Dale is a crooked cop. It started slow, but grew like a cancer and now he can’t get out from under the thumb of Tat, a would-be kingpin in every vice he can turn a profit with. And now Dale’s number is up—the top brass knows. But instead of getting busted, Dale gets an offer. The mayor’s daughter is being held by Tat in his fortress built from an abandoned office tower. They want her back but if they storm the gates, Lauren is as good as dead. So they’re sending Dale on what could very likely be a suicide mission: infiltrate Tat’s fortress and bring her out alive. If the Mayor even really wants her alive… Floor by floor Dale and Lauren have to fight off an increasingly difficult and dangerous set of obstacles. Meanwhile, Dale’s wife has her own troubles and some of the drug kingpin’s goons are only adding to an already rough day. The clock is ticking down along with the floors of the building and escape is looking less and less likely. But to save her, and to save himself, he must make it all the way down. Praise for ALL THE WAY DOWN: “Last chances, double crosses, and a cop who has to shoot his way out of a fortified skyscraper—what’s not to love? All The Way Down rips. It’s fast and fierce, like a guitar solo that hits all the sharpest notes.” —Meg Gardiner, author of Into the Black Nowhere “Eric Beetner’s All the Way Down is everything a reader could want from an action thriller—fast, suspenseful, and the right kind of outrageous. The stakes ratchet up with each harrowing surprise for crooked cop Dale and reporter Lauren, as they work together to escape the urban fortress of the city’s maniacal kingpin. If every suicide mission was this much fun, we’d all sign on.” —Glen Erik Hamilton, author of the Van Shaw thrillers “Beetner’s Dale Burnett is a dirty cop trying to rescue someone from the clutches of the ruthless criminal he’s been accepting money from...and fifteen floors of non-stop action follows! Beetner is a master at throwing more and more trouble at his heroes, and in All the Way Down, Dale gets hit with everything imaginable. No, check that—you will not have imagined what happens on a couple of these floors. This book is an absolute blast.” —Frank Zafiro, creator and editor of A Grifter’s Song “Relentless.” —Rob Hart, author of the Ash McKenna series

All the Way Down

Mystery, Thriller & Suspense

Beetner, Eric

Thrillers & Suspense

Down & Out Books

Swann's Down (A Henry Swann Mystery)

Salzberg, Charles

Mystery

Craig McIntyre, ex-military turned bodyguard, has a powerful and uncontrollable affliction: his mere presence can transform people’s darkest thoughts into action. Chased across America and Canada, McIntyre is trying to escape bounty hunters from the Dark Web. Hooking up with some unlikely allies, McIntyre crosses the Atlantic to discover a secret that will shock the planet. For over fifty years, in a base hidden in a remote corner of Scotland, the US government has been collecting the body parts of the most famous and infamous people on the planet. When McIntyre uncovers the reason behind this insidious plan, he finds himself the key to a deadly game of life or death. Praise for DEEPEST WOUNDS: “The story grabs hold of you and refuses to let go, you’re dragged along for the ride whether you want to be or not.” —BookLoverWorm “Craig McIntyre absolutely fascinates me! A total mess, but also all together, clever, cunning, determined and borderline psychotic…I have to say, I adore him!!” —Crime Book Junkie. “I was lost in the fast-paced action and the need to know just what was happening and how it would all play out.” —Jen Med’s Book Reviews. “A high-octane thriller with a killer pitch.” —Live and Deadly

Deepest Wounds (Craig McIntyre Thriller)

BROWN, GORDON

This is the book of the expanding man. What’s the end result of a crazy scheme to match some of music history’s most evocative and memorable songs with twelve of today’s most entertaining writers? You’re looking at it. With this collection there’s no need to chase the dragon, tour the Southland in a traveling minstrel show, or drink Scotch whiskey all night long. You’ve already bought the dream. Covering every game in the Grammy-winning catalog of Donald Fagen and Walter Becker—collectively celebrated as Steely Dan—these compulsively readable stories will stagger the mind of ramblers, wild gamblers, and—of course—the winners in the world. From the suburban streets of Annandale to the mystical spheres of Lhasa…from the shine of your Japan to the sparkle of your China…from Sunset Boulevard to Camarillo and from Scarsdale to Brooklyn … put these twelve masters of crime fiction behind the wheel, and come along for a ride you won’t soon forget. Like a Sunday in T.J., it’s cheap, but it’s not free. Edited by Brian Thornton with a Foreword by Jeffrey Weber and stories by David Corbett, Nick Feldman, Bill Fitzhugh, Linda Joffe Hull, R.T. Lawton, Cornelia Read, Stacy Robinson, Brian Thornton, dbschlosser, Sam Wiebe, Simon Wood, and James W. Ziskin.

Die Behind the Wheel: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Music of Steely Dan

Literature & Fiction

Thornton, Brian

Short Stories & Anthologies

Ex-St. Paul cop Rushmore McKenzie has more time and more money than he knows what to do with. In fact, when he’s willing to admit it to himself (and usually he isn’t), McKenzie is downright bored. Until he decides to do a favor for a friend facing a family tragedy: nine-year-old Stacy Carlson has been diagnosed with leukemia, and the only one with the matching bone marrow that can save her is her older sister Jamie. Trouble is, Jamie ran away from home years ago. McKenzie begins combing the backstreets of the Twin Cities, tracking down Jamie’s last known associates only to discover that along with the expected pimps and drug dealers, Jamie was also a favorite of a violent street gang, arms smugglers, and Minnesota’s moneyed elite. And as the body-count rises, he learns that what he’s looking for—and why—are nothing like he had imagined. Praise for A HARD TICKET HOME: “I didn’t so much read A Hard Ticket Home as inhale it. What a wonderful time I had. The action is superb, and the tour of the Twin Cities is a delight. I love Rushmore McKenzie. He’s heroic, foolish, clever, vulnerable—and unapologetically nice. One more hardback I shall have to buy every year.” —Nevada Barr, author of Hunting Season “The author has a sharp, bouncy prose style, and his story-about Mac’s search for a friend’s long-missing daughter who can possibly be a bone marrow donor for her younger sister-has some touching and exciting moments…A true son of Spenser.” —Publishers Weekly “The hero of this action-packed novel is very human: sometimes a smart aleck, sometimes sensitive and vulnerable—and more than capable of pulling the trigger. A surprise at every turn.” —Dallas Morning Star “Millionaire ex-cop rights wrongs pro-bono in an amiable throwback to Marlowe/Archer. Housewright has a keeper in McKenzie—tough, smart and sufficiently flawed to be entirely likeable.” —Kirkus Review “David Housewright’s McKenzie (you want his first name and the story behind it, it’s in the book) is a smartaleck, wisecracking, two-fisted, soft-hearted and very human addition to the PI field. Get to know him—you’ll be glad you did.” —S.J. Rozan, author of Winter and Night “David Housewright has written a stunning novel. His prose is bone hard and beautiful, his story brutally dark, undeniably compelling, and in odd, unpredictable moments, quite funny. This is a guy who knows the human soul, and he lays it bare on every page.” —William Kent Krueger, author of Blood Hollow “Another winner from David Housewright. Private investigator ‘Mac’ McKenzie is the quintessential lone crusader, and A Hard Ticket Home is the perfect example of the Great Modern American Detective Novel. Fans of Robert B. Parker, John D. McDonald, and Ross MacDonald will love this book.” —Pete Hautmann, author of Doohickey

A Hard Ticket Home (A McKenzie Novel)

Humor & Entertainment

Housewright, David

Humor

Mac McKenzie is rich. So rich that he’s left his job as a Twin Cities police officer and spends his time doing favors large and small for friends. So when an old Marine buddy of his father’s calls with a request Mac takes the time to help him out. And it is one of the stranger favors he’s ever been asked: the elderly Mr. Mosley, a beekeeper, wants Mac to find out why his bees are suddenly dying in droves.\nMac does some digging and before long turns up a hornet’s nest of trouble in the person of Frank Crosetti, a new neighbor on the property abutting Mosley’s bees. What started out as an innocent investigation into some unregulated pesticide quickly turns lethal. Crosetti sticks around long enough to make some very specific threats, then disappears into the wind leaving behind a vicious rape, a lifeless body, and a very angry McKenzie bursting for someone to blame.\nWith only the faintest of trails to follow and a suspicious group of federal agents gunning for him, Mac dives underground, taking only a stash of cash and a small arsenal with him on his undercover mission. Before long Mac’s deep in the forgotten corners of Minneapolis sniffing for any sign of Crosetti, unable to rest until he gets results.\nPraise for TIN CITY:\n“Channeling Raymond Chandler with tongue-in-cheek humor, Housewright delivers plenty of action, a pinch of romance and more than a few surprises.” —Publisher’s Weekly\n“This is a novel about going after the right guy for the wrong reasons, and the wrong guy for the right reasons. It’s got twists and double-crosses, exciting car chases and gun battles, leavened by plenty of laughs —a noirish novel with emphasis on the ish.” —Boston Globe\n“Housewright hits his stride in this second outing for good-hearted Minnesota tough guy Rushmore McKenzie... The smooth, straightforward action comes off without a hitch, lightly seasoned with a dash of introspection from a wry, self-assured hero who is a true pal to those in need and who charms ladies and librarians alike... This series may be seriously habit-forming. It’s also a welcome selection for libraries where Robert Parker is popular, which is to say everywhere.” —Booklist\n“Some lovely cadenced writing... along with smart narrative moves and bits of unfocused excess. Housewright is at his best when he stays closest to home. It’s clear he’s a Minnesotan in his bones, so his depiction of everything from beekeeping to the byways of Hilltop embeds us in a location where quiet indiscretions and desires highlight daily life... The author thickens the broth with big-city crime (New York City gang wars), national issues (terrorism and a frenzied FBI agent) and more than a showoff’s worth of country-western music name-dropping. The result is an amiable and appealing novel...” —Washington Post\n“Tin City is a nicely crafted combination of procedural and character-driven crime story... It’s fun for readers to share McKenzie’s travels.” —St. Paul Pioneer Press\n“Housewright is one of a crop of Minnesota crime writers whose new books draw on the state’s personality quirks and beloved landmarks to flavor spine-tingling prose. Readers beware: It’s not all snow cones and mini-doughnuts. Even as you smile with familiarity, you’ll be looking over your shoulder… Mac is a likable protagonist. He’s normal in a refreshing way that is rare among today’s angst-ridden heroes. Wistful about the past but not haunted by it, he’s gentle, humorous and a little vague about where his life is heading. He’s the kind of guy his married friends worry about, and yet he’s more than equal to the task when things get rough. He should wear well as this series continues.” —Minneapolis Star Tribune

Tin City (A McKenzie Novel)

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

Pretty Girl Gone (A McKenzie Novel)

Right up until they put him in jail, McKenzie thought the cops were kidding. After all, he did them a favor by stopping a rookie cop from roughing up a distraught woman at a murder scene. But the next thing he knows, he’s in jail, missing an important date with his girlfriend, and reliving nightmares he thought he had left far behind him—and vowing payback for all of it. If that means sticking his nose into an ongoing murder investigation, well, he’s done it before. Only what appears to be a straightforward case of a cheating boyfriend, his alcoholic girlfriend, and an opportune baseball bat proves far more complicated than the police are willing to accept. More disconcerting, as he investigates, McKenzie finds himself fighting the influence of a shadowy figure who controls more of what goes on in the Twin Cities than a rational voter would believe. Then there are the unidentified thugs who kill a witness and rough up him and his female lawyer ally. Soon McKenzie realizes that the truth of this sordid crime may be as hard to find—and as hard to live with—as the justice he seeks. Praise for DEAD BOYFRIENDS: “Former cop Rushmore McKenzie certainly won’t run from a fight, but he also has a softer side: he is a firm believer in loyalty and love, and he is a sucker for the underdog. When he stops to help a woman he sees at the side of the road, he has no idea he’ll be calling on all these character traits to unravel the truth about the woman, a grisly murder, a string of dead boyfriends, and a secret in her past... Housewright is terrific—funny, wry, and dead-on—which, along with some unexpected plot twists, gives this the sort of appeal that will have readers asking for the next book as well as ones that can fill in McKenzie’s history.” —Booklist “Once again, St. Paul’s Saint George scatters the dragons who menace a damsel in distress.” —Kirkus Reviews “David Housewright is one of my favorite mystery authors. I’d read a cereal box if he wrote it. I really like McKenzie’s character and enjoy his determination and sense of loyalty. He’s the guy in the white hat, seeking to preserve justice for all. And he’s always willing to put himself in harm’s way to accomplish his goals. No risk, no reward... Dead Boyfriends is a fun ride with twists enough to surprise everyone. Housewright’s attention to the various Twin Cities locals is spot on and tremendous fun for those of us who live here. His characters are rich and complex, his plot intriguing and satisfying.” —Armchair Reviews

Dead Boyfriends (A McKenzie Novel)

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

Madman on a Drum (A McKenzie Novel)

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

Jelly's Gold (A McKenzie Novel)

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