Comments on: Dipping my toe in the mystery novel waters

By: Jenny @ Reading the End

Jenny @ Reading the End — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 20:36:00 +0000

Hey! That’s exactly what they decided upon in The Secret History. (Not a spoiler! They tell you right off the bat.) It does seem like sound advice, really.

How would I commit a murder. I don’t know! Everything seems so easily traceable back to me! I think in this matter I am better off living a life of virtue. :p (There’s nobody I want dead and I’m a pacifist anyway, but I recognize that’s not germane to the question.)

By: helen from a gallimaufry

helen from a gallimaufry — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 11:51:00 +0000

Now I can’t remember if it was Ruth Rendell or P.D. James, but one of them said that the way to commit the perfect murder was to take the victim for a clifftop walk, check nobody was looking and push them over. The police might suspect you, but if you insisted that the victim just fell over the cliff, they wouldn’t be able to prove anything.

Of course, there IS plenty of room for error there, even if you have a cliff handy.

How would you commit a murder?

By: Memory

Memory — Fri, 28 Aug 2015 03:39:00 +0000

Would you believe I’ve never, ever tried to plan a murder? I can hardly believe this about myself, seeing as how I love crime fiction, I watch a lot of murder shows, and assassins show up in damned near everything I love, but it’s true.

Except today I was wondering whether I’m too old to become a sharpshooter. I want to become a sharpshooter more as a trick shot type of deal, though. I wouldn’t use the skill to kill anyone.

Then again, that’s what someone who was planning a murder would say…

By: Charlotte

Charlotte — Fri, 28 Aug 2015 01:27:00 +0000

I think I will get the Deborah Crombie one for my mother’ Christmas present! Thanks!

By: Lisa May

Lisa May — Fri, 28 Aug 2015 00:31:00 +0000

In reply to Lisa May. Oh, and I forgot to say that since the Crombie books are mostly police procedurals, there isn't usually a huge pool of suspects. But there is sometimes a twinge of a supernatural element, if that sways you either way.

By: Lisa May

Lisa May — Fri, 28 Aug 2015 00:29:00 +0000

In reply to Jenny @ Reading the End.

There was briefly an option to comment as a guest, but it disappeared again. I can’t figure out why my Google ID won’t work – but I’m happy the Twitter one will.

I feel like a Franzen-mocker-wannabe 🙂 I’ve only read his stuff in the New Yorker.

By: The Literary Omnivore

The Literary Omnivore — Thu, 27 Aug 2015 23:35:00 +0000

Where’s the line between mystery and thriller for you? I find it’s a little different for everyone, but that may be just because I can be a bit of an action junkie.

Something something Hannibal is my answer to your query. 🙂

By: Jenny @ Reading the End

Jenny @ Reading the End — Thu, 27 Aug 2015 13:02:00 +0000

In reply to Lisa May.

Oh phew! I was fretting so much about you not being able to comment, and nothing I tried seemed to be making any difference (argh).

Ahahaha, yeah, it seems like JFranz is going to be all over the place in Texas. Well, two places. I was in Austin two weeks ago and saw the signs at an indie bookstore for his event there. Proooobbbbably going to give it a miss. I don’t truly want Franzen to know I’m making fun of him. It’s more fun from afar.

By: Jenny @ Reading the End

Jenny @ Reading the End — Thu, 27 Aug 2015 13:02:00 +0000

In reply to Tasha B. (heidenkind). Hahaha, that's awesome! Where did you read that?

By: Jenny @ Reading the End

Jenny @ Reading the End — Thu, 27 Aug 2015 13:00:00 +0000

In reply to anna. Anna. I love you, but that is a crazy plan. Your victim would have to be sufficiently uninterested in plants not to know the difference between water hemlock and wild parsley, sufficiently trusting to believe you without further information, and sufficiently possessed of a pioneer spirit to eat parsley that was growing on their lawn instead of parsley that they got from the nice sterile grocery store. And I think that's a very, very small overlap on the Venn Diagram. IF ANY.