Bookselling burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr doesn't generally get philosophical about his criminal career. He's good at it, it's addictively exciting—and it pays a whole lot better than pushing old tomes. He steals therefore he is, period.

He might well ponder, however, the deeper meaning of events at the luxurious Chelsea brownstone of Herb and Wanda Colcannon, which is apparently burgled three times on the night Bernie breaks in: once before his visit and once after. Fortunately he still manages to lift some fair jewelry and an extremely valuable coin. Unfortunately burglar or burglars number three leave Herb unconscious and Wanda dead . . . and the cops think Rhodenbarr dunnit.

There's no time to get all existential about it—especially after the coin vanishes. But Bernie is going to have to do some deep thinking to find a way out of this homicidal conundrum.

"Wonderfully funny...Block's effortless first-person narrative and zippy dialogue is as pleasing as escapist fare ever gets." —Los Angeles Times Book Review "Classy. Interesting and fun...no one does Manhattan any better than Lawrence Block with these incredible tales...one of the best satirical mystery series on the market today." —Midwest Book Review "The joy...is Bernie's sharp tongue and wit." —Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel "His canny survival instincts, combined with his irrepressible sense of humor, make Bernie Rhodenbarr one of detective fiction's most engaging heroes." —Minneapolis Star-Tribune "Literary entertainment does not get any better than this. If you've never tried the Burglar books, you couldn't ask for a better time to start." —Mystery News "Lawrence Block is a master of the art of mystery." —New Orleans Time-Picayune "[Block] is one of the great mystery writers of all time. And gets better as he goes. Rhodenbarr is a wonderful New York character with a knack for surrounding himself with colorful eccentrics...bite, wit, and enough stylish attitude to power the Plaza for a week." —New York Daily New "A witty series, Bernie is incorrigibly adorable. Between his inquiring mind and his sticky fingers, Bernie is the ideal sleuth. Notre Dame at dusk. Pepy's account of the great fire of London. A really good cashmere coat. Some treasures are timeless...I feel like putting Bernie Rhodenbarr on that list." —New York Times Book Review "As good as it gets. Rhodies will eat it up." —Philadelphia Inquirer