John Russell Fearn's Pattern of Murder is a fiendishly clever crime novel with a murder weapon and method so delightful that I forgive it for being inverted. It's well-written in the sense that it moves. Fearn doesn't care about painting a picture or demonstrating his vocabulary. He's a got a singular world (the inner workings… Continue reading Pattern of Murder
It's a common murder-mystery tactic - isolating characters in one place. Yes, authors employ this device to ratchet up the panic and tension, but I suspect their main reason is to prevent the victims/suspects from simply leaving. "What's that? There's an unknown murderer in the house? I know! I'll drive to New Jersey, change my… Continue reading The Red Death Murders
Though I am not familiar with a lot of juvenile mysteries, I imagine they focus on scenes of adventure rather than detection. After all, a few thrills help the medicine go down and tweens need action to go with their plots. It's nice though when an adventure story includes clues and false solutions while trekking… Continue reading The Viking Claw
Gabriele is always kind enough to translate his (Italian) reviews for me to read. Here are his thoughts on my latest novel. Enjoy. "In the scene of traditional detective fiction, essentially two schools of thought can be counted based upon the different approach with which the crime and the plot that revolves around it are… Continue reading Gabriele Crescenzi’s review of The 5 False Suicides
"I’m not afraid of going to hell. I begrudge the money the ticket is gonna cost." I'd like to begin by saying that I liked The Fabulous Clipjoint. The best artists have one thing to say and then proceed to say that one thing in as many different ways as possible. Brown is a fatalist… Continue reading The Fabulous Clipjoint
James Scott Byrnside 