What The World Needs Now: Mystery Stories Inspired by the Music of Burt Bacharach

by Martin Edwards

What the World Needs Now is a book of brand-new mystery short stories written by leading crime writers from around the world, inspired by the music of Burt Bacharach, to raise funds for autism charities in the US and UK.



Burt Bacharach is popular music's closest equivalent to Agatha Christie, a hugely successful and innovative composer whose work is loved by millions across the world and continues to influence countless songwriters to this day.



Edgar and Diamond Dagger award-winning author Martin Edwards has put together a collection of hugely entertaining new mystery stories, each taking a title (and often much more than that) from a Bacharach song as the starting point. The result is a fascinating anthology that will appeal to mystery lovers everywhere.



Charles Todd, Mark Billingham, Ragnar Jonasson, and Abir Mukherjee are among the bestselling contributors to a book that is not only unique but dedicated to a truly worthwhile cause.



Stories Mark Billingham - Paul Charles - Caroline England - Kate Ellis - Martin Edwards - Barb Goffman - Joseph Goodrich - Simon Guerrier - Sarah Hilary - Melodie Johnson Howe - Ragnar Jonasson - Alison Joseph - Christina Koning - Peter Lovesey - William B. McCormick - Abir Mukherjee - Josh Pachter - Christine Poulson - Shawn Reilly Simmons - Tim Sullivan - Art Taylor - Charles Todd - Rhian Waller

384 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 28, 2026

About the author

Martin Edwards has been described by Richard Osman as ‘a true master of British crime writing.’ He has published twenty-three novels, which include the eight Lake District Mysteries, one of which was shortlisted for the Theakston’s Prize for best crime novel of the year and four books featuring Rachel Savernake, including the Dagger-nominated Gallows Court and Blackstone Fell, while Gallows Court and Sepulchre Street were shortlisted for the eDunnit award for best crime novel of the year. He is also the author of two multi-award-winning histories of crime fiction, The Life of Crime and The Golden Age of Murder. He has received three Daggers from the Crime Writers’ Association and two Edgars from the Mystery Writers of America and has also been nominated three times for Gold Daggers. In addition to the CWA Diamond Dagger (the highest honour in UK crime writing) he has received four other lifetime achievement awards: for his fiction, short fiction, non-fiction, and scholarship. He is consultant to the British Library’s Crime Classics, a former Chair of the CWA, and since 2015 has been President of the Detection Club.

Reviews

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to confess I wasn't overly familiar with the works of Burt Bacharach before I delved into this anthology. I knew that he was a songwriter, I just didn't know what those songs were, but I do now. 😉🎵
I think it would be fair to say that the big draw for me was the fact that this collection was edited by Martin Edwards, and contained stories by Mark Billingham, Ragnar Jónasson, and Abir Mukherjee. I just knew I was on to a good thing. 🎵
I was not disappointed. From start to finish, this collection contains some of the finest crime shorts. I loved all of them, and it would be nigh on impossible for me to pick a favourite. 🎵
The icing on the cake for me is knowing that royalties and proceeds from this book go to autism charities in the UK and USA. 🎵