George P Pelecanos

After returning home from serving in Iraq, Spero Lucas makes a living doing special investigations for a defense attorney and catches the attention of a high-profile crime boss who offers Lucas a high paying job he cannot refuse.

Michael Hudson spends the long days in prison devouring books given to him by the prison's librarian, a young woman named Anna who develops a soft spot for her best student. Anna keeps passing Michael books until one day he disappears, suddenly released after a private detective manipulated a witness in Michael's trial. Outside, Michael encounters a Washington, D.C. that has changed a lot during his time locked up. Once shady storefronts are now trendy...

"Washington, D.C., 1972. Derek Strange has left the police department and set up shop as a private investigator. His former partner, Frank "Hound Dog" Vaughn, is still on the force. When a young woman comes to Strange asking for his help recovering a cheap ring she claims has sentimental value, the case leads him onto Vaughn's turf, where a local drug addict's been murdered, shot point-blank in his apartment. Soon both men are on the trail of a ruthless...

Fresh from an eight-year stint in jail for selling narcotics, Lorenzo Brown is happy to have his freedom and a good job protecting dogs for the Humane Society. His parole officer, Rachel Lopez, relieves her everyday frustrations by cruising hotel bars and luring strangers to her bed. When a neighborhood turf war flares up, Lorenzo struggles to keep his hands clean. Now more than ever, he need's Rachel's help. But with her life crumbling around her,...

Several restaurant workers are murdered by a robber, whose brother is killed by police during the chaotic event. As everyone struggles to heal after the incident, the gunman is determined to kill everyone involved in his brother's death.

Derek Strange is a rookie cop, the job he's dreamed of since he was a boy. His brother, Dennis, has not been as fortunate; home from the service with a disability pension and zero prospects, he is a man with good intentions but bad habits. Derek has always looked out for Dennis, but no amount of brotherly love can save him from the dangerous world of Alvin Jones, a local bottom-feeder, hustler, and stone killer who draws him into his web of violence.While...

"Four blistering novellas, drawn together by themes of strife, violence, and humanity, from esteemed crime fiction writers, George Pelecanos" --Provided by Publisher. "When the son of the Carusos is involved in a hold up, the family home comes under siege in the form of a no-knock warrant. Months after the cops destroyed their home, the Carusos struggle to return to normal. Elsewhere, two former inmates reunite by chance on the set of a TV production....