Underrated Reads

The Big Clock – Kenneth Fearing (Introduction by Nicholas Christopher)

Posted on September 7, 2012 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by J.D. Jung) Everyone adjusts their life to the big clock; sometimes it races forward, sometimes it moves backward. It impersonally reaches for some, and forgets others. George Stroud is one who it reaches for, but fortunately misses. Stroud, a married father, works for Crimeways, part of the publishing conglomerate, Janoth Enterprises. He speaks of the…

Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Lost and almost forgotten, Reviewers' Top Picks | Tagged 1940, book reviews, mystery, noir | 2 Comments

A Vicky Hill Exclusive! – Hannah Dennison

Posted on August 30, 2012 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by J.D. Jung) Buy it! Imagine that a young journalist is stuck in a small town working for a small newspaper, but is plagued with a huge imagination and a tendency to stumble into even bigger predicaments. You say you’ve read it before? Don’t answer so quickly. Let me continue… Young journalist Vicky Hill…

Posted in Modern Literary Fiction | Comments Off

Oscar Wilde and the Vatican Murders – Gyles Brandreth

Posted on August 10, 2012 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by J.D. Jung) What happens when the self-indulgent, romantic poet Oscar Wilde joins the reserved and pragmatic Arthur Conan Doyle to solve a mystery at the Vatican? You get Oscar Wilde and the Vatican Murders, a fun read featuring two brilliant literary minds . In 1892 Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of the Sherlock Holmes…

Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Modern Literary Fiction | 2 Comments

Through These Veins – Anne Marie Ruff

Posted on July 31, 2012 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by J.D. Jung) Imagine that a cure for AIDS is well within our reach but research is halted and discoveries kept from the public because it may not be lucrative enough. Author Anne Marie Ruff explores this premise as well as the exploitation of natural resources in underdeveloped countries in her mesmerizing debut novel…

Posted in Culture, Modern Literary Fiction, World Issues | Tagged book reviews, HIV | 1 Comment

A Conversation With Denise Hamilton

Posted on July 6, 2012 by J D Jung

Crime novelist Denise Hamilton's latest novel, Damage Control, is an exciting thriller featuring Maggie Silver, a "crisis manager" in a prominent PR firm. I spoke with Denise about the book, inspiration and her career. JDJ - With a background in journalism, what prompted you to write crime novels? DH - As a journalist for the LA Times, I…

Posted in Conversations | Comments Off

What You See in the Dark – Manuel Muñoz

Posted on July 2, 2012 by J D Jung

(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 woman like that. All those lonely hours. All the things people do to try to…

Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Historical Fiction, Modern Literary Fiction | Tagged noir | Comments Off

Elevating Overman: a novel – Bruce Ferber

Posted on June 21, 2012 by J D Jung

(Reviewed by Don Jung) *Buy it!* Veteran sitcom writer Bruce Ferber is switching gears with his debut novel, Elevating Overman. This clever, off- beat, kooky story centers around a 55-year-old loser who is experiencing a mid-life crisis. He realizes the wrongs of his past and tries to make amends for his shortcomings. Ira Overman quits…

Posted in Humor & Satire | Comments Off

Damage Control – Denise Hamilton

Posted on June 13, 2012 by J D Jung

Reviewed by JD Jung Buy It! “Does the past ever really go away?...Or does it remain inside us, hidden under calluses of age and experiences but still affecting everything we do the rest of our lives?” Thirty-two-year-old Maggie Silver works tirelessly for the Blair Company, a prominent Los Angeles PR firm, specializing in “crisis management”.…

Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers | 4 Comments

3 to Kill – Jean-Patrick Manchette(Translated by Donald Nicholson-Smith)

Posted on May 27, 2012 by J D Jung

Reviewed by JD Jung Acheter ce livre! Shit happens. OK, that’s probably an understatement as it relates to Georges Gerfaut. Then again, maybe not. Gerfaut, a rather ordinary 30-something businessman, discovers how twisted life can get in the late Jean-Patrick Manchette quickie thriller, 3 to Kill. It all begins—well, not really, "… what used to…

Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, French Literature, Lost and almost forgotten, World Literature | Tagged French literature, noir | Comments Off

Berlin Noir: March Violets; The Pale Criminal; A German Requiem – Philip Kerr

Posted on May 14, 2012 by J D Jung

reviewed by Lillian Thurston Buy It! Did you ever wonder what it was like to live in Berlin during the reign of the Nazis? If you weren’t a Nazi, how did you survive? Berlin Noir, a trilogy by British author Phillip Kerr is a must-read for history buffs and anyone who loves a great, well-written…

Posted in Crime, Mystery and Thrillers, Reviewers' Top Picks | Tagged noir | Comments Off