Hard-Boiled Heroines: Phryne Fisher in Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries
Phryne Fisher, the main character in the Miss Fisher’s Murder Mystery Series, based on Kerry Greenwood’s novels, is the epitome of the female hard-boiled detective. Phryne Fisher (Essie Davis), is a Post-World War 1 detective and socialite with a penchant for solving mysteries. Although she originally gets into the detective business to discover and avenge […]
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Much to Like about “The Likeness”
In a 2009 Guardian article, award-winning novelist John Banville was questioned about whether his Detective novels deserved to be treated as true literature. “When I get up in the morning,” he said dryly, “I ask my wife whether I should write a Booker Prize winning novel, or another bestselling crime book. And we always come […]
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Gold Coast, Elmore Leonard, 1980
Elmore Leonard’s Gold Coast is classified as a fiction crime thriller and opens on Karen Di Cilia recognizing that her husband is having an affair with a real estate woman. Karen’s confrontation over the affair seems minimal enough, other than her act of smashing in her husband’s car with her own vehicle in front of […]
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Film Review (Kind of): “Cats Are Poor Dumb Things”
Image from Best Buy The Postman Always Rings Twice is a film starring Lana Turner and John Garfield and was released in 1946. We are once again exposed to the gritty underbelly of the city of Los Angeles. The two protagonists are dreamers desperately clinging to lives they think they deserve, and ultimately become embroiled […]
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A Film Review: Knives Out (2019)
Knives Out is a mystery film released in September 2019 by Lionsgate Films, directed by Rian Johnson, produced by Ram Bergman, and starring Daniel Craig, Ana de Armas, Chris Evans, and Christopher Plummer. Synopsis: A wealthy, mystery fiction writer, Harlan Thrombey, is found dead in his study the night after his 85th birthday celebration, which […]
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Underrepresented Voices, Presented by Crime Writers of Color at Bouchercon!
Are you a crime writer from a marginalized community attending #Bouchercon 2021 in NOLA? Sign up to be spotlighted at our “Underrepresented Voices, Presented by Crime Writers of Color” reception on Friday, August 27 from 4:30 – 6 pm ET! https://crimewritersofcolor.com/bouchercon2021 Crime Writers of Color is thrilled to host the first-ever “Underrepresented Voices, Presented by […]
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Book Review: “States of Grace” by Mandy Miller (2021)
“States of Grace” by Mandy Miller is the author’s debut novel. In full disclosure, the author is one of my dearest friends, but I’ve attempted to eliminate all bias from this review. Luckily this was not difficult because the novel is a delicious romp through the strangeness of the Fort Lauderdale, Florida’s criminal and judicial landscape. “States of […]
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Book Review: Snow by John Banville (2020)
“Snow” by John Banville Published October 6, 2020 “Snow” by John Banville is an historical novel that uses the classic cozy mystery format to reveal more than just whodunit. Detective Inspector St. John Strafford (that’s Strafford with an “r,” as he diligently points out in nearly every introduction) is a Dublin detective sent south to the County […]
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Film Review: Clue (1985)
Clue is a comedy/mystery film directed by Jonathan Lynn based on the board game Clue. Six people are invited to a dinner party in a mysterious mansion and are each given an alias that coincides with the game’s playable characters. There are eight main characters, so a familiarity with the game comes in handy when […]
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Book Review: The Likeness by Tana French (2008)
Warning: Contains Spoilers At its best The Likeness by Tana French is a richly described mystery that offers both suspense and a memorable group of troubled personalities. The five graduate students, who along with Detective Cassie Maddox, are at the center of the story, form a cult-like group while living in Whitethorn, an Edwardian mansion […]
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Berkeley Mystery Fiction 