Obsidian (novel)

Last updated
Obsidian
Obsidian (novel).jpg
First edition
Author Thomas King
SeriesDreadfulWater
GenreMystery
PublisherHarperCollins Canada
Publication date
2020
Media typePrint, Online
Pages384
ISBN 9781443457088
Preceded byA Matter of Malice 

Obsidian (also entitled The Obsidian Murders) is the fifth novel in Thomas King's DreadfulWater mysteries. [1] The novel, published in early 2020, is his fifth novel about an investigator named Thumps DreadfulWater. [2]

The Vancouver Sun listed it with 29 other bestselling books. [3]

In his review published in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer , Richard Marcus wrote: [1]

"Anybody who has read any of the previous books in this series will be delighted to see the familiar faces of DreadfulWater's friends showing up throughout the pages of this book. These support characters are a wonderful mixture of exasperating and loving and help make the book's tone lighter than you'd expect for a novel about a serial killer." [1]

Plot

As DreadfulWater investigates the murder of a Reality TV producer he begins to suspect he is investigating a murderer who killed his girlfriend, years ago. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Detective fiction</span> Subgenre of crime and mystery fiction

Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator or a detective—whether professional, amateur or retired—investigates a crime, often murder. The detective genre began around the same time as speculative fiction and other genre fiction in the mid-nineteenth century and has remained extremely popular, particularly in novels. Some of the most famous heroes of detective fiction include C. Auguste Dupin, Sherlock Holmes, and Hercule Poirot. Juvenile stories featuring The Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, and The Boxcar Children have also remained in print for several decades.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Max Allan Collins</span> American mystery writer

Max Allan Collins is an American mystery writer, noted for his graphic novels. His work has been published in several formats and his Road to Perdition series was the basis for a film of the same name. He wrote the Dick Tracy newspaper strip for many years and has produced numerous novels featuring the character as well.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crime fiction</span> Genre of fiction focusing on crime

Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professional detective, of a crime, often a murder. It is usually distinguished from mainstream fiction and other genres such as historical fiction or science fiction, but the boundaries are indistinct. Crime fiction has several subgenres, including detective fiction, courtroom drama, hard-boiled fiction, and legal thrillers. Most crime drama focuses on crime investigation and does not feature the courtroom. Suspense and mystery are key elements that are nearly ubiquitous to the genre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dashiell Hammett</span> American writer (1894–1961)

Samuel Dashiell Hammett was an American writer of hard-boiled detective novels and short stories. He was also a screenwriter and political activist. Among the characters he created are Sam Spade, Nick and Nora Charles, The Continental Op and the comic strip character Secret Agent X-9.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ellery Queen</span> Detective fiction writer (joint pseudonym)

Ellery Queen is a pseudonym created in 1928 by the American detective fiction writers Frederic Dannay (1905–1982) and Manfred Bennington Lee (1905–1971). It is also the name of their main fictional detective, a mystery writer in New York City who helps his police inspector father solve baffling murder cases. From 1929 to 1971, Dannay and Lee wrote around forty novels and short story collections in which Ellery Queen appears as a character.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas King (novelist)</span> Canadian writer and broadcast presenter (born 1943)

Thomas King is an American-born Canadian writer and broadcast presenter who most often writes about First Nations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Connelly</span> American author (b. 1956)

Michael Joseph Connelly is an American author of detective novels and other crime fiction, notably those featuring LAPD Detective Hieronymus "Harry" Bosch and criminal defense attorney Mickey Haller. Connelly is the bestselling author of 38 novels and one work of non-fiction, with over 74 million copies of his books sold worldwide and translated into 40 languages. His first novel, The Black Echo, won the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award for Best First Novel in 1992. In 2002, Clint Eastwood directed and starred in the movie adaptation of Connelly's 1997 novel, Blood Work. In March 2011, the movie adaptation of Connelly's novel The Lincoln Lawyer starred Matthew McConaughey as Mickey Haller. Connelly was the President of the Mystery Writers of America from 2003 to 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donald E. Westlake</span> American novelist (1933–2008)

Donald Edwin Westlake was an American writer with more than one hundred novels and non-fiction books to his credit. He specialized in crime fiction, especially comic capers, with an occasional foray into science fiction and other genres. Westlake created two professional criminal characters who each starred in a long-running series: the relentless, hardboiled Parker, and John Dortmunder, who featured in a more humorous series.

Mark Richard Zubro is an American mystery novelist. He lives in Mokena, Illinois and taught 8th grade English at Summit Hill Jr. High in nearby Frankfort Square, Illinois.

<i>The Daughter of Time</i> 1951 mystery novel by Josephine Tey

The Daughter of Time is a 1951 detective novel by Josephine Tey, concerning a modern police officer's investigation into the alleged crimes of King Richard III of England. It was the last book Tey published in her lifetime, shortly before her death. In 1990 it was voted number one in The Top 100 Crime Novels of All Time list compiled by the British Crime Writers' Association. In 1995 it was voted number four in The Top 100 Mystery Novels of All Time list compiled by the Mystery Writers of America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lee Goldberg</span> American writer

Lee Goldberg is an American author, screenwriter, publisher and producer known for his bestselling novels Lost Hills and True Fiction and his work on a wide variety of TV crime series, including Diagnosis: Murder, A Nero Wolfe Mystery, Hunter, Spenser: For Hire, Martial Law, She-Wolf of London, SeaQuest, 1-800-Missing, The Glades and Monk.

Sara Gruen is Canadian-American author. She is a 2007 recipient of the Alex Award for young adult literature.

<i>Lush Life</i> (novel) Novel by Richard Price

Lush Life is a contemporary social novel by Richard Price. It is Price's eighth novel, and was published in 2008 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salish Sea human foot discoveries</span> Detached human feet found on the Canadian coast

Since August 20, 2007, at least 20 detached human feet have been found on the coasts of the Salish Sea in British Columbia, Canada, and Washington, US. The first discovery, on August 20, 2007, was on Jedediah Island in British Columbia. Feet have been discovered on the coasts of islands in British Columbia, and in the US cities of Tacoma and Seattle.

Mitchell Smith is an American author writing crime fiction and science fiction.

<i>The Dreadful Lemon Sky</i>

The Dreadful Lemon Sky (1975) is the sixteenth novel in the Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald. It is the 87th novel in The Top 100 Crime Novels of All Time as compiled by the Mystery Writers of America.

<i>The Lodger</i> (novel) 1913 novel by Marie Adelaide Belloc Lowndes

The Lodger is a novel by English author Marie Adelaide Belloc Lowndes. The short story was first published in the January, 1911 edition of McClure's Magazine, in 1911. Belloc Lowndes wrote a longer version of the story, which was published as a series in the Daily Telegraph in 1913 with the same name. Later that year, the novel was published in its entirety by Methuen Publishing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kelli Stanley</span> American author of mystery-thrillers (born 1964)

Kelli Stanley is an American author of mystery-thrillers. The majority of her published fiction is written in the genres of historical crime fiction and noir. Her best known work, the Miranda Corbie series, is set in San Francisco, her adoptive hometown.

Tasha Alexander is an American author who writes New York Times bestselling historical mystery fiction.

Jane Harper is a British–Australian author known for her crime novels The Dry, Force of Nature and The Lost Man, all set in rural Australia.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Richard Marcus (2020-02-02). "Book Review: 'Obsidian' by Thomas King". Seattle Post-Intelligencer . Retrieved 2020-04-10. In Obsidian, from Harper Collins books, Thomas King returns readers to the ongoing story of Thumps DreadfulWater's life. An ex- cop from California, Thumps had fled the coast for the open spaces of the prairies to escape the one crime that continues to haunt him. The death of his partner and her daughter at the hands of a serial killer.
  2. 1 2 "Obsidian". CBC Books . 2020-01-30. Retrieved 2020-04-16. Thumps DreadfulWater, the sly, wry, reluctant investigator of Cold Skies and A Matter of Malice, returns in another irresistible mystery that only Thomas King could create.
  3. "International: 30 bestselling books for the week of Feb. 1". Vancouver Sun . 2020-02-03. Retrieved 2020-04-16.