Howard Owen
Howard Owen è nato nel 1949 a Fayetteville, in North Carolina, e dal 1973 vive a Richmond, in Virginia, dove sono ambientati gli otto romanzi della sua apprezzatissima serie noir dedicata a Willie Black. È giornalista e scrittore, ha pubblicato diciotto romanzi e numerosi racconti, ha vinto il Theresa Pollak Award for Words e il prestigioso Hammett Prize, è stato candidato all'Abby Award e al Discovery Award, è stato finalista al Silver Falchion Award e al Library Virginia Prize, ed è stato incluso in The Best Novels of the Nineties: A Reader’s Guide. I suoi libri sono stati recensiti da The New York Times, inclusa la Sunday Book Review, The Los Angeles Times, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, New York Journal of Books, Library Journal, Booklist tra gli altri.
“A crisp and colorful urban idiom we can’t wait to hear again.”
– The New York Times
“Owen is a careful, precise writer, creating characters so real that we have to keep reminding themselves they’re fiction, and stories so haunting that they stay with the reader long after the books are back on the shelf.”
– Booklist
“Oregon Hill is as smart as it is thrilling, a true literary page-turner.”
– Small Press Reviews
“Readers will hope that Willie will soon return in a sequel.”
– Publishers Weekly
Vincitore dello Hammett Prize
“A well-plotted mystery elevated above the norm by Owen’s mastery of character development and his creation of a compelling hero.”
– Booklist
“A quick-flowing crime drama that will have fans eager for Willie Black to right another injustice.”
– Kirkus Reviews
“[A] strong sequel to 2012’s Oregon Hill... Owen has a knack for creating quirky but credible characters.”
– Publishers Weekly
“This is a top-notch mystery, and the characters come alive. Highly recommended.”
– Pulp Den
“Parker Field is the sort of thinking man's mystery where every detail's important, every character has a tale to tell, and every path explored will promise just another step toward the solution. No rabbits pulled out of hats; just great storytelling, characters and plot.”
– Sheila's Reviews
“The Bottom by Howard Owen races along at breakneck speed, hardly pausing long enough to allow one to catch a breath... The Bottom features wonderful characters... a perfect read.”
– New York Journal of Books
“Owen has a solid grip on people and place and the social and racial tensions buzzing through a city haunted by history.”
– Kirkus Reviews
“Another fantastic Willie Black murder mystery... Masterful.”
– Detecitve Mystery Stories
“Owen uses his reflective, self-destructive hero to illuminate both the racial problems of his hometown and the ongoing death of the newspaper he loves, even though it doesn't love him back.”
– Kirkus Reviews
“The best book so far in the Willie Black murder mystery series.”
– Joan Baum
“A strong entry in the reporter-sleuth subgenre.”
– Booklist
Finalista al Silver Falchion Award
“Superior... Owen's informed treatment of Richmond and its declining daily paper is perfect.”
– Publishers Weekly (Starred review)
“Owen produces another grim, tightly woven, and resolutely professional piece of work with a memorably nightmarish payoff.”
– Kirkus Reviews
“Throughout this series, and especially in this installment, Owen has invested the familiar stereotype of the rumpled, disaffected, hard-drinking reporter with new life, finding a richness and complexity in Willie that entertains as it enlightens.”
– Booklist
“[Scuffletown's] pages are awash in hilarity, from Willie’s touchy relationship with police flack Peachy Love to his pot-smoking mother’s boyfriend Awesome Dude, to his accidental run-ins with his various ex-wives. Yet to a certain extent, some passages of Scuffletown are shot through with pathos so deep they feel oceanic. Almost miraculously, author Howard Owen continues to leave his readers smiling, because in the end, the real-life journalist believes justice should always be served, even when it comes to self-righteous newspaper publishers.”
– Mystery Scene
“Scuffletown's a hoot, a fast and entertaining read and an affectionate elegiac tribute to print journalism.”
– NPR
“Readers seeking the thrills of most popular crime fiction won't find it here. Instead, they will find a textured, emotionally charged tale about coming to terms with growing up biracial in America told in the precise language of a writer who honed his craft during 44 years in the newspaper business.”
– Bruce DeSilva, Associated Press
“Willie [...] remains the same witty and humane character as ever. Readers will hope he has a long run.”
– Publishers Weekly