Maxima Library

For the first time ever, legendary editor Otto Penzler has handpicked some of the most respected and bestselling thriller writers working today for a riveting collection of spy fiction. From first to last, this stellar collection signals mission accomplished.

Including:

* Lee Child with an incredible look at the formation of a special ops cell.

* James Grady writing about an Arab undercover FBI agent with an active cell.

* Joseph Finder riffing on a Boston architect who's convinced his Persian neighbors are up to no good.

* John Lawton concocting a Len Deighton-esque story about British intelligence.

* Stephen Hunter thrilling us with a tale about a WWII brigade.

Full list of Contributors:

James Grady, Charles McCarry, Lee Child, Joseph Finder, John Lawton, John Weisman, Stephen Hunter, Gayle Lynds, David Morrell, Andrew Klavan, Robert Wilson, Dan Fesperman, Stella Rimington, Olen Steinhauer

DESCRIPTION: From some of the greatest literary minds of our time comes a collection of stories about dangerous women.

With an unprecedented lineup of authors, Mysterious Press proudly presents an extraordinary collection of short stories. Lorenzo Carcaterra, Michael Connelly, John Connolly, Jeffery Deaver, Nelson DeMille, J.A. Jance, Andrew Klavan, Elmore Leonard, Laura Lippman, Ed McBain, Jay McInerney, Walter Mosley, Joyce Carol Oates, Anne Perry, Ian Rankin, S.J. Rozan, and Thomas H. Cook combine their talents in a collection which is certain to find a large audience eager to read stories by some of the most distinguished names in the genre.

Faltan pocas horas para la ejecucion de Frank Beachum; el ya se encuentra en una cruel agonia, cuando el frio halito del terror impregna todas las celulas del cuerpo. sin esperanza. Ni siquiera en el periodista Steve Everett, quiza la unica persona del mundo que cree en su inocencia…

They came on a mission of mercy, but now they’re in a fight for their lives.

High schooler Will Peterson and three friends journeyed to Central America to help rebuild a school. In a poor,secluded mountain village, they won the hearts of the local people with their energy and kindness.

But in one sudden moment, everything went horribly wrong. A revolution swept the country. Now, guns and terror are everywhere—and Americans are being targeted as the first to die.

Will and his friends have got to get out fast. But streets full of killers… hills patrolled by armies… and a jungle rife with danger stand between them and the border. Their one hope of escape lies with a veteran warrior who has lost his faith and may betray them at any moment. Their one dream is to reach freedom and safety and home.

If they can just survive.

An anthology of stories

The city is at the centre of all good crime writing: Los Angeles has Raymond Chandler, Chicago has Sara Paretsky and Mexico City has Paco Taibo. London has the contributors to London Noir who explore the dark underbelly of London and celebrate the triple by-passed heart of England's capital city. They reveal London to be a city of mayhem and depravity not to be recommended to tourists from Miami!

Las mujeres más peligrosas son aquellas que resultan irresistibles. ¿Qué hace peligrosa a una mujer? Su gran belleza, su encanto, su inteligencia, la manera en que se aparta el cabello de los ojos, o el modo de reírse. Puede tener conciencia absoluta de su poder, o desconocerlo por completo. Utilizarlo comoa rma o protegerse detrás de él. La intención y el propósito no aumentan ni disminuyen el poder, y ése es mayor peligro de todos los que son seducidos y sometidos por él.

Un investigatore romantico, arguto e profondo conoscitore dell’animo umano; un motociclista e pilota, cinico e testardo, che non esita a menare le mani, e infine un giovane apprendista detective, idealista e sognatore. Sono questi i tre eroi della Weiss Investigations, un’agenzia che, sullo sfondo mutevole di San Francisco, si trova coinvolta in una fitta trama di casi che alla fine convergono in un unico grande complotto. Sembra, infatti, che dietro a tutti i delitti, gli attentati e le trame criminali ci sia un killer che nessuno ha il coraggio di nominare. Shadowman, l’uomo ombra, и una realtа o soltanto un nome, dato per spaventare poliziotti e delinquenti? И un astuto criminale o solo un fantomatico personaggio inventato per archiviare i troppi delitti irrisolti? Ma la presenza di Shadowman и reale, presente in ogni tassello di un complesso mosaico di azioni criminali finalizzate a un piano che lui solo conosce. E che solo gli agenti della Weiss Investigations sapranno svelare… Pubblicato anche con il titolo L’ombra del Diavolo.

For many years, some of the most vital, creative, and exciting fiction published in America has been in the field of mystery, crime, and suspense. Now Robert B. Parker and Otto Penzler — both Edgar winners — have assembled the best that 1997 had to offer: twenty terrific, titillating tales from such masters of the genre as Elmore Leonard, Elizabeth George, James Crumley, Jonathan Kellerman, and Andrew Klavan, from newcomers like Brad Watson, and from well-known literary writers such as Joyce Carol Oates and Michael Malone.

#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.

In his introduction to the The Best American Noir of the Century, James Ellroy writes, 'noir is the most scrutinized offshoot of the hard-boiled school of fiction. It's the long drop off the short pier and the wrong man and the wrong woman in perfect misalliance. It's the nightmare of flawed souls with big dreams and the precise how and why of the all-time sure thing that goes bad.' Offering the best examples of literary sure things gone bad, this collection ensures that nowhere else can readers find a darker, more thorough distillation of American noir fiction.

James Ellroy and Otto Penzler, series editor of the annual The Best American Mystery Stories, mined one hundred years of writing - 1910-2010 - to find this treasure trove of thirty-nine stories. From noir's twenties-era infancy come gems like James M. Cain's 'Pastorale,' and its post-war heyday boasts giants like Mickey Spillane and Evan Hunter. Packing an undeniable punch, diverse contemporary incarnations include Elmore Leonard, Patricia Highsmith, Joyce Carol Oates, Dennis Lehane, and William Gay, with many page-turners appearing in the last decade.