Get ready for this Friday … because we’re going rogue! I intend to roust your senses, pillage your serenity and stimulate your discovery of the good, the bad and the only fiction genre where a ranch breakfast is a steel metal jacket dipped in cordite. We’re going to mix it up … every FRiction FRiday … and talk about the books which fill the suspense – thriller – mystery genre. They sire rabid fans and beget a rogue’s gallery of unaccountable tough guys, a few cerebral types and shameless sidekicks. That’s going to be part of FRiction FRiday … every Friday … starting in just a few days!
Don’t you love the Mystery-Thriller-Suspense genre?
Several years ago, I started a blog called Bookmarks about books I’ve read in the Mystery-Thriller-Suspense genre. I stopped after about 6 months … not because I don’t love those books and stopped reading them … not by a long shot … but because I got too distracted from my primary business pursuits. Lame, maybe, but there it is. I still get a regular urge to write a FanView piece (that’s a “fan review” in my parlance”) … not a literary review but what a fan of this genre would care about a particular character, story or author. Yes, the literary quality is important, but hey, this isn’t English class.
They’re too interesting or fun to be literary?
Good thing, too, because many English teachers, and most members of the noble literati, hold their nose when discussing our favorite genre. “They aren’t literary enough,” whatever that means … or “they’re too interesting or fun to be taken seriously”. Love that one.
So, to hell with them! Most of us who love this genre are passionate about our favorite characters. We’re looking for great stories, new authors, undiscovered gems and the unexpected twists and turns that keep these books at the top of the best seller lists. No PC sensibilities, no hand holding, no singing kumbayah around the campfire. Some days, a little street justice and a big-time ass-whuppin’ is just what we need.
Michael Connelly, George Pelecanos, Lee Child … met them all
Over 30+ years, I have bought and read somewhere near 2,000 books in this genre, so I’ve plowed through a boatload of twists, turns and twaddle … but I’ve developed a pretty discriminating eye for the “great reads” in this category. I’ve attended book fairs, Mystery Writers Conferences, author events, you name it … and I’ve had a chance to meet and talk with luminaries like Michael Connelly, Lee Child, George Pelecanos and others.
So, to help you kick off your weekends, I’ve decided to juice up the Sword Tips blog every Friday by offering whatever I’ve discovered during the previous week. I’ll tell you what I’m reading, what I’ve discovered, what I’m savoring, what I’ve learned about a new author, character or book, what’s next … anything that I think you’ll be excited to learn in our passionate pursuit of this genre. Some posts will be short, some longer. I’ll provides lots of links and other resources to help you easily catch up to some of these exciting novels.
So, stay tuned. We’ll be celebrating some good, old-fashioned ass-kicking around here every FRiction FRiday. Why not subscribe now so you don’t miss anything?
Who wants some?
