Today’s Catch

• Collusion, the more-or-less sequel to Stuart Neville’s widely applauded 2009 debut thriller, The Ghosts of Belfast (aka The Twelve), isn’t due for publication in the UK till early August, and won’t be available in American bookshops until the end of September. But the author is already offering Chapter One on his Web site, for readers who crave an early taste. (Hat tip to Crime Always Pay.)

• It took a while, but the Chicago Sun-Times has finally posted an obituary of African-American crime novelist Eleanor Taylor Bland, who died of cancer last week in Waukegan, Illinois, at age 65.

• BP has really got some ’splainin’ to do!

• This news seems a bit late in arriving, but British novelist Clare Curzon (née Eileen-Marie Duell Buchanan) passed away on May 20. Her funeral was apparently held yesterday. Curzon was probably best known for writing the Superintendent Mike Yeadings mysteries, beginning with I Give You Five Days (1983). The latest installment in that series is Devil in the Detail, released earlier this year by Severn House.

• It looks as if Swedish author Stieg Larsson left behind more fiction than just his best-selling Millennium Trilogy. Unfortunately, a pair of newly unearthed and previously unpublished manuscripts by Larsson are science fiction, not crime fiction.

• “Dime novels” were born 150 years ago today.

• Actor-director Orson Welles reveals his greatest mistake?

• This is just a quick reminder about next week’s one-day workshop in Edinburgh, Scotland. Titled “Writing Your Novel: Seven Steps to Success,” it will be hosted primarily by Tony Black (Loss), but also feature Allan Guthrie (Slammer). More details here.

• I have to admit, I’m not a big Craigslist user, though I have been checking its selections of jobs ads recently (as I am feeling rather underemployed). But obviously the folks behind the Forensic Colleges blog have kept better tabs on that popular site. Check out their newest post, “10 Worst Craigslist Transactions.”

• To celebrate its sixth year of publishing, Crimespree Magazine is offering its back issues at a steep discount.

• The list of double-standards right-wingers apply to President Obama are ridiculous and numerous. More such idiocy here.

• A new blog to watch: Crime Fiction Utopia.

• Meanwhile, the e-zine Shots has added a monthly column, Criminal Acts, in which “journalist Robin Jarossi will give us the low-down on what’s new on British TV and radio.” A list of Jarossi’s columns is here.

• Editor Howard Goldowsky recruited some high-powered talent to contribute to the new chess fiction anthology, Masters of Technique.

• Interviews worth reading: Chris Knopf talks with the Hartford Books Examiner about his first standalone thriller, Elysiana; Kiwi critic Craig Sisterson’s latest quick-fire interview places Gregg Hurwitz in the hot seat; MovieWeb asks Dennis Lehane about the big-screen adaptation of his novel Shutter Island; and Katy Munger submits to questioning by Jeff Rutherford for an installment of the Reading and Writing Podcast.

• Finally, if you’re stuck for reading ideas during the coming summer months, consult “Mystery Strumpet” Clayton Moore, take a few hints from this Salon piece by Sarah Weinman, or revisit The Rap Sheet’s recent rundown for exclusively crime-fiction choices. Now, get your pasty-white ass outside in the sun!