Category Archives: Stark House Press

HARDBOILED, NOIR AND GOLD MEDALS by Rick Ollerman

Posted on 4 August 2017 by

Bringing together new essays with material published over the last decade, this new volume in the Stark House Reference range more than lives up to its subtitle: Essays on Crime Fiction Writers from the ’50s through to the 90s. Part of … Continue reading →

Posted in Charles Williams, Donald Westlake, Ed Gorman, Friday's Forgotten Book, Harlan Ellison, Hollywood, Los Angeles, New York, Noir, Stark House Press, Wade Miller | 16 Comments

ANGEL’S FLIGHT (1960) by Lou Cameron

Posted on 21 April 2017 by

This dynamic piece of jazz noir was the debut novel of Lou Cameron (1924–2010), an author who would later establish himself as the ultra prolific authors of hundreds of Westerns. First published as a Gold Medal original, it spins the … Continue reading →

Posted in 2017 Silver Age Vintage Mystery Scavenger Hunt, Friday's Forgotten Book, Hollywood, Los Angeles, New York, Stark House Press | 29 Comments

WOMAN ON THE ROOF (1954) by Helen Nielsen

Posted on 10 February 2017 by

This books starts off with a premise reminiscent of the Hitchcock movie Rear Window (or rather, the short story on which it was based, ‘It Had to Be Murder’ by Cornell Woolwich / William Irish): looking through a window a … Continue reading →

Posted in 2017 Golden Age Vintage Mystery Scavenger Hunt, California, Friday's Forgotten Book, Helen Nielsen, Stark House Press | 56 Comments

2016 Vintage Mystery Scavenger Hunt

Posted on 20 December 2016 by

For as long as I’ve been hosting this blog, I’ve participated in Bev Hankins’ irresistible vintage mystery reading challenges. The rules have been amended over the years, but the basic criteria is the same – review a mystery from two … Continue reading →

Posted in 2016 Golden Age Vintage Mystery Scavenger Hunt, 2016 Silver Vintage Scavenger Hunt, 87th Precinct, Albert Campion, Bill Pronzini, California, Canada, Catherine Aird, Chicago, Cosy Cozy, David Callan, Don DeLillo, Dorothy L. Sayers, Edgar Wallace, Ellery Queen, England, Fletcher Fliora, Florida, Germany, Gideon Fell, Inspector Wexford, Italy, James Hadley Chase, James Mitchell, John Dickson Carr, John le Carre, Kansas City, London, Louisiana, Margery Allingham, Middle East, Montana, New York, Noir, Ostara Publishing, Patricia Moyes, Police procedural, Private Eye, Radio, Ruth Rendell, San Francisco, Stark House Press, Vintage Mystery Cover Scavenger Hunt 2016 | 18 Comments

HOUSE OF EVIL (1954) by Clayre and Michael Lipman

Posted on 26 August 2016 by

Despite sporting a generic title that makes it sound like a Gothic horror, don’t be put off as this is a terrific little mystery with a strong psychological slant. This reprint comes courtesy of Stark House Press supremo Greg Shepard, … Continue reading →

Posted in 2016 Golden Age Vintage Mystery Scavenger Hunt, Friday's Forgotten Book, San Francisco, Stark House Press | 19 Comments

HE WON’T NEED IT NOW (1939) and THE DEAD STAY DUMB (1939) by James Hadley Chase

Posted on 24 June 2016 by

This pair of ultra-hardboiled thrillers were the first two books published by James Hadley Chase following the huge success of his controversial gangster story No Orchids for Miss Blandish (which I recently reviewed right here). Well, actually, He Won’t Need it Now … Continue reading →

Posted in 2016 Golden Age Vintage Mystery Scavenger Hunt, James Hadley Chase, Kansas City, New York, Stark House Press | 32 Comments

SCRATCH A THIEF (1961) and HOUSE OF EVIL (1962) by John Trinian

Posted on 3 June 2016 by

This omnibus volume brings together two distinctive thrillers by John Trinian (aka Zekial Marko), courtesy of those very nice people at Stark House Press. The first is set in San Francisco and is a classic tale of an ex-con who … Continue reading →

Posted in 2016 Silver Vintage Scavenger Hunt, Hollywood, San Francisco, Stark House Press | 34 Comments