Philately - The Fiction Connection
The Mystery Box book is the proud winner of a Silver Medal awarded by the Chicago Philatelic Society CHICAGOPEX Literature Exhibit
Read the Book Review by Barbara Kinne of the APS American Philatelist
I have been exploring that connection since 1997 in a mystery series featured each month in Global Stamp News and in a the short story collection, published by Ana Libri Press, called The Mystery Box.
The guiding idea behind the book and series has been to blend the unique characteristic of the mystery tale with the rich suggestiveness of stamp imagery and the lore of history.
The many articles here at The Mystery Box website play with these images, through puzzles, reflections on world-wide history, and not the least of all, tales of mystery.
Enjoy this selection of stories, and be sure to check out my other websites, especially if you enjoy history!
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There was such a great commotion at the edge of the reeds, sounds of
struggle and screeching and such, that I stopped hauling in my nets and headed
for Hawker's Creek. Actually it was close to lunch time, come to think of it,
about noon on Tuesday. Read The Clearing |
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Some days , the life of a private eye is so exciting he has nothing to do but prop his feet up on the desk and shoot paper airplanes into the waste basket. But once in a rare moon, the opaque glass door to his office swings open and, there, right in front of him, is the case of lifetime, a case right out of the newspapers, a case we might call |
| I know you will think me such a silly little fool, my Darling, but sometimes I am so tongue-tied. That's why I just had to jot down these few words. You have no idea how happy you have made me, yes, in just one little week. "Quick as a flash" I knew I loved you. I knew I wanted to be with you always. Everything is in readiness! My things are packed. The minutes have become hours. I have been standing before the dark window trying to hasten the dawn. I know you will be here then, and we will be... Read Everything to Live For |
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Have you ever ridden in a Hillman Minx? You are
about to relish the experience, especially since you will be on the trail
of a murderer. The year is 1952, the country is the United Kingdom, and
the port of call is a little island in the Bristol Channel where a man of
the cloth has become...
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the nocturnal places visited by those who rob the dead. Screw up your courage,
reader, for the path ahead leads into the unknown and to a place from which
there may be no return. Read The Margrave's Grave |
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How is it that Sir Geoffrey Bullock, prominent diplomat and seemingly harmless philatelist, should end up the victim of the profoundest form of crime? |
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I hope you've enjoyed the short stories, excerpted from The Mystery Box book. My other websites, Night Falls on Damascus and Ghost Eater, have many articles, images, and resources for those who delight in exotic locations and historical themes.
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Night Falls on Damascus holds up a mirror to the continuing
puzzle of the Middle East as it weaves a rich and engrossing tale of
murder, revenge, and the corruption of power. With the introduction of
Inspector Nikolai Faroun, a new type of hero enters the mystery
scene, a man with a hidden past, a Levantine working for a hated Western
regime, a man caught between two worlds who can trust no one and call no
one friend... More about Night Falls on Damascus, a novel |
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On the west coast of North Borneo, there was once a kingdom of vast
jungles and great meandering rivers, and gold, and mysterious sea-going
tribes, and pirates, and it all belonged to one Englishman. More about Ghost Eater, a novel |
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