Kelli Stanley
Author of City of Dragons
About the Author
Image credit: lisakeatingphotography.com
Series
Works by Kelli Stanley
Children's Day 2 copies
Convivium [short story] 1 copy
Associated Works
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Legal name
- Stanley, Kelli
- Birthdate
- 1964
- Gender
- female
- Education
- University of Dallas
San Francisco State University (BA, Classics and Art History)
San Francisco State University (MA, Classics) - Occupations
- Comic Book/Pop Culture retail shop (1989-1997)
- Organizations
- Mystery Writers of America
International Thriller Writers
Private Eye Writers of America
Sisters in Crime
International Association of Crime Writers - Awards and honors
- Bruce Alexander Memorial Historical Mystery Award (2009)
Macavity Finalist (2009)
Certificate of Honor, City and County of San Francisco, CA (2008)
Writers Digest Notable Debut Author (2008)
Indie Next Pick, February, 2010 (City of Dragons)
Bruce Alexander Memorial Historical Mystery Award Finalist (2010) (show all 8)
RT Book Reviews Best Historical Mystery Award Finalist (2010)
Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist (2010) - Agent
- Kimberley Cameron, CA (Reece Halsey)
- Short biography
- Kelli Stanley lives in San Francisco. When she’s not writing or wandering in the fog, she can be found at bookstores, speakeasies and classic movie palaces.
CITY OF DRAGONS [Indie Next Pick, February, 2010]—a dark, sweeping story of 1940 San Francisco—is a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, and was nominated for the Bruce Alexander Memorial Historical Mystery Award as well as the RT Book Review's Best Historical Mystery award. Lee Child praised this highly acclaimed noir historical as "Beautifully imagined and beautifully written--this book does everything great fiction is supposed to."
Kelli’s debut novel, Nox Dormienda (A Long Night for Sleeping), won the Bruce Alexander Memorial Mystery Award, and initiated a new genre: Roman noir. The sequel, THE CURSE-MAKER, was published by Thomas Dunne/Minotaur Books in February 2011 to critical acclaim.
Kelli's next book is CITY OF SPIDERS, the sequel to CITY OF DRAGONS and second book in the Miranda Corbie series. It launches September 13, 2011; the CITY OF DRAGONS trade paperback releases August 30, 2011.
Visit Kelli at http://www.kellistanley.com. - Nationality
- USA
- Places of residence
- San Francisco, California, USA
- Associated Place (for map)
- California, USA
Members
Reviews
This historical mystery/classic noir P.I. tale is a prime example of one of the hardest books for me to review: a book whose technical brilliance is obvious, but it contains things that I just don't like. The only thing I can do is talk about the good stuff, itemize what I didn't care for, and let you make the ultimate decision on whether or not you want to read the book-- which is something you do anyway.
Under author Kelli Stanley's pen, the San Francisco of the 1940s -- in particular the show more Chinatown and Little Osaka neighborhoods-- comes to life and should be considered one of the primary characters. It is a wonderful evocation of a time and a place that I greatly enjoyed.
While reading City of Dragons, you will also feel as though you've stepped right into the pages of a classic noir private investigator tale. In my "mind's ear," I heard Stanley's characters speak in voices that were eerily akin to those of Humphrey Bogart, George Raft, Sidney Greenstreet, and Peter Lorre. This book is dark and twisted, make no mistake, and deducing the whys and wherefores led me on quite the chase. For anyone who loves this sort of book, I highly recommend it.
With all that's oh-so-right about the book, there were a few things that became very wearing to me as I read. True to the period, everyone and their brother smokes-- and to such an excess that cigarette smoke should rise from the pages each time the book is opened. I'm not the type of person who's vehemently anti-smoking, and characters who smoke-- as a rule-- don't bother me, but this book was an exception.
In order to get to know the main character, Miranda Corbie, you'll be forced to wave endless nicotine clouds from your face and prepare yourself to endure quite a bit of negativity and bitterness. True to the noir heart, Miranda is a tragically wounded hero. Her disillusionment escalated when she participated in the Spanish Civil War and continued when she returned to America and worked as an escort. Her first taste of life as a private investigator was working with someone who handled divorce cases-- and that's just the tip of Miranda's iceberg. Miranda has seen too much of the dark side, and it has deeply affected not only her outlook on life, but other aspects such as her speech. As someone tells her, "Watch your mouth. You talk like a sailor, not a professor's daughter." Having grown up among sailors and farmers, I'm accustomed to profanity and scatological references, but too much from anyone and I begin tuning them out. Not a good thing for conversation or for novel reading.
As I read City of Dragons, I found myself enjoying its depiction of San Francisco and its evocation of the 1940s and classic noir. But the more I read, the less I liked Miranda until she became a true liability. It's a shame, but I doubt that I'll continue with the series, and I'll admit that my decision is purely due to personal taste. However, if secondhand smoke and an embittered, much too serious main character don't bother you, you should be in for a real treat. show less
Under author Kelli Stanley's pen, the San Francisco of the 1940s -- in particular the show more Chinatown and Little Osaka neighborhoods-- comes to life and should be considered one of the primary characters. It is a wonderful evocation of a time and a place that I greatly enjoyed.
While reading City of Dragons, you will also feel as though you've stepped right into the pages of a classic noir private investigator tale. In my "mind's ear," I heard Stanley's characters speak in voices that were eerily akin to those of Humphrey Bogart, George Raft, Sidney Greenstreet, and Peter Lorre. This book is dark and twisted, make no mistake, and deducing the whys and wherefores led me on quite the chase. For anyone who loves this sort of book, I highly recommend it.
With all that's oh-so-right about the book, there were a few things that became very wearing to me as I read. True to the period, everyone and their brother smokes-- and to such an excess that cigarette smoke should rise from the pages each time the book is opened. I'm not the type of person who's vehemently anti-smoking, and characters who smoke-- as a rule-- don't bother me, but this book was an exception.
In order to get to know the main character, Miranda Corbie, you'll be forced to wave endless nicotine clouds from your face and prepare yourself to endure quite a bit of negativity and bitterness. True to the noir heart, Miranda is a tragically wounded hero. Her disillusionment escalated when she participated in the Spanish Civil War and continued when she returned to America and worked as an escort. Her first taste of life as a private investigator was working with someone who handled divorce cases-- and that's just the tip of Miranda's iceberg. Miranda has seen too much of the dark side, and it has deeply affected not only her outlook on life, but other aspects such as her speech. As someone tells her, "Watch your mouth. You talk like a sailor, not a professor's daughter." Having grown up among sailors and farmers, I'm accustomed to profanity and scatological references, but too much from anyone and I begin tuning them out. Not a good thing for conversation or for novel reading.
As I read City of Dragons, I found myself enjoying its depiction of San Francisco and its evocation of the 1940s and classic noir. But the more I read, the less I liked Miranda until she became a true liability. It's a shame, but I doubt that I'll continue with the series, and I'll admit that my decision is purely due to personal taste. However, if secondhand smoke and an embittered, much too serious main character don't bother you, you should be in for a real treat. show less
It's a man's world. San Francisco in the 1940s. No place for a dame. Yeah, don't tell that to Stanley's hard-boiled female PI, Miranda Corbie, fedora and all.
Two girls are dead, stabbed and left with the word `kike' drawn on their naked body with their own blood. Europe is at war and some factions in the States are dealing with their own anti-Semitic problems. Aryans in America. In this second of a series, following "City of Dragons," Stanley's noir masterpiece takes us into a dark realm of show more the American historical novel.
With a short, staccato beat, resounding like bullets launched from gangster's machine gun we are led into the world of Miranda Corbie, ex-escort, detective to the stars in the underbelly of the Gayway at The Golden Gate International Exposition of 1940. Corbie breathes in every tune from every juke joint in town, scouring the city with help from a local rag reporter and her Jewish attorney, as they battle to locate evidence to reverse a charge that has led the police to send one of their own to Riker's on a trumped up charge.
Running from an Italian mob boss looking to cut short her charmed life, and one-step ahead of a malevolent police force, Corbie unearths the Nazi's in the backwoods town of Calistoga, just north of town. Lead by an evil dentist, a group of professionals is doing their part to sterilize young Jewish women, by using the guise of abortion clinics.
This book is a blast-from-the-past as Stanley liberally intersperses name brands, musicians, and gangsters from long ago that brings to mind the Humphrey Bogart or Ava Gardner era we have witnessed in the movies. Recently nominated for a Golden Nugget, a special award to be given to the best mystery set in California, I hope this goes on to even more recognition for this very special author. show less
Two girls are dead, stabbed and left with the word `kike' drawn on their naked body with their own blood. Europe is at war and some factions in the States are dealing with their own anti-Semitic problems. Aryans in America. In this second of a series, following "City of Dragons," Stanley's noir masterpiece takes us into a dark realm of show more the American historical novel.
With a short, staccato beat, resounding like bullets launched from gangster's machine gun we are led into the world of Miranda Corbie, ex-escort, detective to the stars in the underbelly of the Gayway at The Golden Gate International Exposition of 1940. Corbie breathes in every tune from every juke joint in town, scouring the city with help from a local rag reporter and her Jewish attorney, as they battle to locate evidence to reverse a charge that has led the police to send one of their own to Riker's on a trumped up charge.
Running from an Italian mob boss looking to cut short her charmed life, and one-step ahead of a malevolent police force, Corbie unearths the Nazi's in the backwoods town of Calistoga, just north of town. Lead by an evil dentist, a group of professionals is doing their part to sterilize young Jewish women, by using the guise of abortion clinics.
This book is a blast-from-the-past as Stanley liberally intersperses name brands, musicians, and gangsters from long ago that brings to mind the Humphrey Bogart or Ava Gardner era we have witnessed in the movies. Recently nominated for a Golden Nugget, a special award to be given to the best mystery set in California, I hope this goes on to even more recognition for this very special author. show less
It's a man's world. San Francisco in the 1940s. No place for a dame. Yeah, don't tell that to Stanley's hard-boiled female PI, Miranda Corbie, fedora and all.
Two girls are dead, stabbed and left with the word `kike' drawn on their naked body with their own blood. Europe is at war and some factions in the States are dealing with their own anti-Semitic problems. Aryans in America. In this second of a series, following "City of Dragons," Stanley's noir masterpiece takes us into a dark realm of show more the American historical novel.
With a short, staccato beat, resounding like bullets launched from gangster's machine gun we are led into the world of Miranda Corbie, ex-escort, detective to the stars in the underbelly of the Gayway at The Golden Gate International Exposition of 1940. Corbie breathes in every tune from every juke joint in town, scouring the city with help from a local rag reporter and her Jewish attorney, as they battle to locate evidence to reverse a charge that has led the police to send one of their own to Riker's on a trumped up charge.
Running from an Italian mob boss looking to cut short her charmed life, and one-step ahead of a malevolent police force, Corbie unearths the Nazi's in the backwoods town of Calistoga, just north of town. Lead by an evil dentist, a group of professionals is doing their part to sterilize young Jewish women, by using the guise of abortion clinics.
This book is a blast-from-the-past as Stanley liberally intersperses name brands, musicians, and gangsters from long ago that brings to mind the Humphrey Bogart or Ava Gardner era we have witnessed in the movies. Recently nominated for a Golden Nugget, a special award to be given to the best mystery set in California, I hope this goes on to even more recognition for this very special author. show less
Two girls are dead, stabbed and left with the word `kike' drawn on their naked body with their own blood. Europe is at war and some factions in the States are dealing with their own anti-Semitic problems. Aryans in America. In this second of a series, following "City of Dragons," Stanley's noir masterpiece takes us into a dark realm of show more the American historical novel.
With a short, staccato beat, resounding like bullets launched from gangster's machine gun we are led into the world of Miranda Corbie, ex-escort, detective to the stars in the underbelly of the Gayway at The Golden Gate International Exposition of 1940. Corbie breathes in every tune from every juke joint in town, scouring the city with help from a local rag reporter and her Jewish attorney, as they battle to locate evidence to reverse a charge that has led the police to send one of their own to Riker's on a trumped up charge.
Running from an Italian mob boss looking to cut short her charmed life, and one-step ahead of a malevolent police force, Corbie unearths the Nazi's in the backwoods town of Calistoga, just north of town. Lead by an evil dentist, a group of professionals is doing their part to sterilize young Jewish women, by using the guise of abortion clinics.
This book is a blast-from-the-past as Stanley liberally intersperses name brands, musicians, and gangsters from long ago that brings to mind the Humphrey Bogart or Ava Gardner era we have witnessed in the movies. Recently nominated for a Golden Nugget, a special award to be given to the best mystery set in California, I hope this goes on to even more recognition for this very special author. show less
It's a man's world. San Francisco in the 1940s. No place for a dame. Yeah, don't tell that to Stanley's hard-boiled female PI, Miranda Corbie, fedora and all.
Two girls are dead, stabbed and left with the word `kike' drawn on their naked body with their own blood. Europe is at war and some factions in the States are dealing with their own anti-Semitic problems. Aryans in America. In this second of a series, following "City of Dragons," Stanley's noir masterpiece takes us into a dark realm of show more the American historical novel.
With a short, staccato beat, resounding like bullets launched from gangster's machine gun we are led into the world of Miranda Corbie, ex-escort, detective to the stars in the underbelly of the Gayway at The Golden Gate International Exposition of 1940. Corbie breathes in every tune from every juke joint in town, scouring the city with help from a local rag reporter and her Jewish attorney, as they battle to locate evidence to reverse a charge that has led the police to send one of their own to Riker's on a trumped up charge.
Running from an Italian mob boss looking to cut short her charmed life, and one-step ahead of a malevolent police force, Corbie unearths the Nazi's in the backwoods town of Calistoga, just north of town. Lead by an evil dentist, a group of professionals is doing their part to sterilize young Jewish women, by using the guise of abortion clinics.
This book is a blast-from-the-past as Stanley liberally intersperses name brands, musicians, and gangsters from long ago that brings to mind the Humphrey Bogart or Ava Gardner era we have witnessed in the movies. Recently nominated for a Golden Nugget, a special award to be given to the best mystery set in California, I hope this goes on to even more recognition for this very special author. show less
Two girls are dead, stabbed and left with the word `kike' drawn on their naked body with their own blood. Europe is at war and some factions in the States are dealing with their own anti-Semitic problems. Aryans in America. In this second of a series, following "City of Dragons," Stanley's noir masterpiece takes us into a dark realm of show more the American historical novel.
With a short, staccato beat, resounding like bullets launched from gangster's machine gun we are led into the world of Miranda Corbie, ex-escort, detective to the stars in the underbelly of the Gayway at The Golden Gate International Exposition of 1940. Corbie breathes in every tune from every juke joint in town, scouring the city with help from a local rag reporter and her Jewish attorney, as they battle to locate evidence to reverse a charge that has led the police to send one of their own to Riker's on a trumped up charge.
Running from an Italian mob boss looking to cut short her charmed life, and one-step ahead of a malevolent police force, Corbie unearths the Nazi's in the backwoods town of Calistoga, just north of town. Lead by an evil dentist, a group of professionals is doing their part to sterilize young Jewish women, by using the guise of abortion clinics.
This book is a blast-from-the-past as Stanley liberally intersperses name brands, musicians, and gangsters from long ago that brings to mind the Humphrey Bogart or Ava Gardner era we have witnessed in the movies. Recently nominated for a Golden Nugget, a special award to be given to the best mystery set in California, I hope this goes on to even more recognition for this very special author. show less
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Statistics
- Works
- 11
- Also by
- 9
- Members
- 409
- Popularity
- #59,483
- Rating
- 3.4
- Reviews
- 31
- ISBNs
- 31
- Languages
- 1
- Favorited
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