It Was A Dark And Stormy Book Club

Mark Billingham is one of the UK's most acclaimed and popular crime writers. A former actor, television writer and stand-up comedian, his series of novels featuring D.I. Tom Thorne has twice won him the Crime Novel Of The Year Award as well as the Sherlock Award for Best British Detective and been nominated for seven CWA Daggers. His standalone thriller IN THE DARK was chosen as one of the twelve best books of the year by the Times and his debut novel, SLEEPYHEAD was chosen by the Sunday Times as one of the 100 books that had shaped the decade. Each of his novels has been a Sunday Times Top Ten bestseller.A television series based on the Thorne novels is screening in the USA on Encore in June 2012, starring David Morrissey (from "The Walking Dead") as Tom Thorne and series based on the standalone thrillers RUSH OF BLOOd and IN THE DARK are currently in development with the BBC.CRY BABY In the summer of 1996, two boys run from a playground into the adjoining woods, but only one comes out. DS Tom Thorne takes o

A Lady's Guide to Mischief and Murder(Countess of Harleigh Mystery #3)by Dianne Freeman London is known for its bustle and intrigues, but the sedate English countryside can host--or hide--any number of secrets. Frances, the widowed Countess of Harleigh, needs a venue for her sister Lily's imminent wedding, away from prying eyes. Risings, George Hazleton's family estate in Hampshire, is a perfect choice, and soon Frances, her beloved George, and other guests have gathered to enjoy the usual country pursuits--shooting, horse riding, and romantic interludes in secluded gardens.But the bucolic setting harbors a menace, and it's not simply the arrival of Frances's socially ambitious mother. Above and below stairs, mysterious accidents befall guests and staff alike. Before long, Frances suspects these "accidents" are deliberate, and fears that the intended victim is Lily's fianc�, Leo. Frances's mother is unimpressed by Lily's groom-to-be and would much prefer that Lily find an aristocratic husband, just as Frances

International bestselling author Brad Parks is the only writer to have won the Shamus, Nero, and Lefty Awards, three of American crime fiction’s most prestigious prizes. His novels have been translated into 15 languages and have won critical acclaim across the globe, including stars from every major pre-publication review outlet. A graduate of Dartmouth College, Parks is a former journalist with The Washington Post and The (Newark, N.J.) Star-Ledger. He is now a full-time novelist living in Virginia with his wife and two school-aged children.Interference - Quantum physicist Matt Bronik is suffering from strange, violent seizures that medical science seems powerless to explain—much to the consternation of his wife, Brigid.Matt doesn’t think these fits could be related to his research, which he has always described as benign and esoteric. That, it turns out, is not quite true: Matt has been prodding the mysteries of the quantum universe, with terrible repercussions for his health. And perhaps even for humanity

A roundup of books we are currently in love with.A BAD DAY FOR SUNSHINE (Sunshine Vicram #1)by Darynda JonesSheriff Sunshine Vicram finds her cup o' joe more than half full when the small village of Del Sol, New Mexico, becomes the center of national attention for a kidnapper on the loose.Del Sol, New Mexico is known for three things: its fry-an-egg-on-the-cement summers, strong cups of coffee - and, now, a nationwide manhunt? Del Sol native Sunshine Vicram has returned to town as the elected sheriff - thanks to her adorably meddlesome parents who nominated her--and she expects her biggest crime wave to involve an elderly flasher named Doug. But a teenage girl is missing, a kidnapper is on the loose, and all of this is reminding Sunshine why she left Del Sol in the first place. Add to that the trouble at her daughter's new school, plus and a kidnapped prized rooster named Puff Daddy, and, well, the forecast looks anything but sunnyTHE LAST AGENT (Charles Jenkins #2)by Robert Dugoni An American operative in Ru

Originally from central Indiana, thriller and mystery author August Norman has called Los Angeles home for two decades, writing for and/or appearing in movies, television, stage productions, web series, and even commercial advertising. A lover and champion of crime fiction, August regularly attends the Santa Barbara Writer's Conference and is an active member of the Mystery Writers of America, the International Thriller Writers, and the Sisters in Crime. In addition, August is a founding member and regular performer with LA's longest running improv comedy show, Opening Night- The Improvised Musical!Caitlin Bergman's mother is dead. That's what the award-winning journalist has told everyone for the past forty years. Easier to lie than explain how Maya abandoned her only daughter before dropping off the map forever.But when a rural sheriff invites Caitlin to the woods of coastal Oregon to identify her mother's remains, Caitlin drops everything to face the woman she's spent a lifetime hating. Unfortunately, the

ALEX GILLY is a writer and translator and who was born in New York City and has lived in Australia, Canada, France, California, and the UK. One of his translations, Thierry Cruvellier's THE MASTER OF CONFESSIONS, was longlisted for the 2015 PEN Translation Prize. Alex holds an MA in Translation and Interpreting Studies and a BA in Linguistics and Spanish and Latin American Studies, both from the University of New South Wales. He lives in Sydney with his wife and children.Death Rattle - When Carmen Vega's boyfriend tries to kill her, she hands over all her savings to a smuggler and sets out from Tijuana in a small, leaky boat. Within sight of the California coast, the boat starts to sink, and its passengers have to be rescued by marine interdiction agents.Soon, Carmen turns up dead in a privately-operated migrant detention center. Neither Nick Finn, the agent who saved Carmen from drowning, nor his wife, migrants-rights lawyer Mona Jimenez, are satisfied with the prison's account of what happened to Carmen.Tro

Joseph James DeAngelo, better known as the Golden State Killer, has been sentenced to 26 consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole, four decades after he terrorized the suburbs of Sacramento and stalked neighborhoods in southern California, breaking into homes to rape and torture women and girls, and killing couples and young women in their beds. Before the sentencing the judge heard three days of victim impact statements. In May of 2019 soon after the Best Selling I'LL BE GONE IN THE DARK was published we had the honor of interviewing Paul Haynes: Michelle McNamara's researcher and then after Michelle's untimely death, he along with others helped finish the book that meant so much to her.We then asked Paul to join us for an update right before the sentencing.

C. M. Gleason is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling and award-winning author. She lives with her family and two dogs in the Midwest, where she is hard at work on the next Lincoln White House Mystery.On Independence Day, the citizens of Washington, DC, are celebrating as if there isn’t a war on. But the city is teeming with green Union recruits while President Lincoln and his War Department are focused on military strategy to take Richmond in Secessionist Virginia in order to bring the conflict to a swift end. Manassas, Virginia, near Bull Run Creek, is in their sights. The very next morning, as Congress convenes once more, a dead body is found on the marble floor of the Rotunda beneath the unfinished dome of the Capitol. Lincoln’s close confidante, Adam Speed Quinn, is called upon to determine whether the man fell, or was pushed to his death. With the help of Dr. George Hilton and journalist Sophie Gates, Quinn investigates what turns out to be murder. But the former scout is about to be blindsided, f

MICHAEL ELIAS was born and raised in upstate New York. He has worked in motion pictures, television and stage as an actor, writer, producer, and director in New York, Los Angeles, and London.He was a member of The Living Theatre and acted in The Brig by Kenneth Brown in New York and London.At WarnerBros he and Rich Eustis created and produced the award-winning series "Head of the Class" that ran for five seasons on ABC starring Howard Hesseman and Billy Connolly.Elias wrote and directed the acclaimed jazz drama "Lush Life" starring Forest Whitaker, Jeff Goldblum, Don Cheadle, and Cathy Baker. Mr. Elias was nominated as Best Director in the Cable Ace Awards.His produced screenplays include "The Jerk", "The Frisco Kid", "Serial", "Envoyez les Violons", and "Young Doctors in Love".His play "The Catskill Sonata" about blacklisted artists premiered in Los Angeles directed by Paul Mazursky. The LA Weekly named it number one in its list of ten best plays of the year.His new novel YOU CAN GO HOME NOW will be publishe

Ellen Kirschman, PhD, is a clinical psychologist, volunteer clinician at the First Responder Support Network, and sought-after speaker and workshop facilitator. Dr. Kirschman is a recipient of the Award for Outstanding Contributions to Police and Public Safety Psychology from the Police and Public Safety section of Division 18 (Psychologists in Public Service) of the American Psychological Association and the Distinguished Contribution to Psychology award from the California Psychological Association. She is coauthor of a book for mental health professionals, Counseling Cops, and author of the self-help guides I Love a Cop, Third Edition, and I Love a Fire Fighter, as well as the mystery novels Burying Ben, The Right Wrong Thing, and The Fifth Reflection. She lives in Redwood City, California. Her website is www.ellenkirschman.com. She also blogs with Psychology Today.She also writes fiction.Police psychologist Dr. Dot Meyerhoff series. There are three books in the series with more to come.

Kate Winkler Dawson is a seasoned documentary producer, whose work has appeared in The New York Times, WCBS News and ABC News Radio, Fox News Channel, United Press International, PBS NewsHour, and Nightline. She teaches journalism at The University of Texas at Austin. AMERICAN SHERLOCKFrom the acclaimed author of Death in the Air (“Not since Devil in the White City has a book told such a harrowing tale”–Douglas Preston) comes the riveting story of the birth of criminal investigation in the twentieth century.Berkeley, California, 1933. In a lab filled with curiosities–beakers, microscopes, Bunsen burners, and hundreds upon hundreds of books–sat an investigator who would go on to crack at least two thousand cases in his forty-year career. Known as the “American Sherlock Holmes,” Edward Oscar Heinrich was one of America’s greatest–and first–forensic scientists, with an uncanny knack for finding clues, establishing evidence, and deducing answers with a skill that seemed almost supernatural.Heinrich was one of the

Paul W. Papa is a full-time writer and ghost writer who has lived in Las Vegas for more than thirty years. He developed a fascination with the area, and all its wonders, while working for nearly fifteen years at several Las Vegas casinos. In his role as a security officer, Paul was the person who actually shut and locked the doors of the Sands Hotel and Casino for the final time. He eventually became a hotel investigator for a major Strip casino, during which time he developed a love for writing stories about uncommon events. When not at his keyboard, Paul can be found talking to tourists on Fremont Street, investigating some old building, or sitting in a local diner hunting down his next story.Maximum Rossi - He came to Las Vegas for a bachelor party and never left. When a game of high stakes poker turns into a boxing match, Massimo "Max" Rossi, the son of a Boston Rossi, a mob "fixer," winds up with more than he bargained for. All eyes turn to him when the police find his opponent, a hitman from Chicago, de

D.C. Alexander is a former federal agent. His debut novel, "The Legend of Devil's Creek," was a #1 Amazon Kindle best seller. He was born and raised in the Seattle area, and now lives in Louisville, Kentucky. He is also a former judge for the International Thriller Writers annual Thriller Awards Competition. He welcomes and appreciates your feedback and can be contacted via email at:authordcalexander@gmail.comBLOOD in the BLUEGRASS - A few days before the Kentucky Derby, a rising star jockey is found murdered near Churchill Downs. Louisville homicide detective Laurel Arno's investigation takes her from the private dens of elite gamblers, to the ancestral mansions of Kentucky bourbon barons and horse breeders, to the treacherous corridors of a depraved State Capitol. Along the way, she exposes a shadowy world of political corruption, secret societies, and ancient feuds. As she closes in on a hidden killer, she discovers that a killer may also be closing in on her.

Heather is the author of two novels. Her debut, The Lost Girls, won the Strand Award for Best First Novel and was nominated for an Edgar Award. The Distant Dead was published on June 9, 2020, and was named one of the Best Books of Summer by People Magazine, Parade, and CrimeReads. A former antitrust and intellectual property litigator, she traded the legal world for the literary one and earned her MFA from the Bennington Writing Seminars in 2011. She lives in Mill Valley, California, where she writes, bikes, hikes, and reads books by other people that she wishes she’d written.THE DISTANT DEAD- A body burns in the high desert hills. A boy walks into a fire station, pale with the shock of a grisly discovery. A middle school teacher worries when her colleague is late for work. By day’s end, when the body is identified as local math teacher Adam Merkel, a small Nevada town will be rocked to its core by a brutal and calculated murder. Adam Merkel left a university professorship in Reno to teach middle school in

We Highlight three cozy mysteries we have enjoyed readingDead in Dublin (The Dublin Driver Series #1) Catie MurphyDeath Bee Comes Her (The Oregon Honeycomb Mystery Series #1) Nancy CocoMurder Carries a Torch (Southern Sisters #7) Anne George

Casey Cep is a staff writer at The New Yorker. Her first book, Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee, was an instant New York Times bestseller, and is available in hardcover, as an e-book, and as an audiobook.A proud graduate of the Talbot County Public Schools, she has an A.B. from Harvard College and an M.Phil. from the University of Oxford, where she studied as a Rhodes Scholar. She was born and raised on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, where she still lives with her family.Furious Hours: The stunning story of an Alabama serial killer and the true-crime book that Harper Lee worked on obsessively in the years after To Kill a Mockingbird.Reverend Willie Maxwell was a rural preacher accused of murdering five of his family members for insurance money in the 1970s. With the help of a savvy lawyer, he escaped justice for years until a relative shot him dead at the funeral of his last victim. Despite hundreds of witnesses, Maxwell’s murderer was acquitted–thanks to the same attorney who ha

Liz Freeland lives with her husband in Montreal, where she writes and astounds the locals with her makeshift French. An elderly cat or dog (or two . . . or four) can typically be found in her apartment, and during the busiest day, Liz usually finds time to sneak in an old movie.An Orphan of Hell's Kitchen - In 1914, Hell's Kitchen is an apt name for New York City's grittiest neighborhood, as one of the city's first policewomen, Louise Faulk, is about to discover when the death of a young prostitute leads her on a grim journey through the district's darkest corners . . .Filthy, dangerous, and deadly--Hell's Kitchen is no place for a lady, but Louise Faulk is no ordinary woman. The amateur investigator turned rookie policewoman is investigating the death of young prostitute, Ruthie, who leaves behind a baby boy. Although detectives are quick to declare it a suicide, Louise is less certain after she discovers clues implying murder while attempting to find a caretaker for Ruthie's orphaned son.

Laurie R. King is the New York Times bestselling author of 27 novels and other works, including the Mary Russell-Sherlock Holmes stories (from The Beekeeper’s Apprentice, named one of the 20th century’s best crime novels by the IMBA, to 2018’s Island of the Mad). She has won an alphabet of prizes from Agatha to Wolfe, been chosen as guest of honor at several crime conventions, and is probably the only writer to have both an Edgar and an honorary doctorate in theology. She was inducted into the Baker Street Irregulars in 2010, as “The Red Circle.”Riviera Gold - The Riviera in 1925 is a playground for the rich built on corruption and greed. It is a place where treasure can be false, where love can destroy, and where life, as Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes will discover, can be cheap—even when it is made of solid gold.It’s summertime on the Riviera, and the Jazz Age has come to France’s once-sleepy coastline. Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes find themselves immersed in the social scene of American expatriates

Elly Griffiths' Ruth Galloway novels take for their inspiration Elly's husband, who gave up a city job to train as an archaeologist, and her aunt who lives on the Norfolk coast and who filled her niece's head with the myths and legends of that area. Elly has two children and lives near Brighton. THE LANTERN MEN(Ruth Galloway #12) She has a new job, home and partner, and is no longer North Norfolk police's resident forensic archaeologist. That is, until convicted murderer Amyas March offers to make DCI Nelson a deal. Nelson was always sure that March killed more women than he was charged with. Now March confirms this, and offers to show Nelson where the other bodies are buried - but only if Ruth will do the digging.Curious, but wary, Ruth agrees. March tells Ruth that he killed four more women and that their bodies are buried near a village bordering the fens, said to be haunted by the Lantern Men, mysterious figures holding lights that lure travellers to their deaths.Is Amyas March himself a lantern man, luri

Lori Rader-Day is the Edgar Award-nominated and Anthony and Mary Higgins Clark award-winning author of The Lucky One (coming in February), Under a Dark Sky, The Day I Died, Little Pretty Things, and The Black Hour. She lives in Chicago, where she is co-chair of the mystery readers’ conference Murder and Mayhem in Chicago and the national president of Sisters in Crime.THE LUCKY ONE - As a child, Alice was stolen from her yard in a tiny Indiana community, but against the odds, her policeman father tracked her down within twenty-four hours and rescued her from harm. In the aftermath of the crime, her family decided to move to Chicago and close the door on that horrible day.Yet Alice hasn’t forgotten. She devotes her spare time volunteering for a true-crime website called The Doe Pages scrolling through pages upon pages of missing and unidentified people, searching for clues that could help reunite families with their missing loved ones. When a face appears on Alice’s screen that she recognizes, she’s stunned to