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John Valeri

John Valeri wrote the popular Hartford Books Examiner column for Examiner.com from 2009 – 2016. He can be found online at www.johnbvaleri.com and is featured in the Halloween-themed anthology Tricks and Treats, now available from Books & Boos Press.

Book Review: Island of Thieves by Glen Erik Hamilton

By John Valeri

August 3, 2021

Seattle native Glen Erik Hamilton’s debut novel, Past Crimes (2015), introduced readers to protagonist Van Shaw—a reformed thief and military veteran. In addition to launching a venerable series, that book garnered critical acclaim and won the Anthony, Macavity, and Strand Magazine Critics Awards while also being nominated for the Edgar, Barry, and Nero Awards; four…

Book Review: False Witness by Karin Slaughter

By John Valeri

July 20, 2021

Karin Slaughter is at the pinnacle of a career that shows no signs of slowing. The stats speak for themselves: Twenty-one novels published in 120 countries with more than 35 million copies sold. She’s alternated between equally successful series and standalone books and has both in development for on-screen adaptation—the Grant County and Will Trent…

Book Review: Her Last Breath by Hilary Davidson

By John Valeri

July 7, 2021

Her Last Breath by Hilary Davidson is a suspenseful thriller about a dead woman who predicted her own murder―and the sister who won’t let the truth be buried. Hilary Davidson began her writing career as a journalist before trading facts for fiction, and her impressive output reflects the discipline and doggedness of that pursuit. In addition…

Book Review: Murder, She Wrote: Killing in a Koi Pond by Jessica Fletcher & Terrie Farley Moran

By John Valeri

June 21, 2021

Murder, She Wrote: Killing in a Koi Pond by Jessica Fletcher & Terrie Farley Moran is the 53rd entry in the long-running series, where a friend’s husband dies while Jessica Fletcher is in town visiting, turning her much-needed vacation into a murder investigation. The indomitable Jessica Fletcher has a new writing partner: Agatha Award-winner Terrie…

Q&A with Lisa Unger, Author of House of Crows

By John Valeri

June 4, 2021

New York Times bestselling author Lisa Unger is quickly becoming as prolific as her body of work is prodigious. Having sold many millions of books worldwide in twenty-six languages, she notched yet another hit with last fall’s Confessions on the 7:45—now a 2021 ITW Thriller Award Nominee for Best Hardcover Novel as well as a…

Book Review: Matters of Doubt by Warren C. Easley

By John Valeri

May 19, 2021

If you haven’t discovered Warren C. Easley’s venerable mysteries featuring attorney and fly-fishing enthusiast Calvin Claxton, now’s the time. Easley—who had careers as a research scientist and business executive before turning to fiction—is being thrust back into the literary spotlight with Poisoned Pen Press’s reissue of his critically-acclaimed 2013 debut, Matters of Doubt, which precedes…

Book Review: Beyond the Headlines by R. G. Belsky

By John Valeri

May 14, 2021

There’s an old adage in publishing: Write what you know. It’s one that R.G. Belsky has applied liberally to his work as a crime novelist. The author had an esteemed career in journalism—including stints at the New York Post, the NY Daily News, Star Magazine and NBC News—before turning his attention to fiction. He has…

Book Review: The Newcomer by Mary Kay Andrews

By John Valeri

April 29, 2021

The Newcomer by Mary Kay Andrews follows Letty Carnahan, who recently fled from New York with her murdered sister’s child, Maya, to escape suspicion and start a new life working at a tourist destination in Florida—but her sister’s past and the details of her murder may prove more difficult to outrun than she could ever…

Book Review: You Love Me by Caroline Kepnes

By John Valeri

April 9, 2021

You Love Me by Caroline Kepnes is the highly anticipated third thriller in her hit You series—now a blockbuster Netflix show—and a compulsively readable trip into the deviant mind of the uniquely antisocial, savvy bookseller Joe Goldberg. New York Times bestselling author Caroline Kepnes is among an elite group of writers who have crafted such…

Book Review: The Package by Sebastian Fitzek

By John Valeri

March 5, 2021

The Package by Sebastian Fitzek, translated from its original German by Jamie Bulloch, follows the story of a woman traumatized by a serial killer who inexplicably allowed her to survive only to set off a descent into paranoia that threatens to unravel her entire life. Sebastian Fitzek may not be a household name in America…

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