Breaking news: It's goodbye Sam Shephard, for now...

Many Crime Watch readers will be familiar (or at least have heard or read about) Dunedin author Vanda Symon's impressive Sam Shephard series. Symon introduced her sassy heroine as a sole-charge rural cop in OVERKILL, before moving Sam to the big smoke of Dunedin, where Sam has found herself on the lower rungs of the detective ladder with the local CID, battling all sorts of criminals and personal issues over the course of three more very good books.

Symon was a finalist for the inaugural Ngaio Marsh Award last year, for her third Sam Shephard book, CONTAINMENT, which international judges said had "an attractive series heroine (feisty but vulnerable)" and started with a "superb" opening scene that by itself would make them "want to read more Vanda Symon". Earlier this year Symon's fourth Sam Shephard book, BOUND, debuted at #1 on the NZ Adult Fiction Bestseller charts, and got great reviews. For me, BOUND is Symon's best book yet, and one of my top books of the year, so far - and I'm sure it will be a strong contender for the 2012 Ngaio Marsh Award.

However, like many other crime top writers who pen terrific continuing characters, Symon has also been interested in writing a standalone story; something a little different, perhaps darker. So her next book will not star Sam Shephard. While this will no doubt be disappointing to many people who've come to see Shephard as one of the best new crime fiction protagonists around, it is also exciting to see what Symon will come up with in her new novel, completely unrestricted from continuing characters and familiar settings etc.

Symon has announced today announced on her personal blog that she has finished the manuscript for THE FACELESS, her first standalone thriller. It is likely to be released in early 2012. Earlier this year when I interviewed Symon for an article in the Weekend Herald (read here), we also discussed stepping away from Sam with a darker standalone thriller, which she was in the "early days" of working on at the time.

I can reveal that Symon told me that THE FACELESS  is "set in Auckland... it's crime fiction, but not a detective story in the police procedural sense... it's a bit darker". The story revolves around a kidnapping, and is told from the perspectives of three people, the victim, the kidnapper, and a witness who ends up investigating what has happened. "It's fun to be writing from different perspectives," said Symon. "I love writing about Sam, but it's nice to have a wee break."

It will be interesting to see how readers and the media respond. Hopefully THE FACELESS might do for Symon what darker standalone thrillers have done for some other terrific authors who'd got good reviews, perhaps been shortlisted for or won awards, and were seen as top quality writers for their recurring character novels, but then saw their popularity and wide appeal really take a massive jump on the back of such a book (eg THE POET for Michael Connelly, NO TIME FOR GOODBYE for Linwood Barclay, TELL NO ONE for Harlan Coben). Particularly in the case of Connelly and Coben, readers have flocked to their earlier books (starring Harry Bosch and Myron Bolitar, respectively) and then the ongoing series, after first coming across the author due to their darker standalones. Hopefully something of the same may happen for Symon, who I believe is a world-class crime writer deserving to be read widely beyond New Zealand shores.

What do you think of Symon writing a darker standalone novel - that's not set in Dunedin? Have you read her Sam Shephard books? What do you think of Sam as a character? Comments welcome.

H is for HUNTING BLIND

Apologies for the delayed Crime Fiction Alphabet post this week - it's continued to be a crazy busy time here. FYI, while the news cameras around the world may have turned away, and viewers have got a little earthquake-fatigued, the recovery continues in Christchurch. So click here for ways you can help with earthquake relief, no matter where in the world you may be.

But the Crime Fiction Alphabet rolls on, and our intrepid book bloggers out there around the blogosphere (and the globe) have this week been tapping away at their keyboards in creation of great, gripping posts related to the letter 'H'.

For my second go around at the Crime Fiction Alphabet (read my 2010 posts here), I've set myself the challenging task of focusing not only just on New Zealand-themed posts, but just on Kiwi crime fiction books (ie I won't do any author profiles etc this time around) - although sometimes it may be the author's name that is relevant to the letter of the week.

So this week I'm featuring HUNTING BLIND by Paddy Richardson, which was a #1 New Zealand bestseller last year, and was selected as one of the NZ Listener's 100 Best Books. Here is my review I wrote for WildTomato magazine (which has previously not been published online):

Dunedin novelist and short story writer Paddy Richardson recently released her latest psychological thriller, Hunting Blind; a tale centring on the all-too-realistic situation of a young girl disappearing, leaving a family and community devastated.

It starts at a summertime school picnic by a picturesque lake; the last time little Gemma Anderson is ever seen. Seventeen years later, older sister Stephanie is working as a trainee psychiatrist, helping heal holes in others’ lives, while never having truly addressed her own. When a new patient shares a story that seems strikingly familiar, Stephanie is spurred to revisit her past, embarking on a journey that takes her from the West Coast to Kaikoura, and eventually back to her long-abandoned childhood home of Wanaka. All in a quest to find out what really happened all those years ago.

Having been a touch underwhelmed by Richardson’s earlier thriller, A Year to Learn a Woman, I opened her latest book with some trepidation. What I found was an accomplished and compelling novel from a writer that has clearly stepped up, honed her style, and found her ‘voice’. She evokes a nice sense of South Island small towns, and takes readers into the aftermath of high-profile tragedies; the ongoing effects after the media circus leaves, and the rest of the country forgets. The plot lags a little in the second quarter (several chapters of psychiatry sessions) before kicking into high gear, but overall Hunting Blind is an enjoyable page-turner - a very good weekend read.

Have you read HUNTING BLIND? If so, what did you think? Are you following the Crime Fiction Alphabet? Thoughts and comments welcome.

Kiwi readers starting to catch on to local crime wave?

In some more fantastic news on the New Zealand crime fiction front, the weekly bestseller lists published today have seen Vanda Symon's latest Sam Shephard novel, BOUND, deservedly debut at the #1 position on the New Zealand Adult Fiction bestseller list!

I'm very pleased for Symon, who has been writing terrific crime novels for several years. Hopefully this is a sign that her audience is growing, as I'm sure that many more readers would really enjoy her Sam Shephard tales, and become hooked on the series, if they just gave them a go.

On a wider New Zealand crime fiction front, it's also another push in what is hopefully a growing wave, in terms of recognition for our own good and great indigenous crime storytellers. After local crime fiction being overlooked for far too long, in recent times we've seen Lindy Kelly, Paddy Richardson, Ben Sanders, and now Vanda Symon all top the New Zealand Adult Fiction bestseller list, along with others like Paul Cleave and Paul Thomas make the top 5. I'm sure that the more New Zealand readers give New Zealand crime fiction a go, the more things will progress for our local authors. Their stories sure are good enough - they just need the readers to overcome any residual cultural cringe, give them a chance, and find out for themselves. In my experience, they won't be disappointed.

BOUND has been receiving many great reviews (I will post some links in the near future), so hopefully it will continue to sell well. Congratulations to Vanda Symon on her #1 bestseller - hopefully it's just the start of many more great things to come.

NB: For those in New Zealand, you should be able to pick up your own copy of BOUND from any good bookstore. You can also purchase it online at the likes of Mighty Ape, who are offering it at a special price at the moment (see here).

Have you read BOUND? Do you intend to? Do you buy New Zealand novels, crime or otherwise? Should NZ readers support NZ writers more? Comments welcome.

Dream debut continues for #1 bestseller Ben Sanders

What a month it's been for young North Shore crime writer Ben Sanders.

Over the past few weeks he and his debut novel, THE FALLEN, have been featured by several of New Zealand's biggest media players (eg the Weekend Herald, the Sunday Star-Times, TVNZ), and mentioned in several others as well, and now for the third week in a row THE FALLEN sits atop the New Zealand Adult Fiction bestseller list!

You can watch a short 5mins long clip of Ben Sanders being interviewed by Paul Henry and Pippa Wetzell on Breakfast, the popular TVNZ morning show here. For those of you outside of Australia and New Zealand, I understand a Kindle edition of THE FALLEN is due to be released on Amazon.com in September.

Paul Thomas's IHAKA TRILOGY (Old School Tie, Inside Dope and Guerilla Season) also holds its place at #3 in its third week on the charts. With Alix Bosco's SLAUGHTER FALLS also out now, Donna Malane's SURRENDER coming out in September, and the publicity being generated about New Zealand crime fiction in the lead-up to the presentation of the inaugural Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel, at The Press Christchurch Writers' Festival, in just two weeks' time, hopefully Kiwi readers will continue to give our locally-written crime novels a go.

Have you read THE FALLEN? Are you intending to? Do you think it's a contender for the 2011 Ngaio Marsh Award? What other great Kiwi crime have you read this year? What are your thoughts on the increasing publicity and prominence (relatively speaking) of Kiwi crime fiction lately? Long overdue? A cause for optimism? A false dawn? Thoughts and comments welcome.

Kiwi crime holds #1 bestseller spot!

In further great news for Kiwi crime fiction in general, and young debutant Ben Sanders in particular, THE FALLEN has retained the #1 spot on the New Zealand Adult Fiction bestseller list in its second week of release!

This is great news, and the first time in a long time that I can remember a New Zealand crime novel topping the local bestseller list for two weeks running. Hopefully this is the start of a trend (or further growth of a trend that had already slowly started) of New Zealand readers being a bit more willing to buy and try our local crime and thriller authors.

With all the great things happening, the media starting to talk about Kiwi crime a bit more, and with the upcoming The Press Christchurch Writers' Festival, the inaugural Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel, and some other upcoming articles in major publications (eg The Listener) on Kiwi crime, I really feel something is building here.

In further good news, THE IHAKA TRILOGY by Paul Thomas also rose from #8 on the bestseller list last week, to #3 this week. Hopefully as a bit more publicity comes out about SLAUGHTER FALLS (there has been little if anything yet), which has also recently been released, that may also jump up onto the list. It would be great to have a Kiwi crime trifecta.

You can read my review of THE FALLEN, as published in the Canvas magazine of the Weekend Herald, here. You can read an interview with Sanders by Mark Broatch of the Sunday Star-Times here.


Have you read THE FALLEN? Are you intending to? What are your thoughts on the increasing publicity and prominence (relatively speaking) of Kiwi crime fiction lately? Long overdue? A cause for optimism? A false dawn? Thoughts and comments welcome.

#1 with a bullet: debut crime writer Ben Sanders tops Kiwi bestseller list with THE FALLEN

The hits keep on coming for Kiwi crime fiction, with the most recent NZ Adult Fiction Bestseller list being topped by THE FALLEN by Ben Sanders, a 21-year old debutant Kiwi crime writer! THE FALLEN, which I recently reviewed for the Weekend Herald - see here, jumped straight to the top spot in its first week on the charts, which is fantastic.

That's the second #1 placing for Kiwi crime this year (after Paddy Richardson's HUNTING BLIND likewise topped the charts), and hopefully these sorts of placings and publicity will continue to open up Kiwi readers eyes to the quality of local crime, and start to overcome those horrible reader stats in Mark Broatch's excellent feature article in today's Sunday Star-Times.

Paul Thomas's IHAKA TRILOGY (Old School Tie, Inside Dope & Guerilla Season) also slots in at #8 in its first week on the charts. With Alix Bosco's SLAUGHTER FALLS also out now, and Donna Malane's SURRENDER coming out in September, hopefully Kiwi crime fiction can take a few positions on the charts in the coming weeks.

You can see the latest bestseller list here.

UK #1 bestseller Peter James in New Zealand this month!

When it rains, it pours, as they say. There are now six major international crime and thriller writers heading to New Zealand shores in the next few weeks - along with Simon Kernick and Michael Robotham, who will be appearing at The Press Christchurch Writers' Festival, 2010 Theakstons award winner RJ Ellory and 2010 CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger recipient Val McDermid are also touring in August and September, and now news is filtering through that another two big-name bestsellers from overseas will be here in August as well.

Peter James, the award-winning author of the Roy Grace series - the latest of which, DEAD LIKE YOU jumped straight to #1 on the UK Sunday Times bestseller list on its first week of publication earlier this year - will be in New Zealand on 30 and 31 August. Event details have not yet been confirmed, but I understand James will be appearing at a public event in Takapuna (Auckland's North Shore) on the evening of Tuesday 31 August. I will bring you more details as soon as they come to hand.

In an interesting aside, when DEAD LIKE YOU shot straight to the top of the UK charts, it was reportedly the first time in several years that that master of mystery writing marketing, James Patterson, was prevented from going straight to #1 with his latest book.

In DEAD LIKE YOU, the sixth in the award-winning Detective Superintendant Roy Grace series set in James's hometown of Brighton, a woman is brutally raped as she returns to her room at the Metropole Hotel after a New Years' Eve ball. A week later, another woman is attacked. Both victims’ shoes are taken by the offender . . .

Roy Grace soon realises that these new cases bear remarkable similarities to an unsolved series of crimes in the city back in 1997. The perpetrator had been dubbed ‘Shoe Man’ and was believed to have raped five women before murdering his sixth victim and vanishing. Could this be a copycat, or has Shoe Man resurfaced?

When more women are assaulted, Grace becomes increasingly certain that they are dealing with the same man. And that by delving back into the past - a time in which we see Grace and his missing wife Sandy still apparently happy together - he may find the key to unlocking the current mystery. Soon Grace and his team will find themselves in a desperate race against the clock to identify and save the life of the new sixth victim . .

Are you a Peter James fan? Will you be keen to see him in New Zealand? Have you read any of his Roy Grace books, or his earlier spy thrillers and paranormal work (that saw him called the 'British Stephen King' at one point)? Thoughts and comments welcome.