Before I present my own list of favorite books of the year, it seems appropriate to discuss The Mysterious Bookshop Presents the Best Mystery Stories of the Year 2021, edited by Lee Child.
There are authors you’ll recognize; James Lee Burke, Sue Grafton, Stephen King, Joyce Carol Oates, Sara Paretsky. Each story comes with an introduction to the author, and then it’s followed by the author’s comment about the story. My favorite stories were by authors whose names I didn’t know, or just recognized. I’ll admit that Joyce Carol Oates’ “Parole Hearing, California Institution for Women, Chino, CA” was the creepiest of the stories.
After reading Paul Kemprecos’ “The Sixth Decoy”, I searched for the first book featuring his detective, Aristotle “Soc” Socarides. He’s a “philosophical fisherman, diver, and part-time private detective”, and I”m looking forward to testing that book.
John Floyd’s “Biloxi Bound” has multiple plots twists and surprises. It’s the story of an ordinary guy with an ordinary job who finds himself in a dangerous situation. “That Which is True” by Jacqueline Freimor is about a woman whose jury duty service doesn’t turn out to be quite what she expected. And, of course, with my interest in all-things Irish, I appreciated Andrew Welsh-Higgins’ story of a student trying to learn Irish during the Troubles, “The Path I Took”.
As with any anthology, each story stands on its own, and some appealed to me more than others. That doesn’t really mean the quality is better in some. It means some were to my taste, and others were not. I’m sure it’s the same for the editor who selected “The Best Mystery Stories of the Year”. There are other terrific stories from 2021. These are the ones that fit the taste of the editor, and fit the requirements for this book.
The Mysterious Bookshop Presents The Best Mystery Stories of the Year 2021. Edited by Lee Child. The Mysterious Press, 2021. ISBN 9781613162385 (paperback), 454p.
FTC Full Disclosure – The publisher sent a copy of the book, hoping I would review it.
I must say, in any anthology I find that Joyce Carol Oates almost always has the creepiest story there is! On more than one occasiona, I have been known to skip over her story after starting it.
She’s the favorite author of a friend of mine, Jeff. But, that story was really creepy.
I have never appreciated Joyce Carol Oates’s writing.
It’s me: I’m the guilty Joyce Carol Oates fan. I don’t mind creepy; I think her creepiest was the novella “Zombie.” But it’s true her writing is not to everyone’s taste—it’s on the hypnotic, sometimes almost stream-of-consciousness side, elliptical. Her novel “Carthage” is a good example of what I’m trying to say, though once you lock into her language, it’s quite captivating.
More amazing is how often she is in every anthology across multiple genres. And all are creepy.
I always assume these anthologies are targeted at libraries, rather than book buyers. What do you think?
Actually, Rick, anthologies are not very popular in libraries. I tend to think just the opposite. I buy multiple copies of books by individual authors for the library, and fewer anthologies because they don’t circulate very well.
Huh. I’m surprised. Thank you, Lesa.