Susan Straight discusses her novel, “The Gettin Place.” She begins by explaining that she uses the same characters in other books she has written such as, “I’ve Been In Sorrow’s Kitchen and Licked Out All the Pots,” and “Blacker Than...
Macdonald, Ross, 1915-1983;
Novelists, American - 20th century - Biography;
Detective and mystery stories - Authorship
Tom Nolan discusses his book, “Ross MacDonald: A Biography.” He begins by explaining why he wrote on Ross Macdonald, the pen name of writer Ken Millar. He talks about Macdonald’s early life growing up with an abusive family. He describes...
New Orleans (La.) - Fiction; Free African Americans - Fiction; African American men - Fiction; January, Benjamin (Fictitious character) - Fiction
Barbara Hambly discusses her book, “Graveyard Dust.” She begins by explaining the local history of New Orleans, which serves as the backdrop for her novel. Hambly details the racial and cultural history of the antebellum period and the world in...
Detective and mystery stories, English; Private investigators - England - Fiction; Watson, John H. (Fictitious character) - Fiction; Holmes, Sherlock (Fictitious character) - Fiction; Doyle, Arthur Conan, Sir, 1859-1930
Leslie Klinger discusses his work on, “The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes.” He begins by explaining his work on annotating the works of author, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. From there he goes on to discuss whether or not Sherlock Holmes and Dr....
Los Angeles (Calif.) - Fiction; Women detectives - California - Los Angeles - Fiction; Consulting firms - Fiction; Business consultants - Fiction; Sinclair, Tucker (Fictitious character) - Fiction
Patricia Smiley discusses her book, “Cover Your Assets.” She begins by detailing the plot of the novel, which is the second book in the Tucker Sinclair series. Tucker Sinclair is a Los Angeles business consultant who must solve the mysterious...
Helen Hayes discusses her book, "Where the Truth Lies," written with Thomas Chastain. The book is a murder mystery and the main character is named Arthur Strickland. He is a movie producer who makes an award winning film and is then murdered on...
Egypt - History - To 332 B.C. - Fiction; Ramses III, King of Egypt - Fiction
Brad Geagley discusses his book, “Year of the Hyenas.” He begins by discussing how the book is a murder mystery set in ancient Egypt when the kingdom was at the height of its glory and power. Geagley explains that as a backdrop for his...
Stephen Clark discusses his book, “Dark Delivery.” He begins by exploring the main character of the novel, Nelson Ingram, and then sharing some of the major plot developments. Clark then explains that he is a graduate of University of Alabama...
San Xia Dam (China) - Fiction; Antiquities - Collection and preservation - Fiction; Dams - Design and construction - Fiction; Americans - China - Fiction; Police - China - Fiction; Married people - Fiction; Policewomen - Fiction; Yangtze River...
Lisa See discusses her novel, “Dragon Bones.” She begins by explaining that it is the third book in a series that follows the same characters. She talks about her decision to place the story in China near the Three Gorges and the San Xia...
Women lawyers - Fiction; Honolulu (Hawaii) - Fiction
Deborah Turrell Atkinson discusses her book, “Primitive Secrets.” She explains the opening scene of the book where her heroine Storm Kayama works at a law firm and finds her uncle dead in his office. She then explains how she allows the...
Venice (Los Angeles, Calif.) - Fiction; Screenwriters - Fiction; Serial murders - Fiction; Private investigators - California - Los Angeles - Fiction
Ray Bradbury discusses his book, "Death Is A Lonely Business." He begins by explaining the plot of the book and how he drew on his experiences living in Venice during the early years of his career. He stresses the importance of a proper setting...
Stalking - Fiction; Inheritance and succession - Fiction
Bradford Morrow discusses his novel, “Giovanni’s Gift.” He begins by explaining that the book is based on a real experience of a stalker harassing his aunt and uncle. He came out to visit them and while he was spending some time trying to...
Hollywood (Los Angeles, Calif.) - Fiction; Halloween - Fiction; Cemeteries - Fiction; Screenwriters - Fiction; Motion picture industry - Fiction
Ray Bradbury discusses his book, “A Graveyard for Lunatics." He explains that the book is his second mystery novel in which he features a fictionalized version of himself as the unnamed narrator. The book is set in 1950s Hollywood where the...
Americans - Italy - Fiction; Mothers and sons - Fiction; Jewish women - Fiction; War crimes - Fiction; Revenge - Fiction; Venice (Italy) - Fiction
Joseph Kanon discusses his novel, “Alibi.” He begins by explaining his own travels to Venice and how he knew he wanted to write a story about the city. He talks about Venice’s role in the Holocaust and how he incorporated that into his...
Women in the advertising industry - Fiction; Mothers and daughters - Fiction; Mentally ill women - Fiction; Missing persons - Fiction; Chagrin Falls (Ohio) - Fiction; South Africa - Fiction
Lynette Brasfield discusses her book, “Nature Lessons.” She begins by talking about how her novel is a mix between a mystery and a memoir. She describes what it was like growing up in South Africa and how her mother was constantly paranoid...
Chandler, Raymond, 1888-1959 - Relations with women; Authors, American - 20th century - Biography; Detective and mystery stories - Authorship
Judith Freeman discusses her novel, “The Long Embrace.” She begins by explaining that she read a lot of Raymond Chandler’s work in the 1980s and was fascinated by his life. She talks about Chandler’s move to Los Angeles and how he meets...
Ray Shannon discusses his novel, “Man Eater.” He begins by explaining how his real name is Gar Anthony Haywood, but he decided to write this book under an alias so his readers wouldn’t get confused. He says the book is about a gangster who...
White, Blanche (Fictitious character) - Fiction; African American women - Fiction; Women detectives - Fiction; Caterers and catering - Fiction; Cooking - Fiction; Detective and mystery stories; North Carolina - Fiction
Barbara Neely discusses her novel, “Blanche Passes Go.” She begins by explaining that this is the fourth book in the series that follows her character Blanche White. She talks about how Blanche decides to move back to North Carolina from New...
