Month: October 2016

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Non-Fiction: Institutions and the Right to Vote in America  by Martha E. Kropf

October 24, 2016 admin 0

There is a phrase I have used many times that is usually met with a shocked expression. It is this: The universal voting franchise was a terrible idea. “You can’t possibly mean that,” is the helpful response from people who evidently know my mind much better than does my mind itself. “That’s elitist!” Well yes, I suppose it is, so what’s your problem? Isn’t everything else we deem as important in (cough) civilized society elitist? […]

Jesus as Superhero?

October 24, 2016 admin 0

A new graphic novel trilogy has as its inspiration a most unusual source: The Bible. From The Guardian: There may be demons, plagues and the all horrors of the apocalypse, but there’s no room for any spandex superheroes in a graphic novel that its publishers are claiming is the longest ever produced. The only superpowers that feature in the 10,000 panels of the Kingstone Bible are wielded in the good fight, as the greatest story […]

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Reacher Is Back to the Big Screen

October 21, 2016 admin 0

The long-awaited second film installment in Lee Childs’ award-winning and bestselling series featuring Jack Reacher hits the big screen today. And the critics are mostly not hating it. From Rolling Stone: Tom Cruise, putting a dimmer on his mega-watt smile, is back busting heads in Jack Reacher: Never Go Back, once again playing the ex-military-cop-turned-road-warrior in defense of the disenfranchised. Critics were snotty four years ago when Cruise first played Reacher, because the 5’7″ actor […]

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This Just In… Ritual  by V.L. Young

October 21, 2016 admin 0

Ritual follows Nikki as she attempts to save her best friend, Alexia, who has been kidnapped by Immortals. Along with her boyfriend, Cole, and werewolf Conrad, they must fight to stop an ancient Ritual from being performed that will unleash new terrors into the world. Will Nikki be able to stop the Ritual, and what will she uncover before time runs out? You can order Ritual here. Visit author V.L. Young on the web here. […]

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Sad Week for Mystery Fiction

October 21, 2016 admin 0

In a sad week for crime fiction, the mystery world lost three prolific and much honored authors: Iowa-based Ed Gorman (The Poker Club, Graves Retreat, Wolf Moon), Tennessee-born Clark Howard (City Blood, Quicksilver, Brothers in Blood) and Seattle resident Larry Karp (Scamming the Birdman, The Ragtime Kid, A Perilous Conception). The Rap Sheet covered these passages with its customary aplomb. Read about Ed Gorman here and Larry Karp and Clark Howard here.

Bob Dylan Wins Nobel Prize

October 13, 2016 admin 0

Folk icon Bob Dylan has been awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in a move that permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy, Sara Danius, said was not “a difficult decision,” she said, comparing the songs of the American songwriter to the works of Homer and Sappho. From The Guardian: For more than six decades he has remained a mythical force in music, his gravelly voice and poetic lyrics musing over war, heartbreak, betrayal, death and […]

Matthew May Soak Girl on the Train

October 5, 2016 admin 0

It’s not like film producers don’t have enough to worry about. Will the script be good? Will the actors and the story draw people to the box office? Will distribution deals be made? And now … hurricanes? From Deadline Hollywood: Should Matthew torment the southeast, it could dent weekend ticket sales by an additional -5%. Currently, the fall box office which is close to $537M is down 9% from the same post-Labor Day through October […]

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Amazon to Make Reviews More Dependable

October 4, 2016 admin 0

Many purchasers of books and other products have come to rely on Amazon reviews to help with their decision making, even if they’re sometimes buying the product elsewhere. But the review system Amazon has created is only as good as the reviews that support it and Amazon is taking steps to ensure they remain respected. From CNET: Amazon reviews may become more trustworthy after the internet retail giant announced Monday that customers will see fewer […]

Sherlock Might Be “End of An Era”

October 4, 2016 admin 0

In a recent interview, Benedict Cumberbatch, the star of the BBC hit series Sherlock gave indications that season four may have been the last. From Deadline Hollywood: “It might be the end of an era,” Cumberbatch told GQ UK in a recent interview. “It feels like the end of an era, to be honest. It goes to a place where it will be pretty hard to follow on immediately. We never say never on the […]