A collection of twenty short stories from the legendary crime author and creator of the 87th Precinct series.Ed McBain was one of the most admired and prolific crime writers of the twentieth century. His long-running 87th Precinct series helped define the gritty police procedural. In The McBain Brief, he presents a series of short stories where desperation, greed, and violence lead to bad ends. A collector who loves his porcelain more than his daughter; a hooker who melts the heart of a tough cop; an ex-fighter who goes berserk at Christmas; an automobile dealer out for a funny business ride. In The McBain Brief, readers will meet these and other colorful characters who run afoul of, and then into, the arms of the law . . .

"I really like his main character, Alex McKnight, and I'm ready to revisit Paradise, Michigan." —James PattersonSteve Hamilton's novels have won the mystery world's most prestigious awards and topped bestsellers list everywhere. With North of Nowhere, he returns to Michigan's Upper Peninsula and former Detroit cop Alex McKnight.After a game of poker turns into a professional heist, McKnight finds himself lying facedown on the floor with a gun to the back of his head. When the dust settles, McKnight is one of the police chief's lead suspects. Worse, one of the other card players has the same idea, and he has no qualms about exercising some vigilante justice of his own.Alex knows he is the only one who can uncover the truth. But is he about to discover how dark this conspiracy truly is—or how close to guilt he actually stands?Praise for Steve Hamilton and the Alex McKnight novels"A proven master of suspense." ?Lee Child"I'm often asked to recommend a detective series readers might have missed. This is it." ?Harlan Coben"As original as any writer I've ever read" —Michael Connelly"Already one of our best writers." ?Laura Lippman"I really like his main character, Alex McKnight, and I'm ready to revisit Paradise, Michigan." ?James Patterson"Whatever he writes, I'll read. Steve Hamilton's that good." —Don Winslow

Amazon.com Review That Steve Hamilton has won a following by writing private-eye novels about a guy who has no interest in being a PI is testament both to his storytelling talents and readers' hunger for fresh approaches to this genre. North of Nowhere finds ex-Detroit cop Alex McKnight celebrating his 49th birthday by retreating to his cabin in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, where he laments his personal and career failures. Eventually, though, McKnight is coaxed out with the prospect of a poker game, hosted by wealthy contractor Winston Vargas, only to have the game interrupted by armed men in masks, who empty Vargas's safe and leave clues suggesting that Alex and his fellow players engineered the heist. Now, McKnight really has reason to feel sorry for himself. But instead, he goes after the gunmen, along the way swapping sucker punches with Vargas, shaking down his former detective partner (who videotaped the thieves' escape), and discovering that even his friends harbor secrets that could get them all killed. This fourth McKnight outing (after 2001's The Hunting Wind) is a fine showcase for Hamilton's lithesome prose. The pace is brisk, the episodes often humorous, and the tale brims with an infectious reverence for its natural setting ("God help me, on a summer night when the sun is going down, it is the most beautiful place on earth"). If Hammett moved the detective story from the drawing room into the mean streets, Hamilton has proved that the north woods have their own potential for homicidal intrigue. --J. Kingston Pierce Review “Superb! Hamilton keeps the action fast and furious and manages to keep the reader off balance.” ?Publishers Weekly“A bracing, sometimes sidesplitting...novel.” ?Booklist“Hamilton packs plenty of hardscrabble characters and pithy dialogue into a nifty mystery...there's nothing like a bit of Paradise-Michigan, that is.” ?Columbia State“North of Nowhere has a twisty plot with genuine surprises, but it's the understanding of the people who live in the Upper Peninsula and the love for both the harshness and beauty of the Lake Superior shoreline that make this another good entry in a terrific series.” ?Flint Journal“A fast-paced book with wonderful characters...Hamilton writes great prose.” ?ReviewTheEvidence.com“A robust entry...Alex is at his best and the support cast augments the isolated feeling of going north of nowhere that shows why Steve Hamilton is an award-winning author.” ?Internet Bookwatch From the Inside Flap "Hamilton['s]...tensile prose...reflects the dramatic, often violent contradictions of people who live on the edge of the world."--The New York Times Book Review"Superb!"--Publishers Weekly "A brisk, well-plotted tale."--Kirkus Reviews"Terrific!"--Flint JournalEnjoy These Other Alex Mcknight Mysteries From Edgar Award-Winning Author Steve Hamilton:The Hunting WindWinter of the Wolf MoonA Cold Day In Paradise From the Back Cover "Steve Hamilton writes the kind of stories that [one] can't resist."--The New York Times Book ReviewSteve Hamilton's debut novel A Cold Day In Paradise was the first novel to capture mystery's three most prestigious awards-the Edgar, the Shamus, and the Anthony awards for best first novel. Now North of Nowhere returns to the beautiful and dangerous landscapes of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, where former Detroit cop Alex McKnight's attempts to leave civilization behind only lead to disaster...Lying facedown on the floor with a gun to the back of his head is where Alex McKnight finds himself after a game of cards turns into a professional heist at the home of local developer Win Vargas. When the dust settles, McKnight is one of police chief Roy Maven's lead suspects. Worse, Vargas' own sense of vigilante justice has targeted the former private eye as well, and the brash millionaire may be responsible for the sudden disappearance of Alex's best friend, Jackie. Now, with officials pointed in the wrong direction and his closest allies either missing or in jail, Alex knows he is the only one who can uncover the truth. But McKnight can't possibly know how dark this conspiracy truly is-or how close to guilt he actually stands... About the Author Steve Hamilton was born and raised in the Detroit area. He now lives in upstate New York with his wife and children. His first novel, A Cold Day in Paradise won the 1997 SMP/ PWA Award for Best First Private Eye Novel, the 1999 Edgar Award, and the Shamus Award.

Thunder rattles the windows of the deserted hotel. Morgan spots the young girl on the floor, her dark hair fanned out and covered in shattered glass. Lightning strikes, illuminating the blood on every surface.Following an emergency call in the middle of a fierce storm, Detective Morgan Brookes arrives at Keswick Manor, a crumbling, empty hotel in the Lake District, where she finds the dead body of a young woman. She recognises her bright blue eyes instantly. Lauren Williams’ body is still warm to the touch, a knife protruding out of her chest, just like the one that killed her sister, Lydia, one month ago. But the killer in that case is dead…Morgan can’t imagine the horror Lauren went through as she combs the scene; a broken radio on the stairs suggest she was running from someone. Lauren knew her sister was murdered, did she know she was next? Grief-stricken, Morgan sets to work on Lydia’s case files and refuses to sleep until she’s uncovered any small clue she missed. But by the time she discovers they had another sister, the poor girl is reported missing, her pink car found abandoned in the local woods surrounded by overgrown brambles.When Morgan spots a police identification number scribbled in the family’s old police files, she realises that one of her colleagues has been lying to her. The idea that someone at HQ is in league with a serial killer would send terrifying shockwaves through Rydal Falls, but Morgan can think of no other explanation. Can she save the final sister and catch this killer as a terrifying countdown begins? Or with evil closer than she thinks, watching Morgan’s every move, is she already in too much danger?Fans of Angela Marsons, Lisa Regan and Rachel Abbott will devour this unforgettable rollercoaster crime thriller late into the night.What readers are saying about Silenced Sisters:‘OH MY GOD!!!!!!… My jaw was on the floor… I was reading SO FAST… I actually couldn’t believe the outcome! I even messaged Helen saying omg… please read this series!’ readwithjessii, ?????‘Oh my goodness… I devoured this in a matter of hours, literally couldn’t put it down!… Gripping… Phenomenal… Like the fastest rollercoaster you could go on… don’t pick it up unless you have a few hours to spare, because You will be cancelling your plans! Wow!… What a book! Amazing!’ cypresscornerreads,?????‘Amazing… Made my jaw drop! This book kept me up at night reading "just one more chapter"!’ erika_books_always, ?????‘Sucks you in from the very first page… Phenomenal… Twists that you don’t see coming. FANTASTIC!’ Goodreads reviewer,?????‘I have loved every minute… Devoured in one sitting… Completely addictive. I was pulled in and unwilling to put this down.’littlemissbooklover87,?????‘Gripping… packed with twists that genuinely made me gasp and say whhhattt?!?! out loud!… Fantastic.’ Goodreads reviewer, ?????‘Had me flipping pages like my life depended on it.’ sarah_coffee_and_books,?????‘Wow… had me on the edge of my seat… As I finished my heart was racing…!’ Goodreads reviewer, ?????‘From the very first chapter, I was instantly hooked!… This will have you wanting more after each and every chapter and page. I read in one sitting… !’ bradysbookshelf,?????

Everyone knows the victim. Don't they..?When a celebrity icon is attacked in his home during an apparent robbery-in-progress, the authorities are tasked with tracking down the perpetrator. Such a beloved national treasure and his equally famous wife means the investigation takes top priority, but Reilly Steel suspects there's a lot more to this than meets the eye.Was it a random attack? Or just a carefully choreographed diversion ...Could the famed family's tightly-managed media persona blind everyone to the fact that their charmed life is not quite what it seems?And that there's a LOT more to celebrity than meets the eye...WHAT READERS ARE SAYING: 'Talk about complicated and twisted in every way! Every other chapter I knew who did the crime. And then I didn't know who did the crime.''Another classic page turner.''Intense mystery with a surprise around each curve. A must read for that problem solving mystery reader.'

If someone ever tells you that small towns are boring and that nothing ever happens in them, just shake your head and walk away because they have no idea what they are talking about! New York Times bestselling author Nick Russell spent much of his working life publishing small town newspapers on the Pacific Northwest coast and in Arizona and has seen it all, from scandal to murder and everything in between. Not only did all of that small town drama fill the pages of his newspapers, it also gave him the basis for several bestselling mystery series, all set in small towns across America.Here are four of them, including the story of a girl from the wrong side of the tracks who came to a sad and sordid end, a small town lawman suffering a personal tragedy when violent crime hits close to home, a deputy in rural Florida who becomes involved in a case dating back decades, and an everyday Joe who went shopping for Black Friday specials and found his life turned upside down.As you delve into these books, rich with characters who will remind you of the people you see every day, we're sure you will agree that small towns are far from boring!

She reads the dead for a living. The one person she can't read is still breathing.Washington D.C.'s Chief Medical Examiner shares nothing from her lab.Not with the mayor's office — she hangs up on them mid-sentence.Not with the press.Not with anyone.But this caller knows her findings detail by detail, describing things that never left her table. And he keeps being right. FBI Agent Andre Winters tells her to stop answering. She knows she should. Every time she tries, something the caller said turns out to be true — and the next lead gets harder to walk away from.She is either following her most dangerous lead. Or she is being led.Can she trust the one person she'll never be able to read?Time of Death is Book 1 of the Giselle Norwood forensic thriller series. For fans of Patricia Cornwell, Tess Gerritsen, and Karin Slaughter.