The Mystery, Crime, and Thriller Group discussion

Agents of Treachery, a collection of short fiction by top espionage/mystery and spy-genre writers. An anthology like this is pretty rare — most authors in this genre don't bother because it's tough to tell a complicated tale of intrigue in often foreign lands and sometimes historical periods in short form.

I just started it and it's working well for me. The first story's by Charles McCarry and it's great writing and reading. Others in the book include Joseph Finder, Robert Wilson and Lee Child.

Have at it!

Steve
Steve Anderson

Hard to believe with all the buzz, but I'm still only about 130 pages into The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest... it just isn't like the first two books (at least not yet). It's due back to the libary so I may have to put it back on the "to read" list... anyone else find it slow going?

I'm in the middle of Bruno, Chief of Police which is good so far. It's set in France, and I'm getting annoyed with all the references in French that they don't bother to explain. It's a bad pet peeve of mine and it will probably prevent me from reading the sequel.

I just finished Killing The Shadows by Val McDermid. I did find the plot fairly captivating but I found the protagonist really uninteresting and I really didn't care to read how much sex she and her lover had. The lover was constantly running his hand over his bald scalp which was kind of a turn-off.

But I've heard that this wasn't one of her strongest, so I'll try one more.

Heidi wrote: "Hard to believe with all the buzz, but I'm still only about 130 pages into The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest... it just isn't like the first two books (at least not yet). It's due back to the l..."

Heidi I just finished The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest and I enjoyed it. I didn't find it slow going but there were a lot of characters to keep up with.

I'm about half way through Missing by Karin Alvtegen. So far it's quite good.

just finishe katherine mansfield the garden party and am currently reading the penguin dorothy parker

Finished Mudbound. Working on the mystery Harembut it's slow going. It's more interesting to read about Nadel's knowledge of Turkey than the mystery itself. Picked up Bless Me, Ultimayesterday at a thrift store so started it last night. Began Gods Behaving Badlywhile walking to work this morning. Hopefully I actually finish some books this week. I seem quite good at starting them.

Just finished Laura Lippman's "I'd Know You Anywhere," and it's brilliant. Maybe her best book to date.

Bruce wrote: "Just finished Laura Lippman's "I'd Know You Anywhere," and it's brilliant. Maybe her best book to date."

I've only read two of her books, but really liked them. I'll put this one on my list.

Thanks

Reading The Savage Garden.

Hi Lobstergirl. Be sure to check out Hayes review and picture in the Summer Theme read of The Savage Garden.

Oh I will, once I'm done.

I just finished Stalked. I wasn't as good as his first two, Immoral and Stripped, but it was still really good.

Just finished The Long Goodbye

Really into The Calling

Hi Vince, I found it hard to put down The Calling too. It is really surprising to me that the real author of this book is still unknown, pseudonyms don't usually hold up this long.

Donna wrote: "Hi Vince, I found it hard to put down The Calling too. It is really surprising to me that the real author of this book is still unknown, pseudonyms don't usually hold up this long."

Count me as three who enjoyed The Calling. Has anyone read the sequel The Taken yet? Just wondering how it compares to the first. It's definitely on my list.

Dorie wrote: "Donna wrote: "Hi Vince, I found it hard to put down The Calling too. It is really surprising to me that the real author of this book is still unknown, pseudonyms don't usually hold u..."

Re: The Taken, not yet, but it's on my nightstand waiting for a couple of days when I have nothing I have to do. Because I know I'll devour it. Truly The Calling was one of the best mystery/suspense/thrillers I've read in a long time. And I was surprised when I started raving about it that my friends didn't know what I was talking about. That one just snuck in under the radar. A friend of mine is positive that Inger Ash Wolfe is really Margaret Atwood. I have my doubts just because she doesn't seem like the kind of author who would hide behind a pseudonym for doing something a bit different. Heck, she's done dark many times, maybe not to that extent, but I'd like to think she would have used her own name.

K.B., it will be interesting to see who the author eventually turns out to be. Assuming it comes out at some point. I imagine the situation makes it more difficult to market the books. I'm looking forward to reading the sequel myself.

Oh, dear, are we all too busy reading other stuff to share here? I've been book bouncing, but for mysteries, I'm reading The Emperor's Snuff-Box by John Dickson Carr, and I'm back to reading Heresy, which I set aside a while back.

Vanish with the Rose by Barbara Michaels. Fun read for those who like gardens and old roses.

I only recently (yes, I know I'm behind) stumbled onto Barbara Michaels, and I really liked her work.

I'm reading The Business of Books: How the International Conglomerates Took Over Publishing and Changed the Way We Read.

Lobstergirl wrote: "I'm reading The Business of Books: How the International Conglomerates Took Over Publishing and Changed the Way We Read."

What's the gist of the book Lobstergirl? Do we read a lot of junk nowadays?

I'm only 1/2 way thru, but yes, the junk is ever increasing. It used to be that publishers would publish risky new fiction they knew would never be profitable on its own, because other books would pick up the slack and subsidize the unprofitable books. When bigger media companies started buying out publishers, that changed, and now every book is supposed to turn a profit (doesn't always work out that way, of course).

...and now every book is supposed to turn a profit..."

*sigh*

I just finished Death at Bishop's Keep, which was fun and engaging and well (enough) written. I will continue the series.

Started Justice Hall, which is the least convincing of the series I think. Fun anyway.

Finishing up The Bell Jar which is incredibly moving. What a loss to the world... but back to Lobstergirl's comment. One wonders: would this book have sold as many copies if Plath had not killed herself?

Also finishing up The Lacuna which I knew nothing about when I bought it, had not even read the blurb, but bought it on the strength of my love of Kingsolver and her prose. It is fabulous. It speaks of a period of history that I know very little about and which I find fascinating. I'm so glad I have this and I will re-read it before too long.

I'm reading Raven Black. I think someone nominated it for next month's read and I've been meaning to read it for a while now so I picked it up at the library. So far I think it's wonderful.

I'm listening to The Magicians by Lev Grossman. As it began there were a couple of instances where all I could think of was "did he copy this from Harry Potter?" and so I wasn't enjoying it very much. But now I'm engaged and finding it a good listen, and it really does take a different cut at the world of young magicians/wizards. I've never read magic/wizardry stuff before HP, and I wonder how much some of the plot elements (like the magical way to transport yourself to a school of magic/wizardry) are common elements of the genre, the way a sexy female client walking into a p.i.'s office with a problem is a common element of some p.i. fiction.

Just finished Break No Bones by Kathy Reichs. Love the Tempe Brennan character from the books so much more than the one on the show. Now starting The Girl With the Crooked Nose by Ted Botha.

Just finished The Calling. Heading to pick up Citizen Vince from library.

Donna wrote: "Hi Vince, I found it hard to put down The Calling too. It is really surprising to me that the real author of this book is still unknown, pseudonyms don't usually hold up this long."

Don't know about the rest of you, but I kept picturing the late Victor Jory as the villain.

I'm reading Swan Peak by James Lee Burke. He's one of my favorite authors.

I bought The Taken for my Nook, so I'll be reading it next! (It's also loanable, so if anyone has a Nook or a Nook app you can borrow it for two weeks for free! Send me a PM if you're interested.)

Vince, I'm not familiar with that actor but his image seems right enough.

I recently finished Bruno, Chief of Police and ended up enjoying it despite myself. I'm now happy to have started Cut, Paste, Kill: A Lomax & Biggs Mystery, the latest Marshall Karp book.

Reading The Anthologist by Nicholson Baker.

Kari wrote: "K.B. wrote: "I only recently (yes, I know I'm behind) stumbled onto Barbara Michaels, and I really liked her work."

I really like Barbara Michaels too. In case you do not know she is also Eliza..."

I'm not so fond of the Amelia Peabody books. Isn't that odd how you can really like one series and not the other?

Vince wrote: "Don't know about the rest of you, but I kept picturing the late Victor Jory as the villain"

Nope, for me it would be Malcolm McDowell. (Roddy would work too, they both give me the heebee jeebies.)

Started Drood last night. I'm supposed to be pacing myself for a discussion with the Book Addicts in late September, but I have a feeling I'll gobble this up.

Also started Three Men in a Boat and Under Heaven (library book with short loan, so I have to read it now).

Hi Pattee, I recently read my first James Lee Burke, Black Cherry Blues: A Dave Robicheaux Novel. It was terrific and I am looking forward to reading more in the series. There are so many good - and long series - that I seem to have missed I may have to skip a few books along the way through them to catch up to new releases.

Oh shoot, i had to return it unread a few weeks ago because I had too much to read. Glad to hear it was enjoyable, though. Don't know what I think about it possibly being his last....

Pattee wrote: "I just finished the latest book by James Lee Burke: The Glass Rainbow: A Dave Robicheaux Novel .
It was one of his best ever! And it also had a feeling to it that is may be his la..."

I'm reading The Calling. I guess I caved in to all the mentions above. I even tried rearranging the letters "Inger Ash Wolfe" but no dice.

I'm also reading The Calling by Inger Ash Wolfe...all of your comments intrigued me. So far, I am enjoying it and wondering who the author is....set in Canada, a touch of quick wit, Louise Penny?

Janet wrote: "I'm also reading The Calling by Inger Ash Wolfe...all of your comments intrigued me. So far, I am enjoying it and wondering who the author is....set in Canada, a touch of quick wit, ..."

Louise Penny? Hmm. I like her a lot, but I didn't draw parallels between the two outside of Canadian authors writing in the mystery-thriller genre. I have to admit that, outside of my disbelief that Atwood would hide behind a pseudonym, my friend makes a very good case. The writing styles are very similar.

I could see Louise Penny wanting to use a pseudonym to write a much darker more twisted series but I can't see her keeping it so anonymous.

This kind of anonymity is more like John Banville / Benjamin Black. John Banville is very well known for "literary" writing, Booker Prize and all, and he originally felt he would damage his reputation by writing "mysteries" under his own name but the book Christine Falls: A Novel was so well received and so successfull he gave up on the whole secrecy thing and just uses the pseudonym Benjamin Black for the mysteries series but doesn't hide his real name.

A lot of authors use publicly known pseudonyms for different genres and series. It has almost become expected. But there are a few who refuse to do so.

Christine Falls was good, but I felt like I'd been sucker punched by the end.

Finished The Calling and just started , which, I'm sorry to say, is not about me! (Not bad though.)

Ok, I can't take it any more! All this talk of The Calling is like a siren song! So rather than finishing some of the partially read books on my nightstand, The Taken is jumping to the head of the line!

See what you started Vince? :-D

Dorie wrote: "See what you started Vince? :-D"

Moi? I never heard of it before I joined GR! :-)

Someone on Amazon suggested Inger Ash Wolfe could not be Canadian because he/she uses terms that no Canadian would use. Another person suggested it might be Michael Redhill, whom I've never heard of. Maybe we should start a separate thread so as not to hijack this one.

Vince wrote: "Dorie wrote: "See what you started Vince? :-D"

Moi? I never heard of it before I joined GR! :-)"

And aren't you glad you've heard of it now? I'm about half way through with The Taken. It's not as creepy as The Calling, but it's very good. I've missed Hazel. It'll be a long year (at least I hope it'll only be a year) before she visits me again.