Shanks on Crime


Leopold Longshanks (“Call me Shanks.  Everybody does.”) is a mystery writer.  He will admit, with a certain resentment, to being in his early fifties.  He’s famous in his field, but fortune has not followed as briskly as he thinks it should.

He is married to Cora, whom he loves dearly.  Cora has recently started writing fiction and is perhaps more successful than Shanks, which doesn’t bother him at all.  Really.  Really.

Shanks occasionally finds himself involved in solving crimes, which irritates him.  (No surprise there; Cora says  everything irritates him.)  He loathes the possibility of becoming famous as “a mystery writer who sleuths in real life!” so he dodges opportunities whenever possible.

Stories about Shanks have appeared in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, and the anthology Low Down Dirty Vote 2. 

Thirteen stories about the grumbling author appear in Shanks on Crime.  Four of those have never before appeared in print. 

 Tokyo Sogen reprinted the book in Japanese with a title that appears to translate Sunday Afternoon Tea With Mystery Writer.

Shanks on Crime

Kind Words and Love Letters


Jon L. Breen, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine:

I“Rich in humor and human insight, including real detection along with views of a happy marriage and the joys and frustrations of the writing life.”

Lawrence Maddox, All Due Respect Magazine:

“The Shanks stories are fun, dialogue-driven and quick to read, while offering so much more beneath the barbs.”

Rudolph Schmidt, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine:

“A wonderful collection of short stories starring a serial detective-of-circumstance who solves minor crimes and misdemeanors with his sardonic wit and humor.”

Bill Crider, Mystery Scene Magazine:

“All the stories are clever, witty, and well-written… If you haven’t met Shanks before, this book provides an excellent chance to get acquainted.”