Gangs of New York ----> Bristol 1931... OREON's Latest Reissue & Newsletter!

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Hi everyone

A very warm welcome to July's reissue newsletter. I'm delighted to say we've had a bunch of new members join up so the echo in here is slightly less deafening... And so -

PRIMARY SUSPECT

Ok, so this one took awhile! I’m delighted to finally send this newsletter because, more than usual, I'm very excited to announce the book - Lynn Brock's Q.E.D. I know I say they’re all great but Brock (Alister McAllister) has penned a really fine, multi-threaded twister of a tale here. It starts with a miserable foggy night, a famous suspension bridge and man's unfortunate inability to fly! We’re thrown in with Inspector Lord and private detective Colonel Gore (his sixth outing), who's got his work cut out here as, sadly, it's a friend of his that's died. We’re introduced to a host of colourful characters, some less than genuine; a whole range of clues, many leading nowhere; and more than a little bloody violence, most visited on Gore himself.

Will our hero vanquish Evil's henchmen and restore order and light to the peaceful, select enclave of Linwood (aka Clifton, Bristol)?? There's only one way to find out!

Obviously, I hope you enjoy it - it's darker than our usual and surprises a little in bringing a real American noir element relatively early to the traditional British form. It was also published in the U.S. as Murder on the Bridge (and was then rapidly reissued here under that title). The links are up and working over on the Oleander site so please go here to see more.

One slight oddity – throughout the book you’ll come across a ‘shover’, which had me at a loss. But I found out he uses it for chauffeur. Who knew..? Mind you, I was delighted to come across ‘Detroosey nose’ – I’m a fan, personally...

You’ll remember that for once I gave up on the cover – I admit my effort was pretty pathetic! So, leaving it to the pros clearly works – again, who knew? They came back with exactly what I wanted and I'm admittedly quite taken with the finished result. I'm willing to admit it might not be to everyone's taste though!

That's my only vital news so thanks for checking it out! I don't want to take up more of your time if you're busy - the below is of a less than essential nature! (Altho, stick with it and there’s a free book at the end…)

PERSONS OF INTEREST & ALIBIS

You'll no doubt have heard the furore over AI generated content recently. Whilst I don't think we're in any danger of suffering under mountains of AI generated books just yet (although publishers are getting more dubious entries - see this CNN piece) I do think it can help us. It's certainly true for people like myself who have difficulty writing in certain styles when necessary. A particular weakness of mine seems to be blurb writing - so I thought I'd give the task to an AI and see how it did. The below left was written by Claude 2 - the advanced version of Anthopic's chatbot. It was instructed to use the key lessons from Save the Cat! (a screenwriting bible) to create the blurb you see. My blurb for the book jacket and Amazon etc is on the right. I was trying to create atmosphere by weaving strands of the original 1931 blurb into it but I think that whilst mine aims to be fluid, friendly and chatty, Claude's version clearly seems to be tighter and more compelling. I wonder if you agree?

This matters for a one-(and a half)-man-band like Oleander. Mainly because I've noticed that last year 1:10 people visiting my book pages coughed up - and these days it's around 1 in 23... Basically, the more comfortable I get with writing blurbs, the worse I become! There's so much more competition out there now and, obviously, this affects the bottom line (These figures refer to Amazon ads, not you lovely people). So we'll see.

Claude:

A dark, foggy night. A mysterious phone call. A doctor lured to his death on an isolated bridge.

When Dr. Sidney Melhuish receives an urgent late-night summons to tend to a patient, he has no idea he's about to meet his own demise. As Melhuish crosses the narrow, unlit bridge surrounded by thick fog, he's flagged down by a stranger and disappears into the mist forever.

By morning, Melhuish's body is found below the bridge, the victim of foul play. But who made the phony house call? And what sinister motive lurks behind the doctor's murder?

Inspector Lord and Colonel Gore race to untangle the web of deception and secrets surrounding the case. The discovery of a poisoned tramp with a cryptic metal badge provides a vital clue. But the sudden disappearance of shady moneylender Dr. Dorch further deepens the mystery.

Time is running out as Lord & Gore pursue every thread to unmask a calculating killer. Will they uncover the truth before the murderer strikes again? Or will more innocent lives be sacrificed to a ruthless plan?

Murder on the Bridge will grip you from the first page and keep you guessing until the final shocking twist. This taut, moody thriller is perfect for fans of classic detective stories and British mystery. Don't miss your chance to experience the suspense for yourself!

Jon:

The celebrated suspension bridge which crosses Linwood Gorge – its chains once spanned the Thames – has seen many
tragedies in its seventy years, but none more sinister than that with which this latest of Colonel Gore’s cases concerns itself.

“You probably haven't heard yet,” said the constable with calm matter-of-factness, “Dr. Melhuish was taken out of the river shortly after three o'clock this morning, dead…”

With such mundane-yet-portentous words begins an investigation the likes of which Colonel Gore has rarely encountered, bringing hollow leads, red herrings, false identities, and two desperate physical attacks… Add organised crime links and new (and old!) suspects appearing almost daily, and the puzzle is enough to confound the most seasoned investigator. But the kicker for Gore is that – this time it’s personal!

His friend murdered, his godson left bereft and the doctor’s wife now battling a spiral of grief and despair. It all rests on him - can he get to the bottom of this dastardly mess and thus allow them the slightest chance of happiness?

Staggering in the simplicity of its achievement, incredible in the selection of its victim, the murder of Dr. Sidney Melhuish presents itself to the reader, as it did to the police, an apparently unsolvable mystery. Baffled for space by a parallel trail, will Gore in the end, inch by inch, and at grave personal risk, drag the truth to light?

CRIME SCENE PHOTOS

A couple of weeks ago this trusty minion was guardian to a certain ex-bookseller on a trip to the secondhand bookshops of Norwich - a famously beautiful city and an old favourite to wander round. First stop - The Dormouse where we found a couple of good possibilities for the future of Oreon and your bookshelves! And then on to the equally well-known Tombland bookshop. An interesting array in the crime section there but nothing tempting for reissue this time.

Mind you, I did find a tatty copy of the venerable Popular Card Games which may inspire a new title for Oleander - after all, my Dice Games, New and Old has been (bizarrely) a bestseller for decades (with a lot less effort than this Golden Age malarkey!)

You'll be relieved to know that my sterling driving services were rewarded with a lovely Thai lunch - and afternoon coffee too!

APBs, BOLOs & CASE NOTES

Now that we're past the middle of the year and (horrifically) starting to look towards Christmas, there've been mutterings regarding a possible EVENT. We're thinking November... Several favourite crime scribblers, readings, Q&As, drinks, nibbles and RR performing full-gore Crime re-enactments for a multi-team Charades game... Ok, so maybe the last is a tic of my over-active imagination! But the booze is a definite! All ideas, thoughts and venue suggestions welcome - never one to exit early from a party, Richard is very keen on the idea!

Talking of the retiree formally known as Heffer's Crime Chief... He's recently been fulfilling personal search requests and orders for some of his old customers & contacts; he suggested I mention that if anybody needs him to track down any titles desperately desired, then just drop him a line.

I think, in reality, the old boy misses 'working' in the shop - chatting with customers both old and new, the frequent coffees and lunches - and, of course, the gossip. He really values the friends he made whilst at Heffers and still loves to hear about what others are reading - or writing. He'd be delighted to hear from you, and is famously happy to go for a coffee and a chat in Cambridge anytime, even more when discussing the Golden Age of course. Just email [email protected] (Btw - it goes without saying that coffee will be on you! But then be delighted that you're spared cake expense - he's on a diet lol)

Mind you - you can recommend a title as much as you like and it'll likely fall on stony ground. Largely responsible for the success and continued sales of my Night Climbers of Cambridge - and yet I don't believe he's ever even opened it, let alone read it. And having long known my love for my favourite book - Richard Katrovas' Mystic Pig - has he even picked it up? What do you think? But anyway - he'll no doubt listen to you, so drop him a line!

Ok that's it - thanks for reading the above and, as ever, for your growing support.

Take care,

Jon & Richard

P.S. It's not GA, and it's not crime or mystery but if you fancy reading Mystic Pig - here's a free epub copy, active for 48 hours. It's an awful title I know, but an amazing book.

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