Image: ScienceFiction.com
If you’re like me — a Batman fan since your first comic book at age 5 — you probably have thought that, by now, surely the Dark Knight’s story has been thoroughly mapped out, and the universe populated with the complete array of villains and heroes.
Apparently, not.
Greg Cox’s Batman: The Court of Owls offers ” … an original take of Batman going up against the Court of Owls and their brutal agents.”
Wait, never heard of the Court of Owls? Me, either. Neutralized by Batman at some point long ago, the band of villains shrank into Gothams’ shadows. But the bad guys have now returned, prompting Batman to team up with Nightwing, Barbara Gordon and Batgirl to investigate a series of brutal murders.
A fresh look or same ol’ same ol’? I haven’t read the book yet, so I can’t answer. But according to reviewer Stuart Conover, a longtime fan himself, “We’re back to a Batman who is a detective, and we’re given a fascinating crime story for him to solve.”
Read Conover’s entire review here: Batman: The Court of Owls.
As an American, I tend to think of “crime noir” as an American phenomenon, whether it’s the bleak, sprawling citified L.A. noir, or the gritty, rural redneck noir, where most of my own writing ends up. Luckily for all of us, though, the rest of the world has its own ideas of what crime noir is and isn’t.
Today’s crime fiction links: 
M.C. Grant’s female reporter/amateur detective Dixie Flynn is what happens when Fletch meets Columbo. Dixie’s sass balls and smartass mouth get her into constant trouble but in the middle of her newspaper’s most compelling stories. M.C. has another fine collection of crime fiction under the name Grant McKenzie.
Tony Dunbar makes me hungry every time I read about his not-really-shady-but-not-exactly-squeaky-clean Tubby Dubonnet, the New Orleans lawyer with a nose for complicated clients and dangerous enemies. That’s because Dunbar knows his city, and obviously loves the food as much as I do.
Stuart Neville’s prose is just … damn breathtaking. If you haven’t read The Ghosts of Belfast yet, you’re doing it wrong. And, no, you don’t have to know anything about The Troubles to get pulled right into the middle of this gritty Northern Ireland noir.
The new year is here, and with it comes all kinds of recommendations for crime fiction lovers. Here’s just a few:
Not that I’m dropping hints or anything, but if you’re looking for ideas for your favorite crime fiction fan …
There was an Ole Miss football player named Chucky Mullins. Number 38, defensive back. Chucky graduated from Alabama’s Russellville High School in 1988. He earned All-Conference, All-Area and All-State honors in football as a junior and senior. He was team captain and most valuable player on his high school team. He also earned three letters in football, basketball and baseball. Because of his athletic and leadership abilities, Chucky was awarded a four-year scholarship to Ole Miss, and he arrived on campus in the summer of 1988.
It’s on! Fredericksburg will host some of the region’s best crime-fiction writers at a “Noir at the Bar” event at downtown June 9. I’m going to be the host of this one at 