I do like the “Best American…” book series’. I will often pick up the Science and Nature collection and the Essays collections, and have picked up the Science Fiction collection and even the comics collection in the past, but this is the first time I’ve read the Best American Mystery Stories collection. And it won’t be my last.
One of the many nice things about a collection such as this is the variety of styles and voices that we get exposed to. This collection seemed one of the most diverse among all the different “Best American” books I’ve read. If you already like mystery fiction, then this is a collection you’ll want to read. If you aren’t sure if you like mysteries, then this is a great place to start because there is surely something in here that will speak to most every reader.
My stand-outs would include Eileen Dreyer’s “The Sailor in the Picture” and Clark Howard’s “The Street Ends at the Cemetary” and “So Near Any Time Always” by Joyce Carol Oates. Yes…Joyce Carol Oates. Bill Pronzini is always a good read, and his “Gunpowder Alley” is a strong story.
But I must say that it was difficult to point out my favorites as there really are no weak stories in this collection. It’s definitely worth picking up!
This collection includes:
Forward — Otto Penzler
Intorduction by Lisa Scottoline
“Smothered and Covered” — Tom Barlow
“A Fine Mist of Blood” — Michael Connelly
“Misprision of Felony” — O’Neil de Noux
“The Sailor in the Picture” — Eileen Dreyer
“The Devil to Pay” — David Edgerley Gates
“The Street Ends at the Cemetery” — Clark Howard
“Crossing” — Andre Kocsis
“Remora, IL”– Kevin Leahy
“Thy Shiny Car in the Night: — Nick Mamatas
“Drifter” — Emily St. John Mandel
“The Ring of Kerry” — Dennis McFadden
“Quarry” — Micah Nathan
“So Near Any Time Always” — Joyce Carol Oates
“Light Bulb” — Nancy Pickard
“Gunpowder Alley” — Bill Pronzini
“When They Are Done With Us” — Patricia Smith
“The Indian” — Randall Silvis
“The Don’s Cinnamon” — Ben Stroud
“Bullet Number Two” — Hannah Tinti
“Bound” — Maurine Dallas Watkins
Looking for a good book? The Best American Mystery Stories 2013 is a collection that could make fans of the genre for new readers and existing fans won’t want to miss it.
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The Best American Mystery Stories 2013
editor: Lisa Scottoline
series editor: Otto Penzler
series: Best American Mystery Stories
publisher: Mariner Books
ISBN: 0544034600
paperback, 448 pages
