Exit Wounds

Starred review from June 17, 2019
Though this superlative anthology from Kane and O’Regan (Beyond Rue Morgue) has a somewhat amorphous theme centered on exits of various sorts, and physical and psychological wounds, the quality of the 19 entries is top-notch. Genre fans won’t be surprised that perennial bestsellers such as Lee Child, Jeffery Deaver, and Dennis Lehane distinguish themselves, but the best work comes from lesser-knowns. In “The New Lad,” Paul Finch presents the terrifying exploits of a new police constable who’s assigned to guard a crime scene in a wood rumored to house a monster, ending with a devious twist. Fiona Cummins’s “Dead Weight” provides an ironic resolution to the conflict between an overbearing mother and her daughter over the latter’s eating habits. In John Connolly’s “On The Anatomization of an Unknown Man (1637) by Frans Mier,” a scholarly discourse on a painting’s gruesome imagery takes an unexpected turn. Every entry is well-written, suspenseful, and peopled with fully developed characters—a tribute to the editors’ judgment.