The Dead Run: A Novel

With thrilling chills and crackling suspense, The Dead Run is an edgy novel set in the netherworld of the Mexican-American border from Adam Mansbach, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Go the F**ck to Sleep and Rage Is Back.
 
On both sides of the border, girls are going missing and bodies are beginning to surface. It’s a deadly epidemic of crime that plunges a small-town police chief into a monster of an investigation he's not equipped to handle. An ancient evil has returned, and now everyone—the innocent and the guilty—must face their deepest terrors.

With The Dead Run Adam Mansbach delivers an eerie high-concept thriller, mixing horror, the supernatural, and suspense in a chilling, high-octane read.

Adam Mansbach, the acclaimed #1 New York Times bestselling author of Go the F**k to Sleep, delivers an electrifying and horrifying action-adventure

Wrongfully imprisoned in a Mexican jail, outlaw-with-a-conscience Jess Galvan accepts a devil's bargain: transport a sinister package across the border for the jail's mythical—and terrifying—bogeyman El Cucuy. If Jess can survive and deliver the iron box in twenty-four hours, he will be free.

But as Jess navigates the deadly desert, girls go missing and bodies begin to surface—an epidemic of crime that plunges small-town sheriff Bob Nichols into a monstrous investigation. For an ancient evil has awoken in the wastelands and quickly epic myth and human malice threaten the end of the world.

Praise for Adam Mansbach: “Mansbach has a talent for writing full, memorable characters that seem untidy and complex. The prose crackles with insight.” - San Francisco Chronicle

“One of the most ambitious, insightful, and daring writers of our generation.” - Jeff Chang

“Exquisite. Mansbach’s characters are sharply drawn.” - New York Times Book Review

“Beautiful, funny, heartbreaking . . .Very few writers could have attempted all this. Adam Mansbach succeeds, brilliantly.” - Boston Globe

“Nothing has driven home a certain truth about my generation quite like this.” - New Yorker

“Total genius.” - Jonathan Lethem

“Starts its supernatural action at full throttle and never lets up until its apocalyptic finale. ... Told in a hard-boiled but slyly humorous style, The Dead Run delights in boxing its characters into seemingly inescapable predicaments and then blasting them through to the next cliffhanger. ... Horror enthusiasts will want to hunt down The Dead Run.” - San Francisco Chronicle

“An exciting tale, an action thriller heavily infused with paranormal elements ... The narrative twists among several disparate protagonists and keeps a lot of balls in the air without losing momentum. Highly recommended for readers of supernatural action and horror ... and fans of more general action stories.” - Library Journal

“A taut and gritty adventure thriller with a supernatural element.” - Publishers Weekly

“Although violent, The Dead Run is first-rate entertainment based on a fascinating cultural mashup.” - Seattle Post-Intelligencer

“Both surreal and grounded in harsh reality, the novel is ambitiously plotted and powerfully written.” - Booklist

“Irreverent and entertaining. It’s a wild high-speed ride.” - Shelf Awareness

“One of the best thriller/horror hybrids to come along this year. ... a lean, intoxicating funhouse of a book that is difficult to put down.” - Fearnet.com