Entertaining stories for smart readers.
Stereotypically, a story has a beginning, a middle and an end. And more often than not, they occur in that order, starting with the earliest relevant chronological event and moving linearly through time before ending with the last relevant event. A narrator, usually a character in the story or an omniscient observer, relates the events. A story that experiments with … Read more
The advent of self-parking cars is one example of how automated systems are replacing human skills. As we face increasing automation, we must decide whether the benefits of each new automated system outweigh the loss of related skills. Knowing All the Angles In the Seinfeld episode “The Parking Space,” George boasts to Elaine of his parallel parking prowess: George: “I … Read more
The mystery in HBO’s 2021 hit limited series Mare of Easttown hinges on the details of the gun used to murder a teenage girl. Drawing on my experience as a forensic firearms examiner and fiction author, I explain what the creators got wrong about the Mare of Easttown gun and assess how they blended fact and fiction in the show’s … Read more
Based on curated lists from Lit Hub, Book Riot and more, suggestions from readers on Goodreads and Reddit, and recommendations from authors like Stephen King, Seanan McGuire, Banana Yoshimoto and Sandra Cisneros, here is a roundup of the 93 best novellas ever written. For the purposes of this list, I am following the Science Fiction Writers of America’s definition of a novella: a … Read more
Just over two years ago, I published a definitive list of The 112 Best Literary Mysteries and Crime Novels that covers all literary mysteries published before 2019. Since more great titles in this genre are published every year, I release annual supplemental to my original list. So here are the best literary mysteries of 2021 based on curated lists from … Read more
As we look back on another year, here is the annual update to my list of The 105 Best Philosophical Novels. Based on curated lists from The Guardian, The New York Times, Publishers Weekly and more, suggestions from readers on Goodreads, and ratings on Goodreads and Amazon, here are the best philosophical novels of 2021. For more philosophical reading, download … Read more
For the sixth year running, here is the annual update to my list of The 110 Best Dystopian Novels. These four best dystopian novels of 2021 were selected from dozens of contenders based on curated lists from The Guardian, The New York Times, Publishers Weekly and more, suggestions from readers on Goodreads, and ratings on Goodreads and Amazon. To complement … Read more
For readers who grew up loving the Choose Your Own Adventure series, here are 10 contemporary interactive books for adults. From horror to romance to memoir to thought-provoking literary fiction and more, there’s something for everyone in this list. And all of these books encourage the reader to participate in the story by making decisions and following specific paths. But … Read more
While writing my short novel The Theory of Anything, I wanted some concrete examples to illustrate the effects of chance and randomness featured in that story. My research led me to three chance events that shaped history (click here to download The Theory of Anything and learn more about the wrong turn that started World War I, the horseriding accident … Read more
In 2019, I published a roundup list of The 112 Best Literary Mysteries and Crime Novels that covers all literary mysteries and crime novels published before 2019. In order to keep my list up-to-date, I will release annual rankings of the best literary crime fiction each year. So here is the best literary crime fiction of 2020* based on curated … Read more