THIS WEEK: Val McDermid, creator of Tony Hill, Carol Jordan, and other icons of modern crime fiction, was born in Kirkcaldy, Scotland.
    • Examining Houston, a sprawling, evolving, diverse city that’s finally getting the “noir” treatment it deserves. | Texas Observer
    • Catching up with legendary litigator, F. Lee Bailey, who’s speaking more freely than ever and has some opinions to share on his famous trials, colleagues, and a few enemies. | Huff Post Highline
    • A look at the long roots of Sherlock Holmes in India, and the many spin-offs and spoofs by Indian authors featuring the great detective. | The Hindu
    • Sarah Weinman speaks with the survivors of the real attacker behind the Central Park Five case, bringing their stories together for the first time. | The Cut / New York Magazine
    • “I couldn’t shake the reality that the crime pages were offering me variations of Tom Ripley.” James Polchin on the relationship between crime fiction and the history of the “queer criminal.” | CrimeReads
    • The many shades of complex villains in psychological thrillers: Nathan Ripley on despicable, but multifaceted characters. | CrimeReads
    • The new wave of true crime—from My Favorite Murder to true crime-memoir hybrids—is spearheaded by women. Scarlett Harris on bearing witness to the lives of women. | CrimeReads
    • Maria Hummel on painter and Washington socialite Mary Pinchot Meyer, whose unsolved murder has been linked to the assassination of JFK. | CrimeReads
    • Agatha Christie kept her novels deliberately short. So why are these new adaptations so long? Radha Vatsal investigates. | CrimeReads
    • Podcast correspondent Emily Stein breaks down all the best true crime podcasts to listen to this summer, with new obsessions for all tastes. | CrimeReads
    • Jacqueline and Eileen Nearne, sisters and spies, were some of the most decorated veterans of WWII. Jennifer Ryan on their wartime heroics and postwar obscurity. | CrimeReads
    • David Milch and James Ellroy have dark, twisted visions of American history and surprisingly similar paths toward the hope of redemption. Zach Vasquez investigates. | CrimeReads
    • Timothy Jay Smith chooses the best classic and contemporary Cold War spy novels that will make you question whether the era has actually ended. | CrimeReads
    • “If we ignore or bury history, we miss half of the clues that will solve the case.” Karen Lord on six works that explore small crimes within larger landscapes of injustice. | CrimeReads
    • From the Golden Age to the present day, Oxford has inspired many a crime. Travel to the famed university town with Paul French and a whole lot of crime fiction. | CrimeReads
    • Charlie Donlea recommends ten thrillers that will lead you up a steep staircase to an unforgettable climax, from Mystic River to Broken Places. | CrimeReads
    • Clara McKenna looks at how arranged marriages between British aristocrats and American heiresses + the ensuing deluge of resentment = the perfect setting for mystery.  | CrimeReads
    • The CrimeReads editors recommend the very best new thrillers, mysteries, and crime novels coming out this June. | CrimeReads

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