There are SO MANY amazing detectives in the real world. BUT, there are some awesome detectives in Fiction too!
Granted, I haven’t seen or read every story about amazing detectives. Some, like Columbo or Monk (and more) haven’t reached my view just yet. Having said that, the follow list is totally reliant on the detectives that I’ve personally seen and ranked as in the top!
10. Magnum PI
9. Inspector Clouseau (Pink Panther)
8. The Chicago PD Team
7. Rizzoli and Isles
6. Booth and Brennan (Bones)
5. The Brooklyn Nine Nine Team
4. Veronica Mars
3. Shawn & Gus
2. Richard Castle
1. Sherlock Holmes
Honourable Mentions:
Olivia Bensen (SVU)
Nancy Drew (Nancy Drew)
The Criminal Minds Team
Like my list? Did I miss some that are also amazing? Share them with me, so we can all check them out!
Oh. My. Gosh.
I was a little crazy this past month.. I tried to fit about 2 months worth of work into 1 😛 😀 🙁
Doing a 2nd draft edit in the final before editors deadline was a little dumb, but I MADE IT!
I’m so proud of myself, but now I’m falling apart a little
*laughs, falls over, gets back up and laughs again*
Now that my manuscript is officially with the editor, I can focus on some other stuff – like reading!
I’m excited to have a bit more free time (Of course, work never stops and I still have another 500 things I’m working on and doing), and I’ve decided to give myself a week off! In my break I have a few DIY projects in mind, and a whole pile of books to read through!
Hopefully, I can get around to filming a TBR list for Sept/Oct – and yes, I’m combining those because September is almost over, and I don’t see the point in putting together a list of 2 books 😛
What are the books you’re reading, or want to read right now? Share, and give me some ideas 😀
Apparently throwing up your hands and screaming at a book is weird. Oh, and tossing books at the wall is also odd….
Estimated Reading Time: 7min
I’ve seen people talk about “weird reading habits” and didn’t realise some of mine fall into that category. So this is me sharing them anyway, partly for fun and partly to find out if I’m actually alone in this or not. If you recognise any of these, or have your own version, I’d genuinely like to know.
Facial expressions while reading
Apparently this is not standard behaviour, but I make facial expressions constantly when I read. If a character does something confusing, stupid, or completely unhinged, I react. It’s automatic. I’ll sit there reacting to the page like the characters can actually see me judging them. It usually goes something like: confusion, disbelief, and then mild outrage.
Random hand gestures and physical reactions
This one surprised me the most when people pointed it out. I don’t just sit still reading. I react physically. Hand movements, sudden pauses, dramatic reactions mid-sentence. It’s not intentional, it just happens when I’m fully absorbed in a story. If I’m not enjoying a book, this disappears completely. If I am enjoying it, it gets worse.
Talking to books (and yelling at characters)
This one I already knew was questionable. If a character does something ridiculous, I will say so. Out loud. To the book. To the character. To nobody in particular. I also do this with films and TV, so books are not spared. It’s not confusion about fiction versus reality. It’s more like a temporary suspension of patience when characters make bad decisions.
Needing background noise to read
I cannot read in silence. Music works best. Silence feels distracting in itself, even though that sounds contradictory. Background noise helps me focus on the story. TV is too much, but silence doesn’t work either. It has to be “controlled noise,” otherwise I lose concentration.
Book formatting obsession
This is the one I fully accept is strange. Book series need to match. Same cover style. Same size. Same format. Paperback or hardcover, but consistent. Mixed formats or mismatched covers are distracting enough that I would rather replace the book than tolerate the inconsistency. If a final book in a series doesn’t match, it feels unfinished even if the story is complete.
Rewriting scenes in my head
This is probably the strangest one. Sometimes I pause reading because I’m too busy reworking a scene in my head. I’ll mentally change dialogue, alter decisions, or run an alternative version of events. It can take a few minutes before I continue reading because I need to “resolve” what I think should have happened. If I don’t do it, I end up rereading the same line repeatedly anyway.
These habits probably look odd from the outside, but they’re just part of how I interact with stories. Books aren’t passive for me; they’re something I actively respond to while reading.
If any of these are familiar, or if yours are even stranger, I’d be interested to know.
THIS STORY IS FICTIONAL. ANY SIMILARITIES TO REAL PEOPLE OR EVENTS, IS PURLEY COINCIDENCE.
“He watched the scene below him carefully. From his place high above the fray, the humans looked like ants. Of course, that meant the ants were invisible from this height. He’d been put through vigorous training to get to this point. He’d known he could do it – always. The humans hadn’t been so sure. They hadn’t realised the power he held within his own wings. Now, he had his chance to prove it. It hadn’t been done yet – using a pigeon as a sniper. Sure, they’d been talk about it. Talk about using our amazing gifts to be spies – but assassins were new.”
Steven stopped typing and rubbed his hand over his face. He was officially out of ideas. A pigeon as a sniper… He rolled his eyes at the comical idiocy. His own work was still trying to find its place after the incident last year. A pigeon sniper was a new low.
He raised his hands above his head and stared out the office window. The grass was swaying in the soft breeze, and a pigeon spread its wings, taking off. He wished he could rise like the bird, take off and never come back to his deadline.
Groaning dramatically, Steven replaced his hands on the keyboard and shook his head. He could do this. Wiping the words that he’d already written, he started again.
“He watched the street of people through his sniper scope. He loved watching the people, walking through life as normal. Like ants, ready to be stepped on, or picked off one by one. He waited to catch one of the ants that he liked, in his scope. Easy target. Nope. He moved past the woman and her child, and instead focussed on a runner. The man was tall, and from the looks of his sweat, he’d been running for quite a while already. People may even think he’d dropped from exhaustion. Until they saw the blood.”
Steven stopped typing again and felt the panic overwhelming him. Damn flashbacks from the incident. He wanted to write this story. He had to. If not to have another book for his publisher, then to get the story out there. People needed to know what it was like. To be in front of the scope, and behind it. The why, the when, the how. It was important. He went back in.
“Carefully adjusting for wind, angles, and obstructions, he lined up the shot perfectly. His finger itched, and he released the rush as he pulled the trigger. His miscalculated shot ricocheted off the stone fountain beside the runner, and he continued. Oblivious, thanks to his headphones. He sighed, then returned his focus back to the ants below. Someone would be his target, and this time he wouldn’t miss.”
A sound behind Steven gave him pause. He stopped writing and flicked his head behind him. He was too late. The man was already standing behind him.
The man who had looked through the scope. The man who had missed the runner, who had killed the woman and her child instead. Steven raised his hands in the air in surrender and let a tear fall down his face. He’d found him after all.
The man behind him leaned in close. “This time, I won’t miss.”
He pulled back and released the trigger.
Bang! Explosion, fire everywhere and you’re knocked on your ass!
Okay, okay. I hear you asking, why are we talking about an explosion?
In my spy adventures The Hannah Carmichael Chronicles, I had an explosion (Instalment 68 – link below if you want to check it out). I wrote that scene with NO idea what a real explosion would actually be like. HOWEVER, since then I decided to check it out.
I was fascinated to see what famous movie explosions were real or ridiculous, when Hollywood goes for the big explosions.
Because this guy can explain it WAY better than I can, I’ve put the video here so you can check it out.
If you want to see how my Hannah Carmichael explosion experience holds up to the ones above – Check It Out HERE
What explosions have been YOUR favourite in movies, tv shows or even books? Share in the comments 😀
I thought it was about time I did a book review on my blog, and Boy!!! It’s a doozy!
Estimated Reading Time: 4min
I’ve known about Ted Dekker since I was in school. When we were in ‘high school’ (or ‘secondary school’ here in Aus) my friends LOVED his book House with Frank E. Peretti. Me, on the other hand, I couldn’t read a creepy horror. I did manage, however, to read Three (which I really enjoyed!). More psychological thriller than horror, so it fit well.
Then, some two years later, here I am (just kidding, it’s been about 9 years since I graduated), and I get to rediscover Ted’s work.
I found A.D. 30 recently in his body of work, while I was sifting through what I could get hold of without jumping out of my skin or having nightmares. After the Outlaw Chronicles, I was itching for more, and this one sounded PERFECT.
I WAS RIGHT!
I’ve never had a ‘favourite book’ before, but now I do. This is it.
Want to know what it’s about? Okay, I’ll tell you…
“The outcast daughter of one of the most powerful Bedouin sheikhs in Arabia, Maviah is called on to protect the very people who rejected her. When their enemies launch a sudden attack with devastating consequences, Maviah escapes with the help of two of her father’s warriors–Saba who speaks more with is sword than his voice and Judah, a Jew who comes from a tribe that can read the stars. Their journey will be fraught with terrible danger. If they can survive the vast forbidding sands of a desert that is deadly to most, they will reach a brutal world subjugated by kings and emperors. There, Maviah must secure an unlikely alliance with King Herod of the Jews. But Maviah’s path leads her unexpectedly to another man. An enigmatic teacher who speaks of a way in this life which offers greater power than any kingdom. His name is Yeshua, and his words turn everything known on its head. Though following him may present even greater danger, his may be the only way for Maviah to save her people–and herself.”
This book was insightful, incredibly written and made me consider life and God in new and exciting ways. You can see my thoughts just minutes after finishing the book on Goodreads.
“Detective Strong, nice to meet you.” The detective from cyber crimes shook Ella’s hand with a sweaty pump. She smiled through the grimace and subtly wiped her hand down her pants when he’d turned to her partner Steve. “You too, Detective Smith,” she replied as they sat across the conference room table. Now that the Murder App case was getting more traction, her boss had wanted to shift it completely over to cyber crimes. Ella had successfully petitioned the case to remain with homicide, so long as they worked with cyber. The rumblings had confirmed they guys over there hadn’t been too happy with that decision. She had to tread carefully.
“Well, we’re still sifting through the dating app the killer used. We’re also broadening the net and checking on other ones, just in case he decides to shake things up.” Smith pulled a thick file from his briefcase, spreading out the contents on the table.
“We’ve already confirmed that the profiles used to hook in the first three victims have been deleted. Hopefully, if we can use trends and a few good catfish profiles, we can hook him ourselves. Before another girl gets hurt.”
The sentence felt like a dig, but Ella wasn’t sure if she was reading into it too much. She felt wiped after the last day, and the fitful sleep she’d managed to get at home, hadn’t done much to suppress the exhaustion.
“Thanks, Paul, we appreciate the work, and the data,” Steve said with a taught smile. Smith nodded then started rambling through the particulars of the cyber evidence they’d rounded up so far. Ella let her mind wander. She wanted to consider the puzzle. The clues that the killer left behind at every scene.
There was always a tie. Red. The women lived alone, and he seemed to bring it himself. Why would a killer do that? Bring a particular tie, a particular colour.
There had to be a reason. They’d done tests and found that the first three ties were the same. The same brand, colour die – even the same batch of ties. Which meant the killer not only brought them to the scenes himself, he bought them in bulk.
When Detective Smith had left them alone with all the data, Ella turned to Steve. “I think we need to do a search for sales of the brand of ties found at the scene.”
Steve frowned. “We did that already. They sell too many of those ties to get a good-“
“No. I mean bulk orders.” She stood and started pacing the room. “If these are all the same brand, same batch, they could have been bought in bulk, at the same time. Right?”
Steven shrugged. “I guess. Plus, a guy buying four or five ties that are exactly the same could seem unusual.”
She nodded and looked down at the information on that dating app. “I have another idea too.”
Steve looked up the page that he had been reading. “What?”
Ella drew in a deep breath and leaned her hand on the table, the other on her hip. “I think I should be one of those catfish profiles. I want to make a profile and draw the killer in.”
I hope you enjoyed my latest chapter of The Murder App. I’ll be posting another chapter next month. So if you want to know what happens next, check back again in October!
Have you ever noticed that books tend to have themes?
Everything we watch, read and consider has a theme. I’m not necessarily talking ‘Mother Goose’ but when you boil it down, you can usually see some common themes.
Themes like Love Conquers All, Courage, Justice (that’s a biggie), X and countless others. They’re all there if you ‘read between the lines’ because that’s the point, right? It’s the point of reading a story, of getting lost in another world with people making choices and leading somewhere. Whether that’s the back garden where someone is buried after a jealous murder, or finding that final pot of honey and eating a snack. It all leads somewhere, and has a common theme or moral to it.
The two main themes for my book KIDNAPPED ENTANGLEMENT are COURAGE, and FAITH.
Courage – To do what’s right, no matter the cost. To risk everything for the people you love, and the ones who need your help. To speak out for those who can’t. To love and be loved. To leap into danger to protect the innocent.
Faith – To trust that things will work for good, even if you can’t see it then and there. To trust that someone is walking with you, even if that someone is God. To trust that someone out there cares about you, and will do what they can to show it. To trust that your love and actions won’t go unnoticed.
What are the story themes and morals that jumped out to you the most? I’d love to hear what inspires you, so I can inspire my readers as I move forward with each book.
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