Off the Books
A Nick Forte Novel
Book Six
by Dana King
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GENRE: Hard-Boiled Private Investigator
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BOOK BLURB:
Nick Forte has lost his detective agency and makes ends meet doing background checks and other paperwork. He pays for everything else through jobs he takes for cash and without any written contract. What starts out as a simple investigation into a traffic accident exposes Forte to people who have truly lost everything and have no viable hope of reclaiming their lives. That doesn’t sit well with Forte, leading him and his friend Goose Satterwhite to take action that ends more violently than anyone expected.
“The return of Chicago private detective Nick Forte, the tough protagonist of two Shamus Award nominated novels, is well worth the wait. Nick’s latest escapade Off The Books—the first in nearly six years—will surely earn additional praise for the acclaimed series.”
~ J.L .Abramo, Shamus Award-winning author of Chasing Charlie Chan.
"Nick Forte reminds me of Robert B. Parker's Spenser: a PI with a finely tuned sense of justice who doesn't take anyone's s***. Any fan of hardboiled detective fiction is in for a helluva ride."
~ Chris Rhatigan, former publisher of All Due Respect Books
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EXCERPT THREE:
I first saw him standing under the “employees only” sign near the exit to the truck service bays. Early twenties, a little under average height, short blond hair. Caroline was unaware of him, focused as she was on a three-way text conversation with her friends Maria and Arielle.
The next time the kid caught my attention he was half as far away, standing where the food court opened into the convenience store. I only noticed him this time because I recognized him, and he was the only Love’s employee on the floor. His name was Jimmy, and he was definitely looking our direction.
I’m an old-school father with an only child. A daughter, no less. My primary purpose in life was to make sure no one messed with her. Everything else—work, food, clothing, mortgage payments, staying out of prison—comes after. Jimmy hadn’t done anything wrong, but the Dadar had activated.
All fathers think their daughters are beautiful; I had empirical evidence. If the steady stream of boys circling the periphery of her life looking for an in wasn’t enough, I once overheard another kid in the band describe her to a friend as the “archetype of virginal beauty.” (What can I say? Magnet school.)
The next time I caught sight of Jimmy he stood three feet behind Caroline, checking her out with rapt attention. I sidled over, using my best stealth technique. He never saw me coming until I leaned in close and spoke in my most quietly menacing voice. “She’s thirteen years old.”
Jimmy evaporated faster than a snowflake in a microwave..
I still got it.
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GUEST POST:
It was suggested I might want to write about my favorite things in my office, a topic that would terrify my late mother, who would consider Adrian Monk a slob..
Suffice to say, I am not a neat freak.
Creative people rarely are. We tend to set things down when we move on to – or are distracted by – something else, and there it stays until we need it again. A Facebook post a couple of weeks ago asked writers what their desks looked like. My reply: “The space directly in front of me is clear. Chaos reigns on all other sides.” This was met the general agreement by my writer friends. It’s how we roll.
Of all the crap valuable stuff in my work area, which are my favorites?
First is the window. My monitor sits directly in front of it, so I can always see a bit of the outdoors; it’s easy to shift my angle when I want more. I grew up in the country and the back of our townhouse opens onto a small wooded area. I need that greenery, and I love that deer occasionally stop by.
Next is my computer, but that’s for a purely selfish reason: I cannot imagine writing a book without one. I never would have considered being a writer back in the day when drafts were typed out over and over and over again.
I have eight dry erase boards of various sizes around the office. A couple are big enough to hang from the bookshelves and doors; some fit easily on my desk. I use them for anything that comes to mind: plotting the book, planning a trip, keeping track of day-to-day things that need to be done, and whatever else comes to mind.
And then there are the writer’s aids. These are things I’ve picked up along the way that may provide incentive, remind me of what I’m shooting for, or help to solve a problem. Here they are:
Taped to the top of my monitor where I’ll see it every time I sit down is a piece of card stock with this printed on it:
Jackie Brown at twenty-six, with no expression on his face, said that he could get some guns.
It’s the opening line of George V. Higgins’s classic The Friends of Eddie Coyle. I use it as a constant reminder of the kind of clear and concise prose I aim for.
To my immediate left, on a rack where I keep things handy – notes, research, other books - are five points from Edith Wharton that are always worth considering, even though I write nothing like Edith Wharton.
• Know your scope.
• Do less better.
• Lead with your characters.
• Dialog is where you learn most about characters.
• Create peaks and valleys.
• Have a point.
Typing this list reminded me how well I have internalized those ideas even though I do not often read them. Thanks for that.
Next to the Wharton are two quotes. The first is from Wes Anderson’s film The French Dispatch. In the movie this is advice the editor of the Dispatch gives to his writers:
Try to make it sound like you wrote it that way on purpose.
Beside that are three words spoken by Dennis Lehane:
No one cares.
Far from nihilistic, Lehane uses the phrase to keep writers from becoming paralyzed by minor changes that no one but the author will notice.
Last but far from least is a small plaque my daughter – a/k/a The Sole Heir and the inspiration for Nick Forte’s daughter Caroline – bought for me several years ago. This is the phrase I can bank on when all else fails:
If you were in my novel you’d be dead by now.
It’s just a small extra upstairs bedroom, but I spend at least a third of my life in. It suits me fine.
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AUTHOR BIO:
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Off the Books is Dana King’s sixth Nick Forte private investigator novel. Two of the earlier books (A Small Sacrifice and The Man in the Window) received Shamus Award nominations from the Private Eye Writers of America. Dana also writes the Penns River series of police procedurals set in a small Western Pennsylvania town, as well as one standalone novel, Wild Bill, which is not a Western. His short fiction appears in numerous anthologies and web sites. He is a frequent panelist at conferences and reads at Noirs at Bars from New York to North Carolina.
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CONNECT WITH DANA:
Website:
Blog - One Bite at a Time:
X:
@DanaKingAuthor
Facebook:
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AMAZON BOOK BUY LINKS:
Amazon US eBook:
Amazon US Paperback:
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GIVEAWAY INFO:
Dana will award a $20 Amazon OR Barnes and Noble Gift Card (Winner's Choice!!!) to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter during the tour.
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