Every book is a quotation; and every house is a quotation out of all forests, and mines, and stone quarries; and every man is a quotation from all his ancestors. —Ralph Waldo Emerson No matter the type of crime fiction, familial relationships are often the key factor in understanding why a bad deed is committed.…
This bit of dialogue started everything: Deputy Wendell: This is turnin’ into a hell of a mess, ain’t it, Sheriff? Sheriff Ed Tom Bell: If it isn’t, it’ll do until the mess gets here. It’s from the film version of No Country For Old Men by the Cohen brothers. One of my all-time favorite…
I’d like to start this review of Joe R. Lansdale’s The Bottoms by admitting that my only exposure to his work prior to this 2001 Edgar Award winner was a love of the film adaptation of Bubba Ho-Tep (which I only recently learned was based on a Lansdale short story) and a general understanding of…
But my confidence was cosmetic. Neither I nor anyone I knew in Deaf Smith had any influence over Vernon Smothers. He believed intransigence was a virtue, a laconic and mean-spirited demeanor was strength, reason was a tool the rich used to keep the poor satisfied with their lot, and education amounted to reading books full…
Strong as Steel is the 10th book in Jon Land’s award-winning Caitlin Strong series. USA Today bestselling author Jon Land is one of the most consistent, and consistently innovative, writers working in the thriller genre today. He’s amassed a backlist of more than forty titles and written across both fiction and non-fiction, his propulsive prose…
S.C. Perkins’ Murder Once Removed is the first mystery in the Ancestry Detective series, in which Texas genealogist Lucy Lancaster uses her skills to solve murders in both the past and present. Murder Once Removed, S.C. Perkins’ debut cozy mystery, is the perfect first in a new series and I’m eager to continue. Good-hearted, inquisitive and intelligent,…
S.C. Perkins’ Murder Once Removed is the cozy debut in the Ancestry Detective series, in which Texas genealogist Lucy Lancaster uses her skills to solve murders in both the past and present. Except for a good taco, genealogist Lucy Lancaster loves nothing more than tracking down her clients’ long-dead ancestors, and her job has never been…
Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke is a powerful thriller about the explosive intersection of love, race, and justice. The first person we meet in the little Texas town of Lark is Geneva Sweet, proprietor of Geneva Sweet’s Sweets, a small roadside café where you can get a good meal washed down with iced tea—or maybe something…
The Blinds by Adam Sternbergh is a unique thriller that mixes elements of science fiction, Westerns, and mystery to create a truly wild ride (available August 1, 2017). Despite being set in a community that is baking out in the open in the hot Texas sun, The Blinds by Adam Sternbergh is one of the…
Christmas in the Lone Star State by Jason Manning is a Western set in the rough-and-tumble Texas frontier. Read Scott Adlerberg's review of Christmas in the Lone Star State by Jason Manning, and make sure you're signed in and comment below for a chance to win a copy of this wintry Western! Set in Texas…
