Unusual Suspects: A New Anthology of Crime Stories from Black Lizard

by James Grady (Editor)

In Unusual Suspects, America's most acclaimed crime writers, along with some authors rarely associated with the genre, contribute fifteen new stories and two rediscovered classics to this riveting anthology.

James Lee Burke, author of the bestselling Dave Robicheaux mysteries, gives us a feverishly atmospheric tale of racism and moral courage on the Louisiana bayou. From the files of Jim Thompson, the godfather of American noir, comes the story of a murder with a victim so nasty we defy anyone to shed a tear far him. And Joyce Carol Oates shows us how a sudden brush with violence can turn a public servant into a public enemy. The result is a deliriously pulse-pounding collection that proves that although crime doesn't pay, it can help a good cause.

All the stories in this collection of crime fiction have been donated to benefit Share Our Strength, a Washington, D. C.-based nonprofit organization that combats hunger, poverty, and illiteracy.

Genres: Short Stories, Crime, Anthologies, Mystery

340 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1996

About the author

James Grady is a longtime author of thrillers, police procedural and espionage novels. He graduated from the University of Montana School of Journalism in 1974. During college, he worked for United States Senator Lee Metcalf of Montana as an staff member.

From 1974 - 1978 he was an investigative journalist for the famous muckraker Jack Anderson. Best known as the author of Six Days of the Condor , which was adapted to film as Three Days of the Condor starring Robert Redford in 1975.

James Grady has gone on to write almost a dozen more novels in the thirty-eight years since Six Days of the Condor was published.

In the past James Grady has written under the pseudonyms of James Dalton and Brit Shelby.

Reviews

[Woody Chandler · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the majority of the stories and if possible, I would have rated it 4.25. The real klinker came courtesy of Joyce Carol Oates. I have yet to read anything by her that I like! I was elated by the inclusion of a "found" "lost" Jim Thompson story, since he is the one that put me onto Black Lizard 🦎 Vintage Crime in the first place.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bottom line: I rarely likely short story collections. This book is no exception - while there are certainly some good stories, most were unsatisfying.

[Amy Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this. Several short stories. There were one or two that I thought were boring, but I enjoyed it for the most part.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good varied collection from some of the best