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The Best American Mystery Stories 2018: A Collection
Don't miss this page-turner for the mystery lover
#1 New York Times best-selling author of the Chief Inspector Armand Gamache novels, Louise Penny brings her “nerve and skill—as well as heart� (Maureen Corrigan, Washington Post ) to selecting the best short mystery and crime fiction of the year.
Writing short stories takes “Skill. Discipline. Knowledge of the form while not being formulaic,� contends Louise Penny in her introduction. “In a short story there is nowhere to hide. Each must be original, fresh, inspired.� Originality is just what’s in store for readers of the twenty clever, creative selections in The Best American Mystery Stories 2018 . There’s no hiding from a Nigerian confidence game, a drug made of dinosaur bones, a bombing at an oil company, a reluctant gunfighter in the Old West, and the many other scams, dangers, and thrills lurking in its suspenseful pages.
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The Best American Mystery Stories 2018 includes T. C. Boyle, James Lee Burke, Lee Child, Michael Connelly, Charlaine Harris, Andrew Klavan, Martin Limón, Joyce Carol Oates, and others.
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#1 New York Times best-selling author of the Chief Inspector Armand Gamache novels, Louise Penny brings her “nerve and skill—as well as heart� (Maureen Corrigan, Washington Post ) to selecting the best short mystery and crime fiction of the year.
Writing short stories takes “Skill. Discipline. Knowledge of the form while not being formulaic,� contends Louise Penny in her introduction. “In a short story there is nowhere to hide. Each must be original, fresh, inspired.� Originality is just what’s in store for readers of the twenty clever, creative selections in The Best American Mystery Stories 2018 . There’s no hiding from a Nigerian confidence game, a drug made of dinosaur bones, a bombing at an oil company, a reluctant gunfighter in the Old West, and the many other scams, dangers, and thrills lurking in its suspenseful pages.
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The Best American Mystery Stories 2018 includes T. C. Boyle, James Lee Burke, Lee Child, Michael Connelly, Charlaine Harris, Andrew Klavan, Martin Limón, Joyce Carol Oates, and others.
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432 pages, Paperback
Published October 2, 2018
742 people are currently reading
851 people want to read
About the author
Louise Penny
86Ìýbooks25.1kÌýfollowersLOUISE PENNY is the author of the #1 New York Times and Globe and Mail bestselling series of Chief Inspector Armand Gamache novels. She has won numerous awards, including a CWA Dagger and the Agatha Award (seven times), and was a finalist for the Edgar Award for Best Novel. In 2017, she received the Order of Canada for her contributions to Canadian culture. Louise lives in a small village south of Montréal.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 116 reviews
October 12, 2019
The 22nd annual edition of this anthology series contains the following stories (along with a rating for each and some appropriate song lyrics):
Banana Triangle Six by - 3/5 - I hope I die before I get old
Y is for Yangchuan Lizard by - 4/5 - There's a rat in me kitchen
The Designee by - 4/5 - even the losers keep a little bit of pride
Smoked by - 3/5 - I like smoke and lightning, heavy metal thunder
The Wild Side of Life by - 3/5 - Satan cries "take aim"
Too Much Time by - 4/5 - it's hard to believe such a calamity
The Third Panel by - 3/5 - Point and shoot, I know just what you mean
Gun Work by - 4/5 - I play for keeps 'cuz I might not make it back
Cabin Fever by - 4/5 - I fell into a burnin' ring of fire
Small Signs by - 4/5 - a pretty face can hide an evil mind
Takeout by - 4/5 - gave up on sushi, give me an egg roll
Death in the Serengeti by - 3/5 - in the jungle, the mighty jungle
All Our Yesterdays by - 4/5 - you go back, Jack, do it again
PX Christmas by - 4/5 - ey, sexy lady!
Windward by - 3/5 - you keep lying when you ought to be truthing
Phantomwise: 1972 by - 1/5 - it goes on and on and on and on...
Rule Number One by - 3/5 - there's just no hope for our final embrace
The Apex Predator by - 3/5 - give me those swamp river days again
Waiting on Joe by - 3/5 - cool Joe, mean Joe
Breadfruit by - 3/5 - on an island in the sun, we'll be playing and having fun
Banana Triangle Six by - 3/5 - I hope I die before I get old
Y is for Yangchuan Lizard by - 4/5 - There's a rat in me kitchen
The Designee by - 4/5 - even the losers keep a little bit of pride
Smoked by - 3/5 - I like smoke and lightning, heavy metal thunder
The Wild Side of Life by - 3/5 - Satan cries "take aim"
Too Much Time by - 4/5 - it's hard to believe such a calamity
The Third Panel by - 3/5 - Point and shoot, I know just what you mean
Gun Work by - 4/5 - I play for keeps 'cuz I might not make it back
Cabin Fever by - 4/5 - I fell into a burnin' ring of fire
Small Signs by - 4/5 - a pretty face can hide an evil mind
Takeout by - 4/5 - gave up on sushi, give me an egg roll
Death in the Serengeti by - 3/5 - in the jungle, the mighty jungle
All Our Yesterdays by - 4/5 - you go back, Jack, do it again
PX Christmas by - 4/5 - ey, sexy lady!
Windward by - 3/5 - you keep lying when you ought to be truthing
Phantomwise: 1972 by - 1/5 - it goes on and on and on and on...
Rule Number One by - 3/5 - there's just no hope for our final embrace
The Apex Predator by - 3/5 - give me those swamp river days again
Waiting on Joe by - 3/5 - cool Joe, mean Joe
Breadfruit by - 3/5 - on an island in the sun, we'll be playing and having fun
January 1, 2019
As always, a very mixed bag.
My usual gripes stand for these compilations, especially The Best American Mystery Stories 2018:
1. Most of these stories aren't mysterious
2. Two female writers? That's the best the female editor can do?
Since most of these stories don't fall under the mystery category, I'm sure there are plenty of female writers that qualify for this compilation.
3. I skimmed most of the stories since the majority of the themes did not interest me; case in point, I hate Westerns.
I did like Waiting on Joe and The Apex Predator.
My usual gripes stand for these compilations, especially The Best American Mystery Stories 2018:
1. Most of these stories aren't mysterious
2. Two female writers? That's the best the female editor can do?
Since most of these stories don't fall under the mystery category, I'm sure there are plenty of female writers that qualify for this compilation.
3. I skimmed most of the stories since the majority of the themes did not interest me; case in point, I hate Westerns.
I did like Waiting on Joe and The Apex Predator.
October 27, 2018
Very good anthology of mystery stories published recently, in magazines big and small, mostly from Alfred Hitchcock and Ellery Queen, that remind me of the high level of competition I have out there when I send my own stuff out. A few are excellent. The best are "Banana Triangle Six," the first one, though it may be too sad for some, including me. My other preferred favorite is the second one, "Y is for Yangchuan Lizard," a quick slice of tone-perfect noir, my preferred mystery sub-genre. (The antho's line-up is alphabetical by author last name, so the fact that the first two are my favorites is a coincidence. The editor didn't necessarily pile it on top.) A few other stories are very good, including "Waiting on Joe," which is pitch-perfect and very smooth. Others are okay. A couple made me wonder why, and gave me hope. None are bad. The one by Joyce Carol Oates--there has to be one--is very well-written, but again a disappointment to me. I don't know what I expect from her, but I usually like her stories and yet are disappointed in them at the same time, like how I got a B+ in a high school English class one quarter, yet the teacher's third comment was "Capable of Doing Better." High praise or a back-handed compliment? You decide.
I recommend the reader also seek out past years' anthologies of the Best of..., of this and of your own preferred genre. There's lots of "Best of"s and "The Year's Best..." and tons of others. They sell well, there's never a bad story (though of course you'll prefer some more than others), they get the short story authors (besides Oates, not a rich one amongst them) a little more coin, and they're good adverts (as Tracey Ullman says) for the small magazines they sometimes appear in. Feel free to look at these small magazines, online and physical, as well. Worth your time, and it gets you the hell away from all the negative political crap out there right now. I suggest hand-held magazines over online ones, but that's just me being hardcore old-fashioned, and I admit that the online ones often pay the writer more moolah. But, still...
I recommend the reader also seek out past years' anthologies of the Best of..., of this and of your own preferred genre. There's lots of "Best of"s and "The Year's Best..." and tons of others. They sell well, there's never a bad story (though of course you'll prefer some more than others), they get the short story authors (besides Oates, not a rich one amongst them) a little more coin, and they're good adverts (as Tracey Ullman says) for the small magazines they sometimes appear in. Feel free to look at these small magazines, online and physical, as well. Worth your time, and it gets you the hell away from all the negative political crap out there right now. I suggest hand-held magazines over online ones, but that's just me being hardcore old-fashioned, and I admit that the online ones often pay the writer more moolah. But, still...
November 21, 2018
Louise Penny, this year's editor, has done a wonderful job in selecting the stories that appear in this 400-page volume! A few are stories that involve characters in places outside the United States, too, so there is an international flavor to this volume.
There were only a couple of the 20 individual stories that I really did not care for much; the others I would rank from "very good" to "superb."
If you like mysteries, and enjoy the short-story format, I highly recommend this volume to you!
There were only a couple of the 20 individual stories that I really did not care for much; the others I would rank from "very good" to "superb."
If you like mysteries, and enjoy the short-story format, I highly recommend this volume to you!
October 21, 2018
I gasped out loud while reading so many of these. So well-written with twists and turns.
My favorite was "Waiting on Joe." A shout-out to "Phantonwise: 1972" as well. 5/5 stars.
My favorite was "Waiting on Joe." A shout-out to "Phantonwise: 1972" as well. 5/5 stars.
March 10, 2021
Wow! This anthology of short stories seems to have been written just for me.
I can't believe how many stories were excellent.
I am so very glad that I read this book.
I can't believe how many stories were excellent.
I am so very glad that I read this book.
February 18, 2019
Mixed bag of mystery and crime stories.
I've been reading a fair number of mystery short stories lately, so my point of view is a bit skewed--I was okay but not thrilled by most of these. I think I'm at a point where I'm starting to see a lot of repeated patterns to the stories, so it feels like there had better be something more than a solidly written standard plot in order to impress. The ones I liked here were because of characters, not plot. Settings were mostly kind of standard, too.
As a huge Alice fan I was looking forward to JCO's Alice story but did not like it at all. It's a prototypical JCO damsel in distress story with a few references stuck on, so it feels like a possibility wasted. Good writing, of course, but that ending fell flat.
The stories in the first half were much stronger than in the latter half. Not a waste of time, certainly, and there are factors in my opinion that are probably not going to apply to most people. I doubt anyone else is going to be as annoyed about the JCO story :) So a tentative recommendation, if you like crime and mystery short stories.
I've been reading a fair number of mystery short stories lately, so my point of view is a bit skewed--I was okay but not thrilled by most of these. I think I'm at a point where I'm starting to see a lot of repeated patterns to the stories, so it feels like there had better be something more than a solidly written standard plot in order to impress. The ones I liked here were because of characters, not plot. Settings were mostly kind of standard, too.
As a huge Alice fan I was looking forward to JCO's Alice story but did not like it at all. It's a prototypical JCO damsel in distress story with a few references stuck on, so it feels like a possibility wasted. Good writing, of course, but that ending fell flat.
The stories in the first half were much stronger than in the latter half. Not a waste of time, certainly, and there are factors in my opinion that are probably not going to apply to most people. I doubt anyone else is going to be as annoyed about the JCO story :) So a tentative recommendation, if you like crime and mystery short stories.
February 25, 2020
This was actually a very good collection of stories.
Louis Bayard’s � Banana Triangle Six � follows an elderly man in a group home who is starting to have troubles with his memory. He does not remember that earlier, when healthy, he had signed onto a service that ends your life for you when your mind starts to slip
TC Boyle adds � The Designee� about a man that is tricked into dispensing his money in a phone scam. He, and perhaps you, never see it coming
In Micheal Bracken’s � Smoked � an ex motorcycle gang member turned state’s evidence, now in witness protection has opened a successful bbq place in the small town where he lives. When unbeknownst to him a review is published his life gets very dangerous very quickly
A long Jack Reacher story by Lee Child titles � Too Much Time � has Reacher stopping a robbery and ending up involved as a suspect by a crooked FBI agent now in need of a fall guy
� Death in the Serengeti � by David Hendrickson is a strong story following a safari driver caught up in a life and death battle with poachers and one turncoat from his company
� All Our Yesterdays � by Andrew Klavan follows a British soldier after the war who, suffering from PTSD, takes a respite in the country. He ends up having the local physician who is treating him using him as a fall guy for a murder he commits.
Those are the extreme highlights but if you like this sort of story I can honestly say that none of these stories in this collection is bad. They all work well. One note : The Joyce Carol Oates story, almost novella like is her typical woman in distress story that might be too much for some as it’s pretty grim.
Louis Bayard’s � Banana Triangle Six � follows an elderly man in a group home who is starting to have troubles with his memory. He does not remember that earlier, when healthy, he had signed onto a service that ends your life for you when your mind starts to slip
TC Boyle adds � The Designee� about a man that is tricked into dispensing his money in a phone scam. He, and perhaps you, never see it coming
In Micheal Bracken’s � Smoked � an ex motorcycle gang member turned state’s evidence, now in witness protection has opened a successful bbq place in the small town where he lives. When unbeknownst to him a review is published his life gets very dangerous very quickly
A long Jack Reacher story by Lee Child titles � Too Much Time � has Reacher stopping a robbery and ending up involved as a suspect by a crooked FBI agent now in need of a fall guy
� Death in the Serengeti � by David Hendrickson is a strong story following a safari driver caught up in a life and death battle with poachers and one turncoat from his company
� All Our Yesterdays � by Andrew Klavan follows a British soldier after the war who, suffering from PTSD, takes a respite in the country. He ends up having the local physician who is treating him using him as a fall guy for a murder he commits.
Those are the extreme highlights but if you like this sort of story I can honestly say that none of these stories in this collection is bad. They all work well. One note : The Joyce Carol Oates story, almost novella like is her typical woman in distress story that might be too much for some as it’s pretty grim.
March 11, 2019
Not really what I was expecting, based on the title. "Mystery" is loosely defined as there being a crime that is central to the story. I enjoy mystery stories largely because of the puzzle aspect, and the character of the person trying to solve the mystery makes it more or less enjoyable. I guess I don't find all that much appeal in crime stories, minus the puzzle. There was some minor amount of mystery in these stories, I suppose - any good story has to have something unknown in it or why would you bother reading? - but not much of a puzzle element. One story, The Designee, I really disliked, and the only mystery was how long it was going to drag on, when it was so obvious what was happening. But on the whole they were moderately interesting, and offered a great deal of variety in terms of character, setting, and tone.
May 29, 2020
This compilation’s 20 stories were either great or really bad. I was disappointed that there were only two female authors amongst the 20. The editor - Louise Penny - should have thought to include more women’s entries. But until someone invites me to edit one of these anthologies I’ll leave it up to them!
My favorite was T.C Boyle’s “The Designee� which is about one of the oldest long cons out there - preying on the elderly by promising millions of dollars only to string them along and take their very last dime. Think: Nigerian Money Scams. My least favorite was Joyce Carol Oats� “Phantomwise: 1972�. I’m a huge JCO fan and was really looking forward to her story. I found it dull and it felt stale and dated.
I rate these anthologies based on how much I enjoy the great stories while taking the bad ones out of the equation. The solid ones were fun and original.
My favorite was T.C Boyle’s “The Designee� which is about one of the oldest long cons out there - preying on the elderly by promising millions of dollars only to string them along and take their very last dime. Think: Nigerian Money Scams. My least favorite was Joyce Carol Oats� “Phantomwise: 1972�. I’m a huge JCO fan and was really looking forward to her story. I found it dull and it felt stale and dated.
I rate these anthologies based on how much I enjoy the great stories while taking the bad ones out of the equation. The solid ones were fun and original.
December 12, 2022
This collection of short stories is outstanding. I have discovered several authors that I must look for a book that they have written so I can take in more of their remarkable work. I also read stories by some I have read many of their books. One of the most famous, Joyce Carol Oates, is an enigma to me. I keep promising myself not to read anything else by her, and then I do. The writing is so good. The subject is often so bleak and tortured. I feel defiled, angry, and despondent after reading her work.
Meanwhile, so many of these stories are clever and have brilliant twists or so much power to be a short commentary about the nature of humanity.
Meanwhile, so many of these stories are clever and have brilliant twists or so much power to be a short commentary about the nature of humanity.
August 5, 2019
I used to love The Best American collections, but hadn't read one in a while, and I don't think I've ever read the mystery flavor, so I was excited to go through this one. I'd say I thoroughly enjoyed about a quarter of the stories, didn't mind a third, and thought it was puzzling that the remaining stories were included, because they didn't seem great, and certainly not "best." I don't read a ton of mysteries, though, so my best-ometer might be out of whack.
January 6, 2019
I haven't had much luck with short story collections and was worried when I started this one. The first story was easily the poorest of the entire lot - hardly even a mystery. But things improved. Almost every ensuing tale quickly caught my interest and proved worth the read. There are one or two marginal pieces but, overall, this collection was an enjoyable ride.
December 27, 2018
As always, this is an amazing set of stories. Almost all are great, a handful are merely very good, and all are worth reading.
July 27, 2024
a lesson in writing
Varied and surprising combinations�.worth your time.
The collection about all the authors at the end was invaluable.
Do read this.
Varied and surprising combinations�.worth your time.
The collection about all the authors at the end was invaluable.
Do read this.
October 31, 2018
I expected better stories----some were very good, some very bad and the rest in between.
June 25, 2021
I see the words "mixed bag" used quite often in other reviews of this edition of BAMS.
I'll join that bandwagon.
I'll join that bandwagon.
January 15, 2019
What an entertaining collection this is! The stories cover a wide range of mystery/crime/suspense writing, with a fair bit of edge. Edited by Louise Penny from a collection assembled under the direction of Otto Penzler, the twenty stories, all published in the past year, first appeared in US crime magazines, in literary magazines, in themed anthologies, and in single-author collections by T.C. Boyle, Lee Child, Scott Loring Sanders).
Says editor Penny, “A great short story is like a great poem. Crystalline in clarity. Each word with purpose. Lean, muscular, graceful. Nothing wasted. A brilliant marriage of intellect, rational thought, and creativity.� This edition underscores her point on every page.
Though most of the stories run to about twenty pages, Lee Child, with “Too Much Time,� doubles that length. He meticulously describes how the redoubtable Jack Reacher digs himself in deeper and deeper with Maine police while all the time working on an unexpected (by this reader) solution to his precarious situation. Joyce Carol Oates also provides a near-novella with “Phantomwise: 1972,� about a naïve college coed who makes consistently bad choices and the men who exploit them.
Most of the stories take place in the good old US of A, from the sketchy surrounds of Paul Marks’s Venice Beach (“Windward�) to James Lee Burke’s Cajun country (“The Wild Side of Life�), though a few are set in more exotic climes: Africa in David H. Hendrickson’s Derringer-winning “Death in the Serengeti,� the tropical and fictional island of St. Pierre (“Breadfruit� by Brian Silverman), and the Republic of Korea (“PX Christmas� by Martin Limón).
The selected authors found clever and creative ways to deploy the staple characters of crime fiction—unfaithful wives (“Waiting on Joe� by Scott Loring Sanders), assassins (“Takeout� by Rob Hart) and serial killers (“All Our Yesterdays� by Andrew Klavan). They deal with classic crime situations too: trying to escape a difficult past (“Smoked� by Michael Bracken and “Gun Work� by John M. Floyd) or the long tail of a super-secret job (“Small Signs� by Charlaine Harris); prison breaks (“Cabin Fever� by David Edgerley Gates), and the double or is it triple? cross (“Y is for Yangchuan Lizard� by Andrew Bourelle and “Rule Number One� by Alan Orloff).
A couple of the scams were so deftly described that you may find yourself grinning with the vigilante surprise of Michael Connelly’s “The Third Panel� and the flim-flamming of an elderly man in TC Boyle’s “The Designee,� in which you must decide how complicit the elderly “victim� is. It’s the best story of his I’ve ever read. There’s also a thought-provoking twist in “Banana Triangle Six� by Louis Bayard.
This talented collection of authors fills their stories with great lines, though one of my favorites comes from “The Apex Predator,� by William Dylan Powell, wherein the main character claims he learned in Uncle Sam’s navy the “most useful tactical skill ever developed by humankind—and it’s not swimming or fighting or tying knots. It’s the art of bullshitting someone so you don’t get in trouble.�
If you’ve been glancing over the author names looking for (and finding) many that are familiar, you may also have noticed the near-absence of women authors. Joyce Carol Oates who has more than a hundred published books is not a surprise in this list, nor is Charlaine Harris, who’s been publishing mystery fiction since 1981. It’s a real mystery why no other accomplished, newer authors appear here. Women are somewhat more prominent in the list of “Other Distinguished Mystery Stories of 2017� at the back of the volume, where nearly a third are women (10 of 31).
Which publications brought these stories to light in the first place (and where you might find next year’s winner’s now)? Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine published four of the stories, Mystery Tribune (two), and Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Fiction River, and Switchblade, one apiece. Also Level Best Books� anthologies (Noir at the Salad Bar and Snowbound) produced a pair of them.
Says editor Penny, “A great short story is like a great poem. Crystalline in clarity. Each word with purpose. Lean, muscular, graceful. Nothing wasted. A brilliant marriage of intellect, rational thought, and creativity.� This edition underscores her point on every page.
Though most of the stories run to about twenty pages, Lee Child, with “Too Much Time,� doubles that length. He meticulously describes how the redoubtable Jack Reacher digs himself in deeper and deeper with Maine police while all the time working on an unexpected (by this reader) solution to his precarious situation. Joyce Carol Oates also provides a near-novella with “Phantomwise: 1972,� about a naïve college coed who makes consistently bad choices and the men who exploit them.
Most of the stories take place in the good old US of A, from the sketchy surrounds of Paul Marks’s Venice Beach (“Windward�) to James Lee Burke’s Cajun country (“The Wild Side of Life�), though a few are set in more exotic climes: Africa in David H. Hendrickson’s Derringer-winning “Death in the Serengeti,� the tropical and fictional island of St. Pierre (“Breadfruit� by Brian Silverman), and the Republic of Korea (“PX Christmas� by Martin Limón).
The selected authors found clever and creative ways to deploy the staple characters of crime fiction—unfaithful wives (“Waiting on Joe� by Scott Loring Sanders), assassins (“Takeout� by Rob Hart) and serial killers (“All Our Yesterdays� by Andrew Klavan). They deal with classic crime situations too: trying to escape a difficult past (“Smoked� by Michael Bracken and “Gun Work� by John M. Floyd) or the long tail of a super-secret job (“Small Signs� by Charlaine Harris); prison breaks (“Cabin Fever� by David Edgerley Gates), and the double or is it triple? cross (“Y is for Yangchuan Lizard� by Andrew Bourelle and “Rule Number One� by Alan Orloff).
A couple of the scams were so deftly described that you may find yourself grinning with the vigilante surprise of Michael Connelly’s “The Third Panel� and the flim-flamming of an elderly man in TC Boyle’s “The Designee,� in which you must decide how complicit the elderly “victim� is. It’s the best story of his I’ve ever read. There’s also a thought-provoking twist in “Banana Triangle Six� by Louis Bayard.
This talented collection of authors fills their stories with great lines, though one of my favorites comes from “The Apex Predator,� by William Dylan Powell, wherein the main character claims he learned in Uncle Sam’s navy the “most useful tactical skill ever developed by humankind—and it’s not swimming or fighting or tying knots. It’s the art of bullshitting someone so you don’t get in trouble.�
If you’ve been glancing over the author names looking for (and finding) many that are familiar, you may also have noticed the near-absence of women authors. Joyce Carol Oates who has more than a hundred published books is not a surprise in this list, nor is Charlaine Harris, who’s been publishing mystery fiction since 1981. It’s a real mystery why no other accomplished, newer authors appear here. Women are somewhat more prominent in the list of “Other Distinguished Mystery Stories of 2017� at the back of the volume, where nearly a third are women (10 of 31).
Which publications brought these stories to light in the first place (and where you might find next year’s winner’s now)? Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine published four of the stories, Mystery Tribune (two), and Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Fiction River, and Switchblade, one apiece. Also Level Best Books� anthologies (Noir at the Salad Bar and Snowbound) produced a pair of them.
September 17, 2021
Bored by or hated the first three stories so DNF'd.
August 4, 2019
I liked this year’s selection much better than I’ve liked other recent years in this series. Louise Penny seems to have picked stories built around interesting ideas. Sometimes they are executed well, sometimes indifferently, but for virtually all, the core idea of the plot is intriguing. The writing for most of these stories is fine but straightforward, though Joyce Carol Oates� entry, Phantomwise:1972, is pretty literary. Only one of the stories struck me as being primarily a character sketch, T. C. Boyle, The Designee, which explores a scam and feels like a retelling of innumerable sad nonfiction accounts - perhaps I missed an important clue in this one. One disappointing aspect: most years, the Best American Mystery Stories include four or five women out of a total 20 authors; this year, I counted just two. My favorite stories from this collection were Michael Bracken, Smoked (a BBQ joint owner with a past, it comes calling); Lee Child, Too Much Time (because it was an actual mystery, although it also has the standard Jack Reacher quality of hyper-realism to the point of fantasy); Michael Connelly, The Third Panel (for the cool idea at the core, which would make for a good novel); John M. Floyd, Gun Work (a private investigator in the late 1800s with a past, someone else’s past comes calling); and David Edgerley Gates, Cabin Fever (I’d love to read about these characters in a longer novel). In her choices, Louise Penny seems particularly taken with the themes of how characters communicate with their allies in front of their opponents, and how communities built from years of kindness rally and save main characters in trouble. A few of the stories are really dark, but in general - as with Penny’s own works - most offer of hopeful view of human capacity to trust and support one another.
February 15, 2021
An anthology is a good way to sample the work of (mostly) well-published authors, if you’re in the market for a potential new favorite. It’s a good way to have quality reading material when your time or attention span is short. And it’s a good way to realize that the majority of short mystery stories are written by middle-aged white guys.
Twenty stories in all, some more adventure or thriller than mystery. That said, six stories stood out for me for their transportive setting or for unusual point of view.
“Banana Triangle Six� by Louis Bayard places the reader inside the slipped-gear mind of a dementia patient, visited by a (perhaps) new doctor who brings home a decision the patient has forgotten he made.
“Y Is for Yangchuan Lizard� by Andrew Bourelle plays the craving an exotic new drug brings against the profit and violence of those who would traffic in it, with multiple double crosses.
Michael Bracken’s “Smoked� tells the tale of a witness protection relocatee outed by his good cooking, and defended by his best customer and his sharp-shooting girlfriend.
Charlaine Harris� “Small Signs� presents two strong female characters, and asks what happens when the top four directors of an off-the-grid/under-the-radar survivalist school are pitted against one another.
“PX Christmas� by Martin Limón transports the reader to Seoul, to ride along with two U.S. Army investigators tracking down a missing army wife and busting heads along the way.
Most chilling of all is Scott Loring Sanders� “Waiting on Joe,� detailing one casual crime of passion with more to come.
Twenty stories in all, some more adventure or thriller than mystery. That said, six stories stood out for me for their transportive setting or for unusual point of view.
“Banana Triangle Six� by Louis Bayard places the reader inside the slipped-gear mind of a dementia patient, visited by a (perhaps) new doctor who brings home a decision the patient has forgotten he made.
“Y Is for Yangchuan Lizard� by Andrew Bourelle plays the craving an exotic new drug brings against the profit and violence of those who would traffic in it, with multiple double crosses.
Michael Bracken’s “Smoked� tells the tale of a witness protection relocatee outed by his good cooking, and defended by his best customer and his sharp-shooting girlfriend.
Charlaine Harris� “Small Signs� presents two strong female characters, and asks what happens when the top four directors of an off-the-grid/under-the-radar survivalist school are pitted against one another.
“PX Christmas� by Martin Limón transports the reader to Seoul, to ride along with two U.S. Army investigators tracking down a missing army wife and busting heads along the way.
Most chilling of all is Scott Loring Sanders� “Waiting on Joe,� detailing one casual crime of passion with more to come.
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March 13, 2019My review for this anthology was published by Library Journal on September 13, 2018:
In the 22nd volume of this evergreen series, guest editor Louise Penny (“Chief Inspector Gamache� novels) features 20 selections that travel as far back as the Old West and as far abroad as the Serengeti. Andrew Bourelle sets the tone early with the suitably nasty slice of modern noir “Y Is for Yangchuan Lizard�; Michael Bracken’s “Smoked� has a reformed motorcycle gang member’s anonymity threatened by the sudden popularity of his barbecue restaurant. In “Phantomwise: 1972,� the longest and most haunting story, Joyce Carol Oates recasts Lewis Carroll’s Alice as a college girl in her own tormented Wonderland, torn between the young professor who has impregnated her and an old visiting poet. Other highlights include Alan Orloff’s super-twisty “Rule Number One,� which packs an impressive number of double-crosses in ten pages, and Michael Connelly’s solid-as-expected “The Third Panel.� Memorable entries from literary stalwarts Louis Bayard, T.C. Boyle, James Lee Burke, and Lee Child round out the collection. VERDICT The range of authors, styles, and settings in these tales ensures every reader will find something to remember. A worthy supplement to all mystery collections.
Copyright ©2018 Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. Reprinted with permission.
In the 22nd volume of this evergreen series, guest editor Louise Penny (“Chief Inspector Gamache� novels) features 20 selections that travel as far back as the Old West and as far abroad as the Serengeti. Andrew Bourelle sets the tone early with the suitably nasty slice of modern noir “Y Is for Yangchuan Lizard�; Michael Bracken’s “Smoked� has a reformed motorcycle gang member’s anonymity threatened by the sudden popularity of his barbecue restaurant. In “Phantomwise: 1972,� the longest and most haunting story, Joyce Carol Oates recasts Lewis Carroll’s Alice as a college girl in her own tormented Wonderland, torn between the young professor who has impregnated her and an old visiting poet. Other highlights include Alan Orloff’s super-twisty “Rule Number One,� which packs an impressive number of double-crosses in ten pages, and Michael Connelly’s solid-as-expected “The Third Panel.� Memorable entries from literary stalwarts Louis Bayard, T.C. Boyle, James Lee Burke, and Lee Child round out the collection. VERDICT The range of authors, styles, and settings in these tales ensures every reader will find something to remember. A worthy supplement to all mystery collections.
Copyright ©2018 Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. Reprinted with permission.
November 14, 2022
These short stories were a change of genre for me necessitated by it being a required read for my American mysteries class. Though skeptical as I had become accustomed to character development and plot evolving over many pages, I was in awe of these writers' ability to deliver characters the reader cared about and intriguing plots with a punch in a succinct fashion.
The chapter offered by Lee Child, Too Much Time, resonated with me unaware of the Netflix series 'Reacher" based on his book which I, consequently, viewed. To my surprise, it followed the storyline closely which pleased me. It was interesting to find out in author's notes that Child himself was, in fact, very happy with this work- to such a degree- he considered it "one of the best things I had ever done." My other favorites included the work of Alan Orloff Rule Number One which I found entertaining and suDylan The Aperx Predator again for its ability to surprise the reader, Scott Loring Sanders' Waiting on Joe and the initial story, Banana Triangle Six by Louis Bayard.
Even if you are not a mystery fan, I think you will find these stories thought provoking and intriguing. The collection offers a wonderful way to learn the style of many authors in a truncated fashion. That this particular grouping was the work of Louise Penny, need I say more? These twenty were selected among the thousands published in 2018. These front runners deserve to have made the cut! This book is a gem.
The chapter offered by Lee Child, Too Much Time, resonated with me unaware of the Netflix series 'Reacher" based on his book which I, consequently, viewed. To my surprise, it followed the storyline closely which pleased me. It was interesting to find out in author's notes that Child himself was, in fact, very happy with this work- to such a degree- he considered it "one of the best things I had ever done." My other favorites included the work of Alan Orloff Rule Number One which I found entertaining and suDylan The Aperx Predator again for its ability to surprise the reader, Scott Loring Sanders' Waiting on Joe and the initial story, Banana Triangle Six by Louis Bayard.
Even if you are not a mystery fan, I think you will find these stories thought provoking and intriguing. The collection offers a wonderful way to learn the style of many authors in a truncated fashion. That this particular grouping was the work of Louise Penny, need I say more? These twenty were selected among the thousands published in 2018. These front runners deserve to have made the cut! This book is a gem.
December 23, 2018
Quite a few of the stories could have been classified as science fiction and not my idea of mysteries. The definition here was it has to have a crime.
November 9, 2018
chose this book to read on a recent vacation. some of the stories were just wonderful..really liked "smoked" by Michael Bracken..well written and surprise ending..had my interest throughout the story. makes you think of whom else is hiding in America. "Banana Triangle Six" should appeal to those elders in care centers. what a novel twist on picking who should vacant their apartment and the world. Lee Child's "Too Much Time" is very typical writing for him..I love his character Jack Reacher and probably will read all of these stories that he writes. this story was like a mini novel. Have been to Lancaster, Ca so the setting and characters in "The Third Panel" by Michael Connelly was very identifiedly. surprise ending with the misidentification of the FBI helicopter and its occupants. sounds like it would have happened in that desert town. overall good collection of stories..
January 10, 2019
I enjoy mysteries and I enjoy short stories, so this volume attracted me on a couple fronts. I also appreciate someone (in this case, Louise Penny and Otto Penzler, series editor) taking the time to cull the literature and decide which short mysteries are worth inclusion in their fine volume.
Generally, I enjoyed all of these stories, some more than others. I’d have to say T.C. Boyle and Joyce Carol Oates are big hitters with whom I’m familiar. Frankly, I liked Joyce’s story more than T.C.’s, however the writing and pacing in both were superb. In fact, for me, the final five stories were all pretty good. Some of the others � e.g., Death in the Serengetti � were interesting and well-constructed, but I didn’t find the language first rate.
The only reason I'm giving this four stars is because anthologies are tough to rate higher, given the unevenness of the pieces.
Generally, I enjoyed all of these stories, some more than others. I’d have to say T.C. Boyle and Joyce Carol Oates are big hitters with whom I’m familiar. Frankly, I liked Joyce’s story more than T.C.’s, however the writing and pacing in both were superb. In fact, for me, the final five stories were all pretty good. Some of the others � e.g., Death in the Serengetti � were interesting and well-constructed, but I didn’t find the language first rate.
The only reason I'm giving this four stars is because anthologies are tough to rate higher, given the unevenness of the pieces.
November 8, 2018
I think I started this series in the early 2000s, and have enjoyed each annual addition to the series. I started reading them as paperbacks, but now read them as ebooks. Last year I realized I hadn't read the first few books in the series. They were all physical books and I was able to get copies so I finished off the series. It has been an enjoyable journey and I look forward to each new leg as the years go by. Each volume introduces me to some new discoveries that I can follow into their booklists.
Thank you Otto Penzler.
Thank you Otto Penzler.
November 9, 2018
This is the only one of the Best American series that I've read from cover to cover. And it almost wasn't: "Phantomwise: 1972" (Joyce Carol Oates) was a slog, but I persisted and made it. Otherwise, my favorites were "Gun Work" (John Floyd), "Windward" (Paul Marks), and "Waiting on Joe" (Scott Loring Sanders) � the latter eliciting laughs from me on just about every page (much to the chagrin of my fellow coffeeshop patrons) as I indentified with the wry humor and travails of the protagonist. Three cheers for the editor, Louise Penny, for picking works of such depth and substance.
April 8, 2021
Probably my favorite installment of the series. Faves:
Louis Bayard -- Banana Triangle Six
Andrew Bourelle -- Y is for Yangchuan Lizard
T.C. Boyle -- The Designee
Michael Bracken -- Smoked
James Lee Burke -- The Wild Side of Life
Lee Child -- Too Much Time
Michael Connelly -- The Third Panel
Rob Hart -- Takeout
Paul D. Marks -- Windward
Alan Orloff -- Rule Number One
Louis Bayard -- Banana Triangle Six
Andrew Bourelle -- Y is for Yangchuan Lizard
T.C. Boyle -- The Designee
Michael Bracken -- Smoked
James Lee Burke -- The Wild Side of Life
Lee Child -- Too Much Time
Michael Connelly -- The Third Panel
Rob Hart -- Takeout
Paul D. Marks -- Windward
Alan Orloff -- Rule Number One
August 21, 2021
There are many major authors who are included in this series of short stories including the likes of James Lee Burke and Lee Child. Still, I found myself drifting off into a state of inattention or boredom too often to recommend this collection with any enthusiasm.
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