V.I. Warshawski Short Stories/Novellas

A classic V.I. Warshawski short story from New York Times bestselling author Sara Paretsky. When a beautiful young man hires Chicago detective V.I. Warshawski to find his long-lost father, his story has so many holes that V.I. knows she’s on thin ice. Some illusive resemblance to a face she can’t quite remember keeps the PI on the case, even though when she finds the old man, he claims he never had a child. Uncovering the real identities of both father and son leads V.I. on a chase from Chicago’s seedy bars to its Gold Coast hotels and leave her shaken to the core. Don’t miss this rare story about the detective who is a “powerful magnet for trouble” ( People ) by the international bestselling and award winning Sara Paretsky. Originally published in Mary Higgins Clark Mystery Magazine and reprinted in Body Work

Sara Paretsky, one of the most legendary crime writers of all time, presents an exclusive and thrilling short story featuring beloved investigator V.I. Warshawski as a ten-year-old girl on her first investigation. V.I. Warshawski developed her strength and sense of justice at a very early age. It’s 1966 and on the south side of Chicago racial tensions are at an all-time high. Dr. Martin Luther King is leading marches at Marquette Park and many in the neighborhood are very angry. With nothing but a bicycle, eighty-two cents in her pocket, and her Brownie camera hanging from her wrist, Victoria sneaks off to Marquette Park alone to protect her father Tony, a police officer who is patrolling the crowds. What begins as a small adventure and a quest to find her father and make sure he is safe turns into something far more dangerous. As the day goes on and the conflict at the park reaches a fever pitch Victoria realizes she must use her courage and ingenuity if she wants to keep herself and her family members out of harm’s way.

In this short story from New York Times bestselling author Sara Paretsky, acclaimed detective V.I. Warshawski must confront gun violence in her own Chicago hometown Legendary sleuth V.I. Warshawski is no stranger to the sound of bullets. Growing up in the Windy City, it was a way of life: loved ones taken too early, gangs patrolling the streets by night, police too quick to touch a trigger. Now, in the wake of a string of high school shootings across the United States, V.I.’s hometown has become impassioned by the growing movement to tackle gun violence. News reaches her old high school on Chicago’s South Side that an essay competition spearheaded by renowned newspaper The Edge is calling for high school students to write about how gun violence has affected their young lives. Overseeing the contest is Marcena Love, a British journalist V.I. has tangled with in the past. But when disputes arise over the poignant and divisive winning essay, violence strikes Mirabel High. To protect the students and teachers, and reveal a killer in their midst, V.I. must employ all her skills as a detective, as well as delve into the darkest moments of her childhood, to solve this deeply personal case. Hailed by P.D. James as “the most remarkable” of modern crime writers, Sara Paretsky is the New York Times bestselling author of twenty-one novels, including the renowned V.I. Warshawski series. She is one of only three living writers—alongside John Le Carré and Lawrence Block—to have received both the Grand Master Award from the Mystery Writers of America and the Cartier Diamond Dagger from the Crime Writers Association of Great Britain. She lives in Chicago with her husband.