Ed McBain: The Big Bad City (USA 2013)

From the Publisher:
In the thick August, it's not just the heat and humidity the 87th Precinct cops must deal with-it's the homicide of a nun, the hijinks of a cookie-baking burglar, and the hunter gunning for one of their own.

Ed McBain: The Big Bad City. A Novel of the 87th Precinct. Thomas & Mercer, ISBN: 9781477805374 (November, 2013), 292 p., $13.95.

Ed McBain: The Big Bad City (USA 1999)

From the Publisher:
In this city, you have to pay attention. In this city, things are happening all the time, all over the place, and you don't have to be a detective to smell evil in the wind.

Take this week's tabloids: the face of a dead girl is splashed across the front page. She was found sprawled near a park bench not seven blocks from the police station. Detectives Carella and Brown soon discover the girl has a most unusual past.

Meanwhile, the late-night news tracks the exploits of The Cookie Boy, a professional thief who leaves his calling card - a box of chocolate chip cookies - at the scene of each score. And while the detectives of the 87th Precinct are investigating these cases, one of them is being stalked by the man who killed his father. Welcome to the Big Bad City.

Ed McBain: The Big Bad City. A Novel of the 87th Precinct. Pocket Star Books, ISBN: 0671025694 (November, 1999), 302 p., $6.99.

Ed McBain: The Big Bad City (UK 1999)

From the Publisher:
WINNER OF THE CRIME WRITERS' ASSOCIATION/CARTIER DIAMOND DAGGER AWARD
'One of the masters of crime fiction.' --SUNDAY TELEGRAPH

The squadroom of the 87th Precinct is under even more pressure than usual...
There's the murdered woman whose outstanding physical characteristic is her breast implants. Which doesn't surprise anyone in a big bad city like Isola - until they find out that she's a nun.

There's the escalating menace of The Cookie Boy, a burglar with a taste for chocolate chip cookies and violence.

And there's Detective Steve Carella's own. personal little problem. The man who murdered Carella's father - and got away with it - is back in Isola. And he's decided that the best way to secure his future freedom is to murder Carella too.

'A virtuoso' GUARDIAN

Many of Ed McBain's dazzling mysteries are available as New English Library paperbacks: NOCTURNE is the latest 87th Precinct story and THE LAST BEST HOPE also features Florida detective Matthew Hope. Coronet Books publishes PRIVILEGED CONVERSATION and CRIMINAL CONVERSATION under his real name, Evan Hunter.

Ed McBain: The Big Bad City. A Novel of the 87th Precinct. New English Library, ISBN: 0340728043 (August, 1999), 271 p., £5.99.

Ed McBain: The Big Bad City (UK 1999)

From the Publisher:
The hard-pressed squadroom of the 87th Precinct is grappling with three deadly dilemmas.
There's the murdered woman whose outstanding physical characteristic is her breast implants. Which doesn't surprise anyone in a big bad city like Isola - until they find out that she's a nun...

There's the nagging problem of The Cookie Boy, a burglar with a taste for chocolate chip cookies.

And there's Detective Steve Carella's own, personal little quandry. The man who murdered Carella's father - and got away with it - is back in Isola. And he's decided that the best way to secure his future freedom is to murder Carella too.

The master of the police procedural is back, with another masterpiece of crime, punishment and brilliantly observed mayhem.

'The upper echelons of thriller writing.' -- DAILY EXPRESS

Ed McBain is one of the most illustrious names in crime fiction. In 1998 he was the first non-British author to be awarded the Crime Writers' Association/Cartier Diamond Dagger Award and he is also a holder of the Mystery Writer of America's coveted Grand Master Award. He has written more than eighty works of fiction, including the heralded 87th Precinct series and the acclaimed Matthew Hope series. His real name is Evan Hunter an he lives in Connecticut.

Ed McBain: The Big Bad City. A Novel of the 87th Precinct. Hodder & Stoughton, ISBN: 0340750073 (April, 1999), 271 p., £9.99.

Ed McBain: The Big Bad City (UK 1999)

From the Publisher:
Ed McBain's dazzling new 87th Precinct novel finds the hard-pressed squadroom grappling with three deadly dilemmas.
There's the murdered woman whose outstanding physical characteristic is her breast implants. Which doesn't surprise anyone in a big bad city like Isola until they find out that she's a nun...

There's the nagging problem of The Cookie Boy, a burglar with a taste for chocolate chip cookies.

And there's Detective Steve Carella's own, personal little quandary. The man who murdered Carella's father - and got away with it is back in Isola. And he's decided that the best way to secure his future freedom is to murder Carella too.

The master of the police procedural is back, with another masterpiece of crime, punishment and brilliantly observed mayhem.

Ed McBain: The Big Bad City. A Novel of the 87th Precinct. Hodder & Stoughton, ISBN: 0340729058 (January, 1999), 271 p., £16.99.

Ed McBain: The Big Bad City (UK 1999)

From the Publisher:
The first thing you need to know about this city is that it is big. It is difficult to explain to someone who has never seen it. You can fold his town into a corner of one of the city's five separate sectors and still have room for more. The next thing you need to know is that it's dangerous. Never mind the reassuring bulletins from the mayor's office; just watch the first ten minutes of the eleven o'clock news and you'll learn exactly what the people of this city are capable of doing to other people in this city. So, if you came here thinking, Gee, there's going to be a neat little murder that takes place in a town house and some blue-haired lady will solve it, then you came to the wrong city at the wrong time of year. In this city, you have to pay attention. In this city, things are happening all the time, all over the place, and you don't have to be a detective to smell evil in the wind.

This week's city tabloids depict the face of a pretty, dead girl who lay sprawled near a park bench not seven blocks from the 87th precinct house, while the late night news reports on the latest exploits of The Cookie Boy, a professional thief who leaves a box of chocolate chip cookies behind after a score. Behind the scenes, detectives Carella and Brown soon discover that this is not your average dead girl, but one with an unusual past. As they piece together her secrets, detectives Meyer and Kling search Isola's pawnshops for items stolen by The Cookie Boy. While the detec-tives are investigating their cases, one of them is being stalked by the man who killed his father.

Like the city itself, this novel is wonderfully complex and filled with memorable characters, honest dialogue, and breathtaking violence.

Ed McBain: The Big Bad City. A Novel of the 87th Precinct. Simon & Schuster, ISBN: 0684855127 (January, 1999), 271 p., $25.00.