Bill Pronzini
Author of The Arbor House Treasury of Horror and the Supernatural
About the Author
Bill Pronzini was born in Petaluma, California on April 13, 1943. His first novel, The Stalker, was published in 1971. He is best known for his creation of the Nameless Detective Mystery series, as well as several westerns and novels of dark suspense. He has been a full time writer since 1969. He show more is also an active anthologist, having compiled more than 100 collections, most of which focus on mystery, western, and science fiction short stories. He has won numerous awards including three Shamus Awards and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Mystery Writers of America. His book Snowbound received the Grand Prix de la Litterature Policiere, as the best crime novel published in France in 1988. Pronzini has established himself as a master of the Western novel as well as earning a name for himself in the dark fiction genre. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Image credit: Robin Reese
Series
Works by Bill Pronzini
The Arbor House Treasury of Great Western Stories (1982) — Editor; Contributor — 106 copies, 1 review
Bug-Eyed Monsters: 13 Stories of Dripping, Creeping, Gurgling, Purling, Trilling, Oozing, Seeping, Gushing Deadly Monsters (1980) — Editor; Contributor — 79 copies, 2 reviews
The Web She Weaves: An Anthology of Mystery and Suspense Stories by Women (1983) — Editor — 60 copies, 2 reviews
Son of Gun in Cheek: An Affectionate Guide to More of the "Worst" in Mystery Fiction (1987) 55 copies, 3 reviews
The Arbor House Treasury of Detective and Mystery Stories from the Great Pulps (1983) — Editor — 51 copies, 3 reviews
Chapter and Hearse: Suspense Stories about the World of Books (1985) — Contributor; Editor — 49 copies, 1 review
The Edgar Winners: 33rd Annual Anthology of the Mystery Writers of America (1980) — Editor — 47 copies, 1 review
The Mystery Hall of Fame: An Anthology of Classic Mystery and Suspense Stories (1984) — Editor; Contributor — 36 copies, 1 review
The Paradise Affair: A Carpenter and Quincannon Mystery (Carpenter and Quincannon, 9) (2021) 16 copies, 1 review
Tricks and Treats: An Anthology of Mystery Stories by the Mystery Writers of America (1976) — Editor; Contributor — 15 copies
Academy Mystery Novellas: Women Sleuths, Police Procedurals, Locked Room Puzzles, Great British Detectives (1991) — Editor; Contributor — 13 copies
Six-Gun in Cheek: An Affectionate Guide to the "Worst" in Western Fiction (1997) 12 copies, 1 review
The Western Hall of Fame: An Anthology of Classic Western Stories Selected by the Western Writers of America (1984) — Editor — 10 copies
Proof of Guilt 4 copies
Inaugural [short story] — Author — 4 copies
Incident in a Neighborhood Tavern 3 copies
Dry Spell [short story] 3 copies
The Pulp Connection 3 copies
The Pattern 2 copies
Black Wind 2 copies
How Now Purple Cow [short story] 2 copies
Opening a Vein 2 copies
Schau mir in die Augen, Schnüffler. 13 Riesen- Stories. ( Schwarze Serie). (1995) — Editor — 2 copies
Cache and Carry 2 copies
Tales of the Impossible 2 copies
A Clone at Last 2 copies
Bedeviled 2 copies
Escape [short story] 1 copy
La vita in bilico 1 copy
The Clincher [short story] 1 copy
Memento Mori 1 copy
The Giant Book of Golden Age SF — Editor — 1 copy
Black Lizard 1 copy
Il nemico sconosciuto 1 copy
Souls Burning [short story] 1 copy
Rebound 1 copy
His Name Was Legion 1 copy
Caught In The Act 1 copy
Under the Skin 1 copy
Smuggler's Island 1 copy
Putting The Pieces Back 1 copy
Multiples 1 copy
I Don't Understand It 1 copy
A Lot On His Mind 1 copy
What Happened to Mary? 1 copy
Peekaboo 1 copy
The Big Bite 1 copy
Words Do Not a Book Make 1 copy
Die Totenuhr 1 copy
Ein ganz besonderes Kaliber 1 copy
Here Comes Santa Claus 1 copy
Possibilities 1 copy
Nameless Detective series 1 copy
It's a Lousy World 1 copy
Paxton's World 1 copy
On the Nature of Time 1 copy
Invitation To Murder 1 copy
Do I Dare to Eat a Peach? 1 copy
A Craving for Originality 1 copy
Two Weeks Every Summer 1 copy
Una maledetta fortuna 1 copy
Bonecrack 1 copy
Ombre cinesi 1 copy
Deathlove [short fiction] 1 copy
In der Kälte der Nacht. 1 copy
Teuflische Pläne. 1 copy
Gritos na Noite 1 copy
The Hanging Man 1 copy
The Prophecy 1 copy
The Space Killers 1 copy
Sanctuary 1 copy
Changes 1 copy
Dödens diamanter 1 copy
Associated Works
The Best of Mystery: 63 Short Stories Chosen by the Master of Suspense (1982) — Contributor — 427 copies
100 Dastardly Little Detective Stories (1993) — Contributor; Contributor; Contributor — 230 copies, 1 review
Murder on the Menu: Cordon Bleu Stories of Crime and Mystery, Volume 1 (1984) — Contributor — 211 copies, 2 reviews
I Should Have Stayed Home: The Worst Trips of the Great Writers (1994) — Contributor — 188 copies, 5 reviews
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Stories to Be Read with the Door Locked (1975) — Contributor — 187 copies, 4 reviews
The Mammoth Book of Perfect Crimes & Impossible Mysteries (2006) — Contributor — 160 copies, 4 reviews
The Mammoth Book of Locked-Room Mysteries and Impossible Crimes (2000) — Contributor — 134 copies, 1 review
A Century of Great Western Stories-An Anthology of Western Fiction (2000) — Contributor — 126 copies
Isaac Asimov's Magical Worlds of Fantasy, Volume 7: Magical Wishes (1891) — Contributor — 95 copies, 1 review
Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine Presents Fifty Years of Crime and Suspense (2006) — Contributor — 78 copies, 1 review
Murder by the Book: Literary Mysteries from Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine and Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine (1995) — Contributor — 71 copies
The World's Finest Mystery and Crime Stories: First Annual Collection (2000) — Contributor — 67 copies, 1 review
A Modern Treasury of Great Detective and Murder Mysteries (1994) — Contributor — 63 copies, 1 review
The World's Finest Mystery and Crime Stories: Second Annual Collection (2001) — Contributor — 56 copies, 1 review
Speculations : 17 Stories Written Especially for This Volume By Well-Known Science Fiction Authors, But Their Names are Concealed By a Code and It's Up to You to Figure Out Who… (1982) — Contributor — 53 copies, 1 review
The World's Finest Mystery and Crime Stories: Third Annual Collection (2002) — Contributor — 46 copies
Between the Dark and the Daylight and 27 More of the Best Crime and Mystery Stories of the Year (2009) — Contributor — 43 copies, 1 review
All but Impossible! An Anthology of Locked Room and Impossible Crime Stories by Members of the Mystery Writers of America (1981) — Contributor — 30 copies
Ellery Queen's murdercade: 23 stories from Ellery Queen's mystery magazine (Mystery annual ; 29) (1975) — Contributor — 25 copies
The Eyes Have It: The First Private Eye Writers of America Anthology (1984) — Contributor — 17 copies
The Year's 25 Finest Crime and Mystery Stories: First Annual Edition (1992) — Contributor — 16 copies
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction November 1978, Vol. 55, No. 5 (1987) — Contributor — 13 copies
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction November 1982, Vol. 63, No. 5 (1982) — Contributor — 13 copies
The Year's 25 Finest Crime and Mystery Stories: Second Annual Edition (1993) — Contributor — 12 copies
Horror Drive in Presents an All-Night Short Story Marathon (2012) — Contributor — 11 copies, 1 review
The Year's 25 Finest Crime and Mystery Stories: Third Annual Edition (1994) — Contributor — 10 copies
The Year's 25 Finest Crime and Mystery Stories: Seventh Annual Edition (1998) — Contributor — 9 copies
The Best Western Stories of Lewis B. Patten (G. K. Hall Nightingale Series Edition) (1987) — Editor — 8 copies
Pop the Clutch: Thrilling Tales of Rockabilly, Monsters, and Hot Rod Horror (2019) — Contributor — 8 copies
The Year's 25 Finest Crime and Mystery Stories: Fifth Annual Edition (1996) — Contributor — 7 copies
Crimes and Misfortunes: The Anthony Boucher Memorial Anthology of Mysteries — Contributor — 5 copies
Killers of the Mind: A Collection of Stories by the Mystery Writers of America (1974) — Contributor — 5 copies
The Year's 25 Finest Crime and Mystery Stories: Sixth Annual Edition (1997) — Contributor — 5 copies, 1 review
Killer Crimes 1 copy
La rivista di Alfred Hitchcock n.6 — Author — 1 copy
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Legal name
- Pronzini, William John
- Other names
- Davis, William Hart
Foxx, Jack
Jeffrey, William
Saxon, Alex - Birthdate
- 1943-04-13
- Gender
- male
- Education
- Santa Rosa Junior College
- Occupations
- detective novelist
anthologist
journalist - Organizations
- Petaluma Argus-Courier
- Awards and honors
- Grand Prix de la Litterature Policiere (best crime novel - Snowbound ∙ 1988)
Shamus Award (The Eye for Lifetime Achievement ∙ 1987)
MWA Grand Master (2008)
The Eye (Lifetime Achievement Award, PWA 1987) - Relationships
- Muller, Marcia (wife)
- Short biography
- William John Pronzini was born in Petaluma, California. He has been married three times. The first marriage was with Laura Patricia Adolphson, (1965 to 1967; divorce); the second was with Brunhilde Schier, July 28, 1972 (separated December 1985; divorce a couple years later). He married Marcia Muller (also a mystery writer) in 1992. They have collaborated on three novels: Beyond the Grave (1986), The Lighthouse, (1987); and Double (1984), a Nameless Detective novel, as well as on numerous anthologies. In 1987 he won The Eye, which is the Lifetime Achievement Award presented by The Private Eye Writers of America. It is a more exclusive version of their Shamus Award. He has been nominated three times by the Mystery Writers of America for an Edgar Award, and received their Grand Master designation in May of 2008.
- Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- Petaluma, California, USA
- Places of residence
- Petaluma, California, USA (birth)
- Associated Place (for map)
- Petaluma, California, USA
Members
Discussions
THE DEEP ONES: "The Girl With the Hungry Eyes" by Fritz Leiber in The Weird Tradition (April 2016)
Reviews
Finally I found the first in a series! While I originally picked this up for the female-male detective partnership, west coast setting (not New York for once!), and interest in whether the book would be complete historical fiction or actually feature Sherlock Holmes, I ended up reading it in part for research in my ongoing project.
In that respect, I was glad I did--electricity and technology was a bit more advanced than I expected! I'd completely forgotten to think about telephones, and I show more hadn't expected the cable cars to be in operation already in the 1890s. And the fact that Sherlock Holmes is part of the world--Carpenter and Quincannon discuss Doctor Watson's stories in the first chapter--also gave me some ideas about my Frankenstein tie-in.
This was a fun and fluffy book, a good one to read to relax after Paradise Lost. I loved that Carpenter and Quincannon both had their own mysteries to solve--it allowed them both to be equally competent, which would have been an immense challenge if they'd been on the same case. It was fun to see both characters through the others' eyes, and they both had a great balance of silly and serious personal traits and backstories. They both feel very real and fleshed-out after one slim book.
Sherlock Holmes was a fun inclusion, especially when Carpenter and Quincannon are horrified by his methods--you can't housebreak to collect evidence! I wasn't particularly wrapped up in the case itself. The drive came from watching the characters interact and work, not wondering who dunnit or how. That might be a strength or a weakness, depending on how you like your mysteries.
The historical detail was superb, and I was especially appreciative of the descriptions of food--yum! I also liked the way Carpenter's character was handled. She was aware of the casual misogyny in her world, but she knew how to work around it. Most people were very respectful of her as a detective, just the kind of fantasy I need in my life. At the same time, this was not a Disney-style rewriting of history. There were places that Carpenter could not go, men and women who dismissed her. It was a well-handled balance.
I could have done without the romantic "tension", and was glad that it dropped off as the book went along and the plot thickened. Seemed too rote and boringly predictable compared to the rest of the book.
I was also incredibly disappointed by the fact that the male main character went by his last name while the female main character went by her first name--on the chapter headings, no less! This is a basic pervasive inequality: men in professional positions are more likely to be called "Mr" or "Dr" while women in the same positions are more likely to be called by their first names, effectively stripping them of their earned titles. I see and experience this at work all the time.
In sum, a fun quick read. A good escape, nothing too dark, nothing too ludicrously modern. Highly enjoyable, if not substantial. show less
In that respect, I was glad I did--electricity and technology was a bit more advanced than I expected! I'd completely forgotten to think about telephones, and I show more hadn't expected the cable cars to be in operation already in the 1890s. And the fact that Sherlock Holmes is part of the world--Carpenter and Quincannon discuss Doctor Watson's stories in the first chapter--also gave me some ideas about my Frankenstein tie-in.
This was a fun and fluffy book, a good one to read to relax after Paradise Lost. I loved that Carpenter and Quincannon both had their own mysteries to solve--it allowed them both to be equally competent, which would have been an immense challenge if they'd been on the same case. It was fun to see both characters through the others' eyes, and they both had a great balance of silly and serious personal traits and backstories. They both feel very real and fleshed-out after one slim book.
Sherlock Holmes was a fun inclusion, especially when Carpenter and Quincannon are horrified by his methods--you can't housebreak to collect evidence! I wasn't particularly wrapped up in the case itself. The drive came from watching the characters interact and work, not wondering who dunnit or how. That might be a strength or a weakness, depending on how you like your mysteries.
The historical detail was superb, and I was especially appreciative of the descriptions of food--yum! I also liked the way Carpenter's character was handled. She was aware of the casual misogyny in her world, but she knew how to work around it. Most people were very respectful of her as a detective, just the kind of fantasy I need in my life. At the same time, this was not a Disney-style rewriting of history. There were places that Carpenter could not go, men and women who dismissed her. It was a well-handled balance.
I could have done without the romantic "tension", and was glad that it dropped off as the book went along and the plot thickened. Seemed too rote and boringly predictable compared to the rest of the book.
I was also incredibly disappointed by the fact that the male main character went by his last name while the female main character went by her first name--on the chapter headings, no less! This is a basic pervasive inequality: men in professional positions are more likely to be called "Mr" or "Dr" while women in the same positions are more likely to be called by their first names, effectively stripping them of their earned titles. I see and experience this at work all the time.
In sum, a fun quick read. A good escape, nothing too dark, nothing too ludicrously modern. Highly enjoyable, if not substantial. show less
Review from Badelynge.
The Snatch is a very early Bill Pronzini novel from 1971 and the very first of his long running Nameless Detective series. And it's a very decent beginning. Pronzini may have been just starting out on his longer form career but he'd already gone some way to developing his skills through his short stories, this book being a reworking of one such. Don't be fooled by the pedestrian seeming set up to the plot, what looks like a routine kidnapping and ransom soon manages to show more throw a few curve balls. It's all cleanly written and constructed, playing to its pulp noir influences, the most commendable aspect being the character development of our unconventional hero. He's a very engaging character, a devotee to the pulps himself which engenders a neat homage within homage dynamic that blurs the boundaries between Pronzini himself and his nameless protagonist. Within the first few pages, Nameless has already compared someone to Doc Savage and greater props to the author for allowing an image of Lester Leith, Erle Stanley Gardener's crafty pulp creation, to jolt Nameless from a blue funk onto a hotter trail. Nameless's obsession with the pulps is a major aspect of the series, in this first book it highlights the cracks in his already crumbling and damaged relationship with his current girlfriend. Her judgement being," I want a man. Not a stubborn and self-deluding adolescent trying to live the life of a fictional hero." This isn't just fan fiction though, Pronzini just happens to be a very fine storyteller, mastering the art of hard-boiled dialogue and first person stream of consciousness that wouldn't sit uncomfortably next to the 30's pulp maestros both he and Nameless idolises. show less
The Snatch is a very early Bill Pronzini novel from 1971 and the very first of his long running Nameless Detective series. And it's a very decent beginning. Pronzini may have been just starting out on his longer form career but he'd already gone some way to developing his skills through his short stories, this book being a reworking of one such. Don't be fooled by the pedestrian seeming set up to the plot, what looks like a routine kidnapping and ransom soon manages to show more throw a few curve balls. It's all cleanly written and constructed, playing to its pulp noir influences, the most commendable aspect being the character development of our unconventional hero. He's a very engaging character, a devotee to the pulps himself which engenders a neat homage within homage dynamic that blurs the boundaries between Pronzini himself and his nameless protagonist. Within the first few pages, Nameless has already compared someone to Doc Savage and greater props to the author for allowing an image of Lester Leith, Erle Stanley Gardener's crafty pulp creation, to jolt Nameless from a blue funk onto a hotter trail. Nameless's obsession with the pulps is a major aspect of the series, in this first book it highlights the cracks in his already crumbling and damaged relationship with his current girlfriend. Her judgement being," I want a man. Not a stubborn and self-deluding adolescent trying to live the life of a fictional hero." This isn't just fan fiction though, Pronzini just happens to be a very fine storyteller, mastering the art of hard-boiled dialogue and first person stream of consciousness that wouldn't sit uncomfortably next to the 30's pulp maestros both he and Nameless idolises. show less
Give-a-Damn Jones by Bill Pronzini
Big smile on my face as I type this review :)
Why? Well…my father put himself through school working as a printer and his stories of being a printer, friendships with printers and his collection of beautifully printed documents lead me and my siblings to choose printing instead of shop or home economics as our electives in high school. As I read about the typesetting and the terms used to describe the press and ink and everything else…so many memories show more were tapped that I sat and smiled then smiled again because…the book also tapped memories of reading my father’s collection of westerns…and in many ways this story of itinerate journeyman printer Artemas Give-A-Damn Jones made this Sunday a splendid one for me as I revisited the historical past of the United States but also my own.
The way this story is told made me think of Mark Twain, O’Henry and also of other authors from the past. It is told by various supporting characters who encounter Artemas but we never really hear from the main character except a few times in dialogue. Artemas may or may not have a reputation that is exaggerated – kind of like that of Paul Bunyan – but in truth he is bigger than life and a man I would love to meet.
Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan-Tor/Forge for the ARC – This is my honest review.
5 Stars show less
Big smile on my face as I type this review :)
Why? Well…my father put himself through school working as a printer and his stories of being a printer, friendships with printers and his collection of beautifully printed documents lead me and my siblings to choose printing instead of shop or home economics as our electives in high school. As I read about the typesetting and the terms used to describe the press and ink and everything else…so many memories show more were tapped that I sat and smiled then smiled again because…the book also tapped memories of reading my father’s collection of westerns…and in many ways this story of itinerate journeyman printer Artemas Give-A-Damn Jones made this Sunday a splendid one for me as I revisited the historical past of the United States but also my own.
The way this story is told made me think of Mark Twain, O’Henry and also of other authors from the past. It is told by various supporting characters who encounter Artemas but we never really hear from the main character except a few times in dialogue. Artemas may or may not have a reputation that is exaggerated – kind of like that of Paul Bunyan – but in truth he is bigger than life and a man I would love to meet.
Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan-Tor/Forge for the ARC – This is my honest review.
5 Stars show less
Damn you Bill Pronzini! I was jotting down authors names before I reached the back and discovered and neatly listed bibliography. I had every intention of taking your advice to seek out these B-grade gems of the mystery fiction genre, after-all, many a B-grade film has, with time, become a cult classic.
I liked the way Bill uses his chapters to tackle the different aspects of the fictional mystery - the amateur detective, the police investigator, the private eye, the gentleman rogue, the evil show more oriental - as well as the spy story. We gain an insight into the publishing - and specifically Phoenix Press, who apparently published the majority of these gems (see page 91). There are comparisons between more popular characters with, often, their not so well known contemporaries and imitators.
Pronzini peppers each chapter with some of the best (??) of the writing of these featured authors:
"He keeps on waiting awhile longer. Then, at five o'clock, he gets up, locks the office door, and goes out (in that order)." "Tomorrow was another day." (Robert Twohy's "Slime"). Even some of our more well-known authors make the list (ie: Spillane, West, Basinsky, Brown, Leroux).
The titles of some of these works border on the fantastical and highly imaginable (No Coffin For The Corpse, The Clue of the Leaning Chimney, The Face on the Cutting Room Floor, When Last I Died, No Luck With The Hanged Man) ; the men are invariably rugged, macho and mysoginistic; the women sport bazooka bras and ooze sex appeal; the dialogue is cliched; the villains suitably nefarious. They were quick reads - they were escapism. But don't be fooled - many of these B-graders were at the height of popular fiction during their day and were prolific in their writing - these were the authors that contributed to what we now refer to as "pulp fiction".
"The good mystery gets all the credit, all the attention .... But what about the BAD mystery?" Well, Pronzini has certainly brought together the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly in such a way that you may look twice at some of the lesser gems. I know I have. show less
I liked the way Bill uses his chapters to tackle the different aspects of the fictional mystery - the amateur detective, the police investigator, the private eye, the gentleman rogue, the evil show more oriental - as well as the spy story. We gain an insight into the publishing - and specifically Phoenix Press, who apparently published the majority of these gems (see page 91). There are comparisons between more popular characters with, often, their not so well known contemporaries and imitators.
Pronzini peppers each chapter with some of the best (??) of the writing of these featured authors:
"He keeps on waiting awhile longer. Then, at five o'clock, he gets up, locks the office door, and goes out (in that order)." "Tomorrow was another day." (Robert Twohy's "Slime"). Even some of our more well-known authors make the list (ie: Spillane, West, Basinsky, Brown, Leroux).
The titles of some of these works border on the fantastical and highly imaginable (No Coffin For The Corpse, The Clue of the Leaning Chimney, The Face on the Cutting Room Floor, When Last I Died, No Luck With The Hanged Man) ; the men are invariably rugged, macho and mysoginistic; the women sport bazooka bras and ooze sex appeal; the dialogue is cliched; the villains suitably nefarious. They were quick reads - they were escapism. But don't be fooled - many of these B-graders were at the height of popular fiction during their day and were prolific in their writing - these were the authors that contributed to what we now refer to as "pulp fiction".
"The good mystery gets all the credit, all the attention .... But what about the BAD mystery?" Well, Pronzini has certainly brought together the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly in such a way that you may look twice at some of the lesser gems. I know I have. show less
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Statistics
- Works
- 341
- Also by
- 154
- Members
- 9,489
- Popularity
- #2,530
- Rating
- 3.6
- Reviews
- 204
- ISBNs
- 1,079
- Languages
- 11
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