Began the day at 7.30 this morning with a pre-recorded interview for ITV for a six-parter on crime writers and the genre, that will go out in a couple of month's time. The producers are concentrating on Ian Rankin, Ruth Rendell, P D James, Colin Dexter and Lynda La Plante. I confess to have focused more on Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple and where the genre started, to where it is now.
The good thing about detective stories is that you can guarantee a beginning, a middle and an end, and surprisingly, very few of the authors who write in this field, ever write other types of novels. However, it is interesting that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle considered his Brigadier Gerard novels superior to Sherlock Holmes. My son William, pressed me to take them on my trip to America earlier this year, and I read them in those endless hours on aeroplanes and in hotels, but ended up not agreeing with Sir Arthur. I still think Sherlock is the best detective of them all, and that Gerard's adventures as a Hussar in the French Army are not nearly as exciting.
The good thing about detective stories is that you can guarantee a beginning, a middle and an end, and surprisingly, very few of the authors who write in this field, ever write other types of novels. However, it is interesting that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle considered his Brigadier Gerard novels superior to Sherlock Holmes. My son William, pressed me to take them on my trip to America earlier this year, and I read them in those endless hours on aeroplanes and in hotels, but ended up not agreeing with Sir Arthur. I still think Sherlock is the best detective of them all, and that Gerard's adventures as a Hussar in the French Army are not nearly as exciting.
5 Comments:
Hi Jeffrey,
Just finished reading Prisoner of Birth in one day - so riveting I could not put it down. Brilliant novel! I am glad that it will be shot as a mini-series on tv. (I myself thought when reading it to enquire about buying the film rights.)
We briefly met in Dubai at Borders when you did the signing in May 2007. I am from South Africa (Cape Town) and asked you when we can expect some more of your brilliant short stories - your reply was "not soon, they are very difficult to write!"
"Sorry" about the cricket for the POMS but am impressed by the fox terrier attitude of our batsmen in the follow-on. I also saw AB de Villiers reading one of your novels on the balcony. He sure was enjoying it and not interested in the cricket match at all! Maybe some sponsors can give away more of your books to the S.A. team to keep them pre-occupied in the second test!!! Ha, ha!
Keep up the good work and thanks for using your talent of story telling so frequently! (Although not frequently enough for us fans liking!)
Keep well,
Ross
I read all the series of Agatha Christine's novel and find it enjoyable.
Yes; Flashman is king.
The Gerard books are just a-bit dry.
Anyone interested in Holmes and Watson should seek out the MAGNIFICENT US radio shows that Sir Johnny Guilguid and Sir Ralph Richardson did in the 1950's with Orson Welles - no less - as Moriarity.
The interplay between the two is almost telepathic, and it's remarkable that the shows were almost an afterthought while they performed Julius Caesar in the US, (and was also happening at a particularly dark period in Guilguid's life.......it's a tribute to his greatness that no indications of that trouble is present).
I recently read your KANE AND ABLE and THE PROGIDAL DAUGHTER. I never had a habbit of reading novels, but I have inculcated the habbit of readng novels through your books I really liked your way of describing the scene and the climax of your novel
It was interesting to note your interest in certain classic detectives of literature, like Sherlock Holmes. I note that classic novels of adventure and mystery have a bearing on your plot line of at least your Prisoner of Birth, to be specific, I mean, The Count of Monte Cristo. I read your Kane and Abel long back when I was a teen and even then I was struck by an interesting parallel that could be drawn between the main twist in the novel and the main twist in Charles Dickens' 'Great Expectations'.
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