David Lehman, the insightful critic, has seen all the noir movies (multiple times) and has read the novels many of the noir movies are based on. Lehman celebrates Ida Lupino as The First Lady of Noir–his arguments convinced me. But Lehman doesn’t stop there: he expands the borders of noir.

What impressed me most was Lehman’s analysis of writers I don’t associate with noir: Rex Stout and Ed McBain. Lehman teases out noirish aspects of the Nero Wolfe series as well as the 87th Precinct novels.

Spying wraps noir around itself in the dark alleys and secret passages of le Carre, Graham Greene, and Eric Ambler. After reading Lehman’s intriguing chapters on spy craft, I wanted to drop everything and dive into the world of espionage and moles and double-dealing!

If you’re a fan of noir–movies and/or books–Lehman’s guided tour to the genre will impress and edify you. Highly recommended! GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction: The Mysterious Romance of Murder — 1

Part I. Killer Style

1. Cracking Wise — 45

2. Paradise of the Damned: Eighteen Notes on Noir — 52

3. Poetry Noir — 79

4. Five Noir Poems — 87

“Perfidia” –87

“Laura” — 88

“Witness to a Murder” 89

“The Formula” — 90

“Just a Couple of Mugs” — 91

Part II. The Elements of Crime

5. Here’s to Crime! — 95

6. The Last Cigarette — 103

7. Among My Souvenirs — 113

Part III. Auteurs

8. The Great British Spymasters — 125

9. The Limits of Logic: Trent’s Last Case (E. C. Bentley) — 140

10. Dashiell Hammett’s Priceless Patter — 144

11. Paperclip (Raymond Chandler) — 157

12. “Grim Grin” (Graham Greene) — 159

13. Rex Stout: The Emperor of Couronne de Canard — 161

14. Ida Lupino: The First Lady of Noir — 167

15. Black Friday (David Goodis) — 172

16. Orange Noir (Charles Willeford) — 175

17. Ed McBain: The Man from Isola — 178

18. Hitchcock’s America — 185

Part IV. Dreams That Money Can Buy

19. Straight Down the Line: Billy Wilder’s Double Indemnity (1944) — 213

20. Strangers and Mirrors: Orson Welles’s The Stranger (1946) and The Lady from Shanghai (1947) — 218

21. An Exchange of Bullets in Belfast: Carol Reed’s Odd Man Out (1947) — 222

22. Blind Accidents: John Huston’s The Asphalt Jungle (1950) — 226

23. Epitaph for a Genre: Stanley Kubrick’s The Killing (1956) — 230

24. Shadow of Evil: Robert Mitchum in Cape Fear (1962) — 234

25. A Reluctant Spy’s Conversion: William Holden in The Counterfeit Traitor (1962) — 238

26. Gangsters in Love: Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in America (1984) — 242

27. Rogues’ Gallery — 246

28. Why Not New York? — 252

Part V. The Imp of the Perverse

29. Three Astrological Profiles — 259

Barbara Stanwyck (July 16) — 259

Graham Greene (October 2) — 262

Marlene Dietrich (December 27) — 266

Author’s Note — 271

Authors and Books Index — 273

Film and Television Index — 278

Set in London, England in 1885 Of Manners and Murder (2023) starts off with a secret. Miss Hermione, the most popular advice columnist in England, is actually Adelia Manville. Violet Manville, who lives with her aunt, suddenly finds herself becoming the mysterious Miss Hermione when Aunt Adelia takes off on a European vacation.

Violet, a would-be scholar and recluse, is the opposite of her wealthy and frivolous step-sister, Sephora, who delights in being a social butterfly. Violet doesn’t tell Sephora that she is the new Miss Hermione–Sephora like most women of that time regards Miss Hermione’s advice as wise and correct.

One of Violet’s first letters asking Miss Hermione for advice involves a young woman who has recently married. Her concern revolves around the number of accidents that she’s involved with. When Violet goes to visit the woman who wrote the letter to Miss Hermione, she finds out the woman is dead. Violet immediately suspects foul play and starts her investigation.

Meanwhile, Sephora’s new boyfriend suddenly disappears and Sephora risks her life in the more dangerous neighborhoods of London looking for him. The sisters searching intersects as a murderous plot reveals itself. If you’re in the mood for a classic Victorian mystery, give Of Manners and Murder a try. GRADE: B

In the first minute of John Wick, Chapter Four John Wick kills four guys. Symbolic? John Wick has killed 299 Bad Guys in the first three John Wick movies. I stopped counting the bodies in this latest movie when I hit 100. And the movie had an hour more to go!

The High Table, a cartel of criminals and assassins, decides to punish The Manager (Ian McShane) for assisting John Wick by removing his hotel. The Marquis (Bill Skarsgard)–who rules The High Table–puts a $20 million dollar bounty on John Wick. The action shifts to Osaka where one of the most marvelous and stylized battle scenes on film takes place. The Continental, managed by John Wick’s friend, Shimazu (Hiroyuki Sanada) and his daughter Akira (singer Rina Sawayama), gets attacked by High Table henchmen. Choreographed violence erupts!

The High Table has also enlisted the blind assassin, Caine (Donnie Yen), to kill John Wick. The wild card in this plot is a tracker called “Mr. Nobody” (Shamier Anderson) who will locate John Wick for The High Table…for a price. Mr. Nobody’s dog steals the show!

The action moves to Berlin where John Wick has to take on criminal kingpin in order to get reestablished in his Family. The final scenes take place in Paris where John Wick is hunted by an army of mercenaries eager to collect the bounty. Wick has to climb 222 steps–defended by dozens of killers–to the Sacre-Coeur where he has a duel with Destiny.

If you’re a John Wick fan, you’ll find this latest movie the best of the bunch! Director Chad Stahelski and scriptwriters Shay Hatten and Michael Finch…and of course Keanu Reeves, all deserve top grades! GRADE: A

I’ve read most of Jack McDevitt’s SF novels and all of Alex Benedict series. Village in the Sky is the ninth book in the Alex Benedict series. Alex Benedict lives about 10,000 years in the future. He’s a specialist at finding historical artifacts/antiquities…and selling them. The Alex Benedict novels are narrated by his talented pilot, Chase Kolpath, where the pair usually face a baffling mystery in their searchers–and solve it.

Village in the Sky begins with a human exploration starship finding an alien village on a remote planet. But when a followup ship is sent to investigate, the aliens and the village is gone. Where did it go? Who are these aliens?

Alex Benedict, who loves a mystery–and the prospect of finding invaluable alien artifacts–assembles a team to travel to the planet where the aliens were first seen and then figure out where they went…and why.

My favorite Alex Benedict novel is Seeker which won a Nebula for Best SF novel of 2005. A Village in the Sky is a few steps below that classic. GRADE: C+

ALEX BENEDICT SERIES:

• A Talent for War (1989) (also published as part of Hello Out There)
• Polaris (2004), ISBN 0-441-01202-7
• Seeker (2005) – winner of Nebula Award for Best Novel, ISBN 0-441-01329-5
• The Devil’s Eye (2008), ISBN 0-441-01635-9
• Echo (2010), ISBN 0-441-01924-2
• Firebird (November 1, 2011), ISBN 0-441-02073-9
• Coming Home (November 4, 2014), ISBN 0-425-26087-9
• Octavia Gone (May 7, 2019), ISBN 0-481-49797-8
• Village in the Sky (Gallery Publishing Group/Saga Press, January 31, 2023), ISBN 978-1-66800-429-6

I listened to Rod Stewart, Human Nature (an Australian group), and Michael McDonald sing their favorite Mottown songs. All the participants in covering Motown classics show enthusiasm and energy singing these great songs. All of these guys are obviously involved in a Labor of Love in singing these songs. Of the cover artists, I’d have to go with the Human Nature group who put out not just one, but TWO albums of their interpretation of Motown hits. I think Rod Stewart just tries too hard and Michael McDonald’s distinctive voice doesn’t always work with the material he’s trying to interpret.

Are you a fan of Motown music? Do you listen to cover versions of your favorite Motown songs? Do you have a favorite Motown song? GRADE: B (For Rod and Michael; B+ for Human Nature)

TRACK LIST:

	Rod Stewart–	It’s The Same Old Song	4:15
	Rod Stewart Featuring Stevie Wonder–	My Cherie Amour	3:10
	Rod Stewart Duet With Mary J. Blige–	You Make Me Feel Brand New	4:36
	Rod Stewart–	(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher And Higher	3:21
	Rod Stewart Featuring Smokey Robinson–	Tracks Of My Tears	3:36
	Rod Stewart Duet With Jennifer Hudson–	Let It Be Me	3:16
	Rod Stewart–	Rainy Night In Georgia	4:13
	Rod Stewart–	What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted	3:19
	Rod Stewart–	Love Train	3:03
	Rod Stewart–	You’ve Really Got A Hold On Me	3:17
	Rod Stewart–	Wonderful World	3:33
	Rod Stewart–	If You Don’t Know Me By Now	3:59
	Rod Stewart–	Just My Imagination	3:35
		Bonus Tracks
	Rod Stewart–	Never Give You Up	3:24
	Rod Stewart–	Only The Strong Survive	3:19

TRACK LIST: (Reach Out)

		Reach Out I’ll Be There	3:15
		You Keep Me Hangin’ On	3:08
		Baby I Need Your Loving	3:09
		If You Don’t Know Me By Now	3:43
		I Heard It Through The Grapevine	3:26
		Twenty-Five Miles	3:25
		I’ll Be There	4:10
		My Girl	3:05
		I Want You Back	3:00
		Stop! In The Name Of Love	2:56
		You Are Everything	3:52
		The Tracks Of My Tears	2:52

TRACK LIST: (Dancing In the Street_

-1		Dancing In The Stree tWritten-By – Ivy Jo Hunter, Marvin Gaye, William Stevenson	4:25
1-2		Ain’t No Mountain High Enough Written-By – Nickolas Ashford, Valerie Simpson	4:25
1-3		ABCWritten-By – Berry Gordy, Deke Richards, Alphonso Mizell*, Frederick Perren	4:25
1-4		Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours Written-By – Lee Garrett, Lula Mae Hardaway*, Stevie Wonder, Syreeta Wright	4:25
1-5		You Can’t Hurry Love Written-By – Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, Edward Holland Jr	4:25
1-6		Ain’t Too Proud To Beg Written-By – Edward Holland Jr*, Norman Whitfield	4:25
1-7		What’s Going On Written-By – Al Cleveland, Marvin Gaye, Renaldo Benson	4:25
1-8		Uptight (Everything’s Alright) Written-By – Henry Cosby, Stevie Wonder, Sylvia Moy	4:25
1-9		Please Mr. Postman Written-By – Brian Holland, Freddie Gorman, Georgia Dobbins, Robert Bateman, William Garrett	4:25
1-10		I Can’t Get Next To You Written-By – Barrett Strong, Norman Whitfield	4:25
1-11		Midnight Train To Georgia Written-By – James D. Weatherly*	4:25
1-12		I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch) Written-By – Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, Edward Holland Jr*	4:25
1-13		What Becomes Of The Brokenhearted Written-By – James Dean, William Weatherspoon*, Paul Riser	4:25
1-14		Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me) Written-By – Barrett Strong, Norman Whitfield	4:25

TRACK LIST:

1		I Heard It Through The Grapevine	3:44
2		You Are Everything	2:48
3		Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours	4:07
4		I’m Gonna Make You Love Me	3:56
5		Ain’t Nothing Like The Real Thing	2:48
6		Reflections	3:22
7		How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)	5:21
8		Ain’t No Mountain High Enough	2:49
9		All In Love Is Fair	3:31
10		I Want You	4:28
11		Distant Lover	4:20
12		I Believe (When I Fall In Love It Will Be Forever)	5:05
13		Since I Lost My Baby	4:34
14		Too High (Performer [Uncredited] – Fourplay)	5:25

Will Murray is best known for his Doc Savage pastiches, but I suspect Lovecraft fans will enjoy this collection of Murray’s horror stories. In his Introduction, Murray discusses his attraction to Lovecraft and Cthulhu. I remember that in one of the ghosted novels in The Destroyer series that Murray wrote, there was a Cthulhu connection.

Several of these stories involve the Cryptic Events Evaluation Section of the Depart of Defense. This group of agents works to stop paranormal threats…but they aren’t always successful.

If you’re a fan of Cthulhu, Nyarlathotep, Azathoth, Yog-Sothoth, Shub-Niggurath, Nug, Yeb, and the Great Old Ones who lurk and scheme to take over the Earth, give The Wild Adventures of Cthulhu a try. GRADE: B

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction — ix

To Clear the Earth — 1

The Eldridge Collection — 17

Rude Awakening — 41

A Trillion Young — 57

Static — 89

The Sothis Radiant — 111

Dark Redeemer — 135

What Brings the Void — 161

The Hour of Our Triumph — 181

Black Fire — 201

Sources — 213

ABOUT THE AUTHOR — 215

ABOUT THE ARTIST — 219

I have always been a fan of Brian Garfield–writer of thrillers and westerns–so I did read his novel that this movie is based on. Garfield also wrote the screenplay for the movie version. Walter Matthau and Glenda Jackson are at the top of their games in this 1980 movie.

No way Hopscotch would be considered “commercial” nowadays, but Diane and I found it a lot of fun to watch. Matthau plays a spy whose boss thinks is “over the hill.” The movie begins with Matthau called back to CIA Headquarters after breaking up a spy ring in Germany. Matthau’s boss, played by a nasty Ned Beatty, plans to bury Matthau in the Records department until he retires. Matthau has other ideas.

Matthau flies to Austria to meet up with one of his former colleagues, the alluring Glenda Jackson. Matthau starts writing his memoirs where he tells all about the spy missions of the CIA, MI6, and the KGB. He sends copies of each chapter to those spy agencies–which causes panic!

The hunt for Matthau by the spies of three countries generates a lot of humor as Matthau shows what a veteran spy can do. If you’re in the mood for a clever spy movie, check out Hopscotch. This Criterion Collection version looks great! GRADE: B+

I like the Beatles and James Bond so I dove into John Higgs’s new book on how the group and the spy impacted the British Psyche (and the rest of the world’s psyche, too!). Higgs delivers some facts I was not aware of. I knew Ian Fleming was a “difficult” man but apparently that didn’t scare some women off. Fleming had an affair with Lady O’Neill who wrote him after a liaison in Dublin in 1947: “I loved cooking for you and sleeping beside you and being whipped by you and I don’t think I have ever loved like this before…. I love being hurt by you and kissed afterwards.” (p.23)

Higgs alternates between writing about Fleming and the Beatles and manages to deliver some acute analysis in both cases. “Love Me Do” was the first of 22 Beatle singles. “Written in 1958 when McCartney was sixteen, it was one of the fist songs he had ever written back when he was playing truant from school…. The A-side showcased John Lennon demanding to be loved, while the B-side ‘P.S. I Love You,’ featured Paul promising to love–a template which immediately established the core personality software the Lennon-McCarthney partnership.” (p. 72)

By the time Ian Fleming died in 1964, he had sold over 30 million books and made James Bond a cultural icon. And the James Bond Effect influenced the Beatles. For example, “Five days after the premiere of Goldfinger, McCartney became the proud owner of an Aston Martin, just like Bond’s famous DBS. ‘I’d just seen the first James Bond film and was quite impressed by the car,’ he recalled…. This was the car McCarney was driving when he stared compose the song ‘Hey Jude’… In 2017 McCartney’s Aston Martin was sold at auction for 1,345,500 pounds.” (p. 123)

I highly recommend Love and Let Die to all fans of James Bond and the Beatles! GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction — 1

PART 1: INITIATE COUNTDOWN — 13

1945: There’s nobody to talk to when it’s raining –15

1952: All of his own darkness –22

1956: I would have liked to have seen the boys growing up — 37

1960: A notorious centre for prostitution — 48

1961: Unashamedly, for pleasure and money — 55

1962: Glutted with the overload of stuff — 63

PART 2: DETONATE — 69

1962: Bigger than the Beatles — 71

1962: Sean Connery (1930-2020) — 81

1963: There are truths in that dreaming — 89

1964: Ian Fleming (1908-1964) — 96

1964: A film with four long-haired schnooks — 104

1965: It would take too much else away — 111

1965: Not as good as James Bond — 120

1965: Greater than the sum of their parts — 126

1965: The things I do for England — 130

1967: What did he want to communicate? — 137

1967: Larger than reality — 146

1967: 007 (Shanty Town) — 157

1967: Welles was trying to put a voodoo mind-grip on him — 164

1968: On the banks of the River Ganges — 173

1968: Yoko and Billy — 189

1969: John, Paul and James get married — 200

1969: George Lazenby’s hair — 209

1969: Paul is dead — 219

PART 3: AFTERMATH — 225

1970: Answer: No — 227

1970: Mother/Love — 233

1970: The best — 241

1970: Phil and Allen — 249

1971: To deny that love was desirable — 257

1973: Christopher Lee (1922- 2015) — 263

1973: The problem is Bond — 271

1974: In the material world — 282

1977: Risking their lives for the audience’s entertainment — 297

1980: The no-mark — 306

1980: John Lennon (1950-1980) — 311

1981: For a true artist their life is their art — 324

PART 4: GROW UP, 007 — 333

1983: A symbol of real value to the Free World — 335

1984: Wacky Macca Thumbs Aloft –342

1995: Too much of a good time — 354

1999: Desmond Llewelyn (1914-2001) — 365

2001: George Harrison (1943-2000) — 371

2002: The fate of the pixels — 379

2003: Come on, Mr. Putin! — 388

2008: The death of Strawberry Fields — 401

2012: A golden thread of purpose — 408

2015: What is the new evil in the world? — 421

2021: Time to die — 434

2021: Ringo and Paul — 444

2022: James Bond will return — 453

Bibliography — 467

Notest and Sources — 473

Acknowledgements — 501

Index — 503

Set in New Orleans, Sisters of the Sublime Blood face arson and murder in their midst.

Fortunately, they have Sister Holiday–a chain-smoking, heavily tattooed, queer nun–with a talent for solving mysteries. Whether you will enjoy this book heavily depends on whether you’re engaged by Sister Holiday’s narration of this story.

When Saint Sebastian’s School becomes the target of a shocking arson and a murder, the list of suspects include both faculty and students. Sister Holiday knows all of them which complicates some of her investigation. Naturally, the Police do not appreciate Sister Holiday’s efforts.

The investigation leads Sister Holiday to a series of secrets hidden behind the walls of Saint Sebastian’s School. Someone wants Sister Holiday discredited as clues are planted to frame her for the crimes.

You might experience the sense of skepticism that I had for a hard-boiled nun. But I found Scorched Grace mildly engaging for a first mystery novel. Quirky and different. GRADE: C+

Diane and I have enjoyed watching Ted Lasso on Apple TV+. It’s the story of a U.S. football coach who knows nothing about soccer but who has been hired to coach a mediocre British soccer team. Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis) has a kind heart but plenty of problems. His ex-wife is dating their marriage counselor and their son…is strange. The cast is brilliant. Everyone loves Brett Goldstein as the crusty Roy Kent, a veteran player who becomes a coach.

My favorite is Hannah Waddingham as Rebecca Welton, the new owner of AFC Richmond. Welton initially hires Lasso as a ploy to sabotage the team, but now wants Lasso to beat her ex-husband’s highly ranked soccer team.

The first episode sets the stage for the 12-episode final season of Ted Lasso. Lasso’s team is ranked 20th in a league of 20 teams. They are a laughing stock in the soccer community. But Ted can work magic so we’ll have to see how it all comes out. Are you a fan of Ted Lasso? GRADE: Too soon to tell but trending towards an A