Oline Cogdill recently reviewed Cold Burn by A.J. Landau for the South Florida Sun Sentinel. A. J. Landau is actually two authors, Jon Land and Jeff Ayers. Both authors appeared at The Poisoned Pen, and signed copies of Cold Burn, which are available through the Webstore. https://bit.ly/463gTm9

Once you read Cogdill’s review, you can also watch the video of the authors’ appearance at the bookstore.

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Book review: Florida and Alaska landscapes vital to plot of ‘Cold Burn’ thriller

Author Jeff Ayers is one of the authors behind the pseudonym A.J. Landau. (Greg Ayers/Courtesy)

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‘Cold Burn: A National Parks Thriller’ by A.J. Landau; Minotaur; 336 pages; $28

Geographically, thousands of miles separate Alaska and Florida, but the states have in common breathtaking landscapes, open spaces and natural resources — all of which are ripe for exploitation as A.J. Landau explores in the high-concept thriller “Cold Burn.”

Landau, a pseudonym for writers Jon Land and Jeff Ayers, is setting a precedent for hefty plots stuffed with science, action, high adventure and evocative visits to national parks, all of which was established in the 2024 debut “Leave No Trace.”

“Cold Burn” once again teams up National Park Service investigator Michael Walker and FBI agent Gina Delgado, who start out working on different investigations across the country until situations bring them together. And once again, the threats are cataclysmic.

Jon Land is the other author behind “Cold Burn.” (Rayzor Bachand/Courtesy)

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“Cold Burn” starts with Walker on a cruise to Alaska, but this is no pleasure trip. He is following leads on thefts of Tlingit artifacts. Although that investigation takes a turn, Walker is not done with Alaska. A U.S. Geological Survey team disappears after hiding in a cave during an avalanche. About the same time, an entire crew of a submarine on a training mission dies after the vessel is struck by a supposedly dormant explosive device in Alaska’s Icy Strait.

Meanwhile, Delgado is in Miami investigating the murder of a U.S. Geological Survey team intern whose body was found in Everglades National Park. The team had been working on climate change, specifically the collapse of subsystems of ocean currents.

As the cases begin to intersect, Delgado and Walker work together. A link between the two investigations is a ruthless billionaire whose obsession with becoming a trillionaire and power has no limits.

The landscapes of Alaska and Florida provide an intensity, as both regions are vital to the plot, and may inspire readers to visit these parks. Everglades National Park with its hardwood hammocks is like “a tropical oasis of all the beautiful muck that defines the Everglades.” In Alaska, “mist-shrouded hills colored the richest green” Walker had ever seen. A focus on American Indian culture and connection to the land enhance “Cold Burn.”

Landau injects a large dose of science into the complex-but-understandable plot, adding a further sense of realism and authenticity. This National Parks series focuses more on plot and action, but the characters of Delgado and Walker are well-explored. Their respect for each other and the work they do enhances “Cold Burn” and their return is a treat for readers.

Rip-roaring adventure keeps the exciting “Cold Burn” on high alert from the beginning to the pulsating finale.

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Check out the interview with Jon Land and Jeff Ayers.

Patrick Millikin welcomed Gabino Iglesius for a virtual event to The Poisoned Pen. He has two books that have been reissued by Mulholland. They had been out of print. Now, Zero Saints and Coyote Songs are both available in the Webstore. https://bit.ly/44KvNLL

Here’s the summary of Zero Saints.

The first novel from one of the most electrifying voices in contemporary crime fiction, Gabino Iglesias, follows Fernando, a drug dealer and enforcer living in Austin whose life takes a lethal turn when an unknown gang with seemingly supernatural abilities arrives on his turf.

Enforcer and drug dealer Fernando has seen better days. On his way home from work, some heavily-tattooed gangsters throw him in the back of a car and take him to an abandoned house, where they saw off his friend’s head and feed the kid’s fingers to…something. Their message is clear: this is their territory, now.

But Fernando isn’t put down that easily. Using the assistance of a Santeria priestess, an insane Puerto Rican pop sensation, a very human dog, and a Russian hitman, he’ll build the courage (and firepower) he’ll need to fight a gangbanger who’s a bit more than human.

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Gabino Iglesias is the author of the Shirley Jackson and Bram Stoker award-winning novel, The Devil Takes You Home, as well as author of the critically acclaimed and award-winning novels Zero Saints and Coyote Songs. He is a writer, journalist, professor, and literary critic living in Austin, Texas. He is the horror columnist for the New York Times Book Review

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Here’s the description of Coyote Songs.

A “vivid and visceral, gritty and magical, dark and soaring” (Meg Gardiner) novel from one of the most electrifying voices in contemporary crime fiction, Gabino Iglesias, this deeply honest story follows several, lost, desperate folk in the heart of the southwest.

In this mosaic horror/crime novel, ghosts and old gods guide the hands of those caught up in a violent struggle to save the soul of the American southwest.

A man tasked with shuttling children over the border believes the Virgin Mary is guiding him towards final justice. A woman offers colonizer blood to the Mother of Chaos. A boy joins corpse destroyers to seek vengeance for the death of his father.

These stories intertwine with those of a vengeful spirit and a hungry creature to paint a timely, compelling, pulpy portrait of revenge, family, and hope.

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Enjoy the conversation between Patrick Millikin, who loves pulp fiction, and Gabino Iglesias.

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, welcomed Martin Walker back to The Poisoned Pen. Walker’s latest book is An Enemy in the Village. There are signed copies of the new mystery available in the Webstore. https://bit.ly/3IBiTYX

Here’s the summary of An Enemy in the Village.

A real estate agent’s death sends shockwaves through the idyllic town of St. Denis, leading Bruno, Chief of Police, to suspect that there’s more to this tragedy than meets the eye.

When Bruno stumbles upon a motionless figure in a car parked at a scenic overpass on the ridge of the Vézère valley, he’s ready to investigate. Inside, he finds a suicide note and the dead body of Monique, a successful businesswoman who rented châteaus to wealthy expats. It seems like an open-and-shut case. 

But Bruno can’t shake the suspicion that something sinister lurks underneath this tidy narrative. After he delivers Monique’s final messages to those most important to her, malicious gossip about Bruno begins to spread through the village. One thing leads to another, and soon Bruno faces pressure to resign from the job. Despite this disturbing turn of events, Bruno remains Bruno, never one to turn down a fine meal with good company in the French countryside. In the course of inquiry, he meets Laura—and her dog, which happens to be the same breed as his beloved basset hound. As sparks fly and Bruno realizes just how much he has at stake, he races to find out what really happened to Monique, before he loses his badge, his new love—or something even worse.

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After a long career working in international journalism and for think
tanks, MARTIN WALKER now gardens, cooks, explores vineyards, writes,
travels, and has never been busier. He divides his time
between Washington D.C. and the Dordogne.

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Enjoy the conversation about the latest Bruno, Chief of Police.

Yesterday was the book launch for Linda Castillo’s Rage and Bruce Borgos’ The Blue Horse. Both authors appeared at The Poisoned Pen with their books. You can order signed copies of both books through the Webstore. https://store.poisonedpen.com/

Here’s the summary of Rage.

In this gripping installment of the Edgar Award winning series, Chief of Police Kate Burkholder investigates a brutal double murder that takes her into the dark underbelly of society and exposes the dangers of Amish lives gone wrong.

Summer has arrived with a vengeance in Painters Mill, and a macabre discovery by three Amish children brings the quiet to a grinding halt. Chief of Police Kate Burkholder arrives on scene to find the dismembered body of 21-year-old Samuel Yutzy, a local Amish man who owned a successful landscaping business. What twisted individual murdered him in such a sadistic way?

The investigation has barely begun when, miles away, a second body is found, stuffed into a barrel and dumped in a ravine. The deceased is 21-year-old Aaron Shetler, Samuel Yutzy’s best friend. What could these two young Amish men have been involved in that led to such violent ends?

With a heat wave bearing down, Kate learns quickly that, for reasons she doesn’t understand, no one is willing to talk about what happened to the men. Just as she begins to fear the case may be hopeless, a mystery woman comes forward and reveals that fun-loving Aaron and Samuel had recently befriended some very unsavory characters—individuals who may have ties to a larger, more sinister, black market.

To solve the case, Kate must delve into the most sordid corners of her community, but when she gets too close, the killers target Kate herself. Will the secrets simmering beneath the surface of Painters Mill take another life before she can expose the truth? Or will Kate be the final victim?

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Linda Castillo is the author of the New York Times and USA Today bestselling Kate Burkholder mystery series, set in the world of the Amish. The first book, Sworn to Silence, was adapted into a Lifetime original movie titled An Amish Murder starring Neve Campbell as Kate Burkholder. Critically acclaimed as “the master of the genre” (People magazine), Castillo is the recipient of numerous industry awards including an Edgar Award, the Sue Grafton Memorial Award, a nomination by the International Thriller Writers for Best Hardcover, a nomination for an Audie Award for best mystery audiobook, and an appearance on the Boston Globe’s shortlist for best crime novel. Her books have sold over 4.5 million copies worldwide.

In addition to writing, Castillo’s other passion is horses. She lives in Texas with her husband and a menagerie of animals, and is currently at work on her next book.

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Here’s the summary of Bruce Borgos’ The Blue Horse.

A controversial wild horse round-up in the high desert of Nevada results in two murders and too many suspects for Sheriff Porter Beck to deal with.

A helicopter driving a controversial round-up of wild horses suddenly crashes and the pilot is found to have been shot. Then the person coordinating the round-up for the Bureau of Land Management is savagely murdered, buried up to her neck and then trampled to death by the very same wild horses. And there’s no lack of suspects—with the wild horse advocacy group having sworn to protect the horse At Any Cost! Now the state and federal agencies are showing up looking for answers or at least a scapegoat.

Sheriff Porter Beck has had better days.

Porter Beck’s new girlfriend, Detective Charlie Blue Horse, arrives to help with the investigation, which leads them to Canadian Lithium mining operation near the round-up area that sets off Beck’s mental alarm bells. Brinley, Beck’s sister, is leading a group of troubled kids in a wilderness program, when one of them, Rafa, bolts one night. When Brinley catches up to him, they’re just outside the mine—in the wrong place, at the wrong time.

With his personal life in turmoil, too many suspects and too many secrets, the feds pushing for a quick resolution, and his impetuous (if skilled) sister in the mix, one wrong step could be deadly for Porter Beck.

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BRUCE BORGOS lives and writes from the Nevada desert where he works hard every day to prove his high school guidance counselor had good instincts when he said “You’ll never be an astronaut.” He has a degree in political science which mostly served to dissuade him from a career in law while at the same time tormenting his wife with endless questions about how telephones work. When not writing, you can usually find him at the local wine store. He is the author of The Bitter Past.

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Enjoy the conversation with Linda Castillo and Bruce Borgos.

Oline Cogdill recently reviewed Dwyer Murphy’s The House on Buzzard’s Bay for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, and shared the review with us. The Poisoned Pen does have signed copies in the Webstore. https://bit.ly/4lIDusN And, as an added bonus, after the review, we have an interview with Dwyer Murphy.

Book review: ‘The House on Buzzards Bay’ an engrossing psychological thriller

‘The House on Buzzards Bay’ by Dwyer Murphy; Viking; 288 pages; $30

Longtime friends — especially those who’ve gone through many ups and downs — can have complicated relationships as Dwyer Murphy explores in his engrossing psychological thriller “The House on Buzzards Bay.”

Like a summer vacation, “The House on Buzzards Bay” moves at a languid pace showing the calm, restful days at a beach house, until those peaceful times take an abrupt turn.

Attorney Jim turned the southeastern Massachusetts beach house on Buzzards Bay that he inherited into a summer retreat that his closest friends from college could enjoy. He called it the Nanumett Sand and Swim Club.

Jim and his wife, Valentina, enjoyed hosting their friends, and the couple would make use of the house between those visits. But Jim and Valentina learned that arriving at the house during the winter was not comfortable. The group’s summer visits also dwindled as life choices, careers and family duties took priority.

Now Jim and Valentina want to restart the visits, inviting bestselling novelist Bruce, diplomat Rami, art teacher Maya and her wife, Shannon, who is expecting their first child. The friends have fun reconnecting, and the days are filled with swimming, good food, cocktails and watching Jim and Valentina’s 7-year-old twins enjoy beach life. The friends relish their strong base, that they can pick up as if no time had passed. Except for Bruce.

From the beginning, Bruce is belligerent, taking any opportunity to criticize everyone, often refusing to join meals. Things reach an impasse when Bruce berates Jim for bad parenting, resulting in a physical fight. The next day, Bruce vanishes. The friendships begin to fray when a woman named Camille shows up, claiming Bruce had invited her.

Camille ignites little feuds among the friends. The old house’s creaks intensify as if it is “troubled.” A weird séance led by Camille and a local librarian unsettles the group. A series of break-ins by local teens continue, though Jim oddly denies his house has been targeted. Secrets between Jim and Valentina begin to tumble out, undercutting their marriage.

“The House on Buzzards Bay” is part “The Big Chill” and all simmering suspense, showcasing the talents of Murphy, who lives in Miami-Dade County.

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Check out Patrick Millikin’s interview with Dwyer Murphy.

The CWA (British Crime Writers Association) Awards that were presented recently. Thanks to The Rap Sheet for the list. Because most of the books are British, they might not aways be available through the Webstore. https://store.poisonedpen.com/. Please check!

KAA Gold Dagger:The Book of Secrets, by Anna Mazzola (Orion)

Also nominated: A Divine Fury, by D.V. Bishop (Macmillan); The Bell Tower, by R.J. Ellory (Orion); 

The Hunter, by Tana French (Penguin); Guide Me Home, by Attica Locke (Profile); and I Died at Fallow Hall, by Bonnie Burke-Patel (Bedford Square)

Ian Fleming Steel Dagger:Dark Ride, by Lou Berney (Hemlock Press)

Also nominated: Nobody’s Hero, by M.W. Craven (Constable); Sanctuary, by Garry Disher (Viper); Hunted, by Abir Mukherjee (Harvill & Secker); Blood Like Mine, by Stuart Neville (Simon & Schuster); and City in Ruins, by Don Winslow (Hemlock Press)

ILP John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger:All Us Sinners, by Katy
Massey (Sphere)

Also nominated: Miss Austen Investigates, by Jessica Bull (Michael Joseph); Knife River, by Justine Champine (Manilla Press); Three Burials, by Anders Lustgarten (Hamish Hamilton); A Curtain Twitcher’s Book of Murder, by Gay Marris (Bedford Square); and Deadly Animals, by Marie Tierney (Zaffre)

Twisted Dagger (for “psychological and suspense thrillers”):Nightwatching, by Tracy Sierra (Viking)

Also nominated: Emma, Disappeared, by Andrew Hughes (Hachette Ireland); Beautiful People, by Amanda Jennings (HQ); The Stranger in Her House, by John Marrs (Thomas & Mercer); The Trials of Marjorie Crowe, by C.S. Robertson (Hodder & Stoughton); and Look in the Mirror, by Catherine Steadman (Quercus)

Whodunnit Dagger (for “cosy crime, traditional mysteries, and Golden Age crime” stories):The Case of the Singer and the Showgirl, by Lisa Hall (Hera)

Also nominated: A Death in Diamonds, by S.J. Bennett (Zaffre); Murder at the Christmas Emporium, by Andreina Cordani (Zaffre); A Good Place to Hide a Body, by Laura Marshall (Hodder & Stoughton); A Matrimonial Murder, by Meeti Shroff-Shah (Joffe); and Murder at the Matinee, by Jamie West (Brabinger)

Historical Dagger:The Betrayal of Thomas True, by A.J. West (Orenda)

Also nominated: A Divine Fury, by D.V. Bishop (Macmillan); Banquet of Beggars, by Chris Lloyd (Orion); The Book of Secrets, by Anna Mazzola (Orion); and Poor Girls, by Clare Whitfield (Head of Zeus/Aries)

Crime Fiction in Translation Dagger:The Night of Baby Yaga, by Akira Otani, translated by Sam Bett (Faber & Faber)

Also nominated: Dogs and Wolves, by Hervé Le Corre, translated by Howard Curtis (Europa Editions UK); Going to the Dogs, by Pierre Lemaitre, translated by Frank Wynne (MacLehose Press); The Clues in the Fjord, by Satu Rämö, translated by Kristian London (Zaffre); Butter, by Asako Yuzuki, translated by Polly Barton (4th Estate); 

and Clean, by Alia Trabucco Zerán, translated by Sophie Hughes (4th Estate)

ALCS Gold Dagger for Non-fiction:The Peepshow: The Murders at 10 Rillington Place, by Kate Summerscale (Bloomsbury Circus)

Also nominated: Unmasking Lucy Letby: The Untold Story of the Killer Nurse, by Jonathan Coffey and Judith Moritz (Seven Dials); The Lady in the Lake: A Reporter’s Memoir of a Murder, by Jeremy Craddock (Mirror); Framed: Astonishing True Stories of Wrongful Convictions, by John Grisham and Jim McCloskey (Hodder & Stoughton); The Criminal Mind, by Duncan Harding (Michael Joseph); and Four Shots in the Night: A True Story of Stakeknife, Murder, and Justice in Northern Ireland, by Henry Hemming (Quercus)

Short Story Dagger: “A Date on Yarmouth Pier,” by J.C. Bernthal (from Midsummer Mysteries, edited by Martin Edwards; Flame Tree)

Also nominated: “The Glorious Twelfth,” by S.J. Bennett (from Midsummer Mysteries); “Why Harrogate?” by Janice Hallett (from Murder in Harrogate, edited by Vaseem Khan; Orion); “City Without Shadows,” by William Burton McCormick (from Midsummer Mysteries); “A Ruby Sun,” by Meeti Shroff-Shah (from Midsummer Mysteries); and “Murder at the Turkish Baths,” by Ruth Ware (from Murder in Harrogate)

Dagger in the Library (“for a body of work by an established crime writer that has long been popular with borrowers from libraries”): Richard Osman

Also nominated: Kate Atkinson, Robert Galbraith, Janice Hallett, Lisa Jewell; and Edward Marston

Publishers’ Dagger (“awarded annually to the Best Crime and Mystery Publisher of the Year”): Orenda Books

Also nominated: Bitter Lemon Press, Faber & Faber, Pan Macmillan, and Simon & Schuster

Emerging Author Dagger (“for the opening of a crime novel by an unpublished writer,” formerly called the Debut Dagger): Joe Eurell, Ashland

Also nominated: Loftus Brown, Bahadur Is My Name; Shannon Chamberlain, Funeral Games; Hywel Davies, Soho Love, Soho Blood; Shannon Falkson, The Fifth; and Catherine Lovering, Murder Under Wraps

Finally, Mick Herron, author of the Slough House series, had previously been declared this year’s recipient of the CWA Diamond Dagger.

Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, recently welcomed Michael Robotham from Australia for a virtual appearance for the bookstore. The White Crow, the second police procedural featuring Philomena McCarthy, is the bookstore’s British Crime Selection for July. If you order it through the Webstore, there are more copies on the way. https://bit.ly/3Tq3nRZ

Here’s the description of The White Crow.

“No one does suspense better.” —Stephen King

Ambitious young London police officer Philomena McCarthy returns in this propulsive thriller by the author of When You Are Mine.

Philomena McCarthy has defied the odds to become a young officer with the Metropolitan Police despite her father and her uncles being notorious London gangsters.

On patrol one night, Philomena finds a barefoot child, covered in blood, who says she can’t wake her mother. Meanwhile, three miles away, a London jeweler has a bomb strapped to his chest in his ransacked store and millions are missing.

These two events collide and threaten Philomena’s career, her new marriage, and her life. In too deep, and falling further, Phil must decide who she can trust—her family or her colleagues—and on what side of the thin blue line she wants to live.

Told in real time from multiple points of view, The White Crow is filled with almost unbearable suspense—a page-turning tour de force that shows Robotham at the top of his game.

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Michael Robotham is a former investigative journalist whose bestselling psychological thrillers have been translated into twenty-five languages. He has twice won a Ned Kelly Award for Australia’s best crime novel, for Lost in 2005 and Shatter in 2008. His recent novels include When She Was Good, winner of the UK’s Ian Fleming Steel Dagger Award for best thriller; The Secrets She Keeps; Good Girl, Bad Girl; When You Are Mine; Lying Beside You; Storm Child; and The White Crow. After living and writing all over the world, Robotham settled his family in Sydney, Australia.

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Here’s the recent interview with Michael Robotham. However, if you’re interested in earlier ones, Peters reminded the audience they could find other videos by looking at Michael Robotham Poisoned Pen Bookstore on YouTube.

Jen Johans from The Poisoned Pen recently welcomed Lina Chern for a virtual event at the bookstore. Cherm’s first book featuring Katie True, Play the Fool, is the winner of the Mary Higgins Clark Award. Chern’s sequel is Tricks of Fortune. There are copies available in the Webstore. https://bit.ly/4lH1exu

Here’s the description of Tricks of Fortune.

Tarot card reader extraordinaire Katie True gets embroiled in another local murder when her best friend becomes the prime suspect in this exciting mystery from the Edgar Award-winning author of Play the Fool.

“A delicious blend of suspense and madcap humor.”—Library Journal, starred review of Play the Fool

Katie True has gotten her crap together. . . sort of. Now that the sinister events of the past year have wound down, Katie has finally made her dream come true and opened her own tarot reading room—even if it’s in her sister’s old real estate office in an outdoor strip mall. It’s a good start, but her momentum grinds to a halt when the murder of beloved veteran police officer, Matthew Peterson, shakes her and her small community to the core.

Katie is torn. Lieutenant Peterson had saved her life as a child and holds a special place in her past. Even worse, her closest friend Gina—who knows Katie better than she knows herself—is the primary suspect.

As the investigation unfolds, the details surrounding Peterson’s death become increasingly murky, as does Gina’s innocence. All Katie knows is that following her intuition has gotten her this far. But will her trusty tarot deck help her when the truth about the people she loves is too terrible to face?

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Lina Chern’s debut mystery novel, Play the Fool, won the 2024 Mary Higgins Clark Award and was nominated for the 2024 Lefty and Anthony Awards. Her shorter work has appeared in Mystery Weekly, The Marlboro Review, The Bellingham Review, Black Fox Literary Magazine, and The Coil. She lives in the Chicago area with her family.

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Enjoy the conversation with Lina Chern as she discusses tarot and her books.