Blog Archives - A.B.PATTERSON

"Harry's Quest" heads for the printing presses!!!

28/11/2018

Harry's Quest has headed for the printers today. Final tweaks made to the typeset manuscript and I pressed the green GO button for production! And now drinking red wine, of course.
The original printed paperbacks should be ready in a couple of weeks, but the ebook versions and the POD versions should be available in the next few days.
I'll keep you posted!
And, given Harry's Quest is a sequel, if you haven't read Harry's World, then time to hop in and grab it now!
Cheers,
ABP

Jacarandas - November in Sydney - And one of Harry's favourite flowers

26/11/2018

Spring in Sydney, aside from bringing in the warmer weather, is resplendent in purple, as the jacaranda trees burst into bloom across the cityscape.
I love these trees and their flowers, as does my PI Harry Kenmare. If you've read Harry's World, then you'll know the scene where Harry is walking down Kelly Street to his local watering hole, the Emerald Bar, with the cascade of jacaranda flowers coming down.
Here's a few photos form my neighbourhood, including along Kelly Street, with my local watering hole, the Australian Youth Hotel in the background. And yes, it is the same watering hole as the Emerald Bar in the Harry stories.
And I'm a complete novice at poetry, but here goes:

The Jacaranda

The canopy of delicate leaves, vibrant green,
Such splendid beauty reveals nature's vast power,
If this awe is not enough to make one serene,
Then hail spring with its majestic purple shower.

(c) A.B.Patterson, November 2018.

"Switchblade - Issue # 8" - Harry will be returning!

17/11/2018

I am absolutely over the moon to be appearing again in the great hard-boiled and noir anthology, Switchblade.
Yes, another of my Harry in-the-first-person tales will be appearing in Switchblade (Issue # 8), coming out in January 2019.
I love appearing in this classy noir anthology - because I get to have my work alongside some seriously great talent.
My new story is entitled "Wankers", and it's full of despicable strokers. And some dark justice gets handed out. As it should.
Cheers,
ABP

"Down Among The Dead" - an excellent noir novella by Steve Finbow

17/11/2018

One of my recently purchased box of goodies from Fahrenheit Press.
Down Among The Dead is a short novella which delivers a solid punch in just 40 pages. It's brutally noir and the characterisation of Michael, the protagonist, is tightly and expertly drawn. The story revolves around the ever-tantalizing theme of our past coming back to haunt us, and that our present and future are always linked somehow to our history.
Finbow's prose is spartan, yet poignant.
I read the story in one sitting, which made it all the more enjoyable.
I highly recommend this for lovers of noir, and I'll certainly be looking out for more of Finbow's work.
Cheers,
ABP

"Harry's Quest" draws nearer! The return of PI Harry Kenmare, and friends!

15/11/2018

Harry's Quest draws ever closer!

The typeset manuscript came back today - the excellent service provided by Publicious Book Publishing Services. I do love working with real professionals.
Anyway, I need to read over the typeset proof, all 473 pages, this weekend, and then next week the green light goes on for the printing!
So, PI Harry Kenmare is almost upon us again! Plenty of vengeance to be had, plenty of hard-boiled PI action and drama, and no shortage on the sexy lady front. Ooh, just you wait and see!
And Harry's Quest is a sequel, of course - so if you haven't read Harry's World as yet, then there's no time like right now! It'll set the scene for you to really enjoy Harry's Quest.
Stay tuned for more updates.
Cheers,
ABP

"Rubicon" by Ian Patrick - dark, dark realism in crime writing. Superb!

15/11/2018

What a deliciously dark delight this book turned out to be - Rubicon, the debut novel by British ex-cop Ian Patrick.
If you follow my blogs, you'll know all about my Cops Writing Crime project (see link - Also: Cops Writing Crime.) Well, part of my promise to myself with that project is to start reading more of my fellow ex-cops turned crime fiction writers.
Patrick is my third this year, following Bruce Robert Coffin and Clare Mackintosh (see earlier book reviews on my blog).

Rubicon has a tremendous plot line and will keep you reading in anticipation of what the hell is going to happen next. It sure did for me. It's noir, certainly, but also oozes the realism that comes from an ex-cop writing crime fiction. The characters are so believable - in fact, I felt like I'd met some of them, in my own police career! The wonderful tension between the old-school cop mentality, with results all important and ethics... (what are ethics?), versus the up-and-coming police who are obsessed with their own careers and results being secondary, is absolutely palpable in Rubicon. And in the tradition of the finest noir, you're never sure who to cheer on in this bloody and dirty tale. But the insidious reach of corruption through all society's layers and institutions is flagrantly evident here. This was a novel right up my alley, and I am really looking forward to reading more of Patrick's work.
That's the beauty of Cops Writing Crime - the feel of the realism is more acute than a smack in the face and the taste of that realism is sharper than a nose bleed.
If you like realistic, gritty crime writing, then I highly recommend Mr Patrick to you.
Bring on more of it!
Cheers,
ABP

COPS WRITING CRIME - Another 3 members join The Squad!

14/11/2018

Many thanks to Phil Stewart over in Canada who has again sent me some suggestions for new members for The Squad, and as a result 2 more Canadian cousins are joining us today.
And many thanks to C.W.Blackwell from the USA for getting in touch. He also joins The Squad - one of our handful of authors who work, or have worked, inherently with law enforcement agencies, although are not sworn officers. If you've read the preamble on my project page, you'll know that I have a little flexibility on this issue of defining "cops" - it's all about having experienced the milieu, and so being able to bring that raw realism to the page.

This now takes us to 137 in number, with our 3 new members.
That's 137 cops and ex-cops (and some PIs) who have taken to writing crime fiction. You won't get more realistic crime tales than those from this Squad!

So, we have joining us today:
1. Brent Pilkey - Pilkey is a veteran, and still serving, officer with the Toronto Police in Canada. He has a number of crime fiction novels already to his name.
2. C.W.Blackwell - Blackwell is a serving crime analyst with a Sheriff's department in California, USA. He writes short fiction across genres, including crime fiction.
3. Dwayne Clayden - Clayden served as an officer with the Calgary Police in Canada. He then expanded his emergency service experience by working with the Fire Department and the paramedics.

Our Squad now consists of:

62 American
39 British
9 Australian
9 Canadian
4 New Zealanders
3 Finnish
2 Dutch
2 Swedish
1 French
1 Bahamian
1 Norwegian
1 Italian
1 Czech
1 Russian
1 Hungarian

I'll keep adding more as I come across them, and if you know of any others please feel free to drop me a line.

Check out The Squad:
Also: Cops Writing Crime

And please remember, my list is only for CRIME FICTION - not all the true crime and/or memoir writing by cops and ex-cops that's out there (as good as so much of that is).

Cheers,
ABP

"XXX Shamus" - what a debauched PI adventure, and what fun!

13/11/2018

Wow, I've got a broad mind when it comes to putting sex into my crime writing, but Red Hammond makes me seem meek and mild.
Apparently this book has been banned previously by some retailers, which would be a good enough recommendation for me - I hate censorship.
Anyway, if you're inclined towards sensibilities on sexual matters, this is not a recommended read for you.
However, for connoisseurs of the hard-boiled PI genre, this is a great PI romp with lashings of sex; I was going to say "thrown in", but "poured over the top until inundated" would be more accurate.
I thoroughly enjoyed the debauched journey of PI Hopper Garland. He trawls all the lowlife haunts you can imagine. It's a hoot.
Cheers,
ABP

Harry's Quest is imminent! PI Harry Kenmare set to return in December 2018!

13/11/2018

The manuscript for Harry's Quest finally headed off yesterday for typesetting and then printing. Oh, what a feeling of relief to send the novel away for its final stage of creation.
I'm sure many of my fellow authors, especially those who self-publish, share my bittersweet feelings towards the editing and proofreading stages. I think you do get to a point where you just have to say, "Bugger it, it's going as it is now, because I can't stand the thought of reading through it all again!"
I'm hoping that the 110,000 words I sent off yesterday are pretty schmicko by now - any remaining errors are entirely my responsibility.
Of course, I still have to go through the typeset version when that's ready, and then it's the waiting for the printers and then the van to arrive with all the boxes. I still remember the sheer thrill of opening the first box when Harry's World arrived back in 2015, and pulling out that first copy, and realising that, hey, I'm a published crime writer! Well, hanging out for that feeling again in early December when a thousand copies of Harry's Quest arrive.
And then it's back into the other half of being a self-published author - marketing, profile building, and selling.
So, folks, the paperback version will be available in early December (barring any calamities at the printers), and the ebook and print-on-demand versions will be available probably a little before that.
I'll be posting regularly.
Cheers,
ABP

Cops Writing Crime - Another British member joins the Squad!

4/11/2018

I've been letting this great project lie idle for a few weeks, due to other commitments (the necessities of life and having to earn a living!). But a little research the other day revealed a new candidate for our Squad.

This now takes us to 134 in number, with another British cousin joining The Squad!
That's 134 cops and ex-cops (and some PIs) who have taken to writing crime fiction. You won't get more realistic crime tales than those from this Squad!

So, we have joining us today:
1. Steve Parker - Parker spent 20 years in the Metropolitan Police in London. He's already got two crime fiction novels to his name.

Our Squad now consists of:

61 American
39 British
9 Australian
7 Canadian
4 New Zealanders
3 Finnish
2 Dutch
2 Swedish
1 French
1 Bahamian
1 Norwegian
1 Italian
1 Czech
1 Russian
1 Hungarian

I'll keep adding more as I come across them, and if you know of any others please feel free to drop me a line.

Check out The Squad:
Also: Cops Writing Crime

And please remember, my list is only for CRIME FICTION - not all the true crime and/or memoir writing by cops and ex-cops that's out there (as good as so much of that is).

Cheers,
ABP