Category Archives: Historical Fiction
The Axeman – Ray Celestin
(Reviewed by JD Jung) The following was submitted to the Times-Picayune on May 6, 1919. “…I am not a human being, but a spirit and a demon from the hottest hell. I am what you Orleanians and your foolish police … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Historical Fiction, Jazz & Blues
Tagged Axeman, Historical fiction, jazz, New Orleans
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Coming Through Slaughter – Michael Ondaatje
(Reviewed by JD Jung) “…and you like a weather bird arcing round in the middle of your life to exact opposites and burning your brains out so that from June 5 1907 till 1931 you were dropped into amber in … Continue reading
Posted in Dark/Sordid/Bizarre, Historical Fiction, Jazz & Blues, Lost and almost forgotten
Tagged Buddy Bolden, Historical fiction, jazz, New Orleans
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From the Ashes – Sabrina Flynn
(Reviewed by Lee Nelson) Let’s get the elephant out of the room: I’ve known of Flynn from my membership in Letters of Mary, a fan-fiction group devoted to Laurie L. King. I met her at 2014 Bouchercon in Long Beach … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Historical Fiction
Tagged Historical fiction, mystery
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Glenfiddich Inn – Alan Geik
(Reviewed by JD Jung) “Byron claims he has proof the Cubs and the Red Sox fixed the World Series…But he could never publish it because the censors would say it hurt morale—that it would be injurious to the war effort.” —September … Continue reading
Posted in Historical Fiction
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Madam: A Novel of New Orleans – Cari Lynn and Kellie Martin
(Reviewed by JD Jung) “Everything I have, everything I am, I owe to them–to her. …Her family tree was but a stump. And yet, the riches she bestowed upon me: my education, my inheritance…This house, in all its faded elegance, … Continue reading
Power Play – F. Ethan Repp
(Reviewed by JD Jung) “Democracy doesn’t just happen, it takes dedicated citizens continuously fighting to preserve it. Elected officials will get away with as much as they can and if no one picks on them for a long time, they … Continue reading
Posted in Historical Fiction, Political fiction
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Return of the Heroine—Kaye Michelle
(Reviewed by Melanie Hamilton) In Kaye Michelle’s provocative and inspiring novel, Return of the Heroine, West Point Cadet Jane Archer has a problem: Should she do what’s right or save her career? The daughter of senior counsel to Providence Rhode … Continue reading
Posted in Historical Fiction, Modern Literary Fiction
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A Child Out of Alcatraz -Tara Ison
(Reviewed by J.D. Jung) When I visit San Francisco, I often gaze over the bay to that small island that radiates so much history. This island housed some of America’s most infamous criminals: Al Capone, Robert Franklin Stroud (the Birdman … Continue reading
Posted in Historical Fiction, Modern Literary Fiction
Tagged book reviews, Historical fiction, San Francisco
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What You See in the Dark – Manuel Muñoz
(Reviewed by J.D. Jung) “The woman had to live before she could die…Even if it was the vulgarity of real life—the needs and the mistakes, but also the desire to correct them, the effort toward a forgiveness of herself. A … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Historical Fiction, Modern Literary Fiction, Noir-esque fiction
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The Dying Crapshooter’s Blues – David Fulmer
Check it out! Atlanta, 1923: In the midst of Prohibition, the city is seething with corruption, bootlegging, narcotics, gambling, and counterfeiting scams. This would seem the perfect scenario for Joe “Indian Joe” Rose to drift into town, as he does … Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Historical Fiction, Jazz & Blues
Tagged blues, crime fiction, jazz
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