For those doing detailed research, this is an excellent starting point that also directs the researcher to other resources; each essay concludes with a bibliography of works about the author and a listing of his or her major works both within and outside of this genre. While none of these essays is the final or most complete word on any of these authors, the book as a whole is the only reference a library would need to answer basic questions or quell readers' curiosity about top mystery writers. Manya Chylinski, Ctr. for Business Knowledge, Ernst & Young, Boston

The force of the market has never, it seems, been greater; and yet trade has always been a defining factory in world history.