The economical Ian Rankin…
I’ve expressed before how much I like British-style mysteries, defining them as any crime story featuring a DCI or DI in a commonwealth setting—P.D. James, Louise Penny, and Ian Rankin oeuvres are famous examples. (The android agent in Mind Games is named Rebus for a reason—A.B. Carolan shares my predilection. See Tuesday’s post. The name of the main character is Della. Does everyone remember Perry Mason’s trusty aide?)
Unless one of their ebooks goes on sale, I don’t read any of those famous authors anymore—their ebooks are just too expensive. The Big Five wants to keep readers reading print versions, so they price ebooks high, almost at the same price as print, which is absurd. I won’t pay more than $6 for an ebook (my limit used to be $5, but inflation exists for the book business too).
Small press and self-published authors have ebooks that are more reasonably priced (like mine). I have managed to find economical substitutes for Mr. Rankin’s books. Actually there are probably many, but I’ll talk about two, books from Jill Paterson and Val Penny. Different peas in a pod (pun intended), these authors have created DCIs who are quite interesting. Jill is British but lives in Australia; Val is American but lives in Scotland. I’ve been following their mystery/crime series, Jill’s about Inspector Fitzjohn and Val’s about Inspector Hunter.
Fitzjohn is a quiet detective who grows orchids and is a bit like James’s inspector; Hunter is more forceful and a bit like Rankin’s inspector. Ms. Paterson’s Australian stories are civilized with characters of good breeding, even the villains; Ms. Penny’s stories are grittier and focused on the underbelly of Edinburgh life, with characters who could have appeared in a Rankin novel.
Their stories are quality entertainment. Moreover, they fit into my reading budget. I can buy three or four of their books for the price of one of James’s or Rankin’s. They’re reasonably priced; I get my money’s worth.
So Ian, I’m sorry. You’ve been replaced. And P.D., I’ve already read most of your books, even The Children of Men, which is sci-fi, not mystery, so I’m sorry I spent all that money on them!
“What happened to Dame Agatha?” you might ask. I read most of her books too, long ago. These were often read under the covers using a flashlight—I read a lot of books in that manner as a kid. That way the only one kept awake was our old tomcat, but he was a nocturnal beast anyway. But yes, Dame Agatha started it all. I dedicated Rembrandt’s Angel to her and her famous sleuths, Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot. Back then books were reasonably priced.
I think the Big Five are finally waking up. I wrote about “evergreen books” a while ago, basically authors’ backlists containing books that are still current and relevant. When they republish them as ebooks, they’re more reasonably priced. I guess they think that will drive the small press and self-published authors out of the market. I don’t think so, because the Big Five’s new books are just too expensive…and many readers don’t look for evergreen books.
I suppose avid readers care more about book prices than readers who only read a few books per year. I’m an avid reader who also happens to be an author. I read many books in a year. I want to get my money’s worth. I lump reading books in my overall book budget. Dollars saved in one place can be used in another. That’s just me. I hope Ian understands.
***
Comments are always welcome.
“Clones and Mutants Trilogy.” This sci-fi thriller series begins with Full Medical, a tale about clones created in a secret government lab. To what end? Evil Agenda follows one clone and introduces the mutant Serena, biologically engineered to be a super-soldier by an evil genius. For what purpose? No Amber Waves of Grain concludes the trilogy with the evil genius of the first two books joining forces with the clones and mutant to do battle with another evil genius who wants to destroy all the West’s grain crops. You will find these ebooks on Amazon and Smashwords and all the latter’s affiliated retailers (iBooks, B&N, Kobo, etc.). Load up your e-reader with them for exciting summer reading.
Around the world and to the stars! In libris libertas!
