Showing posts with label Colin Campbell. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Colin Campbell. Show all posts
Friday, June 26, 2015
Tuesday, April 28, 2015
"Jim Grant and Me..."
An Essay by Colin Campbell
Jim
Grant isn’t a badass, tough-as-nails cop. He’d rather talk you down instead of
get into a fight. He isn’t a tough guy, he just gets into tough situations. If
you were to ask how the character came to me I’d say, Jim Grant is me. Apart
from the getting into tough situations part. I used to avoid tough situations
like the plague. Back when I served with
the West Yorkshire Police.
Grant
has certainly struggled to find a quiet life since he transferred to the
States. Partly that’s because he always seems to be in the wrong place at the
wrong time but mostly it’s because he won’t take no for an answer and he never
backs down. His theory is; people are less likely to hit a man who’s smiling at
them. Even less likely if he can get them to smile back. And if they’re smiling
they’re less likely to see it coming when he slaps them, smacks them and brings
them to justice.
Taking Grant back to his roots in Snake Pass just goes to prove the point. He was never any good at
turning a blind eye, even when that’s exactly what he told young Jamie Hope to
do when he was off duty. Because if you’re a badass tough-as-nails cop you’re
never off duty. Oh, did I say Grant wasn’t one of those. I must have been
joking.
Snake Pass is available online and in bookstores now—and don't miss any of the other Resurrection Man Novels!
Saturday, April 11, 2015
MARCH & APRIL RELEASES!
Check out these fantastic new releases!
“A great mystery and a romp into the fantasy world
that is dark, frightening, and a whole lot of fun.”
—SUSPENSE MAGAZINE
By: Colin Campbell
“Crackerjack entertainment: taut, gritty
and full of devilish twists.”—KIRKUS REVIEWS
"A compelling mystery full of near-misses
and scientific wisecracks."—LIBRARY JOURNAL
Wednesday, April 8, 2015
April 2015 Books Available Now!
Don't miss Midnight Ink's latest releases!
"Not for the faint of heart, this chilling tale of sexual depravity is
perfect for conspiracy aficionados."
—Book Verdict (Library Journal) on Critical Damage
"Crackerjack entertainment: taut, gritty and full of devilish twists."
—Kirkus Reviews on Snake Pass
“A fun tale where the reader will love following Cleo on her quest to
find the killer.”
—Suspense Magazine on Saving Cecil
Wednesday, September 17, 2014
Q&A with Colin Campbell
This week, Midnight Ink sat down with Colin Campbell, author of the Resurrection Man Novels. His latest, Adobe Flats, was released earlier this month.
Midnight Ink: How long have you been writing?
Colin Campbell: I had to think about this because I feel like it’s
not been that long but when I look back it’s been quite a while. Darkwater
Towers was published in 2000 (Blackie & Co.) and it was the fourth book I’d written.
Assume a book a year but 12 months to get it published, then add on the years
of practicing with short stories, I reckon about 1994. So, shit. 20 years.
MI: What influence have other authors
had on your writing?
CC: We’re all readers first, so the main influence is
they made me love reading. A good story told well. Words forming rhythms that painted pictures
in my head. Then the pictures started moving so it was like watching a film
with added emotion. That’s what they did for me. Then I wanted to do that
myself, tell stories.
MI: Who is your favorite mystery sleuth and why?
CC: That’s a hard one. Past or present? And who counts as a mystery sleuth? I grew up reading James Bond and Philip Marlowe. Never really got into Sherlock Holmes, although I liked the old black and white films. Nowadays? On TV I watch Raylan Givens in Justified. I read the Ace Atkins Quinn Colson books. Harry Bosch. But I really like Jack Reacher. Somebody taller than me who doesn’t mince his words. How can you not look up to that?
MI: What was your inspiration for this series?
CC: The seed was my agent, Donna Bagdasarian, suggesting I write something set in America. My early books were UK-based crime. I couldn’t see myself faking an American character as well as Lee Child did so my initial answer was no. Then I remembered being sent across the Pennines to Blackpool when I was in plain clothes. To interview a prisoner then eliminate him from the enquiry. That seemed like a good way to get an English cop to America. Just further than Blackpool that’s all.
MI: Tell us about Jim Grant.
CC: Jim Grant is an ex-West Yorkshire Police officer sent to America as described above. He was in the army but doesn’t like talking about it, claiming he was only a typist. He hates guns and prefers to talk his way out of trouble rather than fight. A dry sense of humor helps diffuse situations, but of course that doesn’t always work. In fact it hardly ever does. He believes in doing what’s right and not necessarily what’s legal. He likes the ladies but isn’t a womanizer. He is employed primarily by the Boston PD but by a higher power that can utilize him across America because they can disown him if the shit hits the fan. It often does but so far they haven’t sacked him.
MI: How do the Resurrection Man Novels compare to your past works?
CC: My UK crime novels were very much my tributes to the boys in blue. They dealt with uniform cops on the frontline of British policing. A lot of the stories were based on fact or thinly veiled incidents that I’d dealt with. Jim Grant is more into thriller territory. The stories are bigger and the stakes higher but hopefully with enough authenticity from a police point of view. Less about procedures and more about attitude. What a cop feels about the things he’s dealing with. And more sex than I remember from my uniform days.
MI: If you weren’t a writer, what
would you be doing?
CC: Well, I was a cop for 30 years so I guess I’ve
already done what I would have done if I weren’t a writer. Retired from that
and now living my hobby. I also coach tennis part time so I suppose if I
weren’t writing I’d do more hours on court.
MI: Do you have a favorite murder case from a book (either yours or another author’s)?
CC: Not sure I’d call any of them a favorite. The first one I photographed when I was in SOCO (CSI in America) was an old lady who’d been raped and violated before she was killed. That one’s stuck with me. After that I can live without murders in books. It’s the cops I like reading about. If you press me on it, maybe Oddjob being sucked out of the airplane window in Goldfinger. The book. They switched it in the film.
MI: What are your favorite things
to do when you’re not writing or working?
CC: I’m getting stuck in a rut here aren’t I? I love
playing tennis. And watching movies. Either at the cinema or in my home cinema
on blu-ray.
MI: Do you have a favorite recipe?
CC: I can’t cook for toffee. (English expression. Google it.)MI: What is your favorite part about being an Inker?
CC: There is a sense of being part of a community of
writers. We spend so much time locked away in a room typing that it’s nice to
meet up at conventions and chew the fat. We all have the same doubts. We’ve all
struggled to get published. It’s nice to share that. And pat each other on the
back.
Adobe Flats, the third Resurrection Man Novel, is available online and in bookstores now!
Monday, September 8, 2014
September 2014 Books Available Now!
Don't miss Midnight Ink's latest releases!
"A stylish noir voice."
—Kirkus Reviews on Adobe Flats
"Readers will cheer for this avenging less-than-angel as she goes after some very bad people.
—Publishers Weekly on Beauty with a Bomb
"Lively and entertaining . . . [a] well wrought whodunit."
—Publishers Weekly on Of Merlot and Murder
"[A] thrilling tale."
—RT Book Reviews on Unraveled Visions
Now available from Midnight Ink, Barnes & Noble, Amazon and your local bookseller!
Saturday, April 5, 2014
INK SPOT NEWS- April 5, 2014
Vicki Doudera
A Darby Farr Mystery #5
"[W]ell-crafted ... the reader will feel compelled to keep turning the pages before reaching the final revelations." —PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A Mary Crow Novel #6
"[A] smart and well-paced mystery with a gutsy protagonist and a touch of romance."
—KIRKUS REVIEWS
—KIRKUS REVIEWS
Critical Damage - Robert K. Lewis
A Mark Mallen
Novel #2
Novel #2
"Not for the faint of heart, this chilling tale of sexual depravity is perfect for conspiracy aficionados."
—BOOK VERDICT
—BOOK VERDICT
Colin Campbell
A Resurrection Man Novel #2". . .wry maverick Grant never fails to entertain."
—KIRKUS REVIEWS
Saturday, April 6, 2013
INKSPOT NEWS - April 6, 2013
Final Settlement by Vicki Doudera
"Credible characters and evocative descriptions of smalltown Maine in winter complement the fast-paced plot."
—PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
"A twisty fourth case that strikes close to the bone for a complex, likeable sleuth."
—KIRKUS REVIEWS
Jamaica Plain by Colin Campbell
"Grim and gritty and packed with action and crackling dialogue."
—KIRKUS REVIEWS
Music of Ghosts by Sallie Bissell
"A top-notch thriller."
—PEOPLE
"A grim but well-written adventure that skillfully interweaves Cherokee lore and human nature at its best and worst."
—BOOKLIST
Untold Damage by Robert K. Lewis
"Equally rooted in the struggle for justice and the struggle for sobriety, Lewis' debut makes it clear that there may be no clear right or wrong."
—KIRKUS REVIEWS
In other news, Midnight Ink author Beth Groundwater will appear at the Pikes Peak Library District's "Mountain of Authors" program on April 13th, 11 AM - 6 PM, East Library Branch, 5550 N. Union Blvd., Colorado Springs, CO 80918.
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
APRIL MIDNIGHT INK RELEASES
Wow. Those are some stunning covers...
UNTOLD DAMAGE BY ROBERT K. LEWIS
I would like you all to meet Mark Mallen. He's a junkie, but not just any junkie. See, he's a former undercover cop that started using drugs to help his cover. He thought he could just shoot some drugs and it wouldn't be a big deal. Wrong. Now, four years removed from police duty AND having left his wife and daughter behind, a chance for redemption comes knocking.
Mallen's old police academy buddy Eric seems to have fallen into the same dark hole as Mallen. Eric also became a junkie and landed a stint in jail. When Eric is murdered, the police find Mallen's number in Eric's pocket. As the prime suspect in Eric's murder, Mallen is forced to get clean and find the real killer. (SERIES AND AUTHOR DEBUT)
JAMAICA PLAIN BY COLIN CAMPBELL
English copper Jim Grant is in Boston for a quick and easy assignment - to interview a suspect in some robberies back in the UK. But trouble seems to find Grant when he is almost blown up when he attempts to interview Freddy Sullivan. Never one to walk away from the case, Grant looks up associates of Sullivan. One public stand off and several bruised and beaten bad guys later, Grant is dubbed the Resurrection Man. And it's very clear that the Ressurection Man, an outsider on a mission, is the only one who can clean up the streets and political offices of Boston. (SERIES DEBUT)
MUSIC OF GHOSTS BY SALLIE BISSELL
Check out old Fiddlesticks cabin if you dare... Set deep in the Appalacian Mountains, Fiddlesticks cabin is the site of a decades old double homicide. When a group of college aged students decide to stay at the cabin for a night, one of the girls is violently murdered and the killer carves disturbing symbols into her body.
County sheriff Jerry Cochran is handling the investigation and all the evidence points to Nick Statton, a handsome raptor center specialist and the supervisor of the murdered girl. Nick turns to attorney Mary Crow for help and it's up to Mary to dig out the truth - about Nick, the girl, and Fiddlesticks. Page turning suspense that you won't want to miss. Trust me. (CONTINUATION OF THE MARY CROW SERIES PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED)
FINAL SETTLEMENT BY VICKI DOUDERA
The wedding of a friend and fellow real estate agent brings Darby Farr back to her hometown Hurricane Harbor, Maine. Darby has barely stomped the snow off her boots when she learns that the police chief's assistant, Lorraine Delvecchio, slipped on her daily walk and fell into the freezing coastal waters, her body found by a local lobsterman. While everyone assumes it was an accident, the police chief doesn't buy it and asks Darby to do some poking around. Darby discovers Lorraine was far from innocent and the list of suspects is rather long. Between real estate deals and wedding preparations, Darby needs to uncover a killer before she ends up the next victim. (BOOK FOUR IN THE SERIES)
Pretty good stuff, right? Well, go out and get your copy now! Print books are already in stores and ebooks will be available for download on April 8th. And by all means, let me know what you think! Feel free to post comments here or on facebook!
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