Stroby's first novel, THE BARBED-WIRE KISS, published in 2003 by St. Martin's Press, introduced his hero, an ex-N.J. state trooper named Harry Rane, who becomes entangled with a local mobster and his wife.
In a starred review, Publishers Weekly termed the novel "a dazzling debut," and the Chicago Tribune called it "our annual dose of proof that fresh, new writers can revitalize the mystery genre."
Kirkus Reviews called it "a brilliant follow-up to Stroby's impressive debut" and said, "Harry Rane walks these mean streets perfectly at home with the icons: Spade, Marlowe and Archer."
Reviewing the book for The New York Times, Marilyn Stasio said Stroby writes "with such fierce originality that he rejuvenates genre conventions," and found Harrow "an electrifying character."
The following year, his short story "Heart" appeared in the horse racing-themed anthology BLOODLINES (Vintage), edited by Jason Starr and Maggie Estep.
In 2010, Morgan returned in Stroby's stand-alone novel, GONE 'TIL NOVEMBER, which found him traveling to the rural South to recover $350,000 in missing drug money.
In a starred review, Publishers Weekly called it "a powerful thriller" that "explores moral choices that leave his devastatingly real characters torn between doing nothing and risking everything."
In 2011, St. Martin's Press published Stroby's COLD SHOT TO THE HEART, the first in his series about a female professional thief named Crissa Stone.
In a starred review, Kirkus called it "Another fast, taut winner from Stroby ... Crissa Stone many be crime fiction's best bad girl ever."
The reviewer for the Chicago Tribune wrote that the novel "moves at a breakneck speed ... Stroby's sturdy plot is augmented by his intriguing look at how money corrupts and how even a crook can have a moral compass.
The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel wrote "With each novel, Stroby's demonstrating he's got the literary muscle to be shelved with the big guys – Elmore Leonard, Jim Thompson and Richard Stark."
Stroby's follow-up, 2012's KINGS OF MIDNIGHT, found Stone joining up with an ex-mobster to search for long-hidden millions from the real-life Lufthansa heist that took place at New York's Kennedy Airport in 1978.
New York magazine called the novel "brilliant," and the Los Angeles Review of Books wrote that "Stroby has risen to the top of his field.
Crissa Stone has become one of the most relatable and likable criminals in contemporary crime fiction... a modern-day hero for an America still recovering from the economic collapse."
Stone made her third appearance in 2013's SHOOT THE WOMAN FIRST, on the run again, this time with a duffle bag of stolen cash earmarked for the family of a slain partner, with a brutal ex-cop in pursuit.
Publishers Weekly and Kirkus both gave the novel Starred Reviews, and The Boston Globe praised its "lean, poetic prose," and said, "For fans of noir, this is among the best of the current breed."
In 2013, the Showtime network optioned the Crissa Stone novels for development as an original series, with a pilot script by Ted Tally, the Oscar-winning screenwriter of THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS.
The Crissa Stone character returned in the short story "Nightbound," included in the 2019 anthology AT HOME IN THE DARK, edited by veteran crime fiction writer Lawrence Block, and published by Subterranean Press.