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Suspenseful Reads for a Lock Down or Any Time
5 Authors Churning Out Suspenseful Thrillers
(The discussion for the Jim Brodie series starts from 1:13.)

"A Different Hero's Day" is Lancet's second short story and his first foray into teen fiction, co-authored with Anthony Franze. It appears in the Mystery Writers of America anthology Life is Short and Then You Die.

"Three-Star Sushi," is the first short story featuring Jim Brodie. The story ran as the cover piece in Down & Out: The Magazine, volume 3, a quarterly anthology of mystery short stories. It was a FINALIST for 3 awards, the Shamus, the Macavity, and the Derringer.

Tokyo Kill has been:

  • FINALIST for the Shamus Award for Best P.I. Novel
  • Mentioned in Forbes magazine as a must-read for Asian leaders
  • Selected by Otto Penzler's Mysterious Bookshop for its "Hard-Boiled Book Club"

CraftFest, NYC—"10 Things Bestselling Thriller Writers Do to Make Their Manuscripts Sing" was the title of a joint talk I gave with fellow author Anthony Franze. It is now available as an audio download or CD. More information in the Writers' Corner.

Japantown has been:
  • WINNER of the prestigious Barry Award for BEST FIRST MYSTERY NOVEL
  • Selected as a BEST BOOK OF 2013 by Suspense Magazine
  • Selected as a BEST DEBUT in critic Oline Cogdill's annual roundup
  • Selected by Otto Penzler's Mysterious Bookshop for its "First Mystery Club"
  • Selected by The Poisoned Pen Bookstore for its "First Mystery Club"
  • Shortlisted for a Silver Falchion Award for BEST FIRST NOVEL: Mystery, Thriller
  • Shortlisted for the Sakura Award for BEST NOVEL
  • Selected by The Rough Guide to Japan as recommended reading (starred)

Interviews & Articles


"Inspired by True Events"
Author Barry Lancet discusses the many inspirations for the Jim Brodie fiction series & his recent interest in Hawaii.
read the story

"Raising the Stakes"
A behind-the-scenes interview about The Spy Across the Table in The Big Thrill.
read the interview

Barry Lancet's Jim Brodie: Quite a Balancing Act
"The books are hard to put down because the action is compelling, and we always learn new and intriguing information, but I think the measure of Brodie as a character is his relationship with his daughter. Raising her is his toughest assignment and the one he loves the most."
   —Sharon Tucker, Senior Librarian, King's River Life
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"Authors on the Air host Pam Stack welcomes international best-selling author Barry Lancet to the studio."
An in-depth 60-minute interview covers all the books in the Jim Brodie series, what took me to Japan, a pivotal incident that inspired the mystery-thrillers, and more.
Listen to the interview

Books du Jour television broadcast with host Frederic Colier has been posted on YouTube. 15 minutes.
Watch the interview

The Philosophy of Fugu: Lisa Brackmann interviews Barry Lancet
The Los Angeles Review of Books
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The Latest Revealing Interview is on Criminal Element
Read it here

A One-on-One Q&A between Lancet and New York Times bestselling author Steve Berry (on Amazon page)
Read it here

Behind the Scenes of Pacific Burn: Gritty thriller honors local policewoman/artist, her sister
Daily Republic
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Writing in Japan: Author Workspace—Tokyo
Crimespree Magazine
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The Big Thrill interview
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On Classic and Contemporary Fiction vs. Genre Fiction, plus advice for writers
"Regardless of genre, Barry Lancet reminded us, the essential qualities of good books are basically five..."
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Radio Interview
Listen to a Barry on radio in an interview with Beth Ruyak of INSIGHT


FORBES: Tokyo Kill recommended reading for Japanese Prime Minister and Chinese President!
"Finally, I would recommend a terrific new detective novel, Tokyo Kill, by Barry Lancet. Tokyo Kill is above all an excellent mystery that stands on its own for great storytelling."
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"However, Lancet, who has lived in Japan for more than twenty-five years, also offers some nuanced understandings of the China-Japan relationship that have relevance for today's tension-filled situation. The basic understanding is that it is time for the truth to out on both sides. In a section of the book that was difficult to read at times, a Chinese doctor Wu relates in detail the horrors inflicted on him and everyone in the villages around him by the Japanese during the war. At the same time, however, he also acknowledges 'We Chinese know how to eat bitterness. Our own rulers kill more of us than any foreign power ever did. We endure. We are patient.' An art dealer Takahashi serves as the wisdom-bearer for the Japanese side, 'Japan has her secrets. Many are open secrets. We Japanese are aware of them, are ashamed of them, and don't speak of them often, if ever. Our embarrassing moments remain, for the most part, confined to these shores. The language barrier and our shame constitute an effective blockade.' The protagonist Brodie has the final word: 'Maybe it's time to let those secrets out... so the skeletons, or ghosts, can finally be put to rest.'

"President Xi and Prime Minister Abe would be smart to follow Zhu's advice to get the ball rolling. Over time, however, they will need to take the more difficult step proposed by Wang and Lancet—to explore openly truths, past and present—to ensure a strong foundation for the relationship."
Read full article
The Tokyo Interview: "Veteran Tokyo editor turns his mind to crime"
"In Tokyo Kill, his second thriller from Simon & Schuster, Barry Lancet continues where his previous work, Japantown, left off, with Brodie out to ram through that formidable blockade of secrets."
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A probing Q&A with Scene of the Crime: "The Jim Brodie Novels of Barry Lancet"
Read

Featured in The Reading Room!
"In Conversation with Barry Lancet" (with Simon McDonald)
Read

An Eye-opening Interview with The Big Thrill!
"I almost missed the deadline for this Q&A and it's all Barry Lancet's damn fault. I got so absorbed in his second thriller, Tokyo Kill, that I ended up reading it slower than I usually do, savoring each line, observing how expertly and subtly the plot twists and complications were built."
Read more

Q&A with Renowned Mystery Writer Ed Gorman!
"PRO-FILE: Barry Lancet on Japantown and Tokyo Kill"
Read

Article in Tokyo Weekender
Read "The Origins of a Thriller" about the birth of the Jim Brodie series
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Interview in Suspense Magazine
"It's rare that I profile debut authors for this series. After all, they haven't had a chance to become one of 'America's Favorite Suspense Authors.' ... But Barry Lancet is different."
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My Bookish Ways sits down with Lancet
"MBW: What do you enjoy the most about writing suspense?"
"BL: Writing about what I call "the high and low." Every thriller explores some dark corners of society, a group, or a person."
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"A Conversation with Crime Novelist Barry Lancet" Published in Omnimystery Magazine
"OMN: What is the best advice you've received as an author?"
"BL: A Japanese editor-in-chief who had a genius for creating bestsellers out of thin air once told me that the authors of hit books didn't give eighty, ninety, or even a hundred percent but one hundred and twenty percent. That's what I did with Japantown."
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Interview in the Chicago Tribune with Reuter's Elaine Lies!
Book Talk: Debut novelist scores with Japan-set crime thriller
TOKYO (Reuters)—Barry Lancet had long wanted to write a novel. But with a full-time job, a commute and young children, time was nearly impossible to find—until he learned, among other things, to write on a clipboard standing up on his daily train ride.
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From Down Under, a stimulating Q&A with Out of Ink
"Writing a book, especially the first, is no small feat—going on to have this published by one of New York's finest and seeing it on its way to Hollywood before the book even hits the shelves is nothing short of astronomically HUGE. Barry Lancet, author of Japantown, shares his thoughts on the excitement that surrounds his debut thriller..."
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The Art Angle in Japantown and the Jim Brodie Series Probe by ARCA!
"ARCA: In the books to follow in this series, will there be any art crimes—thefts, forgeries or even smuggling?"
"BL: Tokyo Kill, the second book in the series, also has an art theme woven into the story, and so will the next book. In Jim Brodie's second outing, there are plenty of art crimes—theft, a long-lost treasure (that is controversial but said to exist by some), an illegal art auction, an actual art object used for very unpleasant political purposes, and more."
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Interview with Shelf Awareness
"Barry Lancet Visits Japantown in New Thriller"
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Interview with the Japan Times
"On the Beat with a Cultural Detective"
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"Five Stomps" for Japantown, in Excellent Review from Sumo Joe
"Barry Lancet's Japantown is outstandingly entertaining reading! As a person with a lifelong fascination with Japan and a love for high-action stories, I had been looking forward with great anticipation to reading Japantown."
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From Japan Today "Author Barry Lancet finds Japan fertile ground for thriller novels"
TOKYO—Barry Lancet, a long-time American expat in Japan, has completed his first novel, Japantown, which is the first in a contemporary thriller series with a Japan background.
Read the Japan Today article