Stephen Mertz, born May 3, 1947, is an American fiction author who is best known for his mainstream thrillers and novels of suspense. His work covers a wide variety of styles from paranormal dark suspense (Night Wind and Devil Creek) to historical speculative thrillers (Blood Red Sun) and hardboiled noir (Fade to Tomorrow).

His novels have been well-received critically. Booklist called Nightwind, “fast-paced...a white-knuckle read.” Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine labeled Mertz, “an action specialist.” Edgar-winner Joe R. Lansdale

Joe R. Lansdale

Joe R. Lansdale is an American author and martial-arts expert. He has written novels and stories in many genres, including Western, horror, science fiction, mystery, and suspense...

 supplies this career assessment: “Stephen Mertz writes a hard-edged, fast-paced thriller for those who like their tales straight and sharp and full of dark surprise,” while Booklist had this to say about The Korean Intercept: "Fans of political thrillers will relish this high-action tale. An adrenaline rush!” Ed Gorman

Edward Gorman

Ed Gorman is an award-winning American author best known for his crime and mystery fiction. He wrote The Poker Club which is currently in post production for a film of the same name directed by Tim McCann....

 wrote, “Stephen Mertz just keeps on getting better, each novel more dazzling in story and style.”

Mertz is also a popular lecturer on the craft of writing and has appeared as a guest speaker before writer’s groups and at universities. Early in his career, he was a prolific writer of paperback originals under a variety of pseudonyms, work he now dismisses as "commercial scribbling," although his work on Don Pendleton

Don Pendleton

Don Pendleton was an author of fiction and nonfiction books, best known for his creation of American hero The Executioner: Mack Bolan.-Biography:...

's Mack Bolan

Mack Bolan

Mack Bolan, alias The Executioner, is a fictional character who has been serialized in over six hundred novels with sales of more than 200 million, according to Amazon.com. Created by Don Pendleton, Bolan made his first appearance on the printed page in 1969's War Against the Mafia...

 series is regarded by fans as some of the best in that series. He also created the Mark Stone: MIA Hunter

Mark Stone: MIA Hunter

A series of men's adventure novels created and outlined by Stephen Mertz and co-written with Joe R. Lansdale, Michael Newton, and Bill Crider under the pseudonym "Jack Buchanan."-Series listing:*1 - M.I.A. Hunter*2 - Cambodian Hellhole...

  and Cody's Army series, written under the pseudonyms Jack Buchanan and Jim Case respectively.

Stephen Mertz has traveled widely and is a U.S. Army veteran. He presently lives in the American Southwest, and he is always at work on a new book.

Novels

• Some Die Hard (1979, as Stephen Brett)
• The Vampire Chase (1979, as Stephen Brett)
• Blood Red Sun (1989)
• Tunnel Rats (1989, as Cliff Banks)
• Tunnel Rats: Mud and Blood (1990, as Cliff Banks)
• Sudden Death
  Sudden Death (novel)
  Sudden Death is a novelization by the American writer Stephen Mertz based upon the screenplay by Gene Quintano of the 1995 action film Sudden Death starring Jean-Claude Van Damme....
  
  (1995)
• Night Wind (2002)
• Fade to Tomorrow (2004)
• Devil Creek (2004)
• The Korean Intercept (2005)
• Dragon Games (Five Star Books, 2010)

The Executioner Series (as Don Pendleton)

• The Iranian Hit #42 (1982)
• Return to Vietnam #43 (1982)
• The Libya Connection #48 (1982)
• Tuscany Terror #52 (1983)
• Day of Mourning #62 (1984)
• Dead Man Running #64 (1984)
• Beirut Payback #67 (1984)
• Appointment in Kabu #73 (1985)
• Teheran Wipeout #76 (1985)
• Dirty War (SuperBolan #4) (1985)
• Moscow Massacre #92 (1986)
• Save the Children #94 (1986)

Cody's Army Series (as Jim Case)

• Cody's Army (1986)
• Assault into Libya (1986)
• Philippine Hardpunch (1987)
• Belfast Blitz (1987)
• D.C. Firestike (1987)
• Hellfire in Haiti (1988)
• Sword of the Prophet (1988)