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Mystery-Thriller-Suspense Fiction | Would the real Sean Dillon please stand up?

FRiction FRiday | Jack Higgins | The Judas Gate

Wow, is it FRiction FRiday already? They sure seem to come up fast … even though some weeks are pretty long … so let’s kick up a few more rocks and talk some fiction about our favorite mystery-thriller-suspense novels. [All names in Bold Italic … BLACK for authors, titles in GREEN, characters in ORANGE … except URL references in RED.]

I’m glad you’re here, but don’t worry if it seems like you landed on the wrong planet. Sword Tips is still about Building a Business and improving your leadership performance and productivity … but we also take a little time every FRiction FRiday to have a little fun and prepare for the weekend by uncovering a few more of our favorite Mystery-Thriller-Suspense novels.

By the way, don’t forget to sign up to make sure you get all of these and other updates sent directly to your inbox every week. Make sure you add your comments and questions, too, so we can share what we know and what we’d like to know. Remember, we don’t have to agree … I fully respect your right to be dead wrong! Just kidding … kind of. ;>)

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Sean Dillon is finally back in action

What does a Walther PPK and a glass of Bushmills have in common? Sean Dillon. You’ll recall that Dillon, former IRA enforcer and now protecting the Queen’s realm, is one of our Top Ten Characters. Jack Higgins introduced Dillon in Eye of the Storm in 1992, and The Judas Gate is #18 in the series.

Higgins has created a powerful, “take no prisoners” character in Dillon and when you think about it, (more…)

FRiction FRiday | Great Mystery-Thriller-Suspense Fiction | Ken Follett, Fall of Giants

Ken Follett’s Fall of Giants

If you’re any kind of a history buff … and enjoy fiction in this Mystery-Thriller-Suspense genre, you’re already familiar with Ken Follett, who we discussed briefly last week.

As usual, Follett delivers another great historical epic across the landscape of World War I. His characters are richly nuanced, the story sweeping across generations of 4 families including coal miners and aristocrats in England, factory grunts in Russia and a young American advisor to President Woodrow Wilson. All of the usual mischief … betrayal, espionage, adultery, conspiracy, scandal … is woven into the household and the battlefield.

Another great historical epic in Fall of Giants

For many of us, American history is full of fascinating character studies and monumental events that have shaped the modern world. There are many extraordinary periods in the last few centuries. One is the Revolutionary War era during the late 1700’s, if only for the rich personalities and history-making ideas that dominated the period leading up to and beyond the signing of the Constitution. The other period is from World War I, known then as the Great War, which began in the summer of 1914, through to the end of World War II in 1945.

Did you know that over 75 million people died in those two World Wars?

Think about what happened during this 30 year period. (more…)

FRiction FRiday | Mystery-Thriller-Suspense | Edgar Awards

Last week we extolled the prodigious talent of James Lee Burke, a royal member of the mystery-thriller-suspense genre. I hope you’ve been privileged to pick up one of his books. When you do, it will only take a few pages for you to feel like you just moved to the Louisiana bayou. The richness of the sounds, smells and tastes of New Orleans, its Garden District and the French Quarter, feels like you’re ravishing a huge gumbo pot with Étouffée and jambalaya on the side.

By the way, don’t forget to sign up to make sure you get all of these and other updates sent directly to your inbox every week.

[All names in Bold Italic … BLACK for authors, titles in GREEN, characters in ORANGE … except URL references in RED.}

Edgar Award nominees for 2011 are out! Have you read any?

The Edgar Award nominees for 2011 have been announced for books in the mystery genre. (more…)

Mystery-Thriller-Suspense Fiction

FRiction FRiday | Mystery-Thriller-Suspense Fiction | James Lee Burke

As promised, we completed the First Five of the Top Ten Favorite Characters recently in the mystery-thriller-sense fiction category … the Second Five Favorites thereafter … and then began the favorite fiction, which is a potpourri of great characters that, for all kinds of reasons, didn’t make the Top Ten Favorite Characters. More on the way ….

[All names in Bold Italic … BLACK for authors, titles in GREEN, characters in ORANGE … except URL references in RED. No affiliate links.]

James Lee Burke Rules!

We spoke last week about how agonizing it is to be a fan of James Lee Burke. More so if you’re a fan of the Dave Robicheaux series (Top Ten Favorite Character) which also features his cohort, Clete Purcell. Since July, 2010, I’d been savoring The Glass Rainbow, #18 in this series, but I finally read it last week.

I probably need to confess that (more…)

Mystery-Thriller-Suspense Fiction

FRiction FRiday | Mystery-Thriller-Suspense genre | James Lee Burke Rules!

As promised, we completed the First Five of the Top Ten Favorite Characters recently … the Second Five Favorites thereafter … and last week began the Honorable Mention category, which is a potpourri of great characters that, for all kinds of reasons, didn’t make the Top Ten Favorite Characters. More on that next week ….

[All names in Bold Italic … BLACK for authors, titles in GREEN, characters in ORANGE … except URL references in RED. No affiliate links.]

James Lee Burke Rules!

It’s agonizing to be a fan of James Lee Burke. More so if you’re a fan of the Dave Robicheaux series (Top Ten Favorite Character) which also features his cohort, Clete Purcell. Since July, 2010, I’ve been savoring The Glass Rainbow, #18 in this series.

It’s so rich and intricate, his writings vivid and evocative … so while I’m savoring every moment, I also wish it was still parked on a shelf with anticipation dripping from it like candle wax. It may be one of his greatest yet in terms of developing the relationship between Dave and Clete. I don’t remember another book in this series where their actions were so closely interwoven and their intricately connected lives explored in such detail. I’ll finish it this weekend … don’t really want to because I hate for it to end … and don’t know when the next one’s coming? (more…)

Mystery-Thriller-Suspense Fiction

FRiction FRiday | Favorite Fiction Characters

As promised, we completed the First Five of the Top Ten Favorite Characters two weeks ago … the Second Five Favorites last week … so we’ve completed the Top Ten Favorite Characters in the mystery-thriller-suspense fiction genre. How many of those 160 books have you read?

Don’t forget … they’re just MY favorites … feel free to eagerly disagree so we can all learn about some of the great characters we may have missed.

[All names in Bold Italic … BLACK for authors, titles in GREEN, characters in ORANGE … except URL references in RED. No affiliate links.]

Honorable Mention?

It’s kinda lame to have an Honorable Mention list, isn’t it? I think people do it because they can’t really leave it at 10 or 25 or 100 … on any list of favorites. Me, too, I guess … but there are good reasons some of these didn’t make the Top Ten Favorites. It’s not that they’re not liked … loved even … it’s just that there are a few blemishes in their back story that kept them from the Top Ten.

So, here’s the beginning of the Honorable Mention list. (more…)

Mystery-Thriller-Suspense Fiction

FRiction FRiday | Top Ten Favorite Characters continues

We’re halfway home to discovering my Top Ten Favorite Characters in the mystery-thriller-suspense genre and there are many great ones remaining. You’ll remember from our discussion of the First Five of the Top Ten Favorite Characters last week that the nice thing about the word “favorite” is that it’s very personal. They’re MY favorites … but it will be a good thing if you disagree because we’ll all learn about great characters we may have missed.

[All names in Bold Italic … BLACK for authors, titles in GREEN, characters in ORANGE … except URL references in RED. No affiliate links.]

Top Ten Favorite Characters

Here’s a few things to remember from the introductory post on this subject. First, the Top Ten are in random order, although as I’ve said, those toward the top are probably more favorite than others. We’ve also learned from a discussion of the First Five of these characters, that longevity is a critical success factor for favorite characters.

BTW, I’ve started an Honorable Mention category … and another list, Missing in Action … to capture some that didn’t make the Top Ten. We’ll get to those down the road.

Who are the Second Five?

So, accumulated over many years, here are the Second Five of my favorite Top Ten in this wonderful mystery-thriller-suspense genre. (more…)

Mystery-Thriller-Suspense Fiction

FRiction FRiday: Top Ten Favorite Characters begins!

Santa Claus is just packing his cooler for the long trip ... and you've probably got a few extra days to kick back, a favorite adult beverage in hand and lose yourself in a great story. Lucky us, huh?[All names in Bold Italic ... BLACK for authors, titles in GREEN,…

Mystery-Thriller-Suspense Fiction

FRiction FRiday: Top Ten Characters | Baldacci rocks!

Wow, I’m a little behind this week so I’m going to have to keep this short until next time ….

[All names in Bold Italic … BLACK for authors, titles in GREEN, characters in ORANGE … except URL references in RED. No affiliate links.]

Baldacci Rocks!

Tonight, I will finish Baldacci’s 5th Camel Club series book, Hell’s Corner … but it’s clear that Baldacci has become even more proficient at intricate plots that are not easy to unravel, even for his inimitable character, Oliver Stone, a/k/a John Carr. This latest work … and one of his longest … has been a cut above the previous books in this series, mostly because just as you think you’ve figured out what’s happening, phrases like … sharp turn left, start over, huh?, what just happened?, where are we going now? … pop into your skull.

If you haven’t met the Camel Club, get started with the first book, The Camel Club to get the gist … then in order, read The Collectors, Stone Cold & Divine Justice. You can thank me later.

Top Ten Favorite Characters

Okay, so the list isn’t done … at least not for public consumption although I have narrowed it to the Top Ten from the mystery-thriller-suspense genre. I PROMISE (more…)