B.V. Lawson's Blog, page 58
January 5, 2023
Mystery Melange
They've announced the winners of this year's Deutscher Krimipreis, a leading German crime fiction award. The German category was won by Johannes Groschupf's Die Stunde der Hyänen (The Hour of the Hyenas); second place went to Oliver Bottini's Einmal noch sterben (Die once more); and third place to Sybille Ruge for Davenport. The international category was won by Onda Riku's The Aosawa Murders; 2nd place: Jacob Ross - The Bone Readers; and 3rd Place: Cherie Jones - How the One-Armed Sister Sweeps the House. The German Crime Prize, awarded since 1985 by a jury of crime critics, literary scholars, and crime booksellers, is bestowed on novels that "give new impetus to the genre with their original content and literary skill."
The Saltire Society announced the winners of 2022 Scotland’s National Book Awards at a ceremony at the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh early in December. Alexander McCall Smith, librettist, playwright, poet, polymath, and novelist (of the Ladies' #1 Detective Agency series) was awarded the 2022 Saltire Society Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to Scottish literature.
Kate Jackson a/k/a "The Armchair Sleuth" over at the Cross-Examining Crime blog announced the winners of the blog's Reprint of the Year awards, drawing from over 160 possible reprints to choose from that were voted on by participating bloggers and blog readers. I think the book in the #1 position will be a surprise to many.
A slew of new creative works (music, movies, books) enter the public domain in the U.S. in 2023, including The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes, meaning that every Sherlock story will be out of copyright. This is legally important since the Arthur Conan Doyle estate has been suing just about everybody in recent years, even when it comes to certain public domain works. Most infamously, the Doyle Estate went after the creators of the Enola Holmes series, claiming a copyright over Sherlock stories where Holmes was "capable of friendship," "expressed emotion," or "respected women," based on the idea that these character traits are copyrightable. Although the cased was dismissed "with prejudice" (e.g. likely settled), with all Holmes stories now in public domain, such cases will no longer be tying up the courts. Author Cory Doctrow has an overview of the 2023 public domain landscape.
The 100 pages pages of a 1934 murder mystery, Cain’s Jawbone, were intentionally printed out of order by a British crossword master. As the book's cover declared, "It is possible — through logic and intelligent reading — to sort them into the only correct order, revealing six murder victims and their respective murderers." A relatively obscure work, it recently took on a new life on TikTok, which made it a global sensation, especially when it was revealed that only four people have solved the puzzle since its publication nearly eight decades ago.
It appears that a book-loving fungus has alien-hunting scientists excited.
This week's crime poem at the 5-2 weekly is "Where Donald T. Trump Has Been Jumping the Shark" by Clay Thistleton.
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January 2, 2023
Media Murder for Monday
It's the start of a new week (and a new year!) and that means it's time for a brand-new roundup of crime drama news:
THE BIG SCREEN/MOVIES
Gabriel Byrne (In Treatment) is the latest addition to the John Wick spinoff film, Ballerina, starring Ana de Armas. Production on the film is currently underway, with Len Wiseman directing from a screenplay penned by Shay Hatten (John Wick: Chapter 4). Previously announced ensemble cast members include Ian McShane, Anjelica Huston, Lance Reddick, Catalina Sandino Moreno, and Norman Reedus. The story is set between the events of John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum and Chapter 4 and follows ballerina-assassin Rooney (de Armas) as she hunts the assassins who killed her family.
Netflix revealed the title for its long-simmering Luther standalone movie that returns Idris Elba as the complicated detective in the crime drama that ran for five seasons on the BBC. Luther: The Fallen Sun, will arrive on the streamer in March 2023, with Jamie Payne directing from a script by series creator, Neil Cross. The film is being billed as a "continuation and re-imagination" of the BBC series, which scored 11 Emmy nominations during its run. The story follows a gruesome serial killer who is terrorizing London, while brilliant but disgraced detective John Luther sits behind bars. Haunted by his failure to capture the cyber psychopath who now taunts him, Luther decides to break out of prison to finish the job by any means necessary.
TELEVISION/STREAMING
NBC has picked up drama pilot, The Irrational, starring Jesse L. Martin, to series. Written by Arika Lisanne Mittman, The Irrational is based on Dan Ariely’s bestselling novel, Predictably Irrational. The show follows Alec Baker (Martin), a world-renowned professor of behavioral science who lends his expertise to an array of high-stakes cases involving governments, law enforcement, and corporations with his unique and unexpected approach to understanding human behavior. Maahra Hill, Travina Springer, Molly Kunz, and Arash DeMaxi also star.
In a "sizzle reel" for upcoming HBO and HBO Max programming, HBO unveiled the first footage from True Detective: Night Country, the long-anticipated fourth season of its Emmy-winning crime drama anthology True Detective. The new season, coming in 2023, stars two-time Academy Award winner Jodie Foster (The Silence of the Lambs) and actor-boxer Kali Reis (Catch the Fair One) and picks up after the long winter night falls in Ennis, Alaska, as the six men that operate the Tsalal Arctic Research Station vanish without a trace. To solve the case, Detectives Liz Danvers (Foster) and Evangeline Navarro (Reis) will have to confront the darkness they carry in themselves, and dig into the haunted truths that lie buried under the eternal ice. The promo reel also teases such upcoming shows as The Last of Us, The Idol, and White House Plumbers, as well as new seasons of series like Perry Mason, Succession, and Barry.
PODCASTS/VIDEO/RADIO/AUDIO
The latest episode of the Crime Cafe podcast features Debbi Mack's interview with crime writer, Tessa Lunney, about her Kiki Button series set in 1920s Paris and experiencing the joys of bohemian living, if only vicariously.
On the latest Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine podcast, Kevin Egan draws on his career as a clerk in Manhattan's supreme court for many of his stories. "Term Life," from the June 2014 issue, is another example of his mastery over crime fiction that thrills and entertains. This time, his recurring character Fox is out to save the life of a local judge.
Crime Time FM chatted with Simon Stephenson about his novel, Sometimes People Die; working in the National Health Service; scriptwriting in Hollywood; entering writing competitions; editing; medical serial killers through time; and the murder house. And in the show's 2022 finale, Jeffery Deaver (Lincoln Rhyme/Colter Shaw) spoke with Victoria Selman about "pulling the rug out from under your reader so often they’ll be sending you their chiropractor’s bills"; Hamilton tees; and "getting a character in."
Red Hot Chili Writers interviewed global crime writing superstar, Jane Harper, author of The Dry, to discuss Outback Noir and to pontificate on the merits of sexy Christmas underwear.
On Read or Dead, Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester discussed books they didn’t manage to get to in 2022.
All About Agatha closed out 2022 with Maureen Johnson, the talented writer of YA mysteries very much inspired by Agatha Christie.
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January 1, 2023
December 25, 2022
Sunday Music Treat
As we wrap up the Christmas music season, here's a piece titled "Song for Snow" by African-American composer, Florence Price, whose music has been having something of a renaissance lately. Written in 1930, this work for chorus and piano opens with the evocative lyric, "The earth is lighter than the sky," from a poem of the same name by American author, Elizabeth Coatsworth. The performance is by the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers and Chorus and pianist Paul Shaw, directed by Philip Brunelle.
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December 24, 2022
December 23, 2022
Friday's "Forgotten" Books - Red Christmas
Most people know him as creator of the now-classic Yorkshire detective duo Andrew Dalziel and Peter Pascoe and for his Crime Writers' Association Cartier Diamond Dagger for Lifetime Achievement. But author Reginald Hill (1936-2012) was also known as Patrick Ruell, publishing eight novels under that pen name beginning with The Castle of the Demon in 1971. Whereas most of his books, including the Dalziel and Pascoe series, are police procedurals or P.I. novels, the Patrick Ruell stories are what Mike Ripley of Shots Ezine calls "slightly surreal and very funny thrillers."
In 1972's Red Christmas, a group of strangers are on a Christmas Eve trip for a Dickensian weekend at Dingley Dell. They have seemingly nothing in common: Jules and Suzie Leclerc, a French couple; Arabella Allen, a 23-year-old English lass; and Stephen Swinburne, a "young many of great beauty." They're ensconced in the Dingley Dell manor along with other guests, including a German couple dubbed "Herr Bear" and "Frau Cow" and an American party-crasher, Robert E. Lee Sawyer, all under the watchful eye of the hosts, Wardle and Boswell.
But the festivities soon take a less cheery turn when one of the servants has an accident near a quarry on the property and is taken to the hospital. Arabella soon learns that behind the facade of good-will-toward-men hides conspiracy and intrigue when she learns she's being spied upon. Things take an even nastier turn when she stumbles upon the dead body of the servant who was supposedly recuperating in the hospital. Then the grinning face of yet another corpse is seen buried beneath the ice in a skating pond just as a blizzard is blowing in — and their only means of communication with the outside world, a radio, is sabotaged. As Arabella delves deeper, aided by her growing reliance upon Boswell, who is at the center of the mystery, she finds herself in the thick of an international spy ring, with double-cross and murder all part of the game.
I rather like Robert Barnard's foreword to the Black Dagger reissue from 1995, where he says "The action is fast and furious, the characterisation light but deft, the climax thrilling and satisfying. It is, no doubt about it, a heady brew, such as might have been served at the original Dingley Dell, and just as the Christmas season. Take emergency rations and a bottle of your favorite tipple, retreat to your study and lock out the family, then settle down to a rollicking good read. With a bit of luck it will last you the whole of Christmas Day."
The omniscient head-hopping is a bit dizzying at times, but it serves its purpose of keeping you unsteady and wondering just who is telling the truth and who is not. It's an anti-Christmas romp, so to speak, although there's plenty of spiked punch and red and green in the form of blood and forests and even a Christmas tree used as a diversion. If you get your fill of overly-sweet desserts and watch It's a Wonderful Life too many times, then Red Christmas might just be the antidote.
December 22, 2022
Mystery Melange - Holiday Edition
Janet Rudolph is continuing her Crime for the Holidays lists of Chanukah and Christmas themed mysteries, over on the Mystery Fanfare blog. The latter list has grown so large that it's split into multiple parts. Here's the first installment, Christmas Books by Authors A-E, following by authors F-L, and finally those that fall under M-Z. She even has a separate list of Winter Solstice Mysteries.
I've reported on this before, but Smithsonian Magazine recently took note of how "Iceland’s Christmas Book Flood Is a Force of Nature," and definitely a tradition I'd love to see embraced everywhere. Bibliophiles the world over cherish the legend of Jólabókaflóð, Iceland’s "Christmas book flood" in which publishers release new titles in time for the holidays. As the legend goes, each and every citizen of the uniquely literary nation gifts and receives books, and on December 24 everybody curls up with steaming cups of hot chocolate and plenty of reading with family and friends.
The Mysteryrat's Maze Podcast has been featuring Christmas-themed episodes this month. The first is the mystery short story, "The Afternoon Before Christmas" by Mark Murphy, as read by actor Sean Hopper; the second is the "Saint Nicked," written by Herschel Cozine (first published by Untreed Reads) and read by actor Larry Mattox.
Kings River Life also has several Christmas mystery short stories for the holiday season, including "Police Navidad" by Josh Pachter; "Bring It" by Terry Shames; "Santa's Helper" by John M. Floyd; and "Home for Christmas" by C.B. Peterson.
Charles Dickens, already a bestselling author of novels such as Oliver Twist, visited the United States just before the Civil War in 1842 and was not impressed. He didn't set foot back on American soil until a quarter-century later, lured by the tireless efforts of James T. Fields, the exclusive American publisher of Dickens's literary works. The resulting tour was a little like the Beatles U.S. event a century later, with crowds camped in frigid streets all night for one-dollar tickets that scalpers sold for $10. Dickens performed alone behind a podium without the aid of scenery, props, music, amplification, or costumes, including a December 1867 version of his abridged A Christmas Carol. One critic wrote that Dickens "dazzles you with 20 personalities."
The Brazos Bookstore in Houston, Texas, shared a photo on Instagram of its Lone Star state alternative to a snowman, noting: "We don't get snow (usually) in Houston, but there's always enough supplies to make a boxman! Everyone, we'd like to introduce you to Bertram the Boxman!" Inspired by that, fellow Houston bookstore, Murder by the Book, posted an image of its own version, Sherlock Boxman.
Did you know that "Carol of the Bells" comes from Ukraine? Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych wrote "Shchedryk" in 1916, originally as a winter folk song. The Ukrainian National Chorus brought it to the U.S. a few years later when they performed it at Carnegie Hall in October 1922 as part of a cultural diplomacy tour of the U.S. Later, American composer Peter Wilhousky gave the song its English lyrics and title in 1936, creating the contemporary Christmas staple. And now, a century after the song's North American debut and during Ukraine's latest fight for freedom, Ukrainian musicians brought "Shchedryk" back to Carnegie Hall earlier this month when the Shchedryk Children's Choir, along with several choruses and soloists, performed a concert of Ukrainian carols.
The authors at Mystery Lovers Kitchen have some suggestions for your holiday baking, including Sparkly Christmas Cookies from Peg Cochran; Candy Cane Frosting, courtesy of Cleo Coyle; Cranberry Sauce Bread via Maddie Day, Professor Plum Cake by Maya Corrigan, Abby L. Vandiver's Christmas Cookies, and many more.
Ever wonder where Advent Calendars come from? Did you know there were literary versions?Ever wonder where Advent Calendars come from? Did you know there were literary versions?
Need a little diversion when you have a few minutes between holiday parties, baking, reading, TV watching, etc.? The UK's intelligence service, Government Communications Headquarters (commonly known as GCHQ) has released its second annual GCHQ Christmas Challenge with a series of seven fiendish brainteaser puzzles (based on the seven disciplines of languages, engineering, codebreaking, analysis, maths, coding and cyber security) and a final twist: once you solve all seven puzzles, you'll need to think outside the box, using the design on the front of the card to assemble the answers.
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December 19, 2022
Media Murder for Monday
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
Michael Keaton, James Marsden, Marcia Gay Harden, Suzy Nakamura, Joanna Kulig, Ray McKinnon, John Hoogenakker, Lela Loren, and Al Pacino are set to star in the noir thriller, Knox Goes Away, which Keaton is directing. Keaton plays John Knox, a contract killer diagnosed with a fast-moving form of dementia. He vows to spend his final days attempting to redeem himself by saving the life of his estranged adult son (Marsden). He finds himself in a race against the authorities as well as the ticking clock of his own rapidly deteriorating mind.
Jack Huston is set to make his feature directorial debut with Day of the Fight, a project that will re-team him with his Boardwalk Empire colleague, Michael Pitt, who will star. Huston will also write and produce the movie about a once-celebrated boxer who takes a redemptive journey through his past and present, on the day of his first fight since leaving prison. Production is underway in New York and New Jersey. Day of the Fight will also star One Night in Miami's Nicolette Robinson, Oscar winner Joe Pesci, John Magaro, and Ron Perlman.
Legendary Entertainment and AfterShock Media have closed a deal for a feature adaptation of the latter’s graphic novel, Party & Prey, from creators Steve Orlando and Steve Foxe. Patrick Brice (Creep) has been tapped to direct from a script by Rob Forman (iZombie). Published in 2021, the graphic novel is billed as "a social horror-thriller with a bold genre twist." It tells the story of Alan, a wealthy, older gay man, who meets a confident and attractive young man named Scott at a nightclub. Their chemistry leads them to end up at Alan’s house, where the men’s dark secrets are laid bare and they have a night together neither of them expected.
TELEVISION/STREAMING
CBS has ordered its first series for the 2023-24 season, titled It’s The Never Game, a new drama that will star and be executive produced by Justin Hartley. Based on the bestselling novel by Jeffery Deaver, The Never Game features Hartley as lone-wolf survivalist, Colter Shaw, who roams the country as a "reward seeker," using his expert tracking skills to help private citizens and law enforcement solve all manner of mysteries while contending with his own fractured family. Robin Weigert, Abby McEnany, Eric Graise, Fiona Rene, and Academy Award Winner Mary McDonnell will also star.
NBC is developing The Chase, a crime drama from Supergirl alumna, Azie Tesfai, and Universal Television. Written and executive produced by Tesfai, The Chase follows undercover CIA agent, Robert, who falls for his target, Katherine, which sets in a motion a Bonnie-and-Clyde style escape. But the plan goes sideways when they’re captured by the American government and forced to use their opposing assets and skills to find some of the most wanted criminals in the world, all while learning the other person isn’t who they first thought.
PODCASTS/VIDEO/RADIO/AUDIO
NPR's Fresh Air interviewed director Rian Johnson about making his latest "Agatha Christie-style whodunit," Glass Onion.
The latest episode of the Crime Cafe podcast features Debbi Mack's interview with crime writer, Chip Jacobs. His latest book is The Darkest Glare: A True Story of Murder, Blackmail, and Real Estate Greed in 1979 Los Angeles.
The It Was a Dark and Stormy Book Club Elves settled in for a long winter's tale and shared what they've read recently, including The Case of the Ghost of Christmas Morning (Anty Boisjoly Mysteries #2) by P.J. Fitzsimmons, and What Child is This? (A Sherlock Holmes Adventure #5) by Bonnie MacBird.
On Read or Dead, Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester discussed their favorite mysteries and thrillers of 2022.
On Crime Time FM, authors Araminta Hall (Hidden Depths), Erin Kelly (The Skeleton Key), and CL Taylor (The Guilty Couple) chatted with Victoria Selman about why women are drawn to crime fiction; reflections on violence in society; gaslighting; frenemies; media coverage; and whether women have fair representation in the press.
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December 18, 2022
Sunday Music Treat
Continuing the Christmas-themed music this month, here's a short piece by John Knowles Paine (1839-1906), who was the first American-born composer to earn widespread recognition for his larger-scale symphonic works. But his smaller compositions, including his piano pieces, have been largely forgotten, even though he went on to become an influential music professor at Harvard. "Christmas Gift," a piece I think Scott Drayco is familiar with, is one of his earliest published works—from Paine's Opus 7 composed in 1862 when he was 23—played here by pianist Christopher Atzinger:
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