The Ex

THE EX by Alafair Burke

March, 2017

PERSONAL INFORMATION:

Born October, 1969, in Fort Lauderdale, FL; daughter of James Lee (a novelist) and Pearl (an artist) Burke; cation: Reed College, B.A., 1991; Stanford University Law School, J.D. (with distinction), 1994. Addresses: Home: New York, NY. Office: Hofstra University School of Law, 121 Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY 11549. E-mail: alafair@alafairburke.com; alafair.s.burke@hofstra.edu.

CAREER:

Writer, attorney, educator.  

AWARDS:

Stessin Prize for Outstanding Scholarship, Hofstra University, 2003, 2004, university distinguished faculty lecturer, 2006; Teacher of the Year, Hofstra Law School, 2009.

WRITINGS:

• Long Gone: A Novel of Suspense, (2011)
• If You Were Here: A Novel of Suspense, (2013)
• Inherit the Dead (2013)
• The ex ( 2016)
• "She's not quite as messed up as some of the women we've gotten used to reading about in crime fiction in the last few years," says best-selling crime novelist Alafair Burke of the heroine of her latest stand-alone thriller, The Ex. "But she's definitely messed up."

"SAMANTHA KINCAID" MYSTERIES

• Judgment Calls, ( 2003)
• Missing Justice, (2004)
• Close Case, (2005)

"ELLIE HATCHER" MYSTERIES

• Dead Connection, (2007)
• Angel's Tip, (2008)
• 212, (2010)
• Never Tell: A Novel of Suspense, (2012)
• All Day and a Night, (2014)

UNDER SUSPICION SERIES (with Mary Higgins Clark)

• The Cinderella Murder (#2, 2014)
• All dressed in white (#3, 2015)
• The sleeping beauty killer (#4, 2016)

Burke's father, James Lee Burke, also writes mysteries, although of a very different style from his daughter's. As the younger Burke often points out in interviews, she was the family's original mystery writer, borrowing her father's typewriter to compose mysteries such as "Murder at the Roller Disco" as a child, at a time when her father was still writing in other genres. "What I really think I inherited from my family more than any particular writing style ... is a narrative tradition,"

READ-ALIKES

Rough justice  by Lisa Scottoline

Reason: Both books are intense, absorbing, and fun to read, with complex plotting and a pinch of edgy humor. Bold and charismatic female legal professionals drive the action and add a compelling humanity to the stories. -- Jen Baker

Jury rig  by Korey Kaul

Reason: Both immerse readers in legal mysteries with many plot strands and strong, sassy female protagonists. The unusual nature of the clients and their situations enhance drama and readability, while also adding a touch of witty humor. -- Jen Baker

Guilt by degrees  by Marcia Clark

Reason: When the mouthy attorneys in these legal thrillers discover unsettling personal connections to the crimes and suspects in their cases, the moral high ground is harder to find and life gets complicated. Well-developed characters and intricate plots make riveting reading. -- Jen Baker

Linda A. Fairstein  Reason: Alafair Burke and Linda Fairstein write legal thrillers featuring strong women attorneys. The women are feisty and not afraid to get personally involved in their cases. The fast-paced, suspenseful stories are filled with intertwining subplots that produce twists and turns, and deal with with violent themes in a graphic manner. -- Merle Jacob

Nancy Grace Reason: Both Nancy Grace and Alafair Burke are former prosecuting attorneys who've turned to writing legal thrillers. Their suspenseful work reflects their years spent as lawyers, while their fast- paced, compelling styles are certain to leave readers wanting more. -- Mike Nilsson

Keeper of Lost Causes

Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen

February, 2017

Personal Information:  Born August 2, 1950, in Copenhagen, Denmark; Education: Attended Rodovre University. Addresses: Home: Allerød, Denmark.

Career: Journalist and writer. Worked as a magazine editor.

Awards: Harald Mogensen Prize, 2010; Glass Key Award, 2010; Golden Laurels, 2011; Sealed Room Award, Sealed Room Club, 2012.

Department Q Series:

These fast-paced and suspenseful crime thrillers feature crotchety and difficult Detective Carl Morck of Copenhagen. … complex cold cases on which lives still depend, while dealing with troublesome departmental and personal politics. The books bring seemingly disparate plot lines together for a twisted and violent climax.

• #1 - The keeper of lost causes (Aug 2011)

#2 - The absent one (Aug 2012)

• #3 - A conspiracy of faith (May 2013)
• #4 - The purity of vengeance (Dec 2013)
• #5 - The Marco effect (Sep 2014)
• #6 - The hanging girl (Sep 2015)

Also:

The alphabet house (Feb 2015)

Conducting a special photo-reconnaissance mission in World War II Dresden, two British pilots are shot down …. only to land in a mental hospital where patients are subjected to experimental therapies.

Adler-Olsen also wrote the political thriller Washington Dekretet ("The Washington Decree"), set in the United States on the eve of a presidential election. (Not available in English)

Read-alikes for Department Q:

1	Millennium novels (Stieg Larsson) Reason:  Similarities abound in these Scandinavian thrillers: cold cases, conspiracies, protagonists with difficult personalities, and twisting plots. … The Millennium novels are darker and more disturbing; Department Q displays moments of humor. -- Shauna Griffin
2	Siri Bergman novels  by Camilla Grebe Reason:  ...intense psychological suspense stories that feature intricate plotting, complex characters, and gritty social problems.... -- Merle Jacob
3	Intercrime  by Arne Dahl Reason:  Featuring special units within the police force who investigate international crime (Intercrime) and cold cases (Department Q), these atmospheric Scandinavian mysteries boast large casts of complex characters, intricate plots, and a bleak view of human nature. -- Mike Nilsson
4	David Raker novels  by Tim Weaver Reason:  These atmospheric, suspenseful crime thrillers excel at bringing apparently unrelated plot threads together into complex webs of violence and depravity with a shocking secret at their center. Fast-paced and gritty, these stories won't let readers go until the bitter end. -- Melissa Gray
5	Harry Bosch mysteries  by Michael Connelly Reason:  These atmospheric, intricate series feature cops working cold cases while navigating interdepartmental politics and, especially in Department Q's case, the efforts of ruthless, influential members of the political elite. It's also a bit colder in Copenhagen than in Harry Bosch's L.A. -- Shauna Griffin
6	Tom Thorne novels by Mark Billingham Reason:  London DI Tom Thorne and Copenhagen police detective Carl Mørck have difficult personalities that cause friction with peers and supervisors alike; they're also surrounded by compelling characters in complicated relationships. But while Mørck investigates cold cases, Thorne is concerned with current ones. -- Shauna Griffin

Trailer for Trilogy of first three Dept. Q films:

http://themoviebox.net/9251

Author’s website (in Danish)  http://jussiadlerolsen.dk

Interview with author:  https://strandmag.com/interview-with-jussi-adler-olsen/

Broken Promise

BROKEN PROMISE by Linwood Barclay

JANUARY 2017

PERSONAL INFORMATION:

Born 1955, in New Haven, CT; immigrated to Canada, 1958; Addresses: Home: Oakville, Ontario, Canada. Agent: Helen Heller Agency, 892 Avenue Rd., Toronto, Ontario M5P 2K6, Canada. E-mail: linwoodbarclay@cogeco.ca; linwoodbarclay@mac.com.

CAREER:

Peterborough Examiner, Ontario, Canada, reporter, 1977-79; Oakville Journal Record, member of staff, 1979-81; Toronto Star, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, worked as assistant city editor, news editor, chief copy editor, and life section editor, 1981-93, humor columnist, 1993-2008. Has worked as the manager of a cottage resort and trailer park.

“PROMISE FALLS” SERIES

Promise Falls, New York is a quiet small town with a lot of secrets, most of them unpleasant. Enter former journalist and widower David Harwood, fleeing the past and hoping for a better future. When Harwood realizes that ugliness is simmering beneath the town's placid surface, he feels compelled to investigate in these intricately plotted, suspenseful series.

• Broken promise (Jul 2015)

• Far from true (Mar 2016)

• The twenty-three: a Promise Falls novel (Nov 2016)

"ZACH WALKER" MYSTERY SERIES

• Bad Move, 2004.
• Bad Guys,  2005.
• Lone Wolf, 2006.
• Stone Rain, , 2007.
  

NOVELS

• Mike Harris Made Me Eat My Dog, ECW Press, 1998.
• No Time for Goodbye, 2007.
• Too Close to Home, 2008.
• Fear the Worst, 2009.
• Never Look Away, 2010.
• Clouded Vision, Orion (London, England), 2011.
• The Accident, 2011.
• A Tap on the Window, 2012.
• Trust Your Eyes,2013.
  

OTHER

• Father Knows Zilch: A Guide for Dumbfounded Dads, illustrated by Steve Nease, Stoddart (Toronto, Ontario, Canada), 1996.
• This House Is Nuts! (humor), Stoddart (Toronto, Ontario, Canada), 1997.
• Last Resort (memoir), McClelland & Stewart (Toronto, Ontario, Canada), 2000.

Read-alikes for Promise Falls Series:

1.	David Raker novels  by Tim Weaver  Reason:  The stories in these intricately plotted and suspenseful crime thriller series spiral down into wells of dark deeds and twisted motives. Driven detectives haunted by their pasts struggle to solve violent murders and heinous disappearances, culminating in shocking climaxes. -- Melissa Gray
2.	Bell Elkins mysteries by Julia Keller  Reason:  Set in quiet small towns with dark pasts and vicious criminals, these atmospheric mysteries star a former journalist (Promise Falls) and a former prosecuting attorney (Bell Elkins) who solve crimes while trying to sort out their own lives. -- Mike Nilsson
3.	Joanne Ross novels  by A. D. Scott,   Reason:  Starring flawed journalists and set in quiet small towns, these intricately plotted mysteries are as much about the main characters as they about crime solving. Both series offer a strong sense of place and an interesting supporting cast. -- Mike Nilsson

Author’s website:   http://www.linwoodbarclay.com/news2

Last Dickens

Last Dickens by Matthew Pearl

December, 2016

PERSONAL INFORMATION:

Born October 2, 1975, in NY; Education: Harvard University, graduated (summa cum laude), 1997; Yale University, J.D., 2000. Addresses: Home: Cambridge, MA. E-mail: mpearl@matthewpearl.com.

CAREER:

Writer, novelist, attorney, and educator. Instructor in literature and creative writing at Harvard University and Emerson College. Harvard Law School, visiting lecturer. Guest on radio programs, including All Things Consideredand Weekend Edition Sunday, National Public Radio.

WRITINGS:

• The Dante Club, Random House (New York, NY), 2003.
• The Poe Shadow, Random House (New York, NY), 2006.
• The Last Dickens, Random House (New York, NY), 2009.
• The Technologists, Random House (New York, NY), 2012.
• The Last Bookaneer, Penguin (New York, NY), 2015.

Author's works have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Matthew Pearl populates his well-researched historical thrillers with a wealth of characters from actual history -- everyone from Longfellow to James Russell Lowell has featured as a sleuth. As this roster illustrates, Pearl's mystery/thrillers have a decidedly literary bent and tend towards the academic; in addition to the work of Dante, he's also tackled Poe and Dickens. Pearl's chronological period of choice is Victorian, and his novels showcase their share of gore as serial killers stalk and obsessions flower within a darkly appealing period atmosphere. Start with: The Dante Club.

Read-alikes

1	Drood  by Dan Simmons Reason:  Both are well-researched historical novels that transform the final period of Dickens' life into gripping, suspenseful sagas of intrigue, psychological puzzles, and murder. -- Derek Keyser
2	The mystery of Edwin Drood  by Charles Dickens Reason:  If you enjoyed The Last Dickens, go straight to the source by reading The Mystery of Edwin Drood. -- Gillian Speace

3	Bayard, Louis Reason:  Bayard and Pearl write literary historical mysteries that mix real historical people and events with suspense-filled plots. The books feature riveting storytelling with realistic nineteenth century period details and strong characterization, using real literary writers of the time to solve crimes while the twisting story lines lead to shocking endings. -- Merle Jacob
4	Liss, David Reason:  Both authors write fast-paced, plot-driven historical mysteries that are filled with well-researched period details, spectacular adventures, and evocative descriptions of colorful characters, such as opium-addicted doctors and cross-dressing prostitutes. -- Derek Keyser
5	Carr, Caleb Reason:  Caleb Carr and Matthew Pearl have both crafted elaborate Victorian mysteries that are literary, atmospheric, thrilling, and gruesome. Psychology is often a focus, and the novels feature a parade of cameos by real historical persons. -- Bethany Latham

6    Perez-Reverte, Arturo

     Reason:  Fans of sophisticated literary puzzles that blend  contemporary and historical events should become familiar with this best-selling Spanish author.

      

Website:  http://www.matthewpearl.com/dickens/book.html