And detective fiction.
Rex Stout is probably my number one author in this expansive genre. There are many others. KC Constantine. Michael Pearce. Ed McBain. Tony Hillerman. Jim Thompson. Robert Parker. Jerome Charyn. Kinky Friedman. GK Chesterton. And of course Conan Doyle. Christie did nothing for me.
Over the last thirty years I’ve probably moved gently to the edges of detective fiction, enjoying the classic hardboiled as well as the caper, particularly those that did not need gratuitous language or sex to sell their stories.
And Donald Westlake in all his guises has kept me happy and sated, from Dortmunder through to Parker.
There’s a new kid in town, and you must read him. Jeffrey Cohen and his Aaron Tucker series. Brilliant. Unputdownable. Outrageous.
Visit http://www.aarontucker.com/. And prepare to be delighted. If you like mystery and you like caper, and your taste buds run to literature rather than pap.
And he even reads his mail and replies. Thank you Jeffrey. I now have your first two books as well, and am looking forward to a great weekend.
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I think we’re going to meet at a conference in VA this weekend; I hope we’ll get time to talk about detective fiction – a lifelong passion of mine. I have some new authors for you, and I’ll definitely check into Aaron Tucker, directly after posting this comment.