The Best American Mystery Stories 2019: A Collection

New York Times best-selling author of ten genre-bending novels Jonathan Lethem helms this collection of the year’s best mystery short fiction.

For Jonathan Lethem, “crime stories are deep species gossip.” He writes in his introduction that “they’re fundamentally stories of power, of its exercise, both spontaneous and conspiratorial; stories of impulse and desire, and of the turning of tables.” The Best American Mystery Stories 2019 has its full share of salacious intrigue, guilt, and retribution.

The twists and bad decisions pile up when a thief picks the wrong target or a simple scavenger hunt takes a terrible turn.