Good Man Gone Bad: An Aaron Gunner Mystery

Description: In the seventh of the acclaimed Aaron Gunner mysteries, Gunner's work as an L.A. private investigator hits far too close to home when his beloved cousin is involved in a murder-suicide. Angry and grief-stricken, Gunner digs deep to find out what really happened, while he's also working for a defense attorney to try to clear the name of a young Afghanistan war veteran who may have been wrongly accused of murder. Gunner grapples with loss, distrust, and a passion for the truth in this gripping story that pushes him to the edge.

Brief description: Gar Anthony Haywood is the Shamus and Anthony award-winning author of twelve crime novels, including the Aaron Gunner private eye series and Joe and Dottie Loudermilk mysteries. His short fiction has been included in the Best American Mystery Stories anthologies, and Booklist has called him "a writer who has always belonged in the upper echelon of American crime fiction." Haywood has written for network television and both the New York and Los Angeles Times.

Review Quotes: "Good Man Gone Bad is Gar Anthony Haywood's best work yet, keeping a tight focus on Aaron Gunner and his exploration of his city and the meaning of justice. More than a mystery, this book is a mirror held up to society and the world."
--Michael Connelly, New York Times-bestselling author of the Harry Bosch novels

"Mr. Haywood--this is his seventh and best novel yet to feature Gunner--is a gifted writer with a flair for description.... The two dissimilar cases confronting Gunner test the detective's confidence to the fullest. He sees himself, at his most insecure, as "a black pretend-cop working from the back of the Watts barbershop." But an abundance of tenacity, courage and resourcefulness proves a lot more valuable to Gunner and his fortunate clients than a fancy office."
-- Tom Nolan for Wall Street Journal "Good Man Gone Bad is Haywood in peak form, a classic hard-boiled mystery full of sly humor and street wisdom--but also a surprisingly tender treatise on masculinity and the futility of violence. A page-turner as engaging as it is deep."
-- Attica Locke, author of Bluebird, Bluebird, Heaven, My Home, and The Cutting Season

"Good Man Gone Bad is bracing, heart-wrenching fiction from Haywood, and the best in his Aaron Gunner series to date. Gunner is by now part of LA's contemporary noir canon--cynical, compassionate, and tireless in his pursuit of stubborn truths. Hip and raw. Don't miss it."
-- T. Jefferson Parker, New York Times-bestselling author of The Last Good Guy

Praise for the Aaron Gunner Novels

"The fresh dialogue, raffish atmosphere and boldly drawn characters leave little doubt as to why Haywood's mysteries are fast becoming hard-boiled classics."
-- Entertainment Weekly (Page-Turner of the Week)

"Gunner yanks the sheet off the American nightmare of race, politics, and murder, L.A. style."
-- Acclaimed film director Spike Lee

"Like the first six books in the Aaron Gunner series, this dark, brooding tale will remind readers of classic Southern California crime novelists Philip Marlowe and Ross Macdonald. Haywood's tight, no-frills prose is outstanding, and he does a fine job of developing the characters who inhabit Gunner's poor side of town."
-- Associated Press

"...solidly plotted seventh outing for the African-American L.A. PI... a pleasure to read... Hopefully, Gunner will be back soon."
-- Publishers Weekly

"A masterful mystery writer."
-- Chicago Tribune

"Aaron Gunner is back! And Los Angeles needs him now, more than ever. Good Man Gone Bad peels away the lies we tell each other to avoid our painful inner truths--the most powerful kind of detective story."
-- Naomi Hirahara, Edgar Award-winning author of the Mas Arai mysteries