Legal Mysteries II: Mystery Readers Journal

Mystery Readers Journal: Legal Mysteries II (Volume 28:3) is just out. This terrific issue is a companion to the previous issue, Legal Mysteries I (Volume 28:2). Both are available as hardcopy or PDF, or as part of a subscription to Mystery Readers Journal.

MYSTERY READERS JOURNAL: LEGAL MYSTERIES II 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ARTICLES

• Setting Literary Precedents by Jeffrey Marks
• So, You've Been Sued? by Harley L. Sachs
• "The Batignolle Murder"—The Best Detective Story Ever Written? by Nina Cooper

AUTHOR! AUTHOR!

• Learning the Ropes in Court by Rosemary Aubert
• Law Practice: The Dream and the Reality by Donald J. Bingle
• I Didn't Know I Was Writing a Thriller by Jay Brandon
• Law and Fiction—Getting the Facts Straight by Leslie Budewitz
• Legal Writing: Fiction Versus Footnotes by Alafair Burke
• Author, Attorney, Advocate by Teresa Burrell
• Gazing Into the Abyss by Pamela Callow
• When Life Hands You Lemons, Make Martinis—With a Twist! by Diane Capri
• Courtroom Mysteries—Justice the Way It Ought To Be by Lauren Carr
• The Law in Law and Order by J. Madison Davis
• Heroes Need Not Apply by Douglas Corleone
• Three Pillars of Legal Thriller/Mystery Writing by John Dobbyn
• Weeds, Books, and Scott Turow by Robert Dugoni
• Tilting the Scales by Joel Goldman
• The Fine Print by W.S. Gager
• Every Case Is a Story by Paul Goldstein
• Sharing the Life of an Everyday Lawyer by Tony Dunbar
• Divorce Can Be Deadly by Susan Goldstein
• Suspense, Transgression and Murder by Sylvie Granotier
• Thunderstruck by Chuck Greaves
• The Case of the Innocent Woman by Parnell Hall
• The First Thing We Do, Let's Kill All the Lawyers by Judith K. Ivie
• Lawless by Linda O. Johnston
• Law and the Puritan by M.E. Kemp
• How Jo Peters Became an Assistant District Attorney by Gay Toltl Kinman
• My Life In Crime by Robert Knightly
• The Joys of Grave Digging by Michael A. Kahn
• Naked Confessions by Margaret Maron
• The Osgoode Trilogy by Mary E. Martin
• Ring in the New... and Ring in the Old by Lia Matera
• The Law of Characterization by Andrew McAleer
• Courtroom Theater by Margaret McLean
• Attorney of Record by D.R. Meredith
• Part of the Solution by Penny Mickelbury
• Retro Is the New New Thing by Julie Smith
• Why People Still Love Courtroom Drama by Sheldon Siegel
• The Long Winding Road to the Times by Larry D. Thompson
• A Taos Festival by Mari Ulmer
• Digging Up Dead Lawyers by E.J. Wagner
• Turning Immigration Law into Mystery Drama by Jonathan Worlde

COLUMNS

• In Short: It's Legal by Marvin Lachman
• Tragedy at Law: The Greatest British Legal Mystery by Philip L. Scowcroft
• Crime Scene: TV Series On Trial by Kate Derie
• From the Editor's Desk by Janet Rudolph

ELECTION DAY

Partners in Crime: Cynthia St. Pierre

Today I welcome Cynthia St. Pierre. Cynthia co-wrote A Purse to Die For (Imajin Books) with Melodie Campbell. Love this addition to the Partners in Crime series here on Mystery Fanfare.

Cynthia St-Pierre wrote promotional, packaging and communications materials; penned articles for business periodicals; and a chapter of How to Successfully Do Business in Canada. Currently a member of Crime Writers of Canada, she has one award for fiction and has been a writing contest judge. Cynthia has received a York Regional Police Citizens Awareness Program certificate, presented and signed by Julian Fantino, former Commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police. 

Melodie Campbell has over 200 publications, including 30 short stories and 100 humor columns. Her first novel, Rowena Through the Wall went No. 2 on Amazon.ca fantasy, futuristic in August 2011. A Purse to Die for is her second novel. Her third novel, The Godddaughter is published by Orca books. Melodie was a finalist for the 2012 Derringer Award and Arthur Ellis Awards  and is the General Manager of Crime Writers of Canada.

CYNTHIA ST-PIERRE:
How I Met My Partner in Crime 

It started out innocently. At Bloody Words, Canada’s national mystery conference, Toronto, 2006.

I had just come out of a 15 min. interview with an agent so I was feeling a little shaky from the adrenalin. The lobby of the conference floor of the Toronto Marriott Downtown Eaton Centre Hotel was practically empty. Most attendees, fondly dubbed The Usual Suspects, were behind the closed doors of the various conference rooms learning about predators and violent crime from a forensic psychiatrist, or attending other sessions with titles like “Whistling Past the Graveyard”.

But in the shadows of an escalator stood one woman. She looked just about as antsy as me. I walked over and introduced myself. “Hi. My name’s Cynthia.” I wondered if she’d just come out of an interview or was just going in.

Melodie had an appointment in about 10 min. Agents aren’t scary. Really.

I wished my new friend good luck. We chatted a little more—all about calming our nerves—then arranged to meet at the Saturday night banquet.

As it turns out, after dessert was served that night, Melodie was awarded 3rd prize in the Bony Pete Short Story Contest for "School for Burglars". A feat which required not luck but skill. Everyone at the table, including me, was thrilled for her. We eagerly exchanged e-mails. We had to read that winning story!

 “School for Burglars” is a fabulous tale of course. Over the years, Melodie and I exchanged more stories. We offered each other writer support and input. Then we met again at Bloody Words 2008. The year my story “A Terror in Judgement” won 2nd prize. Melodie was sweet when I cried.

Melodie and I were on to something here. Not only do we enjoy each other’s company, each other’s writing, we have similar styles. Why not write a mystery novel together, I wondered? Novel writing is an arduous task, I kid you not. Not so arduous à deux.

A Purse to Die For was born!

So how do two writers succeed in writing a book together?

Melodie has said, “It’s really so simple: we set out to have some fun writing.” She adds, “We set out to surprise each other. I’d write a scene and then Cindy would take over and write the next scene. I wouldn’t necessarily know where she was going with it, so it was always a delight to get the next chapter.”

I say it was like reading and writing at the same time. It couldn’t have been more exciting!

Many authors claim they wouldn’t be able to write a mystery with another writer. Real murder might ensue. I admit I wasn’t a fan of group projects in school. Back then, it always seemed hard to reach a meeting of the minds, let alone divide the task evenly between an arbitrary group of students. But as I’ve described, Melodie and I became friends before attempting a collaboration. Plus we’re much older and wiser now. Ahem.

One day for fun, you’ll have to ask Mel her version of this story of how we became writing partners. No two witnesses have the exact same account of a crime.

A PURSE TO DIE FOR is available online from Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Why not drop by chock-full-of-recipes vegetariandetective.blogspot.com, written in the voice of character Becki Green? Follow Cynthia on twitter.com/stpierrecynthia. And find out more about Melodie and Cynthia and their joint writing projects on fashionationwithmystery.com. 

Like Chocolate? Check out Cynthia's post on DyingforChocolate.com for Chocolate Hazelnut French Toast 

Knife Holder

I love the FAB website and their daily website with all their unique items. Here's the Ex Knife in Chrome by Raffaele Ianello. This unique knife holder includes a chef's knife, bread knife, carver, utility knife and paring knife. Perfect for the Chef or Mystery Fan or Writer!

HAIL TO THE CHIEF: Presidential Crime Fiction

I usually post this list for Presidents Day in February, but with the upcoming Presidential election, I thought you might want to read a few of these over the weekend. This is an updated list that features the U.S. President in mysteries, thrillers and crime fiction. This is not a definitive list, and I welcome any additions. I've divided the list into categories.

Political Election and Thrillers
Rubicon by Lawrence Alexander
Saving Faith by David Baldacci
Political Suicide and Touched by the Dead by Robert Barnard
Capitol Conspiracy by William Bernhardt
Collateral Damage by Michael Bowen
Three Shirt Deal by Stephen J. Cannell
Impaired Judgement by David Compton
Manchurian Candidate by Richard Condon
Term Limits by Vince Flynn
The Scandal Plan by Bill Folman
The Power Broker by Stephen W. Frey
Spook Country by William Gibson
Fast Track, Sleeping Dogs by Ed Gorman
The Fourth Perimeter by Tim Green
The People's Choice by Jeff Greenfield
The Pelican Brief by John Grisham
The President's Daughter and The White House Connection by Jack Higgins
The Enemy Within  by Noel Hynd
First Daughter by Eric Lustbader
Executive Privilege by Philip Margolin
The Race, Protect and Defend, Balance of Power by Richard North Patterson
Politics Noir: Gary Phillips, Editor
Missing Member by Jo-Ann Power
Dark Horse by Ralph Reed
Dead Heat, The Last Jihad by Joel C. Rosenberg
Dead Watch by John Sandford
State of the Union by Brad Thor
Capital Crimes by Stuart Woods

Assassination Attempts
American Quartet by Warren AdlerSherlock Holmes in Dallas by Edmund Aubrey
Primary Target by Max Allan Collins
Campaign Train (Murder Rides the Campaign Train) by The Gordons
Glass Tiger by Joe Gores
The President's Assassin by Brian Haig
Murder at Monticello by Jane Langton
The Surrogate Assassin by Christopher Leppek
Gideon's March by J.J. Marric
The Kidnapping of the President by Charles Templeton
Pursuit by James Stewart Thayer
Primary Target by Marilyn Wallace
Watchdogs by John Weisman

Kidnappings
We are Holding the President Hostage by Warren Adler
The Camel Club by David Baldacci
Line of Succession by Brian Garfield
Madam President by Anne Holt
Oath of Office by Steven J. Kirsch
The Kidnapping of the President by Charles Templeton

Presidential Disappearances
Missing! by Michael Avallone
The President's Plan is Missing by Robert J. Serling
The President Vanishes by Rex Stout

Fixing the Election
The Manchurian Candidate by Richard Condon
The 13th Directorate by Barry Chubin
Atropos by William DeAndrea
The Red President by Martin Gross
The Ceiling of Hell by Warren Murphy
The Trojan Hearse by Richard S. Prather
 President Fu Manch by Sax Rohmer
The Big Fix by Roger L. Simon

Presidential Crisis
Seven Days in May by Fletcher Knebel and Charles W. Bailey II
Vanished by Fletcher Knebel

The President as Detective
Speak Softly by Lawrence Alexander
Lincoln for the Defense by Warren Bull
Mr President, Private Eye, edited by Martin Greenberg & Francis M. Nevins
Bully by Mark Schorr 

The JFK Plot
Too many to list, but...
Mongoose, RIP by William F. Buckley
Executive Action by Mark Lane, Donald Freed and Stephen Jaffe
The Tears of Autumn by Charles McCarry

Presidential Families
Deadly Aims by Ron L. Gerard
The President's Daughter by Jack Higgins
The Devil's Bed by William Kent Krueger
The First Lady Murders, edited by Nancy Pickard
Murder and the First Lady (and other novels) By Elliot Roosevelt
Murder in the White House (and other novels) by Margaret Truman
They've Shot the President's Daughter by Edward Stewart

Other
Enslaved by Ron Burns
The Plan by Stephen J. Cannell
Killing Time by Caleb Carr
The Impeachment of Abraham Lincoln by Stephen L. Carter
The President's Vampire, Blood Bath by Christopher Farnsworth
The President's Henchman, The Next President by Joseph Flynn
Carter Beats the Devil by Glen David Gold
Julie Hyzy's White House Chef series
The First Patient by Michael Palmer
Treason at Hanford by Scott Parker
Keeping House by Tucker and Richard Phillips
The President's Daugher by Mariah Stewart
Put a Lid on It by Donald Westlake
President Lincoln's Spy by Steven Wilson

An Anthology
Mr President, Private Eye, edited by Martin H. Greenberg. Different historical presidents in the role of sleuth
 

DAY OF THE DEAD MYSTERIES: A LIST

Mystery Readers Journal  had an issue a few years ago on Crime for the Holidays. What holiday could be more fitting to Mystery Fiction than El Dia de los Muertos: Day of the Dead?

Day of the Dead Crime Fiction

The Day of the Dead by John Creed
Days of the Dead by Barbara Hambly
Sugar Skull by Denise Hamilton
Dios De Los Muertos by Kent Harrington
The Wrong Goodbye by Chris Holm
Day of the Dead by J.A. Jance
Weave Her Thread with Bones by Claudia Long
The Day of the Dead by Bart Spicer

Any titles I missed?