Dean Gilbert's Writing Blog

What could be better on a long commute than a mystery story audiobook? For me, not a lot. Since I have been making this commute for years I like to justify part of my listening as research, rather than strictly entertainment. My latest choice was worth passing on, so maybe this time it justified my rationale. The book was Shop Til You Drop by Elaine Viets, read by Sarah Pesek. The book is a cosy, with an interesting set of characters, enough plot to keep your brain busy, a sympathetic main character, and quite a few surprises along the way. There is a very satisfying wrapup at the end, although this book is a first-in-series. On the run from the legal system, our amateur sleuth, Helen Hawthorne, is forced to take a series of low-end jobs that pay cash and keep her off the grid. This gets her into some troubling situations beyod her own past, and she must extricate herself by solving crimes without law enforcement knowing who she really is, or showing up in the media as a hero. Add to a...

Today I would like to fill you in on a few authors that have been around for a while, for two reasons. They are both rooted in the fact that most days I drive an hour and a half each way for work. I fill the time with audio books, almost always from the mystery or thriller genres. Two things make good criteria for me. The books have to be easy to get on lending apps like Hoopla or Libby, for one thing, and I would like them to be part of a series. This allows me to spend very little and know that I am usually getting something I like, based on experience. The series that meet these two requirements are usually older series, some started in the 1980's and several still going strong today. So here are my picks for some easy to find series that will get you hours entertainment. One note about the Beaumont and Doc Ford novels: for several of the first books in each series, the sex scenes are failrly explicit. I recommend them but with that caveat. If that's not something you want, ...