In a Word: Murder

by Martin Edwards, Lesley Fletcher (Illustrator), Pamela Griffiths

In a Word: Murder is an anthology of short crime stories. All of the stories are about crime in the writing, editing, publishing, reviewing and blogging world. All proceeds from the sale of this anthology go in aid of Princess Alice Hospice in memory of Maxine Clarke.

Genres: Short Stories

140 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 3, 2013

About the author

Martin Edwards has been described by Richard Osman as ‘a true master of British crime writing.’ He has published twenty-three novels, which include the eight Lake District Mysteries, one of which was shortlisted for the Theakston’s Prize for best crime novel of the year and four books featuring Rachel Savernake, including the Dagger-nominated Gallows Court and Blackstone Fell, while Gallows Court and Sepulchre Street were shortlisted for the eDunnit award for best crime novel of the year. He is also the author of two multi-award-winning histories of crime fiction, The Life of Crime and The Golden Age of Murder. He has received three Daggers from the Crime Writers’ Association and two Edgars from the Mystery Writers of America and has also been nominated three times for Gold Daggers. In addition to the CWA Diamond Dagger (the highest honour in UK crime writing) he has received four other lifetime achievement awards: for his fiction, short fiction, non-fiction, and scholarship. He is consultant to the British Library’s Crime Classics, a former Chair of the CWA, and since 2015 has been President of the Detection Club.

Reviews

[Bobby Underwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anthologies are always difficult to rate if they include more than one writer’s work, as this one does, so I will tackle each story individually before giving my overall impression of the anthology, In a Word, Murder.

1) Pamela Griffith - THE AGENCY

The first story in this collection was by far my least favorite. The author had a good idea, but cross-cut too many varying story-lines that eventually merged in this tale surrounding a crime magazine, an apparent suicide and the investigation, and a mysterious agency assassin. Even though this was one of the lengthier stories in the anthology, it is still a short story, which did not allow time to imbed one aspect, before the reader was plunged for a couple of unsatisfying paragraphs to the other, and then on again to another. In essence, the story was ruined for this reader by the method of execution, which while fitting a novel-length work, did not work at all in the short story format for this reader. I could never get truly involved because of this, and there existed an almost tangible artificiality to the story, as though it was a technical exercise. In essence, it had no heart, and I didn’t like this one. Two stars for the mind of the writer, because a good plot was here, but the jumping back and forth — much too quickly — and feeling of artificiality ruined any narrative flow or involvement for this reader.

2) Paula K. Randall - THE STORY

Very short but fun vignette about a man writing a suspense story to try to pay off his debts, as real life begins to mirror it. Three stars, but it is extremely short.

3) Margot Kinberg - MILLION SELLER

Fantastic little story which kept me interested throughout. Four and a half stars - could have been five but for the ending, which was just a tad abrupt for my taste.

4) Jane Risdon - HOLLYWOOD COVER-UP

I liked but didn’t love this one, possibly because of the ending. Well-written but the second story this author has in the collection overshadows this one. Four stars because it was well done, just wasn’t my type of story.

5) Elizabeth S. Craig - A BEACH REPORT FROM MYRTLE CLOVER

Absolutely loved this one, and a terrific ending. A real cozy mystery feel to this one. Five stars.

6) Sarah Ward - LA LOTTE

Splendid atmosphere created by the author. A good writer, but the mystery in this one was terribly light for an anthology with murder in the title. Terrific piece, just felt like it belonged in a different collection — even though I’m glad it was here. Four and a half stars.

7) Margot Kinberg - THE IN-BOX

Good. Another one I liked but didn’t love. Her first story in this collection was the better of the two for this reader. Three and a half stars.

8) Martin Edwards - THE KILLING OF CAPTAIN HASTINGS

Absolutely loved this one! It had a terrific ending! I won’t spoil anything for readers with this one. Five stars.

9) Jane Risdon - DREAMER

Definitely the grittiest and most brutal story in this collection, and one of, if not the best here. Terrific story of the in-fighting within a rock band, fueled by some very bad people manipulating them. Very much a little noir story, this had people you loathed because the writer painted them so realistically they got under your skin. The ending was brutal and makes the reader swear, but to reveal more would be to ruin it. Five stars.

I understand this was put together for charity in someone’s memory, which is always a good thing. But this is a review about the stories, not the merits of where the money goes. Because by choice I don’t own (or publish) on Kindle — though I understand why many choose to — I had my wife download to hers. So while this won’t show up as a verified purchase, because I’m the one reviewing it, and not my wife, it actually is. This brings me to something I feel obligated to mention. There appeared to be some formatting issues here within some of the stories — spacing, indentations, a few periods where it was obviously meant to be a comma, etc. Though not familiar with the Kindle formatting and uploading process, I have heard from other authors that it is different from paperback, and often causes issues. Whether that was the case here or whether it just didn’t receive a final check, I have no idea. While it was often enough to comment on, I can only say it was minor, and did not mar the reading experience at all for me.

Overall this is a good little collection in the genre. Because a couple of the stories were so good, I’m going with four stars.

[Leah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Writers red in tooth and claw…

I have a hard and fast, unbreakable, cast-iron rule that I do not, under any circumstances whatsoever, review books written by people I know, because the review will inevitably be biased. Fortunately, since it’s my rule, I can ignore it whenever I choose. ;)

So when I heard that my blogging buddy Margot Kinberg from Confessions of a Mystery Novelist had edited an anthology of crime stories, and that it also included a story from another blogger I occasionally chat with, Sarah Ward from Crimepieces, AND that it was for an excellent cause…well, it seemed like the appropriate moment for my first ever…

Blatantly Biased Review

In a Word: Murder is an anthology of short stories on the theme of authors and publishers. The book is dedicated to the memory of Maxine Clarke and proceeds from sales will go in aid of the Princess Alice Hospice, which cares for people with cancer and other illnesses living in a large part of Surrey, south west London and Middlesex. I never got to know Maxine but I hadn’t been blogging for long before I became aware of the impact she had had on the crime blogging community under her blogging name, Petrona. So much so, that there is a blog (Petrona Remembered) specifically set up in her memory and an annual Petrona Award for best Scandinavian crime fiction translated into English. Many crime bloggers speak of her often, with great affection, and credit her with introducing them to Scandi crime.

But what of the anthology itself? Well, in my totally biased opinion, this is a real fun collection. Ranging from very short to reasonably long, each story concentrates on the (hopefully fictional) lengths writers and publishers, and in one case musicians, will go to get their works in front of the public. (In fact, after reading these stories, I was frankly too scared not to review the book…) Margot herself has contributed two fine stories – one featuring Joel Williams, the detective who appears in her books, and the other a blackly humorous standalone about what happens when the author/publisher relationship breaks down (I’m hoping it’s not autobiographical). Sarah’s story is great fun, involving French cafés, omelettes, wine, books, mystery, humour and a little touch of romance – my dream evening in fact.

Amongst the authors I don’t know, the standout for me was Martin Edwards’ story The Killing of Captain Hastings – blogging, crime writing festivals and an author who writes ‘cosy’ crime about a detective who loves cats. Funny and with a lot of affectionate ribbing of the world of books and self-promotion, this made me want to go to the next Whitby Fictionfest…

“She’d already attracted admiring glances from the local author of a fantasy in which vampires rampage across the North Yorkshire Moors, as well as a literary agent from London whom she’d never seen sober, and a couple of disreputable-looking sci-fi writers.”

Buy it because it’s in a good cause…then read it because it’s good fun! Highly recommended!

www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com

[Maggie Thom · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really good collection of short crime stories. There is such a good taste of a variety of styles and of stories. All were rather captivating in their own way. There are secrets, lies, murder, deceit, betrayal, double-cross, being sneaky… you name it you’ll find a story here that has it. There were definitely some surprising twists and some surprising endings. After reading it, it just left me with wanting more, which is a good sign of well written stories. It was easy to identify with the characters and it was easy to get pulled into the story, wondering where it would go. Congratulations to the seven contributing authors. I really think they did a great job of telling a story in a just a few pages and in holding my attention and interest.

[Carol Balawyder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anyone who writes or works in the area of crime fiction will love this collection of short crime stories. The collection offers a fresh look at crime writing from the viewpoint of writer, reviewer, publisher, editor, and blogging. All the stories captured my interest and as a writer I particularly appreciated the various voices and techniques and, of course, the suspense woven in these stories. As added bonus these stories were written in memory of crime writer Maxine Clarke. Neat.

[Miss M]

Kindle anthology in honor/memory of crime blogger Maxine Clarke, AKA Petrona.
Proceeds to go to Princess Alice Hospital in the UK

[Pauline Rendall · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent collection of short stories, wide ranging in character and length, but all dealing in some way with the world of publishing.

[Cleopatra Pullen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This anthology was published in memory of Maxine Clarke, a prolific and knowledgeable book blogger and one who evidently inspired much affection in her on-line presence, so much so that a group of bloggers recommend books on the blog Petrona Remembered which is well worth checking out if you enjoy crime fiction. The proceeds of the sale of this book go to the Princess Alice Hospice which cares for people suffering from terminal illnesses from a wide area covering, London, Middlesex and Surrey.

This book of short stories comprises of nine well-executed and appealing stories with a strong bent towards the arts and particularly the world of writing. In the very first story The Agency meet Stella Prentice who works on True Life Mystery, a crime magazine whose editor’s suspicious death becomes the subject of a police investigation. Later on in the book Margot Kinberg who I exchange messages with frequently through her blog Confessions of a Mystery Novelist, illustrates the dangerous life of a publisher in one of her two submissions, The In-Box, a tale exquisitely revealed partly in email correspondence.

There are also contributions by household names including the established writer, Martin Edwards whose story aptly named Captain Hastings has a number of references to the most popular crime fiction, including the title’s namesake. Sarah Ward who blogs at Crimepieces and whose debut novel In Bitter Chill is another book that is on the TBR because it sounds excellent. Sarah’s contribution to this collection is La Lotte which has a historical link, something that I find very hard to resist.

I have to admit I’m not a big consumer of short stories, but this collection has a wide range of styles, very short pieces ranging to quite long ones, themes covering jealousy, greed, lust and revenge to name but a few of the motives, and of course because so many of the stories are set around the world of publishing,I had an instant interest subject matter plus the lowly blogger gets the odd mention too! All good stuff but best of all many of the stories include a level of humour that makes them incredibly readable.

So in conclusion a fantastic concept of a book for what sounds like a very special lady indeed, added to that this book has been published to support a great cause but hasn’t lost sight of the fact that us book-lovers want well-written, suspenseful and engaging stories. This little package has it all.

[Marina Sofia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, quick read, for those who like their mysteries laced with a good dose of humour. Blogging as a deadly game, self-publishing or genuinely perishing, the cut-throat nature of music copyright, the dangers of changing publishers... are just a few of the themes handled with great panache by this group of diverse authors.

[Sheila Good]

From light to dark and brutal, if you’re into the crime genre, you’ll love this collection of nine crime short stories. As an aspiring crime writer myself, I thoroughly enjoyed this anthology. 4 Stars.

Pamela Griffith’s - The Agency – I enjoyed the premise of the story. Shadowy government agencies, assassins and late in life babies and suicide and you have an interesting plot. I would have liked to see this fleshed out a bit more as I found the ending unsatisfying.

Paula K. Randall’s - The Story – Short one but I enjoyed this story. A fun reminder that sometimes, stories we write are so real they turn the knob on our bedroom door.

Margot Kinberg’s – Gives us two stories to enjoy. The Million Seller and The In-Box – I enjoyed the first story a lot; the second, not as much. I liked the premise but found the beginning a bit off-putting to me. I found it difficult to follow initially, but I liked the ending.


Jane Risdon’s – Is another author that gives us two stories. Hollywood Cover-up - One of my favorites. I loved the plot and the characters of this story, and the ending made me gasp. Her second story -Dreamer – is a tense and brutal story. Another favorite.

Elizabeth S. Craig’s - A Beach Report from Myrtle Clover – Is a lighthearted, fun read and one of my favorites. Loved the main character and the ending; a good beach read indeed.

Sarah Ward’s - La Lotte – I didn’t find this as intriguing but a quick and pleasant read.

Martin Edward’s - The Killing of Captain Hastings - oh, I loved this story, the intrigue and especially the twist at the end, although, I must say I saw it coming.

[Ellen Behrens · Rating 3 out of 5]

This thin volume contains nine short stories by seven authors; each story involves a mystery related to the "world of words." The collection was created and dedicated to the memory of Maxine Clarke, who wrote a blog and reviews about crime fiction. Proceeds from the sale of this collection go to Princess Alice Hospice in the United Kingdom.

It's a worthy cause, and the authors of the stories brought divergent plots and characters to the mix. Perhaps the hole I fell into was forged by the differences between British and American punctuation and those pesky colloquialisms... but I found the text difficult to follow at times.

In one case the murderer made no sense, though it gave the story a twist so many readers enjoy. Other stories were hard for me to finish.

I like anthologies because I'm exposed to several writers at one time. I jot down info from the biographies of authors whose stories I enjoyed so I can look for more of their work. Sadly, in this case, I didn't do that.

Kudos to Margot Kinberg for corralling these stories into a collection for a good cause.