Marcia Muller: Mystery Book Group February, 2010
PERSONAL INFORMATION:
Born September 28, 1944, in Detroit, MI; daughter of Henry J. (a marketing executive) and Kathryn Muller; married Frederick T. Gilson, Jr. (in sales), August 12, 1967 (divorced, 1981); married Bill Pronzini (a novelist), 1992. Education: University of Michigan, B.A., 1966, M.A., 1971. Addresses: Home: CA. Agent: Molly Friedrich, Aaron M. Priest Literary Agency Inc., 708 3rd Ave., 23rd Fl., New York, NY 10017- 4103
Marcia Muller Official Website:
http://marciamuller.com/
Welcome to MarciaMuller.com!
For those of you who know of my well-documented aversion to modern technology, it must be a surprise to find me on the Internet. For nearly two decades my fictional private investigator, Sharon McCone, and I resisted computers, but today I'm writing this on a Mac, and she's probably running a search on hers. We've come a long way! Thanks for your patience until I made my slow entry into the twenty-first century. I greatly appreciate the support you've given McCone and me over the years.
Burn out (2008)
San Francisco private investigator Sharon McCone has left the city to recuperate at her husband's ranch near Yosemite in California. After facing several life-or-death situations in her line of work, McCone is uncertain about what she wants to do with her future. Although she is determined not to investigate anything while on her vacation, McCone can't help but look into the murder of Hayley Perez, the niece of her ranch manager Ramon Perez. McCone witnessed the abuse of Hayley's sister Amy and learns that she disappeared soon after. When Hayley and Amy's alcoholic mother, Miri, dies from an apparent suicide, McCone discovers that a dark secret from the family's past may be the key to uncovering the killer's identity.
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Novelist Marcia Muller has been instrumental in creating an audience for private eye fiction that features a female protagonist. "When Marcia Muller introduced Sharon McCone in 1977 [in Edwin of the Iron Shoes], the author created the first contemporary female hard-boiled private investigator to feature in a series of American crime fiction novels," wrote Adrian Muller in the St. James Guide to Crime and Mystery Writers. Sharon McCone, Muller's favorite heroine, is an ace San Francisco legal investigator who differs from some of her more hard-boiled counterparts in that she is more apt to use her wits than her gun. The author once explained that in creating McCone, her aim was "to use the classical puzzle form of the mystery to introduce a contemporary female sleuth, a figure with surprisingly few counterparts in the world of detective fiction." Not only did Muller achieve this personal goal, she also helped pave the way for other women writers who were using female sleuths in their work. Few authors have had more success in the genre than Muller herself, however--McCone has been featured in more than twenty novels and in numerous short stories.
Recognized as the "mother" of the female private investigator Mystery, the subgenre that swept the Mystery world in the late 70s and 80s,
Marcia Muller is sometimes overlooked in favor of flashier successors who capitalized on the pattern she established with the first Sharon McCone Mystery in 1977. Although she has dabbled with two other series, stand-alone titles, and short stories, the prolific and award-winning Muller is best-known for the McCone series, and fans appreciate her heroine for her intelligence, independence, and investigative skill, not to mention the carefully crafted secondary characters, complex and twisted plots, and evocative sense of place.
Sharon McCone series
Edwin of the iron shoes: a novel of suspense Pub Date: 1977 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 1
Ask the cards a question Pub Date: 1982 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 2
The cheshire cat's eye Pub Date: 1983 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 3
Games to keep the dark away Pub Date: 1984 ction Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 4
Leave a message for Willie Pub Date: 1984 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 5
Double Pub Date: 1995 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 6 Nameless Detective mysteries (with Bill Pronzini)
There's nothing to be afraid of Pub Date: 1985 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 7
Eye of the storm Pub Date: 1988 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 8
There's something in a Sunday Pub Date: 1989 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 9
The shape of dread Pub Date: 1989 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 10
Trophies and dead things Pub Date: 1990 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 11
Where echoes live Pub Date: 1991 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 12
Pennies on a dead woman's eyes Pub Date: 1992 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 13
Wolf in the shadows Pub Date: 1993 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 14
Till the butchers cut him down Pub Date: 1994 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 15
A wild and lonely place Pub Date: 1995 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 16
The broken promise land Pub Date: 1996 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 17
Both ends of the night Pub Date: 1997 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 18
While other people sleep Pub Date: 1998 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 19
A walk through the fire Pub Date: 1999 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 20
Listen to the silence Pub Date: 2000 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 21
Dead midnight Pub Date: 2002 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 22
The dangerous hour Pub Date: 2004 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 23
Vanishing point Pub Date: 2006 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 24
The ever-running man Pub Date: 2007 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 25
Burn out Pub Date: 2008 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 26
Locked in Pub Date: 2009 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries, 27
McCone and friends Pub Date: 2000 Series: Sharon McCone mysteries
Other Writings:
"ELENA OLIVEREZ" CRIME SERIES
- The Tree of Death, 1983.
- The Legend of the Slain Soldiers, 1985.
- (With Bill Pronzini) Beyond the Grave, 1986.
"JOANNA STARK" CRIME SERIES
- The Cavalier in White, 1986.
- There Hangs the Knife, 1988.
- Dark Star, 1989.
"SOLEDAD COUNTY" SERIES
- Point Deception, 2001.
- Cyanide Wells, 2003.
- Cape Perdido, 2005.
EDITOR, WITH BILL PRONZINI
- The Web She Weaves: An Anthology of Mystery and Suspense Stories by Women, 1983.
- Child's Play: An Anthology of Mystery and Suspense Stories, 1984.
- Witches' Brew: Horror and Supernatural Stories by Women, 1984.
- Chapter and Hearse: Suspense Stories about the World of Books, 1985.
- Dark Lessons: Crime and Detection on Campus, 1985.
- Kill or Cure: Suspense Stories about the World of Medicine, 1985.
- She Won the West: An Anthology of Western and Frontier Stories by Women, 1985.
- The Wickedest Show on Earth: A Carnival of Circus Suspense, 1985.
- The Deadly Arts: A Collection of Artful Suspense, 1985.
- 1,001 Midnights: The Aficionado's Guide to Mystery and Detective Fiction, 1986.
- (With Martin H. Greenberg) Lady on the Case, 1988.
- Detective Duos, 1997.
CRIME SHORT STORIES
- Deceptions, 1991.
- The Wall (novella; originally published in Criminal Intent I), 1993
Read-alikes:
Nevada Barr offers another strong yet personable and often vulnerable heroine in her series detective Anna Pigeon, United States Park Service ranger. Although Pigeon's job takes her around the country, Barr consistently evokes the feel and details of each region, providing similar satisfactions to those readers get from McCone's exploration of northern California. In addition, Pigeon struggles with conflicts between her personal and professional lives in stories that delve into social and environmental issues. Since each book takes place in a new locale, readers can start with a location of interest, rather than necessarily with the first. High Country, set in Yellowstone and placing Pigeon undercover as she searches for four young park employees, is a good recent example.
Although both Sue Grafton and Sara Paretsky followed McCone's lead with their own female private detectives, Paretsky's are perhaps closer in mood and social activism. V. I. Warshawski, somewhat tougher and more prone to violent encounters, operates on Chicago's mean streets in Paretsky's popular series. But both Warshawski and McCone share a sense of community with the continuing characters in the series, active social consciousness, and a reluctance to make a commitment to the men in their lives. Indemnity Only starts the series.
Fans of Muller's skill at evoking community and geographical place might also enjoy J. A. Jance's series featuring Arizona police chief Joanna Brady. In this series, Jance delves deeply into place and character, while weaving social and environmental concerns into the Mysteries. Exit Wounds provides a good, recent introduction to Brady, who also struggles to balance family and career.
Laurie R. King, another author of provocative character-centered Mysteries, might also be a good suggestion for Muller's fans. Although her continuations of the Sherlock Holmes series may not be as satisfying, her contemporary police detective Kate Martinelli also lives and works in San Francisco, and her social conscience drives her participation in cases involving San Francisco's underbelly. King, like Muller, portrays the moody San Francisco background to perfection. King's Psychological Suspense novels, also strongly atmospheric and evocative of time and place, may appeal to fans of Muller's single titles. Both focus on social and environmental issues and secrets from the past. Try A Grave Talent or Folly to get a sense of King's writing.
Margaret Maron's series featuring investigator Judge Deborah Knott may display a slightly lighter touch, but professional and personal concerns dominate these character-centered Mysteries. The evocative North Carolina settings provide a wealth of local color, and the series characters — friends and family — along with complex plots, make this a series that might interest Muller's fans. Bootlegger’s Daughter introduces the series.
Joyce Saricks is a readers' advisory consultant and the author of Readers’ Advisory Guide to Genre Fiction (ALA, 2001).
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