A missing shipment of weapons for China and the murder of an aspiring scientist kickstart a madcap dash through the world of seances, prizefighting, cutting-edge technology, Holmesian cameos, and many disguises.London, 1924. Judge Cheng Gao Shang has been sent by Sun Yat Sen’s government to look into the death of Dee Ren Jie, the larger-than-life investigator who had kept the local Chinese community safe. But Dee isn’t dead; he’s hiding out with his friends Lao She...

A missing shipment of weapons for China and the murder of an aspiring scientist kick-start a madcap dash through the world of seances, prizefighting, cutting-edge technology, Holmesian cameos, and many disguises.London, 1924. Judge Cheng Gao Shang has been sent by Sun Yat Sen’s government to look into the death of Dee Ren Jie, the larger-than-life investigator who had kept the local Chinese community safe. But Dee isn’t dead; he’s hiding out with his friends Lao Sh...

"All the heavy hitters...came out for USA Noir...an important anthology of stories shrewdly culled by Johnny Temple."--New York Times Book Review (Editors' Choice)One of Zoom Street Magazine's Favorite Books of 2014Indie Books Roundup #1 Pick, Barnes & Noble Book BlogIncluded in Zoom Street Magazine's Summer Reading (Mysteries/Noir) RoundupOne of "1...

A lightning-paced, kung fu-filled historical mystery in which two amateur Chinese sleuths take down a sinister conspiracy between Imperial Russia, Japan, and China in 1920s London. Perfect for fans of Laura Shepherd-Robinson and Laurie R. King.Judge Dee and Lao She must use all their powers of deduction—and kung fu skills—to take down a sinister conspiracy between Imperial Russia, Japan, and China in 1920s London.London, 1924. Following several months abroa...

From Publishers Weekly:"Standouts include Dennis Lehane's gilt-edged chiller, 'A Bostonian (in Cambridge),' in which a wealthy collector of letters of abandonment falls prey to wily blackmailers, and Joe R. Lansdale's 'The Skull Collector,' a gangster yarn featuring gun-toting female grave robbers. Overshadowing everything, though, is Lee Goldberg's 'Lost Shows,' a delightful shocker about a fanatical collector of short-lived and unaired TV shows who has t...

Novel Ideas provides a substantial introduction to the elements of fiction followed by in-depth interviews with successful novelists who speak with candor and insight into the complex process by which a novel is made. This edition includes new and updated interviews as well as writing exercises to enhance its use in the writing classroom.Dorothy Allison recalls "deliciously self-indulgent" days of writing in her bathrobe, wrapped in misery and exultation; Peter Cameron exp...

Our 97th issue is brimming with interesting items. On the mystery front, Acquiring Editor Michael Bracken has discovered a brand-new story from Dave Zeltserman for us, while Acquiring Editor Barb Goffman brings us an intriguing S.J. Rozan tale. I’ve also been persuading fantasist Phyllis Ann Karr to let us reprint some of her early work—and this time, we have a mystery! Who knew that she launched her writing career with a string of top-notch mystery stories? I certainly didn’t. Also includ...

The latest Lydia Chin/Bill Smith mystery takes the acclaimed detective duo into the Deep South to investigate a murder within the Chinese community.The Most Southern Place on Earth: that’s what they call the Mississippi Delta. It’s not a place Lydia Chin, an American-born Chinese private detective from Chinatown, New York City, ever thought she’d have reason to go. But when her mother tells her a cousin Lydia didn’t know she had is in jail in Clarksdale, Mississippi―and that Lydia ...

Most people believe Jimmy Antonelli is bad to the bone…New York detective – and an old friend of the family – Bill Smith is one of the few people who has ever been willing to give Jimmy a second chance. Given his own brushes with the law, Bill has an unsurprising sympathy for the youngest Antonelli brother.But this time Jimmy has gone too far. There’s a corpse of a local gangster in the cellar of Antonelli’s bar and Jimmy has disappeared...But findi...

'In twelve hours Lydia Chin will be dead...'The phone call comes in the early hours. A cold, electronic voice informs detective Bill Smith that his best friend is being held hostage. And the clock is ticking...If Bill wants his partner back he'll have to play the kidnapper's sadistic game to find her - and find her fast - before the psycho makes good his promise to kill her...Please note this novel is called ON THE LINE in the US.

Lydia Chin and Bill Smith have been hired by one of the most respected figures in New York City's Chinatown, for what appears to be a simple task - deliver a family heirloom to the young grandson of the recently deceased business colleague of Grandfather Gao.Before they can deliver the heirloom, the grandson is kidnapped and two separate ransom demands are made. While the family of the kidnapped boy tries to freeze them out, Lydia and Bill must quickly learn their way around a city...

Discover the darker side of the Garden State with this anthology of gritty mystery stories.Akashic Books continues its award-winning series of original noir anthologies, launched in 2004 with Brooklyn Noir. Each volume is compromised of all-new stories, each one set in a distinct location within the geographical area of the book. In New Jersey Noir, a star-studded cast of authors sifts through the hidden dirt of the Garden State.Featuring br...