| Meet
the staff of Murder By The Book!
Martha
Farrington, owner
she opened Murder By The Book in 1980
Against the advice of many industry specialists (who felt a store
devoted exclusively to mystery, detective, and thriller fiction
was a bad idea), Martha (with her husband, Les) opened Murder By
The Book in 1980. It has since become one of the largest mystery
bookstores in the country. In 2004, the store won the coveted Raven
Award from the Mystery Writers of America. Frequently voted Best
Bookstore in Houston by the Houston Chronicle and the Houston
Press, Murder By The Book was nominated for Publishers
Weekly's 2007 Bookseller of the Year. In March 2008, Frommer's
will release a guide to the best shopping in the world -- Where
to Buy the Best of Everything: The Outspoken Guide for World Travelers
& Online Shoppers -- and Murder By The Book was chosen
as one of the best bookstores.
Some of
Martha's favorite authors: Robert Barnard, Gladys
Mitchell, Ruth Rendell, Leslie
Ford, Louise Penny, Henning Mankell.
McKenna
Jordan, manager
at
Murder By The Book since 2003
McKenna
has her Bachelor's Degree in English and a Master's in Violin Performance
from University of Houston. She's concertmaster for Houston's Opera
in the Heights.
Some
of McKenna's favorite authors: Megan Abbott, Cara
Black, Ken Bruen, Kerry Greenwood, Charlaine Harris,
Carolyn Haines, Peter Lovesey, Daniel Silva, Jacqueline
Winspear.
David
Thompson, assistant manager
at Murder By The Book since 1989
David is also the owner
of Busted Flush Press,
which he founded in 2005 with the intent of publishing original
crime anthologies and reprints of some of our store's favorite (though,
sadly, out-of-print) mysteries, including David Handler's
Edgar Award-winning Hoagy & Lulu novels. Damn Near Dead,
edited by Duane Swierczynski, was nominated for
five mystery awards, including the Edgar!
Some of
David's favorite authors: Ken Bruen, Robert
Crais, Martin Limón, Victor
O'Reilly, Randy Wayne White, Joyce
Porter, Peter Lovesey, Val McDermid,
Lee Child, Barry Eisler.
Megan
Bladen-Blinkoff
at Murder By The Book since 1986
Edith
Brown
at
Murder By The Book since 1981
Barbara
Douglas
at Murder By The Book since 1983
Terry
Farmer
at
Murder By The Book since 2008
Terry has
been coming to MBTB since 1990 when a friend from graduate school
dragged her into the store. Reading mysteries was all that kept
her sanity intact through graduate school, post docs, and the last
job. Terry is currently "on sabbatical" and started working
part-time at MBTB in March 2008.
Favorite
authors: Mark Schweizer, Craig Johnson,
Lee Child, Megan Abbott, Dean
James, Dick Francis, Harlen Coben,
Robert Crais, Patricia Briggs,
Jim Butcher, Elizabeth Peters / Barbara
Michaels, Minette Walters (and I could
go on and on...).
Dean
James
at
Murder By The Book since 1984
Our former store manager, Dean now works
full-time at the Texas Medical Center Library (in addition to a
Ph.D. in History from Rice, he has a Master's in Library Science)
and part-time (every other Saturday) at Murder By The Book. He's
also an award-winning author of both mystery non-fiction -- including
By a Woman's Hand and Killer Books (both co-written
with Jean Swanson) -- and mystery fiction, including the Wanda Nell
Culpepper novels (written as Jimmie
Ruth Evans) and the "Bridge Club" mysteries
(written as Honor Hartman).
Some of
Dean's favorite authors: Margery Allingham, Elizabeth
Peters / Barbara Michaels, Anne Perry,
Charlaine Harris, Carolyn Haines, Carolyn
Hart.
Anne
Kimbol
at
Murder By The Book since 2008
A research professor in
health law by day, Anne spends some of her afternoons and evenings
at the store helping with signings, mailings, and otherwise disguising
being around great books and great people as "work."
Her favorite authors include: Charlie Huston,
Dennis Lehane, Charlaine Harris, Jim
Butcher, Megan Abbott, among others.
Michelle
McNamara
at
Murder By The Book since 2007
Some of
her favorite authors: Daniel Silva, Megan
Abbott, Connie Willis, Kathryn
Neville, Jasper Fforde, Carolyn
Haines, Charlaine Harris.
Cindy
Patton
at
Murder By The Book since 1997
Kathryn
Priest
at Murder By The Book since 2007
Kathryn was the counselor at the High
School for Performing and Visual Arts for many years.
Some of
her favorite authors: Leslie Ford, Dorothy
Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, Julia Spencer-Fleming,
Louise Penny.
Wick
Rowland
at Murder
By The Book since 1992
Wick has
a bachelor's degree in organ performance and was a middle school
math and music teacher for 15 years.
Her main interests besides reading are cooking
and needlework. She has 3 dogs, 5 cats and a very large parrot.
Some of
her favorite authors: Michael Connelly, Peter Lovesey, Lee
Child, Ian Rankin, Stephen Hunter, Rex Stout, Robert Crais.
Eric
Wilde
at
Murder By The Book since 2007
Eric attends Rice University where he's working on a degree
in psychology. You'll find him working several of our thriller signings.
Some of
his favorite authors: Clive Cussler, Randy
Wayne White, Vince Flynn, Brad
Thor, Douglas Preston / Lincoln Child,
Ian Rankin, Barry Eisler, Matthew
Reilly.
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