"I don t play cards with men named Doc， or eat at places called Mom s. Or drink before I burgle. . . . It is， I should point out， not a career I would recommend for anyone. The fact that I evidently can t give it up doesn t mean I m not well aware of the disagreeably sordid nature of what I do." -- Bernie Rhodenbarr Acclaimed New York Times bestselling author Lawrence Block returns with one of his most inspired and popular characters: the extraordinary Bernie Rhodenbarr. Antiquarian bookseller by day， burglar by night， Bernie has an innate knack， a gift， for getting into places designed to keep him out. Sophisticated yet down-to-earth， philosophical yet practical， Bernie is a gentleman who knows and loves his territory， the gloriously diverse and electric streets of Manhattan; a connoisseur who surrounds himself with the finer things in life， including his tailless Manx tabby， Raffles， and good friends like his neighbor Carolyn. In fact， it s a friend who gets him in his latest jam. Bernie is minding his own business when he s asked for a favor -- a neat， uncomplicated bit of vengeful larceny that will reap a tidy profit -- an offer the intrepid thief can t refuse. But with a few days to go before the crime， Bernie gets restless. So what does a burglar do to change his mood? Go on the prowl， of course. Though not the best way to do business， as he well knows. This bit of prowling lands Bernie in a pile of trouble that includes four murders and the burglary of his own home. Caught in the center of a deadly mystery， he must use his wits and wiles to connect the dots and add up the coincidences. Because if Bernie doesn t catch a killer， he ll lose not only his freedom but his life. Infused with the rich atmosphere of New York City and filled with a smart， charming cast of characters headed by the stylish Bernie， The Burglar on the Prowl is an engaging and delightfully suspenseful tale sure to be savored by Block fans old and new.

當今歐美硬漢派偵探小說第一人

侯孝賢、張大春、硃天文、硃天心最推崇的偵探文學大師

王傢衛作品《藍莓之夜》編劇，梁朝偉最想演繹其作品中的角色

他的作品不僅在美國備受推崇，還完全徵服瞭自詡為偵探小說原鄉的歐洲

勞倫斯•布洛剋（Lawrence Block，1938年6月24日— ）生於水牛城，目前定居紐約。被譽為“在紐約遊走的憂鬱靈魂”，很多精英分子為之迷狂。侯孝賢把他的書推薦給梁朝偉，後者很希望扮演他筆下的角色；硃天心評價布洛剋——“他是類型小說大師，又是一位不願馴服的抗拒的越界者”……四十年來，布洛剋伴隨著落魄固執的私傢偵探馬修•斯卡德，紳士大盜伯尼•羅登巴爾、睡不著覺的密探伊凡•譚納、冷酷殺手凱勒，見證瞭紐約最極緻的繁華與罪惡。即使第一頁就暴露瞭凶手，對他的作品也絲毫沒有影響。有人說，布洛剋的本領是先在血腥裏看見恐怖，然後把恐怖化成懸疑再在懸疑裏尋求理解，理解殺人者為何而殺，被殺者因何而死。

偵探小說最重要的兩個奬項，愛倫•坡奬的終身成就奬和鑽石匕首奬均肯定瞭勞倫斯的大師地位。他曾三次獲得愛倫•坡奬，兩獲馬耳他之鷹奬，四獲夏姆奬（後兩個奬項都是重要的硬漢派偵探小說奬項）。他亦被稱為“紐約犯罪風景的行吟詩人”。