Woods, Stuart

Stuart Woods was born in Manchester, Georgia and graduated in 1959 from the University of Georgia, with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology. After graduation he enrolled in the Air National Guard, spending two months in basic training before moving to New York, where he began a career in the advertising industry. Towards the end of the 1960s, Woods emigrated to England and lived in Knightsbridge, London while continuing to work in advertising. After three years in London, Woods decided to write a novel, based on an old family story which had been told to him when he was a child, and moved to Ireland. He moved into a converted barn on the grounds of Lough Cutra Castle near Gort, County Galway, and lived a near-solitary existence, except for spending two days a week in Dublin writing television commercials and print adverts.

Woods' first novel, Chiefs, was published in March 1981. The story was inspired by a police chief's badge Woods had found in his grandmother's home. The badge was stained with blood and pockmarked by buckshot. It had belonged to his grandfather, who died wearing it 10 years before Mr. Woods was born.^[ He submitted the first one hundred pages and an outline to three publishers who all turned him down, before Norton bought the publishing rights for $7,500. He later stated it was a mistake to sell the book unfinished as he could have got much more money had it been completed. 20,000 copies of the book were printed in hardback, but Norton did little to promote the book. He contracted with Bantam Books to print the paperback edition. In 1983 Chiefs was adapted into a television miniseries of the same name, starring Charlton Heston, Danny Glover, Billy Dee Williams, Stephen Collins and John Goodman. CBS broadcast the miniseries over three nights, and it was nominated for three Emmy Awards and one Eddie Award. Its success sparked interest in the paperback, and Woods was awarded the Edgar Award in the "Best First Novel" category from the Mystery Writers of America.

My Opinion: I have read some of his stories but in truth, do not really recall them in detail. It seems to me, I found his Barrington novels rather pedestrian but my memory may be inaccurate, Read him and decide yourself.

Will Lee novels[edit]

• 1. Chiefs (1981) (Edgar Award Best First Novel) – A 229-minute TV miniseries, starring Charlton Heston, John Goodman and an all-star cast. (Woods has a role in miniseries)

  2. Run Before the Wind (1983)

  3. Deep Lie (1986)

  4. Grass Roots (1989) – A four-hour TV miniseries, starring Corbin Bernsen and Mel Harris.

  5. The Run (2000)

  6. Capital Crimes (2003) (First appearance of villain Teddy Fay)

  7. Mounting Fears (2009) (Teddy Fay appearance #4)(Holly Barker also makes an appearance)

Stone Barrington novels[edit]

• 1. ne Barrington novels[edit]

Holly Barker novels[edit]

• 1. Orchid Beach – set in the fictional town of Orchid Beach, FL (1998)

  2. Orchid Blues (2001) (Stone Barrington makes a cameo)

  3. Blood Orchid (2002)

  4. Iron Orchid (2005) (Teddy Fay Appearance #2)

  5. Hothouse Orchid (2009) (Teddy Fay Appearance #5)

Ed Eagle novels[edit]

• 1. Santa Fe Rules – set in Santa Fe, New Mexico (1992)

  2. Short Straw (2006) (Rick Barron makes a cameo appearance)

  3. Santa Fe Dead (2008)

  4. Santa Fe Edge (2010) (Teddy Fay Appearance #6, Holly Barker makes a cameo and Agent Todd Bacon from Mounting Fears returns)

Rick Barron novels[edit]

• 1. The Prince of Beverly Hills (2004)

  2. Beverly Hills Dead (2008) (Stone Barrington makes a cameo)

Stand-alone novels[edit]

• • Under the Lake (1987)

  • White Cargo (1988)

  • Palindrome – set in Cumberland Island, GA (1991)

  • L.A. Times – set in Los Angeles, California (1993)

  • Dead Eyes – set in Los Angeles, California (1994)

  • Heat – set in a fictional town in Idaho (1994)

  • Imperfect Strangers (1995) (Grand Prix de Littérature Policière)

  • Choke (1995)

If you want to ,read more about this author, go to: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stuart_Woods