Suspense, Mystery, Horror and Thriller Fiction JUNE 2013 Inside Summer Thrills with Jeffrey Archer AlAfAir Burke chevy StevenS hAnk SteinBerg & DeAn JAmeS Meet Newcomer John Mulhall Get a Sneak Peek of Rules of fiction with “The Doll” by Michael connelly Taylor STevenS by Anthony J. Franze C r e di t s From the Editor John Raab President & Chairman Shannon Raab Creative Director Can authors go too far with their plots? Romaine Reeves I ask this question to many authors: Is there CFO a subject you simply won’t write about? Most of Starr Gardinier Reina the time the answer is anything having to do with Executive Editor the death of a child—it’s simply too dark a place Jim Thomsen for them to venture into. There are other subjects Copy Editor that authors graphically put in their books, since the genre simply calls for it; however, going too Contributors dark for them is going too far. Emotions from the Donald Allen Kirch Mark P. Sadler author to the reader are an essential part of connection between the two, but not in a Susan Santangelo way that leaves the reader feeling uncomfortable. DJ Weaver CK Webb I’ve read the backs of many books that I thought contained subject matter that Kiki Howell Kaye George was just a little over the top. And I wondered, what if the author changed things up a Weldon Burge little? Couldn’t they still have a great story? The competition to find readers is a difficult Ashley Wintters Scott Pearson challenge for any author today, because of the electronic age and e-books, in which D.P. Lyle M.D. anybody can write a book and post it on Amazon or Barnes & Noble. Claudia Mosley Christopher Nadeau I don’t know if this is forcing some authors to break through their barriers and Kathleen Heady Stephen Brayton write about controversial subjects simply to get some attention, even if it is negative. Brian Blocker Plot lines in thriller books have been written about thousands of times over, and authors Andrew MacRae Val Conrad today have to try and find new ground in order to stay fresh, but it sometimes comes at Laura Alden the expense of their own morals. Melissa Dalton Elliott Capon I find it sad that this is something they have to do, but with society becoming more J.M. LeDuc Holly Price and more immune to today’s violent behavior, what can they do? Kari Wainwright David Ingram In my opinion, simply going back to the basics and bringing back some old-school Bill Craig style of detective work would be refreshing. I’m getting a little tired of all the technology Jodi Hanson in books, in which the detective is getting lazy and the only way to make the book fast- Amy Lignor Susan May paced is to put more dark themes at the J.S. McCormick center of the work. Kestrel T. Andersen Cassandra McNeil As a reader, you have to decide Jenny Hilborne Tanya Contois if dark is too dark. Is the next book Sharon Salonen you pick up going to hit you in a way Anthony J. Franze Jeanine Elizalde that makes you a little queasy in the Kristin Centorcelli stomach? The real world is violent and Jerry Zavada Ray Palen insane enough, so do we really need to S.L. Menear have it taken up to a level beyond reality? Drake Morgan Or can’t we still enjoy a good book that Customer Service and doesn’t take us out of the real life? Subscriptions: For 24/7 service, please use our website, www.suspensemagazine.com or write to: SUSPENSE MAGAZINE at John Raab 26500 Agoura Road, #102-474 CEO/Publisher Calabasas, CA 91302 Suspense Magazine does not share our Suspense Magazine ■ magazine subscriber list to third-party companies. “Reviews within this magazine are the opinions of the individual reviewers and are provided solely to provide readers assistance Rates: $24.00 (Electronic Subscrip- in determining another's thoughts on the book under discussion and shall not be interpreted as professional advice or the opin- tion) per year. All foreign subscrip- ion of any other than the individual reviewer. The following reviewers who may appear in this magazine are also individual cli- tions must be payable in U.S. funds. ents of Suspense Publishing, an imprint of Suspense Magazine: Mark P. Sadler, Starr Gardinier Reina, Ashley Dawn (Wintters), DJ Weaver, CK Webb, Elliott Capon, J.M. LeDuc, S.L. Menear, and Amy Lignor.” SuspenseMagazine.com 1 CONTENT Su Sp E n se M ag a z i n E June 2013 / Vol. 048 Cries in the Dark By Gillian Scott . .3 Lisa Gardner on Conquering the Dreaded Synopsis: Part Five . 5 From Their Pen . to the Silver Screen By CK Webb . .8 An Old-Fashioned Southern Gentleman: Dean James Interview . 11 Lucky By R .S . Morgan . 15 Rules of Fiction with Michael Connelly By Anthony J . Franze . 20 Whistle by the Graveyard By Laura Kathryn Rogers . 23 Horror's New Voice: John Mulhall Interview . 26 Inside the Pages: Suspense Magazine Book Reviews . 30 Suspense Magazine Movie Reviews . 41 Featured Artist: Sara Helwe . 43 The Methuselah Root By Doward Stevens . 51 Interview with a Monster: The Phantom File By Thomas Scopel . 58 Stranger Than Fiction: George Washington By Donald Allen Kirch . 65 Excerpt of “The Doll” By Taylor Stevens . 69 A Kidnapping By Hannah Friend . 75 Cries in the Dark By Gillian Scott The quiet of the forest was broken only by the sound of Heaven knew I tried to forget, to escape the abominable splattering rain drops that showered down like the tears of atrocity of that night, but I appeared stuck in a time warp, a an unloved child. A mist shrouded the lake obscuring the past filled with insurmountable pain and paralyzing terror. house from view, but I knew exactly where it was, the stone I was living in a Pandora’s Box of memories that simply masonry house that had once boasted a splendid facade and refused to die. played host to an equal number of splendid gatherings. I The soothing silence of the night was disturbed by the could hear the squawking of the water birds as they made utterances of a night owl and listening to its eerie hooting, their way across a showcase of flowering water lilies. It was I was strangely comforted by its presence. It was much later a scene of matchless loveliness, surreal in its unique charm. in the black of night that the intruder entered the house, a The house now bereft of any former grandeur still managed bulwark to a hideously shameful crime. The police assumed to give an impression of aloofness, it stood tall and proud, an it the random act of a psychopath (which of course it was), icon against a backdrop of forestland beauty. Its dilapidated but I knew the offenders identity and yet could tell no one. state was far removed from the illustrious home of my The assailant was on a spree of violence, a rampage fueled by childhood and the unparalleled splendor of the gardens, that an adrenaline rush that could not, or would not be dismissed. had been my mother’s pride and of which she boasted to no His actions were not the result of some misguided retribution, end. They now appeared a blanketed array of meandering but borne out of a purely involuntarily biological need. His pathways and broken down fences; a sad reminder of a body required it, indeed demanded it like an addict needed previous life. a fix. The fact that he was able to achieve sexual gratification The rains had been fitful all morning, but the clouds from these sordid acts of violence was just an added bonus. having been eventually cleared, revealed flake-like rays of No one heard him enter and no one saw him leave. sunlight, which filtered down through tall, majestic trees However, I had sensed the footsteps on the stairs long before and allowed me to glimpse the home of my past. Its run- I heard them, the thump of a footfall on creaking wood down condition did not detract from my remembrance of followed by a heavy dragging sound. I listened for awhile for its former beauty, and I was momentarily overwhelmed by any further noise, but none came and so I snuggled beneath the profusion of memories that came flooding back. The the sheets burying my face beneath the myriad of pillows. chirpings of a cardinal perched high in a tree briefly diverted Somewhere between sleep and consciousness, I recall me from my musings, and I watched enrapt as the dappled watching shadows of frightening, faceless figures dance sunlight bathed its feathered coat in colorful glory. It was across the ceiling. However, eventually the beckoning world a captivating moment, another exhibit of Mother Nature’s of castles and kings and knights in shining armor was too simple and uncomplicated beauty. The bird eventually flew hard to resist, and I was transported to a land where every away and I was drawn back towards the house, wondering if adventure left you breathless for more. the memories would indeed ever let go of me or I of them. The footsteps I had heard, or at least thought I had heard SuspenseMagazine.com 3 of earlier did not come again, and anyway by now, sleep had already claimed me. It was sometime later that I was awakened by an echoing scream that seemed to rock the very rafters of the house.