Crime drama
Explore the best crime drama books, from classic noir to gritty thrillers. Discover curated picks by Chester Himes, Barry Eisler, and more.
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The Malice of Unnatural Death
by Michael Jecks
1324: The English kingdom is in uproar. Roger Mortimer, once the King's most able commander, but now his most hated enemy, is plotting to assassinate the King. But he's not the only one with murder on his mind... When the bodies of a local craftsman and the King's messenger are found in the city of Exeter's streets, Sir Baldwin de Furnshill, the Keeper of the King's Peace and his friend Bailiff Simon Puttock, are implored by the Bishop to find out who was responsible. The dead messenger was carrying a dangerous secret that may prove fatal, should it fall into the wrong hands. Baldwin and Simon must find the murderer before he can strike again. But when murderers can use magic, no one is safe...
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5 Shots
by Jemir Johnson
What you do in the dark is your business ... keeping it there is hers. Jay Nova is a private eye ... a "fixer" ... the right one to call at the wrong time. Armed with a semi automatic and mind reading abilities she goes where others won't, to do what they can't ... if the money;s right. But when jobs get nastier and clients with things to hide plot her death, she'll need more than a strong hustle and good aim to make it through. 5 Shots - a graphic novel collection about crime, murder and a mind reader caught in the middle - shows what happens when violence isn't the best answer ... but the only one
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Whoreson
by Donald Goines
The gripping story of Whoreson James, the son of a beautiful black prostitute and an unknown john. Corrupted by the violent Ghetto world, at the age of sixteen he is a fully fledged pimp: cold blooded and ruthless. A startling insight into the mean streets of the tough inner city by America's number one author of the genre.
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Three Shirt Deal
by Stephen J. Cannell
LAPD detective Shane Scully fights to save a man railroaded for murder, while he struggles to save his marriage.
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Crime Novels
by Robert Polito
This adventurous volume, with its companion devoted to the 1930s and 40s, presents a rich vein of modern American writing too often neglected in mainstream literary histories. Evolving out of the terse and violent hardboiled style of the pulp magazines, noir fiction expanded over the decades into a varied and innovative body of writing. Tapping deep roots in the American literary imagination, the novels in this volume explore themes of crime, guilt, deception, obsessive passion, murder, and the disintegrating psyche. With visionary and often subversive force, they create a dark and violent mythology out of the most commonplace elements of modern life. The raw power of their vernacular style has profoundly influenced contemporary American culture and writing. Far from formulaic, they are ambitious works which bend the rules of genre fiction to their often experimental purposes.
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A Rage in Harlem
by Chester Himes
For the love of fine and wily Imabelle, hapless Jackson loses his life savings to a con man who knows the secret of turning ten-dollar bills into hundreds and steals from his boss, only to lose the stolen money at a crap table. Luckily for him, Jackson has a savvy twin brother, Goldy, who, disguised as a Sister of Mercy, earns a living by selling tickets to Heaven in Harlem. Now for the big payback...
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The Real Cool Killers
by Chester Himes
Many people had reasons for killing Galen, a big Greek with too much money and too great a liking for young black girls. But there are complications--like a drug addict, a disappearing suspect, and the fact that Coffin Ed's daughter is up to her neck in the whole explosive business.
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Requiem for an Assassin
by Barry Eisler
Blackmailed by a rogue CIA operative to carry out three assassinations or see his best friend murdered, reluctant killer-for-hire John Rain struggles with numerous moral dilemmas as well as his growing certainty that the operative is hiding a more sinister agenda. 125,000 first printing.
