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Hidden and Other Stories
Book by Kaminsky, Stuart M.
- GenresMystery
278 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 1999
About the author
Stuart M. Kaminsky
162 books216 followersStuart M. Kaminsky wrote 50 published novels, 5 biographies, 4 textbooks and 35 short stories. He also has screenwriting credits on four produced films including ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA, ENEMY TERRITORY, A WOMAN IN THE WIND and HIDDEN FEARS. He was a past president of the Mystery Writers of America and was nominated for six prestigious Edgar Allen Poe Awards including one for his short story “Snow” in 1999. He won an Edgar for his novel A COLD RED SUNRISE, which was also awarded the Prix De Roman D’Aventure of France. He was nominated for both a Shamus Award and a McCavity Readers Choice Award.
Kaminsky wrote several popular series including those featuring Lew Fonesca, Abraham Lieberman, Inspector Porfiry Petrovich Rostnikov, and Toby Peters. He also wrote two original "Rockford Files " novels. He was the 50th annual recipient of the Grandmaster 2006 for Lifetime Achievement from the Mystery Writers of America.
Received the Shamus Award, "The Eye" (Lifetime achievement award) in 2007.
His nonfiction books including BASIC FILMMAKING, WRITING FOR TELEVISION, AMERICAN FILM GENRES, and biographies of GARY COOPER, CLINT EASTWOOD, JOHN HUSTON and DON SIEGEL. BEHIND THE MYSTERY was published by Hot House Press in 2005 and nominated by Mystery Writers of America for Best Critical/Biographical book in 2006.
Kaminsky held a B.S. in Journalism and an M.A. in English from The University of Illinois and a Ph.D. in Speech from Northwestern University where he taught for 16 years before becoming a Professor at Florida State. where he headed the Graduate Conservatory in Film and Television Production. He left Florida State in 1994 to pursue full-time writing.
Kaminsky and his wife, Enid Perll, moved to St. Louis, Missouri in March 2009 to await a liver transplant to treat the hepatitis he contracted as an army medic in the late 1950s in France. He suffered a stroke two days after their arrival in St. Louis, which made him ineligible for a transplant. He died on October 9, 2009.
Kaminsky wrote several popular series including those featuring Lew Fonesca, Abraham Lieberman, Inspector Porfiry Petrovich Rostnikov, and Toby Peters. He also wrote two original "Rockford Files " novels. He was the 50th annual recipient of the Grandmaster 2006 for Lifetime Achievement from the Mystery Writers of America.
Received the Shamus Award, "The Eye" (Lifetime achievement award) in 2007.
His nonfiction books including BASIC FILMMAKING, WRITING FOR TELEVISION, AMERICAN FILM GENRES, and biographies of GARY COOPER, CLINT EASTWOOD, JOHN HUSTON and DON SIEGEL. BEHIND THE MYSTERY was published by Hot House Press in 2005 and nominated by Mystery Writers of America for Best Critical/Biographical book in 2006.
Kaminsky held a B.S. in Journalism and an M.A. in English from The University of Illinois and a Ph.D. in Speech from Northwestern University where he taught for 16 years before becoming a Professor at Florida State. where he headed the Graduate Conservatory in Film and Television Production. He left Florida State in 1994 to pursue full-time writing.
Kaminsky and his wife, Enid Perll, moved to St. Louis, Missouri in March 2009 to await a liver transplant to treat the hepatitis he contracted as an army medic in the late 1950s in France. He suffered a stroke two days after their arrival in St. Louis, which made him ineligible for a transplant. He died on October 9, 2009.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
June 13, 2008
This collection of Short Stories was interesting- I was able to thread through all of them with the exception of the final story which was written in the form of a short play.
The first short story in the collection was "Hidden" and I think the highlight of the book. It was dark and macabre, but had a redeeming element within it. The story was well written and had the type of twist one would be used to reading in the old Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine.
Three of the stories featured a clever young boy in a small town who was more than capable of solving crimes. All three of these stories were what I would term as "Locked Room Mysteries" meaning the crimes were done with no visible means of escape.
The most fun stories, however, were those featuring celebrities like Harry Truman and John Wayne. Several of these stories featured the popular Toby Peters, a Private Investigator character made famous in a fine series of nostalgic mysteries featuring celebrity guest stars by the same author. Toby's mean-tempered brother cop also has a starring role in another locked room mystery.
The stories in this collection were all fine (with the exception of the play that I just couldn't get into) without being anything exceptional. Some of the solutions were Holmesian in fact. I enjoyed the book because I knew some of the characters and enjoyed meeting some new characters. However, this one left me wanting more. Maybe this is one of the reasons I don't read too many short story collections.
Anyway, I consider this one worth reading, but nothing exceptional.
The first short story in the collection was "Hidden" and I think the highlight of the book. It was dark and macabre, but had a redeeming element within it. The story was well written and had the type of twist one would be used to reading in the old Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine.
Three of the stories featured a clever young boy in a small town who was more than capable of solving crimes. All three of these stories were what I would term as "Locked Room Mysteries" meaning the crimes were done with no visible means of escape.
The most fun stories, however, were those featuring celebrities like Harry Truman and John Wayne. Several of these stories featured the popular Toby Peters, a Private Investigator character made famous in a fine series of nostalgic mysteries featuring celebrity guest stars by the same author. Toby's mean-tempered brother cop also has a starring role in another locked room mystery.
The stories in this collection were all fine (with the exception of the play that I just couldn't get into) without being anything exceptional. Some of the solutions were Holmesian in fact. I enjoyed the book because I knew some of the characters and enjoyed meeting some new characters. However, this one left me wanting more. Maybe this is one of the reasons I don't read too many short story collections.
Anyway, I consider this one worth reading, but nothing exceptional.
October 10, 2017
Overall a really nice collection of Kaminsky's short fiction. Each tale was well-crafted, but the last few stories of his version of Encyclopedia Brown really just left me with a "Why Bother" feeling. There was nothing wrong with them, but they seemed very flat compared with the rest of the tales.
Still, it is worth your time if you like mysteries or just short fiction in general.
Read it!
Still, it is worth your time if you like mysteries or just short fiction in general.
Read it!
May 8, 2017
A collection of short stories by Stuart M. Kaminsky, a noted mystery writer, probably best known for the Toby Peters series.
The best stories feature Peters, The Peter Breedlove stories aren't bad either. All of them are at least readable. The stories featuring Peters does what short stories of such kind are supposed to do: make you want to read the novels.
Nice work.
The best stories feature Peters, The Peter Breedlove stories aren't bad either. All of them are at least readable. The stories featuring Peters does what short stories of such kind are supposed to do: make you want to read the novels.
Nice work.
December 12, 2019
--These short stories run the gamut. Some are great, some are so so and some are outrageous. Mostly it was a fun read though.--
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews