New Releases by Elmore Leonard

Pagan Babies is classic crime fiction from the master of suspense, New York Times bestselling author Elmore Leonard. Father Terry Dunn thought he''d seen everything on the mean streets of Detroit, but that was before he went on a little retreat to Rwanda to evade a tax-fraud indictment. Now the whiskey-drinking, Nine Inch Nails T-shirt-wearing padre is back trying to hustle up a score to help the little orphans of Rwanda. But the fund-raising gets complicated when a former tattletale cohort pops up on Terry''s tail. And then there''s the lovely Debbie Dewey. A freshly sprung ex-con turned stand-up comic, Debbie needs some fast cash, too, to settle an old score. Now they''re in together for a bigger payoff than either could finagle alone. After all, it makes sense...unless Father Terry is working a con of his own.

“Splendid…entirely engrossing.” —Los Angeles Times “First-rate…an excellent thriller…well-plotted and smoothly written…crackles with suspense.” —Bergan Record A classic crime novel, Mr. Majestyk is vintage Elmore Leonard—an edgy, dark, fiendishly compelling tale of a quiet man making a whole lot of noise. “The best writer of crime fiction today” (USA Today)—the acclaimed author who brought the world Raylan Givens, the trigger-happy U.S. Marshal who lights up TV screens across America in the hit series Justified—Leonard makes a big noise himself with this timeless noir tale of personal justice and brutal vengeance. When a war veteran Arizona farmer loses everything, ruined by the local mob, he decides to fight back in this masterful crime fiction thriller—early proof that Leonard not only belongs in the company of John D. MacDonald, Dashiell Hammett, James M. Cain, Robert B. Parker and the other great names in American mystery and suspense…he is, in fact, “The King Daddy of crime writers” (Seattle Times).

“Cat Chaser is just what one would expect from Elmore Leonard—quirky, peopled with oddball characters…and more twists and turns than a roller coaster.” —Cleveland Plain Dealer “A superior example of gritty writing and violent action.” —New York Times There are numerous reasons why Grand Master Elmore Leonard is considered “the coolest, hottest thriller writer in America” (Chicago Tribune) and “the greatest crime writer of our time, perhaps ever” (New York Times Book Review). Cat Chaser is one of them. A gripping, lightning-paced tale of an ex-soldier-turned Florida motel owner whose dangerous affair with the mistress of a Dominican general in exile—a former death squad leader—threatens to have lethal consequences…especially when drugs, double-cross, and murderous mob thugs are added into the mix. A classic thriller from crime fiction master who first brought us U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens, currently of TV’s Justified, Cat Chaser proves once more that when the true greats of mystery and suspense are mentioned—John D. MacDonald, Dashiell Hammett, James M. Cain, Robert Parker, et al—Elmore Leonard tops the list.

The New York Times-bestselling Grand Master of suspense deftly displays the other side of his genius, with seven classic western tales of destiny and fatal decision . . . and trust as essential to survival as it is hard-earned. Trust was rare and precious in the wide-open towns that sprung up like weeds on America''s frontier—with hustlers and hucksters arriving in droves by horse, coach, wagon, and rail, and gunmen working both sides of the law, all too eager to end a man''s life with a well-placed bullet. In these classic tales that span more than five decades—including the first story he ever published, “The Trail of the Apache”—Elmore Leonard once again demonstrates the superb talent for language and gripping narrative that have made him one of the most acclaimed and influential writers of our time.

Legendary New York Times bestselling author Elmore Leonard returns with three of his favorite characters: Jack Foley from Out of Sight, Cundo Rey from LaBrava, and Dawn Navarro from Riding the Rap. Fresh out of prison, Foley hooks up with Dawn Navarro, the common-law wife of Foley''s extremely wealthy friend, Cundo Rey, in a plan to relieve Cundo of his fortune. What''s "trust" among friends when money is involved?

“Hilarious….Strange and risky….A right-on, pitch perfect novel, with wide social scope, comic genius, page-burning storytelling magic, and juicy characters who wrench your heart and gut.” —Washington Post Book World A character so outrageous he could only have come from the ingenious imagination of Elmore Leonard, lewd, lecherous, law-bending Florida jurist Judge Robert “Maximum Bob” Gibbs has been judged guilty by a grudge-bearing malefactor and sentenced to death—by alligator, if necessary. Maximum Bob is a delightfully dark classic thriller from “the greatest crime writer of our time, perhaps ever” (New York Times Book Review), and any reader who loved getting gleefully lost in criminal mayhem of Get Shorty, Rum Punch, Out of Sight, The Hot Kid, or any number of the inimitable Leonard’s numerous crime fiction masterworks will get maximum enjoyment out of this one.

“A wild ride through Cuba during the Spanish-American War.” —Miami Herald “Not only his finest novel but one that transcends the limits of its genre and is worthy of being evaluated as literary fiction.” —Houston Chronicle Before Grand Master Elmore Leonard earned his well-deserved reputation as “the best writer of crime fiction alive” (Newsweek), he penned some of the finest western fiction to ever appear in print. (The classics Hombre, Valdez is Coming, and 3:10 to Yuma were just a few of his notable works.) With his extraordinary Cuba Libre, Leonard ingeniously combines all of his many talents and delivers a historical adventure/caper/western/noir like none other. The creator of U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens, star of Raylan, Pronto, Riding the Rap, and TV’s Justified, spins a gloriously exciting yarn about an American horse wrangler who escapes a date with a Cuban firing squad to join forces with a powerful sugar baron’s lady looking to make waves and score big in and around Spanish-American War-torn Havana in 1898. Everything you love about Leonard’s fiction—and more—is evident in Cuba Libre. No wonder the New York Times Book Review enthusiastically declared him “a literary genius.”

"These are the rules I''ve picked up along the way to help me remain invisible when I''m writing a book, to help me show rather than tell what''s taking place in the story." And so begins Elmore Leonard''s 10 Rules of Writing, a handsome, illustrated giftbook that''s a must for all writers. This special signed and numbered limited edition is destined to become a collector''s item. Gorgeous printing on the finest art book stock A beautiful cloth, foil-embossed binding, with real leather spine A full cloth slipcase Stunning 4-color marbled endpapers Satin ribbon marker And of course, the signed, numbered first page of the book making this a collector''s item for Elmore Leonard fans, and all other book lovers A beautiful book that will be the highlight of any writer''s bookshelf.

When party games involving a beautiful escort, her model roommate, lawyer Tony Paradiso, and his aide Montez Taylor go murderously wrong, Detroit detective Frank Delsa finds himself with a double homicide on his hands.

Carl Webster, the hot kid of the marshals service, works out of the Tulsa, Oklahoma, federal courthouse during the 1930s. Louly Brown loves Carl but wants the world to think she is Pretty Boy Floyd''s girlfriend. Tony Antonelli of True Detective magazine wants to write like Richard Harding Davis and wishes cute little Elodie wasn''t a whore. Jack Belmont wants to rob banks and become public enemy number one. With tommy guns, hot cars, speakeasies, cops and robbers, and a former lawman who believes in vigilante justice, all played out against the flapper period of gun molls and Prohibition, The Hot Kid is Elmore Leonard -- a true master -- at his best.

No one is more evocative of the dusty, gutsy hey-day of the American West than Elmore Leonard. And no story about a young writer struggling to launch his career ever matched its subject matter better than the tale behind Leonard''s Western oeuvre. In 1950, fresh out of college -- having written two "pointless" stories, as he describes them -- Leonard decided he needed to pick a market, a big one, which would give him a better chance to be published while he learned to write. In choosing between crime and Westerns, the latter had an irresistible pull -- Leonard loved movies set in the West. As he researched deeper into settings, Arizona in the 1880s captured his imagination: the Spanish influence, the standoffs and shootouts between Apache Indians and the U.S. cavalry ... His first dozen stories sold for 2 cents a word, for $100 each. The rest is history. This first-ever complete collection of Leonard''s thirty Western tales will thrill lovers of the genre, his die-hard fans, and everyone in between -- and makes a terrific study of the launch of a phenomenal career. From his very first story ever published -- "The Trail of the Apache" -- through five decades of classic Western tales, The Complete Western Stories of Elmore Leonard demonstrates again and again the superb talent for language and gripping narrative that has made Leonard one of the most acclaimed and influential writers of our time.

For 20 years Harry Arno''s scam was a sports book in Miami Beach. And for 20 years Harry''s been skimming the profits, shortchanging his partners. Harry''s ready to retire when the FBI sets him up in a sting. Harry runs--to the Italian Riviera, where mob enforcers and a determined U.S. Marshall lob him like a shuttlecock.

After exhausting his mom''s gravy train, gambling, debt-ridden Palm Beach playboy Warren "Chip" Ganz decides to take somebody rich hostage--with the help of a Bahamian ex-con, a psycho gardener/enforcer, and the beautiful psychic Reverend Dawn. The trouble is they choose bookmaker Harry Arno--and Harry can scam with the best.

They laughed at Roberto Valdez and then ignored him. But when a dark-skinned man was holed up in a shack with a gun, they sent the part-time town constable to deal with the problem -- and made sure he had no choice but to gun the fugitive down. Trouble was, Valdez killed an innocent man. And when he asked for justice -- and some money for the dead man''s woman -- they beat Valdez and tied him to a cross. They were still laughing when Valdez came back. And then they began to die...

Elmore Leonard once again demonstrates the superb talent for language and narrative that has made him one of the most acclaimed and influential writers in recent time through this stellar collection of short fiction that spans his career. From his very first short storyQ"The Trail of the Apache"Qthrough five decades of classic western tales, this is a must-have for fans of all ages. 0-06-072425-0$27.95 / HarperCollins Publishers

Kent Anderson * Edna Buchanan * Amanda Cross * James Crumley * Philip Friedman * James W. Hall * Ed McBain * Michael Malone * Joyce Carol Oates * Shel Silverstein * Eric van Lustbader Her toenails were bloodred, her lips were blue in Edna Buchanan''s "The Red Shoes," a riveting tale that takes us into the life of a foot fetishist who steps into the middle of a murder....What happens when a hard-nosed insurance investigator lights up a joint and sniffs out a case of arson? It''s a tale that only Elmore Leonard could tell, in "Sparks."...Elizabeth George reaches into English history in "I, Richard," as an academic obsessed by a priceless artifact plots a deadly course of seduction--only to discover that fate is the most quixotic mistress of all. From lethal spikes to fatal kisses, from mad dogs to battle-crazed Englishmen, here indeed is Murder and Obsession, in these and 12 other all-new stories from Anne Perry, Dennis Lehane, Eric van Lustbader and others. For these are the best of the best, America''s favorite writers exploring a deliciously chilling subject: obsession at its most insidious.

Pretty working-girl Jackie Burke is in a tight spot. She''s just been picked up at Palm Beach International with fifty grand and some blow stashed in her flight bag. Lucky for her, the Feds want something Jackie''s got: the inside track to Ordell Robbie, the notoriusly slick arms dealer. And they''re ready to deal--Ordell in exchange for her freedom. But Jackie''s got another ace up her sleeve. . .Enter Max Cherry, bail bondsman. Big, tough, basically decent Max is on the verge of divorce and tired of the same old grind. That''s where Jackie comes in. The fifty big ones are peanuts compared to what Ordell''s got locked away in Freeport. But when a blowsy blond blowhead and a none-too-bright ex con try to muscle in on the action, it''s time to pull and old bait and switch--where the good guys are played off against the bad guys--and where Jackie and Max hope to walk off into the Florida sunset with a hot half million in cold cash.

Ex-nun Lucy Nichols, ex-con Jack Delaney, and ex-cop and ex-con Roy Hicks attempt to steal several million dollars that was raised as aid for the Nicaraguan Contras

Beautiful and sexy Karen DiCilia plots to break out of the trap her underworld-figure husband set before he died, leaving her a Miami millionairess but with the stipulation she take no lovers