Crime Fiction Links of the Week for December 28, 2019

It's time again for Crime Fiction Links of the Week, our weekly round-up of interesting links about crime fiction from around the web, this week with cat cozies, the best crime fiction of 2019 and the decade, the J.K. Rowling/Robert Galbraith transphobia controversy, the suspension of Courtney Milan from RWA, tributes to Johanna Lindsey, The Irishman and much more.

Crime fiction in general:

• The Real Book Spy shares twenty thrillers coming in 2020.
• Kelly Faircloth discusses the allure of cozy cat mysteries.
• Hillary Kelly also discusses the appeal of cat cozies.
• Emily Asher-Perrin asks how people visualise stories. 
• The Real Book Spy has uncovered the identity of supernatural thriller author Scott Carson. 
• Tom Gerken reports about book nooks, small dioramas inserted into book shelves.
• Johanna Lindsey, author of historical and science fiction romance, has died aged 67. 
• Kelly Faircloth remembers Johanna Lindsey. 
• Hannah Frishberg remembers Johanna Lindsey. 

Best of lists:

• Victoria Goldman shares her favourite crime novels of 2019. 
• Joy Kluver shares her ten favourite crime novels of 2019.
• Mike Parker shares his five favourite crime books of 2019. 
• Ayo Onatade shares her favourite crime novels of 2019.
• The Real Book Spy shares his favourite thrillers of 2019.
• Jochem Vandersteen shares his favourite private investigator novels of 2019.
• J. Kingston Pierce shares the crime fiction authors he discovered in 2019.
• Olivia Rutigliano shares her ten favourite crime movies of 2019. 
• The Guardian shares its biggest TV disappointments of 2019, including many genre shows. 
• Caroline Framke and Daniel D'Addario share their twenty-five favourite TV episodes of the 2010s with some love for crime shows. 

Comments on the J.K. Rowling/Robert Galbraith transphobia controversy:

• Poppy Noor reports that J.K. Rowling a.k.a. Robert Galbraith has been accused of transphobia over her defensive of a transphobic researcher
• Aja Romano also reports about the J.K. Rowling transphobia controversy.
• Jackson Bird shares his disappointment about J.K. Rowling's transphobic tweets from the POV of a transgender Harry Potter fan.
  

Comments on the suspension of Courtney Milan from RWA:

• Sarah Wendell reports that romance author Courtney Milan has been suspended from RWA for a year and banned from holding office following complaints by two RWA members Courtney Milan had called out for racism.
• Michael Schaub shares some reactions to the suspension of Courtney Milan from RWA.
• Mike Glyer offers a round-up of links regarding the suspension of Courtney Milan from RWA.
• Wendy the Super Librarian weighs in on the suspension of Courtney Milan from RWA. 
• Camestros Felapton weighs in on the RWA ruling and the suspension of Courtney Milan.
• Xan West shares their negative experiences with RWA.
• Laura Vivanco shares some background regarding the initial racism accusations against writer/publisher Suzan Tinsdale and editor Sue Grimshaw.

Film and TV:

• The Guardian looks ahead at the most anticipated crime movies and thrillers of 2020.
• Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Ray Donovan.
• Cameron Scheetz interviews Alfre Woodard and Aldis Hodge, the stars of Clemency.
• Alex Moshakis interviews Robert Pattinson, star of the Twilight series, High Life, The Lighthouse and Batman-to-be. 
• Rachel Syme reports about the fascination with an Aran Island sweater worn by Chris Evens in Knives Out. 
• Stuart Heritage bemoans that with the rise of subscription channels and streaming services there is way too much TV, much of it good, to watch.
  
• French actress Claudine Auger, best known for playing Domino in the James Bond film Thunderball, has died aged 78.

Comments on The Irishman: 

• Peter Bradshaw shares his thoughts on The Irishman.
• Robyn Merrett reports that Francesca Scorsese, daughter of The Irishman director Martin Scorsese, is trolling her father by wrapping all his Christmas gifts in superhero paper, given Scorsese's infamous dislike for superhero movies.

Awards:

• Voting is open for the 2019 Reprint of the Year Award.
• Oline H. Cogdill praises the decision of the MWA to make Barbara Neely their 2020 Grand Master.
  

Writing, publishing and promotion:

• Maria Haskins shares her top ten tips for better writing.
• Bonnie Randall asks writers to embrace the bleak in their stories.
• Charity Bradford has some advice for writers who think of quitting.
• Kristine Kathryn Rusch talks about the future of audio books.
• Constance Grady looks back at the Apple agency pricing controversy and calls it the reason the e-book revolution never happened as predicted.
  

Interviews:

• Debbi Mack interviews Jeff Lindsay.
• Victoria Goldman interviews Mario Theodorou.
• Victoria Goldman interviews M.W. Craven.
  

Reviews:

• Sarah Prindle reviews The Third Mrs. Durst by Ann Aguirre.
• BOLO Books reviews Conviction by Denise Mina. 
• Craig Sisterson reviews Thirteen by Steve Cavanagh. 
• Eileen Brady reviews The Cold Way Home by Julia Keller.
• Michael Patrick Hicks reviews A Book of Bones by John Connolly.
• Sonja van der Westhuizen reviews Unknown Male by Nicolás Obregón. 
• Raven Crime Reads reviews Unknown Male by Nicolás Obregón. 
• Ariell Cachola reviews Tell Me Everything by Cambria Brockman.
• Joy Kluver reviews I Dare You by Sam Carrington.
• Michael Patrick Hicks reviews Consequences by John Quick.
• Vanessa Orr reviews Lost You by Haylen Beck.
• The Real Book Spy reviews Hunter Killer by Brad Taylor. 
• Katrina Niidas Holm reviews Kopp Sisters on the March by Amy Stewart.
• Runalong the Shelves reviews Sherlock Holmes: The Vanishing Man by Philip Purser-Hallard.  
• Gary K. Wolfe reviews Curious Toys by Elizabeth Hand.  
• Debbie Haupt reviews Scarlet Fever by Rita Mae Brown.
• Lesa Holstine reviews Checked Out by Elizabeth Spann Craig.

Classics reviews:

• Bitter Tea and Mystery revisits the 1934 holiday mystery Crime at Christmas by C.H.B. Kitchin.
• Bitter Tea and Mystery revisits the 1938 holiday mystery Black-Headed Pins by Constance and Gwenyth Little.
  
• Only Detect revisits the 1948 mystery The Skeleton in the Clock by Carter Dickson.
• Crossexamining Crime revisits the 1956 mystery Murder of Olympia by Margot Neville a.k.a. Margot Goyder and Anne Neville Goyder Joske. and also reports about a competition related to the novel.
• Bitter Tea and Mystery revisits the 1979 thriller Nothing Lasts Forever by Roderick Thorp, upon which the movie Die Hard was based.
• Paperback Warrior revisits No Room at the Inn, a 1988 Quincannon historical mystery by Bill Pronzini.
  

Con reports:

• Ali Karim reports about the 2019 Peter James Christmas Literary Lunch in London, UK, and shares several photos.
• Ayo Onatade shares the program of the Killer Women Festival for Crime Writing & Drama in London, UK.
• Ayo Onatade shares a call for papers for Captivating Criminality, the 7th Annual Conference of the International Crime Fiction Association, in Bath, UK.
• Ayo Onatade shares a call for papers for the Conan Doyle Network Conference in Edinburgh, Scotland.
• Watch a brief video of the Capital Crime festival in London, UK. 

Research:

• Haroon Siddique reports that an eight-year-old British girl found a plea for help from the Chinese prisoner inside a Christmas card bought a Tesco's.
  

Free online fiction:

• "Warm Snow" by E.F. Fluff in Punk Noir Magazine.
• "Santa's Helper" by Bill Baber in Punk Noir Magazine. 
• "The Gift That Keeps On Giving" by Paul D. Brazill in Punk Noir Magazine.
• "Side Effects May Vary" by Richard Milaschewski in Shotgun Honey.
• "The Really Big Ka-Boom" by Kristine Kathryn Rusch.
• "smile, kindly, in self-defense" by Eliana Vanessa in Punk Noir Magazine.
• "The Elder" by Charles Rammelkamp in The Five-Two.
  

Odds and ends: 

• Watch a trailer for The Woman in the Window.
• Watch a trailer for Promising Young Woman.