BIRDS OF PREY

5 stars out of 5

I suspect the last time I read a short story I was still in high school. Now I’m an octogenarian who typically reads 100-plus books a year. Does that give you some idea how much I do not love to read short stories? I’m exaggerating a bit, of course, but you get the point.

Sometimes, though, you’ve just got to make an exception – and this wonderful collection of thriller stories, all with the theme of birds of prey, is one of those times. It began as a challenge from one of my favorite authors (Harlen Coben), who invited to other thriller writers to write them. I have no idea how many he pitched the idea to, but 11 agreed. Learning that proceeds from book sales benefits the International Thriller Writers group was an incentive for me to overlook length, as were the names of favorite writers who took up the challenge and the opportunity to sample works by other authors with whom I’m not very familiar or haven’t read at all.

Did I love every story? Some were stellar efforts and a couple were less than, shall we say, thrilling, but none was a complete turn-off. Now that I’ve finished, though, it’s impossible to review any of them; it’s tough to describe what happens in a short story without revealing way too much of the story. What I shall do, however, is list the authors and their bird of choice and leave it up to others to decide whether to snag the book for themselves. As a side personal note, if you ever see me listening to an audiobook you know I’m ready for the undertaker, but I think in this case it might be interesting since I believe the narrations are by the authors themselves (some, I’ve heard, complete with sound effects).

Whatever version you prefer though, I encourage you to give this one a go; it takes no time at all to read and is, pardon the expression, quite a hoot. Amid my thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for allowing me the pleasure of reading a pre-release copy, here’s the cast of characters and their birds:

Tess Gerretsen: Seagull

C.J. Box: Peregrine Falcon

Kathy Reichs: Owl

Ace Atkins: Buzzard

Heather Graham: California Condor

S.A. Cosby: Owl

Hank Phillippi Ryan: Falcon

Robert Dugoni: Falcon

Allison Brennan: Bald Eagle

Gregg Hurwitz: Vampire Finch

Kelley Armstrong: Northern Goshawk

Birds of Prey edited by Harlan Coben & C.J. Box (The Mysterious Press, June 2026); 320 pp.