March 1, 2010
The Mystery Writers of America presents an all-original anthology sure to appeal to Twilight
fans with an interest in crime. While vampires are well represented among the 20 selections, most notably Parnell Hall's darkly humorous “Death of a Vampire,” bestseller Harris ensures that werewolves, ghosts, and magicians also get their due. Harley Jane Kozak does a superb job of integrating a ghost into a contemporary setting in “Madeeda,” in which an expectant mother is concerned over her two-year-old twins' visions of a “bad witch.” A phantom ship figures in Lou Kemp's “In Memory of the Sibylline
,” a highly effective horror story set in the 19th century. Even Mike Hammer gets into X-Files
mode in Max Allan Collins's and Mickey Spillane's “Grave Matter,” which successfully introduces a supernatural element into the case of a series of mysterious deaths in the ironically named town of Hopeful, N.Y. Other contributors include William Kent Krueger, Margaret Maron, and Carolyn Hart.