Money, Money, Money

August 27, 2001
Evan Hunter has passed the century mark in books published and, writing as Ed McBain, has started on his second half-century (this is the 51st in the series) with the 87th Precinct. One of the most recognizable and reliable brand names in the mystery field, he's the only American author to be elected a Mystery Writers of America Grandmaster and to win Britain's Diamond Dagger award. Yet like Steve Carella, who has reached only the age of 40 despite his 45 years as an adult character, McBain's writing remains young, vigorous, sharp and entertaining. Christmas season in Isola is no holiday for the cops of the 87th, and a dizzying collection of small-time crooks, terrorists, drug runners, hit men and feds collide on the territory shared by the 87th and the 88th precincts. Fittingly, it is Carella, introduced in the very first 87th Precinct novel (Cop Hater, 1956), who takes the lead in this case. He gets an unlikely assist from the 88th's Fat Ollie Weeks, who plays both (expected) comic foil and (unexpected) hero. The minor characters are sketched as vividly as a Hirschfeld drawing, and McBain's mordant humor keeps the violence somewhat balanced. In addition to the bullets, which fly rather freely, lions, bombs, cattle prods and ice picks all play a role. Adroit scene-setting, the pitch-perfect dialogue for which he is famous and streamlined presentation of a Byzantine plot make the pages turn quickly. McBain's Money
is a sure bet. Agent, Jane Gelfman.

September 15, 2000
On his own, McBain delivers his 51st book on the 87th Precinct. Here, the trouble is counterfeiting.

Copyright 2000 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2001
Cassandra Jean Ridley, a veteran Gulf War combat pilot, makes herself $200,000 running drugs into Mexico. Then she moves to New York and is the victim of a simple burglary. When the thief spends some of Cassandra's stolen money, it's no longer simple. Quickly, the bodies start piling up, including Cassandra's, which is discovered in pieces in the lion's den at the zoo. That draws the attention of 87th Precinct detective Steve Carella and his partner, Fat Ollie Weeks. Soon the Secret Service enters the mix, attempting to shoo Carella and Weeks away from what they contend is a federal case. McBain, who has been writing 87th Precinct novels for nearly a half-century, virtually invented the modern police procedural, and his mastery of the genre continues apace. Each installment in this landmark series offers further evidence of how fully McBain understands the importance of understatement in creating character and developing plot. While they're savoring this one, the author's fans should start look forwarding to the next, which will feature Fat Ollie in a starring role.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2001, American Library Association.)