Books published by Down & Out Books

In this issue, pioneering TV writer and producer April Kelly opens with a wicked story that may remind you to pay attention to what you eat.Brendan DuBois appears with the story of an assassination and its aftermath—from the killer’s point of view.Ray Daniel & Kellye Garrett team up with a story that brings together characters from their own series.Our feature is by Walter Satterthwait, who comes at us with his first new story in a while. The lead character, Fallon, helps—in his own way—solve a murder at a monastery.Edgar Award-winning author Sylvia Maultash Warsh brings us a piece about deception in the world of art, and we welcome Benjamin Boulden back with his second story for us.Robb T. White returns following his Best Mystery Stories of 2019 entry in our pages, and Dane F. Baylis, Richard Prosch and Richard Risemberg debut in our magazine with some of the most entertaining crime fiction you’ll find.

Frank “Jelly” Nash was dead. And since the notorious bank robber was shot in the head in 1933 during a daring escape attempt, he was deader than most. So why was he sending letters and emails to Rushmore McKenzie, asking the retired cop, unexpected millionaire, and unlicensed P.I. for help?To answer the question, McKenzie joins forces with Ivy, a beautiful woman from his past—and her boyfriend—in a frantic search for $8 million in gold that Jelly stole just before his death. But they aren’t the only ones looking. So are a couple of two-bit thugs, a woman named Heavenly, a local big-wig with much to hide, and an odd assortment of ne’er-do-wells.The search delves deeply into St. Paul, Minnesota’s colorful and infamous past as the treasure-seekers scurry for clues. In the early 20th century, St. Paul was an open city—a place where gangsters could come and stay unmolested by the local authorities as long as they committed no crimes within the city limits. John Dillinger, Bugsy Siegel, Ma Barker’s murderous brood, Alvin “Creepy” Karpis, Machine Gun Kelly, Pretty Boy Floyd, notorious gunman Vern Miller, and yes, Frank Nash, were often spotted frequenting the city’s clubs and casinos, and their activities are carefully examined as the rivals dual each other.The treasure hunt turns unexpectedly deadly when the boyfriend is shot dead outside of Ivy’s apartment. Suddenly, McKenzie is looking for more than a legendary stash from seventy-five years ago, he’s looking for a stone killer and the long-hidden truth behind Jelly’s gold.Praise for JELLY’S GOLD:“In Edgar-winner Housewright’s enjoyable sixth novel to feature Rushmore McKenzie readers get a dual treat as the likable PI deals with a parade of present-day sharpies and gold hunters, while Housewright retells the story of the wholesale corruption that for decades made St. Paul a playground for a who’s who of gangsters, including John Dillinger, Baby Face Nelson and others who hobnobbed with St. Paul’s upper crust.” —Publishers Weekly“Housewright not only writes a compelling historical mystery here, but also engages in reconstructive history, using contemporary accounts to trace Nash’s movements in 1933. He also employs a nifty device to bring the history into the novel, careening between McKenzie and other seekers of the prize and Nash’s own words cast into fictional form. Readers will learn a great deal of fascinating information, including the fact that Nash’s nickname Jelly stands for his favorite safecracking device, nitroglycerin. Top notch.” —Booklist, starred review“A clever entertainment driven by an amiable protagonist—Housewright’s best in quite a while.” —Kirkus Reviews“If you haven’t discovered Housewright, you’re in for a real treat—this is a real gem from one of America’s best crime novelists.” —Lansing State Journal

Shrapnel Wounds is the combat memoir of Lieutenant Tom Crowley, an enthusiastic and highly trained U.S. Army enlistee and Officer Candidate School grad who enters combat in Vietnam in mid-1966.Highly regarded by his infantry platoon and strongly encouraged by his superiors to become a professional soldier, Crowley almost inadvertently examines the system by which career officers are shepherded through to higher and higher rank—and increasingly rejects that system over the course of his one-year combat tour.

Home Invasion, a novel in stories, looks at two generations of the Batch family over forty years, and the ways in which alcohol, petty crime, poor parenting, and bad choices have had a negative impact on them.Each story in the book advances their journey by a number of years. The stories can stand alone but read together tell a tale that is both unique and familiar.Home Invasion examines poverty, poor education, crime, sexual identity, parenting and other contemporary issues.

A small-town stickup explodes into the big-time street battle that gets Jim Grant exiled to the States. Jim Grant is one of the best cops in Yorkshire but the tactics that earn respect from his fellow officers draw the scrutiny of the brass. When a Discipline and Complaints inspector feels he's gone too far Grant is placed on suspension.Stopping at an all-night diner to flirt with his favorite waitress helps ease his mind-until a couple of goons with baseball bats show up. Never one to leave a damsel in distress, Grant takes matters into his own hands.And it all goes downhill from there.Praise for SNAKE PASS:"Campbell's gritty noir style and hard-hitting action scenes mix well with Grant's dry wit, making this fourth series installment a rollicking good time." ¿Library Journal"Crackerjack entertainment: taut, gritty and full of devilish twists." ¿Kirkus Reviews

Homicide cop Bobby Dunston's daughter has been kidnapped, taken in broad daylight on a city street in the middle of September. The kidnappers demand a million dollars and force Dunston to get the ransom from his friend Rushmore McKenzie. It soon becomes apparent to both of them that one of the kidnappers is childhood pal Scottie, a once aspiring drummer now gone astray, and that the kidnapping is payback for "crimes" they committed in their past.Of course McKenzie, a former cop and now unlicensed P.I., handles the ransom drop-off and the child is returned safely. But Scottie is soon brutally murdered (maybe that's Mac's fault and maybe it isn't) and someone takes out an open contract on McKenzie, using his own money to pay for it. Dodging attempts on his life from assassins of all shapes and sizes, McKenzie now has precious little time to uncover the mastermind behind it all if he's going to survive.Praise for MADMAN ON A DRUM:"Hate, revenge and old-fashioned greed propel Edgar-winner Housewright's stellar fifth mystery to feature former St. Paul, Minn., cop Rushmore McKenzie. Housewright's chivalric noir hero never fails to charm, whether mourning a St. Paul that's lost much of its colorful, if shady, past or busting a bestial dogfight entrepreneur out in the chilly countryside. Against a realistic Minnesota backdrop, this homage to Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer raises cutting questions about crime and punishment and today's price of friendship and loyalty. Of course, McKenzie knows it's all about money, but Housewright makes it so fresh and real it hurts." -Publishers Weekly, starred review"Housewright returns with another noir-tinged mystery starring St. Paul detective Rushmore McKenzie. Lots of narrative momentum and exciting scenes." -Booklist"McKenzie's subtle humor keeps the tension from boiling over, but don't expect any breaks in the action." -Minnesota Monthly

Then…May's life had been just fine.Not happy and miles from meaningful, but fine. She lived on an out-of-the-way island fittingly named Folly. She existed as far from other people as she could manage. The distance let her to drift from memories of her careless parents, graying recollections of the life taken from her, and a sea of her own bad decisions.Hustling here and there as a small-time weed dealer on the crystal coast allowed May to live like a hermit in the off season. Save one cold night in November, just before a killing storm made landfall.Now…The island is left unlivable, and May, like so many others, has become a refugee. Drifting and wandering. Blindly trying to start life over. In this foggy chaos she treads to keep her head above water and to steady and buoy poor Tommy, a boy who might be too far gone to rescue.Meanwhile…Four hundred miles away, in a small dying town hidden high in the mountains, a disregarded teenager named Curtis and his unwilling sister Vicki run from the consequences of his violent proclivities. In a gassed-up Mustang, they head east, to the crystal coast, where they can hide and start over. Just like everyone else.After the storm comes a different danger.Praise for AFTER THE STORM:"Opening in the aftermath of May's climatic and life-altering storm, After the Storm continues to give voice to Marietta Miles' complicated and complex heroine, May Cosby. Atmospheric, yet shot through with tension, Miles' third novella proves her mastery of the Southern Noir genre, distilled down to its purest essence: dark, harrowing and razor-sharp with unapologetic authenticity." -Steph Post, author of Miraculum"After the Storm is the type of darkness that shines. A diamond stuck in the sludge that follows a disaster. Miles' writing reminds me of fight scenes in classic ninja movies: rainy, violent, emotional, and packed with danger. This is a tale of refugees and survivors, but lacks the clichéd hope permeating most of its kind. No, this is gloomy like the worst storm, and it'll leave you feeling like a tree after that storm: unhinged and broken. The difference is, unlike the tree, you'll be asking for more." -Gabino Iglesias, author of Coyote Songs"Although she's published as a crime author, Marietta Miles once again fools everyone and defies all genre expectations, focusing on subtle, but all-too human emotional conflict, showing the struggle to rebuild not only after physical and natural disasters, but personal, intimate ones as well. And in After the Storm, she shows that sometimes those efforts fail." -Richard Vialet, Black Guys Do Read"In After the Storm, Marietta Miles celebrates the human condition in all of its messiness and glory, whether it's May struggling to stay afloat or Vicki suffering in the wake of her brother's violence. The prose crackles with menace as you're taken on a journey that manages to not only be harrowing but surprisingly hopeful. Miles has the uncanny ability to navigate through the most wretched aspects of the human psyche amidst the bleakest of conditions with fragility, nuanced heart, and unwavering grace." -Sarah M. Chen, author of Cleaning Up Finn"If you care about working-class novels, then you need to be reading Marietta Miles. She delves into the boredom of life and exposes its horror. After the Storm is not about looking for a way out, it is the about people trying to survive until tomorrow. Marietta Miles's books will wreck you." -David Nemeth, Unlawful Acts

Border tensions are escalating to bloody violence; terrorist attacks on small-town American citizens and petty squabbles in far-flung locales threaten countless more lives.Welcome to America, circa 1916-1918, and two of the bloodiest conflicts that starkly defined an era.Teenage Hector Lassiter, an aspiring author inspired by propaganda and a siren's song of throbbing war drums, lies about his age, mounts a horse, and storms across the Mexican border behind General "Black Jack" Pershing and George S. Patton to bring the terrorist and Revolutionary General Pancho Villa to justice.Soon, the still underage Hector is shipped off to the bloody trenches of France, fighting the so-called "War to End All Wars" where he meets fellow novelists-in-waiting John Dos Passos and Ernest Hemingway.Once A World is a love story at once epic and intimate; a portrait of the artist, and his country of birth, at a defining moment in their storied history.Edgar- and Anthony Awards finalist Craig McDonald, author of the internationally bestselling Hector Lassiter series, delivers an adventure novel and historical thriller for the still-uncertain 21st Century.Praise for Craig McDonald:"The competition for the future of crime fiction is fierce, as it should be, but don't take your eyes off Craig McDonald. He's wily, talented and-rarest of the rare-a true original. I am always eager to see what he's going to do next." -Laura Lippman"With each of his Hector Lassiter novels, Craig McDonald has stretched his canvas wider and unfurled tales of increasingly greater resonance." -Megan Abbott"Nobody does mad pulp history like Craig McDonald. Reading a Hector Lassiter novel is like having a great uncle pull you aside, pour you a tumbler of rye, and tell you a story about how the 20th century really went down." -Duane Swierczynski"A writer of truly unique voice, approach and ambition." -Michael Koryta

McKenzie has a lot of old girlfriends. But only one went on to marry the current governor of the state of Minnesota. And only one is calling him with a desperate request to meet in secret. The First Lady is carrying an email that contains a nasty rumor about her husband, and the truth is buried decades deep in a small town's history.Of course McKenzie always has plenty of time on his hands and is in the business of handling such matters for his friends. So he heads straight into the governor's past, planning to poke around and see if he can stir up a little information. Before long, someone starts poking him back, and it's clear that he has stirred up nothing but trouble. McKenzie is soon shifting through a complex web of interlocking secrets and lies, some decades-old, and some rooted violently in the present day.Praise for PRETTY GIRL GONE:"Housewright's unapologetically flawed hero charms, while the clean plot lines, palpable Minnesota winter and understated humor make this a good, satisfying read." -Publishers Weekly"This is the third McKenzie mystery, and it's turning into quite an interesting series: solid premise, tight plotting, and this time more depth in character development, as Housewright explores McKenzie's emotional side." -Booklist"Pretty Girl Gone is an incredible addition to 'Cold Case' mysteries, joining the likes of recent books by Michael Connelly, KJ Erickson, Mary Logue, and Reed Farrell Coleman. Housewright artfully portrays the hopelessness of a group of men who's defining moment happened when they were teenager's; of pitiful lives spent chasing a memory soured by tragedy and deceit... McKenzie is an entertaining and engaging character, and in this, the 3rd novel in the series (following A Hard Ticket Home and Tin City), appears all too human... Pretty Girl Gone is a complex, thoroughly enjoyable addition to what is becoming one of our favorite mystery series." -CrimeSpree Magazine"(Housewright is one) of Minnesota's most dependable practitioners of the craft... McKenzie is good company...with a wry sense of humor, often aimed at himself, and a quick, accurate take on people and places. While certainly not an errant knight in the tradition of Raymond Chandler and Robert B. Parker, he's a good man who's wise enough to know that he will disappoint himself." -Minneapolis Star Tribune

Frank Thompson, a recent widower and aging Vietnam veteran is down from Maine visiting his nephew, Bill, and his family in New Jersey.While at a trap range, he and his nephew have a chance encounter with a strange man who claims to remember Frank from the war.That night, the windows in Bill’s home are shattered along with the quiet peaceful lives the two men had been living.Three veterans from a special combat unit directed by the CIA during the Vietnam War have gathered to discuss what they are going to do about a man they claim killed one of their own over forty years ago.Jasper, Birdie and Pogo were part of a team that called themselves the National League All Stars. They were a squad of psychopathic killers trained by Special Forces to cause death and mayhem during the war. Now, they have banded together to hunt down and kill the professional soldier who led them all those years ago.Drawing on his military training and a resurgent bloodlust from his tortured past, Frank prepares for a final, violent reckoning that will bring him full circle with the war that never left him.Praise for THE DEAD DON’T SLEEP:“The Dead Don’t Sleep is a skillfully plotted, fast-moving thriller brimming with a believable cast of characters, especially the indelible Frank Thompson, an old-school hero who I hope to see more of.” —David Swinson, author of Trigger and The Second Girl“Russo’s The Dead Don’t Sleep is a pulse racing, chest thumper of a novel.” —Reed Farrel Coleman, New York Times bestselling author of What You Break“Imagine if Rambo had lived a quiet, undisturbed life in Maine until, many decades later, the ghosts of the Vietnam War came after him. That’s roughly the premise of The Dead Don’t Sleep, a gripping, highly readable contemporary thriller with a strong emotional undercurrent. Steven Max Russo has done a magnificent job rendering the unique hold Vietnam continues to claim on thousands of its veterans.” —Brad Parks, international bestselling author“The Dead Don’t Sleep is a well-crafted, tense, suspenseful thriller in which hatred that’s lasted a lifetime explodes into violence with uncontrollable consequences.” —Thomas Perry, Edgar Award-winning author of The Butcher’s Boy“A dark tale of vengeance and redemption, complete with mystery, secrets, and a longing for new adventure. A delectable and poignant read.” —Steve Berry, New York Times bestselling author of The Malta Exchange“The Dead Don’t Sleep is white-knuckle, nonstop action, a story of hard men at their limits and grudges that never die.” —Joseph Finder, New York Times bestselling author of House on Fire

John Headston is a private detective who, early in his career, was very successful, running a 12-man operation called THE HEADSTONE DETECTIVE AGENCY, mainly because the guy who painted the name on the door added the "e" at the end without realizing it was wrong.As the book opens, however, Headston is now 50, and the agency is down to just him. In his past he had run-ins with not only the law, but with the New York State Agency who had licensed him. As a result he spent some time in jail, and had his license revoked. Now he has it back, and is trying to get started again.His first case is a missing persons case, a wealthy woman whose husband just seems to have vanished from his Wall Street stockbroker job. Headston finds the man, who is now living under very odd circumstances, but the missing persons case quickly turns to murder. Aided by a tattooed young lady who decides she should work for him, Headston decides to work on the murder case, while attempting to avoid running afoul of the law and having his licensed revoked again-and possibly for good, this time.

San Francisco. Late September, 2004.The Giants are hanging on to the slim hope of a spot in the Major League baseball playoffs.The Forty-Niners are hoping for their first win of the season after three losses.Vinnie "Strings" Stradivarius is in the intensive care ward at St. Francis Memorial Hospital-and Jake Diamond is hoping Vinnie will both survive and avoid a homicide indictment if he pulls through.Vinnie has been double-crossed, shot and left for dead at a crime scene, and he is the chief suspect in the murder of one of the city's most influential businessmen.Anyone who knows Vinnie knew he wouldn't hurt a fly.But the District Attorney and the San Francisco Police Department brass don't know him-and they don't care. Pressure from the Mayor's Office and the public is calling for a quick indictment and conviction-and Vinnie is handy.Jake Diamond has a strong dislike of the double-cross. If asked why the chicken crossed the road, Jake would suggest the road had crossed the chicken.In a race against time-with the help of Darlene Roman, Detective Sergeant Roxton Johnson of the SFPD, Sonny "The Chin" Badalamenti, bookmaker William "Big Bill" Conway, and Mob Underboss Tony Carlucci-Jake frantically scrambles to find answers before the case is closed with Vinnie taking the fall.In Abramo's first Jake Diamond mystery since the Shamus Award-winning Circling the Runway, Jake is determined to prove that you cross the chicken at your own risk.Praise for the Jake Diamond mysteries:"One of my all-time favorite PI series." -Steve Hamilton, Edgar Award-winning author of The Lock Artist"Think it's impossible to find a new take on the wise-cracking San Francisco PI? Meet Jake Diamond and think again…sharp and smart, convincing and complex." -S.J. Rozan, Edgar Award-winning author of Absent Friends

Private investigator August Riordan returns to San Francisco to avenge the death of his friend and one-time partner, Chris Duckworth. Duckworth has taken over Riordan’s old business, his old office and even his old apartment, and Riordan suspects Duckworth’s death is linked to the missing person case he was working when he died.An alluring young woman named Angelina hired Duckworth to look for her half-sister, but what Riordan finds instead is a murderous polyamorous family intent on claiming a previously unknown manuscript from dead Beat writer Jack Kerouac.Following clues from Duckworth and a trail of mutilated bodies left by the family, Riordan soon realizes that avenging his partner will first involve recovering the manuscript—and then saving Angelina and himself from kidnap, torture and death. As the bodies pile up, Riordan must work with old allies and enemies to untangle Duckworth’s last case before time runs out.