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NPR stories about Crime In The City
Michigan Author Dreams Up A Deadlier Ann Arbor()
August 27, 2012 Ann Arbor residents would easily recognize their city in Harry Dolan's crime fiction, but the likeness ends with murder; while Dolan can pack several homicides into each book, the real Ann Arbor is much more peaceful.
Robert Crais: L.A. Is 'Natural Canvas' For Nightmare()
August 20, 2012 From murder in the Venice canals to human trafficking in the desert, Los Angeles serves as the perfect setting for Robert Crais' noir novels, starring Elvis Cole and Joe Pike, two PIs who are desperately seeking normal — both for their clients and themselves.
Sleuthing Through The Shadows In Sunny Honolulu()
August 13, 2012 In Victoria Kneubuhl's mysteries, dashing detectives Ned and Mina explore the darker side of a sunny tourist paradise — Honolulu. In their debut, Murder Casts a Shadow, Ned and Mina set out to discover who killed a crooked museum curator, and get drawn into a deeper mystery about the death of Hawaii's last king.
Author Peter James And Sidekick Track Seaside Crime ()
August 6, 2012 Working closely with a former detective, James still goes out with Brighton police to gather material for his work about an English city with a rich criminal history.
Writer Has A Down-Home Feel For Atlanta's Dark Side()
July 30, 2012 Growing up near Atlanta, Karin Slaughter learned that tragic crimes can happen to anyone — even children. She says she sets her crime fiction in Atlanta as a way to honor the city's people and turning points, from the election of its first black mayor to the 1996 Olympics.
Jo Nesbo's Fiction Explores Oslo's Jagged Edges()
July 23, 2012 The Norwegian author does his best to show NPR's Eric Westervelt that Oslo really does have a seedy side. In his fiction, at least, Nesbo's city is full of shady characters who draw the attention of the reckless, alcoholic detective Harry Hole.
Big Crime, Little State: Murder, Mystery In Providence, R.I.()
July 16, 2012 For author Bruce DeSilva, Providence, R.I.'s storied history of mob violence and small-town sense of intimacy make it the perfect place to set his crime fiction. The only trouble, he says, is toning down the truth just enough to make it believable.
Dark Doings Among The D.C. Monuments()
July 9, 2012 NPR's Linda Wertheimer walks the halls of power — and the local cafes — with crime novelist Mike Lawson, whose Joe DeMarco books serve up murder and mayhem in the nation's capital.
Philly Author's 'Confession': I Lived These Stories()
July 2, 2012 Author Solomon Jones says death can seem angelic at first — especially to the lost, addicted kids in his book The Last Confession. He says many of his stories come from his own experiences as a homeless drug addict on the streets of Philadelphia.
Sleuth Keeps His Good Eye On Mexico City's Crime()
June 29, 2012 Paco Ignacio Taibo II and his fictional protagonist, Hector Belascoaran Shayne, follow crime trails in a dark, violent Mexico City. But the author has not written about his detective since the drug war began about six years ago.
Sleuthing Around Dublin's Darkest Corners()
September 2, 2011 John Banville (who writes crime fiction under the pen name Benjamin Black) describes the exploits of his oddball sleuth named Quirke. His plots are set in Dublin, a city that lends itself to noir fiction. "I love this place in a strange, embittered kind of way," Black says.
Athens Cop On The Trail Of Modern Greece()
September 1, 2011 To crime writer Petros Markaris, the Athens of today is both a peaceful Balkan haven and a symbol of the ugliness of modern, corrupt societies. In his detective novels, Markaris takes on the financial and social crises sweeping Greece.
Moscow, In A Time Of Fear()
August 30, 2011 Young novelist Tom Rob Smith captures the oppressive atmosphere of the former Soviet Union even though he was just a child when the Communist nation broke apart.
P.I. Kelly: Hot On The Trail Of Crime In Chicago()
August 5, 2011 When novelist Michael Harvey first moved to Chicago, he immediately felt at home. Now, Harvey takes his readers on a tour of Chicago — from touristy Navy Pier to the tunnels of the L train — in his Michael Kelly crime series.
A Former Cop Sets His Crime Scene In Seattle()
August 4, 2011 Seattle would seem the ideal setting for noir crime novels, what with the rain, the port and the gloomy Scandinavians. But it's not as noir as it used to be. Lowen Clausen, a Seattle cop turned Seattle crime writer, brings back the city's seedier days.
