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Douglas Lumsden

Goodreads Author

Genre

Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery

Influences

Raymond Chandler
Dashiell Hammett
Joseph Heller
Roger Zelazny
The Brothers ...more

Member Since

September 2008

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/douglaslumsden

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My parents raised me right. Any mistakes I made were my own. Hopefully, I learned from them.

I earned a doctorate in medieval European history at the University of California Santa Barbara. Go Gauchos! I taught world history at a couple of colleges before settling into a private college prep high school in Monterey. After I retired, I began to write an urban fantasy series featuring hardboiled private eye Alexander Southerland as he cruises through the mean streets of Yerba City and interacts with trolls, femme fatales, shape-shifters, witches, and corrupt city officials.

I am happily married to my wife, Rita. The two of us can be found most days pounding the pavement in our running shoes. Rita listens to all of my ideas and reads all of my ...more

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Combine Editions
Douglas Lumsden’s books

Average rating: 4.43 · 3,266 ratings · 444 reviews · 14 distinct works • Similar authors

	A Troll Walks into a Bar (Alexander Southerland, P.I. #1) 4.20 avg rating — 823 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Witch Steps into My Office (Alexander Southerland, P.I. #2) 4.50 avg rating — 493 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Hag Rises from the Abyss (Alexander Southerland, P.I. #3) 4.53 avg rating — 451 ratings — published 2021 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Night Owl Slips into a Diner (Alexander Southerland, P.I. #4) 4.55 avg rating — 414 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Nymph Returns to the Sea: A Noir Urban Fantasy Novel (Alexander Southerland, P.I. #5) 4.48 avg rating — 295 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Blood Moon Feeds on My Dreams: A Noir Urban Fantasy Novel (Alexander Southerland, P.I. Book 6) 4.53 avg rating — 258 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Specter Raps on My Windowpane: A Noir Urban Fantasy Novel (Alexander Southerland, P.I. Book 7) 4.53 avg rating — 217 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Demon's Dagger: A Noir Urban Fantasy Novella 4.36 avg rating — 195 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Claws of the Collector: Shade the Collector #1 4.57 avg rating — 75 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	In Deep Coprolite: Shade the Collector #2 4.68 avg rating — 28 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Douglas Lumsden…

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Douglas Lumsden's Blog: What's Up with Douglas Lumsden?

I Wrote a Tweet....

I've had a wild couple of days. I wrote a Tweet, and it went viral. I have a few things to say about that right here.

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Published on July 21, 2021 15:04

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Series by Douglas Lumsden

Alexander Southerland, P.I. (7 books)
by

Douglas Lumsden (Goodreads Author)

4.43 avg rating — 2,951 ratings

Douglas is Currently Reading

Douglas Lumsden is currently reading

Crux: A Novel

by Gabriel Tallent (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Feb 14, 2026 01:43PM

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Douglas’s Recent Updates

Douglas Lumsden and 1 other person liked Jason Grisham's review of A Witch Steps into My Office (Alexander Southerland, P.I. #2): "Another five star read for me. The fantasy detective world is just so unique and I love it! I even go so far as putting on the 1940s noir jazz to complete the reading experience. This book does have darker themes than the last so it might not be for " Read more of this review »
Apr 09, 2026 04:57PM · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of A Witch Steps into My Office by Douglas Lumsden. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — A Witch Steps into My Office by Douglas Lumsden <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Douglas Lumsden made a comment on Nicole Davidson’s review of Claws of the Collector: Shade the Collector #1 " Thank you! "
Mar 28, 2026 10:40PM · see review
Douglas Lumsden liked Nicole Davidson's review of Claws of the Collector: Shade the Collector #1: "Another awesome book Excellent addition to the a!ex.Sutherland series. Well written as usual by Lumsden. Good work, can't say enough,.buy the books, read his other books. Your welcome.... "
Mar 28, 2026 10:40PM · see review
Douglas Lumsden made a comment on Elaine’s review of In Deep Coprolite: Shade the Collector, Book 2 " Thank you! I also hope nothing happens to his cats "
Mar 22, 2026 09:32AM · see review
Douglas Lumsden and 1 other person liked Elaine's review of In Deep Coprolite: Shade the Collector, Book 2: "This is fast becoming a favourite series. I love Shade, he is such a funny character and I like that he is on the older side. I just hope nothing happens to his cats. "
Mar 22, 2026 09:31AM · see review
Douglas Lumsden made a comment on Whiskey Leavins’s review of In Deep Coprolite: Shade the Collector #2 " Thank you--I'm glad you liked it, and I always appreciate your support! ...more "
Mar 06, 2026 07:43AM · see review
Douglas Lumsden liked Whiskey Leavins's review of In Deep Coprolite: Shade the Collector #2: "The incomparable Douglas Lumsden continues to expand his universe. We’re still in the same world as Alexander Southerland but different. In the first outing of the new Shade the Collector series, Claws of the Collector, we met the shape-shifting were" Read more of this review »
Mar 06, 2026 07:42AM · see review
Douglas Lumsden made a comment on Marty Solotki’s review of A Troll Walks into a Bar (Alexander Southerland, P.I. #1) " Thanks so much! I’m glad you enjoyed it "
Feb 19, 2026 09:04PM · see review
Douglas Lumsden rated a book really liked it Dogged by Michael R. Fletcher (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Dark fantasy with a quirky sense of humor. I enjoyed the outsider's perspective on human foibles provided by an affable demon dog. Dogged (the main character) is monstrous, yet lovable. Ultra cool scene: Dogged wandering inside the body of a god and ...more
Feb 17, 2026 09:08AM · 1 like · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Dogged by Michael R. Fletcher. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Dogged by Michael R. Fletcher <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Douglas Lumsden is currently reading Crux: A Novel by Gabriel Tallent (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 14, 2026 01:43PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Crux by Gabriel Tallent. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Crux by Gabriel Tallent <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">

More of Douglas's books…

Quotes by Douglas Lumsden (?)

“shook my head. “As long as you’re happy.” “Happy!” Gio barked out a short laugh. “Who the hell is happy? Happy is for chumps! I’m satisfied. I’ve got a nice family and I work steady. I can still enjoy a drink and a cigar, and sometimes I win a few bucks at poker. I love cars, and so does my son and one of my daughters. Fuck happy! I’ll take satisfaction any day of the week.”
― Douglas Lumsden, A Hag Rises from the Abyss

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“Part of my brain sometimes worked separately from the rest of it, and I often went along for the ride to see where it was taking me.”
― Douglas Lumsden, A Nymph Returns to the Sea: A Noir Urban Fantasy Novel

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