Books by Peter Leonard
Trust Me
Peter Leonard showed remarkable maturity for a first-time novelist in his debut novel Quiver. In Trust Me, he reaches for new heights as he crafts a classic noir thriller loaded with double- and triple-crosses.
The first mistake Karen Delaney made was entrusting $300,000 to her boyfriend, Samir, the head of an illegal bookmaking operation. The second was breaking up with him---because Samir holds a $300,000 grudge. A few months later, Karen sees a way to get her money back when two thieves break into her house in the middle of the night. She proposes a scheme to steal Samir’s safe, but Karen soon realizes she’s in way over her head as things begin to spin out of control.
Trust Me moves at breakneck speed through the affluent suburbs of Detroit and Chicago as Karen is pursued by O’Clair, an ex-con/ex-cop who works for Samir and wants the money for his own retirement; by Ricky, Samir’s nephew, who sees the money as a way to pay off his own escalating gambling debts; by the thieves who’ve been double-crossed; and by two ruthless hit men who view the money as their stake in the American dream.
With relentless suspense, striking characters, and plot twists that will leave you white-knuckled, Trust Me marks the continuation of a powerful new voice in crime fiction and more than delivers on the promise of Peter Leonard’s talent.
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Trust Me
The first mistake Karen Delaney made was entrusting $300,000 to her boyfriend, Samir, the head of an illegal bookmaking operation. The second was breaking up with him—because Samir holds a $300,000 grudge. A few months later, Karen sees a way to get her money back when two thieves break into her house in the middle of the night. She proposes a scheme to steal Samir’s safe. And then thingsstart to spin dangerously out of control…
Soon Karen finds herself being pursued by a ruthless cast of characters. There’s an ex-con/ex-cop who works for Samir and wants the money for his own retirement. Samir’s nephew, looking pay off his gambling debts. The house-thieves who’ve been double-crossed. And two hit men who view the cash as their stake in the American dream. Now the heat is on…and there’s no one left to trust. Karen is about to learn that some people will do anything in the name of money—at any imaginable cost.
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Trust Me
Working for his stepfathers Washington think tank from the supposed anonymous safety of his computer, Luke Dantry is suddenly kidnapped at gunpoint and left for dead deep in the woods by the home-grown, Web-based terrorists he had been investigating online.
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Quiver
by Stephanie Spinner, Peter Leonard
Kate McCall’s husband has been killed by her son, Luke, in a tragic bow-hunting accident. While Kate struggles with her loss and Luke’s surly guilt, her first love, Jack, an ex-con, comes back to Detroit, looking for redemption. Even though his past—in the form of his former “colleagues”— trails close behind…
Now, Jack must convince his partners in crime that he really did lose the heist money—and find a way to win Kate’s trust. But Jack’s return to civil society sets into motion a series of events culminating in dangerous seduction, extortion, and a high-risk confrontation with a gang of killers who don’t believe in second chances…and are dead-set at getting even. No matter what the cost.
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Quiver
by Stephanie Spinner, Peter Leonard
“Quiver is a spectacular debut….With a large cast of characters—each presented as meticulously as an Andrew Wyeth portrait—and numerous points of view, all funneling inevitably to a stunning conclusion, you will be holding your breath until the final page. Peter’s dad should be proud.”
--Otto Penzler
“A strong debut that combines a tight plot (about a deadly double-cross in the woods of Michigan) with memorable characters and dialogue—come to think of it, not unlike what Leonard’s father, Elmore Leonard, creates.”
--Seattle Times
“An outstanding debut….Leonard, the son of grandmaster mystery writer Elmore Leonard, deftly utilizes frequent flashback scenes in a tense tale that’s easily one of the best crime novels of the year.”
--East Lansing Journal
“The best parts of the novel concern the crooks, who, if not as gloriously quirky as those in Elmore Leonard’s novels, are sometimes funny and sometimes scary.”
--Washington Post
"Peter Leonard's energetic style makes one forget the name Elmore and concentrate on the Leonard....Good writing may be in his genes, but the style's all his own."
--Oline Cogdill, The South Florida Sun-Sentinel
One of the most riveting and powerful new voices in crime fiction, Peter Leonard delivers a razor-sharp debut thriller.
Kate McCall’s husband has been killed by her son, Luke, in a tragic bow-hunting accident. While Kate struggles with her son’s surly guilt, her first love, Jack, an ex-con, reappears, along with a crew of his former “colleagues.” While Jack must convince his partners in crime that he really did lose the heist money, his appearance sets into motion a series of events culminating in a life-and-death confrontation with a gang of killers.
Leonard displays remarkable maturity for a first-time novelist in both the plotting of the story and the language of his protagonists. The twists and turns of a love affair, an unrequited crush, and a kidnapping/extortion plot complement a tightly drawn, intimate cast of memorably quick and dim-witted characters.
Quiver marks the breakthrough of a new force in thriller writing---an explosive and unforgettable debut.
Praise for Quiver:
“With its clever plotting and blood-and-guts characters, Quiver will certainly put Peter Leonard on the map. This is the start of something special.”
---Michael Connelly, New York Times bestselling author of The Overlook
“Quiver's supercharged plot, rhythmic dialogue, and cool-under-pressure characters kept me reading into the night. An impressive, exciting debut from Peter Leonard.”
---George Pelecanos, New York Times bestselling author of The Night Gardener
"Quiver is a surprise and a delight, a twisty deadpan troll through some very devious neighborhoods. I welcome Peter Leonard and look forward to whatever he wants to offer next."
--- Donald Westlake
"Quiver is terrific. I have to make the corniest admission of all: Couldn't put it down."
---Mike Lupica, NY Daily News columnist
“Peter Leonard’s first novel, Quiver, amply shows that he’s the great Elmore’s son. This book is a wicked trip with the creeps and pukes that inhabit the criminal world who collide with a convincing heroine. The setting in the rural north of Michigan is unique and engaging. I salute Peter Leonard at the beginning of what will obviously be a fine career.”
---Jim Harrison, author of Returning to Earth and Legends of the Fall
"Quiver is a terrific debut. Peter Leonard has a good ear for voices, a good eye for detail, and a talent for bringing together elements that can't do anything but explode."
---Edgar Award Winner Thomas Perry, author of Silence
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Quiver
by Stephanie Spinner, Peter Leonard
Greek gods and mortals spring to life in this riveting retelling of the myth of Atalanta, the fleet-footed girl warrior who could outrun any man in ancient Greece.
Cast off and abandoned at birth, Atalanta– saved by a she-bear and raised by hunters–proves herself to be a superior archer and the fastest runner in the land. But her skills and independence anger many, including her father, the Arcadian King, who suddenly reclaims her and demands that she produce an heir to the throne. Atalanta has pledged herself to Artemis, goddess of the hunt, who has forbidden her to marry. Unwilling to break her promise, Atalanta suggests a grim compromise: she will marry the first man to beat her in a race, but everyone she defeats must die. All the while, Artemis, Apollo, Aphrodite, Eros, and Zeus himself watch–and interfere–from on high.
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Unknown Remains: A Novel
Jack McCann is a high-stakes Wall Street trader who sneaks into his office early one morning to try and clear out his things and get out of dodge; he knows he’s in trouble, deep legal trouble, a fact highlighted by the urgent phone calls from his boss. Outside his office window, Jack hears a booming sound, and then the worst thing imaginable. He works in the World Trade Center, and it is September 11, 2001.
His wife in Connecticut, Diane, is visited the next day by a grief counselor, and then the mob, where she learns her husband owes them $750,000. Their personal bank accounts have been emptied. She’s totally and utterly broke. Lost in grief and now shock, Diane soon learns her husband was not the loving spouse he appeared to be. But neither is she, owing to that Beretta she keeps tucked into her handbag.
The perfect summer read, Unknown Remains boasts an exciting crime story, inventive plot twists, and a cast of rogues, who just might be using a national tragedy to cover up their own deep transgressions and greed.
Copies
No copies available.
Unknown Remains: A Novel
Jack McCann is a high-stakes Wall Street trader who sneaks into his office early one morning to try and clear out his things and get out of dodge; he knows he’s in trouble, deep legal trouble, a fact highlighted by the urgent phone calls from his boss. Outside his office window, Jack hears a booming sound, and then the worst thing imaginable. He works in the World Trade Center, and it is September 11, 2001.
His wife in Connecticut, Diane, is visited the next day by a grief counselor, and then the mob, where she learns her husband owes them $750,000. Their personal bank accounts have been emptied. She’s totally and utterly broke. Lost in grief and now shock, Diane soon learns her husband was not the loving spouse he appeared to be. But neither is she, owing to that Beretta she keeps tucked into her handbag.
The perfect summer read, Unknown Remains boasts an exciting crime story, inventive plot twists, and a cast of rogues, who just might be using a national tragedy to cover up their own deep transgressions and greed.
Copies
No copies available.