By
Katherine - August 17th, 2010
There’s a connection between a love of dark fiction and a fascination with crime in general and this new book about the Vidocq Society bridges the gap. The Murder Room reads like a work of fiction, with one particular story weaving through the years from 1957 to the present, and the real-life characters are framed in terms that remind us of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen minus the Steampunk.
The subtitle of the book is: The Heirs of Sherlock Holmes Gather to Solve the World’s Most Perplexing Cold Cases, and the book delivers with portraits of its sleuths (who are “amateurs” only in the sense that they do what they do out of love for justice and not for money). The Vidocq Society is a group of the world’s greatest detectives, forensic scientists and experts, a by-invitation-only club that meets once a month in Philadelphia to eat, drink and listen to people present their tales of murder most cold.
The author, Michael Capuzzo, has thrown in tons of interesting information about crime in general, crime in Philadelphia in particular and enough background on the original Vidocq (who ran a French detective agency long before the Pinkertons) to make you want to look him up. (Here’s a link to save you the trouble.)
The book is a fascinating history of America and joint biography of the three men who started the society and the author has cast them in the archetypal roles of the “king, the knight and the magician.” He’s not overstating.
I was given the book by a client who didn’t have time to read it for himself. I almost didn’t want to charge him for it. The Vidocq Society invites guests to their monthly dinners. I would rather have an invitation to one of those dinners than a seat at the Oscars.
By
Joy - August 16th, 2010
Virginia C is the lucky winner of a free copy of Christine Pope’s new paranormal romance novella, Playing With Fire.
For those who didn’t win but are interested in purchasing a copy, the book is currently on sale at a special introductory price at the Pink Petal Books website.
Bitten by Books has this to say about Playing With Fire:
“This was a fantastic story with an interesting twist: the demons that are the main players are actually quasi-good guys…This is exactly what a novella should be: interesting, enjoyable, plot-filled and short.” 4-1/2 Tombstone Rating
By
Katherine - August 11th, 2010
If you’re a fan of LA Banks’ Vampire Huntress novels (and who isn’t?), good news. She’s teamed up with Brett Booth to produce the first in a series of graphic novels.
The Hidden Darkness #1: Ashes to Ashes is an original story set in the Vampire Huntress world. Chronologically, it takes place just after the epilogue of the 12th and final book in the series. Here’s the premise:
The Neterus and worldwide Guardian teams have defeated Satan’s top demon, The Thirteenth, and have driven back the forces of evil in the first battle of the Armageddon. But the dark side is only in temporary retreat. The warriors of the Light may have won that battle, but it remains to be seen whether or not they’ve won the war.
Beneath the earth in the caverns of Hell, the Dark Lord is plotting his next strike with a vengeance. With the human population still reeling from global wars, famine, floods, and every conceivable natural disaster and plague, something slithers into the Guardian camps–felling the members of the Guardian teams-and humanity’s only chance of survival…
You can find a sneak peek at Banks’ website. If you like what you see, you can order Hidden Darkness directly from the publisher. It’s just $3.99.
By
Katherine - August 8th, 2010
Dark Valentine contributor Elizabeth Zelvin (she wrote “The Silkie” in the Summer Issue) has the weekly punch story up at Beat To a Pulp. It’s called “Dress to Kill” and it’s what we’re talking about when we say we like “dark fiction.”
The author of Death Will Get You Sober and Death Will Help You Leave Him, Zelvin is one of Poe’s Deadly Daughters, seven mystery writers who alternate posts on a blog for mystery lovers.
By
Joy - August 4th, 2010
Playing With Fire can be dangerous…
Dark Valentine contributing author Christine Pope has a new paranormal romance novella out Thursday, August 5, and she wants to give a copy to YOU!
Here’s a blurb to whet your appetite:
Samael calls the City of Angels home, but he’s far from angelic. His assignment: Bringing the souls of L.A.’s unquiet dead to the underworld. His duties don’t preclude more earthly entanglements, as long he keeps things purely physical.
When he meets Felicia McGovern, he soon realizes his attraction to her goes far beyond her admittedly enchanting flesh. Her unexpected discovery of his true nature separates the lovers, but when her life is in danger, Samael risks everything to keep her safe. He faces certain punishment…or possibly a redemption he never imagined could be his.
So how do you win a copy? Easy! All you have to do is comment on this post. If you mention the giveaway on your blog, Tweet about it, or give it a shout-out on your FB or MySpace page, that’ll earn you an extra entry for each additional mention. Just make sure you send us a link. The winner will receive an electronic copy of the novella in his or her choice of e-book formats.
We’ll keep the contest open through midnight (PDT) Friday, August 13.
Find out more about Christine Pope at her website.
By
Katherine - July 30th, 2010
Pocket Books has launched a new, free online community for romance and urban fantasy readers called Pocket After Dark. Simon & Schuster Digital developed the site, which will feature exclusive content and a forum for members to share interests and chat with other readers, authors, and editors. The site also includes all S&S’s romance and fantasy books that can be bought directly from the site.
On Pocket After Dark, members can read, rate, and discuss new Pocket romance and urban fantasy titles, participate in polls and live chats with Pocket authors, and read about new Pocket authors and sample material. A section called “A Little Tease” offers two free chapters of up to six current titles each month, and an excerpt from a soon-to-be published book. Members will also be able to earn points based on their site activity.
By
Katherine - July 29th, 2010
Thinking ahead, Dark Valentine Magazine is planning a first anniversary anthology of all-new stories and art, to be published in the spring of 2011. In the tradition of Ellen Datlow’s great anthologies, we would like it to have a theme. The theme has to accommodate the range of genres we promote, so something like Starships & Stalagmites won’t really work.
We’ve had a couple of ideas but we’d really like to hear what you have to say. You may be saying, “What’s in it for me Dark Valentine? The answer is books. And swag. And whatever else we have access to.
Here’s how we’d like it to work. You send us your ideas. At the end of September, we’ll pick the best of “reader’s choice” and then hold a vote. Even if we don’t pick your idea, the top three contenders will get a gift pile of dark fiction and a Dark Valentine coffee mug. (You can never have too many coffee mugs, can you?) And to go with the coffee mug, we’ll throw in a Starbucks card to fill it.
We want this to be an amazing anthology and amazing anthologies begin with amazing themes. Dazzle us!
Thank you.
By
Katherine - July 26th, 2010
For the Love of God
By Nigel Bird
Photograph by Marzel
Over 200 years we waited for someone to arrive. All that hanging around and it was over in a flash.
“Guard the door,” she said. “Guard it well.” That was 1789.
“Whatever happens, don’t let anyone in.” Her hair was piled on top of her scalp as ever and, if anything, her skin was paler than her usual snowy tones.
When her head rolled to Madame Guillotine in ’93, we had a meeting. Decided to stay on – she deserved our loyalty the way she’d treated us.
To be honest, we never took it that seriously. We had those three dogs just outside the doors, the ones with eyes big as dinner plates, cartwheels and moons. You probably know of them. Didn’t think anyone would manage to get past them. Only reason we were there was to wake them up if anyone turned up with the magic apron.
Given that there were the five of us, we got to take a tour of the gardens or pop in to Versailles every once in a while to keep up with the rest of the world. Read the rest of this entry »
By
Katherine - July 23rd, 2010
The Folly
By Chris Dabnor
He smiled as he poured her weak tea from the slightly scuffed metal teapot.
“When we leave here,” he said, his demeanour unchanging, his voice with a soft melodic quality, “I’m going to take you somewhere quiet and kill you.”
She looked at him aghast, but said nothing, instead drawing her fraying brown cardigan tight around her shoulders. She was startled at the sudden fluttering of a peacock as it splayed out its feathers in the courtyard. The stranger put down the teapot, and, after ensuring that the amount of deep blue cuff showing below the crisp beige suit was just so, picked up the brochure of the Elizabethan manor.
He must be joking, she thought, looking at the man who sat before her, idly turning the pages of the leaflet. He sighed.
“It seems that every house built before 1651 sheltered Charles the Second. His route to freedom must have been circuitous, to say the least.”
She laughed nervously, running her hands down the pleats of her cheap grey skirt. He tilted his head, annoyed by her reaction. She apologised for whatever offence she had caused him. A peahen let out its ugly squawk. He turned to look at it, before turning back to look at her, running the tip of his tongue against the back of his teeth. Read the rest of this entry »
By
Katherine - July 23rd, 2010
Jason Evans (The Clarity of Night) periodically runs flash fiction contests on his blog (there’s one up now) based on photo prompts. (He’s a photographer as well as a poet/writer.) Right now he’s offering a free download of stories that won the 12 previous contests. Compiled by James R. Tomlinson (no relation), the free ebook is available here.
Among the stories you’ll find Dark Valentine contributor Sandra Seamans’ “Civic Duty,” which placed in the 2006 “Midnight Road” competition. All the stories are 250 words or less, so you can get your fiction fix in less than five minutes.
Enjoy the weekend.
Loading ...
