My wife and I recently watched all the classic Columbo episodes and loved them. I’d like Columbo to solve my murder, because it means a rich person killed me and I want that one percenter to squirm.
Nobody can touch the lineup included in the NBC Mystery Movie series on Sunday nights in the early 1970’s, which rotated through “Columbo,” “McCloud,” “McMillan & Wife,” “Hec Ramsey,” and “Banacek” - classic detective stuff!
“So the crime stories are working for you?” Todd asked. “No, I think it’s the drugs. But the crime spree helps.” Hah! Right on, Michael! Bosch is noble and driven, but to accompany MY drugs, the delicious, brooding Jimmy Perez ( Shetland) would be my first choice. And the brilliant, taciturn, soft-hearted Jesse Stone, a very close second. I prefer my crime solvers flawed.
I was expecting that you were committing actual crimes, like jaywalking or reusing postage stamps. But then your admission would be used against you. (I’ve been watching Adam-12 reruns aka cop-ganda according to my kid).
I can’t wait until FBI/NCIS/SWAT/Law & Order/CIS are cancelled. I guess I prefer crime stories where no one is physically hurt.
Instead of mysteries, I binge on romance novels/historical romances, because I believe in hope.
As I was reading your post (before I got to the Bosch part) I thought he needs to read/watch Bosch! I watched them all and in process of reading the books which aren’t in the same order as the series episodes.
If you’re looking for funny and crime combined try Deadloch on Prime
Everything bagel toasted with veggie cream cheese or if I want some protein jalapeño bagel with egg and cheese Yum!
1. Hubby and I had Covid last week and binged on Harlan Coban's Safe, on Netflix. Really good.
3. I haven't watched Bosch and I went to college with Titus. Me bad former classmate. He did accept my friend request a few years ago on FB. He was always a cool dude. Glad to see he wasn't above-it.
I am not much of a hard-boiled, noir thriller reader, but in the past I ate up Dick Francis books (lots on audiobook, frequently discounted on Chirp) definitely more like a thriller, the joke becomes how often the protagonist gets beat up, but I find the background and world he created always fascinating. Currently, loving listening to Carl Hiassen because of his wacky humor and characters. My husband's tase seems more like yours in terms of audiobooks, he mentioned the Reacher series, Robert Parker's series, Ross MacDonald's Lew Archer series, Robert Crais’s Elvis Cole.
I have probably read more crime stuff over the last 18 months or so than I ever had before. I’ve read James Ellroy’s American Tabloid trilogy, the fourth Thursday Murder Club (and maybe the third too … definitely read all four … but over a bit longer time), My Murder by Katie Willams, and a couple kinda murder-y/crime-y ones … Julie Clark’s The Last Flight, and Jordan Harper’s Everybody Knows.
Great post! I love crime novels! Harry Bosch and Lexapro have kept me going for at least the past decade. I think you’d really enjoy Robert Crais’s Elvis Cole novels as well.
1. A lot. We should talk.
2. Coben’s Myron Bolitar books are fun, but formulaic. Good popcorn.
3. Unless I was murdered in Edinburgh — then it would be John Rebus.
4. Haven’t watched it. I’ve been watching mostly gritty Brit crime shows.
5. Sesame bagel with lox. A thin slice of red onion on that is nice too - hold the capers. Hmm —capers…
Here, I gotcha! I write about Bosch, Shetland, shows and movies you might like if you’ve watched shows like that, and the best in crime fiction out now and coming out later in 2024.
Heat is such a good flick. That said, I can’t do crime books. I tried - read a crime thriller last year called Blood Sugar - and I think my big problem is I never find the dialogue to be very good in those books, nor do I usually think the writing as a whole is that great. Throwaway writing just brings me down, and I can’t even enjoy a compelling story line if the writing’s bad. Change my mind if you can/want to?
Comedy: I watched Dave Attell’s new special on Netflix. Funny funny funny in a tight, 40 minute set. Highly recommend.
I’m a bagel snob (feel like we’ve discussed this before?) and I can’t abide a bagel outside of the tri-state area. But my go to is an everything bagel (MUST HAVE SALT AS ONE OF THE EVERYTHING) with veggie cream cheese. Mmmm….
All of Michael Connelly's series are great. Bosch for the Who Done It and Lincoln Lawyer for the Who didn't.
Other crime authors I like.
Johnathan Kellerman for the crime solving Child Psychologist. I've read of his lately. His wife Faye writes the crime books with a Jewish angle.
I haven't read Lawrence Block's Matthew Scudder books in a while, but they are pretty good.
If you want to watch nicely done adaptations instead of reading, several of the Harlan Coben stories are on Netflix. And Lee Child's Reacher stories are on Amazon.
And I'll go for a toasted onion bagel with cream cheese.
I'd choose Bosch to investigate my murder since he doesn't give up on his cases.
When feeling down, I like humorous reads. Staying on the crime theme, any of Tim Dorsey's Serge novels about the Serge, the crazy criminal or Donald Westlake's books about the inept criminals
Would it be a crime to mention the crime story I’m serializing right here in Substack? Or maybe it’d be a crime not to mention it?
I tell the story of a young woman who makes a few wrong life choices and enters a world of organized crime. It’s set 25 years into the Near Future. For anyone who’s interested, the link is below.
(1) I know I'm coming late to this, but my current favourite show is 'Ozark'. My wife can't stand anything with tension, etc., so I get to watch these things when and if I can. Currently, I'm deep into Season 2 - and highly recommend it.
(2) Typically, I don't have any 'comfort' reads. But if I want to remind myself of what's really important, I read a few poems by Coleridge. In particular, 'My Lime Tree Bower My Prison' and 'Frost at Midnight'. I know this sounds fully pretentious, but that's only because no one reads these poems these days. They're fucking amazing.
(3) 'Doc' Sportello from Thomas Pynchon's 'Inherent Vice'. Because that's the kind of motherfucker I'd want looking into my death.
(4) N/A . Despite strong recommendations from my brother, I've still not seen any of these.
(5) It's the Montreal Smoked Meat bagel at Siegel's Bagels in Vancouver, Canada. The BEST bagel I have ever eaten, hands down.
I’m taking your suggestions on crime because I loved the Bosch shows and I’m pretty sure I’m watching Tokyo Vice for the 2nd time. Getting old has the advantage of forgetting a lot of what I’ve read and watched. I will add my +1 for Wellbutrin XL. Much better for me than Zoloft as far as the side effect.
My wife and I recently watched all the classic Columbo episodes and loved them. I’d like Columbo to solve my murder, because it means a rich person killed me and I want that one percenter to squirm.
Nobody can touch the lineup included in the NBC Mystery Movie series on Sunday nights in the early 1970’s, which rotated through “Columbo,” “McCloud,” “McMillan & Wife,” “Hec Ramsey,” and “Banacek” - classic detective stuff!
“So the crime stories are working for you?” Todd asked. “No, I think it’s the drugs. But the crime spree helps.” Hah! Right on, Michael! Bosch is noble and driven, but to accompany MY drugs, the delicious, brooding Jimmy Perez ( Shetland) would be my first choice. And the brilliant, taciturn, soft-hearted Jesse Stone, a very close second. I prefer my crime solvers flawed.
I was expecting that you were committing actual crimes, like jaywalking or reusing postage stamps. But then your admission would be used against you. (I’ve been watching Adam-12 reruns aka cop-ganda according to my kid).
I can’t wait until FBI/NCIS/SWAT/Law & Order/CIS are cancelled. I guess I prefer crime stories where no one is physically hurt.
Instead of mysteries, I binge on romance novels/historical romances, because I believe in hope.
As I was reading your post (before I got to the Bosch part) I thought he needs to read/watch Bosch! I watched them all and in process of reading the books which aren’t in the same order as the series episodes.
If you’re looking for funny and crime combined try Deadloch on Prime
Everything bagel toasted with veggie cream cheese or if I want some protein jalapeño bagel with egg and cheese Yum!
1. Hubby and I had Covid last week and binged on Harlan Coban's Safe, on Netflix. Really good.
3. I haven't watched Bosch and I went to college with Titus. Me bad former classmate. He did accept my friend request a few years ago on FB. He was always a cool dude. Glad to see he wasn't above-it.
I am not much of a hard-boiled, noir thriller reader, but in the past I ate up Dick Francis books (lots on audiobook, frequently discounted on Chirp) definitely more like a thriller, the joke becomes how often the protagonist gets beat up, but I find the background and world he created always fascinating. Currently, loving listening to Carl Hiassen because of his wacky humor and characters. My husband's tase seems more like yours in terms of audiobooks, he mentioned the Reacher series, Robert Parker's series, Ross MacDonald's Lew Archer series, Robert Crais’s Elvis Cole.
I have probably read more crime stuff over the last 18 months or so than I ever had before. I’ve read James Ellroy’s American Tabloid trilogy, the fourth Thursday Murder Club (and maybe the third too … definitely read all four … but over a bit longer time), My Murder by Katie Willams, and a couple kinda murder-y/crime-y ones … Julie Clark’s The Last Flight, and Jordan Harper’s Everybody Knows.
Great post! I love crime novels! Harry Bosch and Lexapro have kept me going for at least the past decade. I think you’d really enjoy Robert Crais’s Elvis Cole novels as well.
1. A lot. We should talk.
2. Coben’s Myron Bolitar books are fun, but formulaic. Good popcorn.
3. Unless I was murdered in Edinburgh — then it would be John Rebus.
4. Haven’t watched it. I’ve been watching mostly gritty Brit crime shows.
5. Sesame bagel with lox. A thin slice of red onion on that is nice too - hold the capers. Hmm —capers…
Here, I gotcha! I write about Bosch, Shetland, shows and movies you might like if you’ve watched shows like that, and the best in crime fiction out now and coming out later in 2024.
https://open.substack.com/pub/onlymurdersintheinbox/p/only-murders-in-the-inbox-411?r=18fji&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
Heat is such a good flick. That said, I can’t do crime books. I tried - read a crime thriller last year called Blood Sugar - and I think my big problem is I never find the dialogue to be very good in those books, nor do I usually think the writing as a whole is that great. Throwaway writing just brings me down, and I can’t even enjoy a compelling story line if the writing’s bad. Change my mind if you can/want to?
Comedy: I watched Dave Attell’s new special on Netflix. Funny funny funny in a tight, 40 minute set. Highly recommend.
I’m a bagel snob (feel like we’ve discussed this before?) and I can’t abide a bagel outside of the tri-state area. But my go to is an everything bagel (MUST HAVE SALT AS ONE OF THE EVERYTHING) with veggie cream cheese. Mmmm….
All of Michael Connelly's series are great. Bosch for the Who Done It and Lincoln Lawyer for the Who didn't.
Other crime authors I like.
Johnathan Kellerman for the crime solving Child Psychologist. I've read of his lately. His wife Faye writes the crime books with a Jewish angle.
I haven't read Lawrence Block's Matthew Scudder books in a while, but they are pretty good.
If you want to watch nicely done adaptations instead of reading, several of the Harlan Coben stories are on Netflix. And Lee Child's Reacher stories are on Amazon.
And I'll go for a toasted onion bagel with cream cheese.
I'd choose Bosch to investigate my murder since he doesn't give up on his cases.
When feeling down, I like humorous reads. Staying on the crime theme, any of Tim Dorsey's Serge novels about the Serge, the crazy criminal or Donald Westlake's books about the inept criminals
Would it be a crime to mention the crime story I’m serializing right here in Substack? Or maybe it’d be a crime not to mention it?
I tell the story of a young woman who makes a few wrong life choices and enters a world of organized crime. It’s set 25 years into the Near Future. For anyone who’s interested, the link is below.
https://tdalton.substack.com/s/the-education-of-lisa-rose
Well ...
(1) I know I'm coming late to this, but my current favourite show is 'Ozark'. My wife can't stand anything with tension, etc., so I get to watch these things when and if I can. Currently, I'm deep into Season 2 - and highly recommend it.
(2) Typically, I don't have any 'comfort' reads. But if I want to remind myself of what's really important, I read a few poems by Coleridge. In particular, 'My Lime Tree Bower My Prison' and 'Frost at Midnight'. I know this sounds fully pretentious, but that's only because no one reads these poems these days. They're fucking amazing.
(3) 'Doc' Sportello from Thomas Pynchon's 'Inherent Vice'. Because that's the kind of motherfucker I'd want looking into my death.
(4) N/A . Despite strong recommendations from my brother, I've still not seen any of these.
(5) It's the Montreal Smoked Meat bagel at Siegel's Bagels in Vancouver, Canada. The BEST bagel I have ever eaten, hands down.
I’m taking your suggestions on crime because I loved the Bosch shows and I’m pretty sure I’m watching Tokyo Vice for the 2nd time. Getting old has the advantage of forgetting a lot of what I’ve read and watched. I will add my +1 for Wellbutrin XL. Much better for me than Zoloft as far as the side effect.
I’m glad you’ve found a quality vent. It sounds like it makes a dent.
1. I’m catching up on Brubaker and Philips’s Criminal comic series. Brilliant stuff.
2. I lean heavily into sci-fi comics when things feel off. It’s my second home, beyond punchlines.
3. I’ll let Sam Vimes tilt it, just for the lines. Though my few enemies don’t get subtlety, so it won’t be much of a challenge.
4. Just starting the show. Wish me luck.
5. I have been mocked and banished far and wide for my bagel orders. I now maintain paranoid silence.