Zubrick’s Rock: Intrigue and Lunacy
Need a great book for a summer afternoon escape? If you like intrigue – and some tongue-in-cheek humor, consider ZUBRICK’S ROCK, this outrageous and exciting first novel from Robert Eringer. It was published in this 1995 apparent first edition by National Press Books, Washington DC.

The story:
Multimillionaire recluse Barry Zubrick's tax exile in glamorous Monte Carlo is threatened when the police revoke his residency permit. So Zubrick, who has always wanted his own country, plots to overthrow the picturesque principality.

With the assistance of a former CIA official, Zubrick schemes to seize Monaco ‘legitimately’ by tracing a descendant of the Spinola family, which briefly ruled the principality over 700 years ago -- and installing him as the true prince.

Enter Gerry Spinola -- dentist, gambler and alcoholic from Hoboken, New Jersey -- and the only heir Zubrick can dig up on short notice. Zubrick cuts a deal with Spinola to become his puppet.

Stirring a retired general and a band of soldiers-of-fortune into his mix, Zubrick assembles the ingredients for a coup d'etat. Taking Monaco is easy, he reckons. The problem is, what to do about France, which is pledged to protect the principality's rule.

Brimming with comedy and suspense, Zubrick’s Rock is swiftly paced with outrageously off-beat and comic characters, starting with the paranoid Zubrick himself.

The 210-page hardbound book is in AS NEW condition, with no apparent defects on either the book or dustjacket. It’s a good one! (5956)

Publisher: National Press Books
ISBN: 1882605217  

33 Classics by ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE HC, DJ
The fascinating and diverse stories collected in 33 BY ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE – CLASSIC STORIES BY THE CREATOR OF SHERLOCK HOLMES reflect the many facets of this legendary storyteller. Fans who have been delighted by the man who created Sherlock Holmes will enjoy the myriad of other turns that his fancy took, including 10 only recently identified.

Doyle’s first published story appeared anonymously, later stories have been misattributed, pirated, suppressed or simply lost, while others appeared in ephemeral publications now inaccessible to the general reader. The range of background and styles here is immense – with tales of prospecting, the stage, the regimental mess, the recollections of the driver of a London ‘growler,’ vignettes of historical research, tales of mystery, excursions into erudite farce and a story of black prediction that postulates and alternative end to World War I.

The 456-page hardbound book was edited by John Michael Gibson and Richard Lancelyn Green and published in 1986 by Avenel Books, New York. Condition is Very Good, with no apparent defects on the book itself. The dust jacket is present, showing some edge/corner wear and slight discoloration of the edges. (5132)
Publisher: Avenel Books
ISBN: 0517625431  

The Cat's Meow, J. Flannery Mystery

Truth be told, the Irish of Chicago are fleeing to the suburbs and the political machine, so well-greased under Mayor Daley; is creaking a bit with rust. So no one blinks when the graveyard at old St. Pat's Church is sold and slated to become a gas station. That's part of what gets Democratic Precinct Captain Jimmy Flannery up off his duff in the 27th Ward and over to St. Pat's in the 14th. The other part is the body of a dead cat.

Ignatius, Father Mulrooney's cat, has been found dead in the church and buried by the aging priest in the graveyard. Dead cats tell no tales, but the howls of Ignatius -- according to the good father -- startle him from a deep sleep the next night and send him into the church to investigate. On the sanctuary floor is a pentagon painted in blood and signs of a Black Mass. But all traces of the Satan worship vanish by the time he brings his housekeeper; Mrs. Thimble, to witness the sacrilege. Can't Jimmy; with his growing reputation for investigation, take a look-see?

From Edgar Award winning author Robert Campbell, this is THE CAT'S MEOW. The 183-page hardbound book was copyrighted in 1988 and published in this book club edition by New American Library, NY.

Condition is AS NEW with no apparent defects on book or dust jacket. (r13rev)
Publisher: New American Library
ISBN: none  

The Detective, HB, Thorp Mystery

According to the publisher, not since Raymond Chandler has a writer: so brilliantly taken possession of the American detective novel. In its characterization of men and women caught in relationships they are struggling to understand, in its profound suspense, and in its attention to language this book constitutes the first serious claim in twenty years for the private detective story as literature.

Roderick Thorp's THE DETECTIVE was copyrighted by the author in 1966 and published by The Dial Press, NY. This book club edition hardbound book has 598 pages.

It's in Very Good condition with no defects apparent on the book itself. The dust jacket is present, but has edge/corner wear, as well as some edge tears. (9r13rev)
Publisher: Dial Press
ISBN: none  

When Snow Was Red, HB Mystery

All of us are potential murderers, insisted Dr. Smith, the self-effacing little psychiatrist. Most of us learn to control the violent aggressions and hostilities with which we are stacked. But a sudden crisis may blow the lid off, so that even the most unlikely person becomes a killer. Such a crisis had just happened in the little Vermont village where Dr. Smith was a winter visitor. There a happy homecoming party had been interrupted by the discovery of a blood-stained mound in the snow -- and the cry of murder rang through the town.

Dr. Smith was an anonymous little gray man who seemed to melt into any background. While the District Attorney and a posse hunted the killer through the streets and the fields, Dr. Smith listened quietly to what was happening around him. And then, when he understood the motives and pressures of the past that had caused the fatal explosion of hate, he suddenly confronted the hidden murderer and brought the pursuit to its grim and pitiless conclusion.

This is Dr. Smith's first appearance in a novel -- the introduction of a fascinating and significant major figure in detective fiction. The author is Hugh Pentecost and the book is part of the Red Badge Mystery series. It's titled WHEN THE SNOW WAS RED, and was published in this book club edition in 1949 by Dodd, Mead & Co., NY.

The 176-page hardbound book is in Very Good condition with slight tanning of the pages. The dust jacket is present and shows some edge/corner wear. (r13rev)
Publisher: Dodd, Mead & Co.
ISBN: none  

Puss in Boots, HB, McBain Mystery

Prudence Ann Markham was as careful as her name. After she packed up the film she'd been editing, she checked the studio gear, hit the three-digit code on the alarm pad, snapped off the lights, and locked the outer door. Then she headed across the deserted parking lot to her car. It was 10:40 on the night of November 20. Prudence Ann never made it to 10:45 -- though her blood continued to flow, reddening the white gravel of the parking lot for long moments after she died.

The seventh Matthew Hope novel, this ranks with the best of the author's 87th Precinct police procedurals: cunningly plotted, richly peopled, tensely told -- and, like Prudence Ann's last film, probably X-rated, which only adds to its power and suspense. Here is detective fiction in the hands of a Grand Master, which is what the Mystery Writers of America called Ed McBain in 1986.

Ed McBain's hero, Matthew Hope, stars in this 185-page hardbound mystery, PUSS IN BOOTS. The book was copyrighted in 1987 and published in this book club edition by Henry Holt, NY.

This copy is in AS NEW condition with no defects apparent on the book itself and only very slight edge wear on the dust jacket. (r13rev)
Publisher: Henry Holt
ISBN: none  

Martina NAVRATILOVA Tennis Mystery, 1st HB

When a retired tennis champion retires to a writing career, what does she write about? Why tennis, of course! And, in THE TOTAL ZONE, murder too! Written by Martina Navratilova (with Liz Nickles), the 302-page hardbound book was published in this 1994 FIRST EDITION by Villard Books, New York. One critic calls it a winning collaboration – a page-turner filled with tennis, suspense and murder.

The hero is Jordan Myles, tennis champion turned sports therapist, who works with top players and aspiring stars, all drawn to her Desert Springs Sports Science Clinic. The hub of her $9-million business, however, is 16-year-old Audrey Armat – a combination of sugar and steel. She’s a Grand Slam contender with a scorched-earth serve and she rarely loses. But when she disappears, the international world of pro tennis uncovers a startling story of abuse, suicide and murder.

The book is in AS NEW condition with no defects apparent on either the book or the dust jacket! A wonderful gift or a great addition to your reading list! (r13rev)
Publisher: Villard Books
ISBN: 0679433902