First Foray: Choosing a Topic for Your Debut Thriller, by @mrneil98

As is the case of many avid readers, I have a desire to write. Although my dabbling in gothic horror in the late seventies took a backseat to career and family took forefront, I continued to read, shifting genres from horror to mystery to history to thriller, with many of my favorites encompassing some combination thereof.  Now with my career settled and my nest mostly emptied, I’ve been  re-examining the possibility of writing, this time focusing on the thriller genre. Here-in lies my conundrum. What should be the topic of my first foray?

I have read novels by scores of thriller writers, following many from their first to their most current publication. Utilizing my mathematics background, I analyzed a number of first novel themes. Although the range was wide, I’ve determined that the topic should either be Atlantis or the Knights Templar (at least if you go by mode, since I‘m not sure how to average themes).  As a writer, you wish to focus on an area of interest for the readers and these are two popular topics for writers trying to create a market.

Often it takes an author several books to become an “overnight sensation”, like Dan Brown or Steve Berry. Each had two or three previous books overlooked or rejected outright. It wasn’t until The DaVinci Code with underlying Templar themes, that Brown became a force and readers revisited his previous three works. Similarly, Steve Berry’s third novel, The Templar Legacy, was his breakthrough publication that allowed his previous works (The Third Secret, The Amber Room) to reach a market. There are many other authors that chose the Knights as their preliminary offering. Raymond Khoury hit the NY Times  bestseller list with The Last Templar (and revisited with his fourth The Templar Salvation) and Paul Christopher has also created a  series of Templar books.

Atlantis is another mystery that has intrigued readers, and consequently writers, over recent years. It seems that many writers searching for an initial foothold have explored the mystery of Atlantis. The lure has not only  attracted initial publications like; David Gibbons (Atlantis), Andy McDermott (Hunt for Atlantis), and Thomas Greanias (Raising Atlantis), but established writers have explored the Atlantis phenomenon in novels like Atlantis Found by Clive Cussler and even James Rollins’ YA series with Jake Ransom.

As I reflect on these repeating themes, I attempt to derive a unique perspective but alas, so many writers and so few topics. So where do I go with my first  endeavor?  Atlantis or Knights Templar? Can I merge them somehow? Has that been done yet? At the very least I, like both the aspiring and successful writers who came before, will always have the Nazis to fall back on. 

"Cold Vengeance" by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child, Post by @mrneil98

I have eagerly awaited the release of the new Aloysius X.L. Pendergast  installment, Cold Vengeance for a year. Let it be known at the outset, that Preston and Child have created a tense thriller to compliment the rest of the series. I will elaborate in a bit, but first, a diatribe that was initiated by George Lucas and The Empire Strikes Back.

The year was 1980 and I had just graduated college. I paid my $3 and sat with friends to watch this sequel to Star Wars. I was awed by the story and visual effects, which contained several huge surprises; Han Solo gets captured, Luke and Darth Vader duel and Luke loses a hand but gains a father. Then the credits started to roll. I remained firmly planted in my seat, not because of the sticky floor, but because I was waiting for the remainder of the movie.

“It’s the second part of a trilogy”, my friend said, as if this would alleviate my dissatisfaction. It did not. To this day I have not seen Return of the Jedi or the other three films, and will not, until I get a written apology from George Lucas and my three bucks back! This experience has made me suspicious toward the “middle child” of literary and cinematic trilogies. 

The second tale of a predetermined trilogy must often struggle with an “identity crisis”. The elder book has set the stage and is lavished with praise while the youngest, last installment gets the attention with a satisfying conclusion but the middle story is often neglected and unfulfilled. While Cold Vengeance is the middle book of the Helen trilogy, Preston/Child had an earlier trio centering on Pendergast’s evil brother, Diogenes. That middle book, Dance of Death, was the best of a strong triad, so my hopes were elevated but unfortunately I came away thinking this book should be subtitled, The Pendergast Strikes Back .

Vengeance begins where Fever Dream ended with Pendergast investigating the death of his wife Helen. It opens with a bang in Scotland (literally), and eventually makes it back to New York where a large part of the action takes place. Returning are Vincent D’Agosta and now college student Corrie, from Still Life With Crows. The action is very intense and there are many scenes with authentic and sustained suspense. While revisiting the Vengeance for this blog, I appreciate it more the second time. Still, I did have that unsatisfied feeling at the conclusion, which I hadn’t felt  with Dance of Death. Both novels leave you with cliffhanging endings but Dance seemed to be more of a complete work. I think part of the reason is that the conclusion, Book of the Dead, was already on the shelf. This time I must wait a year for the finale of the Helen Trilogy.

Cold Vengeance is a wonderful read as the summer winds down, provided you read Fever Dream first. Be warned that you will need to delay your immediate gratification since the conclusion, Return of the Pendergast is a year off.

"The Silent Girl" by Tess Gerritsen

Another rock out loud thriller novel from a female author.  I don't say this like it's some kind of shock or surprise when it happens, but rather because I continue to notice a rather sexist bent within our not-so-little community of thriller readers that slants towards male authors.  So much so that many thriller authors of the female persuasion choose to use their initials rather than put out there that they are women.

Enough's enough already, guys.  Let's get completely over this particular little quirk and just... move on.  These women are creating thriller fiction that is fun, fast-paced, adrenaline-filled and un-put-downable.  They also manage to infuse a level of perspective and flexibility into their story telling that male authors will occasionally let slide.  And I'm a guy.

Okay.  Done with my soap box rant.  This novel's a winner.  Sure, if you're not into paranormal stuff permeating your straight-up-thriller, you may be a little bugged, but keep reading.  This one will grab you by your unmentionables and keep tugging while you breathlessly beg for more.  Good stuff.  Really good stuff.  Oh, and if you're new to Tess Gerritsen, this is her 9th (yes, NINTH) Rizzoli and Isles novel.  So, if you like, there's more where this puppy came from.  Lots more.  Plus a TV series and stuff.  :)

And if you don't dig on the thrillers, the interesting bent this one has will serve to introduce you a bit more gently to this genre.  It's cool.  It's dark.  It's intense.  And it's just an absolute page-turner.  So give it a shot and let me know what you think!

You can buy The Silent Girl here.

Oh Baby, It's Cold Inside (These Thrillers) Post by @mrneil98

Yes, I know it’s summer and it’s supposed to be hot but these last two weeks have been extreme. Several days in triple digits, topping out at 106 in Newark, NJ last Friday. One of the greatest challenges was rotating the ice cube trays properly so there would always be some available. During this time I finished reading Monster of Florence by Douglas Preston, a non-fiction about a serial killer terrorizing the Tuscany section of Italy. Fascinating story and reflects on the current Amanda Knox case, particularly in the handling of the investigation but that is a blog for another day. Looking for a new novel I perused my bookcase and was immediately drawn to titles like The Ice Limit, Ice Hunt and Iceberg. I began reflecting on thrillers I have read with a frigid setting and a “chilling” title.

After eliminating dozens of “Ice” titles (whether Black, Blue, Crimson or with Fire) due to the use of ice as slang for diamonds, I whittled the voluminous  pile to my top four with an honorable mention from the same author. While I tried to achieve the initial cooling off from the title, the setting of the novel is far more important to plummeting the temperature of our psyche. So here they are in David Letterman-esque countdown form:

4.            Iceberg by thrill master Clive Cussler. An early Dirk Pitt (when I devoured them) where a Viking ship is found incased in, well, you can guess. Although a little dated technologically, Cussler is an excellent storyteller who influenced many of the current generation of writers. Every time I read a Rollins novel with Gray Pierce and Monk Kokkalis interacting, it reminds me of Dirk Pitt and Al Giordino.  Honorable Mention: Artic Drift also by Cussler, co-written by his son Dirk. The later Dirk Pitt adventures also have his twin adult children that magically appeared around the fifteenth book of the series. This book centers around mysteries involving the Northwest Passage.

3.            The Shining by Stephen King. Although the title does not immediately give you that arctic blast, the setting is a snow-bound Colorado hotel in the dead of winter. King masterfully uses the weather as a tool to further isolate Jack Torrance. The book is amazing but the movie is a huge disappointment (as with most film versions of novels). Where the written word leads to tension and suspense, the film caused unintended laughter.  Honorable Mention: Misery by King. Again, the snow-bound setting, although this time back home in Maine. One of the few books that translated just as well to the screen thanks to an amazing performance by Kathy Bates.

2.            Ice Hunt by James Rollins. This pre-Sigma chiller features the abandoned Soviet Ice Station Grendel, which may not be completely empty. The ice station is located on an island of ice. This novel introduces the character of seaman Joe Kowalski, now a member of Sigma and an excellent source of humor to relieve the tension of the moment. Rollins spun him off with a 2005 short story “Kowalski in Love” then he became “the muscle” for Sigma and now, as of The Devil Colony, a full member.  Honorable Mention: Doomsday Key by Rollins. Although not entirely set in the frigid climate, a good portion takes place in Norway and in particular the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. Besides, I must include any book where the heroes are rescued from certain death by a rampaging herd of polar bears.

1.            The Ice Limit by Doug Preston and Lincoln Child. A billionaire is after a meteor that he believes is on an island between South America and Antarctica. An earlier novel that introduced the intriguing engineering genius Eli Glinn, who returned in several Pendergast books and now is the mission provider of the Gideon Crew series.  Honorable Mention: Terminal Freeze by Lincoln Child. A solo venture about the discovery and thawing of new species of prehistoric cat, the book is simultaneously a thrilling creature feature and a satire of current television entertainment. It works wonderfully on both levels.

There are so many more cool books to chill with during the dog days of summer but I recommend losing yourself in the wintry terror of one of these featured titles.

"One Good Turn" by Kate Atkinson. Guest review from @ScullyLovePromo

I don’t usually choose crime novels when selecting fictitious fare, although I have read my fair share of them in the past (John Grisham, Stuart Woods, Mario Puzo, John le Carré). However, One Good Turn by Edinburgh-based, bestselling author Kate Atkinson was a welcome change of pace and a literary mystery novel that unravels several crimes slowly and with great intrigue as well as humour. Atkinson’s characterizations are so detailed and the plot so complex that I really don’t know what to say about it that will do it any more justice than all the professional, critically acclaimed media reviews that have come before. It was an absolute delight to read and one helluva gripping page turner!

One Good Turn is set in contemporary Edinburgh during the Edinburgh Fringe Festival which for me, made for an interesting backdrop because I’m such an Arts lover and I’ve always wanted to attend the Festival. I was a little disappointed that there wasn’t as much detail about it as I’d hoped but it didn’t put me off the rest of the story and it does include a has-been stand-up comedian named Richard Mott to lend authenticity. Although the book reintroduces former police inspector turned man-of-leisure millionaire Jackson Brodie and his aloof actress girlfriend Julia (who I didn’t like one bit but has a play running at the Festival which is why Brodie’s in Edinburgh) from Atkinson’s previous novel, Case Histories, you don’t have to have read it to enjoy the suspenseful One Good Turn.

The plot revolves around the participants in and witnesses of a fender bender that’s immediately followed by a brutal road rage attack. This action sets the stage for a series of exciting and complicated events that are all interrelated but we don’t know exactly how until the end of the story, which concludes in a matter of four days, in one of those whopping A-HA moments!

The narration oscillates between the main characters which include an asexual, diffident but thriving crime novelist named Martin Canning (a.k.a. Alex Blake who writes about a 1940s English female detective named Nina Riley and is vaguely reminiscent of Jessica Fletcher in Murder, She Wrote) who witnesses the baseball bat beating by thug Terrence Smith of unsuspecting motorist Paul Bradley. Martin reacts by throwing his laptop at Smith which knocks him off of Bradley just in time for the police to step in and then Martin finds himself accompanying Bradley to the hospital and strangeness ensues.

The incident is also witnessed by Jackson Brodie (who additionally discovers a female floater in the bay which sets up an equally interesting subplot), Archie Monroe and Gloria Hatter, a middle-aged, wealthy woman with a penchant for following rules, who is ironically married to criminal construction tycoon Graham of Hatter Homes – Real Homes For Real People – and stands as the moral center of the story.

Meanwhile, Chief Inspector Louise Monroe is struggling with a 24/7 career that leaves little time for her to keep an eye on her 14-year-old son Archie, who goaded on by his buddy Hamish, may or may not be sinking into dark waters that are too deep for him to tread…or is that Brodie who is falling deeper and deeper into the mystifying peripheral events of the story?

One Good Turn embodies really great storytelling and even the secondary characters will keep the reader enthralled.

The novel also includes a conversation with the author at the back of the book, questions and topics for discussion if chosen by a book club, and the first chapter of Atkinson’s subsequent novel, When Will There Be Good News?, which gives One Good Turn’s Chief Inspector Louise Monroe and Jackson Brodie another mystery to solve.

Jackson Brodie also stars in her latest novel, Started Early, Took My Dog and according to Atkinson’s website he will soon be appearing in a six-part television series adapted from Case Histories, One Good Turn and When Will There Be Good News? for BBC One. Now, I’ll have to go back and read all of these books because I know they’ll make for some terrific television! But who will play Jackson Brodie?! (I think Colin Firth or Eric Bana might be a good choice!)

Hot "Fever Dream" Followed by "Cold Vengeance" Review/Preview from @mrneil98

Through nine previous novels Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child have enrapt readers with the exploits of FBI Special Agent Aloysius X.L. Pendergast. The cases are always bizarre, with inklings of the supernatural, and Pendergast’s modus operandi  is quite unorthodox. Although the majority of the novels are set in New York, Pendergast is from an old New Orleans family with a sordid history. Tall, lean with white/blonde hair and even whiter skin, Pendergast is always dressed in black woolen suits and is often mistaken for an undertaker. During each novel, more of Pendergast's past has been slowly revealed, especially in the trilogy of books dealing with his brother Diogenes. The readers knew Pendergast was married and his wife, Helen, has been killed by a lion on safari twelve years ago.

The prologue of Fever Dream recounts the events leading up to Helen’s demise. Back in present day New Orleans, Pendergast visits his homestead and discovers Helen’s gun had been loaded with blanks. Someone, for some reason, had set Helen up! It was murder. The quest for Helen’s killer(s) is made more difficult since a dozen years have passed and so have many of the potential witnesses. The journey takes Pendergast and his adopted partner Lt. D’Agosta from Africa, to Georgia, to Maine but mostly around Louisiana.

I attended a Fever Dream release book signing and Preston and Child spoke and answered questions. They referred to the book as the first of the Helen Trilogy. There are several deviations from past novels, the main ones are the setting (not in NY) and the lack of the mystical elements. It is still fascinating and I am amazed how the authors continue to tie seemingly random elements together in a believable coherent story. In this case, we have a murder in Africa, John James Audubon and his mysterious lost painting “The Black Frame”, stolen Carolina parakeets and a family of four that met a horrible end.

By the end, Pendergast has solved the case... almost. There is still at least one person at large and many unanswered questions concerning Helen. Which is good, because on August 2 Pendergast #11, Cold Vengeance, is being released. This one begins in Scotland with a bang. I read the first chapter which was released as a teaser in the paperback release of Gideon’s Sword. Even I was surprised by the suddenness of what occurred. The publisher promises this journey will lead Pendergast from Scotland to New York and back to the bayou of Louisiana. I, for one, cannot wait.

Should you read Fever Dream if you haven’t read the other Pendergast novels? Of course! You will want to go back and read them afterward but you be able to understand the nuances of the relationships without the previous books. You should read it before Cold Vengeance. If you are looking for other books after the eleven in this series, Preston/Child have several non-Pendergast books written collaboratively and individually. After the temperature hit 104 on Friday, I am ready to replace a Fever with something Cold.

"Fallen" by Karin Slaughter

At a time when many of my favorite authors seem to be floundering, experimenting and just generally under-delivering, it's nice to have Karin Slaughter.  After ten wonderful novels, I find it incredibly gratifying to say that her eleventh does nothing but improve on an already incredible world.  For those of you who have been reading this blog for a while, you may remember that I reviewed Broken a while back.  It was my pleasure to return to her intricate, damaged and beautiful characters.

For you thriller readers out there, this entire series should be required reading.  If you're not reading Karin Slaughter right now, I have one word for you:  Repent!  Pick up one right now.  It doesn't really matter which.  They're all superlative.  Starting at the beginning with Blindsighted, you'll want to finish them out.  Starting with Fallen, you'll be sure to backtrack.  So take your pick; just don't blame me when you're hooked.

Now, for you I-could-take-thrillers-or-leave-'em types out there, give this one a chance.  Slaughter lives up to her name, sure, but she does it with class and flair.  I said it with Broken and I'll say it again here.  These are thrillers that manage to live up to the adrenaline-packed excitement expected by the genre, while still reading like literature.  You're really getting the best of both worlds with this author, and I only expect it to continue.  You can get Fallen here.

Oh, and for those purebred bibliophiles out there (or anyone that's just looking for a smoking deal on books by up-and-coming authors), you MUST check out the Indie Book Collective's Menage a Blog.  It starts Monday, July 18th and goes through the 25th, with three different titles every day.  Awesomeness overload.  #dontsayIdidntwarnyou