CODES, CONSPIRACIES & SYMBOLS, OH MY!

Dan Brown’s latest Robert Langdon thriller, Inferno, was released last Tuesday. I had it pre-ordered on Audible a month ago. Yes, I freely admit I’m a big fan. Ever since I first read the Da Vinci Code I’ve put Dan Brown on my auto buy list and developed a passion for books featuring codes, symbols, conspiracies, and secret societies. The Da Vinci Code was also a big influence on my own novel, The Paris Secret. Over the years there have been many Da Vinci Code like books I’ve enjoyed. Here are some of my favorites:

Labyrinth by Kate Mosse- July 2005. In the Pyrenees mountains near Carcassonne, Alice, a volunteer at an archaeological dig, stumbles into a cave and makes a startling discovery-two crumbling skeletons, strange writings on the walls, and the pattern of a labyrinth. Eight hundred years earlier, on the eve of a brutal crusade that will rip apart southern France, a young woman named Alais is given a ring and a mysterious book for safekeeping by her father. The book, he says, contains the secret of the true Grail, and the ring, inscribed with a labyrinth, will identify a guardian of the Grail. Now, as crusading armies gather outside the city walls of Carcassonne, it will take a tremendous sacrifice to keep the secret of the labyrinth safe.


The Givenchy Code By Julie Kenner- a mind-bending code spawned from the mind of a madman...or maybe just a jealous ex. A desperate race through the cathedrals and hotels of New York City...with a teeny bit of time for shopping, it's true. An astonishing truth concealed for years, unveiled at last...with more than a little help from a super cute new guy. As if a recent breakup, scrounging for rent money, and lusting after designer shoes weren't enough, Melanie Prescott starts receiving obscure codes and clues from a menacing stranger. She attempts to solve the mysteries -- enlisting the help of a tall, dark, and handsome new friend -- with high hopes for the multimillion-dollar reward guaranteed at the end (handbags, sunglasses, and shoes, oh my!). That is, if she can survive the deadly game.

Juliet by Anne Fortier- twenty-five-year-old Julie Jacobs is heartbroken over the death of her beloved aunt Rose. But the shock goes even deeper when she learns that the woman who has been like a mother to her has left her entire estate to Julie’s twin sister. The only thing Julie receives is a key—one carried by her mother on the day she herself died—to a safety-deposit box in Siena, Italy. This key sends Julie on a journey that will change her life forever—a journey into the troubled past of her ancestor Giulietta Tolomei. In 1340, still reeling from the slaughter of her parents, Giulietta was smuggled into Siena, where she met a young man named Romeo. Their ill-fated love turned medieval Siena upside-down and went on to inspire generations of poets and artists, the story reaching its pinnacle in Shakespeare’s famous tragedy. But six centuries have a way of catching up to the present, and Julie gradually begins to discover that here, in this ancient city, the past and present are hard to tell apart. The deeper she delves into the history of Romeo and Giulietta, and the closer she gets to the treasure they allegedly left behind.

Chasing Vermeer By Blue Balliet- When a book of unexplainable occurrences brings Petra and Calder together, strange things start to happen: Seemingly unrelated events connect; an eccentric old woman seeks their company; an invaluable Vermeer painting disappears. Before they know it, the two find themselves at the center of an international art scandal, where no one is spared from suspicion. As Petra and Calder are drawn clue by clue into a mysterious labyrinth, they must draw on their powers of intuition, their problem solving skills, and their knowledge of Vermeer. Can they decipher a crime that has stumped even the FBI?

Enjoy!
Angela : )

Pulling the Plug

I read a lot of mystery series. A lot! Many of the ones I love are still going strong after the fifteen and twentieth book, while others are on life-support and should be put out of their misery. But just when and why does an author decide to end a series? Sometimes your publisher makes the decision for you. Declining sales, an editor that leaves the company, or a publisher going out of business can stop a series in its tracks. 

Fortunately, the rise of ebooks and self-publishing has put the control back into the hands of an author not ready to end their series after being dropped.

Some authors have a preset number of books in mind when they start writing a series. But often the very nature of the series dictates how many books will be written. In author Daniel Handler’s case, his series of unfortunate events, written under the name Lemony Snicket, tells the tale of the luckless Baudelaire orphans, and logically ended with unlucky number thirteen. And I’m assuming SueGrafton’s Kinsey Millhone series, which are titled after the alphabet, will end at book twenty-six.

Boredom can also be a deciding factor. Many authors just get sick to death of their main character and can’t bear to write another word about him/her. So they end it. That’s what one author confided to me when she ended her series after only four books. “I’m just so tired of _______. I want to write about someone else,” she told me. I guess that said it all.

My fifth Kendra Clayton mystery, Sly, Slick & Wicked, was released recently.  But who knows what the future holds. I’m currently exploring other genres and have a middle grade fantasy on submission as well as an adult urban fantasy in the works. And while I’m not ready to stop writing my series, I don’t know how I’ll feel a few more books down the line. But I suspect I’m going to keep writing about Kendra Clayton as long as people want to keep reading about her.

Angela Henry 

http://www.angelahenry.com/

YA Mysteries & Thrillers 

By Angela Henry

I always tell people that I cut my teeth on Nancy Drew and Trixie Beldon mysteries. Those two brave, intrepid, and often-foolish teen girls sparked my love of mysteries. These days I mostly read adult mysteries and thrillers. But I still love teen sleuths and highly enjoy reading about their crime solving adventures all while juggling friends, family and homework! Here are some great YA mystery/thrillers that I’ve enjoyed recently and highly recommend.

Dark Eyes By William Richter-Wally was adopted from a Russian orphanage as a child and grew up in a wealthy New York City family. At fifteen, her obsessive need to rebel led her to life on the streets. Now the sixteen-year-old is beautiful and hardened, and she's just stumbled across the possibility of discovering who she really is. She'll stop at nothing to find her birth mother before Klesko - her darkeyed father - finds her. Because Klesko will stop at nothing to reclaim the fortune Wally's mother stole from him long ago. Even if that means murdering his own blood

The Butterfly Clues By Kate Ellison-Penelope “Lo” Marin has always loved to collect beautiful things. But in the year since her brother’s death, Lo’s hoarding has blossomed into a full-blown, potentially dangerous obsession. When she discovers a beautiful antique butterfly figurine and recognizes it as having been stolen from the home of a recently murdered girl known only as Sapphire, Lo becomes fixated. As she attempts to piece together the mysterious “butterfly clues,” with the unlikely help of a street artist named Flynt, Lo quickly finds herself caught up in a seedy, violent underworld — a world much closer to home than she ever imagined.

My Own Worst Frenemy By Kimberly Reid-Chanti Evans is an undercover cop's daughter and an exclusive private school's newest student. But Chanti is learning fast that when it comes to con games, the streets have nothing on Langdon Prep. With barely a foot in the door, fifteen-year-old Chanti gets on the bad side of school queen bee Lissa and snobbish Headmistress Smythe. They've made it their mission to take Chanti down and she needs to find out why, especially when stuff begins disappearing around campus, making her the most wanted girl in school, and not in a good way. But the last straw comes when she and her Langdon crush, the seriously hot Marco Ruiz, are set up to take the heat for a series of home burglaries--and worse. . . .

The Liar Society By Laura and Lisa Roecker-Kate Lowry's best friend Grace died a year ago. So when she gets an email from her, Kate's more than a little confused. Now Kate has no choice but to prove once and for all that Grace's death was more than just a tragic accident. She teams up with a couple of knights-in-(not-so)-shining armor-the dangerously hot bad boy, Liam, and her lovestruck neighbor, Seth. But at their elite private school, there are secrets so big people will do anything to protect them-even if it means getting rid of anyone trying to solve a murder...

The Ruby in the Smoke By Phillip Pullman-In search of clues to the mystery of her father's death, 16-year-old Sally Lockhart ventures into the shadowy underworld of Victorian London. Pursued by villains at every turn, the intrepid Sally finally uncovers two dark mysteries--and realizes that she herself is the key to both.

Conspiracy 365: January By Gabrielle Lord-On New Year's Eve, Cal is chased down the street by a staggering, sick man with a deadly warning..."They killed your father. They'll kill you. You must survive the next 365 days. Hurled into a life on the run the 15-year-old fugitive is isolated and alone. Hunted by the law and ruthless criminals, Cal must somehow uncover the truth about his father's mysterious death and a history-changing secret. Who can he turn to, who can he trust, when the whole world seems to want him dead? The clock is ticking. Any second could be his last.

Who are you’re favorite teen sleuths?

For the Love of Film Noir

This past weekend I found some old pictures from my freshman year at Ohio University.  Those pictures really took me back. It was fun, and a little depressing, seeing my eighteen year-old self having the time of my life. But funnily enough it wasn’t just the memories of all night cram sessions, friends, parties, pizzas, beer, and guys that the pictures evoked. I was also reminded of my favorite class in college. It was a film noir class that met once a week for two hours. There was minimal lecturing from the professor, and I can’t even remember if we had a textbook, but we watched a movie every week. I loved every minute of that class and being transported back to the 40s and 50s. I loved the dark, stylish, black and white crime dramas featuring private eyes, grifters, drifters, unlucky citizens, and femme fatales. Everybody had a secret and there were few happy endings. Here’s some of what was on our syllabus.

Strangers on a Train (1951)-A psychotic socialite confronts a pro tennis star with a theory on how two complete strangers can get away with murder...a theory that he plans to implement. Starring: Farley Granger, Robert Walker, and Ruth Roman

Double Indemnity (1944)-An insurance rep lets himself be talked into a murder/insurance fraud scheme that arouses an insurance investigator's suspicions. Starring: Fred McMurray, Barbara Stanwyck, and Edward G. Robinson.

The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946)-A married woman and a drifter fall in love, and then plot to murder her husband... but even once the deed is done, they must live with the consequences of their actions. Starring: Lana Turner, John Garfield, and Hume Cronyn.

The Big Sleep  (1946)-Private detective Philip Marlowe is hired by a rich family. Before the complex case is over, he's seen murder, blackmail, and what might be love. Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, John Ridgely.

Out of the Past (1947)-A private eye escapes his past to run a gas station in a small town, but his past catches up with him. Now he must return to the big city world of danger, corruption, double crosses and duplicitous dames. Starring: Robert Mitchem, Kirk Douglas, and Jane Greer

Mildred Pierce (1945)-After her cheating husband leaves her, Mildred Pierce proves she can become independent and successful, but can't win the approval of her spoiled daughter. Starring: Joan Crawford, Jack Carson, and Ann Blyth.

If you haven't seen any of these films, I highly recommend them. Also, check out the collection of film noir for free online at the Moving Image Archive.

Enjoy!

Angela