Killshot: A Novel

“[Leonard has] written so many first-rate crime stories that it would be fatuous to say Killshot is his best, but it probably is anyway.”
—Newsweek

The New York Times bestselling author the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette once called, “the Alexander the Great of crime fiction,” Elmore Leonard is responsible for creating some of the sharpest dialogue, most compelling characters (including U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens of TV’s Justified fame), and, quite simply, some of the very best suspense novels written over the past century. Killshot is prime Leonard—a riveting story of a husband and wife caught in the crossfire when they foil a criminal act and are forced to defend themselves when the legal system fails them from the murderous wrath of a pair of vengeful killers. When it comes to cops and criminals stories, Killshot and Leonard are as good as it gets—further proof why “the King Daddy of crime writers” (Seattle Times) deserves his current place among John D. MacDonald, Dashiell Hammett, James M. Cain, and the other legendary greats of the noir fiction genre.

Ironworker Wayne Colson has come to the real estate office where his wife, Carmen, works at the worst possible time: while Ojibway Indian hit man Armand Degas and loose cannon Richie Nix are there to shake down Carmen’s boss. Unable to help himself, Wayne steps into harm’s way . . . and sends the two malefactors out the door bleeding. Now the shooter-for-hire and his ex-con partner are after the Colsons and there’s little the state police and local law enforcement can do about it. The best the feds can offer is the Witness Security Program. So it’s coming down to just Wayne and Carmen—and ultimately to Carmen herself—to deal with two rough-trade misfits with murder on their minds.

“If a writer lives long enough or produces a steady output of good books, there comes a point when he or she passes beyond mere criticism. Readers grow simply grateful ...But in the case of Elmore Leonard, we don’t have to settle for mere gratitude. We can rejoice.” - Michael Dirda, Washington Post

“America’s greatest crime writer.” - Newsweek

“Whatever you call his novels, they always read like Elmore Leonard, distinctive in style and vision, brilliantly inventive in plot and characters.” - Los Angeles Times

“Elmore Leonard . . . has been imitated by many but remains the original.” - Wall Street Journal