While I travel back to Buffalo on Delta Airlines, I’m sure you’ll be enjoying your favorite NFL team in action today. New seasons always open up with Hope. How will your team perform today?

I’ve read all eight novels in Genevieve Colman’s The Invisible Library series. With The Untold Story (2021), the series is going on hiatus. Genevieve Cogman writes in her Acknowledgements, “I do have more ideas concerning Irene, and about the Library and its other inhabitants, and at some point they may get written. My next project is in a completely different area (involving vampires and the Scarlet Pimpernel and a hapless maidservant who’d rather be doing embroidery)… ” (p. 384)

In The Untold Story, Librarian and spy Irene Winter tries to solve some of the major mysteries that have persisted over the story arc of this series. Who set up the Library (and inter dimensional force for stability in the Universe)? Why was the greatest traitor in the Library’s history now trying to make a deal with Irene? Was there a conspiracy at the heart of the Library?

Irene, her lover Kai (who shifts between human and dragon mode), and a Sherlock Holmes clone, Peregrine Vale, attempt to solve the puzzles that have bedeviled them in the preceding volumes of The Invisible Library series.

I’ve enjoyed this series with its quirky plots and characters. If you’re in the mood for mystery, adventure, and fantasy, this is the place to find it. Click on the previous titles to read my reviews. GRADE: B+

The Invisible Library novels:

• Book 1: The Invisible Library London: Pan Macmillan, 2015. ISBN 978-1-4472-5623-6
• Book 2: The Masked City London: Pan Macmillan, 2015. ISBN 978-1-4472-5625-0
• Book 3: The Burning Page London: Pan Macmillan, 2016. ISBN 978-1-4472-5627-4
• Book 4: The Lost Plot London: Pan Macmillan, 2017. ISBN 978-1-5098-3071-8
• Book 5: The Mortal Word London: Pan Macmillan, 2018. ISBN 978-1-5098-3072-5
• Book 6: The Secret Chapter London: Pan Macmillan, 2019. ISBN 978-1-5290-0057-3
• Book 7: The Dark Archive London: Pan Macmillan, 2020. ISBN 978-1-5290-0060-3
• Book 8: The Untold Story London: Pan Macmillan, 2021. ISBN 978-1-5290-0063-4

I’ve read all of John Creasey’s novels about Chief Inspector George Gideon of Scotland Yard (written under his “J. J. Marric” psuedonym). Although Creasey wrote hundreds of novels, Anthony Boucher called his Gideon’s Day Creasey’s best book. HFR Keating included Gideon’s Work in his 100 Best Crime and Mystery Books. The Mystery Writers of America awarded Creasey the Edgar for Best Novel for Gideon’s Fire.

Crippen & Landru surprised Creasey/Gideon fans with this new collection of Gideon short stories mostly published in the 1970s in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine and uncollected until now. These short stories focus on Gideon’s ability to understand the crimes…and those committing the crimes. My favorite story in this collection is “Gideon and the Vintage Car Thefts.” Very clever!

Martin Edwards, fresh from finishing his monumental The Life of Crime (you can read my review here), provides an insightful “Introduction” to the George Gideon series. Francis M. Nevins’s “A Reflection on the Life of an Author” focuses on the man who wrote the Gideon series. Creasey’s son delivers some compelling insights about his father in his “Afterword.”

If you’re a John Creasey fan, don’t miss Gideon and the Young Toughs & Other Stories! GRADE: B+

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction by Martin Edwards –3

Gideon and the Park Vandal –11

Gideon and the Drunken Sailor — 17

Gideon and the Teen-Age Hooligans — 23

Gideon and the Shoplifting Ring — 31

Gideon and the Pickpockets — 39

Gideon and the Young Toughs — 47

Gideon and the Pigeon — 55

Gideon and the Chestnut Vendor –63

Gideon and the Vintage Car Thefts — 71

Gideon and the Inside Job — 79

Gideon and the Flu Epidemic — 87

Gideon and the East End Gang — 93

Gideon and the Innocent Shoplifter –101

A Reflection on the Life of an Author By Francis M. Nevins –109

Afterword By Richard Creasey –119

Sources — 129

In a history extending all the way back to 1960, this is the first time the Buffalo Bills will play in a marquee game: opening the 2022 NFL Season against the Super Bowl Champion LA Rams. Hopes are high among the Bills Mafia, but disaster has dashed the hopes of Bills fans ever since 1960. I’ll be watching this game in Minneapolis surrounded by BOUCHERCON attendees. The Bills are 2 1/2 point favorites. Go Bills!

The Year’s Best Fantasy, Volume 1 is Paula Guran’s 50th edited anthology. If you’ve read any of Guran’s other anthologies, you know she tries to present quality writing with a diverse range. The old cliche, “Something here for every taste,” certainly applies.

My tastes in fantasy tend toward the unexpected. Take P. Dieli Clark’s “If the Martians Have Magic” for instance. The Martians have invaded Earth three times and a collective Martian mind wants to help Humans resist the next invasion. They offer Martian Magic as a possible protection…but at a price. I also enjoyed Richard Parks’s “The Fox’s Daughter.” A member of royalty must travel away from her kingdom for six months. She asks her friend, the ruler of a nearby kingdom, to take care of her difficult teenage daughter. Reluctantly, he agrees. The teenage daughter has the power–like her mother–to turn into a fox or a woman. Challenges appear.

While I wasn’t familiar with P. Dieli Clark or Richard Park (although I’m planning on finding their books), I am familiar with James Enge and his “Drunkard’s Walk” possesses the same high level story-telling qualities of Enge’s The Tournament of Shadows trilogy.

I enjoyed many of stories in The Year’s Best Fantasy, Volume 1. If you’re in the mood for an anthology with a variety of fantasy styles, this is the one to check out. Are you a fan of Fantasy stories? GRADE: B+

TABLE OF CONTENTS (alphabetical):

• Marika Bailey, “The White Road; Or How a Crow Carried Death Over a River” (Fiyah #18) — 122
• Elizabeth Bear, “The Red Mother” (Tor.com) — 140
• Tobias Buckell, “Brickomancer (Shoggoths in Traffic and Other Stories) — 252
• P. Djèlí Clark, “If the Martians Have Magic” (Uncanny #42) — 314
• Roshani Chokshi, “Passing Fair and Young” (Sword Table Stone: Old Legend, New Voices) — 195
• Varsha Dinesh, “The Demon Sage’s Daughter” (Strange Horizons 2/8/21) — 260
• Andrew Dykstal, “Quintessence” (Beneath Ceaseless Skies #324) — 211
• James Enge, “Drunkard’s Walk (F&SF 5-6) — 297
• Karen Joy Fowler, “The Piper” (F&SF 1-2) — 379

Introduction: Mirrors by Paula Guran — xi
• Carlos Hernandez & C. S. E. Cooney, “A Minnow, or Perhaps a Colossal Squid (Mermaids Monthly, April) — 334
• Kathleen Jennings, “Gisla and the Three Favors” (Lady Churchill’s Rosebud Wristlet #43) — 189
• Allison King, “Breath of the Dragon King” (Fantasy #72) — 376
• PH Lee, “Frost’s Boy” (Lightspeed #128) — 77
• Yukimi Ogawa, “Her Garden the Size of Her Palm (F&SF 7-8) — 174
• Tobi Ogundiran, “The Tale of Jaja and Canti” (Lightspeed #135) — 96
• Richard Parks. “The Fox’s Daughter (Beneath Ceaseless Skies #344) — 354
• Karen Russell, “The Cloud Lake Unicorn” (Conjunctions:76) — 103
• Sofia Samatar, “Three Tales from the Blue Library” (Conjunctions:76) — 368
• Catherynne Valente, “L’Esprit de Escalier” (Tor.com) — 50
• Fran Wilde, “Unseelie Bros, Ltd.” (Uncanny #40) — 1
• Merc Fenn Wolfmoor, “Gray Skies, Red Wings, Blue Lips, Black Hearts” (Apex #121) — 282
• Isabel Yap,“A Spell for Foolish Hearts” (Never Have I Ever) — 387
• E. Lily Yu, “Small Monsters” (Tor.com) — 26

About the Authors — 433

Acknowledgements — 440

About the Editor — 443

Maybe I’m getting super-heroed out but this newish iteration of the Batman story left me cold. I finally watched it on HBO Max but the Blu-ray/DVD is on sale for those who crave “Additional Content.”

It seems like each Batman movie tries to be darker than the film that preceded it. In The Batman, a sadistic serial killer murders key political figures in Gotham. Batman investigates the city’s hidden corruption. And, of course, questions about his family’s involvement arise.

Yes, there’s plenty of action. Yes, there’s plenty of violence. Explosions…check. Cool gadgets…check. Loud music..check. Even though The Batman checks all the boxes, I had that deja vu feeling that I’ve seen all this before. Are you a Batman fan? GRADE: C

A few days ago I reviewed The War on Music: Reclaiming the-Twentieth-Century By John Mauler and Ennio Morricone’s name was mentioned a few times in your comments. Just through serendipity I stumbled onto this performance of “The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly” theme by the Danish National Symphony Orchestra. It really rocks! And, check out that dangling guy!

The National Buffalo Wing Festival returns to Highmark Stadium (where the Buffalo Bills play their games) on Sept. 3rd and 4th 2022. Now in its 21st year, celebrating its 20th festival, Wing Fest has over the past 10 years averaged 50,000+ attendees that have been tracked from all 50 states and 44 different countries, featuring 25 local, regional, national and international eateries serving more than 100 styles of chicken wings. About 10 tons of chicken wings will be consumed this weekend!

Other activities include live music, a baby wing pageant, amateur and XXXHot chicken wing eating competition, celebrity influencer sauce-off competition, bobbing for wings, and much more!

Are you a fan of chicken wings?

Martin Edwards’s monumental The Life of Crime (724 pages!) will sweep whatever Awards BOUCHERCON and other groups bestow on BEST NON-FICTION MYSTERY BOOKS. Edwards wisely consulted with Art Scott (thanked on Page One–page 644–of the Acknowledgements). Edwards refers to Art’s Nero Wolfe knowledge on pages 101 and 172. And Edwards goes further to praise and recommend Art Scott and Wallace Maynard’s The Paperback Covers of Robert McGinnis on page 324. However, Art’s valiant lobbying effort to get Edwards to devote an entire chapter to Nero Wolfe…produced a vaporware chapter that cannot be found between these covers.

It took about 20 years for Martin Edwards to research and write this magisterial work. To attempt to capture all the facets of the History of the Mystery in less than a 1,000 pages is quixotic to say the least. I’m sure many readers will quibble about the coverage (or lack thereof) of their favorite mystery writers. The Editors of The Life of Crime pressured Edwards to “cut” and “reduce” his mammoth book. However, I’m pleased to report that Edwards managed to stave off many of the attempts to shrink his project. The result is a book that should be in the library of any serious reader of mysteries. GRADE: A+

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction — 1

Chapter 1 Revolution: Origins — 9

Chapter 2 Mystery and Imagination: Edgar Allan Poe and the First Detective Stories — 20

Chapter 3 Guilty Secrets: Sensation Novels — 29

Chapter 4 Detective Fever: Wilkie Collins, Charles Dickens, and Early Detective Fiction — 37

Chapter 5 Poacher Turned Gamekeeper: The French Revolution: Vidocq, Gaboriau and their Worldwide Influence — 49

Chapter 6: The Great Detective: Sherlock Holmes — 58

Chapter 7 Rogues’ Gallery: Raffles and Other Villains — 71

Chapter 8 The Nature of Evil: G. K. Chesterton and Faith and Sin in Detective Fiction — 81

Chapter 9 Plot Minds: Marie Belloc Lowndes and Edwardian-era Detective Fiction — 92

Chapter 10 The Science of Detection: R. Austin Freeman and Scientific Mysteries — 103

Chapter 11 Had-I-But-Known: Mary Roberts Rinehart and ‘Women in Jeopardy’ Novels — 116

Chapter 12 War and Peace: The First World War and Detective Fiction — 127

Chapter 13 Treacherous Impulses: Early Spy Fiction — 135

Chapter 14 The Mistress of Deception: Agatha Christie — 149

Chapter 15 American Tragedy: Van Dine and the American Golden Age — 162

Chapter 16 Superfluous Women: Queens of Crime — 174

Chapter 17 Challenging the Reader: Detection and Game-playing — 187

Chapter 18 Locked Rooms: ‘Impossible Crime’ Mysteries — 199

Chapter 19 The Long Arm of the Law: Early Police Stories — 212

Chapter 20 Blood-Simple: Dashiell Hammett — 223

Chapter 21 Murder and its Motives: True Crime — 234

Chapter 22 Twists of Fate: Francis Iles and Ironic Crime Fiction — 245

Chapter 23 The Sound of Mystery: Radio Mysteries — 259

Chapter 24 In Lonely Rooms: Raymond Chandler — 270

Chapter 25 Brothers in Crime: Patrick and Bruce Hamilton — 281

Chapter 26 Cracks in the Wall: Georges Simenon and European Crime Fiction — 291

Chapter 27 Sensation in Court: Legal Mysteries — 304

Chapter 28 California Dreaming: Crime Writers and Hollywood — 314

Chapter 29 Carnival of Crime: Mystery and the Macabre –326

Chapter 30 Waking Nightmares: Noir Fiction — 336

Chapter 31 Dagger of the Mind — 347

Chapter 32 Whose Body?: Whowasdunins: Mysteries about the Victim’s Identity — 355

Chapter 33 Private Wounds: Transitioning from the Golden Age — 365

Chapter 34 Out of this World: Traditional Detective Fiction Evolves in the United States — 375

Chapter 35 Perfect Murders: Crime and the End of Empire — 387

Chapter 36 Mind Games: Post-war Psychological Suspense — 398

Chapter 37 Deep Water: Patricia Highsmith — 410

Chapter 38 Forking Paths: Borges and Postmodernism — 418

Chapter 39 Bloody Murder: Julian Symons and Crime Fiction Criticism –429

Chapter 40 People with Ghosts: Post-war Private Investigators and the Legacy of Vietnam — 443

Chapter 41 Killing Jokes: Comedy and Crime — 454

Chapter 42 Literary Agents: Post-war Spy Fiction — 466

Chapter 43 Nerve: Adventure Novels and Thrillers — 480

Chapter 44 Outsider in Amsterdam: Dutch Crime — 490

Chapter 45 Whodunwhat?: Theatrical Murder — 502

Chapter 46 Black and Blue: British Police Fiction — 511

Chapter 47 Home Discomforts: Domestic Suspense — 522

Chapter 48 Mystery Games: East Asian Detective Fiction — 533

Chapter 49 Early Graves: Difference and Diversity — 545

Chapter 50 A Suitable Job for a Woman: Women Writing about Private Investigators — 560

Chapter 51 A Feeling for Snow: Scandinavian Crime Writing — 571

Chapter 52 Fatal Inversions: Ruth Rendell and Modern Psychological Suspense — 581

Chapter 53 Dark Places: American Police Fiction — 591

Chapter 54 Long Shadows: Historical Crime — 601

Chapter 55 A Taste for Death: P. D. James and the Truth about Human Character and Experience — 613

SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY — 623

Acknowledgements — 644

INDEX OF TITLES — 646

INDEX OF NAMES — 688

SUBJECT INDEX — 716