Created by Lawrence Block (1938--) The cover of Lawrence Block's The Girl with the Deep Blue Eyes (2015) boasts the prominent (and seriously retro-looking) Hard Case Crime logo and a naked babe with the obligatory gun and come-hither look. Even the title suggests we may be time-traveling back to the heady days of the original … Continue reading Doak Miller
Year: 2024
Thomas Black
Created by Earl Emerson What were they smoking in Seattle in the eighties? Another 1980's Seattle P.I. who may have once inhaled is Earl Emerson's THOMAS BLACK. While not quite the flake that Richard Hoyt's John Denson is, he certainly has his moments. Especially when he teams up with his best bud, Kathy Birchfield who, … Continue reading Thomas Black
Dick Lochte’s Top 20 Private Eye Novels
From Ed Gorman's Blog (2010; revised 2017) This list originally appeared on Ed Gorman's Blog on August 31, 2010. At the time, Ed wrote: "In addition to being both a fine novelist and short story writer as well as a very perceptive critic, Dick's list is especially interesting to me because he includes novels I've … Continue reading Dick Lochte’s Top 20 Private Eye Novels
Joe Goodey
Created by Charles E. Alverson (1935-2020) They're now nearly forgotten, but Alverson's two novels starring ex-homicide dick-turned-San Francisco P.I. JOE GOODEY are, like Howard Browne's Paul Pine books, as close as any writer has come to capturing the style and spirit of Raymond Chandler. Here's the opener from Not Sleeping, Just Dead: "I was stretching … Continue reading Joe Goodey
John Jericho
Created by Hugh Pentecost Pseudonym of Judson Phillips Other pseudonyms include Philip Owen (1903 – 1989) Yes, there was another crime fighting character by the same name, also by Hugh Pentecost, but this JOHN JERICHO is a sort of a later, re-imagined version. The original was an action-loving big game hunter and all-round big guy, … Continue reading John Jericho
Jason Dark
Created by Hugh Pentecost Pseudonym of Judson Phillips Other pseudonyms include Philip Owen (1903 – 1989) "You don't hate a weapon--a gun, or a knife, or a meat cleaver. You hate the man who uses the weapon against you." -- "The Dark Plan" Sort of like a cross between Dick Francis' Sid Halley and the … Continue reading Jason Dark
Raimo Jarvi
Created by Robert White Pseudonyms include Terry White, Robb White Finnish-American small town private eye RAIMO "RAY" JARVI would probably be happy plying his trade in Northtown, Ohio, a relatively quiet rust-belt town on the shores of Lake Erie, dealing with his usual "unfaithful wives and petty personal disputes." He owns the two-story building on … Continue reading Raimo Jarvi
“The Riding Boy”
By Terry White A Thomas Haftmann Investigation She looked sane. Sometimes you just never know. In private investigation work, you tend to get people at the ends of their tethers. But I also had fifteen years in homicide and that taught me to control my face, so she had no idea what I was thinking. … Continue reading “The Riding Boy”
Thomas Haftmann
Created by Robb White Pseudonyms include Terry White, Robb White Brooding Ohio gumshoe THOMAS HAFTMANN, hangs out his private investigator shingle in the allegedly sleepy resort town of Jefferson-on-the-Lake in Ohio, while trying to keep his various issues (alcohol, gambling, mental health, etc.) in check. Â Like his creator, he's a full-time Catholic and a part-time … Continue reading Thomas Haftmann
John Blake
Created by Richard Aleas Pseudonym of Charles Ardai Hard Case Crime founding editor and author Charles Ardai ought to be slapped around at least a little bit for using Richard Aleas as a pen name (even if it is a cockeyed anagram of his own name). But we'll cut him some slack since he's offered … Continue reading John Blake