Anthologies

July 5, 2008

Child, Lee, editor. KILLER YEAR: Stories to Die For. Minotaur Press. February '08. $24.95. Thirteen new stories by authors Brett Battles, Allison Brennan, Gregory Browne, Ken Bruen, Robert Sean Chercover, Gayle Lynds, David Morrell, Gregg Olsen, James Rollins, and Marcus Sakey. Available in paperback. December '08. $14.95.

Collins,Max Allan; Estleman, Loren D.; Kaminsky, Stuart M. & Lutz, John. SEX, LIES And PRIVATE EYES. Moonstone. September '08. $16.95. "When it comes to sex, lies often follow... and in the dark heart of the city, death can be the ultimate payback! Moonstone Books, publisher of fine books and comics since 1995, is proud to present this landmark collection of all-new, original noir stories with the theme of 'sex for sale'. Written by some of today's top crime writers, SEX, LIES And PRIVATE EYES features a stunning cast of legendary characters from the best mysteries of the past and present, including Alo Nudger and Fred Carver (John Lutz), Blackshirt (Adi Tantimedh), Candy Matson (Christine Matthews), Domino Lady (Gail Mcabee), Jack Hagee, PI, Kolchak: the Night Stalker and Lai Wan (CJ Henderson), The Envoy (Gary Phillips), Johnny Dollar (David Tischman), Mr. Keen (Mike Bullock), Pat Novak (Steven Grant), Sherlock Holmes (Loren D. Estleman), The Silencers (Fred Van Vliet), The Maze Agency (Mike W. Barr), Toby Peters (Stuart Kaminsky), and Truxton Lewis (Robert Randisi)."

Mystery Writers of America. Edited by Michael Connelly. THE BLUE RELIGION: New Stories about Cops, Criminals, and the Chase. Little, Brown & Company. May '08. $24.99. "Taking us from smoggy Los Angeles to the woods of Idaho, from Hawaii at the turn of the twentieth century to the post-Civil War frontier, these riveting stories trace the perils and occasional triumphs of lawmen and - women who put themselves in harm's way to face down the bad guys. Some of them even walk the edge of becoming bad guys themselves. In T. Jefferson Parker's 'Skinhead Central,' an ex-cop and his wife find unexpected menace in the idyllic setting they have chosen for their retirement. In Alafair Burke's 'Winning,' a female officer who is attacked in the line of duty must protect her own husband from his worst impulses. In Michael Connelly's 'Father's Day,' Harry Bosch faces one of his most emotionally trying cases, investigating a young boy's death. These are hard-hitting, thrilling, and utterly unforgettable stories, from some of the best writers in the mystery world." Nineteen original stories. Trade paperback edition. Back Bay Books. $15.99. Simultaneous release on Audio CD from Tantor Media.

Pelecanos, George & Penzler, Otto, editors. THE BEST AMERICAN MYSTERY STORIES 2008. Houghton Mifflin. October '08. $14.00. "Edited by George Pelecanos, best-selling author and writer for the hit HBO series The Wire, this year's collection promises to deliver the same stellar caliber of mystery stories that readers have come to expect from this series. Contributors include James Lee Burke, Michael Connelly, Joyce Carol Oates, Alice Munro, and Scott Wolven."

Penzler, Otto, editor. DEAD MAN'S HAND: Crime Fiction at the Poker Table. Harcourt. November '07. $25.00. "If ever a subject begged to be associated with crime it is gambling, writes Otto Penzler in his introduction to this collection of short stories set at the poker table and beyond. In Walter Mosley's 'Mister In-Between,' a bagman is sent to collect from a rigged poker game, but soon begins to wonder who the real mark is. In 'One Dollar Jackpot,' Michael Connelly's detective Harry Bosch finds himself looking for tells when facing off against a professional poker player in the interrogation room. And a young woman learns how to bluff the hard way in 'Hardly Knew Her,' by Laura Lippman. In these and others stories, aces of the mystery-writing world - including Joyce Carol Oates, Alexander McCall Smith, Jeffery Deaver, John Lescroart, and others - combine to form a winning hand."

Penzler, Otto, editor. UNCERTAIN ENDINGS: Literature's Greatest Unsolved Mystery Stories. Pegasus Books. September '08. $14.95. "The most intriguing riddle mysteries in literary history, including tales from Bradbury, Dahl, Huxley, O. Henry, and Twain. Tantalizing, as ingenious as they are devious, the classic stories in this continually arresting collection come with an irresistible challenge: At their end they leave it to you, the reader, to determine how they end. For ultimately it's the reader who authors the fate of the brave youth as he contemplates which of the two doors in the king's arena he will choose in Frank Stockton's famous and unforgettable 'The Lady, or the Tiger?' And which of the two brothers in three-time Edgar-winner Stanley Ellin's 'Unreasonable Doubt' shoots a bullet square in the middle of their rich uncle's forehead? And just what not-so-sweet secret is the prim Miss Spence hiding behind her smile in Aldous Huxley's deliciously enigmatic tale? You decide. In all, as in 'The Moment of Decision' - a chilling tale that seals an escape artist inside an airless stone cell with a heavy wooden door, which may or may not open - the moment of decision is yours."

Penzler, Otto, editor. THE 50 GREATEST MYSTERIES OF ALL TIME. Phoenix Books. September '07. $16.95. "Savor the delights in this fine collection, a must for every home library, in which multi-award winning mystery connoisseur Otto Penzler presents the fifty most exquisite tales of mystery and suspense from fifty master writers. With classic tales from masters such as Edgar Allen Poe, Wilkie Collins, Aldous Huxley, Ring Lardner, Stephen King, James Ellroy, Patricia Highsmith, Sara Paretsky, Lawrence Block, Elmore Leonard and dozens of others!!"

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