alanajoli | Castle

I'll admit it.

I helped Heat Wave hit the New York Times bestseller list. (It was at 26 last week when we checked; this week it's at 28. I'm curious where it placed its premier week, but I thought, tie-in mystery novel for a TV show? How could that hit the New York Times? Silly me underestimating the power of the media.)

For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, character Richard Castle, played by Nathan Fillion, is an author who has insinuated himself into a NYC homicide unit with the excuse of "researching" his new novel series. The model for his new character is Detective Kate Beckett, played by Stana Katic. The show (Mondays on ABC) features not only the usual crime solving, but also plenty of references to how writing and plotting a novel, particularly a mystery, is like solving a murder. The dialog about the writing process (and Castle's rants on proper use of grammar) have endeared the show to me more than any of the other crime shows out there.

It's like Murder She Wrote if Jessica Fletcher had been a celebrity bestselling author. It's very, very much fun.

Castle's new novel, Heat Wave, hit real world stores (with Fillion doing actual book signings) in September; it's just been released in the show. It's all right -- it's short and fast paced, and due to the show tie-ins, ends up being fun. I don't think it really stands alone as a mystery outside of its connection to the show, but overall, it's a fun read. (It's also blurbed by Stephen J. Cannell and James Patterson, who, along with Michael Connelly, have appeared on the show as Castle's poker buddies.) I love the multimedia aspects (and I especially love that mystery writers are guest starring). I have no idea how this is impacting overall book sales for those folks, but I like to think that each of them got a little bump from appearing on TV.

Just some random thoughts post tonight's Castle episode and before heading to bed. Coming up soon: guest blogs from