Reviews
Black Cat Mystery Magazine Issue #1 – The BOLO Books Review
With just this first issue, Black Cat Mystery Magazine has laid a solid claim as the newest location for quality short crime fiction. Featuring both new and reprint stories, John Gregory Betancourt and Carla Coupe have opened their arms to embrace the short story...
The Hangman’s Sonnet – The BOLO Books Review
Robert B. Parker’s The Hangman’s Sonnet is the fourth book in the Jesse Stone series that Reed Farrel Coleman has written. If there was any doubt that Coleman has managed to pay homage to the legacy of Robert B. Parker while also stamping the series continuation with...
Genuine Fraud – The BOLO Books Review
A reverse bildungsroman may seem like a bit of an oxymoron, but that is exactly what e. lockhart gifts to readers with her new young adult novel, Genuine Fraud. By manipulating this predominately Victorian art form, lockhart tells a fascinating tale peppered with...
Bluebird, Bluebird – The BOLO Books Review
Like the legacy bestowed by the Texas Blues music forming its backbone, the tragedy at the core of Attica Locke’s Bluebird, Bluebird is worthy of no less than Shakespeare himself. Told in lyrical prose at an unremitting yet leisurely pace, this novel marks the...
Idyll Fears – The BOLO Books Review
Idyll Fears is the new novel from Stephanie Gayle and it returns readers to the domain of Police Chief Thomas Lynch. That world – Idyll, Connecticut circa 1997 – is the perfect setting to explore the topics at the heart of Stephanie Gayle’s series. When last readers...
The Deuce – A BOLO Books Television Review
The pilot episode of The Deuce, the new HBO drama from David Simon and George Pelecanos, is currently streaming on the premium network’s digital service. As you probably already know, this series is a look at the gritty world of prostitution and pornography within...
Fierce Kingdom – The BOLO Books Review
Gin Phillips’ Fierce Kingdom manages to succeed as both a thriller and a mediation on motherhood – not an easy task by any stretch of the imagination. Fierce Kingdom is a slim volume in terms of page count, but certainly not when it comes to understanding the maternal...
Blessed are the Peacemakers – The BOLO Books Review
Over the course of four novels, Kristi Belcamino has put Gabriella Giovanni through the wringer. Having faced off against a serial killer, dealt with her boyfriend being accused of murder, suffered through a heart-breaking miscarriage, and later the kidnapping of her...
Did You See Melody? – The BOLO Books Review
Motherhood has been a recurring theme in Sophie Hannah’s crime fiction oeuvre from the very beginning. In novels like Little Face, The Cradle in the Grave, The Orphan Choir and A Game For All the Family, among others, Sophie Hannah has dissected the various...
The Quiet Child – The BOLO Books Review
There is only one word to describe the reader's state of mind upon completing John Burley’s The Quiet Child: melancholia. While it is definitely crime fiction, it is quite unlike most books within this genre. Told in a style where thoughts, memories, and predictions...
The Last Place You Look – The BOLO Books Review
One of the surprise hits of the literary season has been Kristen Lepionka’s The Last Place You Look. A surprise, not because it isn’t worthy – it most certainly is – but because the industry can never predict which debut novels will prove to be breakouts. In the case...
Emma in the Night – The BOLO Books Review
Last year, Wendy Walker entered the crime fiction arena with her powerful novel, All Is Not Forgotten – a twisted tale full of flawed characters and a morally ambiguous plot. Due to its success, anticipation for her follow-up has been high. While not as unique as that...
Glass Houses – The BOLO Books Review
One of the pitfalls of writing a crime fiction series is the tendency to get stuck in a rut, re-writing the same book over and over again in an effort to please loyal fans of the series. Ironically, this is exactly the thing that will cause readers to drift from a...
Afterlife – The BOLO Books Review
A high-concept science fiction stand-alone seems like a rare thing; examples that also combine a multitude of other genres might as well be referred to as a unicorn. Fortunately for readers, Marcus Sakey has given us just that with his new novel, Afterlife. In the...
City of Saviors – The BOLO Books Review
City of Saviors is the fourth book in Rachel Howzell Hall’s critically-acclaimed Elouise “Lou” Norton series. Readers who have followed Lou from her debut in Land of Shadows to Skies of Ash and then through Trail of Echoes will need no further impetus to crack the...
Hollywood Homicide – The BOLO Books Review
Fudge! Hollywood Homicide by Kellye Garrett ends way too quickly. Taking into account the quality of her writing, her flair for the dramatic, and that killer sense of humor, Kellye Garrett could easily be the secret lovechild of Shonda Rhimes and Tyler Perry, but rest...
Down a Dark Road – The BOLO Books Review
Once a reader latches on to a series, they typically remain loyal to both that series and its author. Essentially, this means journeying with a series through the highs and the lows – often beyond the point where everyone involved knows that perhaps it is time for the...
Blame – The BOLO Books Review
Not only is Jeff Abbott’s Blame the most additive thriller of the summer, it also happens to be an astute study of the corrosive nature of blame and the destructive power of its sibling emotion, guilt. Blame is perfect for fans of domestic suspense. It tells the story...
Last Breath – A BOLO Books Short Story Review
In addition to being a very good short story on its own, Karin Slaughter’s Last Breath also happens to be the perfect introduction to the author’s upcoming novel, The Good Daughter. Last Breath familiarizes readers with Charlotte “Charlie” Quinn, a young lawyer...
Black Widow – A BOLO Books “Cold Case” Review
From the Booking Desk: Calling a book that is only a year old a "cold case" may seem odd, but since I typically post reviews before a book is release, for BOLO Books this is a review of an older book. Christopher Brookmyre will be the International Guest of Honor at...