Brick, Directed by Rian Johnson, 2005 [SPOILERS]
When we meet Brendan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), he has lost his ex-girlfriend Emily (Emilie De Ravin) for the second time. As the audience of Brick, we don’t know that yet, but her lifeless body facedown at the mouth of a runoff tunnel is once enough. Crouching feet from her, Brendan doesn’t appear mournful or even surprised […]
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Fiction Review: Clawback by J.A. Jance
An investment company goes bankrupt as a result of a Ponzi Scheme leaving many of the local residents of Sedona, Arizona without their money and the threat of Claw back of any of the distributions they may have had. Ali Reynold’s is on a mission to clear her father of a double murder and recover […]
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Bosch – Amazon Original Series, Season 1 – SPOILER
Bosch, an Amazon Original series based on the novels of Michael Connelly, is a LAPD homicide detective that plays but the rules, most of the time. Currently in its 2nd season, each season deals with a new crime that is investigated over the 10 episodes. Season 1 focused on three of Connelly’s Harry Bosch novels, […]
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Fiction Review: Tricky Twenty-Two by Janet Evanovich
Note: This review contains SPOILERS from the book. The book Tricky Twenty-Two, by Janet Evanovich, is, not surprisingly, the twenty-second installment of Evanovich’s bounty hunter Stephanie Plum’s series of the comic crime fiction subgenre. Unfortunately, anyone who has read other books in the series and were excited for the next book may as well […]
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Fiction Review: “Hard Candy,” directed by David Slade. 2005
Please note: This review contains SPOILERS about the plot of the movie. (SPOILER) “Nothing’s yours when you invite a teenager into your home,” says Hayley just at the 30-minute mark of the movie Hard Candy. Hard Candy is an American indie psychological thriller. It is the brainchild of first time producer David W. Higgins, […]
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Dalziel and Pascoe: Mysterious Literary Drama
The BBC Dalziel and Pascoe Mystery series is based upon Reginald Hill’s series of crime drama novels featuring the unlikely partners Detective Peter Pascoe and Detective Superintendent Andy Dalziel. The tone and narrative of the work however, rises above simple police procedural crime drama. For example, Detective Pascoe, trying to comfort Dalziel who feels responsible […]
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And the winner is…
If you haven’t yet heard, last night’s Edgar® Awards were nothing short of thrilling. Although I didn’t have the opportunity to be there in person, many of the participants were live tweeting their antics and posting candid shots of the winners. You can check out the evening’s highlights by searching #Edgars2016 from your Twitter account. […]
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Making the Case for Hardboiled Sleuths in Video Games
Good morning scholars! This morning I came across a fantastic article in Paste Magazine addressing potential connections between the hardboiled detective genre and video games. Admittedly, I’m not much of a digital gamer (the last thing I tried being Atari in 1984…are they still around?) But from what I do know, long-form narrative games and […]
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Fiction Review: “Memento,” directed by Christopher Nolan. 2001 (SPOILERS)
Note to reader: this review contains SPOILERS concerning the general plot and execution of the film, but not the actual ending. Readers beware! Christopher Nolan’s feature debut was originally the brainchild of his brother, Johnathan Nolan. This neo-noir classic is a film you’ll want to see more than once, with an impeccable attention to detail […]
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In the News: The ‘Girl’ In The Title – More Than A Marketing Trend
Hi gang! Apologies – it looks like there was a bit of a glitch in WordPress and the original review of this link was erased somehow. However, you can still listen to the recording by visiting here: http://www.npr.org/2016/02/22/467392750/the-girl-in-the-title-more-than-a-marketing-trend
Berkeley Mystery Fiction 