Synopsis:Crime novelist Matt Wells has more fantasies of revenge than most...dumped by his agent, his publisher and his wife, he is crippled by writer's block. Then a fan emails him, and seems to know everything about Matt, his family and his loved ones. The fan, calling himself the White Devil, is a serial killer who has chosen Matt to tell his story. Horrifying though this is, it's also exciting...but will Matt's ego and the chance of a blockbuster story keep him from doing the right thing? Then the killing begins, but the White Devil isn't only killing his own enemies. He has a Death List for Matt too; all those people Matt really hates are about to meet a nasty fate...
There's a personal element to the writing of 'The Death List' which Paul explains on his website.
Paul mentions using the Jacobean revenge tragedies as inspiration and at last year's Left Coast Crime convention in Bristol, I definitely remember a couple of authors also mentioning them - possibly Ray Banks and ???.
8 comments:
This sounds promising, and after all haven't we all got a hate list?
Thankfully mine is very small, and not really worth the effort of any self respecting serial killer.
Was the order of dumping; agent, publisher, wife, in the correct order of importance to a writer?
Reminds me a little of Val McDermid's "Killing The Shadows". but still different.
Johnston's invocation of Jacobean revenge tragedies strikes a chord with me. Here's what John Harvey once wrote about an author whom you may have noticed that I like"
"Bill James's Harpur and Iles books are deliciously un-savoury: a brilliant combination of almost Jacobean savagery and sexual betrayal with a tart comedy of contemporary manners."
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Detectives Beyond Borders
"Because Murder Is More Fun Away From Home"
http://detectivesbeyondborders.blogspot.com/
The other author talking about Jacobean revenge tragedies would have been Al Guthrie I think Karen.
Hi, this is Paul Johnston. Thanks for the interest. I suspect more crimewriters that I imagined have made reference to Jac rev trag. Allan Guthrie and Ray Banks, both of whom I know, are prime candidates, though they don't specifically refer to it in the books (my point re originality). Haven't read Bill James, but would like to. What do you think is his best book? Re order of dumping - correct order of importance, as much as there is one, would probably be publisher, agent, wife if you put your career above your private life...not that I do, of course. Re Killing The Shadows, Val has crimewriters being killed. I don't in The Death List, but, oddly enough, will do in the sequel...
Paul, here's a list of Bill James' Harpur and Iles novels: http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/j/bill-james/ I would recommend especially numbers 7 through 16, Astride a Grave through Eton Crop. And it can help to read them in order.
Here's a bit of a tease: The opening words from two of the books: http://detectivesbeyondborders.blogspot.com/2006/09/bill-james.html
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Detectives Beyond Borders
"Because Murder Is More Fun Away From Home"
http://detectivesbeyondborders.blogspot.com/
Peter - Euro Crime has it's own page of Bill James' books in order -
http://www.eurocrime.co.uk/books/books_by_bill_james.html
I think Astride is #8 as it was published in Oct 91 whereas Club was in Jan 91.
Thanks. I was taking my order from the Fantastic Fiction list -- too late for me, since I'm a good ways into my second go-round with the series!
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Detectives Beyond Borders
"Because Murder Is More Fun Away From Home"
http://detectivesbeyondborders.blogspot.com/
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