What is it that makes for a great crime film? Is a movie a crime film simply because it deals with illicit characters? In that case, couldn’t a lot of political films be classified as such? Or what about corporate life? Aren’t these people infinitely worse than the robbers, thugs,… Read more
Everybody loves Iris Johansen's animal-whispering character Margaret Douglas! Read about some of her best moments & make sure to sign in and comment below for a chance to win a copy of No Easy Target! Iris Johansen has given us so many fascinating characters over the years. Kendra Michaels, the… Read more
This post was originally going to be about my favorite/influential mysteries, but I realized that the designation was too large. In order to hone the number down to 5—such a small number—I have to specify historical mysteries … in a series. Even then, the choice is difficult—except for #1!
It’s hard to believe that this is my fourth time writing this article. What started out as merely a brainstorming joke has turned into my favorite singular piece of writing I do each year. On Sunday, February 26th, the Oscar’s return, and with it comes nine nominees for Best Picture…. Read more
Crime and mystery fiction’s diversity attracts a broad readership. For instance, I prefer the soft stuff and am attracted to the puzzle rather than grizzly details, while many of my friends enjoy peeled skin and body parts. Knowing that, it seems immensely impertinent for me to try to compile a… Read more
In my twelve years as the crime analyst for the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office, I’ve seen and heard a lot of funny and unusual things—some of which provided great inspiration while writing Collecting the Dead and the follow-on books in my FBI Special Tracking Unit series. Here’s a sampling of… Read more
Why do we love heroes with a bit of bad in them? Antiheroes are popping up more and more in novels, TV shows and movies. Here's a look at why:
Castle ended this month, after eight seasons on the air, amid a swirl of controversy. The show chose not to renew Stania Katic’s contract, and plans for Season 9 included Rick Castle (Nathan Fillion) as the lead, with no Kate Beckett, despite the fact the show was based on the… Read more
A lot of research goes into my novels in order to make them believable. Beyond making sure the details are accurate, some of the things I’ve learned are literal lifesavers and some are just plain fascinating. Here's a short list of fun facts I’ve learned over the course of my… Read more
Eve Duncan has made a lot of enemies over the years. She’s faced the worst of the worst, including serial killers, terrorists, and now cartel leaders. We pulled out the case files and ranked the worst criminals she’s come up against. Did we miss your favorite dastardly foe?
