From O. Henry to Lilian Jackson Braun, North Carolina has nurtured some of the world's best-known mystery writers. This unique collection of mystery short stories showcases some of North Carolina's best writing talent from the past and the present--some famous, some less well known. Some of the mysteries are by authors who have earned solid reputations in other genres, such as Orson Scott Card and William Brittain, but as their stories here demonstrate, their talent embraces the mysterious.

The stories in this collection are as diverse as the "detectives" they feature: the Native...

When a forest ranger discovers an old pickup truck and its skeleton passenger on a parkway in North Carolina, Professor Shaw heads to the mountains to find evidence to prove the innocence of the man who confessed to the murder 40 years before. Martin's Press.

Winner of the Malice Domestic/St. Martin's Press Best First Traditional Mystery Award

Forensic historian Simon Shaw likes his murders old and cold, and his first case fits the bill. An archeologist friend has found a skeleton with a bullet hole in its skull under historic Bloodworth House, and Simon investigates with his usual doggedness until he discovers that the corpse is Anne Bloodworth, an heiress who disappeared in 1926. Shaw feels compelled to find out who killed her. But this turns out to be more than an academic exercise when someone who wants to hide past secrets tries to murder...