The Best American Mystery Stories 2004

by Nelson DeMille (Editor), Otto Penzler (Series Editor)

Since its inception in 1915, the Best American series has become the premier annual showcase for the country’s finest short fiction and nonfiction. For each volume, a series editor reads pieces from hundreds of periodicals, then selects between fifty and a hundred outstanding works. That selection is pared down to twenty or so very best pieces by a guest editor who is widely recognized as a leading writer in his or her field. This unique system has helped make the Best American series the most respected — and most popular — of its kind.

Assembled by best-selling suspense author Nelson DeMille, The Best American Mystery Stories 2004 contains a spectacular array of stories by mystery veterans and talented newcomers. Follow a chain reaction that saves a woman’s life, visit a house haunted by a husband’s violent killing spree, enter the high-stakes world of Las Vegas gambling, watch the line between reality and dream blur, travel with a bored salesman driven to crime, and much more. Encompassing all aspects of the genre, this year’s selections are sure to quicken pulses, send chills down the spine, and keep readers continually guessing.

Bet on red / Jeff Abbott --
Stonewalls / Jeffrey Robert Bowman --
Height advantage / William J. Carroll, Jr. --
Evolution / Benjamin Cavell --
All through the house / Christopher Coake --
Where beautiful ladies dance for you / Patrick Michael Finn --
How Wendy Tudhope was saved from sure and certain death / Rob Kantner --
Snake eyes / Jonathon King --
Harvey's dream / Stephen King --
Smash and grab / Michael Knight --
Bank of America / Richard Lange --
Lids / Tom Larsen --
Low tide / Dick Lochte --
The incident of the impecunious chevalier / Richard A. Lupoff --
Doll: a romance of the Mississippi / Joyce Carol Oates --
The swag from Doc Hawthorne's / Jack O'Connell --
Best man wins / Frederick Waterman --
Something about Teddy / Timothy Williams --
El Rey / Scott Wolven --
Green heat / Angela Zeman

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Mystery, Anthologies

432 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2004

About the author

Nelson Richard DeMille was an American author of action adventure and suspense novels. His novels include Plum Island, The Charm School, and The General's Daughter. DeMille also wrote under the pen names Jack Cannon, Kurt Ladner, Ellen Kay and Brad Matthews.

Reviews

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some really good short stories in this collection. Some so-so. And some that I just didn't really understand. Most were very noir-ish. It's a very nice book to keep by your bedside as the short stories were a nice quick read.

[Frank · Rating 2 out of 5]

In his introduction, Nelson DeMille, the guest editor of this rather lackluster installment in this series, challenges readers to select the five best stories from this collection. In his mind, that would be difficult because of the stories' abundant brilliance. I'm afraid I don't agree. Here, in any case, are my four favorite:

"El Rey," by Scott Wolven—a hard-bitten tale about lumbermen

"All Through the House," by Christopher Coake—a story told in reverse chronological order about a horrific murder-suicide spurred by adulterous betrayal

"Snake Eyes," by Jonothon King—a taut narrative about a daring caper

"Bank of America," by Richard Lange—a man seeks the American dream through bank robbery

[Elysse AKA EILIS Heller · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some stories, of course, were better than others. I found that reading books are easier for me rather than reading short stories. I am blind and this particular book was sent to me from the Library of Congress talking books program. I read books from the Library of Congress at night on my talking book player to help me get through the night. These short stories were of a length that I couldn't stay awake for the entire story and woke up in the middle of the next story so I had to keep jumping back to the previous story and try to find the last portion I remembered. I am better with chapters. I used the book mark feature but it was still hard to navigate in the middle of the night. But, lack of vision aside, some of these short stories were good, some not so much.

[Lucy Takeda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a collection of very odd tales. I’d probably give it a 2.5. Several stories involve men bearing the sh** out of one another. I did enjoy the very last tale, Green Heat. One story did not make sense to me. I hit the last page, turned to the next page, and a new story was started there. I actually looked back and forth three times trying to locate a logical conclusion to The Swag from Doc Hawthorne’s. I just don’t get it. I can’t say I’d recommend this book.

[Alice Yoder · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started this book a year ago and finally finished this morning, exactly one year later! Several short stories: not all of them mysteries. Some ended abruptly, some didn't make sense. Still others were intriguing.

I read a story here and there in between other books, hence the year. I'll recycle it to some of my friends.

[Joanne Pascoe · Rating 3 out of 5]

This seems to be long-running series. Audio format showed up on the bookmobile. It contains seven stories from the hardcopy volume. They passed the time pleasantly. The two stories that stood out to me were "Where Beautiful Ladies Dance For You" Patrick Michael Flynn), and "Harvey's Dream" (Stephen King).

[John Boyda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy this series which is edited by Otto Penzler and has guest editors for each annual volume. This one had Nelson DeMille as the guest editor. The twenty stories were all good, a couple were disturbing. None were so memorable as to cause nightmares or act as an entry into a literary discussion. I’d recommend it.

[Andrew Westphal · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed many of the stories, but the suspenseful, often violent and deathly nature of mystery stories made it hard to read more than a few in a row without feeling somewhat unsettled. That experience testifies to the spark-plug power of these stories.

[Eva Youshock · Rating 4 out of 5]

The stories in this book were very well written, but were not really mysteries Most of them were very unusual and strange. There was a tremendous amount of violence. The stories were what I would consider “pulp fiction“, but with very high-quality writing.

[Monica Willyard Moen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The editor chose especially well in this volume of mystery stories, creating a very nice balance and keeping things interesting throughout the book.

[Julie Barrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

gr read

[Justsane · Rating 3 out of 5]

A reasonably entertaining collection of stories, but almost none of them are actually mysteries. The last story in the collection, GreenHeat by Angela Zeman, is hands down the best of the bunch.

[John Bruni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Usually, I don't have high hopes for this series. Whenever I read a volume, I'll find a couple of gems, a few all-right stories and a bunch of uninteresting yawners. This one, however, knocked me back. It would be easier to mention the stories I didn't like. Almost every story was a winner for me. "Bet on Red" is a great mobster/femme fatale pulp tale about gambling. "Height Advantage" is probably the best Virginiak story I've read (usually, they're only OK), in which he seeks out the murderer of an ex-lover. "Evolution" is a funny story about dating, friendship and murder. "All Through the House" has one of the most beautiful structures I've ever seen, starting with the aftermath of a horrible murder and telling the story backwards until we're in the childhood of the killer. (Plus, there is a neat little jab at true crime writers, which I found amusing.) "Where Beautiful Ladies Dance For You" is the melancholy tale of an ex-con turned bouncer and the small Greek restaurant/bellydancing joint he works at. (Plus, it happens pretty close to where I live, so that's cool.) "Smash and Grab" is the unusual story of what happens when a non-violent burglar gets caught red-handed by an abused teenaged girl. "Bank of America" is a great tale of blue collar bank robbers yearning for something more out of life. "Lids" brings the criminal-with-a-heart-of-gold trope to a whole new level. "Low Tide" shows what happens when a prideful man is shamed and then used by a femme fatale, which could have been published in the old time pulps. "The Incident of the Impecunious Chevalier" poses the question, "What if Sherlock Holmes studied under Dupin, and the two of them sought out the Maltese Falcon?" And the answer, of course, goes beyond expectations. "Best Man Wins" is a wonderful tale of a man taking vengeance on the man who is sleeping with his wife. (Plus, it has a wonderful, subtle ending that is absolutely delicious.) "Something About Teddy" is a very unusual serial killer story about insecurity and being unable to cope with who he is. And "El Rey" is an awesome, two-fisted tale of boxing and what a friend is willing to do for a friend. That's an excellent track record for an anthology. (Surprisingly, Stephen King's "Harvey's Dream" did not make this list. That's two anthologies in a row that he's disappointed me.)

[Andre · Rating 4 out of 5]

Come December, I head for Vrooman's and look for the latest installment in the series. Every year's collection is put together by publisher Otto Penzler and new guest editor (Nelson DeMille, in this case). Some years are better than others, but none are dogs. These are great books to bring along while traveling — because they're easier to put down.

[Frank McGirk · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good stuff here, but only Jack O'Connell's "The Swag from Doc Hawthorne's" was good enough to make me want to track down more stuff by the author. The story itself was unremarkable, but he created a tension that almost had me skimming paragraphs just so I could find out what was going to happen.

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

some of the stories were great, some were okay, some were a waste of time... i'll have to come back and break it down later.

however, they were the perfect length for reading on the bus, in the waiting room, etc.

[Macorcoran10 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Readable. Not that great.

[Amanda · Rating 1 out of 5]

A couple of good stories, but not worth reading through the whole book to find those select few.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy these compilations, and in this one particularly Jeff Abbott's "Bet on Red."

[alisonwonderland (Alison)]

This was a gift from Sue.

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very few really good stories, a couple of okay stories, but its mainly very poor stories.

[Mike Rockstroh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of the stories in here are quite good, other ones not so much, will make a top five list when I'm done with the book entirely.

[Theodore Kinni · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good, readable collection of short stories, with a couple that are real knock-outs.

[Janel · Rating 2 out of 5]

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