The two shelves I am featuring today are from my husband's mystery book shelves. The three authors featured on the shelves are Earl Derr Biggers, William Marshall, and Bill Pronzini.
Let's start with Bill Pronzini:
Pronzini is a very prolific author but today I am focusing on his Nameless Detective series, which now consists of over 40 books. The first book was published in 1971 and the last one in 2017. The series is set in San Francisco and the Bay Area. My husband has read all of the books except the last book in the series, Endgame.
I was the one who introduced my husband to the Nameless Detective series, but I am not close to finishing all the books in the series. I have not read any of the books in the photo above, and have read only one book in the series since I have been blogging: Boobytrap. I hope to continue reading the series soon.
The second shelf has books from both Earl Derr Biggers and William Marshall. I covered Earl Derr Biggers in an earlier Bookshelf Traveling post so I will move on to William Marshall, who is primarily known for his Yellowthread Street series.
Marshals' series is about a group of quirky detectives who work out of the Yellowthread Street Precinct in the Hong Bay district of Hong Kong. The first book in the series was published in 1975; the last one in 1998. Thus it covers roughly the last twenty two years of the British administration of Hong Kong. This series can be described as zany and humorous. Although Hong Bay is a fictional section of Hong Kong, the books do give the reader a sense of Hong Kong of that time. My husband is a big fan of the series and appreciates them for the setting, the eccentric characters, and occasional elements of the fantastical.
I have read and reviewed one book in the Yellowthread Street series: Skulduggery.
20 comments:
Well, I have never heard of any of those authors and I love that. You think you're aware of most authors, turns out you're not. I'm very attracted to the Yellowhead Street series, who knew there was a crime series set in Hong Kong during the British administration (or at any time really)? Fascinating.
Cath, I do think you should try one of the Yellowthread Street mysteries if you can find them. It looks like ebook versions are available. William Marshall is Australian, which I didn't know (or had forgotten).
What lovely books! Like Cath, I too was unaware of the Yellowhead series. I have watched a few Hong Kong movies but not read any books set there. Thanks for sharing.
Boy, do they look pretty. I have read some Pronzini and like them very much.
Count me as another who really likes Bill Pronzini, Tracy. I'm especially glad to see those on your husband's shelves...
Neeru, I probably would not have been aware of William Marshall if my husband was not a fan. It is interesting to read about Hong Kong during that time. I will probably read more in the series sometime.
Nice. I’m way behind on Pronzini, though I started reading him from the beginning. I look at my shelves and think I should do this meme, but get sidetracked.
I agree, Patti, they are pretty. My husband has always preferred hardbacks or trade paperbacks, whereas I am a paperback fan ... especially older books with great covers. Now, however, as it is harder to read, hardbacks and trade paperbacks usually are easier to read.
I do intend to continue with more books by Pronzini. I am hitting a point in the series where there are more changes in his life. My husband has enjoyed all the phases of the Nameless series and is sad it is over (he assumes).
Margot, I regret that I haven't kept up with the Nameless series. And I would like to try some other books by Pronzini, outside of the series.
Rick, I must have started reading Pronzini in the 1970s because Glen and I met in the late 70s and I had already read a few. Now I am at book 26 in the Nameless series which means 15 more books to go plus some novellas.
I enjoy doing this meme, Rick, and I understand about getting sidetracked. Every day I get half as much done as I would like to. Today I am making cookies; we finally found flour on at the grocery store so I must make use of it.
I haven't read anything by those authors, I suspect I will have to go down the ebook route to get them. I see you have flour, a miracle!
I know, Katrina. I was surprised to find flour and all the other things I needed to make cookies at the grocery store on one of our trips. When I talked to my sister a few weeks ago she had just made chocolate chip cookies and I wanted to know how she had flour. Of course, she always has a back stock of baking ingredients because she loves to cook desserts.
Let me also cast a vote for Pronzini; his Nameless Detective series is probably the best PI series in recent years. Almost all of his other books are worthwhile, with the exception of DUEL AT GOLD BUTTES, a paperback western published under a pseudonym and the one book of his that Marcia Muller said she refused to read (although I kinda liked that one, too).
Jerry, I agree with you on the Nameless series, and I do want to try other books he has written. I had forgotten that I have a copy of The Violated, so I should read that in the next few months.
I've heard of Pronzini but not the others. I do love mysteries and am always looking for new authors. My sisters and I are big fans of Jane Casey and have been longing for her new book. I am cranky because Book Depository just emailed me saying there was a problem with the order and they are now out of stock. Boo!
CLM, I read the first book by Jane Casey but haven't read further. There are just too many good authors to read. Sorry you are not getting her latest book as soon as you want, hope it comes soon.
Hi Tracy,
First of all, I'm very impressed that you are able to post a beautiful photo of your bookshelves, all neatly cropped, etc. I love the vibrant colors of the Bill Pronzini titles. (We're going to look up this series because Ken loves books set in the San Francisco/Bay area, due to his many travels there that were work-related, as well as in the Sacramento area. He was so well-travelled, while I stayed home minding our dogs! (In our younger days, we had multiple dogs.) I'd love to try a Pronzini as well. And I'll seek out the Yellowthread series as well!
Sorry to be so late to post. We're starting to have a spit of spring here, and it's gone to my head, I'm afraid.
Judith, both series are worth trying. I like the San Francisco setting for the Pronzini series, although now and then he goes to a camping or fishing area. The last one I read was set at a lake where Nameless was fishing.
The edits for the photos were courtesy of my husband. He took photos of some of our shelves with his phone and he has photo-editing software on his tablet so he made improvements.
I am glad you are having some spring weather and enjoying it.
Thanks for the reminder of Pronzini. I ought to get back to the series. I managed to get to about 12 or 13 before being sidetracked. I have some from William Marshall as well that I picked up after Glen recommended them. I've only read the first so far.
Col, you should get back to Pronzini. Some of the best ones are between book 14 and book 24 (as I remember it). I need to read more by William Marshall. When I read the first one, I did not care for it but that was a good while ago. I did like Skulduggery.
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