Anyone heard of Meg Gardiner?
#1
Moderator
Thread Starter
Anyone heard of Meg Gardiner?
Readers of Stephen King's EW column last week were introduced to an author that has flown under the radar for the past few years...
I hope her books will pick up a publisher in the US sometime soon...searching Amazon.com for China Lake...the price is outrageous.
A message from Stephen King regarding the author Meg Gardiner
December 12th, 2006
.................................................................................................... ................................................................................
You Guys,
For the last couple of years, I’ve from time to time mentioned the books I was reading (or the music I was listening to, or the movies I’ve been seeing). In the case of Meg Gardiner, a little more is necessary, because her five novels are, simply put, the finest crime-suspense series I’ve come across in the last twenty years. Ms. Gardiner’s heroine, Evan Delaney, is a little bit like Kinsey Milhone (same basic California locales), but you have to think of Kinsey Milhone louder, faster, funnier, scarier, and more violent. This is not to put the knock on Sue Grafton. I’ve read every Milhone mystery from A is for Alibi to S is for Silence and enjoyed them all. The series has grown in resonance and power. The Gardiner books are just… better, somehow. More fun, more bang for the buck. If you want, think of Kinsey Milhone crossed with Jack Reacher, the soldier of fortune in the Lee Child novels. Only Reacher has little sense of humor. Evan Delaney has Cousin Tater, the mad Midwestern relative- from-hell with the crazed libido and even crazier sideline: lingerie shows for suburban matrons. You wouldn’t think Cousin Tater would mix with serial killers, insane rock stars, and homicidal, homophobic religious cults…but somehow Meg Gardiner makes it all work.
You could say to me, “What’s the deal, Steve? Do you owe this lady money, or something?”
Fair question. The fact is, I have only met her once, briefly, in passing. That was on the London lap of my Lisey’s Story tour, and that’s the real crux of the Meg Gardiner Conundrum: London . As in London, England. As in, “This amazingly American voice is published there…but not here.” She isn’t a bestseller there, either, which really confuses me, because these books are your basic can’t-put-em-down thrill rides.
Do me a favor, okay? Lay your hands on the first Meg Gardiner—it’s called China Lake —and tell me I’m wrong about this. I don’t think you can, or will. If you read Sue Grafton, Lee Child, Janet Evanovich, Michael Connelly, or Nelson DeMille, you’re going to think Meg Gardiner is a gift from heaven for thriller/mystery readers. I’m tempted to mention Patricia Cornwell, also—another woman writer who isn’t afraid to spill a little fictional blood—but that comparison won’t quite hold. Unlike Ms. Cornwell, Meg Gardiner actually can write.
Not trying to flog the lady into the next big thing; not claiming these books as Undying Literature (there are critics who claim I wouldn’t know Undying Literature if it bit me in the buttock, and they may be right). I am saying you’ll be entertained. I also want to warn you that you’ll have to be resourceful, and use the Net. Once more: Meg Gardiner is not published in her native country. Insane, but true. So go either to her website, www.meggardiner.com, or to her publisher, Hodder & Stoughton (who are also my British publisher, but I swear that’s only a coincidence), or to Amazon.
The entire Evan Delaney series is: China Lake, Mission Canyon, Jericho Point, Crosscut, and Kill Chain (for now available only in hardcover).
I get nothing out of this. For most of you who’ve known me through the years, I think that goes without saying. But among the internet cruisers, there are always a few cynics, so I thought I better. I’m saying this because it drives me crazy that this woman is out there, doing this amazingly entertaining work, and not getting read.
So spend a few bucks.
Read Meg Gardiner.
- Steve King
December 12th, 2006
.................................................................................................... ................................................................................
You Guys,
For the last couple of years, I’ve from time to time mentioned the books I was reading (or the music I was listening to, or the movies I’ve been seeing). In the case of Meg Gardiner, a little more is necessary, because her five novels are, simply put, the finest crime-suspense series I’ve come across in the last twenty years. Ms. Gardiner’s heroine, Evan Delaney, is a little bit like Kinsey Milhone (same basic California locales), but you have to think of Kinsey Milhone louder, faster, funnier, scarier, and more violent. This is not to put the knock on Sue Grafton. I’ve read every Milhone mystery from A is for Alibi to S is for Silence and enjoyed them all. The series has grown in resonance and power. The Gardiner books are just… better, somehow. More fun, more bang for the buck. If you want, think of Kinsey Milhone crossed with Jack Reacher, the soldier of fortune in the Lee Child novels. Only Reacher has little sense of humor. Evan Delaney has Cousin Tater, the mad Midwestern relative- from-hell with the crazed libido and even crazier sideline: lingerie shows for suburban matrons. You wouldn’t think Cousin Tater would mix with serial killers, insane rock stars, and homicidal, homophobic religious cults…but somehow Meg Gardiner makes it all work.
You could say to me, “What’s the deal, Steve? Do you owe this lady money, or something?”
Fair question. The fact is, I have only met her once, briefly, in passing. That was on the London lap of my Lisey’s Story tour, and that’s the real crux of the Meg Gardiner Conundrum: London . As in London, England. As in, “This amazingly American voice is published there…but not here.” She isn’t a bestseller there, either, which really confuses me, because these books are your basic can’t-put-em-down thrill rides.
Do me a favor, okay? Lay your hands on the first Meg Gardiner—it’s called China Lake —and tell me I’m wrong about this. I don’t think you can, or will. If you read Sue Grafton, Lee Child, Janet Evanovich, Michael Connelly, or Nelson DeMille, you’re going to think Meg Gardiner is a gift from heaven for thriller/mystery readers. I’m tempted to mention Patricia Cornwell, also—another woman writer who isn’t afraid to spill a little fictional blood—but that comparison won’t quite hold. Unlike Ms. Cornwell, Meg Gardiner actually can write.
Not trying to flog the lady into the next big thing; not claiming these books as Undying Literature (there are critics who claim I wouldn’t know Undying Literature if it bit me in the buttock, and they may be right). I am saying you’ll be entertained. I also want to warn you that you’ll have to be resourceful, and use the Net. Once more: Meg Gardiner is not published in her native country. Insane, but true. So go either to her website, www.meggardiner.com, or to her publisher, Hodder & Stoughton (who are also my British publisher, but I swear that’s only a coincidence), or to Amazon.
The entire Evan Delaney series is: China Lake, Mission Canyon, Jericho Point, Crosscut, and Kill Chain (for now available only in hardcover).
I get nothing out of this. For most of you who’ve known me through the years, I think that goes without saying. But among the internet cruisers, there are always a few cynics, so I thought I better. I’m saying this because it drives me crazy that this woman is out there, doing this amazingly entertaining work, and not getting read.
So spend a few bucks.
Read Meg Gardiner.
- Steve King
#2
DVD Talk Gold Edition
I read that article as well. Too bad the one King recommends first is so expensive. Amazon.co.uk has it cheaper (but still not cheap), but there's a 4-6 week wait.
Last edited by Nth Power; 02-19-07 at 02:18 PM.
#3
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: Bowling Green, KY
Posts: 406
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
BookCloseOut.com has Meg Gardiner's Crosscut (Bargain Book) for $4.99 plus shipping and handling (works out to a little over $9.00 if you order it by itself).
I believe this is the fourth book in the series, but I decided to try it anyway since the earlier books are so expensive to import.
The site currently shows 40 copies of Crosscut in stock. They had 100 when I placed an order about a week ago. I got a shipping confirmation, but it hasn't arrived yet.
I believe this is the fourth book in the series, but I decided to try it anyway since the earlier books are so expensive to import.
The site currently shows 40 copies of Crosscut in stock. They had 100 when I placed an order about a week ago. I got a shipping confirmation, but it hasn't arrived yet.
#5
DVD Talk Reviewer Emeritus
You probably won't believe this, but just after reading that King column, I happened to be shopping at my local Hastings store and found a perfect UK first-edition hardcover of CHINA LAKE for $5.99. I say that only 10 percent in a bragging sense , but mostly to say, check your local Hastings' bargain shelves!
#8
DVD Talk Hall of Fame
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Nashville and Crossville, TN
Posts: 9,802
Received 806 Likes
on
595 Posts
Has anyone found a decent price for China Lake? I found a store called murderbythebook that carries paperback copies of her books for $15.99 but they are sold out and won't have any more in stock for two weeks.
#9
DVD Talk Limited Edition
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: Denver
Posts: 7,206
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I bought a copy for $40 plus shipping from the UK. Supposedly, it's a first edition hardcover. Fine/Fine condition. We'll see if that holds true. I've had some bad, bad luck buying books online lately.
#10
DVD Talk Gold Edition
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: Northern Virginia
Posts: 2,386
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
She's currently negotiating for a U.S. pub deal, so if you don't mind waiting another year or so, you should be able to get the books here with no trouble.
Of course, it can be hard to delay gratification...
Of course, it can be hard to delay gratification...
#11
DVD Talk Limited Edition
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: Denver
Posts: 7,206
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I finally got my copy of CHINA LAKE. It's a very, very nice copy. This renews my faith in online ordering for books.
I do have a question. My copy has a red banner around it...a money back guarantee. Were these banners on the books when it first appeared, or were they put on them later?
I do have a question. My copy has a red banner around it...a money back guarantee. Were these banners on the books when it first appeared, or were they put on them later?
#12
DVD Talk Gold Edition
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: Northern Virginia
Posts: 2,386
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Usually those are put on when the book is first published, and they make the first edition more valuable. (Because they're often discarded, lost or damaged.)
#15
DVD Talk Limited Edition
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: Denver
Posts: 7,206
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally Posted by BadlyDrawnBoy
Okay I bought 2 of these for mrs bdb, china lake and mission canyon..
Anyone want them?
Do we have a book swap?
Anyone want them?
Do we have a book swap?
#17
DVD Talk Gold Edition
Here's a bump for you.
She's finally getting the treatment she deserves here in the States, and it looks like they are publishing each of the 5 Delaney mysteries one a month from June to October, in affordable paperbacks. I picked up China Lake last week (last year while in London I found Kill Chain, but still haven't read it).
Her new novel and series (Jo Beckett), The Dirty Secrets Club, has also been published this month too.
She's finally getting the treatment she deserves here in the States, and it looks like they are publishing each of the 5 Delaney mysteries one a month from June to October, in affordable paperbacks. I picked up China Lake last week (last year while in London I found Kill Chain, but still haven't read it).
Her new novel and series (Jo Beckett), The Dirty Secrets Club, has also been published this month too.
Last edited by Drop; 06-25-08 at 12:48 PM.
#19
DVD Talk Gold Edition
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: Northern Virginia
Posts: 2,386
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I tried The Dirty Secrets Club and was underwhelmed. Not worth reading, in my opinion. I started China Lake and the first couple chapters were okay. Haven't read past that yet, though.
#20
DVD Talk Gold Edition
About halfway through China Lake, and I love it. It didn't quite grab me from the first page like Stephen King, but once it ramped into the meat of the plot, it's been very hard to put down. She's really great at creating tension, you know the situation is bad and she lets it drag on just enough. I also like that her wit (and her character's) is very finely tuned and not so referential or obnoxious. She's also pretty damn good at making all the character choices make sense, even when they do stupid things. And while the characters aren't entirely original but she does break them out the expected molds.
I hope the rest of the book and her other works are just as good.
I hope the rest of the book and her other works are just as good.
#21
DVD Talk Gold Edition
Finished China Lake a few days and ago and thought it was great. The build it was just about perfect and the pay off was great too. It is a pretty crazy story, and I can only imagine how messed up having 4 more adventures like this must be. I can't compare her to other like authors, but it was hard to put the book down. I look forward to her other books, and highly recommend her.