Ed McBain

All at once, Fat Ollie Weeks had a truly brilliant idea... But as any real writer could tell you, that's how inspiration strikes -- with the sudden force of a violent crime. Known more for his foul mouth and short temper than his way with words, Detective Weeks has written a novel. But just as Isola is rocked by the murder of a mayoral candidate, the only copy of Ollie's manuscript is stolen -- and an all-too-real adventure begins as a thief follows...

The author of the 87th Precinct series presents a riotous story of the gamblers, mobsters, and other colorful characters who hang around Aqueduct Racetrack. Andrew Mullaney has the money to get to Aqueduct Racetrack, but nothing to bet once he gets there. It's a tragedy, because today he's got a sure thing: a filly named Jawbone who's guaranteed to win. Desperate, Andrew asks every hood he knows to spot him fifty bucks, tapping chess hustlers, pool...

Ed McBain, author of the best-selling 87th Precinct series, takes us Downtown in this harrowing tale of a lone out-of-towner running for his life in New York CIty. Meet Michael Barnes, a Florida orange grower who finds himself in a Wall Street bar with a couple of hours to kill. It's a couple of hours that almost kill him, as he's swindled, robbed, framed for murder, and hunted down by an assassin in one of the wildest, scariest, funniest, fastest...

It should have been the night that launched a new pop idol. Tamar Valparaiso is young and beautiful, with the body and voice of an angel. The stage is set for her to launch her debut album, Bandersnatch, on a luxury yacht in the heart of the city. But halfway through her performance, masked men drag Tamar off the stage and into a waiting speedboat, while the partygoers look on helplessly. Detective Steve Carella is just showing up for the graveyard...

Attorney Matthew Hope had hired Otto Samalson to conduct a simple marital investigation- so how does Samalson end up dead on a deserted highway? Hope's search for an answer takes him into Florida's drug underworld on the trail of a hooker- one who has the style and looks necessary to transform herself into a high-class cocaine-stealing Cinderella. What Hope uncovers is a complicated web of circumstances and a terrifying twist...

A grisly serial killer is about to mess with the wrong precinct. The 87th Precinct is known for its tough corner of crime. And no one knows it better then the hard-nosed detectives of 87th, whose companionship and bravery have made them brothers of trust. For detective Steve Carella, the trust is all he has when a serial killer begins to prey on female track stars. Left with only a few grisly clues on the bodies of the victims, it's up to detectives...

A dashing lineup of elegant crime tales and gritty hardboiled detective stories, alternately menacing and cozy, with two exotic locales, and murder in the mix. Stories in this set include: Dashiell Hammett's "The Creeping Siamese", performed by John Shea - The Continental Op gets his man C.S. Montanye's "A Shock for the Countess", performed by Fionnula Flanagan - Intrigue in the alps in this clever tale of a jewelry heist Ed McBain's, "Improvisation",...