SMFS Member Publishing News: Murder Must Advertise by Albert Katz

 

SMFS list member Albert Katz’s short story, Murder Must Advertise, is published in the recently released The CultureCult Casebook: Anthology of Detective Fiction. Published at Lulu, the issue is available here in digital format.

 

Website Description:

Culturecult's first anthology of detective fiction features eighteen short stories and a mystery novella.

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Unlock the secrets of nineteen mysteries, each more tantalizing than the other! Throw yourself into the adventure and try to solve each case before the detective, or sit back and let them take you on a hair-raising ride.

Journey into a forbidding forest to find a lost boy, track a missing girl months after her disappearance, walk down the eerie alleys of Whitechapel searching for the Ripper, or investigate the murder of a young socialite with all the suspects still in the house!

Feel a whirlwind of emotions as you uncover secrets and truths that will set everyone free - except the criminal, of course!  Prepare yourself - the mysteries in this book will enthrall and entrap you until you unravel them all!

Featured authors in The CultureCult Casebook:

Martin Eastland, Minoti Vaishnav, Robb T. White, Romit Bagchi, Josh Poole, Hidayat Adams, Rollin Jewett, John A. DeLaughter, Nelly Shulman, Robert McDermott, LJ Jacobs, J. Agombar, Albert N. Katz, Maggie D Brace, Frederick Pangbourne, Robert Burns, Dibyasree Nandy, Zelda C. Thorne AND Jay Chakravarti

Little Big Crimes: Crime and Convenience, by Steve Shrott

Little Big Crimes: Crime and Convenience, by Steve Shrott:  "Crime and Convenience," by Steve Shrott, in Hook, Line, and Sinker: The Seventh Guppie Anthology, edited by Emily P.W. Murphy, W...

SMFS Member Publishing News: Night of the Laundry Cart by Tom Milani

 

SMFS list member Tom Milani’s short story, Night of the Laundry Cart, is published today in Black Cat Weekly #78. Published by Wildside Press, the issue is available here in digital format.

 

Website Description:

Our 78th issue features another lineup sure to please. We have an original mystery by Tom Milani (thanks to Acquiring Editor Michael Bracken). Acquiring Editor Barb Goffman has selected a great mystery by Brian Cox. Our other two Acquiring Editors, Cynthia Ward and Darrell Schweitzer, are still on break, but we hope they will be back soon.

I’ve balanced out the mystery side of this issue with a Sexton Blake story and a Hulbert Footner novel. For the fantasy side, we have three tales: a Frostflower & Thorn short story from Phyllis Ann Karr, a Jules de Grandin occult detective story from Seabury Quinn, and a ghostly tale by Grant Allen. On the third side, we have three science fiction stories—tales by Joe Bigson, Bill Venable, and Lester del Rey. Fun stuff. I hope you enjoy it.

 

Here’s this issue’s lineup:

Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure:

“Night of the Laundry Cart,” by Tom Milani [Michael Bracken Presents short story]

“A Valentine by the Numbers,” by Hal Charles [Solve-It-Yourself Mystery]

“The Frozen Fiske.” by Brian Cox [Barb Goffman Presents short story]

“The White Mouse,” by Hal Meredith [Sexton Blake novelet]

Cap’n Sue, by Hulbert Footner [novel]

 

Fantasy & Science Fiction:

“A Night at Two Inns.” by Phyllis Ann Karr [Frostflower & Thorn short story]

“Pallinghurst Barrow,” by Grant Allen [novelet]

“The Man Who Cast No Shadow,” by Seabury Quinn [Jules de Grandin novelet]

“I Like You, Too—” by Joe Gibson [short story]

“If At First,” by Bill Venable [short story]

“Moon-Blind,” by Lester del Rey [short story]

SleuthSayers: Get Involved by R.T. Lawton

SleuthSayers: Get Involved: Okay, so you're writing the next great American novel or short story. It will be published and you will become famous. At least that&#39...

SMFS Member Publishing News: Life Saver by Bev Vincent

SMFS list member Bev Vincent’s short story, Life Saver, appears in the recently published Still of Winter: An Unsettling Reads Anthology. Published by Untreed Reads in digital and print formats, is available at Amazon.  

 

Amazon Description:

In winter, there’s a stillness—a silence. As wet snowflakes fall, sounds are muffled. A hush lingers in the air. Bare trees reach upward from the frozen ground, grasping with their spindly branches. Swaying in the frigid breeze, brittle bark creaks and moans as the trees whisper ancient secrets to one another. Sentries, standing in the stillness. Watching. Learning new stories to share with each other long after we have gone.

This winter, we want to celebrate these majestic beings and what happens when the stillness is disturbed.

Within these pages are works by authors, poets, and photographers from around the world, each with a unique perspective on fantasy, horror, and sci-fi genres. We are humbled by the pieces we received from so many talented people, and we are proud of the works we are sharing with you. It is our sincere hope when you’ve finished reading, you’ll add a few new creative individuals to your arsenal.

SMFS Members Published in Rock and a Hard Place: Issue 9, Winter 2023

Several SMFS members are published in the Rock and a Hard Place: Issue 9, Winter 2023. Published by Rock and a Hard Place Press, the read is available in print and digital formats at Amazon. The SMFS list members in this issue are:

 

C.W. Blackwell with “No Wrong Way to Grieve.”

 

David Hagerty with “The Politics of Snitching”

 

Mike McHone with “The Last Ruined Night.”

 

Michael Penncavage with “Sunshine State Private Investigations.”

 

Elena E Smith with “Darker.” 

 

Amazon Description:

Everybody knows how to spot an undercover cop. Right?

Doing life, six months at a time . . .

You think the gun makers will always win?

When you can’t trust your own grandmother, that’s noir.

 

Rock and a Hard Place is back with issue 9, featuring a dirty dozen tales of woe and misfortune from some of crime and dark fiction’s finest, including: Jennifer Bernardini, C.W. Blackwell, David Hagerty, William Kitcher, Nick Kolakowski, Mike McHone, Michael Penncavage, Emilee Prado, Richard Risemberg, Elena E. Smith, Archer Sullivan, and Mike Zimmerman

Rock and a Hard Place is the literary magazine that comes face-to-face with our gritty truths and hard luck realities, and doesn’t blink.

SMFS Members Publishing News: Tales from the Ruins: A Post-Apocalyptic Anthology

 

Today is publication day for Tales from the Ruins: A Post-Apocalyptic Anthology. Published by Black Beacon Books, the read is available in digital and print formats from Amazon and other vendors. The SMFS list members in the book are:

 

Cameron Trost with “The Deep End.”

 

Joseph S. Walker with “Cast Upon the Water.”

 

Amazon Description:

Fourteen terrifying tales of a ruined tomorrow!

Was it nuclear war, an uncontrollable pandemic, or forces beyond our reckoning? Will we even know what happened once supply lines have been cut, radio silence has kicked in, and our world has come to a grinding halt? Who will have what it takes to carry on? Who will want to?

This cataclysmic anthology casts the reader into a post-apocalyptic world where every step taken and every decision made can mean the difference between life and death. These are epic stories of a world in ruins, but they are also intimate and moving accounts. Our masterful contributors take you by the hand and show you what will be. Don't let go, whatever you do...hold on tight! You will share the characters' struggles as you navigate wastelands or hole up as best you can in the crumbling remains of supermarkets and abandoned houses. You will go hungry. Your feet will grow numb. You will fear, and you might have to fight to the death. But in the end, you will remember it is only a book, and that you can close it, knowing you are safe and sound, because we are not in a post-apocalyptic world. Not here. Not now. Not today. But what will tomorrow bring?

 

The Aftermath - Claire Davon

Hell Takes All Prisoners - Karen Bayly

Chasing the White Limousine - Kurt Newton

An Interlude in the English Civil War - David Turnbull

A Kissidougou Christmas - Michael Picco

The Fields - Mark Towse

Cast Upon the Water - Joseph S. Walker

Help, Scotland - Malcolm Timperley

The Deep End - Cameron Trost

End of the Line - Louise Zedda-Sampson

The Death of a Raccoon - Adam Breckenridge

Darkness at the Edge of Men - Stuart Olver

Sailors' Delight - Claire Fitzpatrick

Homecoming - L.P. Ring

Jungle Red Writers: Too Long? James R. Benn Goes Short

Jungle Red Writers: Too Long? James R. Benn Goes Short: LUCY BURDETTE: We always love having Jim (aka James R.) Benn visiting to talk about his Billy Boyle series, but I promise you'll love th...

Ladies of Mystery: Those Pesky Revisions by Susan Oleksiw

 Ladies of Mystery: Those Pesky Revisions by Susan Oleksiw 

SMFS Member Publishing News: The Truncated Reign of Melvin, Prince of the Enveloping Darkness by Joseph S. Walker

 

SMFS list member Joseph S. Walker’s short story, The Truncated Reign of Melvin, Prince of the Enveloping Darkness, was published today at The Saturday Evening Post. You can read the piece for free online here.

SMFS Member Publishing News: Just One More by Carl Tait

SMFS list member Carl Tait’s short story, Just One More, was published last week at Sage Cigarettes Magazine. You can read the piece for free online here.

The Table Read: Tom Mead On Writing And Other Mysteries

 The Table Read: Tom Mead On Writing And Other Mysteries

Criminal Minds: What Happened to Jack and Jill on That Hill? Twenty Writing Prompts from James W. Ziskin

Criminal Minds: What Happened to Jack and Jill on That Hill? Twent...: Does a background in any other kind of business give you a head start as a professional writer? If you were designing a course of study for ...

The First Two Pages: “A Manual for Success” by Sandra Benson

 The First Two Pages: “A Manual for Success” by Sandra Benson

Little Big Crimes: The Puzzle Master, by David Morrell

Little Big Crimes: The Puzzle Master, by David Morrell: "The Puzzle Master," by David Morrell, in Playing Games, edited by Lawrence Block, LB Productions, 2023.  This is the second stor...

SMFS Member Publishing News: The Muffin Lady by Paula B. Mays

 

SMFS list member Paula B. Mays’ mystery short story, The Muffin Lady, was published Saturday at Kings River Life Magazine. You can read the piece for free online here.

SMFS Members Publishing News: Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine #31

 

Several SMFS list members have short stories and other pieces  in the recently released Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine #31. Published by Wildside Press, the issue is currently available in print at Amazon and elsewhere. The members in this issue are:

 

 

Michael Bracken with “City of the Dead.”

 

John M. Floyd with “Fishing For Clues.”

 

Stephen D. Rogers with “Evil Gets The Break.”

 

Andrew Welsh-Huggins with “Wedding Day.”

 

Amazon Description:

The 31st issue of Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine includes:

FEATURES

FROM WATSON’S NOTEBOOKS, by John H Watson, M.D.

ASK MRS HUDSON, by (Mrs) Martha Hudson

SCREEN OF THE CRIME, by Kim Newman

 

NON-FICTION

THE INFLUENCE OF SHERLOCK HOLMES ON MYSTERY FICTION, by Hassan Akram

LODGED IN THE CANON, by S. Brent Morris

 

FICTION

CITY OF THE DEAD, by Michael Bracken

FINAL ACT, by Laird Long

MASTERMIND, by Ellen Denton

BURNING RAGE, by Jeffrey A. Lockwood

INSIGNIFICANT OTHERS, by Mikal Trimm

WEDDING DAY, by Andrew Welsh-Huggins

A MATTER OF TIME, by Janice Law

FAT MAN’S MISERY, by Michael Haynes

EVIL GETS THE BREAK, by Stephen D. Rogers

FISHING FOR CLUES, by John M. Floyd

THE NOBLE BACHELORETTE, by Hal Charles

 

CLASSIC SHERLOCK HOLMES

THE EMPTY HOUSE, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

SMFS Member Publishing News: Short Stories by John Floyd

 

Several of SMFS list member John Floyd’s short stories appear in the recently released 2 Minute Mini- Mysteries: Third Edition. Published by Woman's World, these stories are reprints of tales that previously appeared in the weekly issues. The collection is available in grocery stores, newsstands, and at various online vendors such as MagazineShop.US.

John M. Floyd's short stories in the read are, Candid Camera, Stolen in Plain Sight, Diamonds Are Forever, and, Turn Right at the Light.

 

Website Description:

Unwind with 40 all-new whodunits in our thrilling Third Edition!

Test your detective skills with this collection of mind-bending mysteries! Feel your excitement build as you solve each whodunit—from theft to sabotage to murder. Each 2-minute case contains a clue to finding the culprit, but stay sharp: Misdirection, red herrings and secret codes abound as the tales get tougher and tougher. Do you have what it takes to become a super sleuth and solve them all?

SMFS Members Published in Yellow Mama Webzine: Issue 96

  

Several SMFS list members are published in the recently released Yellow Mama Webzine: Issue 96. The issue is online and a free read here. The SMFS list members in the issue are:

 

Pam Ebel with “Hacked Off.”

 

Shari Held with "Billy's First Road Trip."

 

Elizabeth Zelvin with “Perfect.”

SMFS Members Published in The Hunt: Mystery, Crime, and Mayhem #13

 

Several SMFS list members are published in The Hunt: Mystery, Crime, and Mayhem #13. Published by Knotted Road Press, the read is available in digital and print formats at Amazon. The SMFS list members in the issue are:

 

Joslyn Chase with "The Devil's Trumpet."

 

Diana Deverell with "Lowlife Safari."

 

Annie Reed with "The Final Girl."

 

 

Amazon Description: 

You step outside and feel eyes on you. Watching you. Waiting.

Have they finally caught up with you?

Or maybe you have those binoculars, watching someone very, very dangerous.

Either way, the hunt begins shortly.

And either hunter or prey faces doom.

The next thrilling issue of Mystery, Crime, and Mayhem. Available at all reputable, and some disreputable, vendors.

Pick up all the back issues of MCM, now in its fourth year!

SMFS Members Published in Black Cat Mystery Magazine #13

 

Several SMFS list members have been published in Black Cat Mystery Magazine #13. Published by Wildside Press, the read is edited by SMFS list member Michael Bracken. The new issue is is currently available in print at Amazon. The SMFS list members published in this issue are:

 

 

Elizabeth Elwood with “Through the Wall.”

 

Eve Fisher with "The Abandoned Bride. "

 

John M. Floyd with “From the Hill to the Park.”

 

Barb Goffman with "The Joys of Owning a Dog."

 

Sandra Murphy with “Mixed Media Mess.”

 

Amazon Description:

The "lucky 13th" issue of Black Cat Mystery Magazine include original tales of crime aqnd mystery by Christina Hoag, John M. Floyd, Elizabeth Elwood, Graham Powell, Eve Fisher, Barb Goffman, Sharon Kae Reamer, Trey R. Barker, and Sandra Murphy, plus a classic reprint by Rufus King.

SleuthSayers: More Random Thoughts by O'Neil De Noux

SleuthSayers: More Random Thoughts: PRIVATE EYE STORIES and NOVELS When I was a real-life private eye, I worked a lot of insurance cases, some divorce work, but I was hired on ...

Cameron Trost: Why Mysteries and Crime Fiction Have A Lasting Impact by Justin Murphy

 Cameron Trost: Why Mysteries and Crime Fiction Have A Lasting Impact by Justin Murphy

SMFS Member Publishing News: Insurance Policies by Albert Katz

 
SMFS list member Albert Katz’s short story, Insurance Policies, appears online today at Mystery Tribune. The piece is a free read here.

SMFS Member Publishing News: Hope Dies Last: A Stefan Kopriva Mystery by Frank Zafiro

Today is publication day for Hope Dies Last: A Stefan Kopriva Mystery by Frank Zafiro.  This is the fourth book in the series that began with Waist Deep. Published by Code 4 Press, the read is available in digital and print formats at Amazon.

 

Amazon Description:

Former cop turned investigator Stefan Kopriva has long endured the fallout from the fatal mistake that drove him from the police force fourteen years ago. Eking out his redemption one bit at a time, Kopriva has finally reached a point in his life that finds him stable and reasonably happy.

Then the mother who abandoned him when he was a toddler returns to River City and completely shakes up his world.

Though professing to be sober and seeking to reconnect with her son, Kopriva is initially suspicious of her intentions. But his own desire to fill the void that she created all those years ago urges him to accept, and perhaps even forgive, her. Not only that, but the woman seems to be sincere in every way, causing Kopriva to trust her and to believe.

What follows is a shocking betrayal and a murder that sends Kopriva on perhaps the darkest journey of his life. He seeks out the truth, even though it isn't what he wants it to be. For better or worse, Kopriva knows that hope dies last.

SMFS Members Published in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine: March/April 2023

 

SMFS list members are published in the Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine: March/April 2023 issue. The issue is available at the publisher, Amazon, and other vendors. The SMFS members in the issue are:

 

 

K.L. Abrahamson with “Mushrooming with Murray.”

 

Terena Elizabeth Bell with "Meth. "

 

Mike McHone: "Carver (and) [Company].”

 

Josh Pachter, translation of Marjolein van der Gaag's "Beneath the Surface."

 

Website Description:

March/April 2023

 

FICTION

Mrs. Hyde by David Dean 

Drinking in the Afternoon by Kristine Kathryn Rusch 

Carver (and) [Company] by Mike McHone

The Sleeper of Coldwreath by Tom Mead 

Mushrooming With Murray by K.L. Abrahamson 

Snowbound by Brendan DuBois 

Meth by Terena Elizabeth Bell 

What You Know, What I Know by Michael Kardos 

Shame the Devil by Joseph Goodrich 

The Balance of Some Things by Sacha Bissonnette 

The Secret Sister by Doug Allyn 

 

PASSPORT TO CRIME 

Beneath the Surface by Marjolein van der Gaag 

 

BLACK MASK 

Game Four by Travis Kennedy

 

DEPARTMENT OF FIRST STORIES

The Eye by Savio Pham 

Midnight Run by L.S. Kunz 

 

POETRY 

Bad Boy by Michael Wiley

REVIEWS 

The Jury Box by Steve Steinbock 

Stranger Than Fiction by Dean Jobb

Blog Bytes by Kristopher Zgorski

SMFS Members Published in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine: March/April 2023

 

Several SMFS list members are published in the Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine: March/April 2023 issue released today. The issue is available at the publisher, Amazon, and other vendors. Those members are: 

 

Michael Bracken with "Beat the Clock."

 

Catherine Dilts with “Claire's Cabin.”

 

Karen Harrington with "Would You Like A Remedy?"

 

Robert Lopresti with “The Accessories Club.”

Nina Mansfield with "Twelve Angry Actors."

 

William Burton McCormick with "An Alias for the Angel."

 

Mike McHone with "Parenthetical."

 

Mark Thielman with "A Study with Scarlett."

 

Joseph S. Walker with “Moving Day.”

 

Website Description: 

March/April 2023

FICTION 

Study with Scarlett • Mark Thielman 

The Poet Laureate of Dagus Mines • Dennis McFadden 

Margo and the Yachting Party • Terence Faherty 

Kimchi Kitty • Martin Limón

Moving Day • Joseph S. Walker 

Beat the Clock • Michael Bracken 

Twelve Angry Actors • Nina Mansfield 

Claire’s Cabin • Catherine Dilts 

An Alias for the Angel • William Burton McCormick 

Parenthetical • Mike McHone 

Toe on the Ladder • John Paxton Sheriff 

Would You Like a Remedy? • Karen Harrington 

The Accessories Club • Robert Lopresti 

 

DEPARTMENTS 

The Lineup 

Mysterious Photograph 

Scrambled Gamadge Anagram Puzzle • Mark Lagasse 

Booked & Printed • Laurel Flores Fantauzzo 

Dying Words Acrostic Puzzle • Arlene Fisher 

The Story That Won 

Solution to Dying Words

SMFS Member Publishing News: The Adventure of the Castle Thief and Other Expeditions and Indiscretions by Art Taylor

Today is publication day for the new short story collection, The Adventure of the Castle Thief and Other Expeditions and Indiscretions by Art Taylor. Published by Crippen and Landru, the same publisher for his previous short story collection, The Boy Detective & The Summer of ’74 and Other Tales of Suspense, this new book out today is also available from the publisher, Amazon, and other vendors in a variety of formats.

 

Publisher Description:

A man hears a melody in the night and begins a dangerous quest to locate its source. Ghosts of the past haunt the present in hotels, at an office party, and on a date that takes a dark turn. And an elderly woman named Marple sets out to prove she’s every bit as capable as Christie’s own famous sleuth. This second short story collection from Edgar Award winner Art Taylor spans the spectrum of crime fiction—from light-hearted traditional mystery to noir-tinged tales and even toward speculative fiction—and features two previously unpublished stories and an introduction by Martin Edwards.

SMFS Member Publishing News: The Agency of Modern Kunoichi: Women of Ninja Stealth and Perseverance by Tori Eldridge

SMFS list member Tori Eldridge’s essay, The Agency of Modern Kunoichi: Women of Ninja Stealth and Perseverance, appears in the new book, Unquiet Spirits: Essays by Asian Women in Horror. Published by Black Spot Books, the book is released today in digital and print formats at Amazon and other vendors.

 

Publisher Description:

From hungry ghosts, vampiric babies, and shapeshifting fox spirits to the avenging White Lady of urban legend, for generations, Asian women’s roles have been shaped and defined through myth and story. In Unquiet Spirits, Asian writers of horror reflect on the impact of superstition, spirits, and the supernatural in this unique collection of 21 personal essays exploring themes of otherness, identity, expectation, duty, and loss, and leading, ultimately, to understanding and empowerment.

 

 

Little Big Crimes: The Soiled Dove of Shallow Hollow, by Sean McCluskey

Little Big Crimes: The Soiled Dove of Shallow Hollow, by Sean McCluskey:   "The Soiled Dove of Shallow Hollow," by Sean McCluskey, in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, January/February 2023. It is ra...

SMFS Member Publishing News: The Sodium Arrow by Camille Minichino

 

SMFS list member Camille Minichino’s short story, The Sodium Arrow, is published today in Black Cat Weekly #76. Published by Wildside Press, the issue is available here in digital format.

 

Website Description:

Our 76th issue is a mammoth one, with 4 novels and 6 short stories (including a new Sherlock Holmes adventure, courtesy of A.L. Sirois and Acquiring Editor Michael Bracken). Take a look at the contents below...I know you’ll be impressed by the quality and diversity of the material.

 

Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure:

“The Adventure of the Accelerationist,” by A. L. Sirois [Michael Bracken Presents short story]

“A Death in the Department,” by Hal Charles [Solve-It-Yourself Mystery]

“The Sodium Arrow,” by Camille Minichino [Barb Goffman Presents short story]

The Red Signal, by Grace Livingston Hill [novel]

Dead Weight, by Frank Kane [novel]c

 

Science Fiction & Fantasy:

“The Adventure of the Accelerationist,” by A. L. Sirois [Michael Bracken Presents short story]

“The Garnet and the Glory,” by Phyllis Ann Karr [short story, Frostflower & Thorn series]

“The Foxholes of Mars,” by Fritz Leiber [short story]

“Hsilgne Esrever (Reverse English),” by John S. Carroll [short story]

The Stars Look Down, by Lester del Rey [short novel]

The Eternal Savage, by Edgar Rice Burroughs [novel]

SMFS Member Publishing News: Strawberries by Joan Leotta

  

SMFS list member Joan Leotta’s poem, Strawberries, appears today at Kings River Life Magazine. You can read the piece for free online here as well as some background on the poem.

SMFS Members Publishing News: Playing Games

 

SMFS list members are published in the recently released anthology, Playing Games. Edited by Lawrence Block, the read is available in hardback at Amazon, and in print and eBook at Barnes and Noble.  The SMFS list members in the read are:

 

 

James D.F. Hannah with "Knock."

 

Warren Moore with "Lightning Round."             

 

Barnes and Noble Description:

WIN, LOSE, OR DIE.

Whether it's child's play or for the highest stakes, whether we stick to the rules or cheat, we all play games — for fun, for thrills, for love or money, to prove we're the best or make an opponent knuckle under. And the games we play, with cards or dice or nothing but our wits, reveal something deeply personal about the players.

In this powerful new anthology, Mystery Writers of America Grandmaster Lawrence Block has assembled an all-star team for the ultimate game night. Sit down at the checkerboard with S.A. Cosby, assemble jigsaw puzzles with David Morrell, or play marbles for the fate of the world with Joe R. Lansdale. In Jeffery Deaver's hands, an innocent game of Candyland takes twists the Parker Brothers could never have imagined. Science-fiction grandmaster Robert Silverberg uncovers painful truths about destiny while betting on the turtle races in a Caribbean resort. And Lawrence Block himself out-Hitchcocks Hitchcock with his classic story of murder victims swapped by strangers on a handball court.

From hide-and-seek to Russian roulette, from mahjong to Mouse Trap, it's a game lover's dream — but beware: your turn is coming, and while winning isn't everything, sometimes losing can be deadly…