SUMMARY: In a perfect marriage of author and subject, P. D. James—one of the most widely admired writers of detective fiction at work today—gives us a personal, lively, illuminating exploration of the human appetite for mystery and mayhem, and of those writers who have satisfied it.P. D. James examines the genre from top to bottom, beginning with the mysteries at the hearts of such novels as Charles Dickens’s Bleak House and Wilkie Collins’s The Woman in White, and bringing us into the present with such writers as Colin Dexter and Henning Mankell. Along the way she writes about Arthur Conan Doyle, Dorothy L. Sayers, Agatha Christie (“arch-breaker of rules”), Josephine Tey, Dashiell Hammett, and Peter Lovesey, among many others. She traces their lives into and out of their fiction, clarifies their individual styles, and gives us indelible portraits of the characters they’ve created, from Sherlock Holmes to Sara Paretsky’s sexually liberated female investigator, V. I. Warshawski. She compares British and American Golden Age mystery writing. She discusses detective fiction as social history, the stylistic components of the genre, her own process of writing, how critics have reacted over the years, and what she sees as a renewal of detective fiction—and of the detective hero—in recent years.There is perhaps no one who could write about this enduring genre of storytelling with equal authority and flair: it is essential reading for every lover of detective fiction. Views: 72
Andy Broussard, the plump and proud New Orleans medical examiner, obviously loves food. Less apparent to the casual observer is his hatred of murderers. Together with his gorgeous sidekick, psychologist Kit Franklyn, the two make a powerful, although improbable, mystery solving duo. When the beautiful Kit goes to meet an anonymous stranger—who's been sending her roses—the man drops dead at her feet before she even could even get his name. Game on. Andy Broussard soon learns that the man carried a lethal pathogen similar to the deadly Ebola virus. Soon, another body turns up with the same bug. Panic is imminent as the threat of pandemic is more real than ever before. The danger is even more acute, because the carrier is mobile, his identity is an absolute shocker, he knows he's a walking weapon and... he's on a quest to find Broussard. And Kit isn't safe either. When she investigates her mystery suitor further, she runs fowl of a cold blooded killer, every bit as deadly... Views: 72
Amanda Blakemore returns to Juniper Falls, Ohio, after finding her husband in bed with another woman. Heartbroken and wounded by his betrayal, she agrees to move in with her grandmother, Margaret. After being volunteered to help with the church bazaar, Amanda and Margaret stumble over the body of Florence Hardy—Juniper Falls' wealthiest woman, not to mention rudest.As the list of suspects keeps growing by the minute, the girls recruit neighbor and ex-sheriff Henry and eccentric gossip-loving Olive to help investigate. Along with a little help from a St. Bernard named Twinkie, they may just catch a killer. Views: 72
Bill Crider, famous for the popular Sheriff Dan Rhodes mystery series, is back with a mystery novel combining his wry wit, a clever plot, and the usual hijinks - all set against the normally placid backdrop of academia. First, someone steals several valuable toy soldiers from the collection of the dean of a small liberal arts school. The dean asks Carl Burns, Chair of the English Department, to look into things. Then a college board member is killed, and one of the stolen soldiers is found at the scene. After another attempted murder, another soldier is found, making a clear link between the stolen toys and the shooting. Burns begins asking questions and finds himself involved with a varied cast of characters, all of whom appear to have some connection to both toy soldiers and the murder. Views: 72
As Matt Hawkins strives for redemption following Britain's first zombie outbreak, his internal struggles and his psychological analysis of those around him lead him to question the ethics of humanity and himself as he fights to survive the apocalypse.Hawkins's perception of the immoral decisions of the leadership in seeking a possible cure, force him to reevaluate his past and question his own motives as he tries desperately to conceal a secret that could ruin him and prevent him from keeping a the fragile promise which has become his only motivation to live. From the sanctuary of the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales to the promise of an escape through the Channel Tunnel in Folkestone, Kent, their only hope for survival and for the possibility of a ending the zombie outbreak, the diverse group of people experience loss while they hope for success but at all at a very high price. Views: 72
"So polished, so intriguing, and so darn good." - Donnell Ann Bell, Bestselling Author of Buried Agendas Paramedic Zoe Chambers and the rest of rural Monongahela County's EMS and fire personnel are used to wading into the middle of trouble to rescue the sick and the injured. But when someone with an ax to grind seeks retribution by staging accident scenes and gunning down the first responders, Zoe finds herself forced to not only treat her own brethren of the front lines, but also, in her role as deputy coroner, seek out whoever is killing her friends. At the same time, Vance Township Police Chief Pete Adams races to track down a gun, a mysterious all-terrain vehicle, and the sniper before Zoe goes back on duty, placing herself--and Pete--firmly in the gunman's crosshairs. Views: 72
The fourth in the bestselling series of psychological thrillers featuring Carson Ryder, the detective with a unique perspective on serial killers.Children are disappearing in Mobile, Alabama, the latest snatched from her own bedroom. There are no clues -- and, as yet, no bodies.Homicide Detective Carson Ryder is called in to investigate the abduction of little LaShelle Shearing only to find the case getting tangled up in murky departmental and civic politics. And with his partner Harry Nautilus fighting for his life after being viciously attacked, Carson is feeling increasingly isolated.Public rage is now reaching dangerous levels, and Ryder's bosses turn for help to ex-Detective Conner Sandhill whose uncanny ability to spot connections and details missed by others is legendary -- but who left the department under a cloud.Ryder and Sandhill form an uneasy alliance in the hunt for the missing children, a hunt which becomes all the more urgent... Views: 72
Andrea Bartell is an international model whose jet-set lifestyle has kept her from her Texas home for five years. Noah Courtland is the man she left behind after a bitter breakup. He’s in charge of her beloved Bridleton and it's at the root of their emotional warfare. Neither wants to rekindle the flames of their relationship yet the desire hasn’t diminished. It burns hotly, forcing them to deal with their pain and heartache. The unveiling of old promises and secrets might save their relationship or it could destroy any chance of a future. Views: 72
Six notorious cousins, known to the ton as the Bar Cynster, have cut a swath through the ballrooms of London. Yet one by one, each has fallen in love and married the woman of his heart, until only one of them is left unclaimed...the most rakish of Stephanie Laurens' captivating clan...and he's not about to go easily. Alasdair Cynster - known to his intimates as Lucifer - decides to rusticate in the country before the matchmaking skills of London's mamas become firmly focused on him, the last unwed Cynster. But an escape to Devon leads him straight to his destiny in the irresistible form of Phyllida Tallent, a willful, independent beauty of means who brings all his masterful Cynster instincts rioting to the fore. Lucifer tries to deny the desire Phyllida evokes - acting on it will land him in a parson's mousetrap, one place he's sworn never to go. But destiny intervenes, leaving him to face the greatest Cynster challenge - wooing a reluctant bride.
Phyllida has had a bevy of suitors - her charm and wit are well known throughout the countryside - but none of them has tempted her the way Lucifer does. His offer to teach her all about the ways of love is almost too tantalizing to resist. And though she's not yet completely surrendered, she knows only a fool stands against a Cynster...and Phyllida is no one's fool. Views: 72
