Time of the Wolves

"Sweet Cactus Wine," in which a benign saguaro cactus commits mayhem, was Muller's first Western story. Each tale, including "The Cyaniders" written especially for this collection, is a miniature masterpiece of storytelling, realistic characters, and vivid settings. Even Sharon McCone makes her appearance in two of the stories, "The Lost Coast" and "Knives at Midnight," the latter collected here for the first time.

Also included is her only collaboration with her husband, Bill Pronzini, on a...