by Jaden Terrell
Joe (J.A.) Konrath has said that short stories are the best advertising in the world for an author's novels. Readers pick them up, like what they read, and decide to try the author's books as well. I've been reading a lot of short stories lately, and while all have been written, edited, or recommended by authors whose books I've already read and enjoyed, I think Konrath is right. (No surprise, since he's the guru of book marketing gurus.)
In the last few weeks, I've read stories from Fox Five by Zoe Sharp, Tough as Leather by Jochem Van der Steen (creator of the Sons of Spade review site), and Shaken: Stories for Japan, edited by Timothy Hallinan. Sharp and Steen have written anthologies featuring the protagonists of their novels, Charlie Fox and Noah Milano, respectively. Fox is a former special forces soldier now working in the private protection business, and Sharp depicts her with a crisp, engaging style that made me want to read more. Milano is a PI struggling to live a good life despite being the son of an infamous crime boss. His past has a way of intruding on his good intentions. There are some disturbing images in Tough as Leather, so it's not for the squeamish, but there are also some touching moments, and Milano is a sympathetic hero. Van der Steen is a Dutch writer, so there are a few awkward phrases, but there are also a lot of very apt descriptions, as when a carpet is described as "a red, fuzzy sory of thing [that] looked like Elmo had been skinned" and some great characterizations. Who wouldn't love a hero who serves his clients' tea in "the good china"--a Power Puff Girls mug and a Garfield mug missing one ear?
The third anthology, Shaken: Stories for Japan, was edited by Hallinan but also has stories by Brett Battles, Cara Black, Debbi Mack, Adrian McKinty, Gary Phillips, C.J. West, I.J. Parker, Dale Furutani, Wendy Hornsby, Vicki Doudera, Dianne Emley, Stefan Hammond, Rosemary Harris, Ken Kuhlken, Hank Phillippi Ryan, Jeffrey Siger, Kelli Stanley, and Naomi Hirahara. All proceeds from Shaken go directly toward earthquake relief in Japan. You couldn't ask for a more impressive group of writers, or for a better cause. And yes, I will seek out some of these authors and read more.
Other anthologies I've read lately are Twisted and More Twisted by Jeffery Deaver, and Killer Year, edited by Lee Child. Deaver, I obviously knew about from reading his novels, but some of the authors in Killer Year were new to me.
For me, it seems that short stories can interest me enough to make me look further, but finding them requires an editor or authors I recognize or a recommendation from someone I trust.
What do you think? Authors, do short stories draw in readers for your novels? Readers, do you find new authors through short stories, and if so, what makes you pick up the short story in the first place?
Showing posts with label Hallinan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hallinan. Show all posts
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Review: The Queen of Patpong
Review by Beth Terrell
A few years ago, I passed a rack of discounted hardback books. One captured my attention. The title, A Nail Through the Heart, was evocative; the cover was attractive; and I had just read a post by the author, Timothy Hallinan, on DorothyL, a newslist for mystery lovers. Wanting to support a fellow DL-er, I picked it up and read a few lines. They were good. Very good. So, I bought it, beginning a long-term love affair with Hallinan's series of beautifully written thrillers set in Bangkok and featuring "rough travel writer" Poke Rafferty. Poke writes travel books for people who want to experience the parts of the world not included on the usual lists of tourist destinations. Some of those parts are a little seedy, a little gritty, and a little dangerous. When he arrives in Bangkok to research a new book, he falls in love with Thailand, the Thai people--and with Rose, a beautiful bar dancer in the red-light district of Patpong. Together, they rescue and adopt Miaow, a street child who struggles to reconcile her love for her adoptive parents with her shame about her roots and about Rose's former profession.
In the fourth book in the series, The Queen of Patpong, as Poke, Rose, and Miaow are dining at a favorite restaurant when Rose "drops her fork with a clatter on top of her cup, which tips over and spreads coffee across the tablecloth." A man approaches the table, someone who knew Rose when she was a dancer. After threatening her and her family, he swaggers away, and Rose tells Poke that the man is someone she thought--and had hoped--she'd killed.
With the help of a menacing partner, the stranger begins a cat-and-mouse game clearly intended to end with Rose's death--and the deaths of her loved ones. Hallinan plays out the plot masterfully, juxtaposing the elements of a tense, modern-day thriller with a sensitive exploration of Rose's past and her transformation from an awkward village girl nicknamed "Stork" to the strong, confident woman she has become.
Much of the book takes place in the past, beginning with Rose's discovery that, although her father has accepted money from her teacher to keep her at home and in school, he has also sold her to someone in the sex trade. She escapes this all-too-common situation with the help of Nana, a former village girl turned bar dancer. Nana also "sells" her, but into a more benevolent system.
Hallinan balances the various elements of this book perfectly. The tension is high throughout. The moral message is both powerful and subtle. Poke's determination to save both the lives and the emotional fabric of his family engages the reader from beginning to end, and the portrayal of Rose is pitch-perfect--thoughtful, insightful, and always authentic.
If you've already fallen in love with Timothy Hallinan's Poke Rafferty series, The Queen of Patpong will cement your loyalty. If you haven't...it's probably because you haven't read him.
A few years ago, I passed a rack of discounted hardback books. One captured my attention. The title, A Nail Through the Heart, was evocative; the cover was attractive; and I had just read a post by the author, Timothy Hallinan, on DorothyL, a newslist for mystery lovers. Wanting to support a fellow DL-er, I picked it up and read a few lines. They were good. Very good. So, I bought it, beginning a long-term love affair with Hallinan's series of beautifully written thrillers set in Bangkok and featuring "rough travel writer" Poke Rafferty. Poke writes travel books for people who want to experience the parts of the world not included on the usual lists of tourist destinations. Some of those parts are a little seedy, a little gritty, and a little dangerous. When he arrives in Bangkok to research a new book, he falls in love with Thailand, the Thai people--and with Rose, a beautiful bar dancer in the red-light district of Patpong. Together, they rescue and adopt Miaow, a street child who struggles to reconcile her love for her adoptive parents with her shame about her roots and about Rose's former profession.
In the fourth book in the series, The Queen of Patpong, as Poke, Rose, and Miaow are dining at a favorite restaurant when Rose "drops her fork with a clatter on top of her cup, which tips over and spreads coffee across the tablecloth." A man approaches the table, someone who knew Rose when she was a dancer. After threatening her and her family, he swaggers away, and Rose tells Poke that the man is someone she thought--and had hoped--she'd killed.
With the help of a menacing partner, the stranger begins a cat-and-mouse game clearly intended to end with Rose's death--and the deaths of her loved ones. Hallinan plays out the plot masterfully, juxtaposing the elements of a tense, modern-day thriller with a sensitive exploration of Rose's past and her transformation from an awkward village girl nicknamed "Stork" to the strong, confident woman she has become.
Much of the book takes place in the past, beginning with Rose's discovery that, although her father has accepted money from her teacher to keep her at home and in school, he has also sold her to someone in the sex trade. She escapes this all-too-common situation with the help of Nana, a former village girl turned bar dancer. Nana also "sells" her, but into a more benevolent system.
Hallinan balances the various elements of this book perfectly. The tension is high throughout. The moral message is both powerful and subtle. Poke's determination to save both the lives and the emotional fabric of his family engages the reader from beginning to end, and the portrayal of Rose is pitch-perfect--thoughtful, insightful, and always authentic.
If you've already fallen in love with Timothy Hallinan's Poke Rafferty series, The Queen of Patpong will cement your loyalty. If you haven't...it's probably because you haven't read him.
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