Greg
asked
James L. Thane:
Hi James, I'm a crime/mystery fan myself, and even taught myself to read with Dame Christie. I'm currently having my own "Mid-20th Century American Crime Readathon" had have found some real gems . My questions are: Who do you think is the most overlooked American crime writer? And if you had to name one or more criminally overlooked crime novels, what would they be? I don't want to miss the best of crime writing!
James L. Thane
Hey Greg,
That's a very good question, but not an easy one to answer. And I feel like I'm still trying to answer it for myself, because I know there are a lot of very good books that I haven't gotten to yet.
I'd pick out two or three writers whom I believe have not gotten the attention they deserve. One is Tom Kakonis who wrote a small series featuring a gambler named Tim Waverly. The first was Michigan Roll, which was published in 1988. Though his books got a lot of critical acclaim, I gather that they didn't sell as well as the publisher would have hoped though (hardly a unique situation), and that he lost his contract. Fortunately, Brash Books has now reprinted all of Kakonis's books so they are now available again both in print and ebook formats.
Another one that comes to mind is Sam Reaves, who wrote a number of novels in the early 1990s that didn't get the attention that I thought they deserved. His Homicide 69, is really excellent.
Finally, I'd cite Jenny Siler who wrote three or four books beginning with Easy Money in the late 90s before she dropped from view. I really loved everything that she wrote and really wish that she had done more.
Certainly, there are a lot of others out there, but those are the ones that come immediately to mind. I believe that I've reviewed all of these books here on GR if you want to get a sense of them.
Hope that's of some help, and thanks for raising the question.
That's a very good question, but not an easy one to answer. And I feel like I'm still trying to answer it for myself, because I know there are a lot of very good books that I haven't gotten to yet.
I'd pick out two or three writers whom I believe have not gotten the attention they deserve. One is Tom Kakonis who wrote a small series featuring a gambler named Tim Waverly. The first was Michigan Roll, which was published in 1988. Though his books got a lot of critical acclaim, I gather that they didn't sell as well as the publisher would have hoped though (hardly a unique situation), and that he lost his contract. Fortunately, Brash Books has now reprinted all of Kakonis's books so they are now available again both in print and ebook formats.
Another one that comes to mind is Sam Reaves, who wrote a number of novels in the early 1990s that didn't get the attention that I thought they deserved. His Homicide 69, is really excellent.
Finally, I'd cite Jenny Siler who wrote three or four books beginning with Easy Money in the late 90s before she dropped from view. I really loved everything that she wrote and really wish that she had done more.
Certainly, there are a lot of others out there, but those are the ones that come immediately to mind. I believe that I've reviewed all of these books here on GR if you want to get a sense of them.
Hope that's of some help, and thanks for raising the question.
More Answered Questions
About Goodreads Q&A
Ask and answer questions about books!
You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.
See Featured Authors Answering Questions
Learn more