Females ARE Deadlier than the Male~~~~

"Book lovers never go 
 to bed alone...."

Anonymous

Read one of these ladies and you might not want to go to bed at all. The reaction I get when I recommend a woman thriller writer is almost comical. I have had men look at me as if I've lost my mind when I suggest one, and women will even do a little hem and haw~~~mainly because they don't believe that a woman can write a tough, noir potboiler as well (in some cases better) than a man.....or that a female can be deadlier than the male. Not only did I pick women thriller authors, but I wanted the  main character to be  a woman too. Meet some women whose ruthless streak can surprise even themselves when it appears. Here are a few of my favorite ladies that I suggest to folks and I love when they come back, tell me how much they enjoyed her and grab another book by the same author.

Chelsea Cain~~Besides being one of  the top thriller writers of the genre, Cain introduces one of most brutal serial killers you'll meet, Gretchen Lowell. Set in Portland, Oregon, the weather~~rainy, grey and damp~~gives the series that grey, norish feeling. Great characters, besides Lowell. Portland detective, Archie Sheridan, and reporter, Susan Ward. The connection between Sheridan and Lowell will give you pause, especially when you realize what brings them together. The series will make the hair on the back of your neck stand up. Pick up the entire series so you can keep going:   

Heartsick

Sweetheart

Evil at Heart
The Night Season ( her newest one)

Vicki Hendricks~~This is one author that grabs you by page one and you hold on until the last page. Hang on for a ride that will leave you breathless. Set in Florida, in Hendricks first book, Cruel Poetry, we first meet happy hooker Renata (Rennie) and her pet python....and some men who feel the need to save her. This is trailer-trash noir at it's best..the hot sun, beach, kooky characters, sex, humor and of course~murder. Even keeping the air conditioner on while reading you will still break out in a sweat. As Ken Bruen fittingly said "...(Hendricks) you write like a demented banshee!"  ***Warning~~Hendricks books can be considered on the, um,  risque side.

Zoe Sharp~~Sharp hit the big time in 2001 with Killer Instinct. You may have heard of her co-author, Lee Child?Meet Charlotte (Charlie) Fox, Sharpe's all action, macho, tough talking "heroine," who was in the Special Forces until they kicked her out. During the early books, Charlie Fox drifts through doing odd jobs, then everything kicks into gear when she meets up with her old military instructor, Sean Meyer~~who she holds a grudge against. Charlie finds out how much her military training comes in handy when she goes to work for Meyer as a bodyguard for hire. Fox is amazed at herself when she finds out how violent and  cold blooded she can be, but most frightening of all is how far she will go to do her job. I like Fox; she's strong, compassionate and adheres to her principles. Good series that opens up the characters with    each new book.

Charlie Fox series:
Killer Instinct

Riot Act

Hard  Knocks                                                    

First Drop

Road Kill

Second Shot
Third Strike
Fourth Day
Fifth Victim (her newest one)

Lisa Unger~~ If you scrape away the layers of a family, what do you find? While Unger has a recurring character in a few of her books, Ridley Jones, most of her books are stand alone.She does keep you turning the pages with the twists, turns and surprises that are uncovered. I love Unger's development of  her characters and that once the book takes off, it is fast paced action at it's best.
Ridley Jones books:
Beautiful Lies
Sliver of Truth
**I highly recommend Fragile~~loved it!

Christa Faust~Love pulp fiction? Here is one of the best. Faust gives us tough talking, a**kicking Angel Dare, who will "gobsmack" you as soon as look at you. Angel is a former porn star, who we first meet in Money Shot, where she takes on the sex slave trade and ends up in the Witness Protection Program...of course a lot goes on in between. Angel's next book is Choke Hold, coming out in October....and I can't wait! Faust is the first women author in the history of Hard Case Crime! That alone should make you run out and pick a copy of her books. Be careful not to pick up her other genres~~not that they aren't worth reading, but they aren't thrillers (**Remember my warning about Vicki Hendricks? She's mild compared to Faust. I doubt I could put her book covers up on this blog)

Lisa Gardner~~Gardner has two series with strong women as lead characters. FBI profiler Kimberly Quincy and Police Detective D.D. Warren. Both series are terrific...and disturbing, but I love them. 
The D.D. Warren series:
Alone
Hide
The Neighbor
Live to Tell
Love you More (her latest in the series)


FBI Profiler series with Kimberly Quincy:
Gone
Killing Hour
Say Goodbye




Look at those faces? Do they look like the face of someone who can write about grisly, bloody murders? A pedophile that loves spiders so much he has eight eyes tattooed all around his head? Entire families murdered on the anniversary of a family killing from years ago? Police detectives who forge a strange bond with a serial killer? Ah yes~~and when the past comes back to bite, is anything what it once seemed? Good stuff.

There you have it, a few of my favorite women thrillers writers with great women characters. You can't go wrong with any of them. When I get to the part of the book where our leading lady is about to go head to head with the bad guy, or woman, I get an earworm of Pat Benatar singing "Hit me with your best shot...fire away!"  I just start to chuckle because they have no idea what they are up against.

I'd love to know what you think of my choice of ladies....and what yours are.

Happy Reading!

Studs Terkel

"If solace is any sort of succor to someone,

that is sufficient. I believe in the faith of people,

whatever faith they may have." Studs Terkel 1912-2008

Once again we have to say good-bye to a wonderful writer, Studs Terkel. He moved from NYC to Chicago when he was very young and what a fit Terkel and Chicago made. He was a writer for the common man and woman and believed that American became the country it was because of them. Hard Times: AN Oral History of the Great Depression, made you visualize the 1930's; his book on Race :How Blacks and Whites Think and Feel About the American Obsession is as relevant to day and it was in 1992. Terkel won a Pulitzer Prize for his book, The Good War:An Oral History of World War II. He was on the blacklist during the 1950's, which didn't stop him from what he believed, which was America and her people.

Studs Terkel died just before his last book came out in November, P.S. Further Thoughts From A Lifetime of Listening. This is about his favorite things---writings, travels and people. What a sendoff, thanks Mr. Terkel for sharing so much with us.

Tony Hillerman

"You write for two people,

yourself and your audience,

who are usually better educated

and at least as smart."

Tony Hillerman 1925-2008

Mystery writer Tony Hillerman, 83, died Sunday, October 26, 2008. For those of us who read his mysteries we know what a loss it is; for those who haven't been introduced to Hillerman, take a chance. Hillerman wrote over 29 books, most of them mysteries, set in the Southwest and featured Navajo police officers Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee. Hillerman wanted to help the Anglo culture understand Navajo traditions while sharing his admiration of the Navajo culture. His love of the Southwest shone through in all of his books, fiction and non-fiction.

If you enjoy mysteries, the Southwest, and learning about the culture of Indians, you are in for a treat. Hillerman introduces us to his favorite passion, the Navajo and their culture, how they think, how the Anglo had changed their way of life, and how both cultures learn to except each other and live along side each other. His mysteries would take you deeper in the history of the Navajo and you will be amazed what you learn from reading about them in fiction style. The Navajo honored him with the Special Friend of the Dineh award to thank him for letting his readers know that were more then primitive people. On that, he succeeded.

Hillerman never forgot who he was writing for, his audience, and to entertain them. He was also a writer that you could read them faster then he could write them....which is important to me as a reader. Writers who push three, four or more books a year I feel are not considerate to their readers. (That's for another blog)

If you are looking for a new mystery writer, something different, I highly recommend Tony Hillerman. You will be glad you did.

Thanks Mr. Hillerman for some wonderful mysteries, books, and enabling us, as readers, to learn about the Navajo people. You will be missed.