Watch “Harry Wild” for Great Entertainment

Harry Wild is great mystery entertainment

Harry Wild is a show made for Acorn TV, now playing for free on Hoopla. It’s set in Dublin! It has Jane Seymour starring the lead as a Jessica Fletcher type, but she is 5 times sassier! It’s light mystery entertainment with good writing. Literature professor Harriet “Harry” Wild (Jane Seymour) is adjusting to retirement when she’s mugged. While recovering at the home of her son (Kevin Ryan), a detective … Continue reading

Buying Used Books, Some Suggestions

Why you might buy used books When the library doesn’t have enough copies When you want to keep a copy of the book with your own notes and scribbles When a new book is not affordable Considerations when buying used books The fastest two ways to find used copies are using Amazon.com or Ebay.com. The reason I use those two sites for used books only as a last resort is … Continue reading

What the heck is a literary mystery?

My annoyance, followed by curiosity, all began with the announcement of a panel of “acclaimed mystery authors” which I promoted in the December 1, 2022 Mystery Book Club “events” email. See below. I thought, well, if I am promoting it, perhaps I should attend the online event. Then I thought, it might be best to read at least one of the author’s books so I could form my reaction based on … Continue reading

A Successful Book Club vs A Distressful Book Club

A successful book club is where people continue to participate because after each meeting, they go home having enjoyed themselves, even if they might not have enjoyed the monthly book. Or as I always say, our goal is to have fun. I happened across an article in The New York Times by Joanne Kaufman entitled: “Fought Over Any Good Books Lately?” She writes about the perils of joining book groups … Continue reading

Courtroom Drama is Just One Reason to Watch “The Extraordinary Attorney Woo”

I started eighth grade in 1959; during the year I started a new club at Westwood Junior High – a lawyer’s club. I doubt any other school had such a club, but it was due in part to my fascination with the TV show, Perry Mason. The show motivated me to read the actual books by Erle Stanley Gardner. I have been fascinated by books with courtroom drama or legal … Continue reading

Louise Penny’s Inspector Gamache on Amazon Prime and Other News

A steadfast group of mystery book fans in our book club read all 17 of the existing Inspector Gamache books. This is not the only indication of the popularity of Louise Penny and her famous book series set in the fictional town of Three Pines, Quebec. Last year’s book, The Madness of Crowds, was at the top of the NY Times best selling hardcover fiction list for 5 weeks straight. … Continue reading

Mystery book conferences can be fun for fans

I am heading to New England’s main mystery book conference next week; it’s known as the New England Crime Bake. This is my fourth time going to the “Crime Bake.” In 2018, I also went to the largest national mystery book conference known as Bouchercon. These are just two of 15 different mystery book conferences scheduled annually here and in Northern Europe. Why go to a mystery book conference? Like … Continue reading

ANOTHER Lynne Reeves Interview

This is a follow up to the previous post about the live Zoom interview of mystery-thriller writer Lynne Reeves on the evening of Wednesday November 9. I discovered today that she is also the subject of a written interview in The Big Thrill online magazine. It is called an UP CLOSE (with an author) feature. I would say it is more like an introduction to Reeves, useful to read, but … Continue reading

What is a “Heartfelt” Driven Mystery Thriller?

A “Heartfelt” Mystery Thriller is my way of describing what happens when a mystery-suspense thriller is written by a family counselor, not a cop, journalist, lawyer, politician, medical doctor, or retired spy. Nor is it simply a “psychological thriller” with a new plot twist to keep you turning the pages. The closest I can come to that idea (for those who read it) is Ordinary Grace, by William Kent Krueger) … Continue reading