Welcome: Please Introduce Yourself [ Edited ]

[Paul_Hochman]

Happy to have you here, Michael. Take a look at our Mystery Home Page (linked) when you get a chance where we're featuring The Last Striptease.

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/subjects/mystery/index.asp?z=y&bnit=H&bnrefer=CRM&cds2Pid=18918

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michaelwiley wrote:
Hello everybody,

I'm Michael Wiley, and my first novel, THE LAST STRIPTEASE, came out last week. Thanks, Paul H, for your kind comments about it: you name it as I tried to write it, and that's gratifying. As for the writers I love, I'll play a much-played tune, but a good one: no one else gets me and moves me as Chandler does, and when I put down Chandler I'm happy with a lot of his children.

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Message Edited by PaulH on 10-24-2007 06:33 AM

[michaelwiley]

I'm glad to be here, Paul - and thanks for the great feature. I look forward to discussing the book and others' books.

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PaulH wrote:
Happy to have you here, Michael. Take a look at our Mystery Home Page (linked) when you get a chance where we're featuring The Last Striptease.

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/subjects/mystery/index.asp?z=y&bnit=H&bnrefer=CRM&cds2Pid=18918

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michaelwiley wrote:
Hello everybody,

I'm Michael Wiley, and my first novel, THE LAST STRIPTEASE, came out last week. Thanks, Paul H, for your kind comments about it: you name it as I tried to write it, and that's gratifying. As for the writers I love, I'll play a much-played tune, but a good one: no one else gets me and moves me as Chandler does, and when I put down Chandler I'm happy with a lot of his children.

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Message Edited by PaulH on 10-24-2007 06:33 AM

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[comodore]

Good morning my name is Bill and I now live in Indio just east of Palm Springs.

You could call me a lightweight...[I have never read Raymond Chandler]...as I am new to reading. I Met Nevada Barr in Denver at a book signing while visiting my daughter some time back. Of course she is a charming lady and after reading ALL of her books I branched out. James Patterson is another favorite. The Alex Cross series is easy and entertaining.

My taste no doubt is escapist. The point...I Am reading for the first time in my life on a regular basis and loving more each book. Maybe that is, or should be the ultimate goal.

This board is my first entry into a discussion and I look forward to monitoring it and learning in the process.

comodore [misspelled as everyone beat me to the "commodore"] is my web name due to my career in yacht sails. Offshore sailing and selling. And past commodore of my club.

Enough about me I shall look forward to watching a learning.

Bill is commodore..

[Paul_Hochman]

Thanks for jumping aboard comodore and it's good to see another sailor -- Nonsuch owner here -- in the crime fiction world.

Stuart Woods is a big time sailor as well.

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comodore wrote:
Good morning my name is Bill and I now live in Indio just east of Palm Springs.

You could call me a lightweight...[I have never read Raymond Chandler]...as I am new to reading. I Met Nevada Barr in Denver at a book signing while visiting my daughter some time back. Of course she is a charming lady and after reading ALL of her books I branched out. James Patterson is another favorite. The Alex Cross series is easy and entertaining.

My taste no doubt is escapist. The point...I Am reading for the first time in my life on a regular basis and loving more each book. Maybe that is, or should be the ultimate goal.

This board is my first entry into a discussion and I look forward to monitoring it and learning in the process.

comodore [misspelled as everyone beat me to the "commodore"] is my web name due to my career in yacht sails. Offshore sailing and selling. And past commodore of my club.

Enough about me I shall look forward to watching a learning.

Bill is commodore..

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[guenfire]

Greetings All and a special thanks to our moderators for starting a great board like this.

My name is Jon Guenther. I am an author with more than 20 action-adventure and thriller novels to my credit. I am also a great fan of crime fiction and grateful for Charles and Max's decision to put this kind of work back on the charts where it belongs. We fans owe a lot to the work of Chandler, Hammett, and James M. Cain. Many writers have (and do) inspire me, and I read many books (well... when I'm not writing, which is rarely). My two favs so far out of HCC I've listed in my profile.

I'm a bit late getting onto this board but I only got the info yesterday in my monthly HCC shipment. Anyway, I look forward to lots of lively discussions and "meeting" everyone as time marches on. Those interested in my writing can go to my Web site, jonguenther.com.

[JD_Rhoades]

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comodore wrote:
The point...I Am reading for the first time in my life on a regular basis and loving more each book. Maybe that is, or should be the ultimate goal.

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Amen, brother. And welcome.

[ew]

Hi. My name is Eamon I am from NYC. I love what Dorchester is doing. Just finished Bruen/Starr's Slide and enjoyed it as much as Bust.

Read and like almost all the writers. Great book that never gets much press is Run by Douglas Winter. I have given that out to many freinds and they have enjoyed it. Also did that with Serpent girl by Carnahan and Bruen and Burdett's bangok books.

Thanks,

[Paul_Hochman]

How do you do, Eamon? There's a NICE PIECE on Burdett in today's NY Times.

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ew wrote:
Hi. My name is Eamon I am from NYC. I love what Dorchester is doing. Just finished Bruen/Starr's Slide and enjoyed it as much as Bust.

Read and like almost all the writers. Great book that never gets much press is Run by Douglas Winter. I have given that out to many freinds and they have enjoyed it. Also did that with Serpent girl by Carnahan and Bruen and Burdett's bangok books.

Thanks,

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[Chanceb77]

My name is Chance Bates and I only recently became interested in crime novels and films.I got turned on to it by ed Brubaker and his wonderful crime noir comic Criminal.Even if you dont read comics I highly recommend it as it is a great read.So far I really like the Parker novels,American Skin and just finished Slide,which I really enjoyed.I am from Austin Texas and am currently reading the Hard Case Crime release Mickey Spillane's Dead Street.I would appreciate any recomendations on books,I really like stories told from the criminals perspective.

[CharlesArdai]

> I really like stories told from the criminals perspective

You'll find that many of Hard Case Crime's books are told from a criminal's perspective; Mickey Spillane's DEAD STREET is actually one of the relatively rare ones that isn't.

Apart from our own books, though, you'll probably like the work of Lawrence Block -- more than most other writers he's able to climb into a criminal's mind and make that point of view seem completely rational and sympathetic. You can start with the exceptional thriller SUCH MEN ARE DANGEROUS or the con man novels GRIFTER'S GAME and THE GIRL WITH THE LONG GREEN HEART or the self-explanatory novel-in-stories HIT MAN or any of the Bernie Rhodenbarr "BURGLAR WHO..." books.

Elmore Leonard also does a great job of portraying criminals, though often they're not actually the protagonist. Ones you might enjoy include SWAG and GOLD COAST.

Finally, Max Allan Collins has a series of novels about a professional thief named Nolan and another about a professional killer named Quarry -- you might like either of those.

--Charles

[Mark_OC]

Hi, I'm Mark O'Connor. I live in Siskiyou County, California. I'm a fan of Hard Case Crime and look forward to my monthly shipment. So I have to pass on a big 'thanks' to our host, Mr. Ardai. Keep 'em coming! My wife and I read to each other, and we've learned over the years that not all novels work well when spoken out loud. Crime fiction, though, has been our richest source of good reads. Jim Thompson, John D. MacDonald, Walter Mosley, and Donald E. Westlake come to mind as particular favorites. Recently, we enjoyed Allan Guthrie's "Kiss Her Goodbye" (from Hard Case). Myself, I stumbled upon Chester Himes not too long ago, and am currently reading his "Collected Stories" (Thunder's Mouth Press). "Murdaland" magazine has some terrific stuff, I'm in the middle of the latest issue (#2). Looking forward to throwing my two cents in now and again.

[CharlesArdai]

Thanks, Mark! I have to admit I sometimes read our books aloud myself (to my wife when she'll let me, to random strangers when they will). Chandler's another good one for reading aloud. Not every crime novel works equally well, but I think you're right that there's something about the genre that makes it pleasing on the ear...

--Charles

[vpkeenan]

Hello, everybody. I've put off joining the Crime Club for far too long.

My name is Vince Keenan. Originally from New York, currently living in Seattle. My favorite crime writers are Lawrence Block, Donald E. Westlake, and Ross Thomas. I just finished reading Max Allan Collins' Deadly Beloved -- after lo these many months, I finally won an ARC of a Hard Case Crime book! -- and am currently reading Park Avenue Tramp by Fletcher Flora, recently reprinted in the Stark House Press book A Trio of Gold Medals. I will also be dipping into The Black Lizard Big Book of Pulps, conceivably for the rest of my life. Have you seen the size of that thing?

Looking forward to all the conversation.

Best,

Vince Keenan

http://www.vincekeenan.com

[bigdiddy]

Where do you hail from?
Toronto.

Who is your favorite crime writer?
The writer will no doubt change with the season. Currently, it's Max Allan Collins, whose Quarry series is a page-turning gem. Quarry may well be crime fiction's most likeable ... ahem ... assassin, which is a pretty tall order to pull off, considering his job description is "self-employed: murderer-for-hire." Regardless, unlike MAC's Nolan character, who's as grumpy as I am when my son has me signing (by teacher's order) a test paper he's just tanked, Quarry is flat-out enjoyable.

What are you currently reading?
From 1970, "The Fortune Machine", by Sam Ross; from 2007, MAC's "A Killing In Comics"; and, outside of fiction, Bill Bryson's very funny "The Life And Times Of The Thunderbolt Kid," which first showed up in 2006.

[sugarbear]

Howdy Everyone! I'm known as Sugarbear on this website. I lived in Texas and love to read several different kinds of books however, my favorite books crime stories. My favorite author is James Pattterson. I am currently re-reading Angels & Demons by Dan Brown. I'm a busy mom of three and a Middle School History Teacher/Cheerleader Coach. My down-time is reading books that can take away from my hetic lifestyle. I look forward in discussing future books!

~ Sugarbear

[JamesK]

Hello. I'm James. I live in Houston, and I've been getting the Hard Case crime books from the beginning. I haven't read most of them yet though.

I've just finished Andrew Vachss Terminal and am in the middle of F. Paul Wilson's The Haunted Air. I've been reading hard-boiled fiction since I was a kid, thanks to a dad who loved Travis McGee and Spenser. I found Chandler, Hammett, Ross MacDonald, Ellroy, Block, etc. on my own.

I'll probably read more than I write here at first, since I seem to be surrounded by professionals that are also on my shelves.

[Paul_Hochman]

Feel free to chime right in, James. Professionals or not, we're all fans first.

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JamesK wrote:
Hello. I'm James. I live in Houston, and I've been getting the Hard Case crime books from the beginning. I haven't read most of them yet though.

I've just finished Andrew Vachss Terminal and am in the middle of F. Paul Wilson's The Haunted Air. I've been reading hard-boiled fiction since I was a kid, thanks to a dad who loved Travis McGee and Spenser. I found Chandler, Hammett, Ross MacDonald, Ellroy, Block, etc. on my own.

I'll probably read more than I write here at first, since I seem to be surrounded by professionals that are also on my shelves.

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[Paul_Hochman]

Speaking of the Big Book of Pulps, check out THIS PIECE from John Banville a.k.a. Benjamin Black who penned last year's fantastic crime novel, Christine Falls.

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vpkeenan wrote:
Hello, everybody. I've put off joining the Crime Club for far too long.

My name is Vince Keenan. Originally from New York, currently living in Seattle. My favorite crime writers are Lawrence Block, Donald E. Westlake, and Ross Thomas. I just finished reading Max Allan Collins' Deadly Beloved -- after lo these many months, I finally won an ARC of a Hard Case Crime book! -- and am currently reading Park Avenue Tramp by Fletcher Flora, recently reprinted in the Stark House Press book A Trio of Gold Medals. I will also be dipping into The Black Lizard Big Book of Pulps, conceivably for the rest of my life. Have you seen the size of that thing?

Looking forward to all the conversation.

Best,

Vince Keenan

http://www.vincekeenan.com

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[CJIannacone]

Hello everyone,
I’m Carl and have been a reader nearly all my life. My mother taught me to read well before the first grade and I have been reading ever since. I started reading Mickey Spillane either in Jr. High or High School. My parents never objected to anything I read and I was reading crime novels and adult books early on. Picking a favorite author for me is impossible and my tastes range from crime to science fiction and anything in between. My wife self publishes and just published her first mystery novel and since she dedicated it to me, I’d have to say that it was a current favorite.
What is sad for me at 55 is that all my favorite writers are dying. Evan Hunter, Mickey Spillane and others. To realize I’ll never read a new Ed McBain is a sad thought. While I realize there are still excellent writers like Lawrence Block and Robert B. Parker alive, the old masters were great and each writer is so unique.
One of the great things about Hard Case publishing is the connection to my youth and that may be for others as well. It certainly reminds me of days without work when you could read on your bed or under a tree all day long.

[yellowbird2525]

hi i hail from Oregon & am currently reading P J Parrish's 1000 bones. Am on way to bookstore to look for James Patterson's double cross & Tess Garrisons the bone garden. Love M c beaton & Lee Child & John Lutz's Night series. i love to read, & pass books on to others. Read HP series, loved the parties at B&N's, that was awesome! probably enjoyed as much or better than kids i took with me!