MYSTERY SCENE MAGAZINE rocks B&N's Mystery this week!

[mary_kennedy]

Loved Val's thoughts on the insenstive reader who told her he "doesn't read books by women." Horrors. Sad to think he was in the industry. I wonder how many of us have heard similar remarks?

[mary_kennedy]

Very interesting article by Lee Goldberg on the prevalence of "CSI's" in new crime shows. I was surprised to see the police psychologist on Law and Order, B.D. Wong, administering a polygraph. I've worked as a forensic psychologist, and this would never happen.  

[mary_kennedy]

Elizabeth, I like the real-life quote from Al Capone. "You can get a lot farther with a kind word and a gun, than you can with a kind word alone." Mary Kennedy, The Talk Radio Mysteries www.marykennedy.net      

[mary_kennedy]

Becke, I love this Agatha Christie quote. There was a post (ages ago, I had trouble logging in) about who would be considered a "contemporary" Agatha Christie. I would definitely say Carolyn Hart, I reviewed a few of her books for The Examiner. She has a huge following and is working on two "traditional" mystery series at once. Hope all is well on your adventures, wish I could join you!  

[mary_kennedy]

Kate, the Dorothy Lange photo of the San Francisco grocery store owned by Japanese-Americans is so sad, and so powerful.  Mary Kennedy, The Talk Radio Mysteries

[mary_kennedy]

Becke, I know you are having a terrific time at RT, and we're looking forward to hearing all about it when you get back.

[Kate_Mystery_S…]

Hi Mary,

One of my favorite tasks at Mystery Scene is finding illustrations for various articles. That particular photo was part of the WPA projects of the 1930s-early 40s.

Kate

[becke_davis]

Just stopping in to say a quick "hi" - I hung out with Rosemary Harris last night and attended a workshop moderated by Judi McCoy today. I think there are other mystery authors here, too, even though it is Romantic Times. Thanks so much to all of you at Mystery Scene for making this week so interesting for all our participants!

[LJSellers]

I've been enjoying the magazine very much. Loved the feature on Lisa Lutz. The Spellman Files just moved to the top of my TBR list.

L.J. Sellers

[becke_davis]

Thanks for stopping by, L.J.!

The Sex Club 

Secrets to Die For 

Coming in August!

[becke_davis]

A huge thank you to Kate Stine and the staff of Mystery Scene magazine for visiting during my absence! 

[Kate_Mystery_S…]

Thanks Becke,  all of us at Mystery Scene enjoyed the opportunity to visit!

Hope you had a great time at Romantic Times and that we'll see you out and about in the "mystery world."

Best,

kate

[becke_davis]

In This Issue

Greetings from Kate

July Web Reviews

Susan Wittig Albert on Reading

Thrillerfest 2010

Overheard

MS Winners

Quick Links

Current Issue Book Reviews Mystery Scene Blog

[becke_davis]

Summer Fun
Exclusive online summer reviews, Susan Wittig Albert on Reading, Orient Express Twitter event, and more.

The Swedish film based on Stieg Larsson's worldwide bestseller opens in the US on July 9th.

Hope you are all enjoying the summer issue of Mystery Scene featuring Michael Koryta and his latest book, So Cold the River; historical mystery novelist  Stefanie Pintoff; cozy queen Carolyn Hart; Scott Turow and his sequel to Presumed Innocent; and Clifford B. Hicks, creator of kid detective Alvin Fernaldand his Magnificent Brain. 

And there's a lot more going on this summer. Look for web exclusive original articles and reviews of July and August books at the MS Website.  The MS Blog will will be updated several times a week, including a film review of The Girl Who Played with Fire. In the meantime, we hope you enjoy this month's "Writers on Reading" essay from author Susan Wittig Albert, who reflects on how Eudora Welty inspired her.

Sincerely,
Kate Stine
Editor-in-Chief 

Read Anything Good Lately?
Email us your fave raves for the "Our Readers Recommend" feature and be entered to win a free book! 

[becke_davis]

Upcoming MS Web Exclusive Reviews

Get the latest on July releases atwww.MysterySceneMag.com

[becke_davis]

New! Third Edition
Intent to Sell
Marketing the Genre Novel
by Jeffrey Marks

[becke_davis]

All Aboard!

Hercule Poirot: Murder on the Orient Express
Sunday, July 11,  on PBS

Join Mystery Scene for a special Twitter event 
hosted by MASTERPIECE Mystery!
Sunday, July 11, 9-11 p.m. EST

[becke_davis]

Writers on Reading: Susan Wittig Albert 
Pondering the wit and insight of Eudora Welty

When I'm writing a period book, I tend to read books that were written in the period. Currently, I'm writing the second book in a new series set in the South during the Depression: The Darling Dahlias. So I'm rereading the stories and novels ofEudora Welty, whose work I first encountered when I was a young girl, dreaming the impossible dream of becoming a writer. I've read all of Welty's work, but my favorite has to be The Ponder Heart. 

The story is a monologue, the long-winded complaint of Edna Earle Ponder, who owns a hotel in a small Mississippi town and tells her story to a traveling salesman. The tale is about Edna Earle's dotty Uncle Dan, a rich man who gives his stuff away with the joyful impetuosity of a child giving away his toys--and ends up being charged with murder. We piece together a crazy-quilt plot, with its multiple layers of irony and foolishness, as the bossy and self-important Edna Earle tells her tale, rambling on and on in a wildly funny scramble of subtle hints, sly innuendo, opinion, digressions, and details that have nothing to do with the story and everything to do with the world of people, place, and meaning that Welty is creating for us. Edna Earle's voice is pitch-perfect and her language is ordinary Southern talk, tuned to a fine edge and jam-crammed with Southern details. Rings in my ear, holds me to the page. What a gift!


Susan Wittig Albert's latest The Darling Dahlias and the Cucumber Tree (Berkley Hardcover, July 2010).
www.susanalbert.com 
www.darlingdahlias.com

"Writers on Reading" is a special ongoing Mystery Sceneseries available as a first look exclusive to our newsletter subscribers.