Posts Tagged ‘Mystery’
Monday, June 1st, 2026
Another Half Price Books find:
Vachss, Andrew. Flood. Donald I. Fine, 1985. First edition hardback, a Fine-copy with slight bumping at head and heel, in a Near Fine+ dust jacket with a 3/4″ hairline crease at bottom front panel, and slight bumping at head, heel and points, signed by Vachss. His first novel, a mystery. Vachss died in 2021. Replaces an unsigned copy. Bought for $5.39 from Half Price Books.
I have two other things signed by Vachss: The Shaolin Cowboy Adventure Magazine No. 1, and the signed hardback edition of Veil’s Visit, his collaboration with Joe R. Lansdale.
Tags:Andrew Vachss, Books, Half Price Books, Mystery, signatures
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Monday, March 9th, 2026
I had the first two Joe Kurtz books (Hard Case and Hard Freeze) signed by Simmons, but the third wasn’t, so I pick this up cheap when I heard about his untimely death.
Simmons, Dan. Hard as Nails. St. Martin’s Minotaur, 2003. First edition hardback, a Fine- copy with slight bend at heel, in a Fine dust jacket (taken from my existing copy), signed by Simmons. Bought for $14.95 plus shipping off eBay.
Tags:Books, Dan Simmons, Mystery, signatures
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Wednesday, January 14th, 2026
Another SST Lansdale limited came in:
Lansdale, Joe R. Sugar on the Bones. Short Scary Tales (SST) Publications. 2025. First limited edition hardback, #101 of 500 signed, numbered copies, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket and a Fine slipcase (the slipcase was not included in the base price for the book, I had to pay extra for it). Signed, limited edition of the latest Hap and Leonard novel.
I will have one copy of this available in the next Lame Excuse Books catalog.
Tags:Books, Hap & Leonard, Joe R. Lansdale, Limited Editions, Mystery, Short Scary Tales (SST) Publications, small press publishers
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Friday, January 9th, 2026
Two more Houston Half Price Books finds, the only connection being two Texas authors I know personally.
Lansdale, Joe R. Freezer Burn. Mysterious Press, 1999. Advanced Reading Copy, trade paperback format, of the trade hardback first edition, a Fine- copy, with slight wear at corners. Supplements the Crossroad Press signed, limited, true first edition. Bought for $9.99.
Sterling, Bruce. Schismatrix Plus. SFBC, 2006. First hardback edition, a Fine copy in a Fine dust jacket. Part of SFBC’s 50th Anniversary Collection. Honestly, I wasn’t even aware they had done this until I chanced across it. Supplements the trade paperback original and the hardback firsts of Schismatrix and Crystal Express. Bought for $4.99.
Tags:ARC, Books, Bruce Sterling, cyberpunk, Half Price Books, Horror, Joe R. Lansdale, Mysterious Press, Mystery, Science Fiction, SFBC, Texas
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Wednesday, January 7th, 2026
Another Houston area Half Price Books find.
Burke, James Lee. In the Electric Mist with Confederate Dead. Hyperion, 1993. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine, Mylar protected dust jacket, inscribed by Burke: “To Morey,/All the best,/James Burke.” I picked this up because I heard good things about it (and the author), and since there’s a ghost in it, it qualifies as slipstream. Bought for $9.99.
Tags:Books, Half Price Books, Mystery, signatures, Slipstream
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Wednesday, December 10th, 2025
Another DFW find:
Hunter, Stephen. Night of Thunder. Simon & Schuster, 2008. First edition hardback, a Fine copy in a Fine, Mylar-protected dust jacket, signed by Hunter. “A Bob Lee Swagger novel.” Bought at a Dallas Half Price Books for $6.49, which is a quarter of the original selling price.
When book hunting, it’s usually a good idea to check out any book that already has a Mylar dust jacket protector…
Tags:Books, Mystery, signatures, Stephen Hunter, thrillers
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Monday, October 20th, 2025
Stephen Hunter is a mystery/thriller writer I’ve heard good things about from people I trust, and I’ve picked up some first editions of their work, but haven’t actually read any yet. But I keep an eye out for cheap firsts of his work, and actually chanced across two signed firsts at a Half Price Books.
Hunter, Stephen. Dead Zero. Simon and Schuster, 2010. First edition hardback (“1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2” numberline), a Fine- copy with slight bends at head and heel in a Fine- dust jacket with traces of wear at head, heel and points, signed by Hunter. Bought at Half Price Books for $7.19.
Hunter, Stephen. I, Ripper. Simon and Schuster, 2015. First edition hardback (“10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1” numberline), a Fine- copy with slight bends at head and heel in a Fine- dust jacket with traces of wear at head, heel and points, inscribed by Hunter: “To David,/All/best/Stephen Hunter”. Bought at Half Price Books for $7.19.
I should try to read a Hunter novel next year…
Tags:Books, Half Price Books, Mystery, signatures, Stephen Hunter, thrillers
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Monday, September 29th, 2025
I manage to fill one of the few gaps left in my Jack Vance collection.
Vance, Jack. Bad Ronald. Underwood Miller, 1982. First hardback edition, #63 of 200 signed, numbered copies, a Fine- copy with a very small bump to top rear boards, in a Near Fine dust jacket with slight age darkening to top of spine, and a trace of same along edges. Suspense novel originally published as a paperback original under his legal name of John Holbrook Vance, and the basis of a well-regarded 1974 TV movie of the same name. Hewett, A.43.c. Cunningham, 5.b. Chalker/Owings, page 434. Hubin, page 404. Supplements copies of the text in Volume 12 of the Vance Integral Edition and the Subterranean Dangerous Ways omnibus (which I have both lettered and trade states of), but I still lack the 1973 Ballantine PBO. Though overgraded as Fine/Fine, I can’t really complain since I bought this at a bargain $35 price.
Tags:Books, Jack Vance, Movies, Mystery, TV, Underwood/Miller
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Friday, August 22nd, 2025
Another purchase from that Facebook seller.
Haydock, Ron. Deerstalker! Holmes and Watson on Screen. Scarecrow Press, 1978. First edition hardback (no additional printings listed), a Fine- copy with wear at points, sans dust jacket, presumably as listed. Filmography of Sherlock Holmes films and TV shows. Bought for $10.
Tags:Books, Filmography, Movies, Mystery, Sherlock Holmes
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Monday, August 11th, 2025
These are the last books from that Kathryn Cramer purchase:
Davidson, Avram (as Ellery Queen). And on the Eighth Day. Random House, 1964. First edition hardback (“First Printing” stated, as per Currey), a Near Fine- copy with wear at head, heel and points, in a Very Good dust jacket with several 1/4″ to 1/8″ chips at head, heel, points and bottom center, “3-24” written in pen on inside top flap, two hairline tears to bottom front cover, and trace of dust soiling to white rear cover. Currey, page 131. Hubin, page 326.
Davidson, Avram (as Ellery Queen). The Fourth Side of the Triangle. Random House, 1965. First edition hardback (“First Printing” stated, as per Currey), a Fine- copy with a trace of wear at head, heel and points in a Near Fine+ dust jacket with slight grubbiness to white jacket, 1/4″ close hairline tear at bottom front, and a touch of edgewear. Currey, page 131. Hubin, page 326. Currey says this Random House edition precedes, but Hubin says the Gollancz edition precedes.
Bought for $10 each.
Tags:Avram Davidson, Books, Fantasy, Mystery
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