Problems Solved

TWO LEGENDS!!!!!

Today, Bill Pronzini is famed for his private-eye stories about the "Nameless Detective" and for his Shamus-award winning short stories, and Barry N. Malzberg is one of America’s premier science- fiction writers, but back in their salad days they collaborated on a number of stories, which have now become legendary. Many fans have heard of them, but very few have had the privilege of reading them – until now. Problems Solved collects all their crime and mystery collaborations, mostly written during the 1970's and early 1980's, and a few recent collaborations (including two new stories written especially for this volume). The stories range from suspense ("Night Rider") to irony ("What Kind of person Are You?") to twists-in-the-tale ("Problems Solved") to science-fictional detection, including three stories about an unnamed Luna Immigration Inspector. Others emphasize sports ("What’s a Chicago Cub?" asks an entrepreneur of the future), and one, "Another Burnt-Out Case," is ! in Bill Pronzini’s words, "a weird comic Hitchcockian crime fantasy with a carnival setting, whose last two lines elicit gleeful chortles from both of us to this day."

The cover design, illustrating both "Another Burnt-Out Case" and "Night Rider," is by Juha Lindroos, a Finnish artist working in the United States.

Bill Pronzini's novel, "Snowbound", received the Grand Prix de la Litterature Policiere as the best crime novel published in France in 1988. "A Wasteland of Strangers" was nominated for best crime novel of 1997 by both the Mystery Writers of America and the International Crime Writers Association; in addition to six Edgar Award nominations, Pronzini has received three Shamus Awards, two for best novel, and the Lifetime Achievement Award. He lives in northern California with his wife, the crime novelist Marcia Muller.