Random thoughts...

[RonClinton]

That's funny because I was looking at Drive but was really eyeing the Lew Griffin books. I'll check out The Killer is Dying as well. Thanks!

I think DRIVE is his best book, and THE KILLER IS DYING is definitely in his Top Five. I would give DRIVEN a pass...as much as I *loved* DRIVE -- and, inevitably, perhaps because of that blinding affection -- I really felt DRIVEN fell far short of the bar established by its prequel. A true disappointment.

[Sock Monkey]

Drive & Driven are probably his most famous recent books as Drive was made into a movie with Ryan Gosling. It truly is a great book and a good place to start. The Killer Is Dying is also a great newer book. I also love his early "Lew Griffin" series of books.

That's funny because I was looking at Drive but was really eyeing the Lew Griffin books. I'll check out The Killer is Dying as well. Thanks!

[sholloman81]

Was able to go to the Joe Lansdale signing at the Poisoned Pen on Tuesday. It was lots of fun. This was my 3rd or 4th time seeing him, and he's great live. Can't wait to dig into the new Hap & Leonard book soon!

[sholloman81]

Never heard of Sallis before your post as I've barely begun dipping my toe into crime fiction, but after checking out some of his books on Amazon I have added him to my "need to try out" list. Any suggestions as to where to start?

Drive & Driven are probably his most famous recent books as Drive was made into a movie with Ryan Gosling. It truly is a great book and a good place to start. The Killer Is Dying is also a great newer book. I also love his early "Lew Griffin" series of books.

[Sock Monkey]

Every now and then, I like to hop on Scamazon and check out future release dates for books/authors that I enjoy so that I can leave myself reminders for the must-haves. Anyway, today, I happened to notice that on November 12th, "Bright Segments: The Complete Short Fiction of James Sallis" comes out and that it evens has 12 exclusive stories. I'm sure the size of this book is going to be a monster at 864 pages, but I am so excited for this book. James Sallis is one of my all-time favorite crime writers. His prose is just fantastic, and it will be awesome to have his short stuff collected in one place. God, I wish Centipede was doing this book!Â

Never heard of Sallis before your post as I've barely begun dipping my toe into crime fiction, but after checking out some of his books on Amazon I have added him to my "need to try out" list. Any suggestions as to where to start?

[Sock Monkey]

Any jump on CD's recent Out of Print Other Publisher's Grab Bag offered yesterday? I have a bunch of CD credit that I've been waiting to use on something and this felt like a relatively safe bet.

[RonClinton]

Every now and then, I like to hop on Scamazon and check out future release dates for books/authors that I enjoy so that I can leave myself reminders for the must-haves. Anyway, today, I happened to notice that on November 12th, "Bright Segments: The Complete Short Fiction of James Sallis" comes out and that it evens has 12 exclusive stories. I'm sure the size of this book is going to be a monster at 864 pages, but I am so excited for this book. James Sallis is one of my all-time favorite crime writers. His prose is just fantastic, and it will be awesome to have his short stuff collected in one place. God, I wish Centipede was doing this book!Â

Thanks for the heads-up…couldn’t agree more that he’s a wonderful writer, and a Centipede edition would’ve been beyond awesome. But I’ll take what I can get…just added it to my Amazon Wish List.

[sholloman81]

Every now and then, I like to hop on Scamazon and check out future release dates for books/authors that I enjoy so that I can leave myself reminders for the must-haves. Anyway, today, I happened to notice that on November 12th, "Bright Segments: The Complete Short Fiction of James Sallis" comes out and that it evens has 12 exclusive stories. I'm sure the size of this book is going to be a monster at 864 pages, but I am so excited for this book. James Sallis is one of my all-time favorite crime writers. His prose is just fantastic, and it will be awesome to have his short stuff collected in one place. God, I wish Centipede was doing this book! 

[RonClinton]

As a Phoenician, it's always nice to see AZ get some love!

Well, howdy, future neighbor.

[RonClinton]

I want somewhere I can get to trails to ride my bike within minutes. All I do in NJ is road biking, but if I had scenic trails to ride I'd switch to a gravel bike in a heartbeat.

When my wife and I were walking through the Sonoran Desert via one of the many trailheads they have, it seemed like there were just as many bikers -- if not more -- than folks walking/hiking. Very popular down there, and the trails are great.

thisone.jpg

[Dave1442397]

Yes, our property taxes in WA are over $1000/month as well, or $13K+ a year. As comparison, our property taxes for a similar home in AZ will be in the $4000 range. That's a $9K per year savings. Based on our three visits in the last half-year, gas is less and groceries are around the same, perhaps a bit less. That said, it's not just a financial decision for us...we're looking for somewhere with year-round(ish) sun, sane politics and culture, and, just as importantly, we do love the lush desert area we're moving to...jagged southwestern mountains, rivers, lakes, cacti and immense greenery, etc. Not all AZ looks like this, but this is very typical of the area we're moving to:

tonto.jpg

That's the kind of place I like. We're also still thinking about Reno. The Tahoe area has gotten super expensive, but it's a short ride from Reno. Not as nice as living there, but between property prices and insurance woes, Tahoe is looking out of reach.

Parts of Colorado are still under consideration too.

I want somewhere I can get to trails to ride my bike within minutes. All I do in NJ is road biking, but if I had scenic trails to ride I'd switch to a gravel bike in a heartbeat.

The cheapest option I've seen so far is to leave the country and go to Portugal (for easy access to all of Europe). A couple can have a nice lifestyle there on $3,000/month, which is just a hair more than our mortgage payment here. We might just go there and rent for six months to see if we like it.

[sholloman81]

As a Phoenician, it's always nice to see AZ get some love!

[Sock Monkey]

That's some beautiful scenery, Ron!

[RonClinton]

We've been thinking about AZ as well. We have probably six or seven years to go before we move, and I can't wait to get out of NJ. We're going to Sedona on vacation in September, which will be my first visit to AZ apart from stopovers at PHX.

Our property taxes are already more than $1,000 per month, so most other places will seem cheap! One thing I do want to avoid is anything with an HOA. I've read The Association  I also watch Lehto's Law on YouTube, and his HOA horror stories make me want to avoid them if at all possible.

Yes, our property taxes in WA are over $1000/month as well, or $13K+ a year. As comparison, our property taxes for a similar home in AZ will be in the $4000 range. That's a $9K per year savings. Based on our three visits in the last half-year, gas is less and groceries are around the same, perhaps a bit less. That said, it's not just a financial decision for us...we're looking for somewhere with year-round(ish) sun, sane politics and culture, and, just as importantly, we do love the lush desert area we're moving to...jagged southwestern mountains, rivers, lakes, cacti and immense greenery, etc. Not all AZ looks like this, but this is very typical of the area we're moving to:

tonto.jpg

[Sock Monkey]

We've been thinking about AZ as well. We have probably six or seven years to go before we move, and I can't wait to get out of NJ. We're going to Sedona on vacation in September, which will be my first visit to AZ apart from stopovers at PHX.

Our property taxes are already more than $1,000 per month, so most other places will seem cheap! One thing I do want to avoid is anything with an HOA. I've read The Association  I also watch Lehto's Law on YouTube, and his HOA horror stories make me want to avoid them if at all possible.

That is one of the nicer things about living in a place that has a high cost of living, moving to other places is often equitable in cost or cheaper. I am on the anti-HOA train as well. My punk rock anti-authority tendencies from my youth bristle under being told what I can and can't do. Frankly, we're looking about trying to move to some place more rural with some acreage. I grew up in that kind of area and miss it. We could do it here, but the land is so expensive.