More Chart News From STAC

There was a spectacular array of STAC Mysteries in the UK Kindle British Detectives top 100 at seven o’clock this morning.

#23 Murder at the Murder Mystery Weekend

#32 A Murder for Christmas

#50 The Filey Connection

#76 The I-Spy Murders

The only one not to make the top 100 was A Halloween Homicide.

Why are they suddenly so popular?

The time of year helps. Many people will have bought or been given Kindles over Christmas, and they’re eager to fill them. The price, too, plays a part. They’re currently part of the Crooked Cat Sale, and priced at just 77p (99ȼ) per title. I pay almost twice that for a loaf of bread at our local supermarket, and the bread doesn’t last as long as a STAC Mystery.

I’d like to think that the writing and the characters help. One reviewer said of The Filey Connection, “The characters all seem like people you’ve met at some time.”

That’s not accidental. I spent a great part of my working life travelling the length and breadth of Great Britain, and I’ve met my fair share of Joe Murrays, Les Tanners and George Robson. How many of us don’t know a merry widow like Brenda, a reserved widow like Sheila, or a hypochondriac like Sylvia? These are characters, not caricatures. Joe is no big hero, Brenda is not a sultry-eyed siren. They’re just ordinary people out to enjoy their middle years, free to relive their teens, and if the bones are too fragile for break dancing and head-banging, they can nevertheless still twist the night away. And if you’re going to tell me that middle aged people can’t do the bed-hopping, then I would suggest you need to do a little more research. The fabulous fifties and sensational sixties may not be setting records, but they’re still capable of a damn good time behind locked doors.

And along with these fun-loving, born-again teenagers, are plots which, for all their intricacies, are bog-standard murder mysteries, the kind we’ve all been enjoying since the heyday of Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple.

And long may it continue.

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If you have an e-reader other than the Kindle, don’t despair. You can still download the STAC Mysteries at sale prices, direct from Crooked Cat Books.