Personal

The post explaining it all is here, but this is the short version:

• I started a new gig as the News Editor for Publishers Marketplace, the first time I have had something approximating a full-time …

As has been widely reported, Otto Penzler and his well-traveled imprint is on the move again, after being domiciled at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for the past six years. As of Fall 2011, he’ll …

My newest Q&A at Currency is with Adam Levin, whose debut novel THE INSTRUCTIONS has been receiving a ridiculous amount of buzz. A lot of it has to do with the sheer length of the book (it clocks …

In Saturday’s Wall Street Journal, I wrote about one of my all-time favorite books: BY GRAND CENTRAL STATION I SAT DOWN AND WEPT, Elizabeth Smart’s prose poem published in 1945. It is …

My newest column for the Los Angeles Times travels through the Appalachian region, looking specifically at recent novels published by Sharyn McCrumb and Vicki Lane. Here’s now the piece opens: …

For many years crime fiction fans have clamored for the return of Patrick Kenzie & Angela Gennaro, Dennis Lehane’s private-eye duo first introduced in 1994’s A DRINK BEFORE THE WAR and …

I admit I arrived at Bouchercon with a faraway look in my eye. A day late, with family obligations past and nostalgia trips and unexpected meetings with old friends to come, this year’s …

This more or less dormant* blog will be even more dormant this week thanks to the chock-full-of-wonder that is Bouchercon. It officially starts on Thursday and runs through Sunday at the Hyatt Regency …

My newest Dark Passages column for the LAT heaps praise on Tom Franklin’s new novel CROOKED LETTER, CROOKED LETTER, which bowled me over in a big, big way, even more so than his previous work, …

Starting today, I’ve begun a new column at Currency, an American Express-sponsored personal finance site geared towards the so-called Millenial Generation (aka those aged 21-32 or thereabouts.) …

Shel Silverstein’s 80th birthday was last Saturday, and since my admiration (okay, uh, general fannishness) is hardly a secret in these quarters, it seemed like as good a time as any to write …

I’ve spent the better portion of the afternoon racking my brain trying to remember when I first met David Thompson. And I can’t. Which says less about the state of memory and more about …

Over the weekend, my newest Dark Passages column ran online at the LAT, featuring my take on new books by Elizabeth Brundage and Chandra Hoffman. Although the books don’t seem connected, I found …

My newest – and final – column for The Barnes & Noble Review focuses on Yunte Huang’s new book about the famed fictional Chinese detective, one whose influence has ranged wide …

My review of Martin Cruz Smith’s newest novel featuring his iconic Russian detective, Arkady Renko, appeared in yesterday’s Los Angeles Times (but was only put online this afternoon.) …

So the busy summer (and year) continues but a couple of new and upcoming publications featuring work of mine that I should draw your attention to. First up is FOLLOWING THE DETECTIVES: REAL LOCATIONS …

I read many books annually, so that means I don’t reread all that much. But for Don Winslow’s SAVAGES, I couldn’t help but make an exception. The book was, at least for me, the …

My newest column for the Los Angeles Times looks specifically at Justin Peacock’s new novel BLIND MAN’S ALLEY and at the seeming dearth of crime fiction centered around real estate. …

With the hype and phenomenal success of the Millenium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson, a lot of news outlets have been asking the natural but obvious question: who’s the next big breakout star? Is he …

At the Barnes & Noble Review, I delve into crime and mystery fiction for young adult readers, discovering that there are some real gems in the mix but even so, there could be so many more. I …

My newest column for the Los Angeles Times takes a close look at HAILEY’S WAR by Jodi Compton, her first book in several years. Only a small number of people read her earlier books, but I was …

Still sporadic, expect to be so for the foreseeable future. But links, they do pile up…

At DailyFinance this weekend, I wrote about Rick Riordan and his extremely successful Percy Jackson …

One of the advantages of being lazy sporadic about blogging these days is that it affords me the longer view on some matters I never would have given all that much thought to before. To wit, My …

One of America’s greatest writers has passed on, and even though I shouldn’t have been surprised – he was 82 years old and not in the greatest of health the last few years – I …

The kind folks at Salon.com asked me to contribute a list of crime novels worth spending your time with this summer, and with the usual caveats – not enough room, some great books I’m …

My newest Dark Passages column for the Los Angeles Times had a small agenda, I must admit. Most reviews and profiles concerning Michael Koryta, who debuted with quite the deserved splash in 2003 with …

The Daily Beast has been running a series devoted to emerging writers, and their first two choices – THE INVISIBLE BRIDGE by Julie Orringer and EVERYTHING LOVELY, EFFORTLESS, SAFE by Jenny …

Of course I was going to write about Stieg Larsson. I haven’t been able to shut up about the Millenium books since January of 2008, when the UK edition of THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO arrived …

Thursday morning from 10 AM to 11 AM Eastern, I’ll be on Minnesota Public Radio’s Midmorning along with Jason Pinter to talk with host Kerri Miller about favorite characters in mystery …

Sometime soon, Julie Bosman will move beats and report on the publishing industry for the New York Times, replacing Motoko Rich (who will now report on the economy.) Bosman’s a familiar face, …

The Daily Beast asked me to list what I consider to be the best books in the true crime genre, and I obliged. Many offerings are what you’d expect – IN COLD BLOOD, THE EXECUTIONER’S …

My newest LA Times column looks at THE SINGER’S GUN, the new novel from Emily St. John Mandel that will very much appeal to crime fiction readers, though it doesn’t quite fit neatly inside …

INNOCENT, the long-awaited sequel to Scott Turow’s 1987 novel PRESUMED INNOCENT, won’t actually be in stores until Tuesday, but boy, the media blitz has begun in earnest. There’s the …

I wasn’t able to make it to this year’s Festival of Books, which is ongoing throughout the weekend and, if you’re in the area, very well worth your time. But last night the Book …

My newest column at the Barnes & Noble Review looks at the lineup so far from Vertigo Crime, which kicked off last summer with Ian Rankin’s DARK ENTRIES and Brian Azzarello’s FILTHY …

My newest column at the Los Angeles Times muses on unreliable narrators – a device I love, but not everyone does – and specifically, those employed in new novels by relative newcomers …

The work of Walter Mosley, I suspect, inspires some people to revisit tired old genre wars. To my mind such inclinations have less to do with determining what is supposed to be literature and more …

My newest column at the Barnes & Noble Review focuses on the novels of David Carkeet, many of which are being reissued over the course of this year by Overlook Press. Out now is his first, …

My newest “Dark Passages” column at the Los Angeles Times looks at the first and most recent books by Carol Goodman, which share an upstate NY, secreted girls’ school setting, though …

The finalists for the Los Angeles Times Book Prizes have been announced, and aside from a new graphic novel category and the inaugural Innovator’s Award going to Dave Eggers, there’s a …

My brief treatise on AGATHA CHRISTIE’S SECRET NOTEBOOKS – as self-explanatory a title as you’re going to get – appears this week in the Barnes & Noble Review. The book is …

My newest column for the Barnes & Noble Review __once more travels the non-fiction route, considering Deborah Blum’s artfully written synthesis of the dawn of the New York City Medical …

My newest column at the LA Times looks at a slew of newcomers, including Belinda Bauer, Randy Susan Meyers, Carla Buckley and James Thompson, whose first crime novels come at the dawn of a new decade …

At the Barnes & Noble Review, I consider John Burdett’s latest Sonchai Jitpleetcheep novel, THE GODFATHER OF KATHMANDU, which is only partially set in Bangkok but still very much in keeping …

Now I can confess: when I first heard the news that J.D. Salinger died, I was instant-messaging with my editor at DailyFinance and said something to the effect of “not to sound crass, but his …

I’ve long wanted to write about the work of Dorothy Uhnak, a police officer with the NYPD who wrote procedurals before Joseph Wambaugh put his stamp on cop novels in the early 1970s, but the …

My newest LA Times column finishes up a two-part look at the state of contemporary fiction by being just about the last person to analyze PD James’ analysis of the genre, TALKING ABOUT DETECTIVE …

The Los Angeles Times runs my profile with Sue Grafton today, based on a fairly wide-ranging conversation about her writing methods, why she’s never content to rest on her laurels, and why …

At the Barnes & Noble Review, my newest column looks at the wonderfully entertaining Bryant & May novels by Christopher Fowler. The plots harken back to the Golden Age of mystery but are very …

My newest column for the Los Angeles Times reflects what was some unconscious gravitation on my part towards non-fiction that looks at contemporary detective fiction, and so it’s the first of a …

I can list caveats until the cows come home about not having enough space to expound on all the very good books I read this year, but in the end, I whittled my “Best of 2009” list to eight …

The Daily Beast runs my profile of Al Roker, the TODAY Show’s weatherman and feature reporter, on the day that his first mystery novel, THE MORNING SHOW MURDERS, is published. Here’s how …

Over at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Rege Behe gathered an impressive number of writers like Anne Rice, Gregg Hurwitz, Ayelet Waldman, Alafair Burke and Hallie Ephron to talk about authorial …

Deadlines looming. Swamped with work. A big interview to finish up and post here soon. But for now, check here for salient news and views.

In an act of serendipity, both of my crime fiction columns appeared online on the same day. At the LA Times, my newest “Dark Passages” column looks at how authors try to freshen up a …

Jason Pinter, as part of his new gig as a columnist for the Huffington Post’s recently launched books section, gathered together an excellent group of crime fiction critics, observers and …

When I left GalleyCat a couple of years ago the prospect of covering the publishing industry on a daily basis had become something of a grind. There were other projects to pursue – some …

To close out Tablet Magazine’s Jewish Body Week, I wrote about the autopsy – spefically, religious objections, technological innovations, and the conflicts that come up. Here’s how …

Tonight at 7 PM, Scandinavia House hosts Norwegian crime novelists Kjell Ola Dahl (THE FOURTH MAN, THE MAN IN THE WINDOW, THE LAST FIX) and Anne Holt (WHAT IS MINE, WHAT NEVER HAPPENS) as well as …

My first column for the Barnes & Noble Review under the banner of “The Criminalist” – which allows me to indulge in some fantasy that the pesky forensic science master’s …

I admit, self-promotion here has been kind of rampant, but such is the convergence of several pieces written at different times appearing almost simultaneously! To wit, my newest Dark Passages column, …

The fine folks at New York Magazine invited me on board for the newest edition of the Vulture Reading Room, their occasional online book club. And just when you thought THE LOST SYMBOL had reached its …

My review of HARDBALL, the 13th installment of the V.I. Warshawski series by Sara Paretsky, appears at the Barnes & Noble Review today. Here’s how it opens:

To understand the current …

Several years ago, one of my favorite blogs was “The Literary Dick”, run by Michael Wood but hosted by Jonathan Ames, and every few days there’d be some new and strange literary …

I cannot even begin to describe what a goldmine of information Paul Krassner’s “impolite interview” with Shel Silverstein in the August 1961 issue of THE REALIST is. References to a …

At the LA Times, my newest Dark Passages column focuses on the first two installments of the adventures of modern-day globetrotter Gabriel Hunt, the brainchild of Charles Ardai (who wrote book #2) but …

Apologies in advance for what will be a muted presence here for the rest of the month, as I’m guest-editing Publishers Lunch until August 28th and there’s the usual crop of expected and …

At Significant Objects, Josh Glenn and Rob Walker’s fabulous site devoted to people like Nicholson Baker, Luc Sante, Stewart O’Nan, Lizzie Skurnick and many, many others inventing …

At the Barnes & Noble Review, I look at the newest novel by Spanish crime writer Carmen Posadas, an odd yet often enjoyable brew of mystery and post-modernism. Here’s how it opens:

My newest column for the LA Times looks at recent crime fiction involving, shall we say, damaged women who are still strong enough to overcome their pasts and take some control of their future. …

In today’s Los Angeles Times, I review George Dawes Green’s new novel RAVENS, a book I and many others have been waiting for a very long time. It’s very much worth the wait, and be …

My newest LA Times column looks at the Inspector Adamsberg novels by Fred Vargas, one of the best series of detective novels being published right now. They are delightfully odd books, but …

Yesterday on Minnesota’s Public Radio, Both Ron Charles and I appeared to talk about summer reads of all stripes – though I concentrated heavily on mysteries and thrillers. It was a hell …

Every few months, whenever stress levels would increase and desire to work would decrease, I’d go on a YouTube jag of Michael Jackson videos. Specifically his early years with the Jackson Five, …

At Tablet Magazine – though when I conceived and wrote and revised the piece, the place was still Nextbook – my essay on Esther Kreitman and her greatest work, the novel Der Sheydim Tants …

After receiving a number of requests to make the video of my interview with James Ellroy and Colin Harrison at Book Expo America readily available to the public, the kind folks at …

As part of its summer reading issue, the National Post asked me to contribute my picks for worthwhile mysteries and thrillers to take with on vacation, at the beach, and the like. Some I’ve …

This week I’ll be taking part in two different events. Tomorrow night at XR Bar (128 Sullivan Street near Houston) from 8 PM onwards is the launch party for SEX, THUGS & ROCK ‘N ROLL, …

For my newest LA Times column, I wanted to try something a little different. So instead of reviewing Lawrence Block’s new memoir STEP BY STEP, I met up with him early in May for a profile piece …

Late last year, when I came across the news that Eric Ambler’s centenary was coming up in 2009, I realized how little of the man’s work I’d actually read. And so in short order I …

I was going to post at length, but really, Kat Meyer sums up all the reasons why Confessions, unlike other like-minded blogs, will not be available as an Amazon Kindle download for the forseeable …

In the Los Angeles Times, I use George Pelecanos’s new novel as a means of writing a mini-essay about how his concerns and writing style has changed over time. Here’s how it opens: …

My newest column in the Los Angeles Times looks at a slew of mysteries designed for young adult audiences, one of which came out a while ago (John Green’s excellent, Edgar award winning PAPER …

My review of the National Book Award winner’s foray into crime fiction – now in novel form after first appearing within the pages of Playboy four issues in a row – runs today in the …

At the Barnes & Noble Review, I have my say on the first Leonid McGill mystery. Here’s how it opens:

This weekend I’ll be up in Connecticut along with a plethora of excellent crime writers, including Guest of Honor Linda Fairstein, for the inaugural Murder 203 festival, held at the Easton and …

In the May/June edition of Poets & Writers, I have a short piece on authors on Twitter – what they are doing there, the best way to reach readers, and if the fuss is warranted (you can …

While I’ve updated the Picks of the Week section, and the selections will remain until I accrue enough recommendations for a refresh, I should point out the following: the links go to Amazon …

Blogging and tweeting will be light for the next week or so; Passover preparations and being out of town will do that. IN the meantime, check out my spotlight review of Jacques Chessex’s odd …

My newest Dark Passages column at the LA Times looks at the Bernie Gunther novels by Philip Kerr (most recently A QUIET FLAME, which is published next week here though it’s been out in the UK …

Spencer Quinn and his novel DOG ON IT have been a hot topic of mine of late. But when this article in the Cape Cod Times ran last week and revealed he was a pseudonym, I put on my sleuthing hat and …

Earlier today I was a guest on New Hampshire Public Radio’s lunchtime program Word of Mouth, talking with host Virginia Prescott on the current tumultuous state of the publishing industry. You …

If Confessions is quiet of late, you’re not hallucinating – it’s because I’m otherwise engaged. But if you’re around Greenwich Village tomorrow night at 6:30, come to the …

For my newest “Dark Passages” column, I wanted to try something different: was there a way to write about the proliferation of crime fiction featuring animals with some degree of gravitas? …

When I was a great deal younger and more prone to temper tantrums, I got mightily upset when a visit to the department store did not, as I expected, allow me to own a shiny new doll. Cue screaming and …

As it turns out, January’s crime fiction column for the Baltimore Sun was my last. After four and a half years, my column will no longer continue in the paper because of budget cuts – …

Sometimes you have to go with the obvious, and since Tuesday is the 200th anniversary of Edgar Allan Poe’s birth and the Edgar Award nominations are slated for announcement later this morning, …

The fourth and final part of my ongoing series on historical mysteries at the Barnes & Noble Review (Go here for parts One, Two, and Three) runs this week, zeroing in on recent and upcoming novels …

So word of my freakish reading ability got around and Carolyn Kellogg, Jacket Copy’s ace lead blogger, engaged me in a Q&A about the nuts and bolts of it:

Jacket Copy: So how do you do …

Hope your 2009 has gotten off to a great start. I certainly feel ready to get back to things (especially after 2008’s last inauspicious moment) and get the year off on the right footing.

The …

Tomorrow is the last night of Chanukah, so that means this rendition of “Ocho Kandelikas” from my choir concert last Wednesday still applies.

To each and every one of you I wish the happiest of holidays. The slowdown has begun, and since I’ve more or less vowed to take a breather from all things Internet and social media for the …

The January/February issue of Poets & Writers (which has an absolute must-read cover story featuring four of the best up and coming agents going right now) also includes a short Q&A of mine …

My newest LA Times column travels back in time to the 1920s, when Earl Derr Biggers started writing a sextet of novels starring Hawaii-based Chinese-American detective Charlie Chan. Then it jumps …

Apologies from this corner for the paucity of posts: it’s been a deadline-packed week and the pace won’t ease up until early next week. Which is why I’m late on directing you to …

If you happen to be in midtown this weekend, you’re well advised to check out the goings-on at the 21st Annual Indie & Small Press Book Fair, taking place at the General Society Building on …

Here’s to good food and cheer to distract from stormy economic times. And when Black Friday rolls around, how about hitting up your nearest independent shop and buying a book or few for friends …

Today’s the day. If there ever was an election I wished I could vote in, this was it. Even getting free ice cream and coffee isn’t enough to overcome this wish. So don’t let rain or …

The Barnes & Noble Review runs a long and a short piece of mine this week. The long piece is a review of Louis Bayard’s historical thriller THE BLACK TOWER:

Writers of historical fiction …

My newest Dark Passages column at the Los Angeles Times turns the clock back all the way to 1865, when John Babbington Williams’ LEAVES FROM THE NOTE-BOOK OF A NEW YORK DETECTIVE” was …

When I first heard that Leonard Cassuto, a professor of English Literature at Fordham (and not Hofstra, as it reads in the piece) was writing a book about the links between hardboiled fiction and …

Jennifer Jordan took this picture of me and my two Anthony Award nominations after the awards brunch was over on Sunday afternoon, making this one of the many, many ways in which I cannot possibly …

Since Ali Karim was kind enough to trumpet this event over at the Rap Sheet, I ought to make it as official as a blog notification can be. On Tuesday, October 14 at 6:30 PM over at Scandinavia House, …

My newest Dark Passages column at the Los Angeles Times compares and contrasts Katherine Neville’s international bestseller THE EIGHT with its sequel THE FIRE, two decades in the making and due …

My occasional series on historical mysteries continues at the Barnes & Noble Review, with part III concentrating on the Victorian era:

While every historical era has its unique appeal as a …

In this week’s issue of Maclean’s, I profile David Rotenberg, author of several Shanghai-based mystery novels who now takes a more panoramic, James Clavell-esque view of the city in his …

My newest “Dark Passages” column at the Los Angeles Times is now up, mixing together reviews of Andrew Pyper’s THE KILLING CIRCLE and Guillermo Martinez’s THE BOOK OF MURDER in …

While it’s not quite nothing to see here, posting will definitely be on the light side between now and the end of August. Between subbing in at Publishers Lunch for the next couple of weeks, …

At the LA Times, I use my unabashed love for Iain Sansom’s Mobile Library novels (THE CASE OF THE MISSING BOOKS is genius and the new one, THE BOOK STOPS HERE, is just as good) as a means of …

Read on at Vulture to find out.

In this weekend’s Los Angeles Times Book Review I offer up my take on Denise Hamilton’s new standalone mystery, THE LAST EMBRACE, which uses the 1949 disappearance of Jean Spangler as its …

Earlier today I was a guest on New Hampshire Public Radio’s “Word of Mouth” program, hosted by Virginia Prescott, talking about audiobooks. I’ve been on radio before but this …

The Baltimore Sun ran my newest crime fiction column yesterday, featuring new releases by Stephen L. Carter, Tana French, Nigel McCrery, Kathryn Casey and Michael Genelin.

And as part of their …

Part two of my occasional series on historical mysteries runs this week at the Barnes & Noble Review.

Sometimes the freelance gods decide that a whole bunch of pieces turned in at wildly different times should all run in the same 24-hour window. First up is “The Permanent Prince,” a news …

Yes, it’s another reminder and more blatant self-promo, but come one, come all – or at least, those in the vicinity of midtown Manhattan – to hear Douglas Preston and Mario Spezi …

Late last month I interviewed Kathryn Harrison about her latest book WHILE THEY SLEPT: AN INQUIRY INTO THE MURDER OF A FAMILY. Classification is tricky – is it a true crime book, a memoir, …

My newest “Dark Passages” column at the LA Times shifts away from crime fiction into crime non-fiction:

WHEN I WORKED at one of Manhattan’s independent mystery book shops a

few …

On the occasion of the publication of his first young adult novel LITTLE BROTHER, I spoke with Cory Doctorow over at emusic.com. The conversation was fairly wide-ranging, talking about the …

My newest “Dark Passages” column for the LA Times Book Review – which now has a handy archive page for previous months, hurray! – blurs the line between life and art by looking …

Referring, in this instance, to Evelyn Nesbit:  turn-of-the-20th-century starlet, objet de notoriété,and the subject of Paula Uruburu’s fascinating new book AMERICAN EVE. My Q&A with …

Greetings from my hometown, where I’ll be for the next few days to celebrate my favorite example of obsessive-compulsive disorder gone wild. In fact, thanks to this wondrous holiday, I have …

At the Barnes & Noble Review, I take the long view on Joseph Wambaugh’s career as a novelist and chronicler of the Los Angeles Police Department in order to properly assess his new book …

Photo editor and writer Antony Bennison had some fun and produced the following bit of awesomeness:

:

Talk about seriously cool. I also think this might be a new meme….in which case, I tag …

At the Barnes & Noble Review, I kick off an occasional series on historical mysteries by starting at the beginning of time – or at least going as far back as ancient periods.

In a slightly …

It’s the title of Michio Kaku’s book, yes, but right now that seems an appropriate way to sum up trying to blog here this week. Between pinch-hitting and scouting and other deadlines, …

My review of Samantha Hunt’s fantastic and wondrous novel THE INVENTION OF EVERYTHING ELSE ran yesterday in the Philly Inquirer. I am still in awe of this book.

…but this was truly beautiful.

Adam Langer’s new novel ELLINGTON BOULEVARD was a curious read for me because it takes place – literally – in my neighborhood. I explore the strange feelings it evoked in my newest …

At the Guardian Books Blog, I discuss my all-time favorite author, L.M. Montgomery, and the 100th anniversary of her first (and most iconic) novel, ANNE OF GREEN GABLES.

For some reason I’ve been spending an inordinate amount of time watching YouTube clips of 1980s and 90s-era figure skaters. I’m no longer the rabid fan of the sport as I once was but once …

At the Barnes & Noble Review, I discuss the current revival of espionage fiction. Also, the home page layout amuses me because my piece runs right underneath a picture of Malcolm MacDowell from O …

At the Guardian Books Blog, Icelandic translator Bernard Scudder’s recent death – about which there still aren’t that many details – allows me to riff some of the problems of …

If you’re in the city or don’t already have plans tonight, join editrix Megan Abbott, publisher David Thompson and many writers – including Sandra Scoppettone, Rebecca Pawel, S.J. …

It is a truth universally acknowledged that every crime fiction reviewer must pen an essay about murders taking place in exotic climes. Here’s my take for the Barnes & Noble Review.

I mark my upcoming birthday with a post at the Guardian Books Blog on why I’m somewhat dissatisfied with heroines in novels who happen to be age 29. There are a number of them in crime novels, …

A short piece on all the notable American writers who have died in the last 12 months with some thoughts as to whose work will endure the longest is available at the Guardian Book Blog.

From a crime …

From me and the folks at WKRP in Cincinnati:

My Baltimore Sun column ran last weekend but is only now available online. In it I review new releases by Robert Harris, James Church, Ruth Weissberger and Mickey Spillane.

Tonight, along with a …

…form the basis of my debut in Maclean’s, Canada’s national weekly news magazine. To say it is a thrill to be included in one of my home country’s media staples is rather the …

Courtesy Jaime:

and this one found all by my lonesome:

I woke up and realized this is Confessions’ 4th birthday, which is fairly ancient in blog years, is it not? So perhaps “appropriately” it seems a good idea to link to the current …

The Apple has welcomed me back on this lovely sunny day. So it’s fitting that while I was away, Time Out New York ran my darkly overtoned piece on Stewart and Cyril Marcus, identical twin …

Will be up at midnight tonight. However, my streak of really good Yom Kippur reading continues as I devoured (yes, verb is intentional) Mark Billingham’s DEATH MESSAGE in a couple of gulps. And …

…goodbyes are hard.

But still, it’s time. Just as it’s time to continue the mad rush in preparation for Rosh Hashanah. Which means something akin to radio silence for the rest of …

No, your eyes are not deceiving you. I’ve changed the look of Confessions after something like 2 years with the old design template. For some reason the blogroll links are running off to the …

The usual deadline drill and sundry. Though if there are any NY-based blog readers fluent in Japanese, please get in touch off-blog.

The small front is my review of Nicholas Griffin’s DIZZY CITY which runs in this week’s edition of Time Out New York.

The September/October issue of Poets & Writers is hot off the …

First, holy freaking crap. Second, for those in the mystery world living in the Minneapolis area, if you want to check in, please do in the comments. Thoughts and prayers go to the entire city …

My piece on “superhero lit”, featuring interviews with authors Austin Grossman, David Schwartz and Alison McGhee (along with Schwartz’s agent, Shana Cohen) runs in the July/August …

Finally, it lives.

Steve Gilliard is dead. The news found its way into my inbox yesterday and two hours later I’d pored through as many online tributes, memories and reactions as I could find and still the news …

Travelling once more so nothing of import till tomorrow but in the meantime, read my latest thoughts on blogging, reviewing and other forms of writing over at LitMinds, laugh at this and gush over …

My take on Nathan Englander’s THE MINISTRY OF SPECIAL CASES runs in today’s Philadelphia Inquirer.

Travel and other weekend-related pursuits have delayed the Weekend Update to either Monday evening or never. But look for whirlwind Edgar Week coverage throughout the rest of the week. See you soon.

My interview of Victoria Redel about her newest novel, THE BORDER OF TRUTH, is in this week’s Time Out New York.

Now that it’s live (and the news has leaked softly in various places) I can now reveal that I will be penning a monthly column on crime fiction, “Dark Passages,” for the Los Angeles …

My review of Matt Rees’ THE COLLABORATOR OF BETHLEHEM appears in today’s edition of Newsday.

Which, actually, isn’t the problem plaguing my computer, now in the shop until further notice. Instead, it’s an overheating issue (or lack of cooling, or fan defect, or whatever excuse du …

Shattered bathroom window glass early on a Saturday morning trying to shut it so I would not freeze. Four stitches in my left hand and a tetanus shot after a quick visit to St. Luke’s. Oh yeah, …

In transit all day, but here are a couple of me-related items of potential interest:

Hours after my piece about the Google UnBound conference ran last month, AfterTV.com’s Andrew Keen (the …

Thank you for all the birthday wishes – it’s been a fantastic day so far and I suspect it will stay that way and then some.

More tomorrow.

Since there’s been some chatter in the backblogs about it, I suppose it’s my duty to point y’all to Jeff Cohen’s intrepid interview of yours truly at Mystery Morgue and the …

My review of Asa Nomani’s THE HUNTER runs in this week’s issue of Time Out New York, while I try to make head and/or tail of the publishing industry battle with Google over at my …

My review of David Hiltbrand’s DYING TO BE FAMOUS is in the Philadelphia Inquirer, while my take on Richard North Patterson’s EXILE runs in the Washington Post.

My entertaining instincts are on hyperdrive this long weekend, so the Update will appear – at some point – on Monday. Happy Martin Luther King Weekend.

 

I was going to prepare some big long spiel about all things 2006 – the good, the bad, the reading, the writing, the personal changes. Because there was much good, some bad, a hell of a lot of …

Goddamnit, the Godfather is gone. Others have pointed out the irony of him dying the day that DREAMGIRLS – with lots to offer, but especially Eddie Murphy’s turn as a Brown-esque singer …

If not for Graham Powell’s indispensable site, I would not be able to keep up with my favorite crime blogs. A great service deserves recognition.

To family, friends, loved ones, assigning …

WKRP in Cincinnati will be available on DVD next year! Jaime – who’s been following this story for as long as we’ve been adults – has the scoop, and a message to prospective …

Ah, that’s what I get for splitting town early. Posting will resume sometime today, once I get my timezone bearings and computer mishaps clear themselves up.

For the hell of it (it’s the weekend, I get bored easily) I inputted my name in Google’s Book Search. Here are some goodies I found:

My master’s thesis.

An old (and now outdated) …

Thanks to Marshal Zeringue, you can now find out what books have Tuckerized me. Graham Powell is angling for similar honors:

_Please kill me in your next book, story, whatever. Make me the …

That’s because this week is all National Book Awards, all the time. It’s also the first year that I’ve read almost all of the fiction shortlisted (ONLY REVOLUTIONS excepted) and I …

Being a permanent resident of the United States enables me to do almost everything I want. But the one thing I most desperately want to do today is denied me.

I cannot vote.

There is nothing I can …

Today, like this week, promises to be crazy, and since I’ve been posting at a mad clip at GalleyCat of late, there’s lots to be found there. But because I can’t help myself, I found …

First, for those who checked up on me, thanks – I was nowhere near the building.

But as it turns out, one mystery writer was:

Mystery writer Carol Higgins Clark, daughter of author Mary …

The newest edition of the Philadelphia City Paper’s Books Quarterly is online, and it’s worth checking out, not just because yours truly profiled debut author Jonathan McGoran, writing a …

And if so, the answer is probably best found here.

I’m keeping this brief for Kol Nidre looms large tonight, but this year’s BCon was unusual for me for a variety of reasons:

• I hardly …

On occasion – okay, frequently – it occurs to me that the level of content here has dropped over the last few months, maybe even longer. No apologies, no excuses, but perhaps some of that …

And since my weekend will be taken up with synagogue attendance, feeding friends in plentiful quantity and generally being in a Rosh Hashanah kind of mood, I want to wish all of you a Shana Tova …

Because it’s a crazy busy day already and it’s only getting much more so…

OK, it’s a crosspost, and I said all I wanted to say about the new Hannibal book at GalleyCat, but it …

So, 20 hours after I was due to take off, and after what proved to be a rather tumultuous week – for expected and unexpected reasons – I finally made it back to Manhattan.

Which means …

Greetings. The mini-vacation is over, many many books have been read, and even after a scant few days away, New York’s humidity still feels ridiculously oppressive (especially compared to the …

Yes, it’s that time of year, the publishing holiday known to one and all as August. So just like last year and the year before, Confessions will be handed over to a series of guest bloggers over …

It’s 97 degrees with a heat index of 105 in my little town in Maine. When, oh, when will the world learn to listen to the Episcopalians?!?

100m Oympic champion sprinter Justin Gatlin tests positive for drugs and faces a lifetime ban from the sport. The only thing that’s really unusual about the story is that Gatlin decided to beat …

New review, new paper: I give my take on Denise Mina’s THE DEAD HOUR and Kathy Reichs’ BREAK NO BONES for Newsday, which marks the first time I’ve had something published in a local …

I’ll be in the air on a flight across the country, where ThrillerFest – and the 100+ degree weather of Phoenix – awaits. And because I don’t feel like schlepping the laptop all …

Sometimes the thing you’re waiting for the most comes at a time you least expect it. Which probably explains the reaction I had when I opened the mail a few days ago and out popped a shiny new …

So perhaps you may have noticed that my output at Galleycat has increased quite a lot this week. That’s because next week I’ll be rather scarce, what with taking a much-needed long weekend …

Duane Swierczynski posts the cover and gives details on DAMN NEAR DEAD: An Anthology of Geezer Noir (which also happens to be my next anthology appearance.)It’ll be out in July from Busted Flush …

Literally. Just walked in the door, dropped my bags and will be going to bed in short order.

BEA was, to say the least, exhilarating, exhausting, and rather surprising.

Tomorrow, look for full …

Naturally, last minute things mean I’m running down to the wire to catch my train to DC to attend Book Expo America – which doesn’t kick off in earnest till tomorrow. Then …

And sure, it ain’t Rolling Stone*, but it’s a cover and I’ll take it:

That lovely cover is for the UK edition of DUBLIN NOIR, due out there in early June from Brandon Books. Mary …

Because when I went to Pandora and inputted “Shel Silverstein” in the opening search engine, it gave me I Got Stoned and I Missed It.

Goddamn, this thing knows me too well…

(link …

This was what I wore to the Edgars.

And that’s why I love Mary Reagan’s photography.

ics

• The weather is absolutely freaking gorgeous, yet I seem to spend hardly any time outside.
  • Chocolate covered almonds are addictive. So, too, is my mother’s chocolate torte, lemon-walnut …

That’s all for this week, folks. The kitchen’s converted, the table is set and it’s time to get ready for 8 days of non-stop Passover eating. Happy Easter to those who celebrate it, …

I’m up way earlier than usual to catch a flight back to the not-so-frozen North (at least, it better not be frozen. It’s April, after all) and immerse myself in last-minute Passover …

By that, I mean checking my mail and finding my author copies of the June issue of Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine. I’m really proud to be among stellar company such as Robert Gray, …

Here’s the transcript of yesterday’s DetecToday chat where I go on about writing short stories, the state of publishing, and other less important trifle. Thanks to everyone who showed up, …

Yes, my site is screwed up. At the moment I am trying to figure out what the problem is but until then, it’s going to look kinda strange around here. Apologies for the inconvenience, and …

OK, so it doesn’t scan quite as well as the original, but what can you do. In any case, tonight I leave for Merrie Olde England and the bacchanal that promises to be Left Coast Crime. If prior …

StorySouth has announced the notables for its Million Writers Award, and I’m pleased to announce that “A Sack of Potatoes,” which Megan Powell was kind enough to publish at Shred of …

For those who have the night free and want to check out a quintet of writers reading about their fictional exploits amidst the Celtic Tiger, head down to Coliseum Books on Monday night, March 13, …

Or at least, it seems that way. Sure, Barry Bonds is a steroid-addicted asshole, but is that really surprising? (Though the excerpt certainly makes me want to read the book.) And while I’m still …

When I was a kid watching Warner Brothers’ cartoons obsessively there were several — eleven, as it turns out — that were deemed too politically incorrect for viewing. But thanks to …

Yes, I’m finally getting out of the city this weekend. It will be so nice. Weekend Update will still come to pass, though not sure when. Have a good one.

In something of a change of pace, I’ve got a flash fiction piece posted over at Tribe’s new fiction digs, Flash in the Gutter. While you’re there, check out other offerings from Olen …

Research, appointments and various other unimportant things will keep me away for much of today. But it’s probably a good time to remind one and all that I’m still holding the fort (and …

Posting will resume tomorrow. Haven’t decided if I’m going to do the Weekend Update or not, but a review of mine did find its way into a new-for-me newspaper, The Philadelphia Inquirer, …

Now that the ole internet connection’s back, I can actually do stuff again though scarce is the word for the rest of the week. In the meantime, some random me-related things: …

Due to the PMSing whims of my internet connection, posting will be rather scarce for the rest of the week — which will make an already slow holiday schedule even slower. I’ll check in …

There are, I suppose, distinct advantages in staying home, blogging in your pajamas and not working.

I just hope this is resolved soon, but I’m not that optimistic.

I’ll be in a few places this weekend, if you want to catch me speaking or reading:

• Saturday, December 3 kicks off the Small Press Book Fair, and at 5 PM I’ll be speaking on a panel with …

If I had to pick what’s the most common question I get asked, it is this: “how are you able to balance everything you do and have time for it all?” Usually I make some joke or shrug …

which is to say, go forth and be gluttonous. I know I will. Happy Thanksgiving, and I’ll be back Sunday with the Weekend Update.

And one word of advice: frozen turkeys have even more uses than …

My main email’s crapping out, so if you’ve sent me something in the last day or so, I probably haven’t seen it. Please use sarah DOT weinman AT gmail DOT com for the time being. …

To make a long story short, I’m in a weird, yet incredibly busy place in my life right now. So to make up for this, I direct you to the following:

• Galleycat (which you’re all reading, …

Not much today — though there will be something early this afternoon — but this is also a reminder that I’ve had some stuff most every day over at Galleycat, with a bulletpoint …

Maybe it’s the torrential downpour, or maybe it’s the fact that all I really want to do is eat and drink before I have to spend what seems like 25 consecutive hours in synagogue atoning …

It seems somehow appropriate that a great many things are converging at once. There’s the Jewish New Year, which begins tonight (and for which, blessedly, cooking is nearly complete.) …

After the last few weeks, I am sorely tempted to rename this month Stress-tember. Which isn’t to say there hasn’t been good news (see the updated clips section for such) but that my brain …

as does the weekend, I find it’s occupying more and more of my thoughts — especially because of the people I know in and around Houston area. So for all of you (and certainly these guys) …

If you input “Six Bunnie Wunnies” into Google, this blog is the #1 hit.

(As for why I bring this up? Blame him.)

Last night I went to see LENNON: The Musical.

I think this picture (crappiness due to my camera phone skillz) just about sums things up.

Last night I went to see THE ARISTOCRATS, a movie I have been dying to see since word got out about how good it was last January, at the Sundance Festival. And after watching it, I believe the …

I’m blaming this on Mercury being in retrograde or something — but in any case, the templates and fonts are being worked on, two new guest bloggers will take the reins this Wednesday and …

The dog days are truly here — it’s the first day of August and I slept in late. The city’s getting cooler but people are still leaving whenever possible. And as for this blog, …

So a number of folks have already asked me how last night’s reading went. To be honest? Kind of a blur, which is odd considering my penchant for rigorous post-performance post-mortems (“it …

I suppose it had to happen sometime. I move back to New York, start circulating in the publishing and blogging worlds, and next thing I know I’m taking part in my first public reading in years*. …

Weekend update delayed till Monday morning.

Email being positively spastic and has eaten everything sent since Friday morning, so if you sent me email, re-send to sarah DOT weinman AT gmail DOT com. …

Very busy today.  My wife has only two faults. (BTW I clock in at 46 serious character flaws – believe me after 27 years of marriage, these numbers have been documented.)  Anyway one of her …

Sarah, in her infinite wisdom  (Is she not, after all, a C-List Blogebrity  and thus privy to arcane knowledge denied those of us who remain intimidated by the “internets,” doomed to stare …

There’s something vaguely ironic in how the subject of my previous post — a buzzed-about author named Twelve (Hawks) writing under an obvious pseudonym — gives way to my next guest …

So in looking at the interview lineup for the month of May over at the Kacey Kowars Show, one isn’t quite like the others:

May 2: Caroline Leavitt
May 9: Lee Martin
May 16: Michael Connelly
May …

In honor of Memorial Day Weekend, and the prospect that the only way my endless packing will actually cease is by brute force (don’t even ask how many books I’m taking — the answer …

Looking for a place to live is a trying, difficult exercise in any city. But somehow, it is even more frustrating and exhausting to do so in Manhattan, where the ongoing mentality about those eager to …

Unless a miracle occurs — or my brain is tuned away from the “finding a place to live” frequency — there won’t be any new posts today. Check back tomorrow, but more …

It occurs to me, looking over the archives of the last month or so (the last few days notwithstanding) that the tone of the blog has been somewhat, oh, scattershot of late.

But there are good …

Maybe I’m still recovering from last night’s bizarre foray into the TV market research world, where I was forced to sit through perhaps the worst pilot ever produced, followed by one that …

Next Tuesday, April 19, is a very special day.

It’s not Christmas. It’s not New Year’s. It’s not even Yom Kippur.

No, it’s bigger. Way bigger than all of those …

At least, not for the rest of the day. But check back on the weekend not only for the Update, but for a major announcement. What is it, you ask? Well, you’ll just have to wait and see…

I tried writing a post this morning about my first novel getting picked up by Mysterious Press in February. Started out shooting for funny and maybe even slightly insightful, tone-wise, but it quickly …

For today and tomorrow, this blog is in the capable hands of Cornelia Read — ex-debutante, reformed black thumb, and all-around good woman who never fails to crack me up. Though I’m still …

So for the first time in a while, travel beckons, as I’ll be ensconcing myself in a Super Secret Location for a few days. Hence, no weekend update, and a fabulous guest blogger will take over …

Last night I went to visit an old friend and former classmate who is terminally ill. I’ve known he was in hospital for a while now, and had been taking visitors for the last few weeks, but …

If you’ve come my way thanks to today’s New York Times piece, welcome — and glad to have you. Though occasionally I do review book reviews, as the article suggests, I spend most of …

There’s only so much link chasing I can do and besides, it’s a supersized long weekend here (as Canada sees fit to give its citizens the day off work on Monday, as well.) Thus I’m …

The proprietor of Something Old, Nothing New — aka my older brother — does funny over at McSweeney’s and Yankee Pot Roast today. Read both and be amused.

Ah, all-morning meetings. Truly, whoever invented the concept should be taken out and shot. Especially as I thought it was supposed to happen tomorrow, which led to a nice moment of panic on my way …

So why a special Friday post? Two reasons: one, I didn’t really feel like leaving a throwaway gossip item at the top of the blog till Sunday. And two, it’s really Jennifer Jordan’s …

By popular demand, I’ve begun to archive the Picks of the Week. Unfortunately, I only have the ones since the beginning of this year, but I’ll be adding to them as they move off the main …

One of the things about moving back home is that it gets you in close proximity to childhood memories, mementos and other items. Recently, as I was cleaning up my room, I dug up several file folders …

Especially in regards to my recent birthday, celebrating an age where I am old enough to know better and young enough to forget I know better. Or something. Check back early this afternoon for a small …

I’ll be out of town this weekend in a potentially misguided attempt to celebrate my birthday in a slightly warmer climate,  which means no Weekend Update and no Sunday posts. But I thought …

Although it’s still too early to tell whether Tuesday’s short story extravaganza was a success or not, one thing it garnered was my first public lukewarm review. To be fair to Tania, she …

Steven Torres, author of the Precinct Puerto Rico series of crime novels,  continues his series of interviews by catching up with yours truly. Torres asked excellent questions and I gave some …

Victor Gischler’s highly acclaimed, internationally celebrated World’s Worst Interview series continues with…um, me. I’d quote from it but the last time I quoted myself in this …

I’ll return you back to your regularly scheduled hiatus (which will officially break on Sunday morning) but dammit, the news just keeps getting worse.

The entire world’s covered the …

Like many of my litblogging colleagues, I’ll be shutting down the joint for the most part from now till after New Year’s. But stay tuned for my last Sun column, which ran on Sunday the …

(Today’s posts appear below over the course of the morning, so please check back for new content.)

There’s something mildly ironic about the fact that I’ve had bylines in a number …

(The rest of today’s posts will appear below over the course of the morning.)

First, the professional: I’ve got a standalone review in today’s Baltimore Sun as I read my very first …

And by doing so, lands me pretty much right where I started–with a difference, of course.

As you’re reading this, I’m just about to leave the house to start my first day at my new …

Happy Thanksgiving to my neighbors to the south. Since most of my litblogging colleagues are taking the weekend off, I shall follow their lead, and return with a reasonably fresh Weekend Update on …

After almost a week away, it’s kind of hard to catch up. So many emails to respond to, so many links to fetch, so many blogs to read. Oh, and maybe some other real life stuff. But in any case, I …

You know this is special because I’m posting on a Friday. But as it looks ever unlikely I’ll be blogging again until sometime on Monday, I thought I’d pop my head in and play some …

Crap, is it Wednesday already? Well, my name is Mr. Quertermous and I will be your substitute for the next couple of days. Ms. Weinman didn’t leave me any lesson plans so I guess–Hey you …

I’ll be away for the rest of this week, doing the usual mix of socializing, drinking, and even the occasional bit of business. Also, this Thursday, November 18th, I’ll be participating in …

Does anyone really feel like talking about books this morning?

I’m not sure why I feel so down right now. Oh yeah, I do: it’s because it would have been nice to have a definitive result …

So is it me, or is this whole Red Sox winning the World Series just a bit anticlimatic? I mean, it’s great to watch history in the making, see an 86 year curse broken, etc., but…I wonder …

Although several others have made mention of it already, I refrained from putting anything here about my new article in Mystery Scene because, um, I only got my contributor’s copies this …

So here’s the thing about watching baseball at my place: bottom of the 9th, 2 outs, 10-3 Red Sox and believe me: we’re still just seconds away from a major ulcer.

[

But they did it]1. …

Thanks to the wonders of actually having something approximating a life–i.e., an appointment that requires me to leave the vicinity of my apartment for the first time in days–content will …

Well, it’s been a great week in New York City, doing the social rounds, inadvertently making people jealous, hanging out at Book Country (whether at the street fair or at most excellent readings …

I suppose I should have some long, terribly profound reflection upon the fact that today marks the first anniversary of the blog (which started with a typically throwaway post about, well, not much) …

There may be something relevant to the fact that my first column for the Baltimore Sun is posted just as Yom Kippur drew to a close and a new year has begun, but then again, there might not be. In any …

Blogging, I think, will be of the non-existent variety today. Maybe for the rest of this week, at the rate I’m going. To steal from one of blogging’s best, we are never drinking again. …

Posting will be light today and probably non-existent for the rest of the week due to the annual foodfest known as Rosh Hashanah. Which means that raisin challah, honey cake and other goodies …

I have returned from my vacation. Thanks to several nights and days spent variously on precarious overnight trains, cramped motel rooms, water taxis, actual taxis, and other more dubious forms of …

My playtime is over. Thanks all so much for the insight and laughs over the past couple of days. It’s been so much fun, and quite therapeutic too.

Thanks for inviting me to do this Sarah. …

The accepted orthodoxy in the literary world is that first novels – particularly first novels by authors under 30 – are thinly veiled autobiographies. Now this is no doubt because a great deal …

Emily here, writing from Sydney, Australia. First I want to say thanks very much, Donna, for being so bloody charming and funny. How am I supposed to follow that? If you’d thought about me at …

Well, this is my last post. It’s now time to pack my little suitcase, tidy up and try and leave the place in some semblance of order for Emily. Emily, I’m terribly sorry about the mess, …

Please keep the comments coming on the ‘local’ crime fiction subject. I just thought I’d post this before I head off to bed. It comes under the ‘irrelevant personal …

Hello, Donna here. Well, it’s Monday in Scotland, so I thought I might just jump straight in. If I manage to do this right without mangling links etc it will be a bloody miracle. Anyway, here …

The past week or so has been spent in a rather repetitive state–tape boxes, fill them with books, close them. Do the same with CDs and some clothes. Rinse, and repeat. The days preceding Labor …

Normally, we try to keep the public service announcements at a minimum but this one absolutely merits our attention and then some: Keith Snyder, whose many talents include the fact that he’s a …

Although some technical difficulties still have to be ironed out (dratted Typepad), it’s expected that sometime tomorrow, Alina Adams will take over the joint for the rest of the week, freeing …