In this issue

Interview with Sujata Massey, author of the Perveen Mistry novels set in 1920s India. Richard & Frances Lockridge, creators of Mr. & Mrs. North. Perilous Puzzles. Interview with Stephen Mack Jones, author of August Snow. Essay by Elaine Viets. The Many Faces of Moriarty by Tom Mead. Interview with Caroline Kepnes. John Collier: Fact & Fancy by Joseph Goodrich. Remembrance of Margaret Maron, 1938-2021. Interview with Will Dean. Essay by Debbie De Louise. Article on Helen Eustis, author of The Horizontal Man. Capital Crimes Crossword Puzzle. Book reviews, audiobook reviews.

SUJATA MASSEY

Sometimes, an idea needs time to incubate until it’s ready to grow. That was the case with Sujata Massey’s series about Perveen Mistry, a woman attorney practicing in India during the 1920s.

10+ mins

STEPHEN MACK JONES

If the meaning of life is a puzzle awaiting assembly, then writers are purveyors of its pieces.

9 mins

GRIPPING RESEARCH

I said my first words in a bar—“orange sody.” I eventually outgrew my love of Whistle orange soda, but I have a lifelong interest in bars.

2 mins

THE MANY FACES OF MORIARTY

By 1893, Arthur Conan Doyle was a worldwide literary sensation. But he was also a man dogged by an unlikely enemy, and that enemy’s name was Sherlock Holmes. Frankenstein-like, the fictional detective haunted his creator, tormenting him, and would not leave him alone. For it must be said that Conan Doyle was a man of high literary aspirations, with a yearning to write books of both “serious” literature and psychical research. But the demand for new Holmes stories prevented him from realising this ambition. Speaking of this period in his career, Conan Doyle observed in an interview for Tit-Bits in December 1900 that “My low work was obscuring my higher.”

9 mins

CAROLINE KEPNES

It’s more than a book title. It’s an uncomfortable truth that pop culture’s most flawed yet-fascinating (and highly literate) serial predators seem to understand about their appeal, whether Thomas Harris’ Hannibal Lecter or Caroline Kepnes’ Joe Goldberg.

8 mins

JOHN COLLIER Fact & Fancy

Every generation or so, John Collier (1901-1980) is rediscovered. A poet, screenwriter, and novelist, Collier is best remembered for his short stories. His collection Fancies and Goodnights won an Edgar Award in 1952 for Best Story (which in MWA’s early years was occasionally awarded to a volume of stories).

7 mins

WILL DEAN

From an isolated cabin in a boggy Swedish forest, Will Dean conjures a fascinating series and now an intense standalone full of claustrophobia and creepiness.

8 mins

TIME TRAVEL, CATS, AND AN OLD MANUSCRIPT

Have you ever wished that you could go back in time and change something in your past or visit the future and find out what it has in store for you? Have you questioned what would happen if time travel was available to everyone? Could 9/11 have been prevented? Could the spread of COVID-19 have been eradicated before it ended so many lives?

2 mins

Madness on Campus

Helen Eustis’ The Horizontal Man

5 mins

What About Murder?

Reference Books Reviewed

5 mins

Read all stories from Mystery Scene

Mystery Scene Magazine Description:

Published since 1985, the award-winning Mystery Scene Magazine is the world's leading and most authoritative guide to the crime fiction genre. Our thoughtful articles, in-depth author interviews, and expert reviews examine all of crime fiction, from cozies to noir to thrillers. We consider work from past masters to today's top talents and tomorrow's bright new stars.

Review coverage includes novels, TV shows, films, reference works, audiobooks, short stories, plays, young adult books, and much more.

Throw in news, contests, quotes, and a fiendishly clever crossword, and we think you'll find Mystery Scene Magazine is your essential partner in crime!

Recent author interviews include: Michael Connelly, Sue Grafton, Lawrence Block, Sara Paretsky, Alexander McCall Smith, Nevada Barr, C.J. Box, Lisa Unger, Dennis Lehane, Laura Lippman, Robert Crais, Val McDermid, Stephen Hunter, Karin Slaughter, Michael Koryta, Susan Elia MacNeal, Ben Winters, Chris Pavone

Recent article topics include: "Veronica Mars: Millennial Mystery Icon," "New Legal Mysteries," "Why Elmore Leonard Matters," "Hidden Gems: 5 Writers You Should be Reading," "Mary Stewart: Teller of Tales," "Night and the Country: Rural Film Noir," "The Amazing Clayton Rawson," "Death & The Maiden: A Genre's Woman Problem," "Breaking Bad: 21st Century Scarface," "A Lock Without a Key: The Unknowable Dashiell Hammett," "Gifts for Mystery Lovers"

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