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Tag Archives: mysteries

Join the discussion on the Life and Works of Dashiell Hammett

The Just Desserts mystery fiction discussion group held its final monthly meeting of the year on October 26th, 2023. 19 Attendees discussed the Life and Works of classic American author Dashiell Hammett (1894-1961), with participants having read several different selections by this author. If you have read any of Hammett’s mystery novels, and would like to contribute your comments about it/them, please do so as a reply comment to this blog post, below.

Dashiell Hammett titles read or listened to by group members for this discussion included: Red Harvest (4 readers), The Maltese Falcon (12 readers), The Dain Curse (3 readers), The Glass Key (1 reader), The Thin Man (7 readers), Nightmare Town (short story collection, 2 readers), The Woman in the Dark (novella, 1 reader), Too Many Have Lived (anthology featuring works by many contributors to Black Mask magazine, including Hammett, 1 listener). Opinions about Hammett and his works ranged from “one of my favorite authors” to “hated it”, though the majority fell somewhere in the middle. Easily 2/3rds of the group appreciated or enjoyed reading a Hammett novel, but less than 1/2 appeared interested in reading anything more by him. There was a general consensus that his skills as a writer were undeniable, as was his major influence on the genre of mystery fiction, particularly the “hardboiled” subgenre. But his writing was definitely of his time (1920s-1930s for the most part), with his characters expressing disparaging attitudes towards women, minorities and non cishet individuals, and doesn’t necessarily translate well into an enjoyable read for modern audiences accustomed to more enlightened stances.

For additional reminders about upcoming Just Desserts meetings (once they resume) and/or other announcements of interest to mystery fans, don’t forget to sign up for the Just Desserts e-mail list. Or, once in-person meetings are possible again, if you’re logged into your account on Facebook, you can visit the Events page for the Lincoln City Libraries, and mark whether or not you plan to attend upcoming sessions of Just Desserts – this is a great way for you to help us promote this engaging discussion group!

So…What did you think of the works of Dashiell Hammett? Which have you read?

The following handout was prepared for the members of Just Desserts: The Works of Dashiell Hammett.

This was our final “in person” meeting for 2023. Just Desserts is on its year-end hiatus in November and December, but will return in January 2024, with a discussion of the many series by Allison Brennan.

 

Reading Recommendations from Just Desserts members in July 2023

Hey, mystery fans! Looking for something good to read?

At the July 2023 Just Desserts meeting, 20 group members and guests participated in a discussion of Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn.

Following the “assigned reading” portion of the meeting, we held our monthly round robin in which attendees shared recommendations of what other books they’ve been reading recently, with an emphasis on mysteries/suspense/thrillers. We continued a new policy this month that began earlier this year, to make sure everyone got a turn in the Round Robin – everyone could share a single title during their verbal recommendations, but could share additional titles on a paper form – ALL titles recommended are shared below. The titles marked by an * are those specifically mentioned during the Round Robin.

Here’s the list of mystery, thriller and suspense books recommended by Just Desserts members in July 2023:

And here were some non-mystery titles some group members also recommended in July 2023:

What mysteries have you been reading lately that you’d recommend?

Join the discussion of Deanna Raybourn’s “Killers of a Certain Age”

The Just Desserts mystery fiction discussion group held its July 2023 meeting in person, on Thursday July 27th. Twenty attendees discussed the bestselling 2022 comic thriller novel by author Deanna Raybourn, entitled Killers of a Certain Age. If you have read this novel, and would like to contribute your comments about it, please do so as a reply comment to this blog post, below.

For reminders about upcoming Just Desserts meetings and/or other announcements of interest to mystery fans, don’t forget to sign up for the Just Desserts e-mail list. Or, if you’re logged into your account on Facebook, you can visit the Events page for the Lincoln City Libraries, and mark whether or not you plan to attend upcoming sessions of Just Desserts – this is a great way for you to help us promote this engaging discussion group!

So…What did you think of Killers of a Certain Age? Will you read additional works by Deanna Raybourn?

At our next meeting, on August 31st, 2023, the members of Just Desserts will be discussing the first three books in the Thursday Murder Club series, by Richard Osman, at the downtown library. We hope to see you there!

Reading Recommendations from Just Desserts members – June 2023

Hey, mystery fans! Looking for something good to read?

At the June 2023 Just Desserts meeting, 21 group members and guests participated in a discussion of Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney.

Following the “assigned reading” portion of the meeting, we held our monthly round robin in which attendees shared recommendations of what other books they’ve been reading recently, with an emphasis on mysteries/suspense/thrillers. We continued a new policy this month that began earlier this year, to make sure everyone got a turn in the Round Robin – everyone could share a single title during their verbal recommendations, but could share additional titles on a paper form – ALL titles recommended are shared below. The titles marked by an * are those specifically mentioned during the Round Robin.

Here’s the list of mystery, thriller and suspense books recommended by Just Desserts members in June 2023:

And here were some non-mystery titles some group members also recommended in June 2023:

What mysteries have you been reading lately that you’d recommend?

Reading Recommendations from Just Desserts members – May 2023

Hey, mystery fans! Looking for something good to read?

At the May 2023 Just Desserts meeting, 17 group members and guests participated in our annual “Series Share” session.

Following the “assigned reading” portion of the meeting, we held our monthly round robin in which attendees shared recommendations of what other books they’ve been reading recently, with an emphasis on mysteries/suspense/thrillers. We continued a new policy this month that began in February, to make sure everyone got a turn in the Round Robin – everyone could share a single title during their verbal recommendations, but could share additional titles on a paper form – ALL titles recommended are shared below, however

Here’s the list of mystery, thriller and suspense books recommended by Just Desserts members in May 2023:

And here were some non-mystery titles some group members also recommended in May 2023:

What mysteries have you been reading lately that you’d recommend?