Watch Your Back!

- After a year on the lam, the return of bumbling thief Dortmunder is a cause celebre. The author's most recent Dortmunder caper. "The Road to Ruin, and the short story collection, "Thieves' Dozen, received rave reviews in the "New York Times Book Review, New York Daily News, and "Kirkus Reviews (starred review), among other publications.- "Money for Nothing (Mysterious Press, 4/03) and "Put a Lid On It (Mysterious Press, 2002), two stand-alone mysteries, have sold over 68,000 hardcover and paperback copies combined.- Hollywood loves Dortmunder, too. "What's the Worst That Could Happen?, starring Martin Lawrence and Danny DeVito, was a major motion picture in 2001.- Donald E. Westlake was named Mystery Writers of America's Grand Master (1993); has won Edgar Allan Poe Awards for Best Novel, Screenplay, and Short Story; and was nominated for an Academy Award* for Best Adapted Screenplay for "The Grifters.