Home Articles posted by J. Kingston Pierce
J. Kingston Pierce
J. Kingston Pierce is a longtime Seattle journalist, whose addiction to crime, mystery, and thriller fiction is clearly beyond curing. In addition to editing The Rap Sheet (http://therapsheet.blogspot.com/), a blog focused on crime fiction, he writes the book design-oriented blog Killer Covers (http://killercoversoftheweek.blogspot.com/) and is a columnist for Down & Out: The Magazine.
The Case of Perry Mason’s Courtroom Cousin
In 1936, Erle Stanley Gardner was thinking of killing off his most famous character. Instead, he created a new kind of lawyer.
The Lost Art of the "Cast of Characters" Lists That Opened Midcentury Mystery Novels
Wordplay, witty insults, and the occasionally lurid remark rounded out a popular feature of paperback crime novels.
The Unconventional Private Eyes of Stanley Ellin
A master of the short story, Ellin's detective novels are now mostly forgotten. They shouldn't be.
The Agatha Christie Centennial: 100 Years of The Mysterious Affair at Styles
Christie's debut novel was famously rejected by a host of publishers. Many, many editions later, it's an iconic mystery.
How America Once Fell in Love with Mystery “Wheels”
In the 1960s, TV executives came up with a novel way of delivering Americans their mysteries—the "wheel"
Seattle: Primed and Ready for Crime Fiction Fame
Exploring the city's history and character, through crime novels
1970s Crime Fiction
and The Incredible Rise of 'Regional' Noir
In the 1970s and 80s, Boston, Seattle, Detroit, and other regional cities became the new capitals of crime fiction.
Tom Nolan on the Enduring Legacy of Ross Macdonald
And Why the Noir Icon's Work Still Resonates So Powerfully
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