WHO’S A NIMROD? by Deborah Elliott-Upton Nimrod – n. a skillful or enthusiastic hunter —Encarta Dictionary Many of grew up believing being referred to as a “nimrod” was an insult. And yes, it probably was in grade school. By middle school years, we may have wised-up and found the correct definition while we were also […]

A DOCTOR IN THE HOUSE by Rob Lopresti For the past two weeks I have been celebrating things in this space. I hope you will indulge me if I extend the streak, even though this one has little to do with mysteries or fiction. I would argue that it is, in a certain way, about […]

THE QUICK READER by Melodie Johnson Howe I discovered in my library a very small paperback book called a Quick Reader titled Time Out for Murder. I can’t remember where I bought it. Inside are four mystery short stories, each preceded by a great illustration. From the photograph you can see how small the Quick […]

THE SCRITIC by James Lincoln Warren Not for the first time, we Criminal Briefers have a hat trick on our hands: no fewer than three of us have stories in the current issues of magazines (four if you count John and Woman’s World and his ongoing book tour for his collection, Clockwork—and can Deborah be […]

MLIA by Leigh Lundin Like Rob, my CB odometer rolled over to 200 today. Amazing when you think how many novels these words could fill, but even more amazing is the knowledge we might touch hearts and minds. In reality, James has written the most columns because he often wrote two articles a week and […]

COEN CRAZY by John M. Floyd As I grow older, I tend to gravitate toward certain authors I know I like. I still experiment now and then, and that’s a good thing: otherwise, I might never have discovered Marcus Sakey, Joe Lansdale, Harlan Coben, Steve Hamilton, and other fantastic writers whose books I tried without […]

ELEMENTARY by Steven Steinbock Last week I made a passing reference in my column to a newsletter that I wrote and edited for the last dozen years. The newsletter was called “The Vorpal Blade.” The name came to me from Lewis Carroll’s poem Jabberwocky via the indirect route of Fredric Brown’s delightful thriller Night of […]