July Is Crime Month: The Crime Blotter, Week 2

Since July is Crime Month at the Chronicle, the ruffians and reprobates at this rag want to be sure you find as much trouble as possible before August shows up like some hired muscle with your name on his set of brass knuckles. So each week we'll fill you in on films, readings, book clubs, and more where crime does pay – for a while, anyway.

Here are the trouble spots from July 9-15.

May Cobb: Big Woods
In her debut novel, which won the Writers' League of Texas' 2015 Manuscript Contest, Austin author May Cobb takes us to Longview in 1989, when the the East Texas town is shaken by the disappearance of a 10-year-old girl. Do her sister's dreams hold the key to finding her? Author Suzy Spencer conducts a conversation with Cobb.
Tue., July 10, 7pm
BookPeople, 603 N. Lamar
www.bookpeople.com

Mystery Book Club: Before the Fall
For the July meeting of this monthly get-together of mystery lovers, the Spicewood Springs Branch-based Mystery Book Club turns to Austin author and noted TV show creator Noah Hawley (Fargo, Legion) and his tale of the survivors of a plane crash that may not have been accidental.
Wed., July 11, 7pm
Spicewood Springs Branch, 8637 Spicewood Springs Rd.
www.library.austintexas.gov

The Silence of the Lambs
Hannibal Lector was already plenty scary in Thomas Harris' novel The Silence of the Lambs, but the cannibalistic serial killer attained a new level of terrifying when Anthony Hopkins brought him to life onscreen in Jonathan Demme's 1991 film. BYOChianti.
Wed., July 11, 7pm; Thu., July 12, 9:15pm
Paramount Theatre, 713 Congress
www.austintheatre.org

Ghosts, Murder, and Mayhem Walking Tour
Take a stroll into Austin's past and follow the trail of bodies that have littered Downtown through the years. See Guytown, the German District, and the sites of the Servant Girl Annihilator murders.
Thu., July 5, 8:30pm
Starts at JW Marriott Hotel, 110 W. Second
www.austinghosttours.com

Mondo Belmondo: That Man From Rio
Jean-Paul Belmondo gives 007 a run for his martini in this adventure involving stolen statuettes, hidden Amazon treasure, and murder. Part of Austin Film Society's monthlong celebration of Belmondo on film.
Fri., July 13, 7pm & Sun., July 15, 6:30pm
AFS Cinema, 6406 N. I-35 Ste. 3100
www.austinfilm.org

Austin Detours "Murder Mystery on Sixth Street" Tour
A Dallas socialite has been found dead in an alley off Austin's party street, and you get to solve the crime in this interactive walking tour from Austin Detours. Complimentary cocktail included, because hard-drinking detective, right? (Not to mention, Sixth Street.) Seventies street clothes encouraged.
Saturdays, 7-9pm
Starts at Susanna Dickinson House, 411 E. Fifth
www.austindetours.com

Clueless Mysteries Book Club: The Buried Book
Author D.M. Pulley based this tale of a boy abandoned by his mother on his uncle's farm on the unexplained disappearance of one of her own family members in Fifties Michigan. It's discussed by a group of mystery fans who meet monthly at the Wells Branch Library.
Sun., July 15, 3pm
Wells Branch Community Library, 15001 Wells Port.
www.meetup.com