You are here: Home > Our Authors > Block, Lawrence

VJ Books Presents Author Lawrence Block!

Lawrence Block A Note from John about Lawrence Block:

"Lawrence Block has been around for a long time, and his bibliography spans many decades. To say that his awards are too numerous to mention may sound trite, but just take a look at some of the major awards; four Anthony Awards, nine Edgar Awards, and eleven Shamus Awards, including in 2002, the Lifetime Achievement Award ("The Eye"), and in 2009, the Best Character Award ("The Hammer") for Matt Scudder. In 1994 Block was named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America.

We all know the Matthew Scudder novels, Bernie Rhodenbarr and Evan Tanner, but few are versed in Blocks earliest books. Block now refers to these books as "mid-century" or "classic erotica." Writing as Jill Emerson, Paul Kavanagh, Sheldon Lord, Andrew Shaw, Don Holliday, Ben Christopher, and numerous other pseudonyms, Block cranked out over 50 of these titles with the first, CARLA, released when Block was just 20 years old."

Block was born in Buffalo, New York in 1938. By his mid-teens, he had already resolved to pursue a career as a writer. He attended at Antioch University in Ohio, but did not complete his studies. To pay the rent, he began writing mid-century sex novels under various pseudonyms--writing as many as 15-20 per year. Although these novels were not particularly inspiring, they were excellent practice.

Finally, Block published a story under his own name, in Manhunt magazine. This was followed by his first crime novel, Grifter's Game (1961) a few years later. Now, Block is known for his reoccurring characters, especially ex-cop Matthew Scudder and gentleman burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr. He has written dozens upon dozens of novels, not to mention short stories (and in fact, if one counts his early works, he has published more than a hundred novels). You can find a collection of Lawrence Block signed books below this author biography.

Block is a Grand Master of Mystery Writers of America, and a past president of MWA and the Private Eye Writers of America. His pseudonyms include Jill Emerson, John Warren Wells, Lesley Evans, and Anne Campbell Clarke. He has won countless awards for his work. Block has also written for the screen, on occasion, and several of his stories have been adapted for film.

Block lives in New York with his wife Lynne. He has three daughters. When not writing, he and Lynne enjoy traveling the world together.

Lawrence Block Book List and Awards
Author's website: www.lawrenceblock.com
Similar authors: Elmore Leonard, Stephen Cannell, Dennis Lehane, Donald E. Westlake
Follow them on Facebook
Follow them on Twitter
Listen to Interviews

The Burglar in Short Order
Signed First Edition

The Burglar in Short Order by Lawrence Block

From Sea to Stormy Sea
Signed First Edition

From Sea to Stormy Sea edited by Lawrence Block

At Home in the Dark
Signed Limited Edition

At Home in the Dark edited by Lawrence Block

A Time to Scatter Stones
Signed First Edition

A Time to Scatter Stones by Lawrence Block

Alive in Shape and Color
Signed First Edition

Alive in Shape and Color by Lawrence Block

Resume Speed

Signed First Edition

Resume Speed by Lawrence Block

BlogTalkRadio Interviews

Click Here to Listen to the Lawrence Block Interview

Go to top of page

Lawrence Block Selected Bibliography


Ehrengraf Stories

  1. Ehrengraf for the Defense - 2012 (eBook, collected short stories)
  2. Defender of the Innocent: The Casebook of Martin Ehrengraf - 2014

Matthew Scudder Novels

  1. The Sins of the Fathers - 1976
  2. Time to Murder and Create - 1977
  3. In the Midst of Death - 1976
  4. A Stab in the Dark - 1981
  5. Eight Million Ways to Die - 1982
  6. When the Sacred Ginmill Closes - 1986
  7. Out on the Cutting Edge - 1989
  8. A Ticket to the Boneyard - 1990
  9. A Dance at the Slaughterhouse - 1991
  10. A Walk Among the Tombstones - 1992
  11. The Devil Knows You're Dead - 1993
  12. A Long Line of Dead Men - 1994
  13. Even the Wicked - 1997
  14. Everybody Dies - 1998
  15. Hope to Die - 2001
  16. All the Flowers Are Dying - 2005
  17. A Drop of the Hard Stuff - 2011
  18. The Night and the Music - 2011
  19. A Time to Scatter Stones - January 2019 (novella)

Bernie Rhodenbarr Novels

  1. Burglars Can't Be Choosers - 1977
  2. The Burglar in the Closet - 1978
  3. The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling - 1979
  4. The Burglar Who Studied Spinoza - 1980
  5. The Burglar Who Painted Like Mondrian - 1983
  6. The Burglar Who Traded Ted Williams - 1994
  7. The Burglar Who Thought He Was Bogart - 1995
  8. The Burglar in the Library - 1997
  9. The Burglar in the Rye - 1999
  10. The Burglar on the Prowl - 2004
  11. The Burglar Who Counted Spoons - 2015
  12. The Burglar in Short Order - 2020
  13. The Burglar Who Met Fredric Brown - 2022

Bernie Rhodenbarr Short Stories

  • A Bad Night for Burglars
  • The Burglar Takes a Cat
  • Like a Thief in the Night - 1983
  • The Burglar Who Dropped In On Elvis - 1990
  • The Burglar Who Smelled Smoke - 1997

Evan Tanner Novels

  1. The Thief Who Couldn't Sleep - 1994
  2. The Canceled Czech - 1966
  3. Tanner's Twelve Swingers - 1967
  4. Two for Tanner - 1968
  5. Tanner's Tiger - 1968
  6. Tanner's Virgin - 1968
  7. Me Tanner, You Jane - 1970
  8. Tanner on Ice - 1998

Chip Harrison Novels/Stories (as Chip Harrison)

  1. No Score - 1970
  2. Chip Harrison Scores Again - 1971
  3. Make Out With Murder - 1974 (a.k.a. The Five Little Rich Girls)
  4. The Topless Tulip Caper - 1975
  5. "As Dark As Christmas Gets" - 1997

John Keller Novels

  1. Hit Man - 1998
  2. Hit List - 2000
  3. Hit Parade - 2006
  4. Hit and Run - 2008
  5. Keller in Dallas - 2009
  6. Hit Me - 2012
  7. Keller's Adjustment - 2012
  8. Keller on the Spot - 2013
  9. Keller's Therapy - 2013
  10. Keller's Horoscope - 2013
  11. Keller's Fedora - 2016
  12. Keller's Homecoming - 2016
  13. Keller's Designated Hitter - 2016
  14. Keller the Dogkiller - 2016
  15. Keller in Des Moines - 2016
  16. Quotidian Keller - 2017

Paul Kavanagh Novels

  1. Such Men Are Dangerous - 1969
  2. The Triumph of Evil - 1971
  3. Not Comin' Home to You - 1974

Hard Case Crime Series

  1. The Girl with the Deep Blue Eyes - 2015
  2. Strange Embrace - 2012
  3. Pads Are for Passion - 1961 (as Sheldon Lord) (aka A Diet of Treacle)
  4. Borderline - 2014
  5. Catch and Release - 2014
  6. Sinner Man - 2016

Other Fiction

  • $20 Lust - 1961 (aka Cinderella Sims)
  • Death Pulls a Doublecross - 1961 (aka Coward's Kiss)
  • Mona - 1961 (aka Sweet Slow Death and Grifter's Game)
  • Markham - 1961 (aka You Could Call It Murder)
  • Fidel Castro Assassinated - 1961 (as Lee Duncan) (reissued by Hard Case Crime as Killing Castro)
  • The Girl with the Long Green Heart (1965)
  • Deadly Honeymoon (1967)
  • After the First Death (1969)
  • The Specialists (1969)
  • Ronald Rabbit Is a Dirty Old Man (1971)
  • Ariel (1980)
  • Random Walk (1988)
  • Enough Rope: Collected Stories (2002)
  • Small Town (2003)
  • My Blueberry Nights (2007)
  • Lucky at Cards (2007)
  • Getting off, A novel of Sex and Violence (2011)
  • Strange Embrace/69 Barrow Street (2012)
  • Dark City Lights: New York Stories - Edited by Lawrence Block (April 2015)
  • April North (2016)
  • Candy (2016)
  • Resume Speed (2016)
  • In Sunlight or In Shadow (2016) (Editor)
  • Alive in Shape and Color - November 2017 (Editor, Anthology)
  • At Home in the Dark - April 2019 (Editor, Anthology)
  • From Sea to Stormy Sea - December 2019 (Editor, Anthology)
  • Dead Girl Blues - 2020
  • Playing Games - 2023 (Editor, Anthology)

Books for Writers

  • Writing the Novel From Plot to Print (1979)
  • Telling Lies for Fun & Profit (1981)
  • Write For Your Life (1986)
  • Spider, Spin Me a Web (1987)
  • The Liar's Bible (2011)

Memoirs

  • Step by Step: A Pedestrian Memoir (2009)
  • The Crime of Our Lives (2015)

Lawrence Block Awards

  • Edgar and Shamus awards four times each
  • Japanese Maltese Falcon award twice
  • Nero Wolfe award
  • Philip Marlowe award
  • Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America
  • Diamond Dagger for Life Achievement from the Crime Writers Association (UK).
  • He’s also been honored with the Gumshoe Lifetime Achievement Award from Mystery Ink magazine and the Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer for Lifetime Achievement in the short story.)

Go to top of page