The Hungry Detective

I plowed through Deathly Hollows last week. I actually finished late Tuesday/Early Wednesday morning. This book has played a large part in my absence from the blog. My super short review is that it is a fine finish for this series. I found the preceding books since Goblet of Fire to be a disappointment (Half Blood Prince) and a down right bore (Order of the Phoenix... didn't like the movie either). One could argue that Goblet deserved its epic length, but can anyone really say that about Phoenix or Half Blood? Deathly Hollows is not without problems as well. The middle third of the book veers from plot-less to naked exposition, but the last three hundred pages really close this book in exciting and dramatic fashion. The body count is high and capricious, but what are you going to do? I would like to say the Offices of THD are brimming with activity, but they are not. There is also a retreat to Seattle, Washington that most THD staffers are required to attend so additions to the blo...

Confessions is reporting the imminent closure of another NYC based Mystery book shop, Black Orchid . Oh cruel hoax? Sadly, no as the confirmation comes from the crime seller's mouth . I only had the opportunity to visit this lovely store on a couple of occasions. Much to my regret I never purchased a book from the store. Black Orchid remains open until September. Good Luck and Good Bye

The second edition Thillerfest was this weekend in that up and coming Gigapolis NYC. Confessions has already gathered many reports . Awards? Yep. Full list of winners is here . I did want to mention that Nick Stone was the winner of the Best First Novel, Mr Clarinet. We think we may have mentioned this book a few months ago . So Mr. Stone, congratulations..... and your welcome.

Trailer! Not how I imagined Kenzie or Gennaro, but I am still very excited.

Although widely reported elsewhere, THD is posting the winners of this prestigious UK crime fiction organization. We think it is important for THD to remain active, by duplicating work other's have done. Duncan Lawrie Dagger Peter Temple - The Broken Shore Duncan Lawrie International Dagger Fred Vargas - Wash This Blood From My Hands The CWA Ian Flemming Steel Dagger + The CWA New Blood Dagger Gillian Flynn - Sharp Objects The CWA Dagger in the Library Stuart MacBride The Debut Dagger (unpublished work) Alan Bradley - The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie The staff of The Hungry Detective extends our congratulations to all the winners.

I know it seem like all we do here at THD is buy books. Question one should be where are all those freebies from book publishers? Our response is from your lips to their ears. THD is not above corruption from our favorite crime fiction publishers. Currently THD has no close associations with those who also buy novels of the kind that enthrall us. However, we know of people who buy a ton more than we do here at The Hungry Detective. It really is all about moderation. I would have to guess that a fair portion of the books we buy fall firmly into the overstock category, and cost us no more than $5.99. Pseudo-diatribe aside there are four(4) new acquisitions. A Journeyman to Grief - Maureen Jennings Long time readings of THD know how much we enjoy these books. This really was a no brainer purchase on a recent visit to Toronto. Dead of Night - Randy Wayne White THD has read the first two books in this long running series, but has not read any since. An in-house policy of only reading book...

Lifeless - Mark Billingham Mark's books have always been pretty good reads. I am having trouble deciding if Tom Thorne is the London Harry Bosch or if Harry Bosch is the Los Angeles Tom Thorne. There is precedent in Connelly's case, but I think I have enjoyed Billingham's last few more than Connelly's. The fifth in this series covers the homeless, the first Gulf War and the darkness that lurks in the heart of all good men. The downward spiral that started at the tail end of The Burning Girl continues for our weary hero. Confined to a desk Thorne asks to go undercover to discovery who is kick London's homeless people to death. As usual Billingham does wonderful job of communicating Thorne's despair over his current state. It is a dark world out there and it only seems to be getting darker. I don't want this to sound like a negative, but Lifeless worked better as social commentary then as a crime novel. The who-done-it, and even the why-done-it, take back s...