Sixty seconds with Jose Latour...
Cuban-born Jose Latour started writing in his spare time, and eventually moved to Spain and then Canada to gain freedom to write. His first crime novel written in English, Outcast, was nominated for an Edgar. His most recent is Comrades in Miami.
RTE: Describe yourself in a sentence?
Latour: A very lucky guy.
RTE: What's the one record you'd take to a desert island?
Latour: Amor, by Andrea Bocelli.
RTE: What did you want to be when you were growing up?
Latour: Locomotive machinist.
Sixty seconds with Brian Freeman...
Sixty seconds with Eileen Dreyer...
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Brain surgeon Allen Wyler has written a thriller on the bleeding edge of new-millennium hospital technology.
When a brain surgeon discovers that a revolutionary computerized medical-records system is responsible for a series of patient deaths---and threatens many more---he must navigate a treacherous maze of conspiracy. And risk his life to expose it.
THIS SPACE FOR RENT. Inquire as to rates
Library Journal has named us as one of the top 8 mystery blogs: The Usual Suspects: Eight Top Mystery Blogs. Reviewing the Evidence
Created in 2001, this mystery review site archives thousands of online reviews, searchable by author, title, reviewer, or keyword. Nice links to authors' web sites.
Thank you, Library Journal
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May 5 2008
I feel like I should be handing round nibbles and drinks, as today is a special day for RTE. I'm handing over the editor's chair for six months to Yvonne Klein while I head off to work on some books of my own.
I shan't be going too far, as I'll still be reviewing for the site and looking after our 'Sixty seconds with . . .' interview column (this week it's Cuban writer Jose Latour, incidentally). And a lot of you will know Yvonne, who's been reviewing for us and looking after the Canadian side of things for the past few years. We're very lucky to have her stepping in.
For those of you who don't know her, she says: "I'm a freelance translator and copy editor and taught English literature for a few too many years. I got turned on to John Dickson Carr as a wee child and never looked back."
Anyway, this week's editorial is a joint effort, so allow me to hand you over to Yvonne who will talk you through the new reviews . . .
This week, historical crime fiction attracted a lot of attention from our reviewers, most of it favourable indeed.
Yvonne Klein suspects that C J Sansom's REVELATION may be the best of the Matthew Shardlake series set in the reign of Henry VIII, while Luke Croll is also enthusiastic about Susanna Gregory's THE BUTCHER OF SMITHFIELD, set only twenty years later but in a far different London.
Still in England, Lincolnshire this time, and a lot earlier, Maureen Ash's DEATH OF A SQUIRE entertained Barbara Franchi and Angel L Soto found the eleventh century Japanese setting of I.J. Parker's ISLAND OF EXILES compelling reading.
Moving briskly to the present, Sharon Wheeler found herself pleasantly surprised by Sebastian Faulks's darkly humorous ENGLEBY, while Nick Hay found Ann Cleeves's WHITE NIGHTS even better than the first in the Shetland series. Denise Pickles found a lot to like about THE EYE OF JADE, Diane Wei Liang, set in modern China.
Of course, we have our share of cosies. J B Thompson found Heather Webber's TROUBLE IN BLOOM lighthearted and engaging, as a cosy should be, while P J Coldren enjoyed the early Amanda Teagarden in A BONE TO PICK by Charlaine Harris, though she notes that Harris has improved over the years.
There's another change this week, and this a sad one: Smokey the Cat, long our mascot and masthead, is no more. He has gone where all good cats go in the fullness of time, but will remain permanently in our hearts and as our masthead.
And as usual, once you've caught up on all the new stuff, there are plenty of books to be won in our weekly free draw.
Sharon
PS: For guidelines on how to submit books for review, please go to the ABOUT section of our site.
Our mascot and masthead is Smokey the Cat. Smokey the cat went to the great playground in the sky on April 29, 2008, at 3:30 p.m. He was about 13 years old, had diabetes and only 11 teeth left. He is much happier now. He will remain as our masthead and mascot.
Recent Reviews:
We have thousands of reviews archived on this site. Use the form below to search by title, author's name, or keyword (e.g., noir, cozy, PI, female, thriller, gay, cats).
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MAY 7, 2008.
This week, we are giving away three copies of each of the following books: CHILD 44 a first novel by Tom Rob Smith; INDEX TO MURDER by Jo Dereske; and THE DEAL by Adam Gittlin (worldwide draw)
In order to enter the draw, just click in the proper place, and your email will be addressed correctly. Just please watch your formatting. I can't promise to be able to decipher the message if it has extraneous material in it and you may miss out on a chance to win. The publishers also require a street address, rather than a PO box. If you leave out your mailing address entirely, you will be disqualified if your name is chosen, since we do not have time to track you down.
PLEASE, do not send in multiple entries. These are weeded out and at some point I will lose patience and eliminate ALL names that appear more than once. So take care.
Keep an eye on the left sidestack where our 'Sixty seconds with...' feature will appear weekly.
Thanks to all who have contributed to our success.
bf
 CHILD 44 by Tom Rob Smith
Book Description
A propulsive, relentless page-turner.A terrifying evocation of a paranoid world where no one can be trusted.A surprising, unexpected story of love and family, of hope and resilience.CHILD 44 is a thriller unlike any you have ever read.
"There is no crime."
Stalin's Soviet Union strives to be a paradise for its workers, providing for all of their needs. One of its fundamental pillars is that its citizens live free from the fear of ordinary crime and criminals.
But in this society, millions do live in fear . . . of the State. Death is a whisper away. The mere suspicion of ideological disloyalty-owning a book from the decadent West, the wrong word at the wrong time-sends millions of innocents into the Gulags or to their executions. Defending the system from its citizens is the MGB, the State Security Force. And no MGB officer is more courageous, conscientious, or idealistic than Leo Demidov.
A war hero with a beautiful wife, Leo lives in relative luxury in Moscow, even providing a decent apartment for his parents. His only ambition has been to serve his country. For this greater good, he has arrested and interrogated.
Then the impossible happens. A different kind of criminal-a murderer-is on the loose, killing at will. At the same time, Leo finds himself demoted and denounced by his enemies, his world turned upside down, and every belief he's ever held shattered. The only way to save his life and the lives of his family is to uncover this criminal. But in a society that is officially paradise, it's a crime against the State to suggest that a murderer-much less a serial killer-is in their midst. Exiled from his home, with only his wife, Raisa, remaining at his side, Leo must confront the vast resources and reach of the MBG to find and stop a criminal that the State won't admit even exists.
Tom Rob Smith graduated from Cambridge in 2001 and lives in London. CHILD 44 is his first novel.
In this drawing we are giving away three copies of CHILD 44. Send an email to competition@reviewingtheevidence.com Please put the words DRAW CHILD 44 as the subject and only your name and mailing address within the e-mail.
 INDEX TO MURDER by Jo Dereske
Book Description
No one could be more orderly or organized than dedicated librarian Helma Zukas. No one could be more rash and raucous than avant-garde artist Ruth Winthrop. Yet the two women are best friends and a resourceful, ingenious, crime-solving team. So when two of Ruth's latest paintings—each depicting an ex-lover who met a very untimely and mysterious end—are stolen, the amazing amateur detectives get to work.
But digging through Ruth's romantic rendezvous turns up more than broken hearts. There's an angry ex-wife, a jealous fellow artist, and a rampaging group of local tree-huggers. There's trouble brewing in Bellehaven . . . and only Helma and Ruth can make certain that mayhem doesn't lead to murder.
In this drawing we are giving away three copies of INDEX TO MURDER. Send an email to competition@reviewingtheevidence.com Please put the words DRAW INDEX TO MURDER as the subject and only your name and mailing address within the e-mail.
 THE DEAL by Adam Gittlin
Book Description
Everything about Jonah Gray screams success movie-star good looks, expensive clothes, a Park Avenue penthouse, and a seven-figure income. A cutthroat, rainmaking New York city commercial real estate broker, Jonah craves opulence and power. He beds models, romps the globe on the weekends and sees the world as his for the taking. Jonah Gray has it all. Or at least he had it all.
When a friend presents Jonah with the deal of a lifetime, Jonah jumps at the chance. All Jonah has to do is act quickly, invest half a billion dollars in prime NY office buildings, and collect a huge payoff.
But this golden opportunity is anything but. Within days of signing on, Jonah is mysteriously thrust into the epicenter of an international and personal scandal.
Forced to explore a whole new territory where he can trust no one, and where danger, death and deception lurk at every corner, Jonah will learn some painfully hard lessons about the quest for easy money.
Closing this deal could mean losing everything.
To enter the drawing for THE DEAL send an email to Send an email to competition@reviewingtheevidence.com Please put the words DRAW THE DEAL as the subject and only your name and mailing address within the e-mail.
If you just can't wait to take a chance on winning a copy and want to order from Amazon, just click on the book cover.
This draw will end at midnight PDT on Tuesday, May 13. The winners and new draw will be posted on Wednesday May 14.
A random number generator will be used to select the winners.
The books will be sent directly from the publicist or the author to the winner. If you have a limited amount of space in your mail box, please be sure to keep it clean so you can be notified if you win. Also, if you are monitoring your mail, some spam filters will not allow me to email you. In that case, you will also not be notified. I reserve the right to disqualify those I cannot contact.
This competition is not open to RTE reviewers or their families.
We will have three new books to give away every week, and perhaps some of you new people would like to read our reviews. We do answer all email, so suggestions and comments are happily received.
The winners of the drawing for a copy of LA OUTLAWS by T Jefferson Parker are: Sharilyn Heller, Madison, NE; Steve Gordon, Lancaster, OH; Marion Pounds, Simi Valley, CA.
The winners of the drawing for a copy of MAHU FIRE by Neil Plakcy are:Donna Hunt, N. Cape May, NJ; Heather Hart, Newburgh, IN; Gary Emes, Fleetwood, PA.
The Winners of the drawing for a copy of THE WHOLE TRUTH by David Baldacci are: Sylvia Porter, Whittier, CA; Catherine Frausto, Pueblo, CO; Kathy Scott, Hailey, ID.
  
Thanks to all who entered.
If you haven't been lucky enough to win a copy of the book in the draw, just click on the cover to purchase from Amazon, or go to your local independent bookseller and buy a copy and help keep the indies alive. If you buy from Amazon, please use the cover or the click through on http://www.reviewingtheevidence.com, as we get a pittance from each sale
All names, e-mail addresses, and mailing addresses of those who entered the previous competitions have been purged from my mailer. The same will be done for this drawing.
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Contact: bf@reviewingtheevidence.com
[ About | Reviews | Reviewers | Search | Submit | Links | Cons | Misc ]
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To honor the 100th Anniversary of the birth of Ian Fleming, Penguin has reissued all 14 James Bond books (12 novels and 2 books of short stories) in trade paperback format. 
    
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you've moved that 60s psychedelic rock poster about eight times and it would be nice to know if it's worth hanging on to. A new site (
The site offers free appraisals of not only rock posters, but also vintage travel, WWI & WWII, circus, vaudeville, concert posters as well. 
Actually, Rudy can answer questions about a wide range of collectibles: old advertising items, political buttons, lunchboxes - just about any collectible except records, comic books or baseball cards (there are excellent price guides recently published for all three of these categories). 
Visit the site and find out what information is needed and why this free service is being offered. And email me with small jpegs and descriptions at 
