Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Continuing On Down The Blood Trail

Library Journal joins in the praise of BLOOD TRAIL, C.J. Box's latest Joe Pickett novel: "Award-winning mystery writer Box ratchets up the suspense in this tightly plotted example of his writing genius, his eighth thriller to feature Pickett. His sense of place and talent for character development are on a par with those of James Lee Burke. Highly recommended."

Fun fact: There's a character in the book named after a certain ARLA employee -- see if you can find her!

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Libby Fischer Hellmann's May and June Tour Dates

If you've already bought your copy of EASY INNOCENCE and loved it, you'll be happy to know that Libby Hellmann will continue her whirlwind book tour. Check below to see if she'll be coming to your town!

May 3rd and 7pm
Lake Zurich Library
Lake Zurich, IL

May 4th from 3-6pm
Official Book Launch Party! All are welcome!
Hanson Brothers Tavern
Northbrook, IL

May 7th at 7pm
Iowa Hillel
Iowa City, IA

May 9th at 7pm
Barnes and Noble
Racine, WI

May 14th
The Book Mouse
Ottawa, IL

May 17th at 2pm
Anderson's Bookshop
Naperville, IL

May18th at 4:30pm
Women and Children First
Chicago, IL

May 20th at 7pm
Johnson County Library
Shawnee Branch
Overland Park, KS

May 21st
Topeka Public Library
Lunch and Learn: Building Suspense
Topeka, KA

May 21st at 7:30pm
The Raven Bookstore
Lawrence, KS

May 23rd-24th
Mayhem in the Midlands
Omaha, NE

May 28th at 6pm
Cheesecake and Crime Bookstore
Henderson, NV

May 31st
Book Expo America
Book signing at Bleak House Books booth
Los Angeles, CA

June 1st at 2:30pm
Sisters in Crime
Pasadena Public Library
South Pasadena, CA

June 12th at 7pm
Glenview Public Library
Glenview, IL

June 14th at 2pm
The Mystery Company
Indianapolis, IN






Monday, April 28, 2008

He's Always Been At The Top Of Our List!

The London Times recently gave a rundown of the fifty greatest crime writers of all time, placing Dennis Lehane high on the list at number 11.

Here's the lovely profile of Dennis by British crime writer Simon Kernick:

There are, in my opinion, few successful writers of literary crime thrillers. Trying to create something beautiful and profound while, at the same time, keeping the reader glued to the pages and guessing to the end is an almost impossible task to achieve. Which is why I rate Dennis Lehane so highly. He has always been one of those few.

The Massachusetts-based author of eight novels, including the award-winning Mystic River, Lehane's prose may be lyrical and flowing, but there's also a real hard-edged authenticity to his stories of the Boston underworld. He has that all-too-rare capability of drawing you in from the very first page, and once you're in, he's not letting go. The characterisation is incisive; the dialogue crackles with dark humour; and the locations immediately become alive so that you feel you're walking the streets with him.

If I was to recommend a single Lehane book, it would be Gone, Baby, Gone, one of a series of five novels featuring the private detective team Patrick Kenzie and Angie Gennaro. The two detectives are hired to find a young girl who has been abducted from her home while her mother was out drinking. It's a controversial subject, but from the beginning Lehane handles it with real sensitivity and, as we follow the two on their investigation, it soon becomes clear that there's far more to this abduction than meets the eye. The pace is fast, the atmosphere intense and it contains one of the finest action scenes I have yet read, a brilliant example of tension-building that should be required reading for any would-be thriller writer.

And the ending... Well, it'll leave you thinking for a very long time. And that, for a crime novel, is no bad thing.

Click here for the full list.

Tuesday, April 08, 2008

The Chicago Tribune Praises Easy Innocence

"Hellmann knows how to distill the essence of a character in a few unadorned but dead-right sentences," the Chicago Tribune says of Libby Fisher Hellmann's new novel, EASY INNOCENCE.

Read the full review, as well as more praise, here.

Friday, April 04, 2008

LA Times On Blue Heaven Movie Deal

After the recent sale of the film rights to BLUE HEAVEN to Lila 9th Productions, the LA Times spoke with CJ Box and Steve Fisher, the agent behind the deal, to get the scoop on how they sold this "smart adult thriller."

Get the scoop here.