Looking for some great mystery reads? Janet Rudolph has a running list of "Halloween Crime Fiction" over at the Mystery Fanfare blog (look for the latest edition soon), and CBC offers up "13 spine-tingling Canadian reads to check out for Halloween."
This year's virtual Bloody Scotland conference is in the record books, but you still have a chance to join in the fun. Most of the panels and interviews, which streamed live from September 18-20, are available on YouTube until October 30.
Publishers Weekly is already out with its "best books of 2020" list, including those in the Mystery/Thriller category. The titles include And Now She’s Gone by Rachel Howzell Hall, Black Sun Rising by Matthew Carr, The Cabinets of Barnaby Mayne by Elsa Hart, and ten others. You can check out the full listing here.
The annual Dead Good Books Reader Awards is on hiatus this year, but they asked readers to pick the 100 best crime and thriller books ever. From iconic classic mysteries to contemporary bestsellers, from Golden Age classics to modern detective novels and game-changing psychological thrillers, the list covers the gamut.
Meanwhile, the Goodreads Choice Awards are open for voting. The first round of the 12th annual Awards, which are decided by readers, runs now through November 8. Check out the 15 titles in the Best Mystery/Thriller category here and cast your vote for your favorite.
Suspense Magazine is also soliciting readers' favorite crime fiction books of the year as they begin the process of building the December "Best of" issue. Over the next two weeks, they'll be seeking readers to send a list of favorites for 2020 in various categories including Cozy, Thriller/Suspense, Debut Author, Romantic Suspense, Horror, Urban Fantasy/Paranormal, Historical Fiction, Anthology, YA/Teen, and True Crime. Votes should be returned to [email protected] by November 15th.
Congratulations to Mystery Lovers Bookshop in Oakmont, Pennsylvania, which is celebrating its 30th birthday this Saturday. The store noted that "This year has been trying for everyone, including retailers. When we temporarily closed our doors in March we did not know what would happen. However, with you all by our side, we have been able to reopen. We plan to be here another 30 years and continue to be a destination for book lovers." As part of the celebration, the store is hosting a Zoom event tonight at 7:30 with Richard Goldman, who founded the store with his late wife, Mary Alice Gorman. (Tara Goldberg-DeLeo and Kristy Bodnar bought the store in 2018). Register for the free event here. (HT to Shelf Awareness)
NPR's Scott Simon spoke with historian Elizabeth Bradley about the 200th anniversary of the publication of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," featuring Washington Irving's iconic headless horseman and Ichabod Crane.
Mysteryrat's Maze Podcast from King's River Life Magazine has a bonus episode up just for Halloween. The mystery short story with a supernatural twist, titled "The Takeover," is written by Kaye George and read by actor Ariel Linn.
Kings River Life Magazine also has some free seasonal stories for you, including "The Caldera: A Halloween Ghost Story," by Margaret Mendel and "Liver Man: A Halloween Mystery Short Story" by Ang Pompano, as well as reviews of a few other mystery titles.
Tales from a Moonlit Path's Halloween issue also has some spooky stories to keep you up at night.
The Mystery Lovers Kitchen authors are back with some Halloween suggestions, including Cleo Coyle's Virgin Candy Appletini; Krista Davis's "Spooky Fun with Fruit"; Maddie Day's "Soul Cakes"; Mary Jane Maffini's Homemade Pumpkin Peanut Butter Dog Biscuits; Daryl Wood Gerber's Halloween Ghost Cupcakes; Leslie Budewitz's Puff Pastry Rattlers; and Leslie Karst's Sauteed Pumpkin with Garlic and Mint.
The Rap Sheet blog has a listing of many of the crime fiction books being released from publishers this fall through December, in both the U.S. and the UK., which means (as editor Jeff Pierce notes in his apt headline) that if you're "Trapped Inside with Books? No Problem!"
Have you somehow never read any Agatha Christie novels or just don't know where to start? The New York Times has an overview with a promise that "whether you want to be scared, shocked or stumped, we will help you pick your poison."
Radio Dramas were king of the airwaves prior to the advent of television and CrimeReads offers up some good suggestions for the Halloween season that you find through streaming apps or on YouTube.
Inspired by The Great British Baking Show, Book Riot's Annika Barranti Klein noted that horror baking books are actually a thing, and she rounded up eighteen horror-themed baking books just in time for Halloween.
Just because the coronavirus pandemic is keeping you home this year doesn't mean you can't have a little Halloween spirit with some "Bookish Halloween Shirts."
The latest crime poem at the 5-2 Weekly is "What Do You Know About Love?" by Stephen J. Golds.
In the Q&A roundup, Jeffery Deaver spoke with The Guardian about the influence of Ian Fleming, learning from Saul Bellow, and crying over Annie Proulx; the Los Angeles Times interviewed Rachel Howzell Hall and Attica Locke about how crime writers of color reconcile their fictional good cops with reality (subscription required); and Deborah Kahl chatted with Nicci French (the pen name for the wife-and-husband writing team of journalists Nicci Gerrard and Sean French) about their new novel, House of Correction.
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