When I read that Steph Cha was taking the reins as the editor of the long running The Best American Mystery Stories annual anthology (which was also slightly retitled to The Best American Mystery and Suspense), I was ecstatic. When I learned that Alafair Burke would be her first guest editor, I was thrilled.
Turns out, my excitement was completely warranted.
I wasn’t always a fan of short stories. From a young age, I fancied myself a reader of novels. But I always preferred shorter novels to tomes, so it really makes no sense that I haven’t been an avid reader of short stories forever. But live and learn, right?
The thing about short stories is that there are a lot of them from a huge array of sources. This is what makes anthologies like this one especially valuable. Steph and Alafair were kind enough to chat with me about The Best American Mystery and Suspense, and one thing was crystal clear: they are both avid fans of short stories. I mean, to take on the task of even being aware of the tens of thousands of short stories out there (Steph said this was a low estimate), you have to be.
I find the sheer scope of the undertaking of putting together this anthology awe-inspiring. Steph and Alafair talked about how they structured the process, which started with Steph scanning (if not reading, because that would be impossible) as many sources of excellent stories as possible. Award nomination lists, magazines, other anthologies, and recommendations from editors all contributed. (Oh, and she had no assistant.)
Alafair read stories that made Steph’s cut, and they said there was a lot of overlap in the Venn diagram of what each of them loved. The hardest part, they said, was making the final selections because they both loved close to 30 stories (there are 20 in the anthology).
We’re not supposed to ask anthology editors which story is their favorite, so I instead asked Steph and Alafair which story they found to be the most odd (and I mean that in the most complimentary way). The answer? Preston Lang’s Potato Sandwich Days, which they described as laugh-out-loud funny and bleak. What a combo—and a perfect description of this tale.
There are also, no kidding, two stories in this anthology that feature sharks. If that’s not a reason to read it, I don’t know what is.
When I asked about what, in their estimation, makes a great short story, Steph and Alafair’s answers were as eloquent as their own fiction.
Alafair said that outstanding short stories need to be, “simply and elegantly executed and have something surprising happen without being overly complicated.” Steph agreed that not being able to rely too heavily on plot because of length constraints means that authors can’t be too twisty in short stories and pointed out that the form is often more suited to thriller stories than mysteries.
Speaking of that…
I wondered whether the addition of and Suspense to the title of this anthology came with any kind of specific guidelines for the editors. Thankfully, it did not, and Steph explained that while they did discuss the sub-genres represented, they didn’t go into the selection process with any kind of a formula in place in terms of how many PI stories, how many thrillers, how many mysteries, etc. would be included.
This is the point where an article such as this should call out some stories that especially stand out in this anthology. Problem is, I can’t. Not because I don’t have favorites—I do—but because each story truly is an excellent read, and I don’t regret a moment of reading each of the twenty.
The Best American Mystery and Suspense 2021 comprises stories that do justice to the awesome range of crime fiction as well as any group of stories could. This extraordinary anthology is testament to the depth and breadth of crime fiction being written today, and each story is a gem. If you’re looking for the perfect holiday gift for yourself or someone else, look no further.
