When writers strain their brains for new ideas, they might consider revisiting an old idea. For instance, Gregory Maguire applied the rules of “alternative fiction,” in his retelling Frank Baum’s classic 1900 story the Wizard of Oz. Forget Dorothy, Maguire wrote from the point of view of the Wicked Witch […]
Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew’d, by Alan Bradley
Flavia de Luce fans stand to applaud her return from her interminable trials in the tundra of Toronto. Unfortunately, her family barely recognizes her existence. “Like a pair of sick suns rising, (her sister) Daffy’s eyes came slowly up above the binding of her book. I could tell she hadn’t […]
Murder as a Fine Art, by David Morrell
David Morrell blends horror, history and mystery in his tale of narco-political terrorism with a twist. The author opens with a narration by “The Artist,” the antagonist who in 1854 savagely murders members of a London household near Ratcliffe Highway. This reenactment of of the 1811 Ratcliffe Highway killings presses […]
A Book of Scars (The Breen and Tozer Mystery Series, Volume 3), by William Shaw
Detective Sergeant Cathal “Paddy” Breen of the Metropolitan CID (Marylebone Police Station, London) can’t seem to avoid disaster whether he’s rescuing a cat from a tree, investigating a crime scene or chasing a bad guy. To his aid rides Helen Tozer, a Woman Police Constable who wants to do more […]
The Breen and Tozer Mystery Series, Volumes 1 & 2, by William Shaw
Volume 1: She’s Leaving Home If “a book is a ship that takes you to distant lands,” then the Breen and Tozer series welds together a tour bus, a “Tube” carriage and a time machine. The Anglophile – with online maps and satellite views – becomes an accidental tourist, […]
Race with the Devil by Joseph Pearce
¶ Leave a comment ¶ Edit Raised in the Shire, he left its tranquility for an adventure that brought him through battles, dungeons and peril until he found an immense treasure. To possess it, he fought a monstrously evil dragon. We speak not of Bilbo Baggins, but noted Catholic biographer […]