FaceOff (2014)

Eleven short stories that pair our favorite authors and their characters. I'm a Lincoln Rhyme (Jeffery Deaver) and Lucas Davenport (John Sandford) fan so was pleased to see a short story that put them together ("Rhymes with Prey" -- gotta love that title). In this case, the two of them cementing a friendship seemed to happen rather quickly for their natures but this is afterall a short story format. On the plus side, their mystery was interesting and believable, and most of the favorite series characters made an appearance.

Other authors were paired with" like" characters, for example Repairman Jack (by F. Paul Wilson) is a paranormal series -- he "repairs" situations for people that involve curses, ancient evil, and demons. Jack is set in a short story in New Orleans with Heather Graham's series characters - Michael Quinn and Danni Cafferty - who also deal with old, supernatural evil.

No need to read this book in order, pick and choose which authors you're interested in, or find a new author based on who they are paired with. Sit back and enjoy Harry Bosch, Aloysius Pendergast, and Jack Reacher, to name a few. If you haven't yet read some of these characters, these short stories will give you a quick introduction that might pique your interest enough to pick up a full-length novel starring that character. ( )

An International Thriller Writers collection that pairs best-selling author's characters in a unique way to solve crimes.
A good way to be introduced to new crime/thrill writers. Most tales are along the lines of professional police and crime investigators pursuits. Yet, my favorite was PIT STOP, pairing Raymond Khoury's FBI agent, Sean Reillly, with Linwwod Barclay's home renvonator contractor character,Glen Garber, plus Garber's pre-teen, clever, daughter, Kelly, together for a thrilling ride. ( )

This one's been on my to-read list forever. First, I had to wait for it to come out. Then, I kind of forgot about it for a while. But once I finally had a copy in my hands, I could practically feel the heat seeping from the pages.

With so many wonderful authors, how could this be anything but a thoroughly enjoyable, fast paced, anthology full of thrilling tales? Some of the stories held my attention better than others, but, then again, some of these authors have spent time on my top 5 list, so I may be a bit biased. Bottom line, this book is fast, fun, and a fantastic face-off with some truly awesome author pairings. 4.5 stars! ( )

Not familiar with short stories, I don't think it's my thing even I love the characters (know just a handful, not all). Still it was entertaining. ( )

I picked this book up because I wanted to see what it looked like to see Lucas Davenport go at it with Lincoln Rhyme and was delighted with their teamwork as well as the other 10 collaborations set in this collection of short stories by many acclaimed thriller writers whom I have had the pleasure to read over the years. I am looking forward to reading the next installment from the International Thriller Writers, it should be another #1. ( )