Editors of Mystery Scene magazine chose what they considered to be the top 25 crime and mystery stories from the previous year for this 1995 collection. All are short stories (although some inexplicably are labelled "short novels"). Among the choices are 1 winner and 5 nominees for the Edgar Award, and 4 winners of the Golden Dagger Award. The selections are diverse, and include stories of the crime noir type, a one involving a feline detective (told in the first "person", if that's the right word), an historical selection, and a variety of others that show have expansive is the genre. Also included as an introductory essay by Jon L. Breen on notable works in the field during 1994.

As might be expected of such a collection, the selections are uneven, but even a critical reader is likely find some to be highly effective. For my part, I found a few to be outstanding: Peter Staub's "Pork Pie Hat" (a Faulkneresque contribution), Brendan DuBois' "The Necessary Brother", Lawrence Block's "Keller on Horseback", and Sharyn McCrumb's "Old Rattler". Other notable choices include Robert Barnard's "The Gentleman in the Lake", Wendy Hornsby's "High Heels in the Headliner", and Barbara Collins' "The Ten Lives of Talbert," plus 8 others that I've marked for rereading. Listed below are the included stories, along with my ratings (on a five star system). I do tend to be parsimonious with high ratings.

Robert Barnard -- “The Gentleman in the Lake” 3.5*
Wendy Hornsby --“High Heels in the Headliner“-- 3.5*
Carole Nelson Douglas --“Coyote Peyote“-- 1.5*
Marcia Muller --“The Lost Coast“-- 3*
Nancy Packard --“Sign of the Times“-- 1*
Larry Segriff --“Unkindest Cut“-- 1*
Ian Rankin --“A Deep Hole“-- 3*
Liz Holliday --“And She Laughed“-- 1*
Jo Bannister --“Last of Kin“-- 2*
Ed Gorman --“One of Those Days, One of Those Nights“-- 3*
Peter Straub --“Pork Pie Hat“-- 4*
Sharyn McCrumb --“Old Rattler“-- 4*
J.A. Jance --“Oil and Water“-- 1*
Jan Grape --“No Simple Solution“—3*
Dana Stabenow --“Nooses Give“—3*
Max Allan Collins --“His Father’s Ghost“—3*
Julian Symons --“The Man Who Hated Television“ – 3*
John Lutz --“With Anchovies“—2*
Barbara Collins --“The Ten Lives of Talbert“—3.5*
Brendan DuBois --“The Necessary Brother“—5*
Brenda Melton Burnham --“The Tennis Court“—2*
Justin Scott --“An Eye for a Tooth“—1.5*
Doug Allyn --“The Dancing Bear“—3*
Lawrence Block --“Keller on Horseback“—4*
Bill Pronzini --“Out of the Depths“—3* ( )