Category: Books

I’ve been on a roll finding new (at least to me) excellent crime fiction authors/books.  Today we have Hell Chose Me by Angel Luis Colón. My order is in.  Check out the synopsis and see what you think.

Bryan Walsh is a killer for hire. He is haunted by those who have fallen by his hand. He will stop at nothing to avenge his brother’s death.

When a lifetime of bad karma finally lands on Bryan’s doorstep and leaves his brother dead, he must survive long enough to find the killers and get his revenge, but as the path only grows bloodier, Bryan may not be able to handle the steps he’ll need to take against his enemies.

As he becomes more unstable and his past crashes into his present, Bryan must decide if vengeance is worth becoming the monster he always denied or if he could find a another path; one that could lead to something like redemption.

At Their Own Game by Frank Zafiro arrived at my house yesterday.  If it sounds like something you’d like, you know what to do.

Book #1 in the SpoCompton Series

Jake Stankovic has been flying below the radar for years, dealing safely in stolen property crime with his two-man crew. But times are tough, so he decides to step up to the big money with a drug deal. Everything that can go wrong, does. The deal goes bad, a vengeful detective sets his sights on Jake, one of his crew might be a turncoat, and a woman from a long past affair suddenly reappears. All of this would be complicated enough on its own, but for Jake, it’s even worse.

The woman is the detective’s ex-wife.

And Jake Stankovic used to be a cop.

Now Jake must face new problems and old vendettas in an all-in proposition with lives on the line. He has to find a way to get his money back, keep the girl, and beat everyone involved… At Their Own Game.

Andrew Vachss with his Burke crime novel series instantly became one of my must-read authors.  That was over 35 years ago.  As time went on Vachss continued to write about Burke and his crime family, but he also branched out into other genres and formats.

When I recently saw that Mr. Vachss had a new novel, Carbon, coming out, I was excited to see what it would be about.

I was surprised to read that it would be a futuristic tale.  Then I read the synopsis…

RELENTLESS POWER. HARDCORE ACTION. A CLASSIC, HARD-BOILED VIEW THROUGH A FUTURISTIC LENS.

In The City, government is God—in The Sector, anarchy rules.

The Membrane stands between those worlds. Some cross it to The Sector, seeking the forbidden. Some cross it to The City, seeking a chance to see the sky. Some try to stay. Most die trying.

In a world without paper, names are earned. Sector-born Carbon once risked everything for a chance to live in The City, a world with fresh paper and retinal enhancements that required a price beyond the ability of any Sector-born to earn alone. Captured, he entered prison.

Now, released to find a killer whose pattern threatens the government itself, Carbon’s real search is for the money stashed by his former gang.

But only one woman knows that location, and she isn’t willing to trade information unless she gets something in return—her abducted child. The child is somewhere in the Pure Zone, a wild place where sorcery works but firearms do not.

Trapped between hostile worlds, Carbon will enter the Pure Zone—hyper-focused and fatal to anyone blocking his path.

Carbon, sounded a bit too fantastic for my taste… yet it was Andrew Vachss.  So I read the free sample at Amazon and Carbon is now on my “get list”.  Check it out and perhaps Carbon will be on yours as well.

I just learned that Nick Kolakowski has a new novella coming out tomorrow.  Yep, the author of Love & Bullets Megabomb Edition, Boise Longpig Hunting Club and Rattlesnake Rodeo has a new crime story called Payback is Forever.  Here’s the lowdown…

Miller thought it was the perfect heist: Five minutes to hit the cash room of an amusement park, then another two minutes to the getaway car, then gone. As a professional thief, he’d done jobs like that dozens of times. But Miller’s partners had other ideas. When things go bad and bloody, Miller is forced to flee back to familiar territory: New York City’s West Village, where even the target of a nationwide manhunt can hide out amidst the freaks.

But Miller’s refuge might prove even more dangerous. Approached by an old friend about a shady protection job, Miller finds himself thrown into a bizarre world of pint-sized gangsters, aging war criminals, and shady government agents… all of whom are pursuing a prize beyond imagination.

Sounds like my jam.  Maybe yours too.  You can get it on Kindle or as a paperback if you’re so inclined.

I want to pass along a crime novel I just learned about (and ordered).  Dead Dogs by Manny Torres sounds like a wild ride, I’d like to take.

Two Atlanta misfits in debt to notorious dog fighter and drug dealer Boots Tumbler are coerced into handling his dirty work. Phobos and Chuck, desperate to pay him back, go elbow deep in blood, dirt, and gristle, cleaning up dog fights, delivering drugs, and disposing of dead bodies. Regardless of the haul, they shovel it, bag it up, stuff it in the trunk of their 1982 Cadillac Deville and drive it off for disposal. The misfit pair fumble their way through dangerous circumstances and criminal adventures. Desperation eventually drives them out of the city, across lost highways, encountering a circus of outlaws and revolutionaries living on the margins of morality.

Dead Dogs currently has a near-perfect 4.9 star rating on Amazon from 22 reviewers!  As I said, I’ve ordered my copy.

If you’re interested you can get an autographed copy from Mr. Torres!

Or if you prefer Amazon, here’s a link!