Thriller: Stories to Keep You up All Night
Edited by James Patterson
Mira, Jun 2006, $24.95
ISBN: 0778322998

This anthology is faster than hyperspeed as each of the thirty contributions are well written thrillers using the definition provided by James Patterson in his introduction to the book as being "the force with which they hurtle the reader along." The tales run the gamut of what most readers consider a thriller though some seem more like a detective story. Included are legal, espionage, adventure, medical, police procedural (mystery genre?), romance, historical, high tech, political, religious and military, etc. The authors are the who's who superstars of the genre though some are probably more renowned as mystery writers as the line of demarcation seems blurred. What is fascinating is that several authors are females which was virtually unheard of just a decade or so ago. The introduction to each tale showcases how talented Mr. Patterson is while the short stories display the skills of the author. Fans will appreciate this fine compilation, the first by the newly formed International Thriller Writers group, which lives up to its subtitle: "Stories to Keep You up All Night"; this compilation will do so for several evenings.

Harriet Klausner