A Small-Town City

by special guest Janice MacDonald.

 
This book is a strange wee beast, a combination of my first foray into writing mysteries and my latest, seventh puzzle with my amateur detective, Randy Craig, MA. The impetus was to bring that first, long unattainable adventure back into readers’ hands while at the same time giving them the heft and style of the series they had come to know. So, in the magical worlds of the mysterious, one plus seven equals six!

Sliding back into the world of The Next Margaret, that very first mystery, has hauled up a fair amount of nostalgia for me. Like Randy, I was back at university, doing an MA, after being out in the freelance world for four or five years. I was already living in the sweet apartment she later moved to within a cinnamon bun’s toss of the Highlevel Diner, but I made her suffer through the basement suite I had lived in during my second year of undergrad. Having researched and written a thesis on detective fiction for my MA, I figured I would try my hand at creating a reluctant amateur in the farceur style with the closed world of grad studies and TA-ing and sessional lecturing not as familiar to mystery readers already well versed in the academic novels of full professors and Oxford dons. In fact, one reviewer remarked that, “Randy Craig mysteries were like Amanda Cross for the untenured set.”

More than the puzzle, more than the charismatic detective, more than the grit or the laughs or the meanness of the streets depicted, what matters in a detective series is the location. In a formulaic genre, the bones of the book are already known, so it’s not that they’re reading for stunning plot structure. And while they need to identify with the detective and befriend him or her, they don’t necessarily want too much change in personality. So what it comes down to is that people read mysteries for an entry into a world with which they are not intimately familiar – and mystery novels take them to New Mexico, or Norway, or Watts in the late ‘50s, or post-Crimea War London. I thought, why not Edmonton?

The beauty of setting a novel here was that, up on the 53rd parallel, we were the most northerly major university city, with all the amenities of a large metropolis, yet a small town feel. We had a vibrant arts scene, a symphony, an opera company, amazing theatre, festivals galore, loads of intellectually stimulating people, grassroots blue collar grit, a glorious river valley and an ominous black bridge spanning half a mile. Running through the ravine system were deer, coyotes, the odd moose, cougars, even a bear was spotted the other day in Emily Murphy Park. And amazing as it seemed, relatively few people had ever heard of us.

They might have heard of us if they followed hockey, or if they were British and of a certain age, since all their sisters seemed to end up as Princess Patricia war brides. But they didn’t tend to read about us. We popped up from time to time in a quick chapter of a Dick Francis novel, a glancing reference in a Jeopardy question, a garrulous condemnation in Mordecai Richler magazine piece. The world was ready for Edmonton, and most particularly southside, campussy Edmonton. They would be lining up for Randy Craig Mysteries.

I quite honestly figured it would be a cakewalk. I would write a mystery series featuring a funny, mouthy brunette, set her in various milieus connected to the University of Alberta, and let her bring Edmonton to the world. After all, mystery readers crave new series. I know I do; I count myself right up there with obsessive readers the world over.

And the series does sell relatively well in Edmonton where people are sort of bemused to find their real street names in fiction. They sell even better all across North America now that people can buy them easily on e-readers. Adjunct lecturers love Randy, and so do librarians. And while there has been no British distribution deal, or TV producers with wheelbarrows full of cash so far, recognition does grow with every new adventure. Hudson’s Bay Company cartographer Peter Pond put Edmonton on the map. Randy Craig is satisfied with just sticking a small pin in it.

Still, with every new book comes more awareness, and even as I look back over thirty-seven years of writing and twenty-two years of Randy Craig in print, I am looking forward, as well, to think about what she might be getting up to as she moves firmly into middle-age. Not sure what number we’ll get to, she and I. But whatever happens, you just know that things won’t add up.

Janice MacDonald is the author of eleven books, including novels, non-­fiction titles, and a children's book. She has been widely anthologized, and her popular Randy Craig novels were the first mystery series set in Edmonton. Janice has taught English literature, communications, and creative writing at both the University of Alberta and Grant MacEwan College. She currently works for the the Government of Alberta. Born in Banff, Alberta, Janice lives and writes in Edmonton and considers herself to be a quintessential Albertan.

Mystery Monday

Another Margaret (Randy Craig mystery #7) by Janice MacDonald (Ravenstone Books trade paperback, 15 August 2015).

Randy's friend Denise coerces her to help with the planning of their 20-year grad school reunion at the University of Alberta.  Then, she happens to mention that a posthumous manuscript by Margaret Ahlers, the subject of Randy's MA thesis, had been found, which Randy asserts is impossible.

The concurrence of the two causes some reminiscence on Randy's part.

Twenty years earlier, she'd been living in Toronto, working rather successfully as a freelance writer. But it was becoming more and more difficult to find jobs, and searching for them was no longer fun.  Randy happened to read a debut novel by Margaret Ahlers which intrigued her so much that she wanted to learn more about the author.

This was just the trigger that was needed for Randy to explore her hidden aspiration to return to university.  Some consultation with  a friend in academia revealed that the sole expert on Ahlers, Dr. Hilary Quinn, was an associate professor at the University of Alberta, so that is where Randy enrolled.

We follow Randy's memories of arriving in Edmonton and her generally futile search for information about the reclusive author.  Dr. Quinn is uncooperative, and Randy's application to be her summer research assistant is denied.

After applying for all the RAs and grants she could find, Randy finally receives a small travel grant to visit the area where Ahlers' novels was set.  So, she rents a car, and off she goes to the Peace Country in Northern Alberta.

This was the part of the story that excited me most:  I spent my early teen years in that area, and we drove back and forth from Edmonton (the nearest large city) countless times.  I even pulled out my old road map of Alberta and followed Randy's travels, "seeing" many of the places she visited in my mind's eye.

While I love Janice MacDonald's mysteries, which are extremely well-constructed, my enjoyment of them is increased a million-fold because I know the settings so well. Of course, those who are not so familiar with Edmonton and points north will still enjoy her accomplished, literary prose.



The publisher has generously offered a copy to one of my readers.  Please comment below by 21:01 a.m. on Monday, October 5th, and don't forget to include an email address where I can contact you if you win.  There will be one winner in the U.S. and one winner in Canada, so please indicate which country you are in.


Many thanks to the publisher for sending me a galley for review purposes.

So Many Secrets

Where They Found Her by Kimberly McCreight (HarperCollins hardcover, 14 April 2015).

Novice journalist Molly Sanderson receives an early-morning call to cover the discovery of a body.  

Though it's not her "beat", the usual crime reporter for The Ridgedale Reader is in the hospital.  Excited about covering a real story, Molly hurries to the scene, where she learns that the body is that of a newborn girl.  

Aware that this will be difficult for her, as she is still recovering from a severe depression resulting from the loss of her own baby,  Molly decides that writing this story will be another step towards healing.  

Meanwhile, Barbara Carlson, hearing about it from her husband Steve, chief of the Ridgedale Police, is emotionally touched as well, but her main focus is on her youngest son Cole, whose kindergarten teacher is under the (mistaken!) impression that the boy is having behavior issues.

The story alternates between the viewpoints of Molly, Barbara, and 16-year-old Sandy, who is searching for her flaky mother. 

At first glance these three women have little in common, but as the story progresses we see their lives intersect in multiple and unexpected ways.

Kimberly McCreight, author of Reconstructing Amelia (Harper Perennial, 2013) has once again created a compelling and unputdownable novel that will keep readers guessing until the last page.

FTC Full Disclosure:  Many thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss for the digital galley.

My Hometown

The Roar of the Crowd (Randy Craig Mystery #6)  by Janice MacDonald (Ravenstone Books trade paperback, 30 June 2014).

Randy Craig (whose background you should already know if you read yesterday's Stuff and Nonsense), is running a high school theatre program associated with the organizers of Edmonton's annual Shakespeare in the Park series.  

The gig is thanks to her old friend, English professor Denise Wolff, who's dating the artistic director of the FreeWill Players.  Randy has plenty of time to focus on creating the curriculum for the three-week class because her significant other, police detective Steve Browning, is on assignment in Scandinavia.  

But Randy has just begun the job when the lead actress, an Edmonton native who "made good" is murdered.  When the police look at Denise as the prime suspect, Randy has no problem helping her friend to clear her name.

I usually whiz through books this compelling very quickly, but the Randy Craig series takes place in my hometown.  And Janice MacDonald's descriptions of Edmonton locations and events are so detailed that I find myself pausing every few paragraphs to indulge in a trip down memory lane.

I remember attending the University of Alberta for both my degrees, and when she describes walking from one building to another, I think about making the same trip myself. I clearly remember the route of the #9 bus, and going to the Mayfield Dinner Theatre.  
But since I haven't lived in Alberta's capital for nearly twenty years, though, sometimes I have to stop and ponder things like "Was the Garneau Theatre the one on Whyte Avenue or the one across the street from the HighLevel Diner?"  

The Randy Craig books are like tourist guides wrapped in wonderfully-written mystery stories.  They'll make you want to go to Edmonton and experience the vibrant cultural scene and explore the beautiful river valley.  I think it's time to plan a trip there, myself.





FTC Full Disclosure:  Many thanks to the publisher for providing me with a review copy of the book.

Welcome guest blogger Janice MacDonald!

Photo credit: Arif Kassam

How did Randy Craig come to be?

I had gone back to university to do an MA in English, with a focus on detective fiction and popular culture.

I remember quite clearly sitting in the grad lounge, reading some lovely trashy paperback novel like The Maltese Falcon or The Night The Gods Smiled, when some person up to their armpits in Chaucer and Derrida said, “So now I suppose you’re going to write a mystery novel, are you?” and I responded, “Yes, I suppose I am.” I had been out of school for a while, and had already written a couple of local history books and some radio plays at that time, but I don’t think till that moment happened, I had seriously considered writing a mystery series.

But, there I was -- committed. And they do say to write what you know. So the idea of a grad student coming back to do an MA, after having been out in the freelance world a while seemed a natural row to hoe. Randy’s return to academe had been because she had found a brand new writer to study and base her thesis on, but what about people who wanted to create an academic life around Shakespeare or Samuel Beckett? 

At just about that time, I had friends in Genetics who had been told their research was only going to net them M.Sc. degrees rather than Ph.D.s, because it was negative findings, and no journal would publish their work. Scientists all know that negative findings can be just as valuable as positive ones, but there is an element of a rat race in everything, right? So, the whole idea of looking at what people would do to make it in academe came about, and with that came the start of a series.

It had to be set in Edmonton. Nothing was set in Edmonton, and I figured we needed to correct that. I’d also done an interview of L.R. Wright who said she had really had to fight to get her series set in Sechelt, B.C. I just thought it was about time we owned up to existing. Detective fiction requires location to be a main feature of the work, too. Character and location is really what draws people back to a series time and again. It’s been a wonderful thing to become an ambassador for my city to the world, and readers here in Edmonton still find it fun to see their own streets becoming a bit “mean.”

Her name, Randy, is short for Miranda, of course, one of Shakespeare’s true naïfs, who has to learn who to trust and who not to trust in her “brave new world.” But another reason for the androgynous nickname was to fit into the tradition that was building in female detective fiction, which I had just been writing about in my thesis. With that either/or name or those initials, the reader can believe the character to be somewhat of a tomboy, and therefore probably better able to hold her own in a physical altercation. She also has the potential of getting the drop on someone once in a while, if they think they are coming to meet a man.

The trouble is, between the publication of my first and second book, I met and married a lovely man named Randy, which gets people who are just meeting us all confused for a bit. I am surrounded by Randys now. 

And I wouldn’t have it any other way!



Janice MacDonald lives in Edmonton.  She writes for the government during the week and mystery novels on weekends.

The Roar of the Crowd is part of The Deadly Medley Sweepstakes at Criminal Element!  For your chance to win — and to learn more about the latest and greatest in crime fiction — just click here before February 17.