| Title | : | The Penguin Book of Crime Stories |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0143053493 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780143053491 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 272 |
| Publication | : | First published January 1, 2007 |
The Penguin Book of Crime Stories Reviews
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Whenever I read a collection of short stories, I usually check off the ones I like best in the table of contents. When I realized I’d checked off over half of the fifteen crime stories in this collection, it became pretty clear that this was a great book. Since the stories were selected by Peter Robinson, prolific author of the Inspector Banks series, I should have known I was in good hands. Among the contributors were Michael Connelly, Laura Lippman, Sara Paretsky, Mary Jane Maffini, Robert J. Sawyer, and Ian Rankin, all writers I admire very much.
The truth is there wasn’t a bad story in the bunch. The stories I liked most resonated with me for one reason or another. In others, the crime seemed secondary, or the piece was a little too predictable. My favorites were the traditional whodunnits, and there were some terrific ones. Still, for those who love to read short crime fiction, and especially those who love to write it, this is a terrific book to pick up and learn from the masters. -
Excellent stories. Each one offers something different. Among my favorites were Peter Robinson, who refects on a past crime, Sara Paretsky who writes a delightful baseball themed story, Michael Connolly who writes a straight forward mystery and a short story from George Pelecanos. I have not been a fan of Pelecanos's novels, but this short story is one of the best I've read in a long while. It isn't so much a mystery as a slice of life tale about a black urban youth trying to avoid trouble and the black Sergeant who tries to look out for him. George Pelecanos just nails the language & atmosphere.
My least favorite was a story by Karin Slaughter. Her tale was a little too disturbing for me. All in all a terrific collection. Not every story is what some might consider a straight forward mystery. Some are reflections on disfunctional relationships and lost loves. I'm looking forward to reading the second volume of these shorts, also selected by Peter Robinson. -
Many Canadian authors - including the person who selected and introduced the book - Peter Robinson.
15 stories-
Robert Barnard Sins of Scarlet - Popes, Catholicism and murder - impossible! Quite enjoyable - 3 1/2 stars.
Mark Billingham Stepping Up - Not my favourite story, it was so so. 2 1/2 stars.
Michael Connelly Angle of Investigation - Liked it, but unfortunately, guessed "whodunnit". 3 1/2 stars.
John Harvey Just Friends - Drugs, Dublin, interesting -4 stars.
Jose Latour Havanightmare - Cruise ship, tragic, really liked story - 4 1/2 stars.
Laura Lippman Easy at A-B-C - Affair, revenge, good story - 4 stars.
Mary Jane Maffini Wake up Little Suzie - strong heroine - 4 1/2 stars.
Sara Paretsky Lily and the Sockeyes - Revenge, a sports story with a female slant - 5 stars.
George Pelecanos String Music - A story set where I have no experience, however, it is easy to relate with the "hero" - 3 1/2 stars.
Ian Rankin Concrete Evidence - Always happy to see a story/book with Rebus and this one was certainly not disappointing - 4 1/2 stars.
Peter Robinson April in Paris - Years later, learn what you didn't know back then - 3 1/2 stars.
Robert J Sawyer Biding Time - Life on Mars, loved this story - 5 stars.
Peter Sellers Avenging Miriam - I watched the news today, and there was a large story regarding youth violence. This story was written more than 20 years ago - I am sad, but this was a good story - 4 1/2 stars.
Eric Wright Licensed Guide - read this story before, didn't mind re-reading it. 3 1/2 stars. -
There are some truly standout stories in this collection of 15 amassed and edited by Peter Robinson whose Banks crime series has been delighting us for many years.
Short stories need to grab you right from the start with character depth, plot, setting, conflict and then, pow, resolution, good or bad, in only a few pages. While all these tales are very good, my faves were Easy as A-B-C by Laura Lippman, Concrete Evidence by Ian Rankin and a special sci-fi crime treat Biding Time by Robert J. Sawyer.
Robinson gives us a story of his own, April in Paris that will give you a jolt and is as different from a Banks' story as could possibly be.
What's great about this collection is the introduction to authors who may be new to you. For me, I'm checking out other Sawyer books pronto along with Karin Slaughter whose story in here, Necessary Women had me re-read it because it just packed such a wallop the first time, had to make sure I got it right.
During our pandemic times, short stories are an ideal kind of book, easy to pick up, read a story, read another one later in the week when we're not so distracted. -
Some good stories and some not. Still I enjoyed this group of short storeies. This was my backup book for when I didn't have another book on the go. It was a good backup book.
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Decent Mystery short stories -
- a pretty fair collection of crime stories
- enough said... -
A good read; lots of twists and turns.
