Miss Scarlet in the library with the candlestick…or was it the revolver…or the wrench…or the…
Warning: This article contains “spoilers.” One of the most difficult things a mystery writer needs to do is to find a unique way for her, or his, victim to die. Let’s face it. Gunshot, stabbing, poison…it’s all been done. If you
Update on Searching for Peter Griffiths
The most frequent question I'm asked these days is: "When will the next Baker Somerset mystery be out?" The good news is that the editors at the printers should be done their first cut & slash any day now! It's going
A LITTLE ARSENIC WITH YOUR TEA, MUM?
Writing my second Baker Somerset novel, Searching for Peter Griffiths, I realized that one of the characters was going to get killed. The victim’s death was necessary, but the person hadn’t played an on-stage role, so to speak, and a
New England Crime Bake 2021
Crime Bake is one of the major events for mystery writers, agents, and publishers in New England. The attendance is kept small so that writers have a chance to meet and talk with presenters, agents, and editors. This was the
A Look at One of the Loved Golden-Age Writers and her sleuth : Margery Allingham and Albert Campion
“The Inspector had a vision of a lank immaculate form surmounted by a pale face half obliterated by enormous horn-rimmed spectacles. The final note of incongruity was struck by an old-fashioned deerstalker cap set jauntily upon the top of the
Shoot to Kill & Kiss the Dames – a fond look at hard-boiled detectives
The hard-boiled detective/private investigator is America’s contribution to the mystery genre. For a good hard-boiled detective story, you need a sarcastic, licensed private eye, with a loyal secretary who often hasn’t been paid regularly due to lack of funds, a
When Our Detectives Get Hungry
A great evening is complete if it has a good mystery, and good food. Whether it is there as a break in the tension, a statement of social status, a clue to culture, or a weapon for murder – food