The Best American Mystery Stories 2006 » (None)

A lawyer-turned-writer acknowledged to be every bit as good as Grisham, if not better, Scott Turow is still working hard at turning out believable, complex legal thrillers -- and still working hard in the legal practice that fuels his writing.

"[Most of] these stories are portraits, in styles ranging from sly to harrowing, of how crimes occurred ... If you like all your characters living at the end of a story, this may not be the book for you." -- from the introduction by Scott Turow

Best-selling author Scott Turow takes the helm for the tenth edition of this annual, featuring twenty-one of the past year's most distinguished tales of mystery, crime, and suspense.

Elmore Leonard tells the tale of a young woman who's fled home with a convicted bank robber. Walter Mosley describes an over-the-hill private detective and his new client, a woman named Karma. C. J. Box explores the fate of two Czech immigrants stranded by the side of the road in Yellowstone Park. Ed McBain begins his story on role-playing with the line "'Why don't we kill somebody?' she suggested." Wendy Hornsby tells of a wild motorcycle chase through the canyons outside Las Vegas. Laura Lippman describes the "Crack Cocaine Diet." And James Lee Burke writes of a young boy who may have been a close friend of Bugsy Siegel.

As Scott Turow notes in his introduction, these stories are "about crime -- its commission, its aftermath, its anxieties, its effect on character." The Best American Mystery Stories 2006 is a powerful collection for all readers who enjoy fiction that deals with the extremes of human passion and its dark consequences.

Publishers Weekly

Quality writing from some of the biggest names in the genre marks the 10th collection in this series, though Turow concedes in the introduction that the 21 stories are more crime tales than mysteries. Walter Mosley contributes the collection's standout, "Karma," a classic noir exercise that brings the sweat and despair of the characters to life. Jeffery Deaver's "Born Bad" and Jane Haddam's "Edelweiss" are also solid entries, with nifty plot twists reminiscent of the TV series Alfred Hitchcock Presents and the short stories of Roald Dahl. A number of stories share the same hook, though, which lessens the impact, and the editor's omission of even one fair-play whodunit will disappoint some readers. Series editor Otto Penzler provides his usual cogent, candid foreword. (Oct.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Foreword • ix Introduction by Scott Turow • xiv

Karen E. Bender Theft • 1

C. J. Box Pirates of Yellowstone • 18

James Lee Burke Why Bugsy Siegel Was a Friend of Mine • 31

Jeffery Deaver Born Bad • 45

Jane Haddam Edelweiss • 63

William Harrison Texas Heat • 81

Alan Heathcock Peacekeeper • 93

Emory Holmes II A.k.a., Moises Rockafella • 112

Wendy Hornsby Dust Up • 129

Andrew Klavan Her Lord and Master • 144

Elmore Leonard Louly and Pretty Boy • 154

Laura Lippman The Crack Cocaine Diet (Or: How to Lose a Lot of Weight and Change Your Life in Just One Weekend) • 169

Ed McBain Improvisation • 180

Mike MacLean McHenry’s Gift • 197

Walter Mosley Karma • 205

Joyce Carol Oates So Help Me God • 240

Sue Pike A Temporary Crown • 266

Emily Raboteau Smile • 278

R. T. Smith Ina Grove • 281

Jeff Somers Ringing the Changes • 309

Scott Wolven Vigilance • 320

Contributors’ Notes • 345 Other Distinguished Mystery Stories of 2005 • 356