THE GREAT LEADER by Jim Harrison
Once, many years ago when I was living in Northern Michigan, Jim Harrison walked into the restaurant where I was dining. He didn’t so much walk in, in retrospect, as lumber in. It was the Blue Bird Cafe and I confess that I’d been hanging out there in the hopes of catching a glimpse of him.
October 30, 2011
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Judi Clark · 
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Tags: Contemporary, Grove Press, Literary, Michigan, Mystery · Posted in: Contemporary, Literary, Mystery/Suspense, US Midwest
THE CRY OF THE OWL by Patricia Highsmith
American author, Patricia Highsmith, who died in 1995, left behind a respectable body of work. Highsmith is known primarily for her psychological thrillers, so perhaps it’s not too surprising that a number of her novels have been adapted for the big screen–including THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY, RIPLEY’S GAME, RIPLEY UNDERGROUND, THE CRY OF THE OWL and THIS SWEET SICKNESS. Highsmith’s first novel, STRANGERS ON A TRAIN, was made into a film directed by Alfred Hitchcock–a man with an uncanny ability to spot new talent. While STRANGERS ON A TRAIN is my all-time favourite Hitchcock film, it veers away from the darkest corners of Highsmith’s tale. I like to think that even Hitchcock wasn’t ready to wrestle with some of Highsmith’s controversial and insidiously buried themes.
July 21, 2011
· Judi Clark · No Comments
Tags: 2011 Favorites, Mystery, Psychological · Posted in: 2011 Favorites, Classic, Mystery/Suspense
THE DANTE CLUB by Matthew Pearl
You could classify THE DANTE CLUB loosely as historical fiction. Or perhaps, try historical-fantasy-fiction-literary-murder-mystery. It’s definitely a work to be enjoyed by “literary types,” but also by thrill-seekers, detective buffs, psychological and social analysts and in fact anyone who enjoys a good read.
June 30, 2011
· Judi Clark · One Comment
Tags: 19th-Century, 2012 - authors with books published this year, Boston, Dante, Historical, Literary, Mystery · Posted in: Literary, Mystery/Suspense, NE & New York, Real People Fiction, Time Period Fiction
THE STRONGER SEX by Hans Werner Kettenbach
The German novel, THE STRONGER SEX, by Hans Werner Kettenbach is ostensibly about a lawsuit–a very grubby lawsuit, but the story is really about the tangled relationships between the people involved in the case. Lawyer Alexander Zabel, in his late twenties, is rather surprised to find himself pressured into representing the elderly, ailing German industrialist, Herbert Klofft in a case involving his former employee, 34-year-old Katharina Fuchs. Katharina, an engineer who has worked in Klofft’s company, Klofft’s Valves, for eleven years was fired after requesting sick leave.
June 17, 2011
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Tags: Bitter Lemon Press, Lawyer, Mystery · Posted in: Character Driven, Courtoom Drama, Germany, Morality, Mystery/Suspense, Psychological Suspense, Translated, World Literature
DECEPTIONS by Rebecca Frayn
Julian Poulter, the first-person narrator of Rebecca Frayn’s DECEPTIONS, is a somewhat priggish individual who says things like, “I’ve always believed one must strive to put painful episodes behind one with the minimum of fuss and bother.” He is a master of denial who, in flashback, tells how he and Annie Wray, a teacher, tried to forge a permanent relationship when he moved in with her and her two children by her late husband. Annie is flightier and far more spontaneous than Julian; each provides a quality that the other lacks.
May 20, 2011
· Judi Clark · No Comments
Tags: 2010 PB Release, Mystery, Thriller, Unreliable Narrator · Posted in: Motherhood, Mystery/Suspense, Psychological Suspense, Reading Guide, United Kingdom
RUSSIAN WINTER by Daphne Kalotay
Daphne Kalotay imbues the crowd-pleasing qualities of commercial fiction with a soft and sensuous literary touch in this novel of exile and family, love and betrayal. From the Stalinist aggression of Russia to the peaceful, snowy streets of Boston, the reader is taken on a page-turning journey of professional ballet, fancy jewels, and ethereal poetry. This is an historical romance written by a scholar to appeal to readers seeking a satisfying escape. ??
April 25, 2011
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Tags: 2011 PB Release, Boston, Dancer, Historical, Mystery · Posted in: Debut Novel, Mystery/Suspense, NE & New York, Reading Guide, Russia, Time Period Fiction
