Stephen Mertz

Stephen Mertz (born 1947) is an American author of action and thriller fiction. Early in his career he wrote prolifically under pseudonyms, contributing to Don Pendleton's Mack Bolan series and creating the Mark Stone: MIA Hunter series as Jack Buchanan and the Cody's Army series as Jim Case. Writing under his own name, he has published hard-edged thrillers including Night Wind and Devil Creek, praised by peers such as Edgar Award winner Joe R. Lansdale for their fast pace and dark surprises. His Sherlock Holmes: Zombies Over London reimagines Conan Doyle's detective against a horror backdrop, part of a broader tradition of Holmes tie-in fiction. Mertz's career spans five decades of genre writing, from 1970s paperback originals to contemporary thrillers.