Reed Farrel Coleman, former Executive Vice President of Mystery Writers of America, was Brooklyn born and raised. He is the author of ten novels in three series published under his name and his pen name Tony Spinosa. His sixth novel, The James Deans, won the Shamus, Barry, and Anthony Awards. The novel was further nominated for the Edgar, Macavity, and Gumshoe Awards. Reed is also a published poet, and for several years was a co-editor of the journal Poetry Bone. He was the editor of the short story anthology Hard-boiled Brooklyn. His short stories and essays appear in Wall Street Noir, Mystery Readers Journal, Damn Near Dead, Brooklyn Noir 3, Expletive Deleted, These Guns for Hire, Crime Spree Magazine and several other publications. He lives with his wife and teenage children on New York's Long Island.
An Inconvenient Wife (2024) Karen E Olson "Step aside Gone Girl, An Inconvenient Wife is the new sheriff in town. Everything old is new again. Olson not only proves it; she improves it."
Sweet Thing (2023) David Swinson "As detective and author, Swinson is the genuine article. Sweet Thing is a gritty, heartbreaking exploration of how the streets and the system chew people up and spit them out; some alive, others not, no one unchanged."
Cruz (2022) Nicolás Ferraro "Ferraro's Cruz is like an exquisitely crafted blade, beautiful to the eye but deadly effective."
Assassin's Lullaby (2022) Mark Rubinstein "Jam-packed with crosses, double-crosses, murders fair and foul, Assassin's Lullaby is anything but sleep inducing. An edge-of-your-seat thriller stretching from Israel to Russia to Brighton Beach, Brooklyn, it is a novel both grand in scale and incredibly intimate."
Pignon Scorbion & the Barbershop Detectives (2022) (Pignon Scorbion, book 1) Rick Bleiweiss "Bleiweiss's novel is a worthy addition in the tradition of Conan Doyle and Christie. Holmes and Poirot, please make room for Pignon Scorbion."
The Yards (2021) (Delia Mariola, book 1) A F Carter "A F Carter spins a riveting, must read tale of suspense, murder and retribution."
Tower of Babel (2021) (Queens Mystery, book 1) Michael Sears "Sears's Tower of Babel is a fascinating bit of alchemy brewed of real estate, money, murder and betrayal."
The Vow (2020) (Black Lotus , book 2) K'wan "From page one to the last, K'wan's Black Lotus 2: The Vow is a high-wire act with no net. A smart refiguring of hard-boiled with a nitro injection of new-age sensibilities."
Dead West (2020) (Nils Shapiro, book 4) Matt Goldman "A twisty, unfailingly entertaining trapdoor of a novel."
The Patient (2020) Jasper DeWitt "The Patient is a fascinating and frightening read that comes at you like the monster under your bed."
Chasing Jack (2020) Parnell Hall "Parnell Hall, a master of the genre, is on fire in Chasing Jack, a bloody, twisty tale set in the tabloid world of night time Manhattan. Required reading for mystery fans."
That Left Turn at Albuquerque (2020) Scott Phillips "In That Left Turn at Albuquerque, Phillips displays a master alchemist's touch. No one blends the elements of happenstance, malevolence, unintended consequences, irony and humor into crime fiction magic like Phillips. No one!"
Monkey Justice (2019) Patricia Abbott "Patricia Abbott shows a rare and quiet mastery of the form. Any one of the stories is worth the price of admission."
The Last Act (2019) (Last Act, book 1) Brad Parks "With The Last Act, Parks conjures meth, murder, and musical theater into a remarkable turn of crime fiction magic."
The Good Detective (2019) (Detective P.T. Marsh, book 1) John McMahon "In The Good Detective McMahon skillfully blends the old and the new and weaves it into spun gold."
Yesterday's News (2018) (Clare Carlson Mystery, book 1) R G Belsky "Belsky's Yesterday's News elicits all parents' deepest fear--the disappearance of a child. But this intelligent, gripping novel is about so much more: ambition, secrets, and, most shocking of all, truth. Read it."
The Lonely Witness (2018) William Boyle "The Lonely Witness is a map of Brooklyn’s genome. Amy Falconetti is that rarest of noir characters, a woman redeemed and a redeemer. Walking in her shoes for only a few blocks is worth the price of admission."
Flight of the Fox (2018) (Sam Teagarden, book 1) Gray Basnight "Basnight’s novel does double duty. It’s both a fast-paced and furious thriller and a thought provoking commentary on a government gone wild. Read it."
A Cold Day in Hell (2018) (Cold Case Investigation, book 1) Lissa Marie Redmond "A Cold Day in Hell is a fine first novel and Lauren Riley is cool new addition to the world of PI and cop protagonists. A retired detective, Lissa Marie Redmond gives it to the reader without the sugarcoating and lifts the veil off how the system really works...or doesn't."
A Map of the Dark (2018) (Searchers , book 1) Karen Ellis "A taut, tense, exciting read with a sharp and very human protagonist."
Beacon Hill (2017) (Jim Grant Thriller, book 5) Colin Campbell "A cop with a sharp eye. keen mind, and a lion's heart."
Give Up the Dead (2017) (Jay Porter, book 3) Joe Clifford "Joe Clifford is an underground star. Give Up The Dead should finally expose his star to the light. Jay Porter is a hard-bitten and hard-boiled loner who manages to make you root for him and all the world's underdogs."
Proving Ground (2017) (Lourdes Robles, book 1) Peter Blauner "Proving Ground is a startlingly powerful tale of lost lives and lost souls with a crackling crime drama at its core."
Splice (2016) (Finn Teller Corporate Spy, book 4) Twist Phelan "Phelan works her magic; a must-read mystery."
Brain Storm (2016) (Angela Richman, Death Investigator, book 1) Elaine Viets "In Brain Storm, Elaine Viets takes a dangerous turn down a dark alley but manages it with panache and a touch of humor. Angela Marie Richman is a kick-ass protagonist who is victimized by the thing we all fear most—our own mortality. This is territory Viets knows well, and she does a nice job of showing the readers the terrain, all while entertaining them."
Death on the High Lonesome (2015) (Sheriff Virgil Dalton Mystery, book 2) Frank Hayes "Virgil Dalton is the kind of character that comes along maybe once a decade."
Bull Mountain (2015) (Bull Mountain, book 1) Brian Panowich "Bull Mountain is a stunningly polished debut novel. Panowich s tale of family, of land, of crimes large and small, of right and wrong, is so vivid that the reader can almost see the blood in the soil and smell the violence on the wind."
Absolute Zero Cool (2011) Declan Burke "Stop waiting for Godot - he's here. Declan Burke takes the existential dilemma of characters writing themselves and turns it on its ear, and then some. He gives it body and soul; an Irish soul."
The Dead Detective (2010) (Dead Detective , book 1) William Heffernan "The Dead Detective breathes new life into the classic police drama. Jam-packed with strong characters and a powerful plot, this is as fine a book of its genre as I've read in decades."
Death on a Budget (2010) (Emerson Ward, book 6) Michael W Sherer "The budget may have been tight, but Michael W. Sherer cuts no corners with Death on a Budget. Buy this book. It's worth every penny."
More recommendations
Books containing stories by Reed Farrel Coleman
Back in Black (2024) An Anthology of New Mystery Short Stories (Music and Murder Mystery) edited by Don Bruns
Hotel California (2022) An Anthology of New Mystery Short Stories (Music and Murder Mystery) edited by Don Bruns
(b.1956)
