Reading for pleasure

Peter at Detectives Beyond Borders has started to read the excellent Mamur Zapt series of Egyptian police procedurals, by Michael Pearce.

Nemesis by Jo Nesbo comes to Glenn Harper at International Noir Fiction, hot on the heels of The Demon of Dakar by Kjell Eriksson. One thing both these authors have in common is that their books are being published in translation in what I can only call a perverse order, as Glenn explains.

Kerrie at Mysteries in Paradise reviews Not Dead Enough, by Peter James, and includes some interesting background about this author (an earlier progress report is here). Kerrie has also braved Heartsick by Chelsea Cain, the book with "that" promotional video (unviewed by Petrona).

The Fourth Man by K. O. Dahl gets the treatment at Material Witness.

Stephen Lang reviews J. G. Ballard's haunting and prescient novel of "ruined London in the distant future", The Drowned World (one of those books that once read is never forgotten). John Self at Asylum reviews Miracles of Life, the author's recently published, and well-received, autobiography.

Faceless Killers by Henning Mankell is devoured (with a touch of Ken) by dovegreyreader scribbles.

Martin Edwards muses on the mystery of Margot Bennett - why did she never publish another crime novel after winning the CWA main prize in 1959?

Good news for fans of Scandinavian fiction: see Euro Crime's new categories and organisation, making it even easier to choose your brand of poison (or other murder).

Harum Scarum by Felicity Young sounds like fun at Crime Down Under.

Norman Price assesses Philip Kerr's A Quiet Flame -- the book and its context -- over at Euro Crime. If you read only one review in this collection of links, I recommend this one. Not only is it an excellent review, but it provides a strong sense of the importance of history, and of remembering.

Comments

[Kerrie Smith]

I haven't seen the Chelsea Cain promotional video Maxine, but most videos I've seen haven't been worth the money they obviously cost to produce - either that or they are too amateurish to have been worth the time. What I kept thinking about in HEART SICK is where Cain got the gruesome details that fill the book. They display a knowledge that I can't even fathom.

[Euro Crime (Karen M)]

Thanks Maxine for all these excellent links.

[Peter]

I think I'll go spend a bit more time wit the Mamur Zapt and his domestic and professional crew right now. You'll know from my comment that I'm impressed with Pearce's rendering of contemporary subject matter in a style reminiscent of earlier books. I've also noticed another impressive touch, but I'll save the writing until I've done a bit more reading.

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Detectives Beyond Borders
"Because Murder Is More Fun Away From Home"
http://www.detectivesbeyondborders.blogspot.com/