is the author of more than 500 short stories and some 50 novels, including the bestselling Travis McGee series. Added together, the number of his books is now approaching the astonishing total of 30 million printed copies. Few authors in history have been as prolific as John D. MacDonald, and few have been as highly praised by the critics. The SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE has called him “one of our best craftsmen”; the CHICAGO TRIBUNE has called him “a masterful writer”; and THE NEW YORK TIMES once dubbed him “the John O’Hara of the crime-suspense story.” “He is a master of plot and construction,” said the LOS ANGELES TIMES, “discerning in characterization, able to bring alive the dimension of mood and setting.”