I’ve shaken hands with killers. I’ve stood outside their homes and drunk their coffee and made snide remarks about the state of their curtains. I’ve watched them tearfully appeal for witnesses and seen them urge their loved ones to come home. I’ve spoken to murderers on the telephone and made one laugh with a story about my daughter. One particular psychopath brushed past me on his way to take the stand at Hull Crown Court and then humbly apologised for standing on my foot. If he’d been equally repentant about stabbing a young woman to death, there would have no need for a criminal trial…
What I’m saying is that I’ve met the men and women that provide the ‘characters’ in real-life drama. I’ve looked into the eyes of people who have taken another life, and I’ve seen my own features swim on the irises of the damned. But the funny thing is, I’ve never met a single killer who is anything like the murderers in fiction. I’ve never met a Hannibal Lecter or a Gretchen Lowell. I’ve met jealous husbands who have gone too far while holding a pool cue and a bottle of Jack Daniel’s, and I’ve met drug pushers who didn’t realise quite how hard it is to just shoot somebody in the legs when you’re holding a gun that kicks like a mule. But I’ve never sat through a murder trial and thought ‘this would make a good novel’. I’ve never thought that Lincoln Rhyme or Clarice Starling or Kinsey Millhone should be out on the mean streets of Yorkshire trying to get to the bottom of some real-life tragedy rather than trailing brilliant psychos somewhere more cinematic.
My point? Crime fiction, and crime fact, are a million miles apart.
I would love to think there is a real-life equivalent of the fictional hero. I’d love to think there is a lone investigator with piercing insights and a genius IQ who can see through the villain’s eyes and stop further tragedies. I just can’t convince myself of it. Killers are people who lose their temper, or have easy access to a gun. Despite the brilliant premises of endless books and films, very few killers go to the trouble of pinning notes from the Bible on the corpses of their victims, or nibbling off their fingerprints. No, they tend to just say “you bitch” and then lash out with whatever is closest to hand.
The reality is somewhat different.
If a real-life case were made into a novel, it just wouldn’t work. I sat through a two-week murder trial a few years ago that has stayed with me ever since. A young, beautiful, sweet-natured woman, had walked home from a New Year’s Eve party to go and check on her new kittens. On the way, she bumped into a young man who was on his way to a neighbouring property after a night drinking with friends. Somehow, he got her into his flat. He killed her and her body was found days later when the police searched every house in the neighbourhood. It was an open and shut case, though the killer came up with some incredible bullshit defence in which he blamed his best friend for the crime. The trial was agony for the family. Her name and character were dragged through the dirt. Her family endured endless torments. The killer told such lies that we in the press pack wanted to puke. And then he was found guilty and given life imprisonment. It was a horrid, raw, and eviscerating experience for all concerned, and at no point did I imagine how a fictional detective would have got to the answers more quickly. I did vaguely entertain the notion of a Jack Reacher simply dispensing a different kind of justice, but in reality, Reacher would be up in court a few months later when the whole process began again.
In essence, reality is just too horrible. So go read a grisly crime thriller for some escapism.
This sweepstakes has entered.
To enter for a chance to win one of five copies of David Mark’s The Dark Winter, make sure you’re a registered member of the site, and then simply leave a comment below.
TIP: Since only comments from registered users will be tabulated, if your user name appears in red above your comment—STOP—go log in, then try commenting again. If your user name appears in black above your comment, You’re In!
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A purchase does not improve your chances of winning. Sweepstakes open to legal residents of fifty (50) United States and the District of Columbia, who are 18 or older. To enter, fill out entry at https://www.criminalelement.com/blogs/2012/10/you-cant-handle-the-truth-escape-with-some-crime-fiction-david-mark-detective-thriller-true-crime-legal-wrangling-just-plain-awful-journalist beginning at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time (ET) October 20, 2012. Sweepstakes ends at 9:59 a.m. ET on October 27, 2012 (the “Promotion Period”). Void outside of the 50 US and DC and where prohibited by law. Please see full details and official rules at https://www.criminalelement.com/page/official-rules-david-marks-the-dark-winter-comment-sweepstakes. Sponsor: Macmillan, 175 Fifth Ave., New York, NY 10010
David Mark has been a journalist for fifteen years, including seven as a crime reporter. The Dark Winter, the first in the Detective Sergeant Aector McAvoy series, is his fiction debut. He lives in Great Britain.
I retired from a law enforcement position recently after 20+ years, and have also joked with murderers, admired drug traffickers pets, and learned the human side of criminals. I have also had to deal with the human tragedy of many of their acts, and this is one of the reasons I enjoy crime fiction. Things tend to be tied up neatly, qucikly and the investigator moves on. Real life is a lot trickier…
Interesting post.
In crime fiction, there’s a satisfactory conclusion, not always the case in real life.
I started reading true crime before I switched to crime fiction. Knowing the monsters were real was too awful. I prefer the fiction with a good ending.
I started reading Lawrence Block’s Matthew Scudder crime fiction. They got me hooked and now I am looking for more crime fiction!
These real life stories creep me out more than straight fiction
this looks great
this looks interesting.
looks great!
Thanks for the chance!
cody_endres(at)hotmail(dot)com
This books sounds terrific….Thank you for this contest.
would love to read this
This looks to be an interesting read.
Great contest! Looks like a great read!
Groovy!
Very nice!
looks good!
Seems to be a good read.
I prefer fiction where they get the bad guy. Too many real-life bad guys are still out there. Also, did you have to show Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher? If you’ve read the books, you know Cruise can’t possibly be Reacher! Grrrr!
i would really love to read this !!!
thanks for the great post and congrats on the new release!
It sounds like you really get to know people like your characters. I would like to read more. thanks for the giveaway!
Woah. Just reading this gave me the chills. The book sounds it would be awesome!
this sounds awesome and I would love to read this.
We’ve had some murders in my small town. I’ve seen how they tear the famlies apart- especially the children. I agree w/ you. I would love to read how you handle writing a character like this.
Books written by experienced journalists have the potential to be very entertaining. This one falls in that category.
Sounds like a great read!
Great contest. Thanks. I think crime thrillers have the smarter than average killers. That is what makes it interesting. In real life people make irrational decisions and without a lot of thought and that usually means they make mistakes. But that is not as interesting to read as the smart fiction crime thrillers.
Real life is just too scary nowadays.
First post makes me want to read it.
I’m an avid reader of both fiction and nonfiction mystery. This article was very interesting.
I’d love a chance to read this book….always looking for new authors to add to my list of reads.
Reading True Crime always amazes me hoe close fiction and truth are.
I love to read crime fiction.
This may be true, but there’s quite a few crime novelists who worked “in the business” before writing their novels. Kathy Reichs and Julie Kramer come to mind.
I love to read crime fiction, but it’s true crime that keeps me up at night and listening to every creak and sound in the house.
[b][color=rgb(64, 224, 208)]Always love a new crime novel~thriller/suspense, my favorite genre! ;)[/color][/b]
The Dark Winter looks fantastic. I can’t wait to read this book!
would love to win!
PICK ME!!
Could surely enjoy some fictional crime–too much of the real stuff going on these days!
I do love some crime thrillers!
I love the thrill it gives you to read crime stories. Fiction or NonFiction it doesn’t matter.
Reads like a book I would enjoy.
Not sure why so many are attracted to crime novels, but I’m a fan! Thanks for the giveaways.
Sounds like a good story. Sign me up.
Winning a copy could only make reading it better 🙂
Count me in, please!
sounds like a fantastic read
cant wait to read
I can handle the “truth”!
Just love British police proceduals.
I like true crime when it’s written with compassion. Ann Rule is my favorite. But sometimes I prefer crime fiction because you get all the intrigue and suspense without the painful reality.
This book looks like it is worth a shot! Always open for new upcoming mystery authors.
Sounds good…. I’d like to give it a ‘shot’
The closest I’ve ever been to a serial killer was the Night Stalker Richard Ramirez when we lived in the Temple City / Arcadia area ,that was really scary.
The best fiction is stuff that COULD happen, but probably won’t. Dumb criminals being caught right away doesn’t make as decent a drama.
In crime fiction, the criminals aren’t stupid but in real life they tend to be and make mistakes.
Awesome. Looks great!
Great post and one that makes me very excited at the possibility
of winning this suspenseful book!
Many thanks, Cindi
jchoppes[at]hotmail[dot]com
Occasionally I read true crime books, but the reality is so frequently horrible that I prefer something fictional. Some of the things that happen are not things I want to read about.
Looks like a good read.
I’ll take the escape!
I think I’d really enjoy reading this!
Sounds like a fun read.
I really appreciate this essay. I do not read “true crime” but I love mysteries. I think there is truth and insight to be found in novels in which we can find metaphors and life lessons in fictional towns. I would not want to spend time with a killer, even in the pages of a book–I don’t want to give them one moment of attention.
Though I do like books that give a glimpse of real-life policework. No glamorizing of murderers there.
Like BLB above I started off reading true crime and would be stunned and left shaken by what I read. That people could actually do that to one another.
So I am glad of fictional crime and cop procedurals so I can get the “crime” and say “It’s not real though” at the end of the book.
would love to win!
Sometimes I feel that true crime is very anti-climatic. The reality lacks the intensity of a novel, and the true brashness of a villain character. Honestly, that makes me grateful. I don’t think we could handle those who would be so over the top.
Read crime fiction all the time–usually more than one at a time.
Thanks for the chance to win! I would love to be a charter member in the Detective Sergeant Aector McAvoy readers fan base! I would be happy to talk it up on FB after reading it also! Interested to read what you would consider a good crime novel after your real life experiences, David Mark. :^)
Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher?! How absurd. Not ot nitpick, but wasn’t Jack Reacher 6 feet tall and change?
Well written crime fiction is some of the best escapism. Forget the 50 Shades series or any other romance mmpb. I read crime fiction in the bathtub.
I love crime thrillers!
This is my comment—
Count me in…
Since there are no perfect people, how can there be a perfect crime?
Interesting.
I would love to read this. Both real crime and fiction can be a great read.
GREAT READ WITH WINTER COMING ON.
Count me in.
sounds good
Think it will be a good read
it’s the tock that follows the tick that makes all the difference
I’ve won books at other sites and would like to win one from Criminal Element, hopefully this is the one.
crime fiction and crime fact are a million miles apart-interesting
Sounds like a good book, can not wait to read it!!!
looks like a good one!
Sounds good.
Thank you for the great giveaway please count me in 🙂
kathypease(at)gmail(dot)com
Absolutely love this genre and have fingers crossed to win this addition to my home collection of books.
Sounds like an awesome read, would love to win it.
I agree with earlier comment that Tom Cruise is [u][b]NOT[/b][/u] a good choice to play Jack Reacher. My friends and I picked at least 20 better choices while we were sitting on the beach last week.
I would love to read David Mark!
i would love to read this book, ty
Sounds like a great book
Ooooo, sounds good.
It sounds great. Thanks for the giveaway.
This sounds like a great book!
Sounds great, please enter me!
I’d like to read this.
Sounds interesting.
wow, I even like the way this article was written!
The same things hold true about the forensic crime shows (which I enjoy a lot). It is amazing how everyone confesses when confronted by the forensic team–not to mention the fact that I somehow doubt the lab people are normally the ones who are questioning the suspects! But you have to get it wrapped up within the hour, unless you have a 2 or 3 parter!
This sounds like a great read. I love finding new books. Thanks.
sounds great, thanks!
Sounds like a great read and right up my alley.
email/ daveshir2005@yahoo.com
fb/ shirley greenawalt zolenski
Sounds like a good book to curl up with on a dark and stormy night.
I love getting in on the beginning of a new series! Thanks!
OK, what does it say about me when I wondered WHAT HAPPENED TO THE KITTENS!?
I read a lot of ‘grisly crime thrillers’. I want to write one. Show me how, Mr. Mark! Thank you. HAPPY HALLOWEEN.
It sounds like a great book. I would be interested in getting in on the beginning of a new series.
Pick me, pick me!
Please enter me in the contest! Thanks
I would love to win this!
Looks great
I’m in the unusual position of knowing David Mark rather well in the real world, and can confirm that, despite being a bit of a twat, he really does have an excellent insight into the world which he describes here. The Dark Winter genuinely is a fabulous book (painful though it is to admit – see aforementioned “twat” comment), peppered with real-life observations which lend the more thrilling, fictional elements added weight.
A few posters such as Maureen above have wondered what David considers to be a good crime novel – I have it on authority that an article by David on just such a topic is due soon. Keep an eye on his Twitter if you’re interested. Or don’t – he is a bit of a twat, after all…
Sounds enticing!