• Speaking of TV reappearances, the Victorian-era detective drama Vienna Blood, based on books by Frank Tallis, is expected back on BBC Two in Britain come Wednesday, December 4. According to The Killing Times, this third season of the delightful Matthew Beard/Jürgen Maurer mystery will be based on Tallis’ fifth Max Liebermann novel, Deadly Communion (aka Vienna Twilight). The PBS Web page devoted to Vienna Blood supplies no information yet on when its third season will debut in America. But the sooner the better, I say.
• And I just learned this morning that there is going to be an eighth novel in Tallis’ Liebermann series, titled Mortal Secrets. Amazon says it’s due out in the UK from Little, Brown on May 9, 2024. The author announced on his Twitter page this last June 15 that he’d finally submitted his manuscript to the publisher. I loved 2018’s Mephisto Waltz, which found Vienna psychiatrist Liebermann and Detective Inspector Oskar Rheinhardt investigating a most peculiar murder in an abandoned piano factory, in 1904. I look forward enthusiastically to getting my hands on this forthcoming sequel. UPDATE: More information about this forthcoming book can be found here.
• We have been aware for the last five months that Douglas Henshall was giving up his starring role as Detective Inspector Jimmy Perez in the BBC One crime drama Shetland, but we didn’t know who would replace him. Until today, that is. The Killing Times reports that 53-year-old Scottish actress Ashley Jensen—“whose illustrious and critically acclaimed career includes cosy crime drama Agatha Raisin—will star as DI Ruth Calder, a native Shetlander who returns to the isles after 20 years working for the Met in London. Ruth takes on the lead detective role left vacant by DI Jimmy Perez …, working closely with DS Alison ‘Tosh’ McIntosh (Alison O’Donnell) and will make her debut when the series returns to BBC One and BBC iPlayer next year.”
• And I neglected to flag this previously. Also from The Killing Times:
Sir Ian Rankin will partner [with the streaming service] Viaplay UK for a major reimagining of his iconic detective, Inspector John Rebus, drawn from the instantly recognisable universe of Rankin’s books.Casting specifics have not yet been released, but filming on this series is expected to begin this coming spring.
Set in contemporary Edinburgh, the six-part series places Rebus at the heart of a compelling new story.
In the drama, Rebus is in his 30s, recently divorced and demoted to Detective Sergeant. He has a new colleague, Detective Constable Siobhan Clarke, and is struggling to deal with the changes in his personal and professional life. At the same time, Rebus’s daughter, Sammy, and ex-wife, Rhona, are enjoying an affluent existence with Rhona’s new partner—while Rebus’s brother Michael is finding out that in a society where the gaps between the `haves and have-nots’ keep widening, taking shortcuts to provide for your family is no longer a temptation, but a necessity.”
• Wow! I didn’t even know this was in the works. In Reference to Murder brings news that “Steven Spielberg has found his Frank Bullitt, according to Deadline. Bradley Cooper has closed a deal to play the no-nonsense San Francisco cop in the new original Bullitt story centered on the classic character famously played by Steven McQueen in the 1968 thriller. Cooper will also produce the movie along with Spielberg and his producing partner, Kristie Macosko Krieger (marking their second collaboration after Maestro), with Josh Singer on board to pen the script. Steve McQueen’s son, Chad, and granddaughter, Molly McQueen, will exec produce the new movie. Sources are adamant this is not a remake of the original film but a new idea centered on the character.” In case don’t know this, Bullitt was created by author Robert L. Fish for his 1962 novel, Mute Witness. While the film adaptation was based in San Francisco (complete with a renowned car-chase scene), the book takes place in New York City. There’s no word at this time on where Cooper’s flick will be set.
• Really? Singer Taylor Swift played a corpse on CSI?
• Two deadlines to bear in mind: This coming Sunday, November 27, is the cutoff date for votes to be entered in stage one of the annual Goodreads Choice Awards competition. You’ll find the list of 20 contenders for “Best Mystery & Thriller” honors here. And next Wednesday, November 30 (at noon GMT), will be your last chance to choose favorites among shortlisted contenders for the 2022 Crime Fiction Lover Awards. Go here to fill out your ballot.
• And with tomorrow being Thanksgiving Day here in the United States, it’s time to check on Janet Rudolph’s updated list of Thanksgiving-related mysteries. Should you require a reading escape sometime on Thursday, Rudolph suggests Cindy Bell’s Fatal Festivities, Sammi Carter’s Goody Goody Gunshots, Evelyn David’s Murder Takes the Cake, and so many more works from years past.
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