title: Criminal Tendencies: Great Stories from Great Crime Writers
author: Lynne Patrick
description: Divided equally between reprints and original entries, this fine anthology showcases many of today's top British crime writers, from seasoned veterans like Peter Lovesey and Reginald Hill to newer names like Zo Sharp and Roz Southey. The creepy opening tale, Carla Banks's <i>Twilight Zone</i>like Out of Her Mind, which features a writer and a knife-wielding killer, contrasts nicely with the humorous story that soon follows, Simon Brett's Work Experience, in which burglars plot to rip off a coin dealer's cache stored above a police station. On balance, the 26 selections tend to the scary side, as shown by Ann Cleves's Games for Winter, in which a teacher's decision to try his survival skills in a remote part of Alaska has fateful consequences. In one of the book's best tales, Sophie Hannah's unsettling The Octopus Nest, a babysitter's chance look at a couple's photo album reveals a stalker. Proceeds from the volume benefit breast cancer charities in the U.K. <i>(Sept.)</i> <br />Copyright  Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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  ![Cover](images/pic_1.jpg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ## Like A Charm
  
  
    
  
  
  ### Karin Slaughter
  
  
  ### Emma Donoghue
  
  
  ### Peter Robinson
  
  
  ### Fidelis Morgan
  
  
  ### Lynda La Plante
  
  
  ### Lee Child
  
  
  ### Mark Billingham
  
  
  ### Denise Mina
  
  
  ### John Harvey
  
  
  ### Kelley Armstrong
  
  
  ### John Connolly
  
  
  ### Jane Haddam
  
  
  ### Laura Lippman
  
  
  ### Peter Moore Smith
  
  
  ### Jerrilyn Farmer
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  'It's fascinating to see some of my favourite crime novelists coming together
  to create a taut, tense thriller; each chapter stands alone as a powerful
  story, yet they also combine seamlessly into a great read. Genuinely
  gripping.' – Harlan Coben
  
  
  ***
  
  
  With each crime writer picking up the story in their usual locale, each of the
  authors tell a gripping story of murder, betrayal and intrigue. Running
  through each story is a charm bracelet which brings bad luck wherever it's
  found. Set in locations ranging from nineteenth-century Georgia to wartime
  Leeds, the book features stories from contributor