From the award-winning author, who Stephen King called "a master of the short story" comes this unforgettable 20th-anniversary celebration of Hard Case Crime.

Taking you from Brazil at Carnival to Times Square at midnight and from Tijuana, Mexico to ancient China, exploring the dark heart of crime in the tradition of Raymond Chandler, Cornell Woolrich, and Graham Greene.

CELEBRATING 20 YEARS OF HARD CASE CRIME - 20 UNFORGETTABLE STORIES BY HARD CASE CRIME FOUNDER CHARLES ARDAI

Since debuting 20 years ago, Hard Case Crime has won acclaim for publishing the best in hardboiled crime fiction - not least of all the work of founding editor Charles Ardai, which has won the Edgar, Shamus and Ellery Queen Awards, been selected for 'Best of the Year' anthologies, and earned praise from publications like the Washington Post and Chicago Tribune and authors ranging from James Crumley and George Pelecanos to Megan Abbott and Stephen King.Collected here for the first time anywhere are the author's 20 finest stories, including his Edgar-winning "The Home Front," about death and repentance during World War II; the Shamus Award finalist "Nobody Wins," about a brutal gangland enforcer searching for the woman he loves; and year's-best selections such as "A Bar Called Charley's," about a traveling salesman's most grueling night on the road. From Brazil at Carnival to Times Square, from Tijuana, Mexico to history's first gunshot in 11th-century China, Ardai will take you to some of the most dangerous places in the world - and the darkest corners of the human heart.