Let’s talk books!

November 18, 2023 /

Before I started this post, I browsed a few other entries in the What’s on Your Bookshelf link party. Everyone is talking about cozy holiday reads with titles like Christmas by Candlelight and The Christmas Spirit and covers featuring festively-lit buildings nestled into blankets of snow.

And what am I reading? Obsession, a book by former FBI profiler John Douglas on the psyches of killers, rapists, and stalkers. Oh, and the memoir of a former New York medical examiner.

Ho, ho, homicide, baby.

My reading list for the last month also suffers from a distinct absence of holiday cheer. But before we get to that: Welcome to the Weekend Coffee Share, hosted by Natalie the Explorer, and the What’s On Your Bookshelf Challenge, hosted by Sue, Donna, Jo and Deb. Grab a treat, have a seat, and let’s talk about serial killers… er, I mean books.

What I read this month – short crime stories and serial killers

The Judge's List by John Grisham
Exit Wounds: Eighteen Tales of Mystery from the Modern Masters of Crime
Bibliomysteries edited by Otto Penzler
The Anatomy of Motive by John Douglas and Mark Olshaker

The Judge’s List: Standard Grisham fare – a suspenseful page-turner about a very clever serial killer.

Exit Wounds: One of 2 anthologies of short crime stories I read this month. The quality is a little uneven, as is typical of anthologies, but there are some gems in here.

Bibliomysteries: Another anthology of short crime fiction, with all stories relating to books in some way. I found most of these less riveting than the ones in Exit Wounds but still good.

BTW the Audible Plus catalog now includes a bunch of short story anthologies, including some annual Best Of compilations, so if short stories are your jam, check it out.

The Anatomy of Motive – I made it through a whole year without reading a John Douglas serial killer book (see my book post from July and August 2022 for a rundown of John Douglas serial killer books). This one was fascinating, and–as I mentioned at the beginning of this post–I’m already on to another one focusing on sex crimes. Nothing like some nice light reading before bedtime.

Books to Help You Write Better

When I mention to people that I write, I hear a lot of, “Oh, I’ve always wanted to write, but I don’t know how to get started.” My go-to response is to mention a book or two (because librarian) that helped me get started writing fiction. So I decided to gather my list of recommended writing books into an annotated bibliography (because librarian) and post it here on my blog. Wanna see it? Of course you do! Hop on over to Books to Help You Write Better: A Writer’s Reading List. I plan to create a new section of my website, Resources for Writers, and add it there, probably during Winter Break when I have a few minutes of uninterrupted time.

Book memes

Here are a couple for the Tolkien fans:

Remember, kids: If life is good, don’t f*ck it up. And don’t wander off with men in funny hats unless you want your case written up in a John Douglas book.

Was an English major. Can confirm.

Drawing of woman in old-fashioned dress reading a book; text below reads, "Thank goodness my book finally arrived. I almost started cleaning the house."

Now that audiobooks constitute at least half my reading, I no longer have this excuse. I can1 read and clean at the same time.

  1. Note the use of “can” as opposed to, “do.”

In related news, I bought some new sports equipment1 last weekend and have some serious workouts2 planned.

  1. I bought a recliner. For $44 at an estate sale.
  2. Reading. I’ll be reading. In the recliner. While reclining.

This type of workout offers at least one one major advantage. You avoid irritating this bunch of losers:

I injured my left Absolute F*ckwaffle a couple of weeks ago while engaging in an extreme sport.1

  1. I was sleeping. I hate to think what would have happened if I’d attempted actual exercise.

And… that’s a wrap for this week. If you’re in the US, have a wonderful Thanksgiving! I plan to cook all day on Thursday and engage in extreme sports1 on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

  1. Reading and eating. Also sleeping. And maybe writing. Maybe.

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25 Comments

  • trentpmcd

    November 18, 2023 at 10:34 am

    Your holiday cheerful reading reminds me of a meme on saw on FB yesterday – “My favorite Hallmark Christmas movie!” over a still from the movie “Misery” starring Kathy Bates…
    I think I need to learn to do footnotes on my blog.
    I hope you are enjoying your weekend!

  • Joanne

    November 18, 2023 at 11:28 am

    Your books look a bit like they’d give me nightmares! LOL. I am a wuss and while I do read murder mysteries I usually have to pair them with something much lighter and happier so I can switch between the two.

    • Janet Alcorn

      November 18, 2023 at 6:19 pm

      I’m hard to scare… unless I’m alone at night. Then I’m the biggest wimp who ever wimped. I will say, though, that when husband and I were binge-watching Mindhunter, I needed to watch something funny for a few minutes before going to sleep. That show is wonderful but really, really dark.

  • Jo

    November 18, 2023 at 4:43 pm

    Thanks for linking up again — ho ho horror indeed. My other response to people who say they’ve always wanted to write is … well, write! Finally, I look forward to your memes every month.

    • Janet Alcorn

      November 18, 2023 at 6:21 pm

      Yeah, Santa’s MO is B&E. The Santa thing is pretty creepy when you think about it: Old guy dresses up in a special suit to break into houses occupied by children and leave them gifts. I’d like to see John Douglas profile him 🙂

  • Jennifer Jones

    November 19, 2023 at 1:24 am

    I have the Judges List on my TBR and am adding Obsession, as it sounds like a book I’d enjoy. Popping over to check out the Writing link. Thanks for the recommendations.

  • Gary A Wilson

    November 20, 2023 at 9:04 am

    Hi Janet.
    Lord – I love reading your posts. You have a rich writing voice that never fails to crack me up. I think I’ve told you that I don’t bother with memes as so many speak to the person I out grew a couple of decades ago, but I can always count on you to skim the best and keep me current enough to fool my adult kids into thinking I’m still too hip for the rest home.
    My wife has taken over my previous reading recliner. She inured her knee and had to sit still so there she did and I may never get that chair back. It’s okay though, the one she abandoned works well for me and my laptop so other than getting up to pursue our daily step count goals, we stay still and out of trouble.
    We used to read classic British mysteries (think Peter Wimsey) and the like, but she now loves her romances and I still love a good space opera which I try to keep in the realm of hard SciFi – but some of my favorite reading these days comes from the blogs of various folks I’ve met via this virtual community of ours.
    All the best

    • Janet Alcorn

      November 21, 2023 at 7:49 pm

      I want “Too hip for the rest home” on a t-shirt 🙂

      Thank you so much for your kind words. Really. I’m horribly insecure about my writing, so I really, really appreciate it when someone says they enjoy reading my stuff.

      We currently have only 1 recliner. I anticipate Recliner Wars to commence at any moment.

  • Natalie

    November 20, 2023 at 4:20 pm

    I added The Judge’s List to my TBR. Thank you for sharing your book reviews and memes with us at #weekendcoffeeshare. Happy Thanksgiving week!

  • Elizabeth Seckman

    November 21, 2023 at 1:20 am

    I have always wanted my own hobbit hole. I’d practice extreme reading by the fire and never leave the hole either.

    Thanks for the writing book list! How very useful it will be.

    • Janet Alcorn

      November 21, 2023 at 7:52 pm

      My only issue with a hobbit hole would be the lack of windows. I once toured a beach house in Oregon with a third-floor garret almost completely surrounded by glass with a comfy couch and chairs and a view of the ocean. Totally my dream reading nook.

      I hope you do find the book list useful. Feel free to suggest additions!

    • Janet Alcorn

      November 21, 2023 at 7:54 pm

      I love how there’s crime fiction to suit almost any taste from cozy to horror-mystery (like Stephen King’s The Outsider). My tastes run to the scarier stuff, but I can enjoy a good cozy too.