James Sallis

"Fans of mysteries featuring literary figures as crime-solvers will thoroughly enjoy this series." -Booklist It's 1927, and "the Ferber season on Broadway" is about to begin. The musical adaptation of Show Boat by Oscar Hammerstein and Jerome Kern opens on December 27, and The Royal Family, her comedy of manners written with George Kaufman, opens the following night. But despite the excitement, author Edna Ferber misses both opening nights. She has...

Lew Griffin, now fifty years old, has abandoned his former career as a New Orleans private investigator for the safety of teaching. But his old life draws him back.
 
One of the very few lights from Lew Griffin’s dark and violent past has flickered out. His one-time lover, LaVerne Adams, is dead—and her daughter, Alouette, has vanished into a seamy, dead-end world of users and abusers, leaving behind a critically fragile...

"In his celebrated career, James Sallis has created some of the most finely drawn protagonists in crime fiction, all of them thoughtful observers of the human condition: Lew Griffin, the black New Orleans private investigator; retired detective John Turner; the unnamed wheelman in Drive. Dr. Lamar Hale will now join the ranks of Sallis's finest characters. In the woods outside the town of Willnot, the remains of several people have suddenly been discovered,...

James Sallis' stories about ex-cop, ex-con, and ex-psychotherapist Turner have garnered starred reviews from Booklist and Publishers Weekly. Back working as a deputy in a small Tennessee town, Turner's hands are full when the sheriff and the only other deputy are shot and the shooter escapes the county jail. Tracking the criminal to Memphis, Turner uncovers disturbing connections to organized crime.

Shortlisted for the Anthony, Nebula, Edgar, Shamus, and Gold Dagger Awards, best-selling author James Sallis is a master of the gritty crime drama. The Killer Is Dying tracks the fortunes of three men of vastly different ages, backgrounds, and ambitions. Though they never meet, a hired killer on his last job, a burned out detective, and a young boy plagued by nightmares have their lives intersect in compelling ways in the scorching metropolis of Phoenix,...

The mystery of Lew Griffin is revealed in this concluding novel of an honored series. In his old house in uptown New Orleans, Griffin is alone. His relationship with Deborah is falling apart; his son, David, had disappeared again. And Lew is directionless: he hasn't written anything in years, he no longer teaches. Now he stands in a dark room, staring out the window. Behind him, on the bed, is a body. He thinks if he doesn't speak, doesn't think about...

In New Orleans, black writer Lew Griffin searches for men who tried to kill him. He was wounded while leaving a bar in the company of a white woman. A mystery whose villains are white supremacists. By the author of Eye of the Cricket.

In New Orleans, Lew Griffin, a black freelance investigator, goes after a black sniper terrorizing the city. He successfully accomplishes his mission with the aid of a great deal of booze, some good books and the love of a whore. By the author of The Long-Legged Fly.

"In this literary biography, acclaimed poet, critic, and novelist James Sallis explores Himes's life as no other writer has attempted before. Combining the public facts with fresh interviews with the people who knew him best, including his second wife, Lesley, Sallis casts light onto the contradictions, self-interrogations, and misdirections that make Himes such an enigmatic and elusive subject." "Chester Himes: A Life is a definitive study not only...

A collection of short stories.