"...SO THANK YOU AGATHA": A BLOOD RED MORNING'S MARK PRYOR

A Blood Red Morning is the third book to feature, Henri Lefort, a homicide detective in occupied Paris, often working cases where the victim is someone he'd have no problem with lbeing dead. This time it's an S.S. snitch killed at his apartment building. Everybody is a suspect, including Natalia, the new Greek building superintendent with her eyes on Lefort. As always, Mark was kind enough to talk about his book.

SCOTT MONTGOMERY: How has the Paris occupation changed from the time from To Die Around Sundown to A Blood Red Morning?

MARK PRYOR: The noose around the neck of the Parisians is much tighter. It's only been a few months but the privations are setting in. And when the Parisians see the Germans loading up with food and clothing, while they are hungry and ragged, the pain cuts deeper. Also, the polite "tourist German" is gone, now they are starting to treat the citizens as serfs, no longer affording them any respect as people. Finally, the French are turning on each other in desperate attempts to improve their own situations. That's where we begin in A Blood Red Morning.

S.M.: Do you see changes in Lefort from the first book?

M.P.: Yes, he's more cynical in some ways. But he's also more magnanimous. He's also realized that for Paris, and France, to survive he can't just look out for himself and Nicola.

S.M.: What drew you to having the murder take place in his apartment building?

M.P.: I liked the idea of him having to confront his neighbors, the added tension of questioning people he knows and likes (and maybe doesn't like). It makes it more suspenseful for him, and therefore the reader, if the killer might be someone he cares about.

S.M.: Natalia is a fun character. How did you go about constructing her?

M.P.: She's based on a colleague at work, someone I like and admire and who I think in this situation would be sweet and nice... and ballsy as hell!

S.M.: This book utilizes the traditional mystery in the Agatha Christie style you often utilize. As a writer, what do you like about the form?

M.P.: I think it's actually unintentional at this point. Maybe it's now become my style, so thank you Agatha!

S.M.: What makes using times of day work for the Henri Lefort's titles?

M.P.: In war, your life can change (even end) in a short passing of time. Every sunrise can bring something new, every sunset is different from the last. Each night holds new dangers. I sort of think of the titles as hands of a clock, ticking the characters through their days of survival (or not), through the war.

For those in and near Austin, Texas, I'll be interviewing Mark and fellow author James Wade about writing historical crime fiction at Vintage bookstore and wine bar on August 20th, 7pm.