Ed McBain: Killer's Payoff (USA 2013)

From the Publisher:
It's like an old-time gangster movie: a speeding car, a blazing gun... and suddenly a guy walking down the street without a care in the world is lying in the gutter without a head on his shoulders. But who pulled the high-powered trigger that turned Sy Kramer from a blackmailer into a chalk outline? Was it the politician's wife with a pornographic past? The soda-pop tycoon desperate to keep a business-busting bungle bottled up? Or was it whoever was paying Kramer a small fortune to hide what must've been one very big bad? It falls to detectives Steve Carella and Cotton Hawes of the 87th Precinct to pound the pavement of the city and beat the bushes of the backwoods for the suspect with the best motive, the most blistering weapon, and the biggest set of brass ones. En route, they'll meet pretty ladies and petty lowlifes, great white hunters and gray flannel ad execs, and, when the going gets rough, maybe even their match. It's all in several long days' -- and even longer nights' -- work for the guys who make their living behind the badge, and under the gun.

Ed McBain: Killer's Payoff. An 87th Precinct Novel. Thomas & Mercer, ISBN: 9781477805718 (November, 2013), 206 p., $14.95.

Ed McBain: Killer's Payoff (UK 2009)

From the Publisher:
Sy Kramer was handsome, well-dressed, well-heeled -- and dead! A blackmailer who'd pushed one of his victims too far, Kramer had earned his last payoff: a bullet in the head.

Which of Kramer's pigeons had so much at stake that murder seemed like the best bet? Was it the politician's wife, anxious to conceal her shadowy past? Or the soft drinks king? Or was it that unknown victim who had fattened Kramer's bankroll by the thousands? Or perhaps another blackmailer muscling in on Kramer's territory?

The boys of the 87th have a tough case to crack. They must catch the desperate killer before he or she strikes again, and Kramer's blackmail victims are decidedly unwilling to co-operate…

Ed McBain: Killer's Payoff. An 87th Precinct Novel. Allison & Busby, ISBN: 9780749080334 (November, 2009), 311 p., £7.99.

Ed McBain: Killer's Payoff (USA 2003)

From the Publisher:
He appeared to be a decent, upright, honest citizen...
And yet appearances can be more than deceiving in the world of blackmail and extortion. The shocking gangland-style murder of known blackmailer Sy Kramer begs the question: which of Kramer's marks had given him his very last payoff? A politician's beautiful wife with a deadly secret? An overly interested ex-con? A wealthy soft-drinks executive? Or the mystery person who had fattened Kramer's wallet by the thousands? The detectives of the 87th Precinct must break the chain that links the dead man's associates and single out a killer -- before someone else cashes it in.

Ed McBain: Killer's Payoff. An 87th Precinct Mystery. Pocket Books, ISBN: 0743463064 (December, 2002), 272 p., $7.99.

Ed McBain: Killer's Payoff (USA 1974)

From the Publisher:
BULLET FOR BLACKMAIL
He was handsome, well-dressed, well-heeled-and very dead! A blackmailer who'd gone too far, Sy Kramer had earned his last payoff, a bullet in the head! Which of Kramer's pigeons had so much at stake that murder seemed a good gamble? Was it the politician's voluptuous wife? Or the soda-pop king? Or was it that unknown victim who had fattened Kramer's bankroll by the thousands? Perhaps it was another blackmailer, taking over Kramer's marks. The boys of the 87th had a tough case to crack. They must find the desperate killer before he or she struck again...

"The best crime book of the season." -- Anthony Boucher

Ed McBain: Killer's Payoff. An explosive sizzling 87th Precinct Mystery. New American Library / Signet Book #Q5939 (June, 1974), 157 p., ¢95.