Showing results by author "Ed Gorman" in All Categories

Listen to mystery stories by today's top writers and the masters who inspired them. The idea for this collection came to Mystery Writers of America Grandmaster Lawrence Block when he was asked, "What is your favorite mystery story?" Block compiled this unique collection by posing the same question to some of today's favorite writers of the genre, including Stephen King, Tony Hillerman, and John Lutz.

"The Departed" by Clive Barker: On All Hallows' Eve, a dead and disembodied mother yearns to touch her young son one last time. But will making contact destroy them both? "Creature Feature" by Heather Graham: What could be better publicity for a horror convention than an honest-to-goodness curse? It's only after lights out that the hype - and the Jack the Ripper mannequin - starts to feel a little too real.

Sam has now returned to his hometown of Black River Falls, where he works as a lawyer and part-time investigator for the court of the snobbish but amusing Judge Esme Whitney. Two of Sam's oldest friends are caught up in the same battle. Veteran Steve Donovan brutally belittles and finally savagely beats his old friend, veteran Will Cullen, when Cullen announces he‘s joined the anti-war group. When Cullen is found murdered, the obvious suspect is Steve Donovan, but Sam has serious doubts about the man's guilt.

This collection of the best crime and mystery short fiction of 1999, gathered from around the globe and including more award-winners and stories than any other comparable volume, fills the void for those with a hunger for the best international mystery and suspense stories.

Learn the truth behind the mask of Hollywood in these 10 bizarre tales of dreams and dream weavers, movies and movie-makers, by some of the most respected fantasy writers of our time.

Former FBI agent and psychological profiler Robert Payne is on the trail of a serial killer. A 12 year old girl has been murdered and mutilated, and the detective assigned to the case wound up dead. Now Nora Conners, the girl's wealthy mother, has hired Payne to solve the murder and bring closure. After narrowing his search to three men, a televangelist, a honey salesman, and an art teacher, all living in the small Iowa town of New Hope, Payne begins to narrow the field, posing as a journalist.

Cobey Daniels had it all. He was rich, he was young, and he was the hottest star in the country. Then there was that messy business with the teenage girl...and it all went to hell for Cobey. But that was a few years ago. Now Cobey's pulled his life together again, they're letting him out of the hospital, and he's ready for his big comeback. But the past is still out there, waiting for him. Waiting to show Cobey a hell much more terrifying than he could ever have imagined.

The mutilation murders stun the quiet Iowa town of Cedar Rapids and call for the special skills of criminal psychologist Robert Payne, who uses clues from the crime scene to piece together a psychological portrait of the killer. The prime suspect is another Indian, David Rhodes, who is estranged from his wife, police detective Cindy Rhodes - and the woman with whom Payne is starting to fall in love.

Roger Daye, a stockbroker whose wife suddenly left him, has changed his appearance in hopes of changing his life for the better. His longing for Amy, a childhood flame, is rekindled when he sees her at a dance in his old hometown. However, his attention is soon drawn to another attractive woman - and that woman is Amy's daughter. Jealousy and revenge come to the forefront in this dark tale as Roger confronts the demons of his past, present, and future.

Twenty-five years ago, in a small Iowa town, an asylum for the criminally insane burned to the ground, killing inmates and employees. The fire was set by Paul Renard, a sexual psychopath who escaped the blaze and disappeared. Today young Ricky Hennessey faces murder charges in the death of his girlfriend. His defense: Paul Renard did it. Legal investigator Robert Payne joins the case at the request of Tandy West, a cable TV psychic and Payne's former lover.

Jack Dwyer, ex-cop turned amateur actor, is delighted when his agent lands him a role in a local production of Long Day's Journey into Night. The real drama starts, however, when Michael Reeves - the play's angry, bullying director - is found murdered, and Dwyer's friend Stephen Wade, a sweet has-been of an actor, is charged with the crime. Dwyer knows that Wade has been set up. But who did it? And why?

In America's heartland, Sam seeks justice for a black college student who's found dead in a car trunk at the drive-in, while thousands gather in the nation's capital for the March on Washington with civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr.

Jeff and Mindy McKay are young, attractive, and willing to stop at nothing to have it all - even if it means murdering Mindy's little sister, Jenny. With Jenny out of the way, after they collect Jenny's part of an enormous inheritance, Jeff and Mindy can begin to enjoy luxury beyond their wildest dreams. Then one day, months after Mindy and Jeff have buried the little girl, they answer a knock at the door. Standing there, staring at them with frightening blank eyes, is Jenny.

The antique telephone sat in the darkness in the attic. Dust and cobwebs obscured its once gleaming surface. Wires hung limply from its rusted innards. It should have been nothing more than an interesting piece of junk. Except that sometimes, late at night, the occupants of the hotel rooms below swore they heard it ringing....

For small-town, Iowa lawyer, Sam McCain, the year 1965 is not a sweet one. His father is gravely ill. His elitist boss is just coming out of rehab. And, the brilliant lawyer he hoped to start a relationship with has gone back to her husband. Still, McCain tries to enjoy himself during the town's Labor Day weekend party, reuniting with several old friends - until two of them are murdered for what seems to be a motive buried in the past...

Ex-cop, security guard and sometime actor Jack Dwyer feels a familiar buzz when, after fifteen years, he sees Karen Lane, his old high school flame. But things are going so well with his girlfriend Donna, that he's pretty sure Karen is not what he needs right now. Still, he agrees to retrieve a suitcase for her which she'd left with her last lover, Glendon Evans, a psychiatrist.

Peeps takes movie reviewing to new heights of viciousness. On this prime-time TV show, two caustic critics look at the hits and misses among the new movies, trading wits, insults - even punches. But even a series with high riatings like Peeps can stare at cancellation - not by the networks, but by murder. Because Dunphy has just been found with a knife in his back in the dressing room of Tobin, his co-host and sparring partner. The cops' script says Tobin - who'd secretly shared the affections of Dunphy's wife and brawled on air with Dunphy the night before - has the motivation for the part of star suspect.

Her name was Crimson...and she was a legend. A beautiful pirate queen who plundered the 16th Century Caribbean sea by day and confronted voodoo and vampires during the steaming tropical nights.

A hippie commune has invaded Black River Falls. While the majority of the townspeople believe that the bohemians have the right to stay - despite how bizarre some of their ways can seem - as always, there is a minority that constantly accuses them of everything from criminal activities to Satanism. As usual, lawyer and private investigator Sam McCain finds himself in the middle of the controversy, especially when the teenage daughter of Paul Mainwaring, is found murdered in the commune’s barn.

Tom Prine figured that a stint as deputy in a backwash town like Claybank would give him a nice rest. Until, in the space of just a few days, arson, kidnapping and murder turn Claybank into a dangerous place Prine no longer recognizes. A lot of old secrets are being revealed and at their core is a single nagging question - is anybody in town who they pretend to be? Prine doesn't have long to find the answer . .