Twenty-four stories present a spectrum of the sinister ranging from the subtle art of impersonation to blackmail to the purest of all forms of malice - murder.

Contents:

• Foreword by Robert L. Fish
• The Merciful by C.L. Sweeney, Jr.
• Long Shot by Henry Slesar
• The Lletter of the Law by Don Knowlton
• Every Litter Bit Hurts by Michael Avallone
• Strictly Diplomatic by John Dickson Carr
• The Impersonation Murder Case by Miriam Allen deFord
• Always a Motive by Dan Ross
• The Orderly World of Mr. Appleby by Stanley Ellin
• Number One by John Holt
• The Release by Cornell Woolrich
• The House at the End of the Lane by Browning Norton
• Command Perfomance by Anthony Boucher
• End of the Day by Jane Speed
• The Reference Room by John D. MacDonald
• Sauce for the Gander by Morris Hershman
• Mr. Wickwire's Widow by Mignon Eberhart
• Death by the Numbers by Ed Lacy
• The Accident by Julian Symons
• String of Pearls by Robert Bloch
• E=Murder by Ellery Queen
• Darl I Luv U by Joe Gores
• The Inquisitive Butcher of Nice by James Holding
• The Ring with the Velvet Ropes by Edward D. Hoch
• Angelica Is Still Alive by Walter Snow