1965: America's favorite small-town detective must solve the murder of two old friends against the backdrop of America's cultural revolution For small-town Iowa lawyer Sam McCain, the year 1965 is not a sweet one. His father is gravely ill. His elitist boss is just now coming out of rehab. The brilliant lawyer he'd hoped to start a relationship with has gone back to her husband in Chicago. And the first young soldier from Black River Falls returns home from a strange place called Vietnam. In a coffin. With the Beatles, Rolling Stones, and Bob Dylan irritating those over thirty, Sam McCain is forced to realize that his old world, along with the entire country's, is about to end forever.

Product DescriptionTwenty-one-year-old Spence returns to his home after two years in the Army. He falls in love with Cindy Brasher, Homecoming Queen and small town goddess to a long line of jealous young men. But string of robberies puts Spence at odds with his obsessive love for Cindy. One by all of Spence's rivals are implicated in horrific crimes. Spence begins to wonder how much Cindy knows about these events, and why she wants him, like all her past boyfriends, to visit the old well in the woods... "Ed Gorman's writing is strong, fast and sleek as a bullet. He is one of the best."-Dean Koontz “One of the most original thriller writers around.”-Kirkus Reviews “The modern master of the lean and mean thriller.”-Rocky Mountain News

REVENGE WAS HIS ONLY REASON FOR LIVING - EVEN IF IT MEANT DYING. It wasn't just the memories of his murdered brothers or the ten years in prison that reminded Chase how much he hated Reeves for double-crossing him after the bank robbery. Chase's face was carved with hideous sears from the bloody night when Reeves's killer wolf had attacked and left him for dead. Now he was out of jail and in the same town where Reeves was setting up his next bank heist. The lust for revenge was eating away at Chase's gut, and not even the love of a woman could stop him from the hell-bound path he must follow. For him, no price was too high-and the sacrifice would be savage…

TROUBLE IN STORE... Cedar Rapids in 1884 was a place where Les Graves had a chance to finally earn the respectability he always wanted and to marry the woman he loved. Then his brother T. Z. came into town, bringing with him trouble with a capital T. It seemed that T. Z. and his friend Neely had big plans for the local bank where Graves happened to work. And they were counting on Graves' help to pull off the heist. All Graves got in return for his loyalty was a hard cot in a drafty cell- until a rivalry between two local sheriffs gave him one shot at freedom. But before Graves could return to his peaceful life and the pursuit of the woman of his dreams, there were a few more twists in the trail... with trouble around each bend... Genre: hard-boiled/western.

***The new Dev Conrad mystery from the author of the Sam McCain and Jack Dwyer series - ***Political consultant Dev Conrad knows that helping Congressman Michael Robards to get re-elected is going to be tough. Robards’ liberal voting record stands against him, and his staff seem resentful of Dev himself – which could doom the campaign. But there’s a bigger problem. A campaign worker has been shot behind Robards’ headquarters. Both Dev and the police presume it was a mugging, but as the election draws near, Robards is implicated in the murder by his enemies . . . (20120115) ### Review Freelance political consultant Dev Conrad (*Stranglehold*, 2010, etc.) signs on to help another congressional campaign plagued by murder and other deviltry. When liberal incumbent Jeff Ward’s father Tom persuades Dev to spend some time with his son’s flailing campaign, Jeff’s speechwriter Jim Waters hasn’t yet been shot to death. And Tom can’t even identify the other problems. But it’s clear that trouble is afoot. Someone close to Ward is evidently leaking sensitive information to Rusty Burkhart, his millionaire right-wing challenger. David Nolan, the candidate’s lifelong friend and chief of staff, disappears almost the moment Dev first pokes his nose into the campaign tent. And Dev soon learns that Ward is being blackmailed over a steamy videotape starring him and a prostitute. As Burkhart rises in the polls, Sylvia Fordham, high priestess of conservative consultants, crows over Ward’s vulnerabilities. Dev quickly realizes that only Jennifer Conners, the Goth teen left to mourn Waters, shows any sign of emotional attachment to any of the leads; everything else, from the two women Ward chooses to flank him at the press conference Dev urges him to call over Waters’ death, to the sound bites the candidates hurl at each other during a debate, is delectably synthetic. In such an amoral world, nothing, it seems, can save the Ward campaign—unless of course Dev discovers that his opponent has fallen victim to the same blackmailer too. Perfect. Another caustic indictment of electoral politics at its most American. No wonder it’s hard to muster much moral outrage when Dev, efficient as ever, identifies the blackmailer and the killer, who act just like everyone else. (*Kirkus Reviews* )

Award-winning author Ed Gorman is back with political consultant and troubleshooter Dev Conrad, in this riveting sequel.When Dev Conrad agreed to work with Congresswoman Susan Cooper, member of a prominent political family, he didn’t know that the worst threat her reelection campaign would face would come from Cooper herself. The congresswoman has a secret she’s not willing to share with Dev, forcing him to follow her the way a detective would. But the campaign is burdened with other problems as well, starting with the murder of scandal-plagued political consultant Monica Davies. Rumor has it she had some information that would destroy Susan Cooper’s campaign. In the wake of another murder, another blackmailer, and two or three suspicious relationships, Dev must figure out who is trying to sabotage the campaign. A rip-roaring ride, Stranglehold will win your vote.

An assassination attempt on a US congresswoman spells danger for Dev Conrad. Political consultant Dev Conrad is doing his best to help secure a re-election victory for congresswoman Jessica Bradshaw, who's fighting a fierce battle with her far-right opponent, Michael Dorsey.But the campaign is thrown into chaos when an assassination attempt is made on Jessica's life. She survives, and finds herself leading the race, but when the shotgun used in the shooting is found in the trunk of one of Jessica's staffers, the 'assassination attempt' suddenly looks staged to win votes. With Jessica's campaign in ruins, Dev investigates. Who wants Jessica dead, and is the reason solely political? Someone is determined Dev won't find answers . . .

    Sometimes, the breakneck world of advertising gets to be just too much for Michael Ketchum-he can't stand the pace, the politics, the backstabbing. And things at his small agency are starting to get out of hand: his partner, Denny Harris, is polarizing the employees; there are inconsistencies in the bookeeping; and he finds out that Harris is having an affair with their top client's wife-threatening the future of the business.     In a rage, Ketchum drives off to his partner's home for a confrontation. But someone has been there before him: Ketchum finds Harris dead-brutally stabbed and murdered.     Could the murderer have been Cindy Traynor, the client's wife, whose car Ketchum saw leaving the scene of the crime?     Rough Cut follows Ketchum into a fight to save his business-and his life: he must prove to the police that he is not the murderer; he must prove to himself that the beautiful Cindy Traynor is not the murderer; and he must find the mysterious connection between the killing and the other strange goings-on at the agency.     But before long there is a second murder. And then a third. And there is only one thing that Ketchum is certain of: that he will be next.      ***          "…a fine mystery that breaks new ground in the way of combining the best elements of the so-called English school and the American method, while allowing the reader a peek inside the subculture of the advertising industry. The writing is lean and visual, the characterizations sharp. The mood is at times somber, at times terrifying, and always compelling. All in all, an excellent first effort."     -Loren D. Estlemen          "A clever and suspenseful venture into the cutthroat, anxiety-ridden world of advertising… A slick, fast-paced, witty mystery."     -Booklist

WANTED FOR MURDER: THE MARSHAL'S WIFE. Marshal Lane Morgan is an honorable man who isn't about to let anyone dodge the law-not even the son of Paul Webley, the most crooked figure in Skylar, Colorado. Lane is all set to testify against Webley's boy-until Webley himself starts digging into Lane's wife's past and turns up one helluva dirty secret. No sooner does Lane receive a threat of blackmail than the dead body of a grifter is found-leaving the marshal's wife as the number one suspect. Now, with little more than his instincts to go on. Lane must risk his livelihood, his values, and his own freedom to track down the real killer-and save his wife from a fate worse than death... Genre: hard-boiled mystery/western.

### From Publishers Weekly Shamus-winner Gorman's niftily titled new novel opens on a warm summer night in 1961 in Black River Falls, Iowa. Soon after a girl turns up dead at a class reunion party, her drag-racing boyfriend slams into a clay wall at 90 miles an hour. An obvious accident-but then the police find his brake line had been cut. Reluctantly, McCain enters the investigation, which involves jilted girlfriends, unfaithful spouses and a clever, resourceful killer. Besides being a competent, suspenseful mystery with more than a few surprises, this fifth in the series (Save the Last Dance for Me, etc.) is a fascinating time machine, recalling the arcana of a more innocent time (sick jokes, the Maverick TV series, teenagers using the phrase "Daddy-O"). Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. ### From Booklist Every burg, large or small, is driven by the same human emotions of passion, jealousy, greed, and ambition. These are the hard lessons young lawyer Sam McCain has absorbed since he returned to his hometown, Black River Falls, Iowa, in 1961 to eke out a meager living as a lawyer and part-time investigator. When young Sara Griffin, troubled daughter of a prominent family, is murdered at a party, Sam is hired to defend the primary suspect, local bad boy David Egan. Corrupt Sheriff Cliffie Sykes pins the Griffin murder on Egan; then Egan dies under mysterious circumstances while drag racing. McCain feels obligated to clear Egan's name. It's apparent he's unearthed a link to the real killer when a third victim is discovered. The fifth McCain mystery builds on its predecessors as Sam's optimistic naivete is ceaselessly challenged by brutal acts perpetrated in the name of love. But love isn't the real motive; it's trumped by ego and self-preservation. Another fine entry in a wonderful series that deserves a much wider audience. *Wes Lukowsky* *Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved*

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION In Indiana, the condemned die at midnight - men like Peter Tappley, a killer born to privilege and wealth, who lived in his mother's shadow and visited his hatred on trusting young women. Six years after his execution, his ex-wife Jill, a prominent Chicago photographer, is still trying to live down his crimes. But out there in the chilly autumn night, there is someone who still blames her for her husband's terrible deeds - someone determined to make her pay in blood. Enter Mitch Ayers, a homicide detective and former lover of Jill's, and Marcy Browne, a private eye. Both try to discover who is stalking Jill. What they find, though, may cost them their lives as well.*** From Booklist Jill Coffey's husband, Peter, was executed after a reign of terror as a deranged ax murderer. Six years later, Jill has a successful advertising career but remains concerned that Peter's mother, Evelyn, holds her responsible for Peter's madness. Then she notices a blue Volvo trailing her and soon finds herself charged with the brutal murder of her former partner. And, as one might expect, there's someone out there with an ax getting closer and closer to Jill. Gorman is one of our best and most underappreciated thriller writers, but here it seems he's settled for a standard psycho-killer slasher epic. It's very good psycho-killer fare-Gorman could rewrite a software manual and hold our interest-but it's mediocre Gorman. Buy sparingly for the devoted few.*** From Kirkus Reviews Six years after her son Peter Tappley was executed for stalking, raping, and killing three women, his imperious mother Evelyn is determined to punish the person she thinks responsible-Peter's wife, Chicago photographer Jill Coffey, whose dedication to her career 'made' Peter go berserk. She's hired a pair of hit men to frame Jill for the murder of her lecherous ex-partner, adman Eric Brooks. Now which of the four complications-(1) Marcy Browne, the p.i. Jill's got on the case; (2) a lovers' spat between the two hit men; (3) Cini Powell, Eric's latest conquest, who saw the killer at Eric's office; or (4) Peter's sister Doris, who's doped out Evelyn's nefarious plot-will save Jill from her fate? Prolific veteran Gorman (Hawk Moon, p. 563, etc.) has churned out a wonderfully pulpish, greased-lightning homage to Robert Bloch that you can start just before bedtime confident that you'll still finish in plenty of time for a good night's sleep.

1967: A brutal murder in the midst of an anti-Vietnam War group sparks an investigation by Sam McCain, in Ed Gorman's most politically charged mystery yet.When we last saw Sam McCain he had been drafted to fight the war in Vietnam. But Sam's military career ended in boot camp when he was accidentally shot in the head and forced to spend three months in a military hospital to recover.Sam returns to his hometown of Black River Falls, where he works as a lawyer (and part-time investigator) for the court of the snobbish but amusing Judge Esme Ann Whitney.Two of Sam's oldest friends are caught up in this same battle. Veteran Steve Donovan brutally belittles and finally savagely beats his old friend veteran Will Cullen when Cullen announces he's joined the anti-war group.When Cullen is found murdered, the obvious suspect is Steve Donovan, but Sam has serious doubts about the man's guilt. At least three people had reasons to murder Cullen, and Sam begins to suspect...

From Library Journal In 1959, anti-Communist sentiment runs highDeven in the Iowa town of Black River Falls. There, a murderer deposits the body of an alleged Communist sympathizer on the doorstep of PI Sam McCain (Wake Up Little Susie). Things really heat up after the two prime suspects also turn up dead. Exciting and intense, this is for fans of the series and historical mysteries. *** From Booklist Joe McCarthy's better-dead-than-red mentality has penetrated even the small Iowa burg of Black River Falls, where young Sam McCain supplements his earnings as a lawyer by working as a private investigator. At the conclusion of a photo-op appearance by touring Soviet premier Nikita Khruschev, former State Department official and Black River Falls resident, Richard Conners, a notorious liberal, indicates he'd like to hire McCain. He shows up at McCain's apartment a day later, near death, but he won't expose his attacker. McCain has no faith in the investigative ability of local law enforcement, so he proceeds on his own. In short order, he's also confronted with the deaths of a former FBI agent now fronting an anti-Communist organization and two other right-wing activists. The third Sam McCain case is as compelling and entertaining as its predecessors. Gorman, an underappreciated master of the genre, has created an insular, self-contained world in Black River Falls, where good and evil clash with the same heartbreaking results as they have in the more urban crime dramas of Block or Leonard.