2022-07-23 16:51
Fifteen years ago today, I published my first blog post here at In Reference to Murder. It's hard to believe it's been that long. There are plenty of times I've wondered if it was all wort… Read More
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In Reference to Murder is a site with over 3,000 resource and reference links, as well as up-to-date news and entertainment articles for mystery writers and mystery fans alike.
2022-07-15 13:00
It's easy to underestimate how much Anthony Boucher contributed to the world of crime fiction. In addition to being an author himself, he was a prolific reviewer and critic, a columnist for… Read More
2022-05-06 13:00
Josephine Bell (1897-1987), the pen name of Doris Collier Ball, was born in Manchester, educated at Cambridge, and became a University College Hospital of London physician. She married a fel… Read More
2022-05-05 14:11
The longlist for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year 2022 has been revealed with debut authors and literary icons vying for the UK and Ireland’s most coveted crime ficti… Read More
2022-05-01 14:28
The Short Mystery Fiction Society has announced the winners of the Derringer Awards for 2022 voted on by the members of the organization. First awarded in 1998, the Derringer Awards … Read More
2022-04-29 13:00
Guy Newell Boothby (1867-1905) was born in South Australia, the son of a politician and the grandson of a judge. He started out his career as a clerk but soon turned his hand to writing play… Read More
2022-04-26 14:24
Charles Salzberg has been a Visiting Professor at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, and has taught writing at Sarah Lawrence College, Hunter College… Read More
2022-03-04 14:00
Marion Harvey was allegedly (bio details are hard to find) a Brazilian-born American lawyer who wrote a number of detective novels and plays in the 1920s. A rather elusive figure, he practi… Read More
2022-03-02 13:30
Len Joy's short fiction has appeared in FWRICTION: Review, The Journal of Compressed Creative Arts, Johnny America, Specter Magazine, Washington Pastime, Hobart, Annalemma, Boston Literary M… Read More
2022-02-25 14:00
Frederick Merrick White (1859-1935) was an English author who wrote a number of novels and short stories under the name Fred M. White, including the six "Doom of London" science fiction stor… Read More
2022-02-18 14:00
Ernest William Hornung (1866–1921) was an English poet and author who also happened to be the brother-in-law of Arthur Conan Doyle. He also worked as a journalist in England, France, a… Read More
2022-02-15 14:30
Photo credit: Lynne Breitfeller
Emilya Naymark's short stories appear in Secrets in the Water, After Midnight: Tales from the Graveyard Shift, River River Journal, Snowbound: Best New Eng… Read More
2022-02-11 14:00
Although Patricia Highsmith (1921-1995) was best known for her psychological thrillers, with some two dozen film adaptations (Strangers on a Train, for one), she also wrote many short storie… Read More
2022-02-10 18:09
CJ Sansom has been announced as the recipient of the highest honor in British crime writing, the Crime Writers’ Association (CWA) Diamond Dagger. He combined both history and law i… Read More
2022-02-04 14:00
The Notting Hill Mystery is an English-language detective novel published in 1863, which crime writer Julian Symons and others called "the first detective novel," preceding Wilkie Collilns's… Read More
2021-12-31 16:00
The winners have been announced for this year's German Mystery Prize. In the German language category, Die Experten by Merle Kröger took top honors. This is the second such nod for… Read More
2021-12-29 15:30
In keeping with the original primary theme of this blog, namely a focus on research and reference in crime fiction, I thought I'd take note of the nonfiction titles that are the cream of the… Read More
2021-12-23 22:17
Over at the Mystery Fanfare blog, Janet Rudolph has added to her annual roundup of Christmas Crime Fiction lists, which has grown so large, it has to be divided into segments. You can chec… Read More
2021-12-17 14:00
Dorothy Salisbury Davis (1916-2014) is considered as one of the Grand Dames of crime fiction, but she didn't start out as a writer, working first in advertising and as a librarian. She publi… Read More
2021-12-15 14:57
Literacy programs have always been near and dear to my heart, and the holiday season is a great time to think about the fantastic work literacy organizations do in helping produce lifelong r… Read More
2021-11-19 14:00
Hulbert Footner (1879-1944) was born in Canada but emigrated to the U.S. at the age of 19 and lived most of his life in the States. He became a journalist and author after a failed attempt a… Read More
2021-11-12 14:00
Burton Egbert Stevenson (1872–1962) was an American anthologist and librarian who also penned his own books, around thirty in all, ranging from young adult fiction, to historical adven… Read More
2021-11-11 13:16
Today is Veteran's Day in the U.S., and Janet Rudolph has some resources for crime fiction related to veteran themes. (Note that she references an older post of mine on the topic, which yo… Read More
2021-11-05 13:00
Mary Hastings Bradley (1882-1976) published a large number of travel books, short fiction and novels, including mysters and her historical Old Chicago series. Widely-traveled, she often lect… Read More
2021-10-14 14:30
James McGrath Morris is a biographer and award-winning writer of narrative non-fiction. His works include The Rose Man of Sing Sing: A True Tale of Life, Murder, and Redemption in the Age of… Read More
2021-10-12 14:07
Robbie Bach is best known for founding and leading the team that created the Xbox. Today he is an entertaining storyteller and catalyzing voice who writes books and speaks to audiences on le… Read More
2021-10-08 13:00
Since I've been featuring anthologies this week, it seemed appropriate for Friday's "Forgotten" Books to mention one of the many story anthologies that have arisen from the Malice Domestic C… Read More
2021-10-06 14:36
Yesterday, I took note of some recent anthologies for charity, but there are many more anthologies based on other themes and events that have come through the publishing pipeline recently. H… Read More
2021-09-24 13:30
British author Catherine Louisa Pirkis (1841-1910) wrote many short stories and some 14 novels between 1877 and 1894, before she essentially gave up writing in favor of marriage and animal c… Read More
2021-09-17 13:00
So many authors seem to pop out of nowhere, bring us several very fine works—even award-winning titles—only to disappear from the writing world. Michael Allegretto is one such ex… Read More
2021-09-13 13:30
Photo credit: Iden Ford
Vicki Delany is one of Canada’s most prolific and varied crime writers and a national bestseller in the U.S. She has written more than forty books, from clev… Read More
2021-09-09 12:58
Lorie Lewis Ham lives in Reedley, California and has been writing ever since she was a child. Her first song and poem were published when she was thirteen, and she has gone on to publish man… Read More
2021-09-07 15:54
Rosemary Mild (a graduate of Smith College and former assistant editor of Harper's) and Larry Mild (digital systems and instrument designer for major Government contractors in the signal ana… Read More
2021-07-23 13:00
Historical myseries have been around for awhile, but really began to grace the bestseller lists in the 1980s and 90s with the books of Anne Perry (Victorian England), Elizabeth Peters (Victo… Read More
2021-07-17 23:41
The 2021 Malice Domestic Agatha Awards winners were announced today at More Than Malice, the virtual Malice Domestic festival taking the place of an in-person event this year. Here a… Read More
2021-07-16 13:30
Joan Aiken (1924-2004) began her writing career with YA fiction as a 16-year-old contributor for the BBC Children's Hour. Indeed, one of her most popular creations was her prize-winning Wolv… Read More
2021-07-11 01:23
2021-06-01 23:20
The Private Eye Writers of America announced the finalists for the annual Shamus Awards for excellence in the field of private investigator crime fiction. The winners, chosen from works pu… Read More
2021-06-01 14:42
CRIMEFEST, one of Europe’s leading crime writing conventions, has announced the winners of its annual awards. Now in its 14th year, the awards honor the best crime books released in… Read More
2021-05-28 13:00
Margaret Millar (1915-1994) was married to Kenneth Millar, better known as crime fiction author Ross MacDonald, but despite having an Edgar Award and over 25 novels to her credit (with some… Read More
2021-05-27 18:09
Crime Writers of Canada (CWC) have announced the winners of the 2021 Crime Writers of Canada Awards of Excellence in Canadian Crime Writing. Formerly known as the Arthur Ellis Awards, the… Read More
2021-05-05 17:15
The finalists for the 2021 Anthony Awards were just announced. The Anthony Awards have been presented at the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention since 1986 and are named for Anthony Bouche… Read More
2021-04-29 20:27
Mystery Writers of America announced winners of the 2021 Edgar Awards today via Zoom. Here are this year's honorees:
BEST NOVEL
Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line by Deepa Anappara
Al… Read More
2021-04-16 13:00
Patricia Pakenham-Walsh (1923-1977) was born in Dublin, the daughter of a father who served in the Indian civil service, retiring as a high court judge in Madras. Patricia joined the WAAF in… Read More
2021-04-06 12:22
Photo credit: Paola Kudacki
Michael Kaufman is the author of three novels but over the past decades his focus has been on engaging men to support women’s rights, end violence agains… Read More
2021-01-19 02:20
The Left Coast Crime Conference announced the finalists for the annual "Lefty" Awards. Because of the pandemic, the 2021 Left Coast Crime convention was rescheduled for 2022, but the Lef… Read More
2021-01-08 14:34
Credit: Thomas Bollinger
Edwin Hill is the author of the critically acclaimed Hester Thursby mystery series, the first of which, Little Comfort, was an Agatha Award finalist, a selection… Read More
2021-01-06 14:30
David Rohlfing spent his career in the world of the retail automotive aftermarket business and has lived in every continent of the world but one. He has sat on boards of companies and organi… Read More
2020-12-21 15:30
It's the start of a new week and that means it's time for a brand-new roundup of crime drama news:
THE BIG SCREEN/MOVIES
French-American actress, writer, and producer, Anna Chazelle… Read More
2020-12-18 16:37
We're losing another mystery bookstore, it seems. Christine Burke, the owner of Clues Unlimited in Tucson, Arizona, announced in a Facebook post that the store, which she's owned since 1… Read More
2020-12-11 13:08
New Zealand native Elizabeth Messenger (1908–1965), née Betty Margery Esson, began her career as a copywriter and author of stories and articles for women’s and children's… Read More
2020-11-20 15:00
Eric Wright was born in London, England in 1929 but immigrated to Canada and eventually became chair of the English department and Dean of Arts at Ryerson Institute of Technology in Toronto… Read More
2020-11-06 23:26
He's been called the "Edgar Allan Poe of the 20th century," the "father of noir fiction," "the Hitchcock of the written word," and "our poet of the shadows." It's quite possible more film n… Read More
2020-10-29 14:00
Looking for some great mystery reads? Janet Rudolph has a running list of "Halloween Crime Fiction" over at the Mystery Fanfare blog (look for the latest edition soon), and CBC offers up "… Read More
2020-10-18 18:49
In addition to the Barry Awards and Macavity Awards, this weekend's virtual Bouchercon Conference also saw the announcement of the winners of the annual Anthony Awards, named for Anthony Bou… Read More
2020-10-18 18:22
Deadly Pleasures Mystery Magazine announced the winners of this year’s Barry Awards during the Virtual Bouchercon World Mystery Convention this weekend. The awards are named for fan re… Read More
2020-10-16 13:00
In honor of the Bouchercon mystery conference, I thought I'd step back in time to 1997 and take a look at books honored with Anthony Awards at an earlier Boucheron, which have fallen off the… Read More
2020-10-09 10:29
Since the hubster has a physics background and has long been fascinated with the Manhattan Project, it seemed like a good parallel to read the book Los Alamos by Joseph Kanon. Although the… Read More
2020-09-25 10:00
John Creasey's prolific literary output of writing 10,000 words a day — in longhand — with 600 books published in his lifetime inspired both amazement and skepticism from other a… Read More
2020-09-04 10:03
Jean Catherine Potts (1910-1999) started out as a journalist and then writing mystery short stories, many of which appeared in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Ma… Read More
2020-09-03 13:30
Originally from central Indiana, thriller and mystery author August Norman has called Los Angeles home for two decades, writing for and/or appearing in movies, television, stage productions… Read More
2020-08-29 12:00
Today is Independent Bookstore Day in the U.S., postponed from its previously scheduled date of April 25. Sponsored by the American Booksellers Association, some 600+ stores around the cou… Read More
2020-08-28 10:00
Gwendoline Butler (b. 1922) had limited success as a writer before she began a police procedural series featuring a young Scotland Yard Inspector, John Coffin, penning eight Coffin novels be… Read More
2020-08-26 23:14
The Australian Crime Writers Association (ACWA) has announced the shortlists for this year’s Ned Kelly Awards for Australian crime writing. The Ned Kelly Awards are Australia&rsquo… Read More
2020-08-08 02:00
It's a great time to be Sherlock Holmes. Recent years have seen the hit TV series, Sherlock, with Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman as Holmes and Watson, the movie franchise with Rober… Read More
2020-07-24 18:57
Congratulations to all the just-announced finalists of the Killer Nashville conference's Silver Falchion Award. Although the in-person event has been cancelled, the winners will be announ… Read More
2020-07-24 18:34
Congratulations to Adrian McKinty, who has won the 2020 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year for his novel, The Chain, which sees parents forced to abduct children to save the li… Read More
2020-07-17 22:47
The Strand Magazine announced the nominations for the 2020 Strand Critics Awards. Recognizing excellence in the field of mystery fiction and publishing, the annual Strand Critics Awards are… Read More
2020-07-17 00:11
The finalists for the Macavity Awards were announced today. The honorees are nominated by members of Mystery Readers International, subscribers to Mystery Readers Journal, and friends of MRI… Read More
2020-07-08 13:05
Sheila Kohler was born in Johannesburg, South Africa. She is the author of a memoir, Once We Were Sisters and fourteen works of fiction including the novels Dreaming for Freud, Becoming Jane… Read More
2019-11-03 12:00
The 50th annual Boucheron World Mystery Convention was this weekend, with a cornucopeia of awards handed out, including the Anthony, Barry, Macavity, and Shamus Awards. Congrats to all t… Read More
2019-10-29 14:00
Janet Roger trained in archaeology, history, and English Lit, with a special interest in the early Cold War. Her debut crime novel, Shamus Dust: Hard Winter, Cold War, Cool Murder, is being… Read More
2019-10-25 09:00
Colin Watson (1920-1983) was a British author who started out in life as a journalist, first as a reporter for the Boston Guardian and later as an editorial writer, theater critic and book… Read More
2019-10-25 02:21
The 2019 Crime Writers Association (CWA) Dagger awards were handed out tonight at a ceremony at the Grange City Hotel in London. (For all the finalists, head on over here.) Congratulations… Read More
2019-09-20 09:00
It's interesting to look at the Edgar Award debut novel nominees, wondering how where their literary careers took them from there. One such author, Marie R. Reno, was nominated for her first… Read More
2019-09-17 14:00
Author Mark Bergin’s career as an award-winning crime reporter then police officer spanned nearly 30 years and resulted in him being named Police Officer of the year twice, for drug a… Read More
2019-09-13 09:00
Before there was Marcia Muller, Sue Grafton and Patricia Cornwell, even before Joseph Wambaugh, Dorothy Uhnak was patrolling the streets of New York City in the 1950s and early 1960s as a N… Read More
2019-06-14 09:04
I was browsing through the library a few years ago and came upon the Leslie Charteris (1907 - 1993) section and pulled out a collection of short stories featuring "The Saint." David C… Read More
2019-06-07 09:33
Author, editor, and reviewer Anthony Boucher (1911-1968) seemed headed into the sciences until he was bitten by the literature bug, selling his first story when he was 15, "Ye Goode Olde Gho… Read More
2019-06-06 23:19
After a tough judging process by crime fiction experts from the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand, the Ngaio Marsh Award committee has revealed the longlist for the 2… Read More
2019-06-04 12:04
Shalini Boland is a USA Today bestselling author of psychological thrillers The Secret Mother, The Girl from the Sea, The Best Friend, … Read More
2019-05-31 09:00
Charlotte Jay was the pen name of Australian mystery author Geraldine Halls (1919-1996). Her marriage to Albert Halls of UNESCO enabled her to travel the world to exotic locations like Paki… Read More
2019-05-07 13:30
Irish author Laura Elliot was born in Dublin and worked as a journalist and magazine editor before turning her hand to fiction. Under the name June Considine she penned twelve books for… Read More
2019-05-01 20:05
The Short Mystery Fiction Society announced the winners of this year's Derringer Awards for excellence in short crime fiction. And the winners are:
FLASH Category: The Bicycle Thi… Read More
2019-04-26 14:35
The winners of the annual Edgar Awards from the Mystery Writers of America were announced last night at the awards banquet in New York City. Here are the winners (marked in bold) as well… Read More
2019-03-22 09:00
Dorothy Salisbury Davis (1916-2014) was born in Chicago and raised as a Roman Catholic but left the church when she married her husband, the late actor Harry Davis. Now considered one of th… Read More
2019-03-19 12:00
Patricia “Patti” Abbott is no stranger to this blog, being the organizer and shepherd of the Friday's Forgotten Books feature that I've participated in over the last ten years. P… Read More
2019-03-15 09:00
Josephine Bell, the pen name of Doris Collier Ball, was born in Manchester in 1897, educated at Cambridge, and became a University College Hospital of London physician. She married a f… Read More
2019-02-22 10:00
Author Cynthia Harrod-Eagles is a British writer born in 1948 in the Shepherd's Bush area of London. While studying English, history and philosophy at the University College of London in 19… Read More
2019-02-15 10:00
Mary Theresa Coolican Kelly was born in London in 1927, but ended up a Scotland gal, received an M.A. degree from University of Edinburgh in 1951, married Dennis Charles Kelly in 1950, and b… Read More
2019-02-08 10:00
Elizabeth Ferrars (1907-1995), born Morna Doris MacTaggart, was a British crime writer and founding member of the Crime Writers Association who received a special Silver Dagger for lifetime… Read More
2018-12-28 10:05
Philip Maitland Hubbard, better known as P.M. Hubbard (1910-1980) studied at Oxford where he won the Newdigate Prize for English verse in 1933. From Oxford he moved into the Indian Civ… Read More
2018-12-24 14:00
Related StoriesHappy ThanksgivingToday's the Day Read More
2018-12-21 10:00
Meg Elizabeth Atkins (1932-2013) was raised in Manchester in the U.K. and had a variety of careers from stable hand to secretary, before her first novel, The Gemini, was published in 1964… Read More
2018-12-14 10:00
Barbara D'Amato (b.1938) is the author of two Chicago-based series, one with freelance reporter Cat Marsala and the other being what she calls her "Chicago police series." The second t… Read More
2018-12-07 10:00
Born in 1899, she was called America's Agatha Christie by her biographer, Rick Cypert, and was once the third highest paid female mystery writer (after Christie herself and Mary Roberts Rin… Read More
2018-11-30 10:00
Gwendoline Butler (1922-2013) had limited success as a writer before she began a police procedural series featuring a young Scotland Yard Inspector, John Coffin, penning eight Coffin novels… Read More
2018-08-17 09:00
Mary Hastings Bradley (1882-1976) published a large number of travel books, short fiction and novels, including mysteries and her historical Old Chicago series. Widely traveled, she often… Read More
2018-08-10 09:00
Murderous Schemes was edited by J. Madison Davis and the late, great Donald Westlake and published in 1998 by Oxford University Press. As Westlake notes in his introduction, "The major flaw… Read More
2018-08-03 09:00
MMany story anthologies have arisen from the annual Malice Domestic conference, including Anne Perry Presents Malice Domestic 6: An Anthology of Original Traditional Mystery Stories. As you… Read More
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