I was invited this week to write a guest column for Suzanne Beecher's excellent DearReader.com. I suppose I could have written about deer hunting or showshoeing or the many macho pursuits I deal with in my novels. But instead I shared a little of my domestic side, specifically my nightly ritual of reading aloud to my wife, Kristen, each night before bed. Like many longtime habits I don't exactly remember how this one began, but I can scarcely imagine my life now without it.
My Night at Hotel ZaZa
I begin my new post at MaineCrimeWriters.com with these words:
I am writing this post in a balcony suite at the Hotel ZaZa in Houston, Texas. My room overlooks verdant Hermann Park and the city skyline. In a few hours I will be reading and signing copies of my new novel, Bad Little Falls, at one of the nation's premier mystery bookstores, Murder by the Book.
What follows is a reflection on the (fleeting) luck that got me to this place in my career, but also some predictions about the future of author book tours during this tumultous era we are living through. Check it out.
On Tour
I have no idea what book tours used to be like, but I do know that I am one of the lucky authors these days who gets sent out into the world to promote his book.
What this has meant for me is nearly non-stop motion. On Sunday I drove back home to Camden, ME, from a string of events in Massachusetts. Yesterday, I recorded a TV interview in Portland, ME. Tonight I do a reading and signing at a bookstore in Farmington, ME. Tomorrow night I drive back to Portland to catch a flight to Houston, TX (very early the following morning), for my first ever appearance at the legendary Murder by the Book.
In case you're wondering: yes, I do love it.
The AP: "Bad Little Falls" Is "Riveting"
Bruce DeSilva, who won the Edgar for Rogue Island and has a terrific follow-up out called Cliff Walk, has reviewed Bad Little Falls for the Associated Press, and it's everything I could hope for:
"The plot is riveting, but as always in a Paul Doiron novel, the greatest attraction is the stark beauty of the language and the vivid portrayal of his native Maine. He describes drug-riddled, poverty-stricken Down East — a region of fast-moving streams, frozen lakes, ice-fishing shacks and forbidding bogs — so precisely that you'll feel the below-freezing temperatures in your bones."
One of the great things about getting a good review from the AP is that it pops up in newspapers and on websites across the continent, from the Brandon Sun and Winnipeg Free Press to the Boston Globe and Washington Post. An author couldn't ask for better exposure than that!
RT Book Reviews Says "Bad Little Falls" Is a Top Pick
RT Book Reviews is out with its review of Bad Little Falls and it's a beauty. The magazine gives the book 4.5 out of 5 stars and proclaims it a Top Pick for August. To fully appreciate why I am so delighted by this news it helps to understand RT Book Reviews ratings system:
4 1/2 Gold: Phenomenal. In a class by itself.
4 1/2: Fantastic. A keeper.
4: Compelling. A page-turner.
3: Enjoyable. A pleasant read.
2: Problematic. May struggle to finish.
1: Severely Flawed. Pass on this one.RT TOP PICKS -- The RT Top Picks list represents the best books of the month chosen by our staff of reviewers from the 250 plus new books reviewed in each issue of RT BOOK REVIEWS Magazine.
Here's what reviewer Donna M. Carter has to say about Bad Little Falls:
Doiron once again makes excellent use of Maine’s unforgiving weather to set the stage for a compelling mystery, while underscoring his complicated hero’s troubled character. Elegant prose perfectly captures the feel of the location, and the diverse, realistic cast of characters enriches the narrative. Readers will shiver — both from the cold and in anticipation of the rather shocking conclusion.
A shocking conclusion was what I was aiming for with the novel. I'm glad I hit the mark!