Thanks to Reagan Arthur, Josh Kendall, Betsy Uhrig, designer Marie Mundaca, and everyone at Mulholland and Little, Brown for welcoming me into the fold. It’s a privilege to be part of your family!

Thanks also to copyeditor Erica Stahler for keeping me honest, and for saving my bacon more times than I’d care to admit.

Thanks to Chris and Katrina Holm; Josh Christie and Emily Russo at Print: A Bookstore in Portland, Maine; Paul Swydan at the Silver Unicorn Bookstore in Acton, Massachusetts; Ed Aymar; Bill Bride; Erik Arneson; Lynn Pellerito Riehl and George Riehl; Robin and Jamie Agnew at the dearly departed Aunt Agatha’s Mystery Bookstore in Ann Arbor, Michigan; Nick and Margret Petrie; Erica Ruth Neubauer; Jon and Ruth Jordan; Daniel Goldin at Boswell Books in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Mara Panich-Crouch and Chris LaTray at Fact and Fiction Books in Missoula, Montana; Jim Thomsen; and Jane and Dave Danielson at Eagle Harbor Books on beautiful Bainbridge Island, Washington.

I’m also very grateful to McKenna Jordan, Sally Woods, and John McDougall at Murder by the Book in Houston; to Michelle Turlock Isler and her husband, Tommy Isler; to Barbara Peters, Patrick Millikin, Patrick King, and everyone at the Poisoned Pen in Scottsdale, Arizona; to Jim Thane and Steve Shadow; to Meg King-Abraham, Devin Abraham, and Dennis Abraham at Once Upon a Crime in Minneapolis; to Dan and Kate Malmon, Kristi Belcamino, Lynn Cronquist, Julie and Mike McKuras, and Alex Kent; to Anne Saller at Book Carnival in Orange, California; and to the rest of you lot: all of the readers, booksellers, and friends who’ve stuck with me on this ride.

Thanks especially to Alexis May Tanner, who has my back in matters big and small, and—more importantly—has Lucy’s.

Thanks, as always, to my family—Ethan Laukkanen, Ruth Sellers, Andrew Laukkanen, Terrence Laukkanen, Laura Mustard, and Little E—for love and inspiration.

And thanks, of course, to Lucy. It was on walks together through the city that I rediscovered my love for writing, and so I owe this book to the hound, and so much more besides.

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About the Author

A former commercial fisherman and professional poker journalist, Owen Laukkanen is the author of six critically acclaimed Stevens and Windermere FBI thrillers, the nautical adventure Gale Force, and—as Owen Matthews—two highly inappropriate novels for young adults. A native of Vancouver, Canada, Laukkanen spends nearly every waking hour with his dog, Lucy, a six-year-old rescue pit bull whose hobbies include hiking, napping, and squirrels. Laukkanen and Lucy are currently at work on the second Jess Winslow–Mason Burke adventure.

owenlaukkanen.com
Instagram/Twitter: @OwenLaukkanen
Facebook/TheOwenLaukkanen

Also by Owen Laukkanen

Gale Force

Stevens & Windermere novels

The Professionals

Criminal Enterprise

Kill Fee

The Stolen Ones

The Watcher in the Wall

The Forgotten Girls