Donald E Westlake

John Dortmunder, a seasoned but often scoreless crook, gets a chance at fame and fortune when a television producer decides to make Dortmunder and his gang into a reality show, and while the guys make plans for their next caper under the eye of the camera, Dortmunder and his partner arrange a private money-making scheme on the side.

Master burglar John Archibald unexpectedly drops through a skylight into an impoverished Tribeca convent. The nuns charge him with the task of stealing back Sister Mary Grace who has been kidnapped by a deprogrammer employed by her father.

Hapless crook John Dortmunder cares nothing about righting ancient wrongs or for the game of chess. He is however, interested in finding a highly valuable, 700-pound chess set which was said to have been a planned gift for the last Russian czar. As he reunites his merry band of crooks, the treasure hunt is troubled from the beginning. There are few leads, so Dortmunder turns to ex-cop Johnny Eppick for help.

A mob boss's right-hand man must track down a missing cache of heroin The corpse isn't anybody special-a low-level drug courier-but it has been so long since the organization's last grand funeral that Nick Rovito decides to give the departed a big send-off. He pays for a huge church, a procession of Cadillacs, and an ocean of flowers, and enjoys the affair until he learns the dead man is going to his grave wearing the blue suit. Rovito summons Engel,...

Hapless criminal John Dortmunder returns in another rollicking tale of disorganized crime from Grand Master of Mystery Donald E. Westlake. It's the score of a lifetime: easy access to a lavish New York City apartment, hordes of valuables, and an absentee owner avoiding the lawyers of his unhappy ex-wives. But before they pull the job, Dortmunder's crew is startled to find their beloved gin joint, the OJ, in the clutches of the Mafia-who consider it...

In 1977, aging comedian Koo Davis, friend to generals and presidents, and veteran of countless USO tours to boost morale, is kidnapped by the five remaining members of the self-proclaimed People's Revolutionary Army who want to bring their cause back to life.

En route to her new job at a newspaper office, Sara Joslyn finds a bloody corpse hanging half out of a dark blue car.

"Collection of published and unpublished gems: a memoir about learning to write, an imaginary interview between Westlake's various identities, essays on writing, introductions, and letters to writers like Stephen King and Brian Garfield. A true miscellany, this includes a piece by Abigail Westlake, a recipe for "May's Famous Tuna Casserole" and a 'Midnight snack'."--From the publisher.

Dortmunder draws international attention when he steals the wrong ring The Byzantine Fire is much more than a ninety-carat ruby. As a stone it's worth over a million dollars, a value vastly increased by its pure gold band-but its history makes it priceless. A ring that has been fought for with sword and pen, and passed from nation to nation by all manner of theft and trickery, it finally made its way to the United States. The US has agreed to return...