B.V. Lawson's Blog, page 14

Media Murder for Monday

[image error]It's the start of a new week and that means it's time for a brand-new roundup of crime drama news:

THE BIG SCREEN/MOVIES

White Lotus star Michelle Monaghan and Severance star Adam Scott are set to join Robert De Niro in the movie adaptation of the Alex North novel, The Whisper Man. James Ashcroft is set to direct, with Ben Jacoby and Chase Palmer adapting the script. The story revolves around a widower crime writer who looks to his estranged father, a retired former police detective, for help after his 8-year-old son is abducted, only to discover a connection with the decades-old case of a convicted serial killer known as “The Whisper Man.”

TELEVISION/STREAMING

Charlie B. Foster is set to recur in Scarpetta, Prime Video‘s upcoming thriller series starring Nicole Kidman and Jamie Lee Curtis. The actor, who is Jodie Foster's son, plays Wingo, an assistant in the morgue. Based on Patricia Cornwell’s hit books, the series follows Kay Scarpetta (Kidman), the Chief Medical Examiner, as she returns to Virginia and resumes her former position with complex relationships, both personal and professional – including her sister Dorothy (Curtis) – with plenty of grudges and secrets to uncover. Foster joins previously announced cast members Bobby Cannavale, Simon Baker, Rosy McEwen, Jake Cannavale, Ariana DeBose, and Hunter Parrish.

Paramount+ has officially renewed Criminal Minds: Evolution, starring Joe Mantegna, A.J. Cook, Paget Brewster, and Kirsten Vangsness, for a fourth season. The early pickup for the Criminal Minds sequel comes ahead of the crime drama’s Season 3 premiere, which has been set for May 8. The 10-episode third season will feature a time jump, picking up six months after prisoners attack the notorious Sicarius Killer, Elias Voit, leading his restless followers on the dark web to begin wreaking havoc all over the country. In order to stop this nefarious group from killing more innocents, the BAU is forced to work alongside an increasingly unpredictable Voit who has his own agenda.

Netflix has officially greenlit Nemesis, the story of two men on either side of the law:  expert criminal, Coltrane Wilder and brilliant police detective, Isaiah Stiles. According to the logline: "What starts as a series that aims to subvert the heist genre at every turn, amped with thrilling life-or-death stakes, family dynamics, and explosive action, actually gives birth to an exploration of what drives us, sustains us, and ultimately destroys us." Matthew Law (Abbott Elementary) and Y’Ian Noel (Lady in the Lake) have been tapped for the two leads. Rounding out the cast are two Power alums, Domenick Lombardozzi and Jonnie Park, as well as Cleopatra Coleman (Black Rabbit), Tre Hale (All-American) and Ariana Guerra (CSI: Vegas).

British crime thriller Unforgotten has been renewed for season 7. The program follows a team of London detectives led by DCI Cassie Stuart (Nicola Walker in Series 1–4), DCI Jessie James (Sinéad Keenan in Series 5-6) and DI Sunny Khan (Sanjeev Bhaskar) as they solve cold cases of disappearance and murder. Each series deals with a new case, introducing seemingly unconnected characters who are gradually revealed to have some relationship with the victim. As the murder mystery unfolds, the emotional ramifications of the crime on the lives of those affected are also explored. Keenan and Khan are both expected to return for the seventh season.

Prime Video has officially released the trailer for the third and final season of Bosch: Legacy. The series will debut with four episodes on March 27, followed by two new episodes every Thursday until the series finale on April 17. Based on Michael Connelly’s bestselling novels, Desert Star (2022) and The Black Ice (1993), the final season will see Harry Bosch (Titus Welliver) facing one of his most challenging cases yet, the murder investigation of Kurt Dockweiler, which unearths dangerous secrets.

The deep cuts on CBS's series slate include two high-profile cancellations, the FBI spinoffs, FBI: Most Wanted, which is ending after six seasons, and FBI: International, canceled after four seasons. Both Wolf Entertainment/Universal television series are headlined by big stars, Dylan McDermott (Most Wanted) and Jesse Lee Soffer (International), who had moved to the offshoots from other Dick Wolf shows, Law & Order: Organized Crime and Chicago P.D., respectively. The cancellations leave the highly rated mothership FBI, now in its seventh season on CBS, and a potential new offshoot, FBI: CIA, now in development. It is unclear whether Universal TV and Wolf Entertainment will shop the two FBI spinoffs, which still deliver solid viewership numbers, to other platforms.

PODCASTS/RADIO

The Sidedoor podcast focused on "Poison and Poisonability" with guests Kristen Frederick-Frost, curator of science at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History, Lisa Perrin, author and illustrator of The League of Lady Poisoners, and Deborah Blum, author of The Poisoner's Handbook. When we think of serial killers, we tend to think of men—Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer, Jack the Ripper. But in the 1800s, the deadliest killers often wore corsets. In fact, so many women were arrested for serial poisoning that the era became known as the “Golden Age of Arsenic.” How did these women evade capture for so long? And how did their murders help give rise to modern criminal forensics?

On Read or Dead, Katie McLain Horner and honorary "reading assassin" Liberty Hardy talk about mysteries with feminist themes for Women’s History Month.

The BBC's Shedunnit podcast featured a look at "The Mystery Short Story: a consideration of crime fiction’s more compact incarnation."

Paul Burke reviewed twelve of the latest crime fiction titles on Crime Time FM.

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Barry Bonanza

Deadly Pleasures Magazine announced this year's finalists for the Barry Awards. The winners will be voted on by subscribers and readers of the magazine and presented at this year’s Bouchercon in New Orleans during its Opening Ceremonies on Thursday, September 4, 2025. Congratulations to all the finalists!

Best Mystery Novel



THE WAITING, Michael Connelly

SPIRIT CROSSING, William Kent Krueger

THE GOD OF THE WOODS, Liz Moore

MIDNIGHT AND BLUE, Ian Rankin

CALIFORNIA BEAR, Duane Swierczynski

ALL THE COLORS OF THE DARK, Chris Whitaker

Best First Mystery Novel

THE EXPECTANT DETECTIVES, Kat Ailes

PAPER CAGE, Tom Baragwanath

ORDINARY BEAR, C. B. Bernard

IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE, Jo Callaghan

FIRST LIE WINS, Ashley Elston

LISTEN FOR THE LIE, Amy Tintera

Best Paperback Original Mystery Novel

DOUBLE BARREL BLUFF, Lou Berney

ALL THE RAGE, Cara Hunter

SMOKE KINGS, Jahmal Mayfield

SOMEONE SAW SOMETHING, Rick Mofina

WORDHUNTER, Stella Sands

SIN CITY, James Swain

Best Action Thriller

ASSASSIN EIGHTEEN, John Brownlow

FIRST STRIKE, Stephen Leather

THE SEVENTH FLOOR, David McCloskey

HUNTED, Abir Mukherjee

HERO, Thomas Perry

THE PRICE YOU PAY, Nick Petrie

 

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Mystery Melange

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Benjamin Franklin altered book by Dawn Morehead

Joseph Wambaugh, former member of the Los Angeles Police Department turned author, passed away last week of esophageal cancer at the age of 88. Wambaugh joined the LAPD in 1960 and served for 14 years, and his perspective on police work inspired his first novel, The New Centurions, which was published early in 1971 to critical acclaim and popular success. He went on to publish sixteen novels and five nonfiction works, several of which were made into films and television adaptations. He won three Edgar Awards and was named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America and received The Strand Mystery Magazine award for lifetime achievement.

The Audio Publishers Association announced the winners in 28 categories for the 30th annual Audie Awards for audiobooks and spoken-word entertainment, including mysteries and thrillers. The winner of the mystery category was Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera, narrated by Will Damron and January LaVoy (Macmillan Audio), while the thriller winner was Lone Wolf by Gregg Hurwitz, narrated by Scott Brick (Macmillan Audio). You can see all the finalists in those categories here.

NoirCon announced that this year's conference will once again be heading west again from the gritty streets of Philadelphia to the even grittier streets of the California desert. The 9th NoirCon will be held at the Palm Springs Cultural Center, Thurs-Sun, October 23-26, 2025, and feature movie screenings, special guests, informative panels, and unique noir-related events. Organizers will be partnering again with The Best Bookstore in Palm Springs.

Noir at the Bar heads to Roma's in downtown Nacogdoches on Friday, March 7 at 6:30 pm. Authors scheduled to participate currently include Joe R Lansdale, VP Chandler, Jim Nesbitt, Reavis Wortham, Tim Bryant, and James W. King.

There will also be a Noir at the Bar at Elaine's Restaurant in Alexandria, Virginia, on April 24th at 7 p.m., hosted by Alan Orloff. Other authors scheduled to read from their works include E.A. Aymar, Chris Chambers, Tara Laskowski, Adam Meyer, Tom Milani, K.T. Nguyen, Art Taylor, and Stacy Woodson.

The deadline is fast approaching for applications to Sisters in Crime's Crime Fiction Writers of Color Award, an annual grant of $2,000 for an emerging writer of color. This grant is intended to support the recipient in crime fiction writing and career development activities. The grantee may choose to use the grant for workshops, seminars, conferences, retreats, online courses, and research required for completion of the work. Submissions for the 2025 award are due March 31. For more information, follow this link.

Applications are now open for the Jane Gregory Bursaries which offer three under-represented writers a unique opportunity to attend the Creative Thursday writing day at the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival 2025 in Harrogate, UK. Creative Thursday is an immersive day of workshops and talks led by industry experts and bestselling crime writers including Vaseem Khan, Mick Herron, Will Dean, and Laura Shepherd Robinson, taking place July 17, 2025, the opening day of the Theakston Old Peculier festival. One of the bursaries will also include a Weekend Break Package with accommodation and tickets to all Festival main stage events. Applications from under-represented writers, who may lack opportunities due to disabilities, identity, health or social circumstances, are welcomed via this link. The deadline is Friday, April 18th.

Lee Child’s first autobiographical collection, Reacher: The Stories Behind the Stories, will be published by Transworld in September. Sarah Adams, fiction and brand publisher, acquired UK and Commonwealth rights from Otto Penzler, of New York-based Mysterious Press, in a collection of origin tales for all of Lee Child’s solo-written Reacher novels. Editions will also include an introduction and new Jack Reacher story from Child, along with an afterword by Penzler, exploring the importance of the character and novels within contemporary crime fiction. The stories were originally published by Penzler's Mysterious Bookshop as forewords to 100-copy-run limited editions of the novels, and this is the first time they have been published as a collection for a global audience.

Scandinavian crime fiction is hot these days, and Amandine Enard-Hauger compiled a list of 12 must-read books by Arnaldur Indridason, the master of Icelandic crime fiction. Ever since Jar City (2000), his first international success, Indridason has grown into as a major voice in Scandinavian crime fiction with his minimalist, hard-hitting style that captures the darkness of human souls and the weight of the past, two recurring themes in his work.

A new statue of crime writer Agatha Christie in a south Devon town is due to be unveiled later this year by journalist and BBC Radio 2 presenter Jeremy Vine. The statue, by local artist Elisabeth Hadley, will be the focal point of Torquay's £4m new harborside plaza. The unveiling will coincide with an Agatha Christie festival, Spring Gathering, in April. The statue of the author, known for her detective novels featuring characters such as Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, should have been unveiled last year, but delays to the harborside project meant the event had to be pushed back. The author was born in Torquay in 1890 and kept ties to Devon throughout her life.

In the Q&A roundup, Author Interviews spoke with Clea Simon, author of three nonfiction books and 32 cozy mysteries and suspense novels, most recently the psychological suspense The Butterfly Trap; mystery author Darlene Dziomba chatted with Lisa Haselton about her new cozy release, Assault & Gobblery; and Tessa Wegert, author of the Shana Merchant series, stopped by Author Interviews to discuss her writing and her latest book, The Coldest Case.

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Author R&R with donalee Moulton

[image error]donalee Moulton is an award-winning freelance journalist who has written articles for print and online publications across North America including The Globe and Mail, Chatelaine, Lawyer’s Daily, National Post, and Canadian Business. donalee’s first mystery book Hung out to Die was published in 2023. A historical mystery, Conflagration!, was published in 2024 and won the 2024 Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense (Historical Fiction). A short story, “Swan Song,” was one of 21 selected for publication in Cold Canadian Crime and also shortlisted for an Award of Excellence. donalee’s short story “Troubled Water” was shortlisted for a 2024 Derringer Award and a 2024 Award of Excellence from the Crime Writers of Canada. 

[image error]In donalee's new mystery novel, Bind, a watch goes missing from a changing room at a gym—an expensive watch with a loud, arrogant owner. The theft connects three yogis in a way full lotus never could. As the search for a thief unfolds, so do seemingly unrelated questions:  Why does Lexie have such an intense interest in a much-younger trainer at the gym? Who is the unnamed, unknown man who keeps leaving Charlene messages? Why does no one know Woo Woo lives in a mansion?

donalee stops by In Reference to Murder to take some Author R&R about researching and writing the book:

 

The ties that bind us – to research

My third mystery, Bind, is out in the world. Here’s the pitch:

Everything that happens in a yoga studio is not Zen. Sometimes it’s grand larceny. Three yogis, two cops, and one damn cute dog join forces to discover who’s stolen a Patek Philippe watch from what was supposed to be a secure locker.  Time is ticking.

As I was writing Bind, indeed, as I was envisioning what the book would be, I patted myself on the back for picking a theme, a location, and characters I was more familiar with than in my previous two books. Less research, less investigation, less fact checking. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

My first mystery, Hung Out to Die, follows Riel Brava, born and bred in Santa Barbara, California, and transplanted to Nova Scotia where he is CEO of the Canadian Cannabis Corporation. It’s business as usual until Riel finds the company’s comptroller hanging by a thread. Actually, several threads. It doesn’t take the police long to determine all is not as it appears. Riel is drawn into helping solve a murder. He’d rather not. His reluctance, in part, has to do with the fact that he is a psychopath. The nicer kind, not the serial killer kind.

To make Riel and the murder realistically come to life, I spent a lot of time researching cannabis production, psychopathy, death by hanging, and upscale coffees. I even spent some time exploring the inner workings of a donair. Riel eats his first in the book; I’ve never had one.

In a twist, my second book, Conflagration!, is a historical mystery that centers around Marie-Joseph Angélique, an enslaved Black woman accused of setting the lower town of Montreal on fire in 1734.  Philippe Archambeau, a court clerk assigned specifically to document her case, believes Angelique might be innocent. Or not. A reticent servant, a boisterous jailer, and three fire-scorched shingles prove indispensable in his quest to uncover what really happened.

Of course, the reality of history and the mystery I created immersed me in life nearly three hundred years ago. It also required learning about the French justice system of 1734 and specifically the trial of Angélique.

You can see why I patted myself on the back when the idea for Bind took hold in my imagination. A watch goes missing from a changeroom at a gym – an expensive watch with a loud, arrogant owner. The theft connects three yogis in a way full lotus never could. As the search for a thief unfolds, so do seemingly unrelated questions. Why does Lexie have such an intense interest in a much-younger trainer at the gym? Who is the unnamed, unknown man who keeps leaving Charlene messages? Why does no one know Woo Woo lives in a mansion?

I thought research would be minimal. The women in the book are my age, they live in my neighborhood, they do yoga – like me. What more could there be to research? Plenty as it turned out. One of the main characters, Lexie, is a comedian with a popular podcast, so now I’m learning about podcasts. Another main character, Charlene, is an auditor, and suddenly I’m delving into what auditors do exactly and how they do it. Another character, Woo Woo, is a reflexologist…. Well, you get it.

It’s authenticity that makes writing come to life, and authentic writing requires writers to hunker down and delve into worlds they don’t know well and don’t know at all. I mean who knew a watch could cost $100,000. I had no idea. I do now.

 

You can learn more about donalee and her writing via her website and follow her on Facebook, Goodreads, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Bluesky. Bind is now available via all major booksellers.

          

Topmost Thrillers

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The International Thriller Writers announced the finalists for the 2025 Thriller Awards. Winners will be revealed at ThrillerFest XX on Saturday, June 21, 2025 at the New York Hilton Midtown, New York City. Congratulations to all!

 

BEST STANDALONE THRILLER NOVEL

Kimberly Belle — THE PARIS WIDOW (Harlequin – Park Row)
Will Dean — THE CHAMBER (Emily Bestler Books)
T.J. Newman — WORST CASE SCENARIO (Little, Brown & Co.)
Jason Rekulak — THE LAST ONE AT THE WEDDING (Flatiron Books)
Lisa Scottoline — THE TRUTH ABOUT THE DEVLINS (Penguin/Putnam)

BEST STANDALONE MYSTERY NOVEL

Libby Cudmore — NEGATIVE GIRL (Datura Books)
Laura Dave — THE NIGHT WE LOST HIM (Simon & Schuster)
Kellye Garrett — MISSING WHITE WOMAN (Mulholland Books)
Harry Hunsicker — THE LIFE AND DEATH OF ROSE DOUCETTE (Oceanview Publishing)
Dervla McTiernan — WHAT HAPPENED TO NINA? (William Morrow)
Lori Roy — LAKE COUNTY (Thomas & Mercer)

BEST SERIES NOVEL

David Baldacci — TO DIE FOR (Grand Central Publishing)
Eric Beetner — THE LAST FEW MILES OF ROAD (Level Best Books)
Ann Cleeves — THE DARK WIVES (Minotaur)
Meg Gardiner — SHADOWHEART (Blackstone Publishing)
Iris Johansen, Roy Johansen — FLASHBACK (Grand Central Publishing)
Isabella Maldonado — A FORGOTTEN KILL (Thomas & Mercer)

BEST FIRST NOVEL

Kate Brody — RABBIT HOLE (Soho Crime)
Jaime deBlanc — AFTER IMAGE (Thomas & Mercer)
Carinn Jade — THE ASTROLOGY HOUSE (Atria)
Alejandro Nodarse —BLOOD IN THE CUT (Flatiron Books)
Marie Tierney — DEADLY ANIMALS (Henry Holt & Co.)

BEST AUDIOBOOK

Sally Hepworth — DARLING GIRLS (Macmillan), Narrated by Jessica Clarke
Jon Lindstrom — HOLLYWOOD HUSTLE (Dreamscape Media), Narrated by Jon Lindstrom
Kate Alice Marshall — NO ONE CAN KNOW (Macmillan Audio),      Narrated by Karissa Vacker
Hilton Reed — BEYOND ALL DOUBT (Dreamscape Media), Narrated by George Newbern
Amy Tintera — LISTEN FOR THE LIE (Macmillan),      Narrated by January LaVoy and Will Damron

BEST YOUNG ADULT NOVEL

Adam Cesare — INFLUENCER (Union Square & Co., LLC)
Ripley Jones — THE OTHER LOLA (Wednesday Books)
Marisha Pessl — DARKLY (Delacorte)
Natalie Richards — 49 MILES ALONE (Sourcebooks Fire)
Melanie Sumrow — GIRLS LIKE HER (Balzer + Bray)

BEST SHORT STORY

Stefanie Leder — "Not a Dinner Party Person" (Soho Crime)
Twist Phelan — "Double Parked" (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine)
Ivy Pochoda — Jackrabbit Skin (Amazon Original Stories)
Lisa Unger — The Doll's House (Amazon Original Stories)
Joseph S. Walker — "And Now, an Inspiring Story of Tragedy Overcome" (Wildside Press)

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Media Murder for Monday

[image error]It's the start of a new week and that means it's time for a brand-new roundup of crime drama news:

THE BIG SCREEN/MOVIES

Amazon MGM Studios and Safehouse Pictures are developing a film adaptation of Lincoln Child's series of novels featuring Jeremy Logan. The film will center on Logan, who is a self-proclaimed "enigmatologist," an investigator who works to debunk the paranormal and unexplained using modern science. The Jeremy Logan books include Child’s novels Deep Storm, Terminal Freeze, The Third Gate, The Forgotten Room, Full Wolf Moon, and Chrysalis. Jeremy Lott and Cory Goodman (the duo who are also adapting the comic series Proof for Fox) are writing the script.

Academy Award Winner Al Pacino is set to join the upcoming hostage thriller, Dead Man’s Wire, to be directed by Academy Award nominee Gus Van Sant. He joins previously announced Bill Skarsgard, Dacre Montgomery, Myha’la, Cary Elwes, and Colman Domingo. The project centers on Anthony G. "Tony" Kiritsis, 44, who enters the office of Richard O. Hall, president of the Meridian Mortgage Company, and takes him hostage with a sawed-off 12-gauge shotgun rigged with a "dead man’s wire" from the trigger to Tony’s own neck. It's based on a the true story of the stand-off that took the world by storm as Tony demanded $5 million, no charges or prosecution, and a personal apology from the Halls for cheating him out of what he was "owed." 

TELEVISION/STREAMING

AMC has renwed Dark Winds for a fourth season. The series, which is based on Tony Hillerman’s Leaphorn & Chee books, follows Lt. Joe Leaphorn (Zahn McClarnon), Jim Chee (Kiowa Gordon) and Bernadette Manuelito (Jessica Matten) of the Navajo Tribal Police solving mysteries on their reservation as it is besieged by increasingly violent crimes in the 1970s. The third season, which premieres on March 9, picks up six months after the events of Season 2 and follows Leaphorn and Chee as they investigate the disappearance of two boys, with only an abandoned bicycle and blood-stained patch of ground left in their wake. Meanwhile, Manuelito attempts to settle into her new life 500 miles from home with the Border Patrol, but stumbles across a conspiracy involving human and drug smuggling with far-reaching implications.

The Reacher spinoff series centered on Frances Neagley at Amazon Prime Video has added five series regulars. Now officially titled Neagley, the series will star Greyston Holt (The Night Agent) as Detective Hudson Riley; Jasper Jones (King Ivory) as Keno; Adeline Rudolph (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) as Renee; Matthew Del Negro (Mayor of Kingstown) as Pierce Woodrow; and Damon Herriman (Justified) as Lawrence Cole. The five new additions join previously announced series lead Maria Sten, who will reprise the role of Neagley from Reacher, who is a private investigator in Chicago. When she learns a beloved friend from her past has been killed in a suspicious accident, she becomes hell-bent on justice. Using everything she’s learned from Jack Reacher and her time as a member of the 110 Special Investigators, Neagley puts herself on a dangerous path to uncover a menacing evil.

Apple TV+ has picked up Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed, a 10-episode series starring Emmy Award winner Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black). The half-hour darkly comedic thriller, written and executive produced by creator and showrunner David J. Rosen (Citadel), follows a newly divorced mom (Maslany) who falls down a dangerous rabbit hole of blackmail, murder, and youth soccer. Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed will be directed and co-executive produced by David Gordon Green (Nutcrackers).

PODCASTS/RADIO

On the Culture Point podcast, author and screenwriter Walter Mosley joined Aaron Philip Clark to discuss his recent book, Been Wrong So Long it Feels Like Right, the third novel in the King Oliver series. The pair also talked about the array of characters that populate Mosley's fiction, such as Easy Rawlins and Mouse, explored what makes Joe Oliver a hero, and learned about Mosley's upcoming projects.

Meet the Thriller Author celebrated ten years of the podcast with a look back and highlights.

Debbi Mack chatted with Priscilla Paton on the Crime Cafe podcast about her Twin Cities mysteries and the inspiration behind her dual detectives Eric Jansson and Deb Metzger.

On Crime Time FM, Tania Malik chatted with Paul Burke about her novel, just out in the UK, Hope You are Satisfied; Dubai; the immigrant experience; spooks, smugglers and tourists.

Murder Junction hosts Vaseem Khan and Abir Mukherjee spoke with crime writer Nina Badhreshwar about her debut novel, The Day of the Roaring, and discussed some fun facts about Sheffield.

On the Pick Your Poison podcast, Dr. Jen Prosser investigated which toxin causes excruciating pain and death in minutes, which one has been treated with amputation, and when petroleum jelly (brand name Vaseline) is used to treat poisoning.

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Mystery Melange

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The Southwest Florida Reading Festival in Fort Myers, Florida, this Saturday, March 1st, will feature several panels related to crime fiction. Tracy Clark and Stephen Mack Jones will start off at 10:30 by discussing the "Midwest Crime Scene," followed by Eli Cranor and R.J. Jacobs speaking on "It’s all in the Details." After lunch, Elinor Lipman and Annabelle Tometich will talk about "Misdemeanors, Felonies & Hilarious Hijinx," and then wrapping things up, Reed Farrel Coleman and Alison Gaylin will chat about "Mystery, Mayhem & Masterminds."

On Saturday, March 15th, the Tucson Festival of Books in Arizona has an all-start lineup of mystery and thriller authors, including Sandra Brown, Tess Gerritsen, Rachel Howzell Hall, JA Jance, Craig Johnson, William Kent Krueger, T. Jefferson Parker, Don Winslow, and more. General Admission and Fast Passes are still available.

If you find yourself Downunder over the next month or so, you can catch a couple of crime fiction panels. The first is March 4, Books in Bars - Criminal Minds author panel with Ashley Kalagian Blunt, Ali Lowe, B.M. Carroll, and Laura McCluskey in conversation with Kate Horan. The second takes place on Wednesday, May 14 in Cambridge, New Zealand, as Culprits in Cambridge - Mystery in the Library features two-time Ngaio finalist Nikki Crutchley chairing a panel with writers Zoë Rankin and Jen Shieff, and police detectives turned writers Angus McLean and Chook Henwood.

Fans of true crime, take note: Hosts of many popular true crime podcasts will headline a murder-themed cruise next year that's being billed as a first-of-its kind immersive mystery experience at sea. Currently scheduled to take part are America’s Most Wanted host John Walsh; Hannah Maguire and Suruthi Bala from RedHanded; Scaachi Koul and Sarah Hagi from Scamfluencers; Aaron Habel and Justin Evans from Generation Why; Carl Miller of Kill List; Hollywood & Crime host Tracy Pattin; and Chris Stewart from Law & Crime. The four-night cruise will sail from Miami, Florida, to Nassau, Bahamas in January 2026.

In honor of Mardi Gras, which this year falls on Tuesday, March 4, Janet Rudolph updated her list of Mardi Gras/Carnevale mysteries, mostly set in New Orleans, but with a few other countries and cities, as well.

On Art Taylor's blog, "The First Two Pages" (a feature originally created by the late B.K. Stevens) continues a celebration of the new—and eighth—Guppy Anthology, Gone Fishin’. Edited by James M. Jackson and published by Wolf’s Echo Press, the new collection features stories by members of the Guppy Chapter of Sisters in Crime. The book is subtitled Crime Takes a Holiday, and as the press materials clarify, crime also "Steals, Disrupts, Upends, Wrecks, Destroys and/or Shatters a Holiday" as well. After hosting Cindy Martin last week with an essay on her story, "Salt, Sand, Slay," Kate Fellowes is featured this week with her story, "Pier Pressure."

The Guardian reported on the CIA book smuggling operation that helped bring down communism.

In the stranger than life department, a clandestine workshop has been discovered in Rome where fakes of paintings by some of the world’s most famous artists, including Pablo Picasso and Rembrandt, were produced before being sold online.

In the Q&A roundup, Crime Fiction Lover spoke with Simon McCleave about his Ruth Hunter series of police procedurals, which are being adapted for TV, and his latest novel, Marshal of Snowdonia, the first in a new series; debut thriller author R. John Dingle chatted with Lisa Haselton about his new psychological thriller, Karma Never Sleeps; and Lisa Black applied the Page 69 Test to the fourth title in the forensic Locard Institute series, Not Who We Expected.

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Media Murder for Monday

[image error]It's the start of a new week and that means it's time for a brand-new roundup of crime drama news:

THE BIG SCREEN/MOVIES

ITN Distribution has acquired North American rights to the thriller, Joe Baby, starring Dichen Lachman, Willa Fitzgerald, Ron Perlman, and Harvey Keitel. The film "follows a money collector (Lachman) for a private investigator hired to track down 10 million dollars stolen in a dodgy real estate deal, opening a complex can of worms." Kelly Hu, Kenneth Choi, Corin Nemec, David Lipper, Dan Bakkedahl, and Jason London round out the key cast. The film is based on Drew Fine’s novel, with the screenplay adaptation by Todd Samovitz.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Wonder Man) has closed a deal to star opposite Mark Wahlberg in the crime thriller, By Any Means. The actor steps into the lead role originally to have been played by Sterling K. Brown, who departed the project due to scheduling conflicts. By Any Means is based on the incredible true story of the notorious mafia hitman who was hired by Hoover’s FBI off-the-books and partnered with a young Black special agent to hunt down those responsible for the murders of civil rights leaders in 1966 Mississippi.

MRC and T-Street productions are putting together the crime drama, A Place in Hell, featuring Fair Play director Chloe Domont, and starring Michelle Williams (Manchester by the Sea) and Daisy Edgar-Jones (Twisters). Details are sketchy, but the project is described as a thriller following two women at a high-profile criminal law firm.

TELEVISION/STREAMING

Great news for Blue Bloods fans: one of the drama’s signature characters, Donnie Wahlberg’s Danny Reagan, will be back on CBS with a new cop show in a new city. CBS has given a straight-to-series order to Boston Blue (working title), a universe expansion of the long-running Blue Bloods, for the 2025-2026 broadcast season. In the new series, from writers Brandon Sonnier and Brandon Margolis (S.W.A.T.), Wahlberg will reprise his role as NYPD Detective Danny Reagan as he takes a position with Boston PD. Once in Boston, he is paired with Detective Lena Peters, the eldest daughter of a prominent law enforcement family.

Miss Scarlet has been renewed for a sixth season on Masterpiece PBS and UKTV, with Kate Phillips once again reprising her role as the title character. Other members of the returning cast include Tom Durant-Pritchard as DI Alexander Blake, Cathy Belton as Ivy, Paul Bazely as Clarence, Simon Ludders as Mr. Potts, Tim Chipping as Detective Phelps, and Ansu Kabia as Moses Valentine. Joining the cast for the new season are Sam Buchanan as Detective George Willows, who joins Scotland Yard after rising through the police ranks, and Grace Hogg-Robinson as Isabel Summers, an ambitious young woman who joins the Clerical Office alongside Ivy.

Masterpiece on PBS has just unveiled the first look at Benjamin Wainwright (Belgravia: The Next Chapter) as Paris’s most renowned detective, Chief Inspector Jules Maigret, in the upcoming contemporary adaptation of Georges Simenon's iconic Maigret novels. PBS have put a new spin on the legendary sleuth, as the upcoming series re-positions him as an up and coming star in the Police Judiciaire — someone who is methodical, voracious in his approach, and with a knack of getting inside the minds of criminals. Joining Wainwright in the cast are Stefanie Martini, who plays Madame Louise Maigret, along with Blake Harrison, Reda Elazouar, Kerrie Hayes, Shaniqua Okwok, Rob Kazinsky, and Nathalie Armin as Prosecutor Mathilde Kernavel.

The BBC announced the return of the mystery drama series, Vigil. Suranne Jones and Rose Leslie return as DCI Amy Silva and DI Kirsten Longacre, whose new case takes them to a remote Arctic research station, where a member of a covert British special forces mission has been shot dead. Amy and Kirsten will need to catch the killer and diffuse a potential international confrontation, driven by a land-grab for energy and resources in the changing polar climate, with both their careers and relationship on the line. Premiering in 2021, when Silva was enlisted to solve a murder on a navy submarine in Scottish waters, Vigil was nominated for Best Drama Series at the 2022 BAFTA Television Awards, and went on to win the International Emmy for Best Drama Series.

CBS is sticking with its solid crime and adventure drama lineup by ordering more seasons of Elsbeth, Fire Country, Tracker, and its three NCIS series. The network already gave a full-season order to Matlock, and has announced it has ordered the Fire Country spinoff, Sheriff Country, with Morena Baccarin. The original FBI series was already renewed through the 2026-2027 broadcast season, but there's no word yet on the status of FBI: Most Wanted and FBI: International, as well The Equalizer and Watson.

PODCASTS/RADIO

Gigi Pandian returned to the Crime Writers of Color podcast to talk with Robert Justice about the latest installment of the Secret Staircase Mysteries and to give an update on her Accidental Alchemist and Jaya Jones series.

Crime Time FM welcomed Tod Lending to talk about The Umbrella Maker's Son; the Holocaust; interior character; documentary film; and storytelling.

The first Mysteryrat's Maze podcast episode of 2025 features the first chapter of Tragedy in Tahoe by Rachele Baker, as read by actor Ariel Linn.

Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester recommended books set in the locations of their 2025 vacations, on the Read or Dead podcast.

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Mystery Melange

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This is a virus-induced (RSV?) somewhat truncated "Melange" today. More next week!

The Los Angeles Times announced the finalists for this year's Book Prize, including those in the Mystery/Thriller category: Christopher Bollen, Havoc; Michael Connelly, The Waiting: A Ballard and Bosch Novel; Attica Locke, Guide Me Home: A Highway 59 Novel; Liz Moore, The God of the Woods; and Danielle Trussoni, The Puzzle Box. (Here's a version without the paywall) Winners will be revealed during a ceremony on April 25, at the University of Southern California’s Bovard Auditorium as part of the 30th Los Angeles Times Festival of Books.

As part of the Left Coast Crime in Denver, Colorado, Crooked Lane authors will be featured in a Noir at the Bar/Bookstore on Friday, March 14 at 6PM at Tattered Cover for live readings and giveaways. Authors taking part include Wes Browne, Mindy Carlson, Maria Kelson, Alex Kenna, Jennifer K. Morita, Cayce Osborne, and D.M. Rowell, moderated by David Heska Wanbli Weiden.

The Five-Two's original twelve-year run ended because submissions dried up, but editor Gerald So announced he may start up the online crime poetry publication again. He's seeking "honest, powerful reactions to what you see as crime, couched in poetic technique and figurative language" (to avoid receiving a content warning or being taken down by Google). If he accepts enough poems, The Five-Two will relaunch Monday, April 7, 2025 as part of National Poetry Month. The submission deadline is Monday, March 24, 2025, and you can read the full guidelines here.

In the Q&A roundup, D.W. Layton chatted with Lisa Haselton about his new political thriller, Otello’s Oil — A Saga of Blood & Oil; Sherry Rankin, whose novel, Strange Fire, won the 2017 CWA Debut Dagger Award, applied the Page 69 Test to her thriller, The Killing Plains; and Crime Fiction Lover interviewed British Irish author Kerry J. Donovan about his fugitive hero Ryan Kaine thriller series and more.

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Author R&R with D.W. Layton

[image error]D.W. Layton's life has been a journey as adventurous as the stories he writes. Inspired by James Michener's The Drifters, he set out to explore the world after college, experiencing life as a vagabond. He ran with the bulls in Pamplona, stomped grapes in Greece, and pulled giant crab pots from the depths of the Bering Sea. After law school, he attended Cambridge University, earning an advanced degree in international law, and spent over 35 years in practice, often representing governments in disputes at the World Trade Organization in Geneva. In addition to his legal career, Layton has always been passionate about the arts, even appearing in two operas at the Kennedy Center. He and his wife of over 45 years split their time between homes in Florida and the South of France, enjoying a life rich in culture and adventure. His debut novel is Otello's Oil. 

[image error]Otello’s Oil is the first of the "Saga of Blood & Oil" duology set at the beginning of the next decade when the global demand for oil is increasing, supplies are limited, and competition for what’s left keen. The story begins when the US Secretary of State invites Kuwait’s Oil Minister to dinner in Georgetown followed by opera at the Kennedy Center. In Act III of Giuseppe Verdi’s Otello a shot is fired, but no one hears a thing. The Minister slumps in his seat. Blood oozes from his chest. The Secretary was only inches away. Was she the target? Was she in love with her guest? Elliot Jones, a Special Agent with the US Diplomatic Service, is tasked with finding out. He soon discovers that the Oil Minister was in the crosshairs of a global battle among the super powers for energy.

The idea for writing Otello’s Oil first came to Layton thirty years ago. Back then he was a lawyer at the US Department of Commerce in Washington and a friend introduced him to the Washington Opera Company. One thing led to another and soon he appeared as a supernumerary in Aida, followed a few years later by, Otello, in which Layton was cast as the captain of the guards. In the opening scene of that opera, as the curtain jumps skyward and the orchestra explodes into Verdi’s opening Esultate in C-sharp major, Layton led the other guards at a full sprint across the front of the stage and up the stairs of the castle to see if they could spy Otello’s ships returning from battle. It was commonplace then, as it is now, for dignitaries and other VIPs to attend the opera in Washington. More often than not they would sit in the front row.

Layton stops by In Reference to Murder to take some Author R&R about researching and writing the book and series:

Otello’s Oil

I wrote Otello’s Oil in less than a year. How is that possible? Well, as a lawyer, you learn to write fast. No client, no matter how wealthy or how important the case, is going to pay for a brief or memorandum that takes years and years to write. Nor is any judge or arbitrator going to sit around and wait for you to finish a filing at your leisure. I also made a point in Otello’s Oil of writing about things I know. The examples are legion: the assassin from Egypt had the same part in Otello that I did, I used to own the same car, a 1954 Jaguar XK120, as that driven by DSS Agent Alice Lake, and Mrs. Layton and I once stayed in the same hotel room in Bali that US Secretary of State Lynne Farnsworth and her Qatari lover stayed in.

Otello’s Oil is also an international political thriller. The settings are, inter alia, an international diplomatic conference in Jakarta, the U.S. Mission in Geneva, and the White House. These are all places I have been and all things I have done in the course of my legal career. As a result, I did not have to perform that much research to write Otello’s Oil. Yes, I had to make sure my dates and details were accurate. For example, if I said Lynne Farnsworth, before she became the Secretary of State, was Majority Staff Director for the Senate Finance Committee, I had to make sure Senator Lugar, her sponsor, was chairman of the committee at that time. But for most everything else, I was able to write about things I generally know.

The only time I had to perform extensive research was when the story went far afield from my personal experiences. For example, I was never a Navy Seal. Indeed, I have never served in the military. And I’ve certainly never been the head of Egypt’s Bureau of Homeland Security, inside the Al-Seif Palace in Kuwait City, or inside private rooms in the Kremlin. On those occasions I needed to perform very detailed research. Thus, I would read books on the subject. Watch podcasts. Basically, devour anything I could so that my story and its details were accurate.

The ultimate goal being to write a story that was believable to as many readers as possible -- both the initiated and the uninitiated. I don’t want readers who are versed in these subjects and places to say: “that’s not right” or “that would never happen.” In this regard, I try to write like Tom Clancy did. Almost like I am writing historical fiction, or as I prefer to think of it – “contextually accurate fiction.”

St. Crispin’s Eulogy

The next book in the "Saga of Blood & Oil" is tentatively entitled St. Crispin’s Eulogy. Students of history and readers of Otello’s Oil will know that the Kuwaiti Oil Minister was killed on St. Crispin’s Day, October 25. St. Crispin’s Day is famous primarily because of the Battle of Agincourt in 1415 when the English army, led by King Henry V, achieved a decisive victory over the numerically superior French forces. St. Crispin’s Day is also well known because of William Shakespeare’s play Henry V, which includes the famous “St. Crispin’s Day Speech”:

We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; For he to-day that sheds his blood with me Shall be my brother.

I like this title because the readers of St. Crispin’s Eulogy will learn that the Kuwaiti Oil Minister was not the only person killed on October 25 at the hands of forces aligned with the global fossil fuel industry and its supporters. A group of idealistic and mainly young investigators in London who are trying to shed light on the labor practices and abuses taking place in the oil fields of the Gulf will also be killed on that day.

St. Crispin’s Eulogy will be both a sequel, a midquel, and a prequel to Otello’s Oil. It will, among other things, force my protagonist, Elliot Jones, to see Farnsworth’s Qatari lover, Saman Khalil Al-Fhani, in a new light. In fact, Jones will save Fhani’s life and expose the truth behind the deaths on St. Crispin’s Day.

You might think writing the second book would be easier than writing the first. It will not. In Otello’s Oil I could take the story anywhere I wanted. I wrote, as it were, on a "blank slate." In St. Crispin’s Eulogy the story must align in every respect with Otello’s Oil. Yes, the story will grow and the drama will increase, but it can’t conflict with anything in Otello’s Oil.

One Last Personal Observation

I think I may have been a teacher in an earlier life. I love to teach, to help people understand things. Over the years, I have taught classes and spoken at conferences hosted by countless organizations, including Georgetown University, American University, George Mason University, the American Bar Association, the Foreign Ministry of Iceland, the Foreign Ministry of Mexico, the Federation of Industries of the State of Sao Paulo, and the Foreign Ministry of the former Soviet Union. This probably explains, as much as anything does, why I take the time in my books to teach the reader a little something about everything from the Five Eyes Alliance exposed by Edward Snowden to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It also explains why I delight in reviews that describe Otello’s Oil as "uncommonly sophisticated" and "educational."

 

You can learn more about D.W. Layton and his writing at his website or by following him on Facebook, Instagram, Goodreads, and LinkedIn. Otello’s Oil is now available through all major booksellers, including Amazon.

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