Picks of the Week

CREEPERS, by David Morrell

(originally posted on September 19, 2005)

For all those who love to fight about the divide between literary and genre fiction, enter David Morrell. He's been blurring the lines unapologetically for decades while creating some of the best thrillers one could possibly read. And if CREEPERS is perhaps a wee bit too textbook, you won't even realize it until you're finished because it's scaring the crap out of you as you read on. It's frantic, it's scary, and damn, is it ever good.

WOLF POINT, by Edward Falco

(originally posted on September 19, 2005)

T Walker's life has descended into solitary randomness, and it continues when he picks up a couple of hitchhikers for the hell of it. What follows is a disturbing potrayal how relationships can become unhinged, but of how T has spectacularly messed up his life, and how he must come to terms with those mistakes. Falco has crafted a novel equally suspenseful and thoughtful, and wonderfully tactile. It may be a wisp, but it has surprising staying power.

THE BABY GAME, by Randall Hicks

(originally posted on September 19, 2005)

What a delightful debut! Hicks, a noted adoption attorney, has a great voice and a way with telling a mystery story while casting his eyes on a part of the legal profession that few know the inner workings about. Though some of the twists were telegraphed a bit too early, I couldn't stop reading even if I'd wanted to. This is definitely a series that's begun well, with lots of room to grow.

TILT-A-WHIRL, by Chris Grabenstein

(originally posted on September 10, 2005)

For some reason I thought this was going to be more of a high-concept thriller, but I'm quite pleased to report that it's a very well-done mystery set amidst the seedy small town of Sea Haven and its decaying amusement park. A murdered tycoon, kidnapped daughter and an ending that exposes the grimy layer underneath, TILT-A-WHIRL just works. And it's great fun, too.

THE ROMANCE READER, by Pearl Abraham

(originally posted on September 10, 2005)

After reading this, I think I've pretty much decided that I want to be Pearl Abraham when I grow up (in a writerly sense, of course.) What a beautifully moving first novel that tells the story of Rachel, a girl growing up in a cloistered Chasidic family who feels the stirring of the outside world around her, and tries to understand her place and growing unease in the world she knows. Now I'm looking even more forward to reading Abraham's newest book, THE SEVENTH BEGGAR.

TWINS, by Marcy Dermansky

(originally posted on August 28, 2005)

Is it strange to recommend a book that, while you're reading it, you're not exactly certain you liked? But Dermansky succeeds on so many levels with this debut, a wry, believable and rage-filled portrayal of identical twins who occupy every part of the love-hate spectrum. Not only does Dermansky avoid cliches with her main and supporting players, but she writes in a way that will crawl under your skin and make you twitch -- in the best possible way.

TO KINGDOM COME, by Will Thomas

(originally posted on August 28, 2005)

Some books have all the weight of the world, and others, like Thomas's sophomore outing for his pair of Victorian era sleuths, are just pure fun. Young Thomas Llewellyn is back to narrate his adventures with mercurial detective Cyrus Barker and their investigation of Irish militants, beautiful lasses and explosives in the making. A swift pace, energetic plot and cheerful manner makes this historical novel most entertaining.

PIGTOPIA, by Kitty Fitzgerald

(originally posted on August 28, 2005)

I adore this book and everything about it. Jack Plum, born with an inescapable deformity and saddled with another one in the form of his self-pitying mother, finds refuge in the woods taking care of pigs. When Holly Lock stumbles across his hideaway, a friendship forms that's all parts funny, heartbreaking and touching. There will be conflicts and secrets, milestones and tragedies but there's nothing maudlin or cloying in how they progress. I wish it could have ended differently, but that doesn't mean it wasn't the right way to do it.

BLONDE LIGHTNING, by Terrill Lee Lankford

(originally published on August 28, 2005)

Maybe it's because I read them back-to-back but I do view this and its predecessor, EARTHQUAKE WEATHER, as one big long and extremely entertaining novel of Hollywood sleaze, social observation and murder. Lankford offers up the perfect balance of social observation, wisecracks and moral ambiguity without the faux-ponderousness that infects too many Hollywood novels. This saga's done, but it would be great to see many more from him.

THE WAY WE DIE NOW, by Charles Willeford

(originally posted on August 28, 2005)

Charles Willeford is dead and it's Just Not Fair. Granted, he's been gone almost twenty years, but here's someone who created one of the most memorably weird protagonists in the crime fiction canon and he only got to write about him four times (well five, if you count GRIMHAVEN.) It's a fitting conclusion for the series which managed to be an ode to Miami, a beacon light on blithe psychopaths everywhere, and even a touching tribute to families of all stripes. Now I guess I have to go through the backlist...