, and someone who looks like Kristen Stewart or Robert Pattinson but not actually them.

By Ken Levine at 6:00 AM
17 comments
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 29, 20

Sherlock Holmes Is In The Public Domain fanfic goes wild

1 SEXPANDHear that sound? It's the squeal of a million fan fiction writers freaking out at the prospect of finally getting some respect. This week, a federal judge ruled that the world's most famous (and possibly most adapted) detective may enter the public domain.Sherlock Holmes made his debut 126 years ago in A Study in Scarlet, first published in 1887. Since then he's appeared in pretty much every medium and has been portrayed by everyone from original deerstalker Basil Rathbone to to . But through all that, people using Holmes and any number of other series tropes have had to pay licensing fees to the Arthur Conan Doyle estate. Basically, this is big.The lawsuit was brought by Leslie S. King, who edited a 3,000-page annotated version of the Holmes stories and several other works on the character, including a collection of Holmes stories written by several different authors. Although Holmes should have already entered the public domain, lawyers for the estate claimed that Holmes should remain private for four more years, as his story was not truly complete until the last tale was published in 1927.It didn't fly. All Sherlock Holmes stories and elements from works published before 1923—including Holmes, Dr. John Watson, the dastardly Professor Moriarty, and even 221B Baker Street—now belong to everyone. Use them wisely.[image via AP]L

The Wrong Quarry Max Allan Collins

I've been reading Quarry novels since the early 1970s when they first appeared and I haven't read a bad one yet. Max Allan Collins has created a protagonist and a milieu that he has mastered. And unlike most series this one gets better as it ages.

At this point in his career--and it is a career make no mistake--Quarry now kills killers who've been hired to murder Quarry's clients. Approach a client, convince him he's in mortal danger and bingo you're on the payroll.

This is a particularly rich episode because of the detail Collins brings to the worlds of antiques and beauty pageants.   The antique dealer and his partner are the killers and the beauty pageant maestro is a small town dance school instructor. Some years ago said instructor being suspected of murdering an heiress who also happened to be in one of his pageants. Quarry hires on to protect him.

I hate throwing in that overused (and often pretentious) word "subtext" but after all these Quarry books I've come to realize that for all his murderous ways and sexual conquests he is never in danger of becoming a cardboard cut out because Collins, from the git go, has made him an unhappy and restless figure.

In the books where he takes to his Wisconsin eyrie we see Quarry at rest and with something resembling peace of mind. Not only is the sex better here but it often blossoms into a real relationship with Quarry cutting through his own (sometime) psychological confusion and defenses and beginning to love one of his many women. I can't think of another hit man writer who would take a risk like that.

THE WRONG QUARRY is a special treat because Collins gets one of the great grand sociological targets of all time to sack--the beauty pageant. Collins goes after it with machete wit.

Another bonus here is the mystery at the center of the dance instructor's life. The long ago dead heiress. On top of all the excitement, Collins gives the readers an impeccably handled mystery.

Five stars.

Curmudgeon's Corner: Fred Blosser RedDux by Terence Butler

Fred Blosser RedDux

Ed here: Terence Butler is the acclaimed writer of numerous short stories.
Here he elaborates on some of the comments our friend Fred Blosser made about
the fading popularity of some once popular mystery novelists in this age of
the internet:

Terence Butler


Is is possible that since he was writing in the wake of WW2 and during
Korea and the buildup to SE Asian conflict, before the explosion of
self-aggrandizement and fantasizing unleashed in the 60's, and while
there still was a lingering idea of what literary--and real
world--heroes had been, that JDM's books just couldn't exist anymore?

The worldly and world weary, solidly moral man willing to engage in
struggle with a plain old bad guy who is causing problems is seen now as
a figure from the "old school".

Readers now aren't interested in losing themselves in characters and
locations, in back story or theme or cause and effect.
They demand that writers get them to the blood and sex or they won't
want to keep reading...

Young people just aren't interested in the kinds of movie stars that
could be seen as Travis either; Newman, Redford, Lee Marvin, George C.
Scott etc. Film actors yes, but accomplished actors none the less, who
knew the era and the man of that era.

Can you picture Matt Damon, DiCaprio, Downey et. al. as a faithful
representation of Travis or Archer or even Harry Bosch? I can't. Maybe
Damon...

But instead of seeing Robert Newton as Long John Silver or Blackbeard we
get Johnny Depp doing a take on Keith Richards as a rock and roll pirate.
Or we get the one-dimensional Jason Statham as the enigmatic Parker!
Et fucking cetera...

Books and movies have become bizarre, explosive, weird, nihilistic,
random, shocking, spectacular, hypersexual, and above all, typical of
whatever everyone else is doing, otherwise this audience which H'wood
and publishers have trained to search out what they do will be bored
shitless.

As you well know because you're one of them, there are lots of good
writers following the traditions, updating them,  and still getting
overlooked. And unfortunately you don't have to be a good writer to get
famous and wealthy. Three of my faves come to mind; Sallis, Stroby and
Zeltserman.

My point is one that you've made many times; that we're saturated with
media imagery and most of the audience is not capable of enjoying a good
read.

I've tried to get young people to read Ch. Williams and Rabe and other
Gold Medal guys, and some have, but usually respond by asking me to read
Lee Child or Patterson et al as if they were somehow equivalent...sigh....

Just random blabbing, but it's a thing I think about a lot. Maybe the
Iraq/Afghan vets who want to write will bring another outlook to bear at
some point. Something will revitalize the stuff we love. The Blues will
not die, and genre fic is just like the blues in it's forms and
permutations.

PS Have you noticed the web trend toward alerting and apologizing to
readers for articles perhaps being too long? Sheeeshh...

Curmudgeon's Corner: Terence Butler

Fred Blosser RedDux
Ed here: Terence Butler is the acclaimed writer of numerous short stories.Here he elaborates on some of the comments our friend Fred Blosser made about the fading popularity of some once popular mystery novelists in this age ofthe internet:
Terence Butler

Is is possible that since he was writing in the wake of WW2 and during
Korea and the buildup to SE Asian conflict, before the explosion of
self-aggrandizement and fantasizing unleashed in the 60's, and while
there still was a lingering idea of what literary--and real
world--heroes had been, that JDM's books just couldn't exist anymore?

The worldly and world weary, solidly moral man willing to engage in
struggle with a plain old bad guy who is causing problems is seen now as
a figure from the "old school".
Readers now aren't interested in losing themselves in characters and
locations, in back story or theme or cause and effect.
They demand that writers get them to the blood and sex or they won't
want to keep reading...

Young people just aren't interested in the kinds of movie stars that
could be seen as Travis either; Newman, Redford, Lee Marvin, George C.
Scott etc. Film actors yes, but accomplished actors none the less, who
knew the era and the man of that era.
Can you picture Matt Damon, DiCaprio, Downey et. al. as a faithful
representation of Travis or Archer or even Harry Bosch? I can't. Maybe
Damon...
But instead of seeing Robert Newton as Long John Silver or Blackbeard we
get Johnny Depp doing a take on Keith Richards as a rock and roll pirate.
Or we get the one-dimensional Jason Statham as the enigmatic Parker!
Et fucking cetera...

Books and movies have become bizarre, explosive, weird, nihilistic,
random, shocking, spectacular, hypersexual, and above all, typical of
whatever everyone else is doing, otherwise this audience which H'wood
and publishers have trained to search out what they do will be bored
shitless.

As you well know because you're one of them, there are lots of good
writers following the traditions, updating them, and still getting
overlooked. And unfortunately you don't have to be a good writer to get
famous and wealthy. Three of my faves come to mind; Sallis, Stroby and
Zeltserman.

My point is one that you've made many times; that we're saturated with
media imagery and most of the audience is not capable of enjoying a good
read.
I've tried to get young people to read Ch. Williams and Rabe and other
Gold Medal guys, and some have, but usually respond by asking me to read
Lee Child or Patterson et al as if they were somehow equivalent...sigh....

Just random blabbing, but it's a thing I think about a lot. Maybe the
Iraq/Afghan vets who want to write will bring another outlook to bear at
some point. Something will revitalize the stuff we love. The Blues will
not die, and genre fic is just like the blues in it's forms and
permutations.
I've been reading Dogen, a Zen master and poet from circa 1225 CE whose
poems are as yearningly melancholic as anything Robert Johnson wrote.

PS Have you noticed the web trend toward alerting and apologizing to
readers for articles perhaps being too long? Poor babies!! Sheeeshh...
Happy New Year to all of you! XXOO C&T

JDM Redux from Fred Blosser 2007,

JDM Redux from Fred BlosserEd,

You made an interesting observation a couple of weeks ago, "I was shocked when I saw how quickly John D. MacDonald started to fade after his death. I've given his books to several thirty-somethings and to a person they find him 'slow.' " I've been thinking about that reaction. I was big into MacDonald when I was 19 or 20. His books could be easily found in any newsstand, corner drug store, or bus station, kept perpetually in print (or so it seemed at the time) by Fawcett. I never thought of him as slow; far from it. I generally ran through each book in no more than a couple of sittings.

I had hoped for more reaction to your comment than it received. Maybe in itself, that's a measure of how much MacDonald has slipped below the radar, even among crime fiction buffs. If newer readers find him slow going, could it be for these reasons?

--He didn't write in the pared-down, dialogue-driven style now employed by James Patterson, John Sandford, and John Grisham, whose names are as ubiquitous on bookshelves today as JDM's once was. At random, I recently picked up one of MacDonald's Gold Medals, DEADLY WELCOME. At 160 pages, it should be as much of a fast read as they come. Nevertheless, MacDonald devotes as much space to describing his sleepy, stagnant Florida backwater setting as he does to finding out whodunit. For a reader who comes to the novel from Patterson, there may be too much sensory description, not enough straight-ahead action.

--The familiar conventions of today's crime fiction -- serial killers, female sleuths, self-loathing police officers, wacky petty criminals or colorful Mafia goons, detectives defined by vocation (forensic examiners) or ethnicity (Navaho tribal cops) -- are largely absent from JDM's fiction. Could "slow" mean that these younger readers had difficulty adjusting to a novel that lacked those kinds of touchstones? Maybe. Along the same lines, fans of Carl Hiassen, Elmore Leonard, or Tim Dorsey are likely to be disappointed that DEADLY WELCOME, the Travis McGees, and JDM's other novels set in the Sunshine State lack the off-the-wall wackiness and demented characters of the modern Florida crime novels.

--And then there's the fact that society as a whole has changed so much since MacDonald's heyday. How much is the average, thirty-something reader likely to identify with the mindset that generally informs JDM's novels, in which a capable male protagonist drives the action, female characters are usually subsidiary, and crime is an aberration in a generally orderly, forward-looking society?

You compared JDM's relative slide into obscurity with Ross Macdonald's resurgence. Ross benefitted from the fact that, toward the end of his career, he picked up some acclaim and recognition from the academics. That may have helped Ross to keep going in recent years, if at a lower level of commercial success than in his high-water period between THE UNDERGROUND MAN and his death. To my mind, the current incarnation of the Archer novels, in the Vintage trade pb editions, is more likely to appeal to the cult, scholastic crowd than to the casual surfer of popular fiction.

Fred B.