• A 1947 pastiche by award-winning crime writer Thomas Narcejac
• Rollicking new stories written especially for this collection by Michael Bracken and Robert Lopresti
• Stories by bestselling authors including Lawrence Block and Loren D. Estleman
• Chapters from Robert Goldsborough’s authorized continuation of the Wolfe series; Marion Mainwaring’s 1955 tour de force Murder in Pastiche; and John Lescroart’s Rasputin’s Revenge, which reimagines a young Wolfe as the son of Sherlock Holmes

NEW STORIES:

SEVEN CARD JOKER HIGH, by Trey R. Barker

THE LOSER, by Robert Guffey

BLEST BE THE TIE THAT BINDS, by Michael Bracken

THE MAGNIFICENT SCORE, by John Hegenberger

WORSE THAN DEATH, by Robert Lopresti

THE LAST THING HE REMEMBERED, by Patricia Dusenbury

PAINT THE CLOWN RED, by Laird Long

CLASSIC REPRINT

THE CONTAGIOUS KILLER, by Bryce Walton

Welcome to Black Cat Weekly #29—another fine issue. We have a historical interview with Poul Anderson (originally published in 1976). As Darrell says, his old interviews fall “somewhere between oral history and paleontology.” They are always fascinating. I’ve always said Darrell is one of the best interviewers in the field.

For this issue’s mysteries, we have an original tale by Robert Lopresti—Michael Bracken, between his writing and editing our quarterly mystery journal, Black Cat Mystery Magazine, always manages for find something interesting for BCW. Barb Goffman has selected a harder-edged crime story, “Pickup and Delivery,” by Eric Beckstrom. And we have a classic suspense novel from John P. Marquand, creator of Mr. Moto. And no issue is complete without a brain-tickling solve-it-yourself mystery from Hal Charles (the writing team of Hal Sweet and Charlie Blythe).

Editor Cynthia Ward has selected a cyberpunk story by M. Christian, “Jigō Jitoku,” which is mind-bending fun. plus we have classics by Ray Cummings (Robots!), Malcolm Jameson (a deal-with-the-Devil!), Richard Wilson (classic SF!), and a personal favorite author, Clark Ashton Smith (historical fantasy!). Great reading.

Here’s the complete lineup:

Non-Fiction:

“Speaking with Poul Anderson,” conducted by Darrell Schweitzer [interview]

Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure:

• “The Man in the Quarry, by Robert Lopresti [Michael Bracken Presents short story]
• “A Surprising Treat,” by Hal Charles [solve-it-yourself mystery]
• “Cop Killer,” by James Holding [short story]
• “Pickup and Delivery,” by Eric Beckstrom [Barb Goffman Presents short story]
• The Black Cargo, by John P. Marquand [novel]

Science Fiction & Fantasy:

• “Jigō Jitoku,” by M. Christian [Cynthia Ward Presents short story]
• “The Robot God,” by Ray Cummings [short story]
• “The Enchantress of Sylaire,” by Clark Ashton Smith [short story]
• “Blind Alley,” by Malcolm Jameson [short story]
• “The Big Fix!” by Richard Wilson [short story]

Jewish Noir is a unique collection of new stories by Jewish and non-Jewish literary and genre writers, including numerous award-winning authors such as Marge Piercy, Harlan Ellison, S.J. Rozan, Nancy Richler, Moe Prager (Reed Farrel Coleman), Wendy Hornsby, Charles Ardai, and Kenneth Wishnia. The stories explore such issues as the Holocaust and its long-term effects on subsequent generations, anti-Semitism in the mid- and late-twentieth-century United States, and the dark side of the Diaspora (the decline of revolutionary fervor, the passing of generations, the Golden Ghetto, etc.). The stories in this collection also include many “teachable moments” about the history of prejudice, and the contradictions of ethnic identity and assimilation into American society.

Stories include:

“A Simkhe” (A Celebration), first published in Yiddish in the Forverts in 1912 by one of the great unsung writers of that era, Yente Serdatsky. This story depicts the disillusionment that sets in among a group of Russian Jewish immigrant radicals after several years in the United States. This is the story’s first appearance in English.

“Trajectories,” Marge Piercy’s story of the divergent paths taken by two young men from the slums of Cleveland and Detroit in a rapidly changing post-World War II society.

“Some You Lose,” Nancy Richler’s empathetic exploration of the emotional and psychological challenges of trying to sum up a man’s life in a eulogy.

“Her Daughter’s Bat Mitzvah,” Rabbi Adam Fisher’s darkly comic profanity-filled monologue in the tradition of Sholem Aleichem, the writer best known as the source material for Fiddler on the Roof (minus the profanity, that is).

“Flowers of Shanghai,” S.J. Rozan’s compelling tale of hope and despair set in the European refugee community of Japanese-occupied Shanghai during World War II.

“Yahrzeit Candle,” Stephen Jay Schwartz’s take on the subtle horrors of the inevitable passing of time.