Contributing Authors Include Clifford R. Barnett, John C. Fiske, Peter Malof And Florence K. Nierman. Preface By Milton D. Graham. Country Survey Series.

Additional Contributors Are Mildred C. Bigelow, John Cookson, Sheila C. Gillen, George A. Lipsky, And Charles H. Royce. Survey Of World Cultures.

Police officers Michael Beckett and Destiny Jones are two of the most compelling characters ever created by novelist Thomas Fitzsimmons. Now the author, who has been called "a worthy successor to Ed McBain" by New York Times bestselling author Steven Coonts, returns with a new tale about the wisecracking, deadly duo. Roving the streets and bars of the Upper East Side of Manhattan, Beckett and Destiny are starting to come to terms with their true feelings for one another when their world suddenly shifts gears. An ex-cop recruits Beckett into his gang of "rockers"-a secret society of vigilante cops who protect businesses from shakedowns for a price. A violent drug ring has taken control of an Upper East Side boutique hotel. The gang needs to be cleaned out and an old girlfriend of Beckett's, an amoral tart who happens to co-own the place, needs saving. This leads Beckett and Destiny into one of the deadliest, most tangled operations of their lives as he pursues the drug kingpin who killed his baby sister, and Destiny is forced to confront life as an invalid or a death with dignity by her own hand.

Whether set in the ghettos of New York City, or the exclusive social and intellectual milieus of the rich and famous, whether recounting a priest's struggle with his faith, a firefighter coming to terms with his own mortality, the comical affairs of the heart, serial killers, or bungling members of organized crime, Thomas Fitzsimmons' stories strike with profound ferocity and impact. Told with an uncensored, darkly humorous style, Fitzsimmons' vision of the human condition is both amusing and brutal. For each of his stories are infused with an ennobling grace of the spirit. To be great, short stories have to echo the reader's minds. In this book, Fitzsimmons has created a collection that is indeed truly memorable.

Whether set in the ghettos of New York City, or the exclusive social and intellectual milieus of the rich and famous, whether recounting a priest's struggle with his faith, a firefighter coming to terms with his own mortality, the comical affairs of the heart, serial killers, or bungling members of organized crime, Thomas Fitzsimmons' stories strike with profound ferocity and impact. Told with an uncensored, darkly humorous style, Fitzsimmons' vision of the human condition is both amusing and brutal. For each of his stories are infused with an ennobling grace of the spirit. To be great, short stories have to echo the reader's minds. In this book, Fitzsimmons has created a collection that is indeed truly memorable.

Fitzsimmons pens an insider's tale of a dedicated pair of New York City cops who uncover a heinous scheme of arson that will keep readers spellbound from beginning to electrifying end.