The heroine of Timothy Schaffert’s latest historical, The Perfume Thief, certainly stands out in a crowd. Clementine, an American ex-pat in her 70s, dares to dress in tuxedos and trousers at the height of the German occupation of Paris, a time when bucking convention or being outwardly “Other” is exceedingly dangerous. But Clem, a queer…
Hannibal 3.06's “Dolce” answers whether “Dr. Fell” will accept an amicable divorce over widowerhood. It also returns to Bedelia's axis of Betrayal vs. Forgiveness, and whichever of those claims to be deployed, it comes with lethal edges. As one couple parts, a new power couple will ascend, and the fans' favorite couple will finally reunite.…
This fannish confab about Buffy the Vampire Slayer, with Dana Cameron, Charlaine Harris, and Toni L.P. Kelner, is gleefully offered in commemoration of the 70th anniversary of Mystery Writers of America. Did you watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer from the very beginning? If not, what lured you in? Charlaine: I had seen the original…
An excerpt of The Red Pole of Macau, the third book in the Ava Lee international thriller series by Ian Hamilton (available December 31, 2013). Family ties are stressed to the limit when intrepid forensic accountant Ava Lee must rescue her half brother, Michael, and his business partner, Simon, from a disastrous multimillion-dollar real-estate deal…
Iron & Velvet by Alexis Hall is the first book in the Kate Kane: Paranormal Investigator romantic suspense noir series (available December 16, 2013). My name’s Kate Kane, and when an eight-hundred-year-old vampire prince came to me with a case, I should have told her no. But I’ve always been a sucker for a femme…
Taken by the Wind by Ellen Hart is the 21st installment of the Jane Lawless series, set in and around contemporary Minneapolis (available October 8, 2013). Jane Lawless’ friend Andrew asks for her help when his 12 year-old son and another boy go missing after a camping trip. Andrew is recently separated from his partner,…
Scandal, Shonda Rhimes' hit political thriller, is terrific trash. I don’t say that as a backhanded compliment, either. I have every reason to believe that it’s designed to be instantly disposable. Amped up and flashy to the point of garishness, it’s an expertly made show that cannot withstand a single moment of serious consideration. I…
An excerpt of The Wild Beasts of Wuhan, the second book in the Ava Lee mystery series by Ian Hamilton (available June 25, 2013). Meet Ava Lee, alluring but deadly, with a mind like a steel trap, as she chases millions of dollars and dangerous criminals around the globe in this exotic and fast-paced new…
I wanted to hate the new Batwoman. She was a replacement for a character I liked very much, circus owner Kathy Kane. Kathy Kane was a silly Silver Age Batwoman who showed up in Batman comics in the 1970s as older, wiser, and tougher than in her previous stories. She was then abruptly killed off…
Rest for the Wicked by Ellen Hart is the twentieth Jane Lawless, restaurateur and Private Eye traditional mystery (available October 2, 2012). I have been reading books written by Ellen Hart for—can it be?—twenty years. I started off in the early nineties when I came across a copy of Hallowed Murder on a library shelf.…
