Katia Lief

Fresh Meat: The Caretaker by A.X. Ahmad

By Katia Lief

May 19, 2013

The Caretaker by A.X. Ahmad is a debut thriller involving scandal, political corruption, and men with pasts they would prefer not to revisit (available May 21, 2013). In A.X. Ahmad’s masterful, page-turner of a debut thriller, The Caretaker, Ranjit Singh is a disgraced captain of the Indian army who finds himself living with his wife…

Tattoo art of red devil on shoulder

The Mechanics of Suspense: Butterflies Are (Not) Free

By Katia Lief

May 5, 2011

Today’s hot marketplace for thrillers places a little red devil on crime writers’ shoulders, mercilessly reminding us to speed up the story at all costs:  “Faster, buddy boy.  Keep that action movin’!”  Yes, some readers like a narrative weightless enough to mainline like a sugarcoated donut and black coffee in the morning, briefly tricking you…