My essay, “The Further Adventures of Fearless Agent Hart Muldoon,” introduces the volume Murder in Monaco / Death’s Lovely Mask, published recently by Stark House Press. These 1950s spy thrillers mark the final time Muldoon saw the Mediterranean. His final adventure, set in the Sixties, sent him beyond Europe and into the midst of battle on one final mission. But I’ll stop there, as that’s for another day.
Yet More Espionage from John Flagg Read More »
This is the sixth collection of novels by W.R. Burnett reprinted by Stark House Press, and there will likely be more that will follow it. Burnett wrote plenty of novels. Some say he never wrote a bad one. Big publishers wanted his stories, and his work was ever popular with readers. Occasionally, his efforts won awards. They were stories that were cinematic and full of good dialogue, and there was always the promise of action. From the first manuscript to the last, he was a reliably good novelist and became a highly prized screenwriter. The most highly rewarded, in fact. Was he shot with luck, or was there something else behind his success?
W.R. Burnett Lives On Read More »
Those who like their hardboiled mysteries short and slick and with hearty dollops of wit and action would do well to ferret out the tales of the tough but likable PI Timothy Dane. Though a bit rough around the edges, Dane was a decent and honorable chap who was good with his fists and, according to one critic, “catnip to women.” Better known than many gumshoes of the Fifties, Dane proved popular with readers and had influential book reviewers like Anthony Boucher regularly singing his praises.
The Tough and Compassionate PI Timothy Dane Read More »
