Marvin H. Albert Books In Order

Publication Order of Pete Sawyer Books

Publication Order of Tony Rome Books

Publication Order of Marvin H. Albert Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Marvin H. Albert Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

Marvin H. Albert was an American author from Philadelphia that made his name writing several series of novels in the adventure, crime, and mystery genres. He is best known for the “Stone Angel” series of novels featuring Pete Sawyer an American-French private investigator working and living in France. Writing in many different genres, Marvin Albert used several pseudonyms including Al Conroy, Anthony Rome, Nick Quarry, Ian McAllister, Albert Conroy, and Mike Barone. Before he got into a full time writing career, Marvin H. Albert was in the US Merchant Marine, where he served as a radio officer during World War II. After the war, he settled in Philadelphia, where he was the director of children’s theater performing group. In 1950, he moved to New York taking up a job as an editor and writer for Look and Quick magazines. He wrote his debut novel “The Law and Jake Wade” that went on to become a fan favorite almost immediately after publication in 1956. In addition to his highly popular mysteries, westerns and novelizations of popular films and television series from Hollywood, he also tried his hand at biography writing and was surprisingly good at it. He is credited with writing the biography of Henry VIII titled “The Divorce” and “Broadsides and Boarders” which is a history of great sea captains, and the biography of Ernest Shackleton, the famous Arctic explorer that was titled The Long White Road”. Some of his novels that have been made into films include “The Law and Jake Wade”, “Duel at Diablo”, “The Man in Black”, “Lady In Cement”, “The Don is Dead”, and “Adieu Marin” among others.

After writing for a few years, Albert moved from New York to Los Angeles to try his hand at screenwriting. He adapted nine of his popular novels for film and TV, including novels such as “Miami Mayhem” that was retitled as “Tony Rome” starring Frank Sinatra and “Apache Rising” that starred Sidney Poitier and was retitled “Duel at Diablo”. Even as he was getting old, he never stopped writing and after he moved to Europe in 1976, he would continue to pen more of his excellent works from his new home in Mont Segur-sur-Lauzon in the south of France. “The Gargoyle Conspiracy”, an international suspense thriller published in 1975 was shortlisted for Best Mystery Novel at the Edgar Awards in 1976. He would go on to write even more successful standalones over the years including his most famous and popular work the “Stone Angel” series from France. His last known work was a mystery set in New York City just before the start of the millennium titled “Scarlet Woman”. Marvin Albert died of a heart attack at his home in France aged 73. He left behind his family of wife Xenia Klar, his daughter and son both of Manhattan, and a granddaughter.

The Stone Angel series of novels is one of the most popular and best known of Albert H. Marvin’s works. Featuring the French American investigative sleuth Pete Sawyer, the ten titles in the series are some of the finest detective mysteries one could ever read. Pete Sawyer the lead character in the series was born of a French mother that had been a World War II Resistance hero. After the death of Pete’s father, she had sent him to the United States to live with her parents. As such, Sawyer lived most of his life in the US city of Chicago, though he would frequently holiday in France before moving there permanently as an adult. When we are first introduced to the Pete Sawyer character, he is investigating the disappearance of a client’s daughter, which turns out to be more complicated than he first thought. The girl has gotten herself involved with some terrorist group and while she does not know it, she could be in a lot of trouble. Over the course of the series, Sawyer deals with all kinds of characters from the very rich of Paris to the criminals in the gutter, to the law enforcement officers, who try to sabotage his work at every turn. The Stone Angel novels have a smooth writing style full of dialogue, and travelogue, and plenty of fast-paced action in the great tradition of Marvin Albert that readers have always loved.

“Stone Angel” is the exhilarating first novel of the Stone Angel series of novels by Marvin H. Albert. Pete Sawyer the lead character in the novel is introduced as a man with American and French roots that prefers the French Riviera to cold and wet Chicago where he grew up. Pete who goes by the name Pierre-Ange that means Stone Angel in English, loves his guns and a glass of wine from time to time. Sawyer has just been hired by one of the Riviera’s wealthiest couple to find their daughter that has gone missing. It is a simple case for the detective, and he tracks down the teenage girl’s most recent location to a Paris address. However, the girl is not at the location that seems to have been the hideout of a group of terrorists, who have left blood in their wake. What does a teenage girl from a wealthy family have to do with what seems to be a terrorist sleeper cell? And even more bizarre, could the wealthy Champagne magnates of Lamaire be involved with a terrorist group? He now needs to use his cunning and charm to resolve an intricate case, which could have far-reaching consequences for France and the girl involved.

“Back in the Real World” sees the Half American half French protagonist Pete Sawyer make a comeback in this enthralling second novel of the Stone Angel series. Most of Pete’s days are spent sunning himself on the garden of his estate on the French Riviera, unless he has a case on his hands. Getting out of the house to visit his friend Frank Crowley, he stumbles upon a pair of bodies that he recognizes. One is Frank’s gorgeous sister-in-law Nathalie, and the other is private eye Anne Marie. Both bodies have bullet holes in their foreheads and are completely naked. Could the two have been having an illicit affair and what did the murder have to do with the bizarre happenings at the prestigious fashion design house, where Anne Marie worked as lead designer. With his gun in hand and his wits about him, Pete Sawyer needs to solve the dark murder mystery if his friend Crowley is not to end up in jail for a crime he did not commit.

2 Responses to “Marvin H. Albert”

1. Jim Kuntz: 11 months ago

   I’m trying to find a book title Nightmare in Dreamland or A nightmare to Dreamland by Marvin H. Albert. Can anyone help with this?

   Reply
   • Graeme: 11 months ago

     From researching it, it doesn’t appear that book was ever released. I can’t see any published copies or anything.

     Reply