Sinister Shorts »

Perri O'Shaughnessy is the pen name for sisters Mary and Pamela O’Shaughnessy, who both live in California. They are the authors of eleven bestselling Nina Reilly novels as well as a collection of short crime fiction, Sinister Shorts.

The New York Times bestselling author of the acclaimed Nina Reilly thrillers brings her prodigious storytelling gifts to this first-ever collection of short crime fiction. From desperate housewives to hard-boiled PIs to an appearance by Nina Reilly herself, these chilling short mysteries–many appearing in print for the very first time–set the mood and ratchet up the suspense as only Perri O’Shaughnessy can.

Here are tales of love and betrayal, rage and revenge–nineteen sizzling stories that run the gamut from classic whodunits to winding thrillers to an unusual cozy that casts Gertrude Stein as an unlikely Miss Marple. And here Perri O’Shaughnessy has created some of her most sinister and compelling characters yet: a college student who devises an ingenious method for getting her sexy teacher’s attention . . . a haunted ex—homicide cop who takes a long walk into his blood-shadowed past in a twisting tale of brutal murder and escalating violence . . . a model wife who surprises both herself and a bothersome furnace man when she is confronted with an unacceptable ultimatum . . . a lemon tree that plays a pivotal role in the tale of a woman who at long last asserts her independence. . . .

From a blood-soaked scheme that’s born at a slot machine in Vegas to the violence that ensues when the fat lady stops singing, Sinister Shorts shows us life at its most menacing, murderous, and unbearably suspenseful. And it proves once again the unique and captivating genius of Perri O’Shaughnessy.

Publishers Weekly

Sisters Pam and Mary O'Shaughnessy use the pen name Perri O'Shaughnessy for their Nina Reilly legal thrillers as well as for this uneven debut collection of 19 short suspense stories, only one of which involves Nina Reilly and is the only "fifty-fifty collaboration" between the pair. "The Long Walk" fittingly leads, since it was published before their first novel, Motion to Suppress (1995). There are two homages: a Gertrude Stein parody, "Gertrude Stein Solves a Mystery," which is less than successful, and "His Master's Hand," which nicely mimics the style of Dostoyevski's Notes from Underground. "Dead Money" crams a novel's worth of twists and deductions into a short story. In "Tiny Angels," an FBI agent nabs a kidnapper thanks to his wife's casual but perceptive observations. Paul van Wagoner, an investigator in the Nina Reilly novels, does brilliant work in "Success Without College." Series fans may enjoy the challenge presented in the sisters' introduction, trying to figure out which sister wrote which story. (Jan.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.