My novel Darling Girl used the bones of the original Peter Pan story to ask, “What would Peter and the Darling family be like today if the boy who couldn’t grow up, got older? And what would Neverland magic look like in our world?” I’ve always loved fairytales, and as an adult, I’ve been intrigued…
Ever since Margaret Truman conceived the brilliant Capital Crimes series in 1980. Washington, DC has been the dominant, if not exclusive, setting. And the latest entry, number thirty-two overall and my second since taking the reins, Murder at the CDC, is no exception. With that in mind, I thought it would be fun to list…
When I first started reading, I thought of fiction and non-fiction as two sides of the same coin, one nation perhaps, but cut in half. They were East and West Berlin, always divided, and with a heavily guarded border running down the middle, an impenetrable wall that could never come down. Then I read James…
Two billion books and counting. Agatha Christie is not only the best-selling fiction author of all time, she’s a cultural icon, almost synonymous with mystery itself. Whether you’re a seasoned Christie fan who’s read every single one of her sixty-six detective novels, or just setting out on the great treat of discovering her work, these…
I called upon a lifetime of reading for my latest novel, A Thousand Steps, a coming-of-age thriller set in Laguna Beach in 1968. There have been so many thousands of volumes written about coastal Southern California in the last century and a half, it’s not possible to read but a fraction of them. But certain…
Humans are curious by nature. We want to see mysteries resolved. The bigger the mystery and the stranger the clues, the deeper our craving for answers. Nowhere is this more on display than in the true crime community when faced with a death or disappearance that has gone unsolved. Authors aren’t immune to this. Sometimes,…
Somehow, despite what feels like mounting evidence to the contrary, we’ve nearly arrived at 2022. And while we’re still in denial, it seems all but certain to happen. So rather than sulk, we’ve decided to take a look at more than 50 of the most highly anticipated mysteries and thrillers hitting shelves between January and…
I love crime comics—so much so that I hope to one day create an imprint dedicated to all things crime. I write crime fiction novels, too (my newest, Blue Religion, hits the shelves October 12), and screenplays, and just signed a deal to pen a new crime comic series. When I’m not writing, I look…
The parents at the center of my novel The Neighbor’s Secret—otherwise law-abiding citizens—justify some very bad behavior in the name of protecting their children. Over-bearing, neglectful, competitive: there are endless ways family members, even well-intentioned ones, can burden each other with toxic cultures and inherited traumas. This is excellent news for crime readers, if not for…
It’s fair to say we’ve both read or watched the best thrillers during the last thirty years. In our opinion, obviously! And there’s one thing we always agree on: what scares us the most is serial killer with clear motives and a detailed plan. A relentless murderer who won’t stop until they’ve realized their grand…
