This Wicked World A Novel

Former marine and ex-con Jimmy Boone is tending bar on Hollywood Boulevard , keeping his nose clean until he figures out his next move. But when he agrees to back up a buddy and look into a young man's mysterious death, he is soon neck-deep in trouble again. As Boone learns more about this innocent who got involved with the wrong people, his investigation becomes a mission. Along the dangerous margins of Los Angeles , he encounters a homesick drug dealer, a stripper out for revenge, a dog-fighting ring, a beautiful ex-cop, a vicious crime boss and his crew, and a fortune in counterfeit bills. THIS WICKED WORLDis a knock-out blend of superb writing and straight-to-the-gut storytelling that grabs you by the collar and makes it impossible to stop reading.

Richard Lange is the author of the highly acclaimed story collection, Dead Boys, which received the Rosenthal Family Foundation Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. His fiction has appeared in StoryQuarterly, The Sun, The Iowa Review, and Best American Mystery Stories 2004. He lives in Los Angeles. This is his first novel.