-=> Quoting Fred Runk to All <=-
 FR> I purchased and began to read _The Vintage Book of Classic Crime_,
 FR> edited by Michael Dibdin.  The table of contents reads like a Mystery
 FR> FINISHED: Robert Silverberg, BEYOND THE SAFE ZONE, short story coll.
 FR> CR: Michael Dibden, "Serious Business" in  THE VINTAGE BOOK OF CLASSIC
 FR> CRIME, ed. by Michael Dibdin, 1/432
 FR> CR: Marcel Proust, SWANN'S WAY, 138/462.
 FR> CR: Stephanie Barron, JANE & THE UNPLEASANTNESS AT SCARGRAVE MANOR,
Hello Fred,
Glad to see that someone is making the effort to keep this echo alive. I have
been going flat out with my normal work and some volunteer work this summer &
have only been able to lurk over my favorite echos.
I have been trying to read a bit every night before I go to sleep, and have
been going through a few books this summer. Among the better ones are:
'The Holy Thief' by Ellis Peters.  I'm coming to the end of the Brother
Cadfael series, I think there is one more book in this series, and I have
enjoyed everyone of them. Peters was criticized over the years for not being
historically accurate in some of her depiction of life in the 12th century,
but I guess you'd have to be something of an expert on Medieval England to
really spot the mistakes.  I've never caught Brother C dispensing an aspirin,
or of anybody dying from a burst of automatic weapons fire. I find the books
believable and in character, without getting so caught up in obscure
terminology as to make it a drag to read.  The sub-plot of the war between
King Stephen and his cousin Empress Maude for the crown of England is
particularly fascinating, I want to search out a history of the time to see
how it all turns out.
'Dead Crazy' by Nancy Pickard.  This is a Jenny Cain mystery, and Pickard is
on a bit of a soapbox on mental illness and the current trend of emptying the
'non-violent' inmates out of the asylums and letting them fend for themselves
on the streets of major cities. Her social lobbying doesn't get in the way of
the story and she describes the problem well if she doesn't really come up
with any real solutions.
'Zombies of the Gene Pool' by Sharon McCrumb.  I read her earlier volume
'Bimbos of the Death Sun' the prefaces this book and found it so-so. It was
more on the weird world of SF fans and their conventions, with the mystery as
such taking a distinct second place. 'Gene Pool' is similar with the murder
almost an incidental part of the story about 3/4 of the through the book.
McCrumb does seem to know what she is talking about regarding fandom and SF
fanzines, and as I occasionally stray across the line into that genre I
appreciated the references and background, but I'd not recommend it to any
real mystery fan.
The pop-lit press up here in Canada has been hyping Kathy Reich's first book
'Deja Dead' as being the best thing since Patricia Cornwell.  I haven't read
the book yet, so I'll hold my judgement; but the more a book is hyped, 
sually
the less I like it - the John Grisham syndrome, need I say more?  Has anybody
out there read this book yet and want to offer an opinion?
'Act of Betrayal' by Edna Buchanan.  Another of my current favorite authors.
Her mysteries are set in Miami and I'm really surprised the the Miami Chamber
of Commerce hasn't put out a contract on Buchanan with the Cuban Mafia.She
professes to still love Miami and couldn't think about living elsewhere, but
the steady stream of random and not-so-random violence coupled with the
epidemic social problems sure makes me glad I live elsewhere. I had some
business near Miami a couple of years ago, and the 24 hours I spent there was
the longest month I've ever had.
Another of my current favs: Steve Martini and his series of mysteries
featuring a lawyer named Paul Madriani.  I just finished 'Prime Witness' and
loved it as much as the rest of this series. I've read them out of order, and
that is a mistake with this series as so many of characters are continuing 
nd
have important sub-plots.  I think one of the reasons that I like this series
so much is it reminds me of the Perry Mason mysteries that I grew up reading.
Martini's books have similar surprise endings and great courtroom action.
That's about all I have time and memory for right now.
Bob 8-{)
 
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