Reaper: "Coming to Grips"

When Andi sees Sam behead a demon, she believes he is a killer and threatens to go to the police. Sam makes a deal with the Devil to tell Andi the truth in exchange for a favor.

We've seen the tell-all premise on dozens of superhero shows, most recently Smallville. Fortunately Reaper's secrets haven't dragged across several seasons until no one cares. Andi's reaction to Sam's news is what I want from a smart character, and Sam's profession of love was one of the most heartfelt I've seen on TV. The way things are moving, I don't know what will be left in store for next season, but I like a show that goes for broke and worries about the future in the future.

Up and at 'em.

I was able to write a couple of silly crime poems yesterday, as I have once before. Not yet seven o' clock, and I've mailed them off to The 12th Asinine Poetry Contest: Asinine Crime Poems.

storySouth's Notable Stories of 2007

...are listed here, and among them is Fleur Bradley's Thrilling Detective story "Circling the Drain". Thanks again, Fleur.

The top ten stories will be announced the final week of May, and the top story by public vote will win the Million Writers Award for excellence in online-published fiction.

NBA Coaching News

After the worst season of his career, Pat Riley has stepped down as coach of the Miami Heat. He will stay on as team president and has promoted 37-year-old Erik Spoelstra to head coach.

Meanwhile, rumor has it the Charlotte Bobcats will hire Larry Brown as head coach, having let go of Sam Vincent this season.

You don't tug on Superman's cape...

Blogging about the lack of originality in Hollywood, author Lori G. Armstrong wrote, "I don't get comic books or movies based on comic book heros. I never have."

I commented:

I'm more into the mythos(es?) of heroes than collecting comics, but to me, heroes are heroes whether they come from books, comics, TV, or movies.

And comic book fans go to movies for the same reason any readers do. Who doesn't want to see a big screen interpretation of characters who've lived so vividly in our minds, if only out of curiosity?

I've got to give a thumbs-up to Richard Donner's Superman, Bryan Singer's two X-Men movies, Guillermo del Toro's Hellboy, and the movie of my favorite hero, Daredevil.

THE DEAL by Adam Gittlin

Jonah Gray is a successful commercial real estate broker who stands to make a huge windfall from a time-sensitive investment deal presented to him by family friend Andreu Zhamovsky. While working the deal at a party in the Hamptons, Jonah has a chance encounter with a man calling himself "John Robie." The next day, Jonah learns "Robie" is actually behind the theft of several Faberge eggs, one of which is planted in Jonah's briefcase.

Knowing nothing about commercial real estate, that aspect of the book didn't appeal to me. However, I did appreciate Jonah's race to learn more about the egg and the deal while being pursued by police and other interested parties, and how being forced into choices changes him.

Eight Years of DetecToday

On an arbitrary April day in the year 2000, I created a discussion list for private eye fiction from newer authors like Robert Crais, Dennis Lehane, S.J. Rozan, and Harlan Coben. We're still around and I'm still having fun.

Here's another look at the evolution of our group logo:


(2001 - 2003)


(2003 - 2005)


(2005-2007)


(2007-Present)

Cracklin' Oat Bran

...ranks up there with Cheerios for friendliest-sounding cereal ever. I had a bowl this morning for the first time in years, and it tasted like oatmeal cookies. What's not to like?

Twitterized

You can now follow this blog via Twitter.

NBA Takes

I share the opinion that the playoffs haven't really started if 16 of 29 teams are contending. The only trades that have worked out this season are the ones that brought Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett to Boston. Kidd in Dallas and Shaq in Phoenix seriously set back any chemistry the teams might have had.

New Knicks president Donnie Walsh relieved Isiah Thomas of his coaching duties. Isiah has been banned from contact with any Knick players, but he remains with the team in an unspecified position reporting directly to Walsh. The team still owes him $18 million.

Meanwhile, Larry Brown has stepped down as vice president of the Sixers, saying he's ready to coach again...I'd take him back, but I don't think Knicks owner James Dolan would. Former Knick and current NBA broadcaster Mark Jackson is the favorite for the job.

Nathan Fillion, Mystery Novelist?

Zap2it.com reports Nathan Fillion has signed on to the ABC pilot CASTLE, in which he'll play a mystery novelist who consults with the NYPD on difficult cases.

Should I marry her?

I'm not asking the blogosphere for romantic advice. The above title is from my latest poem, accepted for the Fall 2008 issue of NERVE COWBOY. Thanks to editors Joseph Shields and Jerry Hagins.

Friday Books You Have to Read

Patti Abbott has started a string of weekly book recommendations:

This is the first of what I optimistically hope will become Friday recommendations of books we love but might have forgotten over the years. I have asked several people to help me by also remembering a favorite book. Their blog sites are listed below. I also asked each of them to tag someone to recommend a book for next Friday. I'm worried great books of the recent past are sliding out of print and out of our consciousness. Not the first-tier classics we all can name, but the books that come next. Here's my choice.

Desperate Characters by Paula Fox

It's difficult to remember, thirty years on, New York in the seventies, The City was facing bankruptcy, the streets were dangerous, frequent strikes left unattended garbage for the rodents, buildings crumbled. Paula Fox's novel Desperate Characters perfectly captures that time along with the similarly disintegrating marriage of Sophie and Otto Bentwood. The story begins with an unexpected cat bite. "Because it's savage," Otto answers Sophie's puzzled, "why?" It was a cat she was trying to feed that bit her. This well-intentioned act, this McGuffin, sends the couple off on a weekend odyssey, where ominous events continue to haunt the childless couple. They find little solace in each other and there is no easy resolution at the end. The quiet desperation that suffuses their story is heart-breaking. The writing is haunting, lucid, and succinct.

Fox has also written two books about her life (Borrowed Finery and The Coldest Winter), a few other novels (The Widow's Children) and many children's books. But nothing is finer than this one for me.

Check out other recommendations here:

Bill Crider
Clair Dickson
Anthony Neil Smith
Sandra Scoppettone
Patrick Shawn Bagley
Sandra Ruttan
Josephine Damian
Travis Erwin
Ello
Brian Lindemuth

Gerald So, take it away.

Tune in next Friday for my pick.

A C.J. Stone Primer

Graham Powell commented that he'd like to catch up on my C.J. Stone stories. I present this brief primer for anyone who'd like to do the same.

C.J. Stone is an aviator-for-hire. He learned to fly in the Army Air Service and got out as soon as he could after that. During Prohibition, he and his retired Air Corps mentor, Zath McGrath, smuggled Bahamian rum into Miami. When a crash crippled Zath, C.J. took over his flights and roomed with Zath's old friend Jock, owner of a bar in Bimini.



When the Great Depression hit, C.J.'s charter service went belly up, forcing him to scrounge and take odd jobs until a stroke of luck at poker won him a Grumman Goose he would christen Miss Liberty (pictured above).

The C.J. Stone stories in order of first publication are:

"For Old Times' Sake"
"A Twist of Kate"
"A Little Trouble"
"Gypped"
"Faith"
"Decoys" (coming in August '08)

Shark: "Partners in Crime"

I caught the last pre-strike episode of SHARK last night. When his friend and former law partner Paul Faber (Joe Spano) is shot dead in front of him, Stark searches for the shooter only to learn he is linked to a former client (Jonathan Banks) for whom Stark helped cover up murder. Moved to get justice for Faber, Stark manages to get the truth on record, but the information gleaned from the same action gives the state of California grounds to disbar him. Gotta see what happens next week.

Reaper: "Rebellion"

I suspected Sock, Ben, and Sam's moving in next door to demons (played by Michael Ian Black and Ken Marino) was a design of the Devil (Ray Wise). I didn't think their plan to overthrow him would work. I was right on both counts, but it was still a great episode to watch. It got me thinking that maybe the world was better off with the Devil running things down in hell, especially given the show's portrayal of him as a slick CEO keeping underlings in line. I wouldn't want a bunch of rogue demons free to do as they pleased.

It was nice to see things going good for Sam and Andi. I hope there is some way for Sam to win his soul back so he can be with her, but would the show be over if it happened?

NCIS: "Internal Affairs"

The Le Grenouille story arc concludes with Gibbs, his team, and Director Shepard under investigation in the charismatic arms dealer's death. Without the benefit of office resources, the team is forced to work out of Gibbs's basement. Well written by Jesse Stern and Reed Steiner and well cut by director Tony Wharmby, this episode was even more suspenseful than usual.

Decoys

My sixth C.J. Stone story, "Decoys", is set to appear in YELLOW MAMA this August. Thanks to editor Cindy Rosmus.

2008 Gumshoe Awards

...as announced by David J. Montgomery.

This year's winner for Best Crime Fiction Website is none other than Thrilling Detective!

Earth Day

I take short showers and work by a window from sunup to sundown. The lamps and light bulbs in my room are all low-wattage natural daylight. I travel mostly on foot or by mass transit. I don't consider myself an environmentalist, but I like to be as efficient as possible. When I leave a place, I don't want it to be obvious I was there.

Question of the Day: What's up with running the faucet while brushing your teeth? Sheer forgetfulness?

Bones: Player Under Pressure

This Season 2 episode of BONES, postponed in the wake of last year's Virginia Tech tragedy, involved the murder of a college basketball star. The campus police chief was himself a college basketball star, Jack "Cutter" Cutler (played by college football star James Richard Black).

Good episode, but "Cutter" Cutler sounded too alliterative to me. Why not Rip Cutler? Hmm.

THE FORBIDDEN KINGDOM

A kid from South Boston obsessed with kung fu movies (Michael Angarano) is given a staff that transports him to ancient China. There he joins forces with drunken master Lu Yan (Jackie Chan) to confront the Jade Warlord, return the staff, and thus free the Monkey King. Along the way, he and Lu are aided by a monk (Jet Li) and an orphaned warrior out for vengeance (Yifei Liu).

The meeting of Jet Li and Jackie Chan delivers on its hype. The story is epic and well paced, the characters and their motivations rich. One of the best American kung fu movies I've seen.

Smallville: "Descent"

Lex Luthor finally loses it, pushing Lionel to his death, not to mention figuratively killing his own inner child. The show hasn't gone how I wanted since Season 3, but I still want to see what happens.

Now to the Superman-in-training moment of the episode: Lex's henchwoman shoots Lois and locks her and Jimmy in cold storage. Clark takes a good thirty minutes to find them, stopping to save Chloe from said henchwoman before he even knows Lois and Jimmy are missing. When he finally finds them, he thaws them out with heat vision, but zips away without taking Lois to safety. I know it's a few years before he falls in love with her, but he leaves Jimmy to get her to a hospital?! With Chloe already safe, there was no need to be anywhere else. Why not get Lois some medical attention before Jimmy's brain has thawed enough to realize what's happened?

Leverage

Just found out my friend Christine Boylan is writing for TNT's original series LEVERAGE, starring Timothy Hutton as a crusading ex-insurance investigator who turns anti-corporate, premiering in December. Good luck, Chosen One.



Christine in 2004 after her SIX FEET UNDER spec script won the Austin Film Festival Award for Best Drama Teleplay.

Interrogation with the NCIS Cast

I surf the Web with Firefox for Linux and don't like to load up on plugins, so most of the time I can't watch this new thing called stream-ing vi-de-o. I am able to watch the content on CBS.com, and I just discovered original clips of NCIS cast members answering viewer questions from the show's Interrogation Room set. Seeing Mark Harmon on the other side of the table is freaky.

Visualizing Violence

Detectives Beyond Borders' Peter Rozovsky asks:

How much violence are you prepared to accept in your crime reading? Is violence more affecting on the page than on the screen? Less? Why? Under what circumstances will you accept violence in a book, movie or television show?

I commented:

I find it easier to accept violence in books because my imagination plays into its depiction and pace. If I read that Character X is tortured, my mind can stage what I feel is appropriate to deliver the impact.

I don't accept as much TV and movie violence in part because I'm at the mercy of what the director feels is appropriate. If I don't like what I see, my only option is not to watch, which strikes me as drastic, naive, and ineffective.

I generally accept violence if I believe it's appropriate to the doer's personality.

Reading, Interrupted

In the middle of reading a book for list discussion, I felt the urge to write a story. Writing taking priority over reading, I wrote the story, revised, and submitted it today. I couldn't get back into the book. Despite being less than 100 pages from the end, I'd lost all feeling for the tension the previous pages set up. I felt as if I'd have to reread the book to regain it, and I didn't have time for that, so I skimmed to the end. Is there a better way to handle it, fellow writers?

No more flipping. Bones is back.

Having spent the early part of this season flipping between NCIS and Bones Tuesdays at 8, I missed quite a lot of the latter. Starting tonight, though, Bones moves to Mondays at 8, so I'll be able to catch them both. Stop by after the episode for a recap.

RECAP: It was easy to get back into Bones despite the midseason hiatus. At the start of the season, I blogged my concern that Brennan and Booth's chemistry would suffer with too much psychoanalysis. At this point, I'm no longer worried about their chemistry, but as with any long-running series, the characters' personal lives could overwhelm plot. It's all a fiction, sure, but the characters' interaction in the workplace helps maintain that fiction for me.

Who's your Papi?

Photo/Charles Krupal

I realize it's early in the season, but Yankees-Red Sox is always playoff intense, and last night Chien-Ming Wang proved to be over last year's postseason swoon, pitching a complete game 2-hitter against the Sox to raise his record to 3-0.

WENN: 'Monk' Star Kamel Dead

Actor Stanley Kamel has been found dead of a suspected heart attack. The 65-year-old was reportedly discovered by his longtime agents in his Hollywood Hills home on Tuesday afternoon. Los Angeles emergency services responded to a 911 call made at Kamel's home shortly before 4pm. Kamel is best known for starring in numerous TV shows like The West Wing, Six Feet Under and Beverly Hills, 90210. In recent years he became known as eccentric detective Adrian Monk's psychiatrist in hit show Monk. In a statement from the USA network, which airs Monk, executives say: "USA is deeply saddened by the news of Stanley Kamel's passing. Stanley was an amazingly talented and extremely kind man, and an important member of the USA family. He will be sorely missed." Born in New Jersey, Kamel enjoyed almost 40 years as a TV regular, landing his first roles on shows like Mission Impossible and The Mod Squad in the late 1960s. He went on to feature in beloved shows like Kojak, Charlies Angels, Mork And Mindy, Lou Grant, Hill Street Blues, Knight Rider and Barney Miller.

Coincidence?

In the first post-strike episode of NCIS, DiNozzo and McGee are on a stakeout:

DINOZZO
Feels like we've been stuck here for months doing nothing.

Alex Rodriguez's New Nickname

4 K-Rod.

Thank you, Royals pitchers, for the Golden Sombrero.

AP: Ewing, Olajuwon, Riley named to Hall

By ELIZABETH WHITE, Associated Press Writer

SAN ANTONIO - Broadcaster Dick Vitale, a man who had limited success as a coach but brought the game of basketball to millions of TV watchers, was selected to the game's Hall of Fame on Monday alongside Pat Riley, one of the most successful NBA coaches of all time.

...Others in the Class of 2008 were Hakeem Olajuwon and Patrick Ewing, two greats who battled on the court for years; player Adrian Dantley; coach Cathy Rush; and William Davidson, owner of the Detroit Pistons since 1974.

I'm still screaming at John Starks for going 2-for-18 in Game 7 to cost Ewing, Riley, and the Knicks the '94 championship.

JAG Season 5

I waited for a price drop and bought what I consider the show's best season for $31.91. Until Season 5, the show's saga had been that Harm was forced out of the cockpit by a night blindness. At the end of Season 4, Harm has laser surgery to correct the problem. The improbability of his return to flying aside, it showed that the character and the series had outgrown their original premises and could now develop more orginically.

The Season 5 DVDs are the first to be presented in widescreen. I don't believe the series ever aired in widescreen. This bonus makes up for the only special feature, a gag reel.

MONEY SHOT by Christa Faust

Others have already praised Christa Faust's Hard Case Crime book for authenticity. I can only add that after reading the first few pages of events leading ex-porn star protagonist Angel Dare to be locked in a car trunk, driven to the middle of nowhere, and left for dead, I was completely in her corner and rooted for her throughout this hard-driving revenge tale reminiscent of Kill Bill.

Money Shot, like all the best books in my opinion, is a fast and fulfilling read.

Knight Rider Fantasy Casting

Following word that NBC's Knight Rider update has been picked up for next season with erstwhile Las Vegas creator Gary Scott Thompson at the helm, Zap2it.com's Andy Grieser whimsically recasts the show with Nathan Fillion in the lead.

Click if you dare.

NCAA Basketball

UNC and UCLA, two teams I traditionally root for, were eliminated yesterday from the men's tournament. Virtual Gerald has traded his UNC jersey for a Memphis one. I'd like to see Coach Cal and the Tigers win, but their free-throw shooting could bite them again.

Two of my poems

...have gone live in Issue #7 of Mouth Full of Bullets. Thanks to editor BJ Bourg.

Miss/Guided

I've skipped the past two weeks of Smallville in favor of Miss/Guided, starring Judy Greer as a former high school nerd who returns to her alma mater as a guidance counselor. It's lightweight fun, maybe too light. I'm not sure I could stick with it longterm. ABC may not be sure, either, airing two episodes a week, with the final two of the season tonight.

In-cent-sed

The USPS is raising first-class postage from 41¢ to 42¢ effective May 12, 2008. Grumble, grumble, grumble.

"I fly low, I'm in high demand."

I just listened to Stephen Stills' "Treetop Flyer" on the recommendation of Sean Chercover, and it's officially one of my favorite songs. Thanks, Sean.

Ah, Semantics.

About two weeks ago, I mentioned how the upcoming Spenser title Rough Weather brought to mind the working title for the next Elvis Cole novel, Perfect Night, which had been changed to Chasing Darkness.



Today I spotted an upcoming title from David Rosenfelt, whose Andy Carpenter series has been compared to Harlan Coben's Myron Bolitar. Rosenfelt's July 2008 book is called Don't Tell a Soul, which unfortunately brings to mind Coben's 2001 standalone Tell No One.

Books or TV, That is the Question

My latest Mysterical-E column, inspired by a discussion with Peter Rozovsky of Detectives Beyond Borders, is now live.

2008 SMFS Derringer Finalists

As posted to Shortmystery today:

Best Story 1,000 words or less:

Keri Clark, "Saved" (Mysterical-E, Fall 2007)

BV Lawson, "Dreaming of a Spite Christmas" (Mouth Full of Bullets, Winter 2007)

Jillian Berg, "A Woman Scorned" (Mouth Full of Bullets, Autumn 2007)

Keri Clark, "Your New Fan" (Mouth Full of Bullets, Winter 2007)

Patricia Abbott, "My Hero" (D Z Allen's Muzzle Flash, 2007)


Best Story 1,001 to 4,000 words:

Beverle Graves Myers, "Brimstone P.I." (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, May 2007)

Hugh Lessig, "We All Come From Splattertown" (Thuglit, Issue 17, July 2007)

Rick Noetzel, "Joyride" (Shred of Evidence, Dec., 2007)

Jack Hardway, "Handful of Stars" (Mouth Full of Bullets, Issue 5, Autumn 2007)

John Weagly, "In the Shadows of Wrigley Field" (The Back Alley, Vol. I, Nov 2007)

Camille LaGuire, "The Promise" (Future's Mysterious Anthology Magazine, March-April 2007)


Best Story 4,001 to 8,000 words:

Twist Phelan, "A Trader's Lot" (Wall Street Noir, Akashic Books, June, 2007)

John Schroeder, "Devil's Lake" (Futures Anthology Magazine, Jan/Feb 2007)

Herschel Cozine, "A Private Hanging" (Mysterical-E, Summer, 2007)

Kate Flora, "Mr. McGregor's Garden" (Still Waters, Level Best Books, 2007)

Rosemary Harris, "Growing Up is For Losers" (Still Waters, Level Best Books, 2007)

Richard Helms, "The Gospel According to Gordon Black" (The Thrilling Detective, Fall 2007)


Best Story 8,001 to 17,500 words:

Beverle Graves Myers, "The Bookworm's Demise"(Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Dec. 2007)

Eric Shane, "Paper Walls / Glass Houses" (The Back Alley Vol. 1, June 2007)

John Burdett, "The Enlightenment of Magnus McKay" (Wall Street Noir, June 2007)

Mike Wiecek, "Wasting Assets" (Alfred Hitchcock Sept., 2007)

Clifford Royal Johns, "Forget Me Not" (Mysterical-E, Fall 2007)


The finalists are put before Short Mystery Fiction Society members voting April 1-30 to determine the winner in each category. Congrats and good luck to all.

Thrilling Decade

Today marks ten years online for Kevin Burton Smith's Thrilling Detective Web Site. I've had the privilege of editing the site's original fiction section since March 2001, and hope to continue as long as Kevin wants.

Raise a glass of your favorite beverage to this indispensable online resource for detective fans.