'The Basement' Deals with Things Below the Surface

Review: THE BASEMENT (Three Elephants 2010)
Author: Stephen Leather

I have to confess that when my own books began to climb the ranks on Amazon UK, my first thought upon looking at the other names up at the top was, "Who the heck is Stephen Leather?" It even sounded like a name I should know. Yet, I couldn't recall ever seeing his books before. So, I checked on Amazon.com. There he was, but not nearly as high up. WTF??? Now, I was exceedingly curious. Why the hell was this guy so popular in the UK, yet so little known outside that realm?

So, I took the only logical course of action. I downloaded a copy of one of his books, which in this case turned out to be THE BASEMENT, despite the slightly creepy cover with the steps leading down to the same, which evoked images somewhat reminiscent of SILENCE OF THE LAMBS.

But things aren't always as they appear. You can't judge a book by its cover. Because when I started to read this one, I was immediately hooked by the voice, which was funny. Yes, funny! See, it's written from the point of view of a guy named Marvin Waller who makes a few offhand observations about America and New York City, in particular. For instance, what a great place it is to kill people. Awesome! And how you can walk around anytime you like with a loaded gun stuck down your trousers. At this point, I'm dying. Um, of laughter. And, of course, you can get away with murder easy there. The secret is to blend.

But Marvin says he wouldn't really do any of these things. You see, Marvin is a writer. Or to be more precise, he's a screenwriter.

Now, Marvin does his screenwriting thing in a cramped little cubbyhole of an apartment with the bare minimum of furniture, because this is the way real writers do things. He is, of course, a stone genius who works on an old typewriter, because real writers work on typewriters, not computers. When Marvin isn't pounding the keys on his ancient typewriter, he's pacing the perimeter of his tiny apartment like a caged lion.

Thing is Marvin's humor masks his frustration and sadness over his inability to get his genius scripts produced, because he can't seem to get them directly into the producers' hands. All because of the damn secretaries! The secretaries of the world have it in for him! It's a conspiracy of secretaries, I tell you! Pinheads!

Ahem. Where were we?

Meanwhile, another narrative is introduced. This one involves an unfortunate woman named Sarah Hall, who's held captive by someone (the unseen narrator). This captor is cunning, ruthless, mean, merciless, twisted and all sorts of other awful adjectives. The captor forces Sarah to do demeaning things to fulfill some kind of sick urge. The narrative is told from the captor's point of view, so we are kept in the dark as to the captor's identity. This narrative is interwoven here and there within the main story and is, in fact, a part of it.

Okay. Let's get down to brass tacks. Torture. I'm not big on it. So ... were these scenes with Sarah Hall beyond the pale? Nope, not hardly. Not one single nightmare resulted from reading this book. The scenes manage to strike a fine balance between being horrifying and suspenseful. For me, the horror wasn't so much the depiction of any physical torture, as the workings of the mind of a torturer.

So, back to the main story. In a desperate bid to bypass the secretarial wall, Marvin takes his pacing from the confines of his flat to the streets fronting the apartment buildings where the producers live, which creates all sorts of problems between himself and various doormen (more gatekeepers!), which leads to some priceless funny dialogue. However, because there's a serial killer on the loose in New York City and Marvin is acting weird, the cops are called. Way to blend, Marvin! :) I mean, not that he's doing anything illegal. He knows his rights. He'll give you chapter and verse of the Bill of Rights and even quote Terry v. Ohio. Impressive! :-)

Once the cops are called, they become a regular nuisance. Showing up all the time, asking questions. Again, lots of funny banter, but matters turn more serious the farther into the book you get.

So, here's the thing. Who is the unseen narrator? Is it Marvin? Does the fact that he's writing a screenplay about a serial killer who becomes a bestselling author tell you anything? Or does Leather want you to think that? Hmm ...

The end came as something of a shocker. And heartbreaking. Yes, heartbreaking! After all, serial killers are sociopaths. And sociopaths manipulate people into trusting them. Then treat the people who trusted them without mercy. And things aren't always as they appear. And writers are such clever liars.

Now my question is, "Why the heck haven't I heard about this awesome author Stephen Leather before?"

How About a Little Library Theater?

Public libraries have done quite a bit lately to upgrade services to keep patrons happy and assure their continuing, um, patronage. They've done this, of course, in order to justify their own existence and maintain already nearly non-existent frugal budgets.

So, in a town that's known for its theater, is it such a stretch that the New York Public Library would incorporate theater into its offerings?

Damn, if my public library did this, I'd probably look for excuses to borrow books. A lot. :)

The Hardboiled Detective is on the Case in 'Black Shadows'

Review: BLACK SHADOWS (Wild Wolf Publishing 2011)
Author: Simon Swift

BLACK SHADOWS takes place back in a time when dames was dames and men wore fedoras. Detectives talked tough, threw punches and pounded the pavement looking for clues, solving crimes because when a detective gets killed it's bad for business and bad for detectives everywhere.

So, it takes place in New York City, circa 1940.

Private dick (aka, detective) Errol Black, aka, Eezy, is sitting in his office when the lovely Claudia comes in and hires him to follow her no-good fiance, George Ferriby, who she thinks is stepping out on her. Why, that awful man! But wait! Then, there's a redhead, and her name is Marlow. Hmm ... sound familiar? Anyhow, Marlow says she's Claudia's sister -- well, not really her blood sister, but her best friend in the whole world.

So ... whilst this is going on there are these other guys doing stuff. (BTW, do you like that word? Whilst? Because you're going to see it a lot. :)) In fact, there's a fat man known as the Coward. Or the Portly Gangster. Maybe. He has a kid with a gun working for him. And it seems a dame is associated with them. I won't say who. Does this sound at all familiar? They want to meet Black up in Woodstock. And hold a rock concert? Of course not. They want to find something. And it's not the Maltese Falcon, believe it or not.

And somehow this all relates to the murder of Dyke Spanner, Black's former partner at The Shadow Man Detective Agency which died with Terry Shadow (accidentally) in a Mob hit on Arthur Flegenheimer five years before.

Plus the Tong, aka, the Chinese mafia, are all mixed up in this, too.

Oh, did I mention the plot is a bit complex? Maybe you've already sussed that out.

Suffice it to say, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Simon Swift is a clever wordsmith. Thus, some of the book's familiar criminal scenarios read far better than they might in less capable hands. And the plot was a most meandering tangle of threads ... but it all works out somehow, right? :)

And, I might add that Swift can be awfully funny, too. However, even though you might get the idea that Black is like any old hardboiled PI, he isn't just Sam Spade, okay? He actually seems to have a heart, which makes him different and interesting. But he ain't mushy, either. You got that?

So, if you enjoy the old hardboiled detective novels, you're in for a real treat. Because this is a book that truly harkens back to a time when dames was dames and men wore fedoras and detectives were tough talkers. There's just one thing. There was no rock and roll in the 1940s. Oh, no! :-0

Downloading eBooks from the Library

This article serves to remind us that just because you like to read ebooks, that doesn't mean you can't borrow titles from your local library.

Thanks to partnerships with Overdrive, thousands of public libraries can offer ebooks to their patrons. In fact, they're offered for download on a variety of gizmos with e-reader apps including iPhones, iPads, BlackBerry and Android devices.

And they say it won't be long before you'll be able to borrow ebooks from the library to read on your Kindle, too. OMG! :)

Get Your Free eBooks Here!

You want free ebooks? Here's a list of ten Web sites that offer ebooks for absolutely no cost whatsoever!

Now why would I, an ebook author, post such a thing on this here blog?

Because it's quite likely you won't find the latest books on these sites, for one thing.

We're talking sites like Project Gutenberg. I mean, honestly? I don't think so.

Or Bartleby.com. Well, sure. The next time I want to read Euripides or Homer. Not that there's anything wrong with them. :)

Then there's Fictionwise. Okay, you may have a shot at finding something recent there. :)

Big Trouble in Little Tokyo in 'Stalking the Angel'

Review: STALKING THE ANGEL (Bantam Books 1992)
Author: Robert Crais

You might recall I previously reviewed THE MONKEY'S RAINCOAT, a private eye novel written at a time when that genre was considered to be on its last legs. That novel not only got nominated for a couple of major mystery writing awards, but it won an Anthony and a Macavity Award. In addition, it launched the Elvis Cole mystery series, comprised of a whole slew of novels. So much for prognostication, huh?

But this review is of Book Number Two, STALKING THE ANGEL, so let's just take things one step at a time, shall we?

I'll start off by noting that Elvis Cole is quick with a joke. So quick, he had me laughing out loud by Chapter One. That's pretty quick.

He meets his client, a Mr. Bradley Warren, standing on his head (Elvis, that is -- Warren is on his feet). Warren is in a suit. He blusters and frowns. This seems to be his specialty. That and glancing at his Rolex. He has a female (of course) assistant who is attractive (of course) and who abides her employer's attitudes (of course) for reasons only she knows.

Here's the problem: Someone has stolen a priceless Japanese manuscript called the Hagakure. Well, not really priceless -- worth more than three million dollars (BIG money in the late 1980s when this was first written). It belongs to one of his clients. Boy, do they need it back. The cops are involved, but they aren't getting the job done nearly fast enough. (Glancing at Rolex. Frowning.) Oh, and by the way, Warren is supposed to receive the Man of the Year Award in some big deal ceremony. Now isn't that special?

At this point, Cole takes quick action. He tells the would-be client to go pound sand.

*sigh* If only things were that simple. But then there would be no story, so ...

Cole takes the case. What follows is the obligatory visit to Warren's mansion, where comparisons are made to things so gargantuan that even Raymond Chandler might find them to be a bit of a stretch. :) Warren's wife, Sheila is dressed for tennis (what else?) and drunk before noon. Their daughter is teenaged, detached and (maybe) stoned. Hard to tell. Okay, so what's new?

All right, so even if we have seen this particular scenario before, that is so not the point. It's not that it's been done before, it's the WAY it's done that counts. And no one does it quite like Robert Crais.

No one else can take you into the heart of Little Tokyo, where Elvis has to go to investigate the case, and not only make you feel you're there, but ratchet up the suspense as he discovers a body killed in a most gruesome way, probably at the hands of the yakuza (the Japanese version of the Mafia).

In addition, Crais has the amazing ability to build build tension and suspense in his story to the point where you simply can't read fast enough, then suddenly insert something incredibly funny. But then -- boom! -- the moment's over, and things go south. And they turn dangerous. Or sad. Or solemn.

And, of course, there's Elvis' partner, Joe Pike. How could I overlook him? Never! He's essential. Pike is amazing, awesome, kick-ass -- call him what you will. Where would Elvis be without him? Is this a question that comes up later in the series? I wonder ... please, commenters, no spoilers. :)

Okay, so to sum things up, the daughter disappears. And Warren -- well, he just keeps on acting like, "Hey whatever. I'm Man of the Year! How about that?" This leads to stuff happening that's better discovered by simply reading the book, believe me. But know that things eventually get resolved. In a bittersweet way. Okay, a bit heavier on the bitter than the sweet, perhaps.

Have you ever heard of a plot device known as a MacGuffin? Hitchcock used it in his films. It was a thing the characters pursued that didn't really mean anything, but drove the plot. I don't think it's a spoiler to say the Hagakure probably qualifies as such.

PS: Has anyone noticed an interesting resemblance between the Hagakure and the title to this book? :) Just sayin'.

The Book's Demise Has Been Highly Exaggerated

It's about time someone put the myth to rest. For years now, all I've kept hearing is, "Kids don't read, anymore!" and "Nobody has time to read books!" The book is dead. The sky is falling! Yeah, right.

Well, I've never believed it. I've known children who've grown up reading books.

And I know adults who read or listen to audiobooks.

And just because books are being published (often self-published) digitally, instead using paper and ink, they are still books, nonetheless.

So, as this article in The Atlantic points out, the book is not dead. Not by a long shot.

Coming of Age and Suspense Meet in 'Favorite'

Review: FAVORITE (AmazonEncore 2011)
Author: Karen McQuestion

Angela Favorite is just like any other 16-year-old high school girl. Except her mother disappeared without a trace on her 11th birthday. After delivering cupcakes to her school while dropping her off on the way to work. Ever since then, Angie doesn't like birthdays very much. Each one is a painful reminder of her mother's strange disappearance, one that hasn't been solved to the point where her mom seems to have been written off as most likely ... let's not go there!

Angie simply can't believe her mother is dead. She prays to her every night and swears she feels a connection to her.

But this is all backstory. What happens is she's going back to the dry cleaners because the cashier gave her too much change, when a guy named Scott Bittner grabs her. He sort of roughs her up. She tries to get away. He insists she must come with him. She's scared. He ends up hurting her. Fortunately, someone reports the altercation to the police. Angie ends up in the hospital, traumatized.

Okay, Angie and her brother, Jason, live with their grandmother, who is engaged and getting ready to take a cruise with her fiance. Their dad is hardly ever home as he's an itinerant rock musician who swears his "big break" will come any day now, so he's not in the best position to raise a family by himself. Got that?

Oh, and then there's Scott Bittner's mother. Boy, what an ... interesting lady she is. And, my, what a house she lives in ... like a castle ...

Here's the thing. Mrs. Bittner really wants Angie and Jason to stay with her, while their grandma is away on her cruise. And she seems like a really nice lady who clearly has a whole lot of dough, so Jason has his own reasons to get along and go along with the whole thing. But Angie is a bit creeped out by the idea of staying at the castle, um, house.

And, of course, there's a boy. It wouldn't be quite as good a story without a boy, would it? And Angie really likes this boy. And he's Mrs. Bittner's grandson, Mike, which is kind of odd.

Plus there's a cat. Thank God!

Now, that's all I can say.

Karen McQuestion does an excellent job of combining elements of a coming of age tale with those of a gothic suspense story. And does so with her usual wit and keen sense of modern youth culture.

Things aren't always what they seem. And sometimes things just happen and other times they seem to happen for a reason. And maybe that's the point.

I don't know, but what made this story work for me was my total emotional investment in Angie. I cared about her so much, I hung on every word until I finished the book.

You know, a person can cry for reasons ranging from sadness to joy. And FAVORITE has them all.

'Lunch Reads, Volume 1': Two Kindle Mystery Shorts

Review: LUNCH READS, VOLUME 1 (Istoria Books 2011)
Authors: Jenny Milchman and Libby Sternberg

This ebook is a fine example of the shorter offerings in the Kindle Store on Amazon these days. However, not only that, but it marks the beginning of what looks to be a highly promising career for one new author.

The first story in this book, "The Very Old Man," is by Jenny Milchman in her publishing debut. Basically, a chance encounter at the grocery store between a young mother and a mysterious, raggedy old man who gives her baby a dirty old coin seems to set off an odd and increasingly disquieting chain of events. And they all involve her baby. And they ALL put the kid at risk! And the kid even gets ... well, I'll stop there. I wouldn't want to say too much, right? After all, this is a story of suspense.

And can Milchman do suspense? Did Hitchcock prefer icy blondes? lol Um, in case you haven't guessed, Milchman's good. Even excellent!

I mean, this old man ... what's with the coin? Why does he just say, "Baby." Is he simple? Is he giving her a gift? Is the coin cursed? Are his intentions benign? What are his intentions exactly?

And what's with that house, anyway?

Milchman deftly explores the psychological complexities of a new mother's fears for her child. The irony is that today parents tend to worry about strangers molesting their children. However, in this story, it's the combined effect of a strange man and superstition that haunts the protagonist and feeds most upon her fears.

Now, the second story, "Escape from Southern Point," gives you something (as the Python boys would say) completely different.

This story is about a wedding in Cabot Cove, um, I mean Southern Point. A completely different place on the Outer Banks, where people are gathered at a church and have waited through many renditions of "Ave Maria" and other old favorites for the damn ceremony to start, but it still hasn't and it's been almost an hour. Plus there's this terribly annoying woman in a dreadful peach-colored pantsuit (bejeweled, no less) talking really loudly a few rows behind the protagonist, um -- wait, I'm flipping through my Kindle -- is it Addy? No! That's the sister she's mistaken for! The actress who plays an Angela Lansbury-like character who lives in Petal Point. Right. The lady in the peach pantsuit seems to think the protagonist is she, but she isn't! Oh, dear! What is her name, anyway?

Is it Maude? No, damn it! That's the character Addy plays. Jeez! So many names. And yet, oddly enough, I managed to keep all the characters straight.

See here's the thing. The story is written very much in traditional mystery fashion, and yet there isn't a dead body. Mostly it's about secrets, lies and facing up to things done in the past.

Now that's all I intend to say about the matter. Except that Libby Sternberg is a really humorous writer. She'll tickle your funny bone in a major way, while creating suspense. Questions like "Will there be a wedding -- ever?!" and "Where the hell is the bridegroom -- and what's his problem, anyhow?!" will be answered. And Sternberg manages the amazing trick of creating a mystery without a dead body, i.e., a puzzle to be solved, AND playing fair with the reader within the confines of a short story. Brilliant!

Okay, that's it. Wait! The protagonist's name is Olivia! I knew I could remember. :)

Need I say I highly recommend this? Especially at the more than reasonable price of 99 cents!