For his next hardboiled outing, P.I. Frank Johnson accepts the cold case homicide of 18-year-old Noel Fryer, occurring three years ago in his hometown of Pelham, Virginia. She worked at the local jewelry store and died from an apparent home invasion that turned deadly. Hank Fryer, Noel's father, becomes Frank's client. Of course, nothing is as it appears on the surface in his noirish world. Simple things become complicated, messy affairs where mayhem and violence come into play. As he probes deeper into Noel's case, Frank depends on his long-time business partner Gerald Peyton, his medical examiner wife Dreema, and his brilliant but outspoken attorney Robert Gatlin.
Critically acclaimed crime novelist James Crumley wrote of the P.I. Frank Johnson Mystery Series, "With a plot as complex as your grandmother's crocheted doilies, Mr. Lynskey creates a portrait of the rural hill country that rings as true as the clank of a Copenhagen can on a PBR can, as does his handle on guns, love, and betrayal. This novel is well worth the read and makes me want more."
#1 New York Times bestselling author James Rollins writes, "Ed Lynskey's P.I. Frank Johnson's books are as hard-bitten and hard-boiled as they come. The dialogue crackles with such sharpness that you'd swear sparks were jumping off the pages. And P.I. Frank Johnson is a character cut from the Tarantino mold: tough, wounded, conflicted, and bad-ass."