Category: Authors

RETURN OF THE MALTESE FALCON by Max Allan Collins / Z-View

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THE RETURN OF THE MALTESE FALCON by Max Allan Collins

Publisher: Hard Case Crime

First sentence…

Samuel Spade, leaning back in his swivel-chair, studied the modest pine tree that might have sprouted tinsel-trimmed from where his late partner’s desk had till lately stood.

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

THEN…

Detective Sam Spade was pulled into the search for the legendary Maltese Falcon, a jewel-encrusted gold statuette intended as a gift for the 16th century King of Spain.  Spade’s partner was murdered.  Spade was the prime suspect. 

Brigid O’Shaughnessy who hired Spade, was willing to use money, her female charms and anything else to get Spade’s protection from criminals after the Falcon.  The others were Casper Gutman, an obese gentleman malefactor and his thugs, Cairo and Wilmer Cook.  Gutman depended on his brains and lies.  When that didn’t work, Cairo and Cook would use their guns.

In addition to Spade’s partner, two others were killed in pursuit of the bird.  Turns out Brigid was the murderess.  She’s now behind bars.  So is Cairo.  But the story doesn’t end there…

NOW…

About a week has passed since Sam Spade’s life was upended.  Rhea Gutman, the teenage daughter of Casper Gutman, wants to hire Spade to find the Maltese Falcon.  Rhea informs Spade, her father was murdered, but she wants to complete his life’s mission.  Rhea believes the Falcon is somewhere close.  Spade accepts her retainer.

In short order, Spade is approached independently by several people who also want the Falcon.

  • Dixie Monahan, an infamous and dangerous Chicago gambler.  He has no legal claim to the bird, but sees an opportunity to make money.

  • Corinne Wonderly, the younger sister of the imprisoned Brigid O’Shaughnessy wants to get and sell the Falcon.  She plans to use the money raised to help her sister get a good lawyer.

  • Stewart Blackwood is a British Museum curator.  He claims that he legally purchased the Maltese Falcon and it was stolen.  Blackwood has a bill of sale.

Never one to turn down money, Spade accepts retainers from each.

Spade then works to untangle the lies, double crosses, twisted motivations and shifting alliances brought on by greed and self-preservation.  Several people have already died in pursuit of the jewel-encrusted bird.

More will as well.

+++++

Recently Max Allan Collins gave away several copies of RETURN OF THE MALTESE FALCON.  I was a lucky winner.  Truth be told, I would have bought a copy had I not won one.

Collins is an author that I follow.   I’m a huge fan of Max Allan Collins’ Nate Heller series.  Every new Heller tale is a must-buy for me.  Collins also completed several of Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer novels (from partially finished manuscripts and outlines).  I’ve read almost all of them.  Collins’ Quarry crime novels are also good.  I’ve read some of them.  Same could be said for Collins’ Ms. Tree comics, his Dick Tracy strips and his movie adaptations and other novels.  Max Allan Collins can be counted on to deliver a great tale each time out, but it’s his Nate Heller series that does it best for me.

RETURN OF THE MALTESE FALCON shouldn’t be thought of as a sequel.  It’s a continuation of the story.  Taking on Hammet’s classic characters was a bold move.  I’m very happy to say that Collins met the challenge.

Collins is to be commended.  Not only for daring to step up and continue Hammet’s classic, but also for his ease at transporting readers to 1928 San Franciso.  Collins take on Spade and the other characters feels like Hammet from their motivations to dialogue.  Collins humor (just the right amount) and witty dialogue shine.  The plot twists are unexpected, but not outlandish.  They work to provide a surprisingly and satisfying climax.

RETURN OF THE MALTESE FALCON not only reaches the bar set by Collins’ Nate Heller novels but that of Hammet in the original tale.  I don’t say this lightly.

I’d love to see Collins provide us with another Sam Spade outing.  Maybe even one that crosses over with Nate Heller.

RETURN OF THE MALTESE FALCON gets my highest recommendation.

Rating:

BLOOD AND MAGICK by James R. Tuck / Z-View

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BLOOD AND MAGICK by James R. Tuck

First sentences…

I should have known.

There were signs.  I’m supposed to be the damn expert.  I should have caught the warnings.

I should have.

But I was completely clueless until the minute the restaurant exploded in a wave of eldritch flame and burning glass.

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Deacon Chalk knows the truth about things that go bump in the night.  Chalk looks like a stereotypical biker.  Bald head.  Tats. Tall, broad-shouldered and muscular.  But Chalk is anything but stereotypical.  Several years ago, he almost died along with his family.  Vampires took them out.  But Chalk was saved by an angelic blood transfusion.  Yeah, angel’s blood.

Now Chalk and the small circle of friends that surround him are monster hunters.

But not tonight.

Chalk, his girlfriend Tiff, and their friends are having a quiet dinner.  Then all hell explodes.  Literally.  Members of a coven known as the Wrath of Baphomet attack.  They’re after the “Blood of the Trinity”.

Chalk and his team are no longer the monster hunters… tonight the monsters hunt them.

+++

BLOOD AND MAGICK is the third book in James R. Tuck’s Deacon Chalk: Occult Bounty Hunter series.  I’ve read and enjoyed all three.

I love crime, noir and detective/anti-hero stories. Add the right mix of humor and violence and I’m on board. The tales don’t normally feature werewolves, vampires, witches or demons.  But Tuck’s Deacon Chalk yarns do, and they work.

Chalk is the type of anti-hero I like. Smart (but not brainy), tough and with enough attitude to get him in tight jams as he tries to (mostly) do the right thing. While I’m not ready for a constant diet of this genre, when I do want another taste, I know James R. Tuck is open for business with other tales.

 

Rating:

FRONT SIGHT: THREE SWAGGER NOVELLAS by Stephen Hunter / Z-View

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FRONT SIGHT: THREE SWAGGER NOVELLAS by Stephen Hunter

City of Meat

First sentence…

Chicago 1934

The bickering got so bad, finally, that the director called both Sam Cowley and Mel Purvis to Washington to talk out the command difficulties in the productive but messed-up Chicago field office of the Justice Department’s glamorous Division of Investigation.

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

J. Edgar Hoover is basking in the attention that his Division of Investigation is getting from the capture killing of John Dillinger.  Hoover wants more of the same.  The next big-name gangster Hoover wants to bring down is Baby Face Nelson.  Who better to get the job done, than the man who killed Dillinger?

Not the federal agent who was creditied with doing the deed.  No, Hoover wanted the man who actually pulled the trigger. Charles Swagger.  Swagger was smart.  Equally important he was cool and calm when bullets flew.  And Swagger hit what he aimed at.

So when word reached Washington that Baby Face Nelson was seen around the Chicago Union Stock Yards, Charles Swagger was sent down to investigate.

Alone, in the dark, Swagger is walking the stockyard when he is attacked by a lunatic.  Forced to defend himself, Swagger kills the man.  When the stockyard police arrive, they’re ready to sweep the event under the rug.  A white police office killed a “coon” in self-defense.  Nothing to see here.

So Swagger investigates.  Turns out the man he killed was hopped up on a new drug.  So far it was only found in the  7th District of Chicago.  Although several murders could be tied to people under the influence of the drug, the people killed didn’t rate.  The local cops wrote off the murders as business as usual for the area.

Swagger feels differently.  His investigation shifts.  Swagger plans to find the source of the drug and bring them to justice.  He knows it involves powerful people somehow associated with the stockyard.  He’s getting pressure from local cops and stockyard officals to back off.  His bosses in Washington want results on Baby Face Nelson.

But Swagger won’t quit.  Even if it kills him.

+++

Johnny Tuesday

First sentence…

It was February 1945, and in the cities of America, small or large, town, burg, village, or hamlet, everybody smoked.

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Earl Swagger is, like his father Charles, a former soldier and lawman known for his brains, toughness and marksmanship.  Earl’s undercover investigation into a successful bank robbery that resulted in two murders is going nowhere.  His resistance from the local officials indicate the robbery is tied to something bigger than a couple of thugs looking for an easy score.

But what could it be?

Perhaps it’s the money laundering or the gambling ring or the two gangs looking to get on top? Earl knows that he’s being manipulated by a fem fatale.  But to what end?

And what could be worse than being trapped in a remote, deserted house with a cold blooded hitman?

+++

Five Dolls for the Gut Hook

First sentence…

Hot Springs,
Arkansas,
1978

I am improving.

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Bob Lee Swagger is like his grandfather and father a decorated soldier.  Bob’s war was Viet Nam.  There he was a sniper.  One of the best.  But Bob’s not a lawman.  And since the war, he’s struggled with drinking too much and survivor’s guilt over lost men.

Bob is surprised when he’s approached by an old friend from Hot Springs, Arkansas.  A serial killer has been brutally butchering young women there.  The police are stuck.  No leads.  No progress.  And the murders keep occuring.  Five so far.

Bob is confused.  He’s a sniper, not a detective.  And that’s exactly why they want him.  He’s told, “We need somebody smart who can look at stuff from different angles and maybe see something that our best people have missed… you are the son and grandson of two of the greatest detectives this state has ever produced.”

Bob agrees to assist with the investigation.  They know the killer will strike again soon.  The clock is ticking.

+++

Stephen Hunter’s Swagger novels are automatic buys for me.  I love the family history.  Hunter is an excellent story teller.  FRONT SITE provides three tales and each is a banger.  FRONT SITE gets my highest recommendation.

Rating:

“Caught Stealing” written by Charlie Huston, directed by Darren Aronofsky; starring Austin Butler, Regina King, Zoë Kravitz, Matt Smith, Liev Schreiber, Vincent D’Onofrio and Benito Martinez Ocasio / Z-View

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Caught Stealing (2025)

Director: Darren Aronofsky

Screenplay: Charlie Huston; based on CAUGHT STEALING by Charlie Huston

Stars: Austin Butler, Regina King, Zoë Kravitz, Matt Smith, Griffin Dunne, Shaun O’Hagan, Action Bronson, Matt Smith, Nikita Kukushkin, Yuri Kolokolnikov, D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Oleg Prudius, Liev Schreiber, Benito Martinez Ocasio, Bad Bunny, Carol Kane and Vincent D’Onofrio.

Tagline: 2 Russians, 2 Jews and a Puerto Rican walk into a bar…

The Plot…

Henry “Hank” Thompson was a baseball phenom headed to the big leagues straight out of high school.  Then a tragic auto accident left a friend dead and Hank with a career-ending injury.  A career that never even had a chance to get started.

That was ten years ago. 1988.  Now Hank is a New York City bartender.  He drinks too much, lacks real ambition, and still loves The San Francisco Giants.  Oh, Hank also loves Yvonne.  She’s a positive influence and it looks like they may have a future.  Life is good.  Except for his nightmares about the car crash. What could have been and what was.

Still, with Yvonne, life is on the right track.

When Hank’s neighbor, Russ Miner has to leave for a few days to visit his hospitalized father, Hank is talked into taking care of Russ’ cat.  It isn’t long after, that two Russian mobsters show up.  They’re looking for Russ.  When Hank cannot give the thugs the answers they want, they beat Hank nearly to death.

Detective Elise Roman questions Hank. She thinks he’s withholding information.  He’s not.  Detective Roman informs Hank that the Russians are dangerous. (No kidding.)  Worse still, his neighbor Russ works for the infamous Drucker brothers.  The Drucker brothers are known killers, but never leave anyone alive willing to testify against them.  Detective Roman warns Hank that with the Russians and the Druckers after him, he won’t have long to live.  Neither will anyone close to him.  If the Russians don’t get them, the Druckers will.

Hank has no clue what everyone is looking for.  Hank understands if he doesn’t figure it out, he’s dead… and so are his family and friends.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)… 

Charlie Huston’s Henry “Hank” Thompson trilogy (CAUGHT STEALING / SIX BAD THINGS / A DANGEROUS MAN) earned the #1 spot in my favorite books of 2006.  They get my highest recommendation.  Although the movie makes changes from the novel, I still loved the adaptation.

Caught Stealing is exceptionally well cast.  It is my favorite Austin Butler film.  It would be cool to see the rest of the Hank Thompson trilogy adapted and Butler make the transformation to A DANGEROUS MAN.  Zoë Kravitz is perfect as Hank’s love interest.  Kudos also to Regina King, Griffin Dunne, Shaun O’Hagan, Liev Schreiber, Bad Bunny, Carol Kane and Vincent D’Onofrio.  They shine.

Caught Stealing has a couple of shocking twists.  It also has the right mix of suspense, humor and action.  I loved it.  Caught Stealing gets my highest recommendation.

Caught Stealing (2025) rates 5 of 5 stars.

THE DREADFUL LEMON SKY BY John D. MacDonald / Z-View

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THE DREADFUL LEMON SKY by John D. MacDonald

First sentences…

I was in deep sleep, alone aboard my houseboat, alone in a half acre of bed, alone in a sweaty dream of chase, fear, and monstrous predators.

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

At 4am, Travis McGee is awakened from dark dreams by someone climbing aboard his boat, The Busted Flush.  The intruder is Carrie Milligan, a former lover.  She’s scared, but won’t say why.  The only thing she brought with her is a suitcase.  A suitcase full of cash.

Carrie asks Travis to hold the suitcase.  If she doesn’t return in two weeks, Travis is to give the cash to Carrie’s sister.  Travis can keep ten grand for his troubles.  Travis agrees.

Two weeks pass.  Carrie doesn’t return.  Then Travis learns she was killed in an auto accident in the small coastal town of Bayside.  Travis decides to look into Carrie’s death.  It’s too coincidental that she was killed during a time she was worried she might not return to claim the suitcase.

Travis goes to Bayside and starts digging into Carrie’s last hours.  Clues lead him to an apartment complex managed by a wanna-be tough guy everyone calls Big Daddy.  Travis also meets a lawyer and judge who warn Travis about sticking his nose in unwanted places.

Travis keeps digging.  The people behind Carrie’s murder have too much at stake to let a beach bum like Travis McGee screw things up.  They plan to fix that.

+++

THE DREADFUL LEMON SKY is the sixteenth of 21 Travis McGee novels.

In 1972, John D. MacDonald was named a grandmaster of the Mystery Writers of America.  MacDonald is best known for his Travis McGee novels as well as a standalone thriller (THE EXECUTIONERS) that was retitled Cape Fear when adapted into a movie (twice).

THE DREADFUL LEMON SKY by John D. MacDonald

Rating:

WISDOM CORNER by David Heska Wanbli Weiden

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WISDOM CORNER by David Heska Wanbli Weiden is set to premiere on July 7, 2026.  The novel is Weiden’s follow-up to WINTER COUNTS, which I loved.  Here’s the lowdown…

From the award-winning author of WINTER COUNTS comes a new thriller about life — and death—on the Rosebud Indian Reservation.

Virgil Wounded Horse is desperately trying to escape his past as a hired vigilante on the Rosebud Indian Reservation. But when a legendary figure from the reservation is murdered, he’s forced to return to the job. Making matters more complicated, threats are coming from the Pine Ridge 705 — a street gang from a neighboring reservation who want to expand their reach into Rosebud — and Mitch Gagnon, a shady politician who will stop at nothing to gain more power.

With a heated tribal council election looming, as well as new revelations regarding past injustices at the local Native boarding school, the stakes grow even higher. Will Virgil find the justice he’s seeking before it’s too late?

David Heska Wanbli Weiden, whose writing “melds the gritty realism of Dashiell Hammett with the lyricism of Tommy Orange” (O, The Oprah Magazine),once again brings us a tour de force of crime fiction—and an expansive look at Native American life in a shifting world.

WISDOM CORNER Hardcover

WISDOM CORNER  Kindle

“House of the Rising Sun” directed by Brian A. Miller, starring Dave Bautista, Amy Smart, Danny Trejo, Dominic Purcell and Craig Fairbass / Z-View

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House of the Rising Sun (2011)

Director: Brian A. Miller

Screenplay: Chuck Hustmyre and Brian A. Miller; based on HOUSE OF THE RISING SUN by Chuck Hustmyre

Stars: Dave Bautista, Amy Smart, Dominic Purcell, Craig Fairbrass, Tim Fields, Jesse Pruett, Joe Ochman and Danny Trejo.

Tagline:  They took his badge. He kept the gun.

The Plot…

Ray Shane is an ex-cop and ex-con.  Shane did a five year stretch for corruption.  Now he’s head of security for the strip club called “The House of the Rising Sun”.  The strip club is actually a front for an illegal gambling club.  That’s where the real money is made.

One night on Shane’s watch, the club is robbed.  Things go from bad to worse when Shane discovers the safe was holding $300,000.  That much cash should never have been on hand.  Worse still, the club owner’s son is killed during a shootout with the masked thieves.

Both the cops and Ray’s underworld boss consider Ray the prime suspect.  The cops are looking for just enough to arrest Ray.  His boss needs just a bit more info to place a hit on Ray.

If Ray doesn’t find the real killers soon, it will be too late.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)… 

House of the Rising Sun features Dave Bautista’s first starring role in a feature film.  Bautista is backed up by a decent supporting cast for a low-budget crime film: Amy Smart, Dominic Purcell, Craig Fairbrass and Danny Trejo.

The movie had potential but falls short of expectations.

The movie is based on HOUSE OF THE RISING SUN by Chuck Hustmyre.  Here’s what Hustmyre said in the paperback release of his novel:

If you’ve seen the low-budget Lionsgate action movie, “House of the Rising Sun”, first let me apologize.  I wish I could give you back those wasted ninety minutes of your life.  The movie is a TERRIBLE adaptation of my novel.  And yes, I wrote the screenplay, but director Brian A. Miller hijacked my original script and turned what could have been a decent neo-noir crime thriller into a godawful mess…

Hustmyre wrote more, but I think you get the gist.

House of the Rising Sun (2011) rates 2 of 5 stars.

FIVE GEARS IN REVERSE by Ed Brubaker & Sean Phillips!

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Crime fiction fans will be excited to learn that Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips have a new CRIMINAL graphic novel coming out on June 23, 2026.  It’s titled FIVE GEARS IN REVERSE: A CRIMINAL BOOK.  Here’s the scoop…

A brand new CRIMINAL graphic novel featuring the legendary RICKY LAWLESS and the crazy tale of how he and MALLORY fell in love in the midst of a crime spree.

In one of the wildest, most action-packed books that Brubaker and Phillips have ever done, we delve deep into the life of one of CRIMINAL‘s most complex and tragic characters, Ricky Lawless as he tries to pay off a deep debt to a mobster, while things just keep going from bad to worse.

FIVE GEARS IN REVERSE will have long-time CRIMINAL fans cheering the return of RICKY LAWLESS and new readers will find it a perfect jumping-on-point for the greatest crime comic series of the 21st century.

“Brubaker and Phillips don’t hit a wrong note.” – Shane Black

Pre-orders are available now.

ROCKY: THE COMPLETE FILMS by Sylvester Stallone!

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Sly Stallone and Rocky fans are going to love ROCKY. THE COMPLETE FILMS by Sylvester Stallone and  editor, Paul Duncan.  This 9.84″ x 13.39″ hardback will clock in at 320 pages.

Here’s the lowdown…

Rocky Balboa is the Philadelphian icon who took on the world and won. The original “Italian Stallion,” the gutsy fighter who rose above the odds to boxing glory, and a rags-to-riches legend in the business of making movies.

Ever since Sylvester Stallone unleashed his impassioned title character in 1976, the resilient fighter has earned his place in history as a symbol of tenacity and courage and a legend of cinematic success.

The story of Rocky the movie is as exciting as that of its eponymous boxer. Shot on a tight budget, with the virtually unknown Stallone writing the script as well as taking on the lead role, it became a surprise overnight sensation, generating millions in box-office revenues, notching up three Oscar wins, and transforming Stallone into a global star as an actor, writer, and director.

The Rocky phenomenon developed into a franchise of six films, including Rocky Balboa in 2006. In collaboration with Sylvester Stallone and MGM, this tome brings you all the guts and all the glory of the complete Rocky story.

Copious images, including many on-set pictures from famed sports photographer Neil Leifer, come together with precious archival material from the Academy Library and MGM archive to reveal the making of an enduring action hero as much as a movie masterpiece.

A foreword by Stallone and vintage interviews over the course of his career bring insight into the development of the hero and the franchise, as well as privileged access to the tenacity, spirit, and passion that characterized Rocky behind the scenes as much as on screen.

ROCKY, ROCKY BALBOA, and all related ROCKY Trademarks, Logos and Materials © 1976–2025 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc.  All Rights Reserved.

ROCKY. THE COMPLETE FILMS drops on February 9, 2026.  Pre-orders are available now.

“Play Dirty” written/directed by Shane Black; starring Mark Wahlberg and Lakeith Standfield / Z-View

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Play Dirty (2025)

Director:  Shane Black

Screenplay: Shane Black, Charles Mondry, Anthony Bagarozzi; based on the PARKER novels by Richard Stark

Stars: Mark Wahlberg, LaKeith Stanfield, Rosa Salazar, Keegan-Michael Key, Chukwudi Iwuji, Gretchen Mol, Tony Shalhoub, Hemky Madera, Alejandro Edda, Claire Lovering and Thomas Jane.

Tagline: Even robbers get robbed.

The Plot…

Parker is a professional thief.  He was part of a crew that robbed a horse track count room.  The heist went sideways, but they got away with the cash.  At the hideout as Parker and the team are getting ready to divide the loot, Zen, the getaway driver betrays them.  She shoots them all and makes off with the dough.

Parker, left for dead, survives.  Once he recovers he makes it his mission in life to track down Zen, get the money back and take her life.  It won’t be easy.  Especially when Parker decides to also rob a crime syndicate known as the Outfit.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

The film was originally supposed to reteam Robert Downey, Jr. and writer/director Shane Black.  They had worked together before on Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.  When Downey dropped out, Mark Wahlberg was chosen to replace him.

Play Dirty is the fifth movie adaptation of Richard Stark’s Parker character.  The other films are: Point Blank (1967) starring Lee Marvin; The Outfit (1973) starring Robert Duvall; Payback (1999) starring Mel Gibson; Parker (2013) starring Jason Statham and now Play Dirty starring Mark Wahlberg.

Play Dirty is okay, but your time would be better served watching one of the other Parker adaptations.

Play Dirty (2025) rates 2 of 5 stars.

LAST HUNT: BOOK THREE IN THE HUNTER TRILOGY by James Byron Huggins!

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HUNTER by James Byron Huggins is one of my all-time favorite novels.  The sequel, HUNTER’S MOON was just as great.  Now the third tale in the trilogy is about to be released.  It’s titled LAST HUNT.  Here’s the lowdown…

International bestselling author James Byron Huggins delivers LAST HUNT, the third and final book in the Hunter Saga.

Nathaniel Hunter has faced nightmares most men can’t imagine. In Alaska’s frozen wilderness he confronted a primordial killer. On England’s haunted moors he fought a beast born of legend. Each time he walked away scarred but unbroken. Now the battle comes to his own doorstep.

Scipio Dante, the brilliant, ruthless mind behind the experiments that created those monsters, has perfected a serum that transforms men into savage, unstoppable predators. Backed by limitless wealth and a private army, he will stop at nothing to rid the world of its greatest threat: the hunter who has foiled him twice before.

From his remote mountain cabin, Hunter must prepare for the ultimate confrontation. The wilderness he calls home bristles with danger; the predators he respects may soon turn against him. To survive, he’ll need every weapon at his disposal, every ally he can trust, and every ounce of his primal fury.

The world’s last true hunter is about to face his final, most terrifying prey.

LAST HUNT drops November 3rd.  Get your order in now.  I did.

LAST HUNT Paperback

LAST HUNT Hardback

LAST HUNT Kindle

RIGHTEOUS TRASH by Nick Kolakowski!

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I just ordered a copy of RIGHTEOUS TRASH by Nick Kolakowski.  Here’s the lowdown…

Jake Halligan tried living the quiet life.

After years of war and crime, Jake has settled down with his wife and daughter in rural Idaho. But in a country that pushes people to the brink, Jake soon makes a bet to get ahead that will have disastrous consequences.

Spurred by his sister Frankie, the West’s most dangerous arms dealer, Jake is pulled into a chaotic conspiracy that involves a pregnant teenager, gangs of gun-toting thugs, a wetwork specialist from New Orleans, high-powered politicos, and a backwoods shooting competition just begging to be robbed.

Jake Halligan tried living the quiet life, but when the bullets start flying and everything he knows is at risk, he’ll have to decide who he really is and what he really wants. The wrong choice might kill him and everyone he cares about.

Kolakowski’s tales always entertain and I expect RIGHTEOUS TRASH to be no different.  If it sounds like something you’d enjoy, you know what to do.

RIGHTEOUS TRASH paperback

RIGHTEOUS TRASH Kindle

THE MAKING OF QUENTIN TARANTINO’S ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD by Jay Glennie is Coming!

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Quentin Tarantino fans are gonna love this.  THE MAKING OF QUENTIN TARANTINO’S ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD by Jay Glennie premieres soon.  Here’s the lowdown…

Legendary filmmaker Quentin Tarantino personally introduces the definitive and official examination of his entire oeuvre with the Quentin Tarantino Library written by Jay Glennie.

In the first book in the series, THE MAKING OF QUENTIN TARANTINO’S ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD, writer Jay Glennie pulls back the curtain on the visionary writer/director/producer’s ninth film, with unprecedented access to the filmmaker, cast, and crew. This epic tome is a stunning and faithful deep dive into the mind of a masterful auteur and a must-have book for all film lovers and Quentin Tarantino fans.

For the first time ever Academy Award winning filmmaker Quentin Tarantino has granted respected journalist and author Jay Glennie unique access revealing the never-before-told behind-the-scenes making of one of the most iconic films of all time, Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood.

Quentin Tarantino personally introduces the volume, as well as providing hundreds of behind-the-scenes photographs, along with production memos, concept art, and costume and production design sketches. There are also exclusive reproductions of letters, studio documents and film ephemera. The result is an account of the monumental effort undertaken to produce Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood and is the official record of how it was achieved, from inception to the world premiere and on to ten Academy Award nominations, resulting in two Oscars.

The book includes new and exclusive interviews undertaken by Jay Glennie with key cast and crew members, including Oscar winning actors Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt, Oscar nominee Margot Robbie, and the brilliant supporting cast including Oscar winner Mikey Madison, Margaret Qualley, Oscar nominee Austin Butler, Lena Dunham, Kurt Russell, Dakota Fanning, Emile Hirsch, Damian Lewis, Maya Hawke, and Sydney Sweeney.

First book in the series!!

THE MAKING OF QUENTIN TARANTINO’S ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD  Hardcover

THE MAKING OF QUENTIN TARANTINO’S ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD  Kindle

PUSH THE WALL: MY LIFE WRITING, DRAWING, AND THE ART OF STORYTELLING by Frank Miller is Coming!

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Frank Miller the genius behind Sin City, 300, The Dark Night Returns, Batman: Year One, Ronin and so many more great comic tales has a new book coming.  Here’s the lowdown…

From the all-time bestselling mind behind Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Daredevil, 300, and Sin City, Push the Wall is part memoir, part master class for budding artists and writers by one of the greatest living creators whose work has influenced pop culture for decades.

Frank Miller is our greatest living comic book writer and artist.

Frank Miller shares his life, and through, his artistic process. Miller’s artistic influence is evident in so very much of our popular culture, perhaps most notably with Batman — every film adaptation from the past forty years has been influenced by Miller’s work with the Dark Knight.

Simply, Frank Miller has transformed the way comics are told.

Here, Frank’s mix of autobiographical lessons evokes Patti Smith’s Just Kids as it weaves his struggles as a seventeen-year-old kid fresh from Vermont into a seedy 1970s New York City with his eventual success on reimagining Daredevil and Wolverine. From there to Miller’s rescue and revitalization of Batman, to his time in Hollywood, the Sin City comics and film adaptations he would codirect, and the retelling of the Spartans’ last stand in 300. Miller, by constantly challenging himself as an artist and writer on his terms, built an iconoclastic career.

With over a dozen illustrations of Miller’s art, PUSH THE WALL is the work of his career—it is a masterclass as it encapsulates his life in sixteen lessons for the aspiring creative reader.

This will be a must-have for aspiring writers and artists, as well as die hard Miller fans.

PUSH THE WALL Hardcover
PUSH THE WALL Kindle

CEREMONY: A SPENCER NOVEL by Robert B. Parker / Z-View

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CEREMONY: A SPENCER NOVEL by Robert B. Parker

First sentences…

“She’s a goddamned whore,” Harry Kyle said.  “And I don’t want her in this house again.”

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

April Kyle, a high school student ran away from home.  Although her parents don’t know exactly where she is, they know what she’s become.

A teenage prostitute.

Susan Silverman, a counselor, meets with her parents.  Susan’s lover, a hard case private eye named Spenser could find April.  Spenser could bring her home.  But April’s dad is too self-righteous to care for his daughter because of what she’s become.  Dad doesn’t want April back.  April’s mom is too weak to stand up for her child.  Spenser is ready to walk away.  He can’t stand April’s father.

But Susan cares.  She convinces Spenser to find April.  If April stays on the streets she certain for an early grave.  Spenser agrees to find April, but will only bring her home if she agrees.

What sounds like an easy job, find a high school girl who has gone down the wrong path, turns out to be anything but.  Spenser is soon at odds with Trumps, a pimp with a stable of hoes, as well as people (some who are very “connected”) who specialize in trafficking kids.

Spenser and Hawk are on the case.  Let the fun begin.

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CEREMONY was published in 1982.  It’s as relevant today as it was over 40 years ago.  Maybe even more relevant now since it deals with child-trafficking.  Also if written today, I have no doubt that many would make accusations that Parker was making a comment by naming a pimp Trumps.

I’m a huge fan of Robert B. Parker’s tales… especially those involving Spenser.  Not many authors would be willing to have their main character save a teenage girl from a life on the streets using Spencer’s solution.

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