The Best American Mystery Stories 2003 — Otto Penzler

This seventh installment of the premier mystery anthology boasts pulse-quickening stories from all reaches of the genre, selected by the world-renowned mystery writer Michael Connelly. His choices include a Prohibition-era tale of a scorned lover's revenge, a Sherlock Holmes-inspired mystery solved by an actor playing the famous detective onstage, stories of a woman's near-fatal search for self-discovery, a bar owner's gutsy attempt to outwit the mob, and a showdown between double-crossing detectives, and a tale of murder by psychology. This year's edition features mystery favorites Elmore Leonard, Walter Mosley, James Crumley, Joyce Carol Oates, and Brendan DuBois as well as talented up-and-comers, for a diverse collection sure to thrill all readers.
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.
Edgar Award winner Michael Connelly has chosen a collection of stellar stories by the genre's luminaries and by the most promising newer talents in the field. As usual, this year's Best American Mystery Stories will delight readers with dramatic variety and unsurpassed quality.
James Crumley Pete Dexter Brendan DuBois Elmore Leonard Walter Mosley Joyce Carol Oates