Thursday, January 27, 2011

(Another) Mystery writer blog

Maybe two years (or so) I signed up for email updates from writer Julia Spencer-Fleming entitled "Kill from the Hill" for messages about her series featuring "Rev. Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Alstyne. It's possible it might be much further back though, double-checking the date when the book club read Spencer-Fleming's first book (In the Bleak Midwinter) it was in October 2004.

There's a new book in the series One was a Soldier due for release in April and Spencer-Fleming joined a blog featuring eight mystery writers now called JungleRed. I'm actually quite glad to read about the blog because (too often) I tend to go to a few websites and I'm done so it is good to see what else is available. The blog also features the work of Rhys Bowen, Jan Brogan, Roberta Isleib, Hallie Ephron, Deborah Crombie, Hank Phillippi Ryan, and Rosemary Harris.

The blog description reads (in part): Welcome to Jungle Red, a salon of eight mystery writers. Here, it's all about writing. And not writing. And our search for motive in life, love, fiction and reality.

All have books in the library system.

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Holiday reading--

Over the holidays a visiting sister-in-law had a small paperback mystery that kept her attention until she polished it off just after Christmas. The book's cover didn't catch my interest--it looked like a "cozy mystery" I'd be reluctant to try--but I reconsidered and took a closer look.

The book is Tapped Out (2007) by writer Natalie M. Roberts, which is the second book of the "Jenny T. Partridge Dance Mysteries." I began to wonder if my library had that book or any Roberts books so I checked into it. The library system does have a couple of copies of Robert's first of the series Tutu Deadly. It was also printed in 2007.

I was glad to see the author's work carried in the area libraries so that the collection is that varied and diverse. It's reassuring to know we mix it up including a writer who doesn't have a long-running series (see here for Roberts).