First published 2002
This collection brings together crime stories where humor meets mystery in unexpected ways. Safecrackers deliver one-liners while they work. Well-meaning protagonists bumble their way through investigations. Criminals range from cleverly deadpan to utterly clueless in their schemes. Donald E. Westlake, Peter Lovesey, Terry Pratchett, Ed Gorman, Sarah Caudwell, Bill Pronzini, Mike Ripley, Nicholas Blincoe, Hilary Bonner, and Christopher Brookmyre contribute stories that find comedy on both sides of the law. The anthology explores what happens when criminal enterprises go hilariously wrong and when amateur sleuths create more chaos than they solve. These tales prove that crime doesn't always pay, but it can certainly entertain when the perpetrators and investigators alike find themselves in over their heads.
Genres: short-stories, anthologies, humor, mystery, crime, comedy
Vibes: comedic, fast-paced, humorous, suspenseful
Tropes: bumbling-protagonists, clueless-criminals, comedic-crime
512 pages · Paperback · Running Press