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The Mysterious Bookshop Presents the Best Mystery Stories of the Year 2022 (Best Mystery Stories) Kindle Edition

by Sara Paretsky (Editor) Format: Kindle Edition
4.2 out of 5 stars 225 ratings

Sara Paretsky selects the twenty best mystery short stories of the year, including tales by Michael Connelly, Jo Nesbo, Joyce Carol Oates, Colson Whitehead, and more!


Under the auspices of New York City's legendary mystery fiction specialty bookstore, The Mysterious Bookshop, and aided by Edgar Award-winning anthologist Otto Penzler, international bestseller and MWA Grandmaster Sara Paretsky has selected the twenty most puzzling, most thrilling, and most mysterious short stories from the past year, collected now in one entertaining volume.


Includes stories by:



    • Doug Allyn

    • Colin Barrett

    • Jerome Charyn

    • Michael Connelly

    • Susan Frith

    • Tom Larsen

    • Sean Marciniak

    • Stefon Mears

    • Kieth Lee Morris

    • Gwen Mullins

    • Jo Nesbo

    • Joyce Carol Oates

    • Annie Reed

    • Kristen Kathryn Rusch

    • Anna Scotti

    • Ginny Swart

    • Ellen Tremiti

    • Joseph S. Walker

    • Colson Whitehead

    • Michael Wiley


    Plus a bonus vintage story from the annals of mystery fiction, written over a century in the past.

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    Previous slide of product details
    1. Part of series
      Best Mystery Stories
    2. Print length
      552 pages
    3. Language
      English
    4. Publisher
      Mysterious Press
    5. Publication date
      September 27, 2022
    6. File size
      2.4 MB
    7. Page Flip
      Enabled
    8. Word Wise
      Enabled
    9. Enhanced typesetting
      Enabled
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    Editorial Reviews

    Review

    "Diverse voices, settings, and premises make this a treat for fans of literate and inventive mystery fiction."
    ―     Publishers Weekly STARRED REVIEW

    "The stories take off from their humble points of origin into spaces few would have predicted, as they explore the terrain most familiar and yet most mysterious of all: the geography of the human heart. Imaginations run loose in the best ways possible."
    ―     Kirkus STARRED REVIEW

    "Penzler's latest anthology of the year's best mystery stories, guest edited this time by Sara Paretsky, brings together short fiction weighted toward character-driven tales awash in psychological thrills. Mobsters, assassins, and executioners blend with conflicted and embattled everypersons, leaving no doubt that mayhem can slip into our tightest corners."
    ―     Booklist STARRED REVIEW

    About the Author

    Otto Penzler, the creator of American Mystery Classics, is also the founder of The Mysterious Press (1975); MysteriousPress.com (2011), an electronic-book publishing company; and New York City’s Mysterious Bookshop (1979). He has won a Raven, the Ellery Queen Award, two Edgars (for the Encyclopedia of Mystery and Detection, 1977, and The Lineup, 2010), and lifetime achievement awards from NoirCon and The Strand Magazine. He has edited more than 70 anthologies and written extensively about mystery fiction.

    Sara Paretsky is the author of the bestselling V.I. Warshawski novels, including, most recently, Bleeding Kansas. Paretsky is the winner of many awards, including the Cartier Diamond Dagger award for lifetime achievement from the British Crime Writers’ Association. She lives in Chicago.

    Product details

    • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09TQ3WHBD
    • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Mysterious Press
    • Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 27, 2022
    • Language ‏ : ‎ English
    • File size ‏ : ‎ 2.4 MB
    • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
    • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
    • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
    • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
    • Print length ‏ : ‎ 552 pages
    • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1613163504
    • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
    • Part of series ‏ : ‎ Best Mystery Stories
    • Customer Reviews:
      4.2 out of 5 stars 225 ratings

    About the authors

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    Previous page
    1. Sara Paretsky

      Sara Paretsky

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      Called a "genius" by Lee Child and "one of the all time greats" by Karin Slaughter, Sara Paretsky transformed the role of women in the mystery world with her detective, V.I. Warshawski. V.I. is tough, feminine and vulnerable, but above all loyal to her friends and clients. Paretsky and Warshawski share a love of singing, Golden Retrievers and Italian reds. V.I. has escaped many near-death experiences, including drowning in Chicago's swamps (Blood Shot), falling down an elevator shaft (Burn Marks), and multiple attempts to shoot her down (Dead Land). Paretsky would have retired to the Umbrian Hills after one such event, but V.I. keeps coming back for more.

      Paretsky's passion for social justice is reflected in her novels but also in her support for reproductive health and the welfare of women and children. She founded Sisters in Crime, an international organization that advocates for women in the mystery/thriller field. She is one of four living writers to earn both the Cartier Diamond Dagger from the British Crime Writers and Grand Master from the Mystery Writers of America.

      Visit Sara's website, www.saraparetsky.com, find her on Facebook, www.facebook.com/SaraParetsky, and follow her on Twitter @Sara1982P.

      See more on the author's page
    2. Anna Scotti

      Anna Scotti

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      Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read book recommendations and more.

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    3. Joseph S. Walker

      Joseph S. Walker

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      Joseph S. Walker is an Edgar-nominated writer of crime and mystery short fiction. His work has appeared in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Mystery Weekly, The Front Line, Flash, and a number of themed anthologies. He lives in Indiana. Follow him on Twitter (@JSWalkerAuthor) and visit his website at jswalkerauthor.com.

      Be sure to click the "Follow" button above to be notified when new stories are released!

      See more on the author's page
    4. Sean Marciniak

      Sean Marciniak

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      Sean Marciniak is a former crime reporter, and his nonfiction has appeared in The Wall Street Journal and other newspapers. His fiction has appeared or is scheduled to appear in the The Best Mystery Stories of the Year, the Mystery Tribune, J Journal, Shooter Literary Magazine, Sixfold, Orca Literary Journal, and elsewhere, and has been nominated for Pushcart, PEN America, and other awards.

      See more on the author's page
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    Customer reviews

    4.2 out of 5 stars
    225 global ratings

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    Customers say

    Customers find the book readable, with one mentioning it's worth a few hours of their time. The stories receive positive feedback, with one customer describing it as a great cozy mystery collection. Customers appreciate the writing style.

    AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

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    11 customers mention "Readability"8 positive3 negative

    Customers find the book readable and enjoyable, with one mentioning it's worth a few hours of time, while another notes it's suitable for a discussion group.

    "I really like the stories (short and to the point), no time for beating around the bush...." Read more

    "...Worth the read, I also enjoyed the Honor Roll at the back, it provided a raodmap to additional tales that were also very good." Read more

    "Great reads❣️" Read more

    "I was disappointed in the majority of choices but the ones I enjoyed were very entertaining...." Read more

    5 customers mention "Story quality"5 positive0 negative

    Customers enjoy the stories in the book, with one mentioning it's a great cozy mystery collection.

    "I really like the stories (short and to the point), no time for beating around the bush...." Read more

    "...read, I also enjoyed the Honor Roll at the back, it provided a raodmap to additional tales that were also very good." Read more

    "The stories are pretty good, but once the narrator leaves the primary voice to speak the words of other characters, particularly women, it is brutal..." Read more

    "This is a terrific collection of short stories." Read more

    3 customers mention "Writing style"3 positive0 negative

    Customers appreciate the writing style of the book.

    "I love the different writers all in one book. I like reading new writers like Gwen Mullin's story. Very good reads." Read more

    "Audio Book Review, Decent Stories, So-So Narration..." Read more

    "Well written..." Read more

    Top reviews from the United States

    • TrishB
      5.0 out of 5 stars Great!
      Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2025
      Verified Purchase
      I really like the stories (short and to the point), no time for beating around the bush. When I don't feel like getting too deep into a novel, I like reading short stories.
      Helpful
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    • Amazon Customer
      4.0 out of 5 stars Mystery Stories
      Reviewed in the United States on February 16, 2023
      Verified Purchase
      A gift that was much appreciated.
      Helpful
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    • Reading in Georgia
      5.0 out of 5 stars A great cozy mystery collection
      Reviewed in the United States on November 19, 2022
      Verified Purchase
      There are 21 stories in this years collection. I thought some selections were knock out hits ( October in Kauai, Avalon, Gun Running); some enjoyable and one (surprisingly the Jo Nesbo story) lacking, but overall very enjoyable, good format and worth a few hours of your time. I find this collection far superior to the “other” mystery collection and Otto Penzler’s addition of a bonus tale a great way to conclude the series for 2022.
      Worth the read, I also enjoyed the Honor Roll at the back, it provided a raodmap to additional tales that were also very good.
      10 people found this helpful
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    • R. Teal
      3.0 out of 5 stars Audio Book Review, Decent Stories, So-So Narration
      Reviewed in the United States on December 19, 2024
      Verified Purchase
      The stories are pretty good, but once the narrator leaves the primary voice to speak the words of other characters, particularly women, it is brutal and cartoonish.
      Helpful
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    • Mary Knight
      5.0 out of 5 stars Really good great reads !!
      Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2024
      Verified Purchase
      Great reads❣️
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    • Frozen_Lizard
      4.0 out of 5 stars Eclectic collection of mystery stories
      Reviewed in the United States on September 28, 2022
      Mysterious Bookshop proprietor Otto Penzler begins this volume with a brief explanation of the process that goes into picking these stories and explains his VERY broad definition of what constitutes a "mystery" for purposes of this anthology (basically, anything in which a crime, or threat of a crime is central to the theme or plot of the story).

      Then Sara Paretsky, author of the V.I. Warshawski series, gives the introduction to this collection of twenty-one* short stories (Paretsky's anecdote about her table mate at a dinner party is priceless).

      Each story is introduced with a brief bio of the author and book-ended by the individual author's comments about what inspired them to write it. The inhabitants of these pages are a large mishmash of heroic, bizarre, devious, benign, and tragic characters, including: Several lawyers, an ex-professional athlete, some troubled teens, mothers who abet executions, and a variety of detectives - police, private, amateur, and accidental. The criminals, as well as the heroes, come in all shapes, sizes, and temperaments.

      There are good guys (and gals), bad guys, bad good guys, good bad guys, semi-innocent bystanders, and more than a few protagonists who operate in a decidedly gray area. There's also one story that is at the extreme edge of the genre with something of a Twilight Zone flavor to it. Plus a bonus story* originally published in 1917 that offers a look back at a simpler era (or was it?) when society had very specific roles and everyone was expected to play their part accordingly.

      I've given the rating a lot of thought. I give this collection 4 1/2 stars. I just can't see my way clear to bumping it up that extra step to 5-stars, as I most generally would. The quality of the majority is so high that the two or three that were less than perfect really stand out. In those instances, instead of being at the edge of my seat wondering where they were ultimately going, I was wondering how much longer it would be before they were over... They just weren't up to par (in my opinion, obviously). Again, this is a critique that focuses on the exceptional content and my own personal taste. In any other collection those same stories would possibly be the standouts - but not here.

      Bottom line: You can't go wrong with this collection. With a reputation that goes back to the late 1970s, when the original location first opened its doors, The Mysterious Bookshop (with proprietor Otto Penzler) is the absolute best source for crime fiction of all kinds!
      .
      ***NOTE: Some of the stories in this anthology contain language and situations that might be offensive to more sensitive readers: cursing (including "F-bombs"), violent imagery, racial slurs, and sexual innuendo. For the most part those instances are a minor part of the overall content but I like to let folks know it's there.
      14 people found this helpful
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    • Frank's grandmother
      5.0 out of 5 stars Great collection!
      Reviewed in the United States on December 2, 2023
      Verified Purchase
      This is a terrific collection of short stories.
      One person found this helpful
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    • James W. Kleefeld
      3.0 out of 5 stars Mixed bag
      Reviewed in the United States on December 30, 2024
      Verified Purchase
      Some good and clever stories, but many feel unfinished - like the author had an idea and stopped before turning it into a novel.
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