Mystery Melange

Book sculpture by Luciana Frigerio

Kelli Stanley and Lisa Brackmann are helping coordinate a "Noir at the Bar" event at the upcoming Left Coast Crime conference. They're taking over the hotel bar Thursday (tomorow) night in a flashmob event they're calling "Occupy: Noir!" Readers include Gary Phillips, Terry Shames, Darrell James, Holly West, Deborah J. Ledford and many more. If you're headed to the LCC, check them out.

The upcoming issue of Clues: A Journal of Detection features papers discussing the works of Irish author Tana French, including a contribution from Edgar nominee Maureen T. Reddy. Journal editor Elizabeth Foxwell also has a new call for papers on the topic of "Re-Evaluating Patricia Highsmith" (guest editor: Fiona Peters, Bath Spa Univerity in the UK). Article proposals are due by May 1.

The finalists for this year’s New Pulp Awards were announced last week. The winner will handed out March 23, during MidSouth Con in Memphis, Tennessee. (Hat tip to the Rap Sheet.)

The Library Journal's annual survey of public libraries in the U.S. found that libraries lent mysteries more than any other kind of book in 2013. Close to 95% of respondents reported it as one of their top five fiction loan choices. Also good to hear: every size library posted circulation gains, with a 2% increase overall.

Speaking of libraries, Forbes posted a slideshow of its choices for the "World's 20 Most Stunning Libraries."

SJ Parris recommended five of her favorite historical murder mysteries, from Josephine Tey to Matthew Pearl, for The Telegraph.

Glenn Harper, over at the International Noir Fiction blog, wrote about the "Swedish Agatha Christie," Maria Lang, the pen name of Dagmar Maria Lange. She may well be the founder of Scandinavian crime fiction (definitely one of the founders), and her works are getting new editions soon.

The featured story at Beat to a Pulp this week is the previously-unpublished "A Professional Job" by Walter Tyrer (1900-1978), a British writer who wrote in a wide variety of genre fiction. This week's crime poem over at the 5-2 is "The New Ireland" by Seamus Scanlon.

The Q&A roundup features the continuation of author Hank Phillippi Ryan's series of interviews with authors, with this week's guest, Kathy Lynn Emerson (Guest of Honor for the upcoming Malice Domestic conference); Chris Pavone chats with The Mystery People about his latest novel, The Accident; and DA Mishani gets grilled by fellow author Declan Burke.