Pretty Sinister Books

There is nothing more upsetting than falling for the hype on a book jacket.  The Swan Island Murders (1930) with its striking Art Deco influ...

First mystery novels can be fascinating. What does the writer want to try out as an entry point into the world of the whodunit? Will it be...

THE STORY: Maggy Simon, assistant to newspaper columnist Sebastian Evers, reluctantly agrees to accompany him to a Catksills retreat for h...

THE STORY: Christopher "Kit" Storm has a moderately successful career as a commercial artist in his Manhattan studio. On occasi...

THE STORY: After suffering a disabling injury in Puerto Rico that leaves her left leg crushed from a terrible riding accident Salina ...

Well, I've done it. I've read a cat mystery for the first time in my life. And damned if I didn't enjoy it. It's a strange...

There are few female private detectives in the novels and stories of the 1930s and 1940s. Some made appearances in the pulp magazines alon...

Promises, promises. I try my best to live up to them.  Here's my slightly overdue follow-up to TomCat's review several weeks ago on ...