Nonfiction and Fiction Crime Round-Up (7/22/20)

We’re living a life of crime in today’s nonfiction and fiction round-up with a former getaway driver who can’t escape a world of blood and bullets, an innocent man desperately trying to avoid gang life, a Minnesota P.I. haunted by a past case, an unprecedented study of the people who ordered and directed some of the worst atrocities of the modern era, and the true story of America’s forgotten capital of vice.

FICTION:

BLACKTOP WASTELAND by S.A. Cosby

2 starred reviews!

“Beauregard ‘Bug’ Montage was the best wheelman in town, but after his last score, he quit the business and bought an auto repair shop…Bug’s got a conscience not typical of the thriller genre, but other than that, this debut novel recalls almost perfectly the classic heist thriller in the vein of Richard Stark’s ‘Parker’ novels. It’ll go like hot cakes.”–Library Journal, starred review

“Cosby never misses a note in this high-energy debut, from Bug’s under-the-hood wizardry to the actual driving to the sensitive character building, which gives depth to the entire cast, including even Bug’s hapless yet treacherous associates.”–Booklist, starred review

THE BURDEN OF TRUTH by Neal Griffin

“Call this a procedural, a detective story, a thriller, or just a crime novel, but, however it’s tagged, Griffin’s third effort (following A VOICE FROM THE FIELD, 2016) offers one of the finest reading experiences of the year.”–Booklist, starred review

FROM THE GRAVE: A McKenzie Novel by David Housewright

“Series fans will have a great time here, as Housewright offers readers a new side of the usually superconfident McKenzie, showing a man with all the answers forced to examine not just clues but also his own vulnerability.”–Booklist

NONFICTION:

I YOU WE THEM: Volume 1: Walking into the World of the Desk Killer by Dan Gretton

“In this sprawling and meditative debut, Gretton, cofounder of the British arts-activist group Platform, investigates crimes against humanity and the mindsets of the bureaucrats and businessmen who perpetrated them without getting their hands dirty….Gretton offers a lucid, powerfully written indictment of historical outrages, posing painful moral questions that remain relevant today.”–Publishers Weekly

THE VAPORS: A Southern Family, the New York Mob, and the Rise and Fall of Hot Springs, America’s Forgotten Capital of Vice by David Hill

“More than a simple crime story, this is a forgotten history of Arkansas in the mid-20th century. Recommended for readers interested in antiheroes, self-made men, and survivor stories.”–Library Journal

BLACKTOP WASTELAND by S.A. Cosby; 9781250252685; available now.
THE BURDEN OF TRUTH by Neal Griffin; 9780765395627; available now.
FROM THE GRAVE: A McKenzie Novel by David Housewright; 9781250212177; available 7/28/20.
I YOU WE THEM: Volume 1: Walking into the World of the Desk Killer by Dan Gretton; 9780374174378; available now.
THE VAPORS: A Southern Family, the New York Mob, and the Rise and Fall of Hot Springs, America’s Forgotten Capital of Vice by David Hill; 9781250086112; available now.