Martin Edwards is not only a celebrated crime writer but is a well-known critic and writer about the crime fiction genre, past and present, with his book The Golden Age of Murder telling the story of crime fiction and its authors in the 1920s and 1930s. Who better to pick five crime anthologies for us?
Golden Age Whodunits edited by Otto Penzler
An enjoyable collection of vintage mysteries by the premier crime fiction anthologist in the US, which shows that American writers were just as skilled as their British counterparts at classic detection.
Paranoia Blues edited by Josh Pachter
A book of stories inspired by the music of Paul Simon. Pachter has also compiled excellent anthologies themed around the music of The Beatles, Joni Mitchell and Stephen Sondheim.
Edgar & Shamus Go Golden edited by Gay Toltl Kinman and Andrew McAleer
The connecting link here is that all the contributors have won either the prestigious Edgar award or the Shamus award for crime writing.
School of Hard Knox edited by Donna Andrews, Greg Herren and Art Taylor
A mix of contemporary British and American authors set about breaking the so-called ‘rules of detective fiction’ created by Ronald Knox. There’s also a very witty poem, Knox Vomica, by the brilliant Peter Lovesey.
Cyanide in the Sun edited by Martin Edwards
A British Library anthology, with an eclectic mix of vintage mysteries set in the holiday season.
