In the House of Secret Enemies

Fans of Chesbro's novels ( Shadow of a Broken Man ) will relish these 10 stories, including the 1971 debut, in ``The Drop,'' of Roberto ``Mongo'' Frederickson, Ph.D. (criminology), private eye, ex-circus star and dwarf. All but one of the stories are from the hero-narrator's 1970s period of straightforward action/mystery although some (e.g., ``Rage,'' ``Book of Shadows'') presage Chesbro's later preoccupation with drugs and the occult. Chesbro's early penchant for dwarf-bashing gives way to increasing angst over Big Topics (``belief systems''), peaking in the pretension of ``Candala,'' the story Chesbro says unashamedly he's ``most proud of.'' Mystery stories first appeared in the Mike Shane and Alfred Hitchcock mystery magazines; the introduction, ``The Birth of a Series Character'' originally appeared in the Writer. (Oct.)