Here’s a spectacular setup for a historical crime novel: There’s this emperor, see. We’ll call him C. But C is only one of four emperors because a while back the empire got divided into four parts. Emperors being what they are, all four are madly ambitious and jockeying for control, aiming to be the last…
In the newest Kurland St. Mary mystery, Major Sir Robert Kurland and Lady Lucy Kurland discover that Bath is not beneficial to everyone’s health. Major Sir Robert Kurland was wounded during the Battle of Waterloo. In January 1822, his steady recuperation hits a major setback. While walking his dogs, he collapses, burning up with fever.…
An attractive young woman smiles at a man through her apartment window. Once he’s in her apartment, she embraces him. “How are you going to kill me this time?” she asks. “I’m going to slash your throat,” he answers. Soon afterwards, we see them in bed, the man out of frame, the woman atop the…
Aspiring authors often ask me how I found my publishers. With my first attempt, I sent my manuscript to a couple of publishers who specialize in crime fiction. I was fortunate enough to find a home for what has developed into a long running series, and since 2009, I have been busy writing British detective…
Deadly Election by Lindsey Davis is the 3rd historical mystery in the Flavia Alba series set in Ancient Rome (available July 14, 2015). Deadly Election, Lindsey Davis’s latest novel of ancient Rome is a rewarding read, especially given how 2016’s potential candidates are already pontificating and bloviating. Television pundits (a dirty word—not unlike the term…
Miss Marple raises lots of questions. The most pertinent right now is: What is she doing in this story? Endless Night is a real suspense tale, told from the point of view of an opportunistic young man. Published in 1967, the novel was a hit with readers, not least because it was such a departure…
Blonde Ops by Charlotte Bennardo and Natalie Zaman is a Young Adult, tech-savvy romp through Rome where Bec must juggle her job at a fashion magazine, a potential threat to the First Lady, and of course, boys (available May 6, 2014). Teenage hacker Bec Jackson has been kicked out of her latest boarding school after…
The Ides of April by Lindsey Davis is a new mystery by the author of the Marcus Didius Falco series, set in ancient Rome and featuring a no-nonsense investigator who just happens to be a woman (available June 11, 2013). A woman PI (informer, to use the period parlance) on the mean streets of ancient…
Our friend Aurelio Zen, he of the stylish suits and Persol shades, seems to hit his stride in “Cabal,” the second episode of Zen on Masterpiece Mystery. If you were lukewarm about “Vendetta” (Episode 1) as I was, you might want to come back for another taste this week. The mystery is more intriguing and…
