SMFS Member Publishing News: Jim Thomsen's Photographs

SMFS list member Jim Thomsen reports that his photographs are published in Rock and a Hard Place, Issue 12: Fall 2024. Published by Rock and a Hard Place Press, the read is available at Amazon.

 

Amazon Description:

Beowulf for Dummies . . . and loan sharks.
When the gun is the hero, that's noir.
Revenge is a dish best served with a smile.
When community services is more dangerous than doing time.

In issue 12, Rock and a Hard Place goes international. We go for the horror. We even sneak in a little paranormal. But you can count on us—we never lose the noir. With stories by: Craig Francis Coates, Barbara DeMarco-Barrett, Bob Ellis, Nils Gilbertson, Michael A. Gonzales, Dave Hangman, Nick Kolakowski, M. Palmer, Ivan Richardson, Mark Rogers, S.A. Smith, and Melissa Witcher.

Rock and a Hard Place is the literary magazine that knows that a dozen may be dirty, but 12 is just another way to say you've got two good graves . . . or three bad ones.

SMFS Member Publishing News: Deeds of Darkness: Stories by William Burton McCormick

SMFS list member William Burton McCormick reported today that his book, Deeds of Darkness: Stories, is now out from Level Best Books-Level Short. The read is available at Amazon.

 

Amazon Description:

Deeds of Darkness is the best short fiction by award-winning author William Burton McCormick. A collection of twenty-four globetrotting stories of suspense, mystery, crime, espionage, horror, and historical genres from the pages of Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, The Saturday Evening Post, Mystery Magazine, and elsewhere. Deeds of Darkness includes stories nominated for the Edgar Allan Poe Award, Shamus Award, Thriller Award, and five Derringer Award-nominated stories. Also included are two unabridged novellas, "Demon in the Depths," which finished second in the Ellery Queen's Readers' Poll for 2021, and "House of Tigers," named to the Honor Roll for both the Black Orchid Novel Award and the Mysterious Bookshop's Best Mystery Stories of 2023. Deeds of Darkness takes readers from war-torn Eastern Europe to gangster America and deep below the frozen seas of the Arctic Ocean. From modern tales of crime to World War II espionage to ghost stories in shadowy Odessa and murder in Ancient Rome, every flavor of suspense and adventure awaits within.

SMFS Member Publishing News: Betrayal: A Storefront Assassin Novel by Ed Teja

SMFS list member Ed Teja reported that his new book, Betrayal: A Storefront Assassin Novel is now out. Published by Float Street Press, the book is available at Amazon.

 

Amazon Description:

Tina’s best friend is in a bit of trouble.

A drug deal went south, and several people got killed, including Beryl’s boyfriend. Now she is being stalked by his biker gang—and the cops. Tina Clarke wants to help, but her only real skills are very specific—those of a professional, government-trained assassin.

Army Intelligence prefers that the assassin disappear. Someone betrayed Tina’s special ops unit, leaving her the sole survivor, kicked out on a medical discharge. Tina wants to know why. She’ll kill to find out.

Readers who enjoyed the heart-pumping action and suspense of Lee Child's Jack Reacher will love Tina Clarke—she’s less macho, more deadly.

SMFS Members Published in Tales of Fear, Superstition, and Doom

 

Several SMFS list members have short stories in the recently released anthology, Tales of Fear, Superstition, and Doom. Published by Redwood Press, the book is available in digital format at Amazon. The SMFS list members in the read are:

 

Brandon Barrows with "Please Come Out."

 

Eddie Generous with "Canis Daemonium."

 

Veronica Leigh with "Wabash Valley Devil."

 

Amazon Description:

Twenty-seven tales of horror and darkness by a diverse group of writers who conjure up demons, cults, denizens of the deep, sorcery and magic, insanity, lost technology, ghosts, ancient gods, monsters both supernatural and all too human as well as other terrors against which the only weapons are often poorly laid plans, vain hopes, and even the power of love or hate. 

A river of superstition flows through this book. Many stories run deep through its waters while others only lightly skim the surface or branch away toward other themes. If you like variety in your dark fiction then you'll enjoy this book. 

So What's Inside?

 

Thursday’s Child by Sipora Coffelt

A Daronite Fence by Ron Fein

The Art of Shui Feng by Chris Hewitt

Solitaire in a Haunted Tent by Pedro Iniguez

Of the Darkness on the Rails by John Wolf

Moonspeech by Marisca Pichette (poem)

Don’t Look Back by Sarah Sigfried

Before the EMP by Jeanne Lyet Gassman

Please Come Out by Brandon Barrows

An Auspicious Birthday by Jennifer Jeanne McArdle

The Cult of El Tio by Kurt Newton (poem)

The Forger’s Masterpiece by Mark Mellon

Blood Witch on the Khartoum Train by George S. Walker

Dryad Harvest by M. Legree

Exorcism and Other Requests by John Walters

Kiss the Child by Zach Ellenberger

The Call of Dark Water by Emmie Christie

The Knocked-Up Nun and her Peculiar Hen by Angelique Fawns

Mephistopheles by Thomas Fischer (poem)

Canis Daemonium by Eddie Generous

Needle by Lauren Jane Barnett

We Shadow Forth by Amanda Cecelia Lang

When I Start Leaving These By The Tree … by Juleigh Howard-Hobson (poem)

Shain and Cinnastasia by David Rose

Mirror Mirror by Pauline Yates

Justice Turns the Balance Scales by Elizabeth Cobbe

Wabash Valley Devil by Veronica Leigh

The Wild Hunt by Juleigh Howard-Hobson (poem)

Guardians of the Grünwald by Henry Herz

Superstition by Ann van de Bergh

Miracle Water by David Verdugo

The Skipper by Laura J. Campbell

SMFS Member Publishing News: A Woman Called Rage by Bev Vincent

Bev Vincent’s short story, A Woman Called Rage, appears in the charity anthology, The Place Where Everyone's Name is Fear. Independently published, the book is available in print format at Amazon.

 

 

Synopsis:

The Place Where Everyone’s Name is Fear is a charity anthology featuring short stories, essays and poems written by a diverse group of authors. The collection aims to raise awareness and funds for various women’s rights organizations.

Featuring Stories, Essays, and Poetry From:

Cody Sexton

Leah Mueller

Sheri White

Jennifer Iran

Mimm Paterson

Austin Davis

John Grey

Tiffany Storrs

Paula Rudnick

Isra Cheema

Dave Serrette

Sarah Park

Courtenay Schembri Gray

Sebastian Vice

Andy Gehlsen

Bev Vincent

Pedro Iniguez

Loretta S. Pedersen

George Daniel Lea

Stephen Myer

Jack Moody

D.M. Clarke

Jo Clark

Scott Cumming

Tony Garland

Barbara Genova

Brian Bowyer

Jim Towns

Karen Crawford

Joe S. Thomas

Steve Passey

Kelli Scott-Reed

Nathan Pettigrew

and

Francois Bereaud

SMFS Members Published in Cold Cases: Mystery, Crime, and Mayhem #12

Several SMFS list members are published in Cold Cases: Mystery, Crime, and Mayhem #12. Published by Knotted Road Press, the read is available in digital and print formats at Amazon. The SMFS list members in the issue are: 

 

Joslyn Chase with "Cold Hands, Warm Heart."

Diana Deverell with "Love Child."

David H. Hendrickson with "Buried Braces."

Steve Liskow with "When Lainie Was Late."

Annie Reed with "The Promise."

 

 

Synopsis:

It might be that one case that never closed, that always haunted you.

Or perhaps one that someone dumped in your lap, because new evidence has brought it back to life.

Anything.

The case remains cold. The clues molding, or non-existent.

But you still move forward, trying to find the answer.

Those who are gone deserve no less.

Cold Cases. Issue number 12 of Mystery, Crime, and Mayhem.

So Criminal, It's Good.

SMFS Member Publishing News: McGraw: The Complete Series by Eric Beetner

 
Today is publication day for McGraw: The Complete Series by Eric Beetner. Published by Rough Edges Press, the collection includes the never before published novel, Sideswipe. The read is available in digital format at Amazon.

 

Synopsis:

Meet the McGraws. They’re not criminals. They’re outlaws. They make a living by driving anything and everything for the Stanleys—a criminal family who has employed them for decades.

In Rumrunners, Tucker McGraw wants to go straight, much to the disappointment of his father, Webb. But when Webb goes missing after a job—with a truck load of drugs—and the Stanleys want their due, Tucker is forced to enlist the help of his grandfather, Calvin, the original lead-foot McGraw. In a dash to save his father, Tucker learns a whole lot about the family business in a crash course that might just get him killed.

Going back in time, Leadfoot centers on Calvin as he grooms his 19-year-old son, Webb, to uphold the family name. When a delivery goes wrong, Calvin steps knee-deep in a turf war between the Stanley’s and a rival Midwestern crime syndicate.

In Sideswipe—the never-before-published third book in the McGraw trilogy—Calvin is on the sidelines with a broken leg. But when he finds out he was a pawn in someone else’s set-up to fix a race, he makes it known that he doesn’t play that game. Webb, on the other hand, is sent on a simple job: pick up a car and drive it back. Unfortunately, the pickup goes sour, and he finds himself at risk of missing the birth of his son and losing his life.

Strap in and hold on tight. These outlaw drivers are about to take you on the ride of your life.

SMFS Members Published in Cozy Sidekicks: Mystery, Crime, and Mayhem #11

Several SMFS list members are published in the new, Cozy Sidekicks: Mystery, Crime, and Mayhem #11. Published by Knotted Road Press, the read is available in eBook at Amazon. The SMFS list members in the issue are: 

 

Joslyn Chase with “Facing the Diamond-Hard Truth.”

 

Diana Deverell with “White Nights.”

 

David H. Hendrickson with “Peanut and the Pentecostal Nun. ”

 

Michele Lang with “Satisfaction Brought Him Back”

 

Steve Liskow with “Spread it on Thick.”

 

Amazon Synopsis:

Sidekicks can play such an important part in mysteries. Where would Sherlock be without Dr. Watson? Or Nero Wolfe without Archie Goodwin?

Though the main character may not consider the sidekick an equal partner, every person is the hero of their own story.

Collected here are stories from the sidekick’s point of view. Because, after all, they might be the star of the show.

Issue 11 of Mystery, Crime, and Mayhem presents Cozy Sidekicks.

So Criminal, it’s Good.

SMFS Member Publishing News: When Harry Met Hairy by J. R. Parsons

SMFS list member J. R. Parsons has published the short story, When Harry Met Hairy, in eBook format. The read is available at Amazon. 

 

Amazon Synopsis:

Two assassins meet cute on the dark web. Will they die ugly in person?

SMFS Member Publishing News: Jeffrey James Higgins

SMFS list member Jeffrey James Higgin’s short story, The Interrogation, is now available in eBook format on Amazon.

 

Synopsis:

Hillsborough County Deputy Sheriff Alec Barnes begins his first day as a narcotics detective investigating the murders of two drug traffickers. Alec has dreamed of becoming a detective since childhood, and he is desperate to impress his senior partner, the legendary Detective Maricela Diaz. Hoping to prevent a drug war, Alec and Maricela interrogate and flip a member of a new opioid trafficking group, but it may be too late to stop the violence. Sometimes, what you don't know can kill you.

SMFS Member Publishing News: Gary Phillips

SMFS list member Gary Phillips' novellete, Snow Shorts #2: Thieves’ Alley is out now. Published by Ben Books, the read is available in eBook format at Amazon.

 

Synopsis:

Big John Salmon had built a new life for himself after being incarcerated. But now an old friend, an unrepentant thief was dying in a prison hospital in the high desert. Pulled back in by personal honor as the man’s family is under threat, Big John is recruited to carry off one last heist -- against a quirky billionaire’s fortified penthouse atop the Phan-Tan Casino under heavy guard. Yet the prize wasn’t money. Squeezed by forces known and unknown, Salmon once again walks down thieves’ alley as he puts his plan in motion. Calling on an edge forged in the fires of adversity might tip the odds in his favor to make it out alive…or wind up on the slab.

 

From the pages of the SNOW series comes a new Snow Short featuring Big John Salmon.

SMFS Member Publishing News: Bev Vincent

SMFS list member Bev Vincent’s novella, The Ogilvy Affair: A novella is now out. It is available in eBook format at Amazon.

 

Synopsis:

First came the warning note.

Then someone took a shot at Clifford Ogilvy, publisher of the Harrisville Dispatch. The would-be killer missed, but he or she will likely try again.

Enter Quentin Sawyer, a private detective from Houston who responds to Ogilvy's request for an investigator to find out who's trying to kill him. Sawyer is a fish out of water at the luxurious Ogilvy mansion and in small town Harrisville. He soon discovers that his problem isn't finding someone who has a motive to murder his powerful client. Just about everyone in town has a reason to dislike Ogilvy.

Sawyer needs to narrow down the long list of suspects before the killer tries again.

SMFS Member Publication News: O'Neil De Noux

SMFS Member O'Neil De Noux’s latest book, Walkin' The Blues: Lucien Caye Private Eye Book Five is now out. Published by Big Kiss Productions, the read is available in print and digital formats at Amazon.

Amazon Synopsis:

The cases come quickly to New Orleans Private Eye Lucien Caye in the spring of 1952 –
1. A missing person case involving deception, greed and a possible murder.
2. A nosy father wants to know about his daughter who joined the beat generation.
3. A vengeful father wants to locate the photographer who took lurid pictures of his adult daughter.
4. Men in a black Chrysler Imperial accost women on the street, leading to bloody violence.

Lucien’s new wife, the alluring Alizée, is on a roll – writing and publishing songs, modeling, becoming a PI, bringing her sharp mind and knockout-looks to the agency. It takes a cool head to be a good private eye, along with quick wits. As usual in New Orleans, gunfire echoes, leaving the innocent to mourn lost loved ones.

The Lucien Caye New Orleans Private Eye books include the short story collection NEW ORLEANS CONFIDENTIAL; and novels NEW ORLEANS RAPACIOUS; ENAMORED; HOLD ME, BABE; DAME MONEY.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Born in New Orleans, O’Neil De Noux is a prolific American writer of novels and short stories with 42 books published, over 400 short story sales and a screenplay produced in 2000. Much of De Noux’s writing is character-driven crime fiction, although he has written in many disciplines including historical fiction, children’s fiction, mainstream fiction, mystery, science-fiction, suspense, fantasy, horror, western, literary, religious, romance, humor and erotica.

Mr. De Noux is a retired police officer, a former homicide detective. His writing has garnered a number of awards including the UNITED KINGDOM SHORT STORY PRIZE, the SHAMUS AWARD (given annually by the Private Eye Writers of America to recognize outstanding achievement in private eye fiction), the DERRINGER AWARD (given annually by the Short Mystery Fiction Society to recognize excellence in short mystery fiction) and POLICE BOOK of the YEAR (awarded by PoliceWriters.com). Two of his stories have been featured in the prestigious BEST AMERICAN MYSTERY STORIES annual anthology (2003 and 2013).

O’Neil De Noux was named the 2015 Literary Artist of the Year by the St. Tammany Parish Art’s Council, St. Tammany Parish, LA. He is a past Vice-President of the Private Eye Writers of America.

SMFS Member Publication News: C. W. Blackwell

SMFS member C. W. Blackwell informed the list this morning that he appears twice in the just published Switchblade: Issue Ten. Currently, the issue is only available in digital format at Amazon. Mr. Blackwell’s short story, ‘For Love Or Money” appears in the issue as does an interview with him.

Amazon Synopsis:

Rough riders, gangsters, hitters, stick up men, boxers, and box crushers. From the west side all the way back east; featuring the bar flies, cheap motels, and day-old diner coffee in between…From the A-bomb to the B-word (Betrayal) and it’s all about Zulu Time. It’s another motley crew of unusual suspects grinding out yet another set of premium gutter noir. This is Switchblade Issue 10, and it ain’t just another black and blue issue with shades of gray. It’s full color and absolute. Featuring the criminally good fiction work of Serena Jayne, Jim Wilsky, Eddie McNamara, Beaumont Rand, Gene Breaznell, N.W. Barcus, Tim V. Decker, Christian Goss, C.W. Blackwell, Jim Towns, Brian Beatty, and Timothy Friend. And for the very first time, check out our “Person of Interest” special interview section, featuring noir author and rising star in the pulp community: C.W. Blackwell.

SMFS Member Publication News: John M. Floyd

SMFS list member John M. Floyd has a short story in the recently published anthology, What Would Elvis Think? Mississippi Stories. Published by Ink-Slingers, the book is available in both print and digital formats from Amazon. Mr. Floyd’s short story, “The Garden Club” is one of 23 tales in the 240 page book. Mr. Floyd also contributed the foreword to the book which is referenced below in the synopsis published at Amazon.

Amazon Synopsis:

From the Foreword: 
[A]ny discussion of southern writing will eventually lead to Mississippi—the state that has more published authors per capita than any other. . . . Why not, then, create an anthology of stories specifically about Mississippi? Such is the book you now hold in your hand—a collection of tales that are all set here in Elvis Country. . . . Some of these Mississippians might remind you of folks you know—and others are people you might never want to meet face to face. What they have in common is that they're all interesting—and unforgettable.
          – John Floyd, author of The Barrens

The authors: 
Jim R. Angelo, Marion Barnwell, Lottie Brent Boggan, Janet Brown, John M. Floyd, Chuck Galey, Sally P. Green, Sherye Simmons Green, Wendy Harms, Brent Hearn, Charlotte Hudson, Daney Kepple, JP Luby, Chuck McIntosh, Frederick Charles Melancon, Melanie Noto, Linda Raiteri, Nicolas Smith, Kyle Summerall, Stephanie Swindle Thomas, Janet Taylor-Perry, Diane Thomas-Plunk, and Judy H. Tucker

SMFS Member Publication News: Barry Ergang

SMFS list member Barry Ergang’s latest book is a book of poetry titled, FARRAGO: Poems of Light and Dark. The book is available in print and digital formats from Amazon.

Synopsis:

Prefer your poetry accessible rather than impenetrable? You've come to the right book! FARRAGO contains a hodgepodge of accessible poems, both light and humorous as well as dark and serious, rhymed and unrhymed, formal and free, most of which won't require you to be the poet's psychologist or a mind-reader, or have a Ph.D in Literature to understand. Included are parodies of "Jabberwocky" and "Prufrock"--the latter slightly bawdy--a comic poem about a rabbit in the meter of Poe's "The Raven," as well as more serious works, among which are tributes to Raymond Chandler and others.

SMFS Member Publishing News: Hilary Davidson

As posted by Hilary Davidson to our list…

Hi, everyone! Many of you know me primarily as a short-story writer, but I write novels, too, and I'm excited to share the news that my latest book, ONE SMALL SACRIFICE, is an Amazon First Reads pick for May 2019. If you have Prime membership, you can get the book for *free* right now. (If you don't, it's $1.99 for the eBook or $9.99 for the hardcover this month.) Here's a link if you'd link to take a look:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GR4NWFQ/ref=kf_lp_dk_eb_0

ONE SMALL SACRIFICE is my fifth novel, and it's the start of a new series. A little bit about it:

An apparent suicide. A mysterious disappearance. Did one man get away with murder—twice? 

NYPD detective Sheryn Sterling has had her eye on Alex Traynor ever since his friend Cori fell to her death under suspicious circumstances a year ago. Cori’s death was ruled a suicide, but Sheryn thinks Alex—a wartime photojournalist suffering from PTSD—got away with murder. When Alex’s fiancée, Emily, a talented and beloved local doctor, suddenly goes missing, Sheryn suspects that Alex is again at the center of a disturbing case. Sheryn dislikes loose ends, and Cori’s death had way too many of them. But as Sheryn starts pulling at the threads in this web, her whole theory unravels. Everyone involved remembers the night Cori died differently—and the truth about her death could be the key to solving Emily’s disappearance.

All the best,

Hilary Davidson

http://www.hilarydavidson.com._,_.___

SMFS Member Publishing News: Chapin Wright

SMFS list member Chapin Wright has a long short story titled Wolf At The Door. The 55 page read is available at Amazon in digital format only. Mr. Wright is new to our SMFS list and writes from New Jersey where he is a semi-retired journalist who also teaches part time.

Amazon Synopsis:

Something really bad happened to Harvey Nash. He wound up a human briquet, handcuffed to the steering wheel inside the burnt shell of a Hummer on the lot of his dealership, which was covered with eco-terrorist graffiti. Buckminster Green, former ATF investigator from New Jersey, now small-town detective in Northern California, catches the case. But first he has to find out if his estranged, activist daughter was involved and track down a missing kid before he becomes the next victim

SMFS Member Publishing News: Nik Morton

SMFS list member Nik Morton has a short story out in the recently published book, The Untamed West. Published by the Western Fictioneers and home of the “Peacemaker Awards” which are awarded annually, the book is available from Amazon in print and digital formats as well as from other vendors.  Mr. Morton’s short story is “Preacher.”

Amazon Synopsis:

A collection of twenty-nine tales of the Old West featuring previously unpublished stories by such classic Western writers as James Reasoner, Douglas Hirt, McKendree Long, and Michael R. Ritt. Edited by award winning author, L. J. Washburn. Western Fictioneers is the only writers’ organization devoted solely to traditional Western fiction, and this huge collection will take readers from the dusty plains of Texas to the sweeping vistas of Montana and beyond.

Western Fictioneers was founded in 2010 to promote the oldest genuine American art form, the Western story. Its worldwide membership includes best-selling, award-winning authors of Western fiction, as well as the brightest up-and-coming new stars in the Western field. The organization*s third anthology features original stories by Big Jim Williams, Easy Jackson, Jeffrey J. Mariotte, McKendree Long, Michael R. Ritt, S. D. Parker, James Reasoner, J. L. Guin, J.E.S. Hays, James J. Griffin, Jesse J Elliot, Ben Goheen, Barbara Shepherd, Nik Morton, S. L. Matthews, James Clay, Keith Souter, Tom Rizzo, Matthew P. Mayo, Dorothy A. Bell, L.J. Washburn, Angela Raines, Gordon L. Rottman, Charlie Steel, Douglas Hirt, Dennis Doty, and Cheryl Pierson.

THE UNTAMED WEST is more than 150,000 words of action packed classic Western fiction.

SMFS Member Publication News: O'Neil De Noux

SMFS list member O'Neil De Noux’s latest book, Howls In the Night is now out. The book is the second in his Jacques Dugas Mysteries series. The “steampunk thriller” is available in print and hardback formats at Amazon.

Amazon Synopsis:

A New Orleans historical mystery steampunk thriller set in 1900.

Howls reverberate off lacework balconies along fog-shrouded streets of the old quarter as New Orleans Police detectives search for missing men. The howling continues as the mutilated bodies of the missing are discovered. At night, terrorized people huddle behind barred doors in the French Quarter. The superstitious think the killer is a werewolf.

Is the work of this maniac connected to the sudden, nearly uncontrollable lust overwhelming several pretty women involved in the case, including Detective Jacques Dugas’s darling Evelyn? A deadly game of sex and violence plays out as police search for a gruesome murderer.

NOPD must work in the unfriendly Old French Quarter, now an Italian enclave. Sicilians and Napolitanos and other Italians distrust the police even when the police work in their interest. It does not help that NOPD is predominately Irish. French-American Detective Jacques Dugas, an exception and an exceptional detective leads the investigation as the bodies are discovered.

Two women are quickly involved in the drama, both Corsican-American. Donatella Saliceti is found lying unconscious on the banquette (sidewalk in New Orleans) on the evening of one of the murders. She is somehow connected to this but her connection is illusive. The other woman is Evelyn Dominici, Dugas’s lover, a beautiful, intelligent woman, living in an uptown mansion on Audubon Park. Her bright mind immediately questions if the mutilation are cannibalistic.

When the howling comes to Audubon Park, Dugas chases what many believe to be a werewolf preying on New Orleanians. How can ordinary police battle the supernatural? Could these killings be a sacrifice to the psychopompos – the ‘spirit who escorts newly deceased to the afterlife?

This book follows THE FRENCH DETECTIVE in the series.

In 1900, the crumbling French Quarter is an enclave of immigrants, primarily Sicilian. Early one July evening, four year old Luigi Bova is lured from in front of his house by the promise of ice-cream by a man who tosses Luigi into the back of a passing wagon. A frantic search ensues but Sicilians are reluctant to call the New Orleans Police Department populated by mostly Irishmen. Detective Jacques Dugas, taking a short cut through the Quarter, comes upon a street full of people looking for the missing boy and takes command of the situation.

An immediate search for the boy fails to locate Luigi or any leads and Det. Dugas begins a long, painstaking investigation among people who had no use for the police, people who speak a different language, people with their own way of dealing with crime. Assaulted from all sides, Dugas assembles a team of detectives, street cops, reluctant-but-sympathetic Italians and a strikingly-pretty woman, part Corsican, part English, who happens to be an expert linguist with a gift of getting Sicilians to talk. They are soon pitted against formidable villains including a crime boss known as il Maiale (the hog) and a terrifying henchman whose skeletal visage and cold black eyes have earned him the nickname il Cadavere (the cadaver).

From the crowded French Quarter, across sprawling turn-of-the-century New Orleans, to the wilds of Algiers across the river, detectives follow false lead after false lead, as bogus ransom notes arrive almost daily, until Dugas finds a street urchin, another little boy who saw who took Luigi. With the blood-feud between Irish and Italians ready to rekindle – ten years earlier the first NOPD chief of police was murdered by the Mafia – with growing unrest in the black community as the south begins to implement the hated Jim Crow Laws – with few allies – it takes an American with a French surname to remained focused on one mission. Find Luigi Bova.