Great Women Mystery Writers, 2nd Edition

Mysteries are among the most popular books today, and women continue to be among the most creative and widely read mystery writers. This book includes alphabetically arranged entries on 90 women mystery writers. Many of the writers discussed were not even writing when the first edition of this book was published in 1994, while others have written numerous works since then. Writers were selected based on their status as award winners, their commercial success, and their critical acclaim. Each entry provides biographical information, a discussion of major works and themes, and primary and secondary bibliographies. The volume closes with appendices and a selected, general bibliography. Public library patrons will value this guide to their favorite authors, while students will turn to it when writing reports.

Table of Contents:
Preface Acknowledgments Introduction Susan Wittig Albert/Robin Paige Donna Andrews Jo Bannister Linda Barnes Nevada Barr Cara Black Eleanor Taylor Bland Rhys Bowen Edna Buchanan Jan Burke Sarah Caudwell Jill Churchill Mary Higgins Clark Barbara Cleverly Liza Cody Margaret Coel Patricia Cornwell Deborah Crombie Amanda Cross Barbara D'Amato Lindsey Davis Marele Day Joanne Dobson Sarah Dunant Janet Evanovich Linda Fairstein Jerrilyn Farmer Earlene Fowler Frances Fyfield Carolina García-Aguilera Anne George Elizabeth George Sue Grafton Martha Grimes Patricia Hall Charlaine Harris Cynthia Harrod-Eagles Carolyn G. Hart Sue Henry Patricia Highsmith P. D. James J. A. Jance Faye Kellerman Laurie R. King Rochelle Majer Krich Virginia Lanier Emma Lathen/R. B. Dominic Donna Leon Gillian Linscott Laura Lippman Charlotte MacLeod/Alisa Craig Margaret Maron Sujata Massey Francine Mathews/Stephanie Barron Sharyn McCrumb Val McDermid Jill McGown Margaret Millar Denise Mina Marcia Muller Janet Neel Barbara Neely Sharan Newman Carol O'Connell Abigail Padgett Sara Paretsky P. J. Parrish Rebecca Pawel Anne Perry Elizabeth Peters/Barbara Michaels Nancy Pickard Ruth Rendell/Barbara Vine Kate Ross S. J. Rozan Lisa Scottoline Dorothy Simpson Karin Slaughter Julie Smith Julia Spencer-Fleming Dana Stabenow Sarah Strohmeyer P. J. Tracy Kathy Hogan Trocheck/Mary Kay Andrews Mary Willis Walker Minette Walters Valerie Wilson Wesley Kate Wilhelm Jacqueline Winspear Paula L. Woods Margaret Yorke Appendix A: Author/Character Series Master Index Appendix B: Series Character Name Index Appendix C: Series Setting Index Appendix D: Sleuth Type Index Appendix E: In Memoriam Appendix F: The Edgar Awards Appendix G: The Agatha Awards Appendix H: The Anthony Awards Appendix I: The Dagger Awards Appendix J: The Macavity Awards Appendix K: The Nero Wolfe Awards Appendix L: The Shamus Awards Appendix M: Twenty Years of Sisters in Crime Critical Bibliography Index

About the Author :
Elizabeth Blakesley Lindsay is the Assistant Director for Public Services and Outreach at the Washington State University Libraries, where she formerly served as Head of Library Instruction. She previously worked in the libraries at Indiana State University and the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth.

Review :
For libraries that own Klein's original compilation, the new edition is a valuable update. For other collections, this new edition provides useful biobibliographic information on contemporary women mystery writers. Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates and above; general readers. Lindsay offers biographies of 90 female English language mystery writers in this update to the 1994 edition. Writers who were deceased before 1994, or who have died since then but whose entries in the first edition remain complete, have been omitted. Entries on living writers have been updated, and many new names added. The authors were selected based on award receipts, commercial success, and critical acclaim. Each entry offers a short bibliography, a discussion of major works and themes, and a summary of critical response, followed by a complete bibliography. Multiple indexes allow readers to find works by author, series character name, sleuth type, and setting. The appendices list female nominees and recipients of various mystery awards. [A] useful reader's advisory tool for public librarians or an accessible reference for fans looking for a good read. Each A-Z entry includes the author's full name, a short biography, a summary of the author's major works and themes, a discussion of the author's critical reception, a bibliography of the author's works separated by series, and a list of works about the author….Libraries that have the first edition of Great Women Mystery Writers will want to add the second edition since it updates the first book and gives valuable information on many new mystery writers….Public libraries with a strong patron demand for mysteries and academic libraries that have mystery courses will definitely want to add Great Women Mystery Writers to their reference collections.