Publisher's Weekly
The latest in this series is a mixed bag of 14 stories; readers should find at least half of them enjoyable, a higher pleasure-ratio than usual. Among the best are Robert Barnard's ''The Woman in the Wardrobe,'' about a double life with a twist ending; Harlan Ellison's ''Soft Monkey,'' with vivid action and modern pathos; Brian Garfield's ''King's X,'' involving an elegant scam; Paula Gosling's ''Mr. Felix,'' about an over-the-hill jewel thief with a lot of life still in him; and Joyce Harrington's ''The Au Pair Girl,'' a reverse spin off Rebecca. The best are Bill Pronzini's ''Stacked Deck,'' with Deighan (not Nameless) in violent, snappy revenge against the Mob, and Julian Symons's ''Has Anybody Here Seen Me?'', a psychological puzzler with a smashing surprise ending. Readers should beware Isaac Asimov's pedantic ''The Stamp,'' and Eric D. Heideman's ''Roger, Mr. Whilkie,'' which is badly written (''the muggy landscape'') and silly. Hoch's introduction is concise and thoughtful.